Taking Teamwork to Another Level

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911 Updates

Taking Teamwork to Another Level

 July | 2022

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Program Manager Update

I mentioned in the last newsletter of settling into a rhythm, and that has continued this quarter. The Platform project is moving forward as expected, with the data center equipment getting installed and the network portion of the project taking shape.

The GIS management application is successfully being integrated into County GIS spatial services and the GIS team is being trained on the new application. The project has opened doors to new opportunities, and we are exploring the possibility of adding a centralized 911 voice recorder to the system to take the place of the 12 standalone recorders at each PSAP. We anticipate that the new recorder will better support the flexibility of the new system while maintaining the budget for the overall project.

Our hard work to create a fiscally sustainable system is paying off, and in this very challenging fiscal environment, we are exploring ways to provide more support to our PSAP partners while ensuring that the position of the 911 system is not at risk. In the long term, a revenue solution is necessary to ensure the viability of the entirety of the system, including the PSAPs; however, in the short term we believe that our intelligent fiscal and contract management can provide some relief.


Budget

Financial 

By the time you read this the Agency Proposed 2023/2024 biennial budget will be successfully submitted. The Program Office has been diligently working through a bottoms up budget which will include one-time adjustments and proposed changes to the baseline budget to accomplish the strategic goals and priorities.

Revenue continues to trend up and is forecasted to continue to do so into the future. The operating expenses have been consistent and predictable. There have not been any impactful expenses of concern. The new Platform Project's ongoing expenses will not begin to impact the Operating Fund until the next biennium. Which means for 2023/2024, the expenses are expected to be fairly status quo with some adjustments that essentially will balance each other out.

Next steps will be for the King County Executive to review and then move the budget forward for approval by Council in late November.

Not everything that can be counted counts, and not everything that counts can be counted.

-Albert Einstein


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Platform Benefits

Shared Resources


SharedResources

Preparations are underway for the 911 Platform Modernization Project PSAP implementation. 

Even though the Test PSAP implementation won’t begin until later this year, work is underway to make sure everything is ready. In addition to ensuring there are plenty of facilities available, there is also engagement with the PSAP stakeholders to discuss ways to maximize the capabilities of the new platform.

Having the PSAPs all on the same system allows sharing of physical resources: telecommunicators can log on to any position on the system and receive calls as part of their own PSAP.  It also allows sharing of telecommunicator resources:  911 calls not answered in a specified amount of time could be sent to a shared queue to be answered by an available telecommunicator in another PSAP.  There is also an ability to mitigate the effects of local telephone service interruptions by configuring the system so PSAPs can share the phone lines at another PSAP.

Each of these capabilities requires cooperation and agreement among the participating PSAPs, because while the system may be capable, it requires the PSAPs to work together on agreements, shared costs, operational procedures etc. in order to realize the potential. The conversations are beginning as the use-cases are fleshed out.  This opens up a whole new level of collaboration between the PSAPs.


Staffing Task Force 2

Staffing Task Force 

Staffing the communication centers remain a high priority for everyone at the PSAPs in our region.

As we mentioned in the last newsletter, the King County 911 Program Office has partnered with all 12 King County PSAPs and three other regional PSAPs (TComm in Thurston County, South Sound 911 in Pierce County, and Snohomish 911 in Snohomish County) to address current staffing challenges. This team continues to meet monthly. 

The task force launched an iHeart Digital recruitment campaign in the spring of 2022 that ran over two months on multiple mediums to include terrestrial radio and social media (Instagram and Facebook). Preliminary data shows many PSAPs saw an increase in applicants during and after the campaign. The Program Office will report out more detailed data on the effectiveness of the campaign next quarter. 

In June, the group acknowledged how beneficial the collaborative approach has been for the PSAPs and agreed to open up the task force to any PSAP in the state who wants to participate. An invitation was sent out statewide inviting others to join the task force starting in July. 

The group continues to work together to evaluate additional recruitment campaign options while simultaneously focusing on retention efforts. 


King County 911 Mission Statement

The regional 911 system provides an emergency communications link between the people of King County and appropriate public safety responders.

KingCounty.gov/911