Emergency management warns of looming 9-1-1 funding gap and $6 million retooling cost by 2031

The county’s emergency management director told the Board of Commissioners that the county’s 9-1-1 system faces a growing financial shortfall and that long-term capital action will be required to sustain service.

"We have obtained about, a little over $400,000 a year in 9-1-1 tariffs. Our total dollar amount is over $800,000 in cost just to maintain the system," the director said, describing how 9-1-1 fees are constrained by state statute and family-plan billing practices that have reduced per-device fee yields.

He said the county should expect to need roughly $400,000 from the general fund to make up the difference in each year and raised an alarm about a larger retooling project officials estimated at about $6,000,000 by 2031. The director outlined three likely financing options: begin setting aside capital now, issue debt and amortize it over several years using property taxes, or secure a sales tax dedicated to emergency services — noting the latter option recently failed to pass at the state level and would require future legislative and voter steps.

The director also summarized emergency management staffing and grants: the division has historically received Emergency Management Performance Grant (EMPG) funds (the department receives about $75,000 annually and uses roughly half for salary reimbursements) and expects those federal/state reimbursements to continue but not fully cover system upkeep.

Commissioners asked whether the county could front debt and later be reimbursed if a sales-tax mechanism passed; staff said reimbursement would depend on debt structure and was possible in many configurations. The board did not take a vote but asked staff to return with options and financial detail.

Next steps: county staff to model funding options for 9-1-1 maintenance and the larger retooling project for commissioners’ review.