Johns Creek and Sandy Springs thought they had a sure deal when both agreed to share costs for a new 911 service three years ago. But rosy projections never materialized and rather than paying for itself, the service is bleeding both cities for more than $1 million a year.
At the same time, a handful of cities in Gwinnett are exploring forming their own 911 centers, saying they expect the systems to more than pay for themselves.
“In most places, it is not a moneymaker ... but they have the right to do whatever they want to do,” Johns Creek City Manager John Kachmar said.
Emergency 911 centers are funded through the $1.50 fee charged to wireless and land-line phone customers within their jurisdiction. Even faxes and ATMs pay a 911 fee. When those fees fall short of the cost to operate the center, taxpayers pay the difference.
Sandy Springs and Johns Creek formed the Chattahoochee River 911 Authority, or Chatcomm, in 2009, predicting they would collect enough in phone fees to cover the $5.7 million annual tab to run the center. A 2008 study projected 2010 revenues would be about $6.5 million, far above the $3.1 million actually collected.
Each city pays 100 percent of its 911 revenue to Chatcomm. Any shortfalls are divided up based on use, with Sandy Springs at 60 percent and Johns Creek at 40.
Last year, Johns Creek received a little more than $1.5 million in revenue from 911 fees while Sandy Springs collected $2.5 million. The resulting shortfall meant Sandy Springs shelled out $900,000 from its general fund while Johns Creek paid $350,000.
The biggest cause for the shortfall, Kachmar said, is the decline in business.
Johns Creek has nearly 500 fewer businesses now than it did in 2007, before the recession hit. When those businesses left, so did their phones, Kachmar said.
Sandy Springs has about 330 fewer businesses now than it did four years ago, although it has seen an uptick in small practitioners.
Both cities should profit from a new law that channels 911 fees for prepaid phones to 911 centers throughout Georgia. Until now, those fees had been going to the state. Johns Creek and Sandy Springs officials estimate the new law could add another $100,000 to the Chatcomm coffer.
Add to that the city of Dunwoody, which recently agreed to join Chatcomm, signing a three-year, $3.2 million deal. Besides another entity to share the costs, Dunwoody’s move also means hiring more staff, probably as many as 10, said Noah Reiter, assistant city manager for Sandy Springs and co-executive director of Chatcomm.
Despite the deficits, officials from both cities said they have no regrets because the service level has improved so dramatically. Before Chatcomm, Reiter said, Sandy Springs had fielded regular complaints about service and response times under the Fulton County dispatch system.
“Since cutting over to Chatcomm, I’ve not heard that complaint, and I would have heard it,” he said.
Under Chatcomm, Reiter said, more than 91 percent of the calls made to the center are answered within the first 10 seconds.
In addition, 95 percent of high-priority calls are dispatched to an officer, fire department or ambulance within one minute, he said.
Grant Hickey, special projects coordinator for Johns Creek, said dispatch times — the span from when the call is placed to when an emergency agency is notified — have been cut by about 90 seconds. In addition, the center is staffed well enough to provide police with regular check-ins when they’re in the field.
In Gwinnett, Duluth, Norcross and Snellville continue to study forming their own 911 centers, but no city in the county is further along in the process than Lawrenceville.
Police Chief Randy Johnson said he has no complaints with the Gwinnett County 911 center, which serves nearly 800,000 customers. But a more localized operation serving Lawrenceville’s 30,000 is bound to improve emergency response times, he said.
Earlier this year, Johnson said revenue numbers from 2009 showed a Lawrenceville 911 center could come out ahead by about $120,000 annually after initial startup costs. More current figures from 2010 are a little less positive, he said.
“The last thing we’re worried about is making money,” Johnson said. “The only reason we’re doing this is because we believe we can serve the citizens of Lawrenceville a little bit better if we do it ourselves.”
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