Upcoming Meetings

What: KCDA Technical Advisory Committee
When: Tuesday, June 16, 2009, 1PM
Where: Kent County Sheriff Department - Employee Conference Center

What: KCDA Administrative Policy Board
When: Monday, June 22, 2009, 9AM
Where: City of Wyoming, City Hall

What: KCDA Administrative Policy Board
When: Monday, July 27, 2009, 9AM
Where: City of Wyoming, City Hall

FROM THE CHAIR

Greetings,

Over the past twenty years, local governmental units in Kent County have been working on ways to improve the delivery of emergency 911 services to the residents of Kent County. In 2006, these efforts resulted in the formal establishment of the Kent County Dispatch Authority through an intergovernmental agreement signed by the cities of Grandville, Grand Rapids, Walker, Wyoming and Kent County. In addition, the Authority has members from cities of Lowell and Rockford, and members from Cannon Township, Plainfield Township Fire, Michigan State Police, and Kent County EMS, Inc. Click here for a full listing of Authority members.

In 2006, the Authority completed a Cost-Benefit Analysis to determine if fully consolidating the call-taking and dispatch functions was feasible. The results of this study concluded that consolidation would not result in any cost-savings and recommended that the Authority pursue other technical initiatives that can continue to improve 911 services without fully consolidating the system. After much discussion and analysis, the Authority adopted a Strategic Plan in July 2007 which outlines several coordinated technical initiatives that when implemented will consolidate the 911 call-taking function and reduce the number of times a call maybe transferred. Through the installation of a countywide Computer Aided Dispatch (CAD) system, the consolidated call taking function will allow the call taker to input the necessary information and send it to the dispatcher so that the police, fire, or EMS agencies respond appropriately.

To fund these initiatives, the Kent County Board of Commissioners approved a request by the Authority to enact a monthly surcharge of 45 cents on all communication services in Kent County that are capable of accessing 911. The revenue from this surcharge will fund the initiatives of the Dispatch Authority and the Authority will regularly report on its use of this revenue to support improvements to the 911 system.

To help keep you informed about the efforts of the Dispatch Authority, I invite you to sign-up to receive periodic updates from the Authority. These updates will include information about the initiatives underway, meeting dates, and materials that you may find of interest in understanding what the police, fire, and EMS agencies in Kent County are doing to improve emergency 911 services.

Sincerely,

Curtis Holt, Chair