Subject: [NEXTEL-1] Surcharge hike sought to improve St. Clair County's 911 system

From: Marcelrf <[email-masked]>
Date: Fri, 12 Mar 2004 13:49:09 -0500

Posted on Fri, Mar. 12, 2004

Surcharge hike sought to improve St. Clair County's 911 system

BY CAROLYN P. SMITH AND NICKLAUS LOVELADY
Belleville News-Democrat

St. Clair County voters will be asked Tuesday to pay an extra $1.85 a
month on their phone bills so emergency workers anywhere in the county
can talk to one another.

Proponents said this is an opportunity to fix problems with radios that
don't send signals below the bluffs or reach outer portions of the
county.

Twenty-two local fire chiefs support the 911 surcharge proposal. The St.
Clair County Fire Chiefs Association's Web site lists a total of 42 fire
departments in St. Clair County.

Opponents of the proposal have passed out fliers from the Firefighters
Against Radio System. The opponents are not willing to be quoted because
of the fear of political fallout.

The opponents' flier states the radio system is too expensive and has
failed in other cities.

If voters approve it, land-line users would see the monthly 911
surcharge on their phone bills increase from 65 cents to $2.50. The
annual cost of $7.80 a year for 911 service would then increase to $30.

The system is projected to cost $25 million.

The local system would be an expansion of the $8.9 million system St.
Clair County had paid for through county and federal funds.
St. Clair County Sheriff Mearl Justus supports the plan.

"It's worth the money," Justus said. "And, I hope everybody in the
county will take advantage of it for the safety of all people."
"The federal government is going to mandate that everybody go to this
new system," Justus said.  "If the individual departments want their own
dispatchers, they can keep them. It's not about anybody taking over.
It's about everybody communicating with each other."

The opponents' flier states the system failed to give New York City
firefighters word to evacuate the World Trade Center after the terrorist
attacks on Sept. 11, 2001. However, Justus said the New York
firefighters were not using the system that St. Clair County hopes to
install.

They also argue the system failed in Kansas City, Mo., when a police
officer was shot in the leg and had to crawl down an alley to get a
signal to call for help. His partner, who was also shot, died. But
Justus said, "Kansas City tried to save money and bought a cheaper
system."

The opponent contends the real reason St. Clair County officials want to
install the Motorola radio system is to give them control over all of
the departments' radio systems.

Agencies in the county are not obligated to use the new system, but
equipment and servicing for all agencies would be available, Fairview
Heights Fire Chief Don Feher said.

"Every fire, police, and ambulance agency in the county will be able to
use the system," Feher said.

http://www.belleville.com/mld/newsdemocrat/8165726.htm

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