911 funding meeting to be held in New Madrid on Jan. 30

NEW MADRID -- Changing technology and declining funding has prompted a Missouri legislator to propose new 9-1-1 legislation and to seek the public's input.

Missouri State Representative Jeanie Lauer of Blue Springs, who sponsored H.B. 635 in 2013, has scheduled a series of seven meetings, including one in New Madrid, in preparation for the 2014 legislative effort to pass comprehensive 911 legislation. The meetings are intended to be conversations between 911 service experts, police, fire and emergency medical services leaders and local elected officials as well as the public to review the 2014 proposed legislation and contribute ideas.

The New Madrid meeting will be at 6 p.m. Jan. 30 at New Madrid County Central High School, 310 US Highway 61.

In many locations around Missouri, a 911 call for help from a cell phone will not always get the help a caller is expecting because agencies do not have the 911 technology to locate a cell phone in an emergency.

Many public safety agencies around the nation are adopting new technology to receive text and video messages for help at 911 centers. This technology is a potential favorite of younger residents and is also a benefit for many who are disabled. However, few local 911 agencies in Missouri have identified the funding to implement this new technology, she said.

According to Lauer, the draft legislation creates a local option of adding a fee to cell phones, as is now the case with landline phones.

Also she noted that the use of landlines has dropped considerably in the last few years, resulting in less funding. Many counties in Missouri have not been able to find another method to fund this lifesaving service, she said. The proposed legislation would also establish a grant program to assist some of the hard-to-serve areas of Missouri.

For further information Contact Lisa Schlottach, president of the Missouri 911 Directors Association, 573-821-3133