LAS VEGAS (KTNV) — When you call 911, you expect that you'll be able to reach someone who can help you during an emergency.
That's why first responders across Southern Nevada are looking at upgrading to more resilient 911 systems.
WATCH: How a fiber line prompted the county to make 911 system changes
According to Clark County Fire Department Chief John Steinbeck, our area got a big wake-up call in April, when systems went down for several hours after a fiber line was cut thousands of miles away in Missouri.
"When we had the fiber line cut back east, we had no idea that would affect us here in Clark County. That's really unacceptable for us. Those are things that we need to address and we are," Steinbeck told Clark County commissioners on Tuesday. "We saw an example of how fragile that system is. The thing that I always preach throughout everything, that's vital for us in this community, is resiliency and redundancy. We need to build resiliency and redundancy into our 911 system and in some ways, we don't even know where some of our weak points are."
So what's the plan?
There are currently six Public Safety Answering Points in the valley, which are essentially dispatch centers.
- Boulder City Police Department
- Combined Communications Center - Run by the City of Las Vegas but used by the Clark County Fire Department and the North Las Vegas Fire Department
- Henderson Police Department
- Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department
- Mesquite Police Department
- North Las Vegas Police Department
Right now, Steinbeck said plans are in place to upgrade the existing 911 system.
"It's important that we go to what we call Next Gen 911, which is exactly that," Steinbeck said. "It's a more robust, backed-up system that can accept information in different ways, which includes texts and videos and pictures."
Rich Hoggan, the Chief Financial Officer for the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department, said they're also planning for the future.
"I'm pleased to report that, at least for LVMPD, we're about halfway through the implementation of a Next Gen 911 system to replace our current legacy system. That will really put us in a much better position in terms of sustainability and durability for our 911 system going forward," Hoggan told commissioners. "We're also in the process of designing a regional 911 center that would essentially blend police and fire into one center ... This fee is kind of what's enabling all of this to happen, to build redundancy into our current system."
I asked LVMPD what differences are between the legacy system and a Next Gen system. Here's what I learned.
When you call 911, the call is transferred to a regional center where the jurisdiction of the caller is determined. The call is then routed to the appropriate dispatch center. When it arrives at the dispatch centers, it is received by a switch that has cards installed from every telecommunications company service our area. The call is then routed to a call management system.
According to LVMPD, all of the hardware for that system has not been manufactured for many years.
"So, we not only have the vulnerability of outdated hardware and the expertise to service that hardware, but we are reliant on the call routing through the regional center and the vulnerabilities of that site as well. Next Gen 911 bypasses all of that," the department said through email. "Since the system is now fiberoptic, all the outdated hardware is replaced and calls do not route through a regional center."
The department has also configured the system with triple redundancy through three telecommunications carriers.
As for the regional 911 center that Hoggan referenced, it will be located on a parcel of land, which is northwest of the 215 curve across from Centennial High School. Since the design process is in the early stages, no renderings are available yet.
Who's paying for it?
You are.
In 1995, the Nevada Legislature enacted Senate Bill 473, which authorized a telephone line surcharge to be imposed in certain counties for the enhancement of existing 911 emergency services. However, at the time, there was a population cap for which areas could implement that surcharge.
In 2017, the Nevada Legislature enacted Senate Bill 176, which subsequently eliminated the population cap for that surcharge. That means Clark County was eligible to implement the fee then but they didn't do so at the time.
"This is an older piece of legislation that was done because we've been seeing that landlines, which currently is what funds the bulk of the 911 system, is really non-existent," Commissioner Marilyn Kirkpatrick explained. "We could have done it years ago but we didn't. Now, I think, with the system failing, it's kind of expedited a few things and we really do have to have a redundant system so that our constituents are never going without."
How much will I pay?
According to state law, the surcharge would be up to $1 per line, per month.
Who decides how much I pay?
As part of NRS 244A.7645, an advisory committee must be created to discuss that.
In addition to overseeing the surcharge implementation, the committee will also:
- Review 911-related funding requests
- Develop a plan for 911 enhancements
- Help create county ordinances
- Draft bylaws
- Ensure compliance with state and federal regulations
- Develop five-year master plan
Who is on the committee?
The committee is made up of representatives from each of the dispatch centers.
What's next?
On Tuesday, Clark County commissioners gave first responders permission to create the advisory committee.
According to Steinbeck, the group plans to hit the ground running.
"It's going to be quick. We don't plan on letting grass grow. We'd like to return in 60 to 90 days and have some recommendations," Steinbeck said. "We work very hard to make sure we have the resources for every emergency in this valley. Thousands of hours of training, millions of dollars in personnel, into equipment, into staffing, and none of it matters if we don't get the call and we don't get the dispatch out. We have to have that part right."
