911 Center board considering changes

Trying to work through self-described “growing pains,” the consolidated 911 Center board is pondering a few changes in response to concerns raised by the Kalispell City Council.

One of them is a possible change in the board’s makeup.

Kalispell is questioning why the board has six members: One each for Kalispell, Whitefish and Columbia Falls, two for Flathead County and Sheriff Chuck Curry. “It’s even and I like odd,” Kalispell Mayor Tammi Fisher said Wednesday during a board work session on Kalispell’s concerns.

One suggestion is to have the three city managers, the county manager and the sheriff run the board. That would create a five-member board staffed mostly by professional managers, not politicians. Others question if that’s the best action, to put another policy- and budget-setting job on administrators not elected to office.

The present configuration of six members was picked years ago so neither the cities nor the county would have the upper hand in 911 center policies and budgeting and would have to work together, Curry said.

Changes could require each jurisdiction to approve amending their interlocal agreement.

Kalispell wants the 911 Center to improve its website and put more information on it and to hold 911 Center board meetings in the evening so they are easier for the public to attend.

Those ideas will be explored to see if they can be executed without increased costs, because as other board members pointed out, Kalispell also has complained about the center’s budget and the extent to which costs have been increasing.

Fisher said she wants the 911 Center board to create a rolling strategic plan that would be updated and approved by both the board and member jurisdictions every two years. “Then the councils can say we have a full understanding, and it gives credibility to the center and where it is going,” Fisher said.

She also wants an update on future funding options for the 911 Center. A future funding committee explored that issue and determined either a dedicated mill levy or motor vehicle tax are probably the best options for paying for the center’s operations and capital improvement needs.

Either tax must be approved by voters.

“For my purposes, it would be helpful if at the next board meeting or as soon as practical those funding mechanisms are laid out,” Fisher said. “Then we can ferret it out with actual costs for the consumer, if a mill levy versus a motor vehicle tax, what’s the difference on paper and who are you leaving unaccounted for that we would still be providing service to. Then this board, however it’s made up, can decide the best funding mechanism.”

A review of the 911 Center’s operations is possible. Curry has had preliminary discussions with another Montana county about exchanging dispatch center directors for a low-cost review of each other’s operations.

“At some point they’d be happy to send their director up here and we could send ours down there. But I thought I’d at least give our [new] director time to figure out what key unlocks her door,” Curry said. “It’s not something I think needs done in the next week or two, but I think it’s a valid suggestion and point.”

Kalispell voted against the 911 Center’s most recent budget when the board refused an “operations audit” in exchange for Kalispell’s support.

The Kalispell City Council then discussed splitting the city’s $446,000 contribution to the 911 Center out of the rest of the city budget for a separate vote. That faltered, but some council members have been critical of the center, questioning its transparency and oversight and if the consolidation has even resulted in better service for residents and emergency responders.

Board members on Wednesday seemed to agree it would be best to quit such political squabbles and work on improving the 911 center. People read about those squabbles and not the good things the 911 Center does, creating a false impression that there are operational problems, Curry said.

Things are better with the new 911 Center — much better — Whitefish Police Chief Bill Dial said.

“We just need to sell ourselves better. I get goose bumps listening to some of the tapes of people saving lives, some of the things these dispatchers have done. It’s amazing what they do. We need to get it out there and sell it to people.”

The board next meets on Wednesday, Sept. 11.

Reporter Tom Lotshaw may be reached at 758-4483 or by email at tlotshaw@dailyinterlake.com.