Kodiak Police Department Looks at E911 Revamp

logo-w-sunburstKayla Desroches/KMXT

The Kodiak City Council and Kodiak Island Borough Assembly will catch up at their joint work session tomorrow night. Most of the issues on the agenda are ones they’ve discussed at length, like accessory dwelling units or marijuana regulations, but they’ll also hear from the Kodiak Police Department about the E911 system, the response system which directs calls to the right emergency service.

A letter addressed to Chief Ronda Wallace from Lieutenant Tim Putney outlines the needed changes. He states that the current system is outmoded and needs the update both for technological reasons and to better comply with FCC regulations.

They’re also exploring the possibility of raising the E911 surcharge in order to cover the ongoing operation of the system. Currently, Kodiak collects a surcharge of $0.75 per line, and does not charge AT & T customers. According to a list of surcharges from other parts of the state, which the letter cites as GCI data, most other areas charge between $1 and $2 per line. Putney suggests upping the surcharge and charging AT & T customers.

He also writes that in 2015 they received roughly $381,500.000 to help them update the E911 system. The deadline for vendors to pick up the contract is February.

The Kodiak Police Department will give a presentation on the desired system update at the joint work session tomorrow. That’ll begin 7:30 p.m. in the Kodiak Public Library multi-purpose room.

 

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