As part of its ongoing collaboration with E-911 dispatch services in Campbell, Kenton, and Pendleton Counties, NKAPC’s GIS staff recently provided updated mapping information to the State that will result in dollars flowing from Frankfort to those dispatch centers.
A substantial portion of the cost of providing E-911 service comes from fees paid by everyone who has a phone. Cincinnati Bell collects the land line revenue and distributes it directly to the dispatch services in whose jurisdictions the land lines are located. The various wireless providers pass the fee revenue on to the state for distribution to the requisite dispatch centers.
“This mapping update is part of a certification process that is required every year by the State’s Commercial Mobile Radio Service Board,” said Tom East, senior GIS specialist. “Before the board distributes the cell phone-generated revenue, it wants to know that the local dispatch centers have the ability to find cellular users who have called 911 in need of emergency assistance.”
Because Area Planning’s GIS mapping system is the basis for dispatching emergency services in Campbell, Kenton, and Pendleton Counties, NKAPC staff is in the best position to address the State’s questions, according to East. These typically deal with the locations of cell towers as well as the credibility of address data.
“There’s a significant amount of money riding on our answers to the State’s questions,” said East. “Our GIS is geared to providing this level of information to the dispatch centers on an ongoing basis. This annual exercise gives us an opportunity to show the State that we’re maintaining the high standards necessary for emergency dispatch purposes.”
Dispatch services are provided in Campbell and Pendleton Counties by single, county-wide agencies. In Kenton County, these services are provided currently by Covington for its jurisdiction, Erlanger for itself and the Cities of Elsmere, Villa Hills, Crescent Springs, and Edgewood, and by Kenton County for unincorporated parts of the county and the balance of the County’s cities.