From the Northwest Indiana Times:
Lake County officials are considering a property tax referendum this November to provide the essential funding for consolidated E-911 dispatch operations. It would be better to provide the necessary funding sooner, but if the referendum is what it takes, so be it.
Consolidating E-911 dispatch operations is a costly but necessary proposition. Hammond Police Chief Brian Miller, who is heading up the effort to implement the state-mandated consolidation, provided cost estimates for this project Friday.
Of the $25 million to $30 million overall cost, $15 million to $20 million would be for equipment alone, Miller estimated.
The county's police and fire chiefs have recommended two dispatch centers, in East Chicago ($3.9 million) and Hobart ($4 million), to provide a backup in case of a tornado or other disaster hitting one of the centers. Putting the operations into a single center in Crown Point, on land the county already owns, would cost about $5.5 million.
Operating costs will be more than $1 million a year, and the 911 surcharges on phone bills won't be enough.
But this is not the place to scrimp. As Miller notes, every public safety response begins with a call to 911. This has to be done right.
It has to be done on time, too. The state's deadline of Dec. 31, 2014, must not be missed, lest the county lose state support for E-911 operations.
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See the full article here:
http://www.nwitimes.com/news/opinion/editorial/editorial-e--consolidation-must-be-funded/article_1520c408-32bd-50df-b6eb-80b9b17a0e04.html
