Joint Letter to the Community
From the Perry County Commission and Perryville Board of Aldermen
October 23, 2023
The idea of the Perry County Joint Justice Center was built on a promise of efficient, effective operations for the Citizens we are called to serve. In April of 2021, voters approved a capital improvements sales tax of onehalf of one percent for 20 years to pay for the construction of the Perry County Joint Justice Center. Originally, our plans Included merging the City and County's dispatch centers into a single department, jointly serving both entities. This merger would eliminate years of duplicated personnel services and equipment purchases and move us to greater efficiency.
Recent inflation has led us to explore all options for effective operation ... again. This led us to reconsider a past offer from the St. Francois County Joint Communications Center to provide our dispatch services for Perry County.
The City's budget for dispatch salaries and benefits alone totals more than $625,000 per year. The County salaries, at their current scales (which are below market), add another $471,000 per year. Equipment and operating expenses for each department can be estimated at $50,000/year and the required communication infrastructure through AT&T adds an additional $120,000/year. In short, the locally operated dispatch option would cost our community an estimated $1.2+ million per year, every year. This is true despite the fact that the current 911 Dispatch tax for Perry County only generates an estimated $125,000/year and has been trending downward for many years as more and more of us cancel landline phone service in favor of cell phones. While a local merger of the City and County as originally planned could save some money, a total merger with St. Francois will save much more. In fact, we estimate it will save the community more than
$700,000/year going forward. NOTE: it is important to understand that over 90% of our 911 calls actually originate from a cell phone but only traditional land line services are actually taxed for 911 purposes; cell phones are not taxed for 911.
St. Francois County currently operates a state-of-art, regional dispatch center, serving over 40 entities in four neighboring counties. The communities they service include places we know well like Ste. Genevieve and Farmington, Iron County and St. Francois County. This combined purchasing power allows St. Francois County to provide better technology to the counties they serve at a lower cost. This includes technology we do not currently have here in Perry County, things like text-to-911 and geolocation on all phone calls (both traditional land lines and cell phone calls). This means that the dispatcher will know where the caller is at, even when the caller does not. It also provides them with an opportunity to maximize staffing efficiencies and schedules (they will have as many as 9 dispatchers working most shifts). The proposed cost for contractual services with St. Francois County is estimated at $545,500/year and would cover both the City and County services. These savings far exceed anything previously thought possible. It moves us forward technologically, provides advanced services for our citizens and does so at a lower cost. Another way to understand this
lnformation ... after their analysis, Mission Critical Partners estimated our current cost per call to be roughly
$147. The national average holds closer to $40 per call. The reality is there is simply no way for us to achieve this level of efficiency without our joining a larger entity.
The savings and efficiencies realize·d will help the City and County invest in other critical staffing and support services using our existing resources. This can include things like departmental salaries and benefits, office clerical support and other essential governmental functions. Additionally, there will be a one-time savings realized by not having to build out the dispatch center during our construction process, which will also preserve expansion space in the building going forward, not to mention an annual savings in ongoing equipment and operating costs.
Finally, it is important to note that our review indicated an estimated 54% of current dispatch incidents are actually for emergency medical services. Mercy Hospital, headquartered in St. Louis, has operated its own successful dispatch center in Springfield, Missouri, for years and will have the ability to field these calls going forward. This potential reduction in service activity makes it much harder to justify the 24-hour staffing pattern needed to effectively operate a modern dispatch center.
We have not entered into this decision lightly. Together, as your elected leaders, we have considered all options but believe the best value for our community comes from a relationship with St. Francois County. Although this is a business decision, there are very personal impacts. The most difficult part of this recommendation is understanding the impact it will have on our current employees. We understand this new arrangement will require as many as eight new dispatchers for St. Francois County, multiple clerical positions between the police and sheriff's departments, additional jail staff for the new facility, not to mention both departments still need law enforcement officers. To that end, we will also be offering an opportunity to retrain our dispatch employees through our existing department Cadet programs, should there be those who are interested and qualified in continuing to work for their respective departments. Our current dispatch employees will be asked to apply for these positions, and it is expected the vast majority will have the opportunity to continue their public service careers, albeit in a different capacity. Beyond that, both the City and the County will try to help mitigate this impact by offering a severance package to any employee who is not offered a job as part of this transition.
On a final note, please understand there is a national movement underway to consolidate dispatch centers and resources. Our decision to consolidate closely aligns with industry best practices and goals established by the State of Missouri and the Department of Public Safety. The Missouri legislature has passed laws encouraging this outcome and future grant opportunities will require some level of consolidation to even be eligible. Given the cost savings outlined above, it is easy to understand why things are moving in this direction. Together, City and County leadership believes we can merge now, and in doing so save the taxpayers money and, at the same time, actually improve our customer interface and technology in the process.
This morning City and County Leadership met with dispatchers and members of law enforcement from both departments. Although the conversation to this point had focused on the most efficient method of service delivery, there was a counter position presented for what is thought to be the most effective method. At this meeting representatives of law enforcement requested the opportunity to explore a ballot issue allowing the voters of Perry County and Perryville to ultimately decide this matter by a new sales tax initiative for public safety and dispatch services, ultimately replacing the existing landline telephone fee for 911 dispatch. This tax is presently being considered for placement before the voters at next April's Election.
