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Public Safety director warns 911 staffing shortfall as committee approves $1.02 million communications grant
Summary
Public Safety Director Glen Gosnell told the committee staffing shortages in the communications center are pushing employees to 12–16-hour shifts; the committee authorized backfilling budgeted Communications Officer positions and recognized a $1,024,514 targeted communications grant.
Glen Gosnell, Director of Public Safety, told the Washington County Public Safety Committee on Jan. 27 that the communications center is operating below minimum staffing after a retirement and recent resignations and urged immediate backfilling of budgeted Communications Officer positions.
Gosnell described the communications center as a 24/7 operation and said staff are ‘‘overworked, under paid and getting stressed out,’’ noting many employees normally work 12-hour shifts and that several are now covering 16-hour shifts. He invited committee members to tour the center, saying the workload includes monitoring seven computer screens simultaneously and answering administrative lines for local police departments.
Chairwoman Clary underscored the public-safety implications: "What is going to happen if you call 911 and no one answers? That’s where we are." The committee voted to allow Public Safety to backfill budgeted Communications Officer positions without additional committee approvals and forwarded the authorization to Personnel.
The committee also recognized a targeted communications grant for $1,024,514 for Public Safety in the 2026 budget and forwarded that recognition to Finance. Gosnell said staff anticipate another grant that would raise Public Safety’s total grant awards to more than $15 million.
Project updates included a planned March 10 go-live date for a new CAD system that will deliver real-time updates to apparatus and an EMS operations update reporting 68 responses in November–December and 47 year-to-date; the committee approved carryover of a $4,011 Emergency Management Performance Grant.
