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Brazos County 9‑1‑1 district requests $1.7 million county share as call volume rises
Summary
The Brazos County Emergency Communications District asked commissioners for a county contribution just over $1.7 million (about a 16% increase) to add a county-focused staff position and make modest pay-scale adjustments amid rising county fire dispatch volumes and radio traffic, the district told the court May 20.
Patrick Corley, executive director of the Brazos County Emergency Communications District, told commissioners on May 20 that the district’s county portion of the combined dispatch center budget will be "just over $1,700,000," an increase of nearly 16% versus last year. The district requested the increase to add a staff member dedicated primarily to the county fire‑radio position and to raise starting and career-ladder wages to address retention and recruitment pressures.
"Key takeaway, from our proposal, in terms of the increase, is that additional position in those pay scale adjustments," Corley said, adding that the district had dispatched almost 5,800 county fire calls last year — roughly a 22% increase over three years — and that about 95% of the funds collected from the county go to wages and benefits.
Corley described higher radio traffic tied to growing calls and the addition of paid staff in some fire departments; commissioners did not vote but received a detailed county portion summary and the district’s 40‑page budget packet will be considered by the EMS/communications board. The presentation highlighted recruitment and retention as the main drivers of the request and framed the increase as largely personnel-cost driven rather than new capital spending.
The county will decide funding levels as part of the FY 2026–27 budget process. Commissioners asked follow-up questions about staffing and cost allocation; no formal action was taken at the workshop.
