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McDonald County 911 director asks commission for portion of proposed use tax to retain dispatchers and fund equipment
Summary
McDonald County 911 Director Khaylea Gibbs told the county commission on Oct. 23 that the dispatch center is losing trained dispatchers to other agencies because of lower wages and requested a percentage of any future Use Tax to help raise pay and cover equipment replacement costs.
McDonald County 911 Director Khaylea Gibbs told the McDonald County Commission on Oct. 23 that the county is losing trained dispatchers to other agencies because local wages are lower than average and that the dispatch center needs more stable funding to retain staff and maintain equipment.
Gibbs said the county's 911 equipment must be maintained or replaced approximately every five years, creating recurring capital costs the board cannot cover with current revenues. To address both staffing and equipment needs, the 911 board asked the commission to allocate a percentage of any future county Use Tax to the 911 center.
Presiding Commissioner Bryan Hall, Eastern Commissioner Jamey Cope and Western Commissioner Rick Lett heard the request but did not take a formal vote. Commissioners recorded that they would take the 911 board's request into consideration; the minutes state no motions or votes were made on the matter.
Present for the discussion were Khaylea Gibbs (McDonald County 911 Director), Robert Evenson (Sheriff and 911 board member), board members Richard Huston and Ellsworth Amos, and other county officials listed in the minutes.
The commission did not adopt an allocation or set a timeline for a decision during the Oct. 23 meeting. The commission's next scheduled reconvening of this session was recorded as Oct. 28, 2024.
No formal actions, motions or vote tallies related to the 911 request appear in the minutes.
