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San Antonio staff outline options to shift some low-level 911 calls away from police
Summary
City staff identified roughly 177,000 annual calls that may be eligible for alternative response — from minor crashes to lost property — and outlined options including retired-officer programs, civilian dispatchers and virtual reporting; councilmembers asked for cost estimates and legal review.
City staff briefed the Public Safety Committee on options to expand alternative responses for low-level public-safety calls, including minor crashes, noise complaints, lost property and parking issues — categories staff said could be handled without dispatching sworn officers in many cases.
Presenter Justina (who self-identified later in the meeting as an interim municipal deputy) said the city receives roughly 2.1 million public-safety calls annually and identified about 177,000 that might qualify for an alternative response. She said average response times for minor crashes were about 32.5 minutes and that handling those calls requires roughly 17 officer-equivalents annually.
Staff reviewed models used in Dallas, New Orleans, Baltimore and other cities and listed options: retired police investigators, a private contractor, trained civilian dispatchers, code-enforcement officers or virtual reporting tools. Staff cautioned several options would require changes to collective bargaining agreements and could trigger state reporting obligations.
Councilmembers asked staff to estimate costs via an RFP or RA and to clarify liability and whether contractors could write required police reports or citations. Elizabeth Ramírez told the committee contractors would not be able to write certain city-issued fines; staff said police must still write citations required by state law when injuries or damage cross legal thresholds.
Council members asked staff to return with cost estimates and a plan for pilot testing; they also signaled discussion with the full council and potential negotiation with labor partners before any program changes.
Next steps: Staff proposed an outreach and pilot plan, including an RFP/RA to assess vendor interest and a follow-up report to council with cost estimates and legal analysis.
