Groups Issue Statement Opposing 911 Fund Raids

A trio of public safety groups has issued a joint statement criticizing state officials for using 911 surcharge funds for other purposes, saying they are being “less than honest” with voters and puts the nation’s 911 systems at risk. The National Emergency Number Association (NENA), National Association of State 911 Administrators (NASNA) and 9-1-1 Industry Alliance (9IA) didn’t mention specific states, but pointed said that using 911 funds for unrelated purposes “breaks the trust established with the public.” The groups also said the raids leave little money to maintain current 911 systems, or to fund future NG911 networks. The three groups noted the federal attempts to limit 911 fund raids through the New and Emerging Technologies (NET) 911 Improvement Act of 2008, saying they interpret the law to, “unequivocally bar state and local governments from directly diverting any funds raised for 9-1-1 beyond the 9-1-1 and emergency service delivery purposes. In the statement, the groups pledged to, “ensure that the 9-1-1 system operates as a coordinated and collaborative effort between the public and private sectors.” But they then added, “In return, government must be committed to properly funding the 9-1-1 system and ensuring that all 9-1-1 fees are collected and utilized for their intended purpose as provided by law.” Download (pdf) a copy of the statement here. Read an editorial after the break.

Editorial

These public safety groups are certainly correct that siphoning off funds generated from 911 fees and surcharges has its downsides. Those dependent upon the 911 funds won’t have money to operate or improve the 911 system, and fund administrators won’t have any reason to accumulate funds for major projects. But to expect that the NET 9-1-1 Improvement Act is going to prevent these raids is unrealistic.

Times are tough. Governments are way beyond a few lay-offs and several program cut-backs. Big cities and little towns are at the point of collapse, and are looking for any source of revenue to keep their basic services afloat. Which city council or county board is going to ignore several million dollars just sitting in a fund, accumulating for a “Next Generation 9-1-1 system,” whatever that is? Of course, the answer is…no one.

There is no federal-level disincentive for states to raid local 911 funds. There’s not even a hammer the feds can bring down if states do take the money. And even if the NET 9-1-1 Act were operative, who is going to take the politicians to task for using money on a critical project, even if it isn’t 911-related?

The answer to this problem is a massive state-level political effort, aimed at passing legislation that would forever limit the use of the fees collected from telephone subscribers to 911 systems only. Every state legislature must be made aware of how the 911 systems operates, why it’s critical to citizens, and how investing in NG911 is going to improve public safety. If they don’t know all this, there’s no chance they’ll take a hands-off approach to the 911 funds.

America’s public safety groups have done a great job over the last 10 years of making the transition from professional action to political lobbying. But more needs to be done, both at the federal and state level. As the effort to create a nationwide public safety wireless network proves, to secure funding is to secure success (or in that case, no success). This joint statement on 911 fund raids must be just the first step in increased political action to create a full, final and legal block on 911 fund looting.

– Gary Allen