Upgrade needed for the outdated system, but who will pay?
Ohio’s 911 system is outdated, made for a time period when landline phones were dominant. In many places, you can only call, not text, 911. Pinpointing locations of mobile callers can be difficult. Infrastructure is old.
“911 in Ohio is way behind even the most reasonable of expectations,” said Matt Franke, a 911 coordinator in Butler County, in written testimony. “Our current 911 network still operates as it did when introduced in the 1960s.”
So for almost eight years, the state has studied and made plans to upgrade all of Ohio into a “next-generation” 911 system. That new system would allow all Ohioans to text 911 and improve emergency response for mobile users.
Now, it’s finally asking lawmakers to give that new system the green light. House Bill 445 would pay for and construct that system with a monthly 25-cent charge for all phone users. Cellphone users already pay this fee, but it would be new for landline users.
It’s a step public safety advocates say is critical for saving lives. But county leaders fear they’ll be forced to foot most of the bill without enough financial support from the state.
What is Next Generation 911?
Eleven states have all their 911 centers able to connect with the next generation system. In Ohio, only 20% can do so. Individual counties have so far taken most of the initiative, with some help from grants and pilot programs.
Just 28 counties offer the ability to text 911. That’s important as more of society shifts away from landline phones. In 2020, almost 80% of 911 calls in Ohio were made by cell phones, according to state data.
Not only can words be sent but also videos and photos, which could provide crucial details to first responders. Texting could be necessary for certain situations, such as those involving domestic violence or Ohioans with speech and language disorders.
A next-generation system would replace copper wire lines with a fiber-optic network that could transmit texts, location and other capabilities of mobile phones. Calls would be faster, and audio quality would be improved. Pinpointing a mobile phone’s location would become easier.
Lastly, the new network would centralize all calls to one “core” that is connected to all 911 centers across Ohio. Calls could easily be re-routed between jurisdictions if needed, with the hope of improving response times.
Paying for the upgrade
If passed, the bill requires all counties to offer the new 911 capabilities within five years of the state building up that “core.”
Building and maintaining that central core could cost the state $10 million annually over ten years, according to a fiscal analysis. Counties could face spending “several hundreds of thousands of dollars” in order to upgrade their 911 centers and make them compatible.
Currently, funding for Ohio’s 911 network comes from a 25-cent monthly charge for wireless phone numbers. Much of that revenue is sent toward counties. Counties can raise their own money as well through taxes or other means.
The bill expands that 25-cent charge to all phones capable of calling 911, including landline devices. With a universal fee, revenue could double and reach over $50 million a year, per the analysis.
Half of that, under the bill, would go to the state to develop the core. That means counties would still receive roughly the same amount as before.
Can counties afford it?
To expect counties to adopt Next Generation 911 without increased funding is unreasonable, county officials have said.
There has been “little consideration of the cost increases that would be passed to
the local governments,” said Peggy Clark, emergency management director for Columbiana County, which spent $850,000 to upgrade its system. The county receives $210,000 from the 25-cent charges.
Instead, they’re are asking for a higher charge. Ohio ranks 48th in wireless fees, having decreased them while other states have increased fees.
Officials with the state’s 911 Program Office, in charge of implementing Next Generation 911, say that HB 445 will be able to cover most if not all of the costs. It also pointed out that there are mechanisms in place for the universal fee to be adjusted if necessary.
But quite a few lawmakers shared county leaders’ concerns.
“A lot of things get shoved down from Columbus… That’s going to be a sticking point for me,” Rep. Rodney Creech, R-West Alexandria, said in November.
The bill is currently being reviewed by a House committee. It would need approval from lawmakers in both chambers and Gov. Mike DeWine’s signature to become law.
Titus Wu is a reporter for the USA TODAY Network Ohio Bureau, which serves the Columbus Dispatch, Cincinnati Enquirer, Akron Beacon Journal and 18 other affiliated news organizations across Ohio.
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