Officials have less than 6 months to decide
LEE COUNTY, IA -- Law enforcement agencies in Lee County are still debating whether or not to consolidate its emergency dispatch centers in Ft. Madison, Keokuk, and Lee County.
According to a feasibility study done, the consolidation will improve services and save taxpayers money.
Officials still have a lot of details to work out, but it could mean an increase in cost for the cities, which proves to be the biggest challenge when it comes to making a decision.
"We'd just divide it by 1/3, 1/3, and 1/3. One entity is looking at by the number of calls. What that would be is they would pay by the number of calls they have come in. If we started out with say 120,000 calls per year and the next year, their calls went up to 125,000, their price is going to raise," said Lee County Sheriff Buck Jones.
There's also a possibility the system will be run by tax dollars. Officials have three months to make a decision. If they agree to consolidate, Sheriff Jones says, E911 dispatchers will be stationed at the expanded Lee County Jail.
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