Ill. joint-dispatch agreement faces hurdles
From the Olney (Ill.) Daily Mail: A draft proposal for a joint dispatch center soon will be presented to Richland County Board and Olney City Council. The dispatch center has been under discussing for some time, but the status of the issue has been described as “very fragile,” making its passage uncertain.
Richland County Board in June approved a structural agreement for a joint dispatch system. Olney City Council also approved the structural agreement , contingent on receiving information about the number of dispatchers and clarification on the chain of command outlined in the document. The actions allowed talks to go forward.
That proposal has the county as the lead agency, due to more estimated cost savings, and would include the creation of a Joint Emergency Dispatch System Board. There would be two members from the county and two from the city on that board, which would meet at least four times a year. There also would be a six-person advisory committee. All telecommunicators would be employees of the county. A director would be nominated by the sheriff and there would have to be unanimous agreement from the county and city of who that person would be.
