Nevada County Picayune and Gurdon Times Newspaper Archive

9-1-1 Resolution Passed; Quorum Court Sets Special Election May 18

A resolution was passed recently for a special election for the 9-1-1 emergency telephone system.

The election has been scheduled for Tuesday, May 18. There will be three polling places in the county, the Nevada County Courthouse, Nevada School and Emmet School.

This decision was made at a recent meeting of the Nevada County Quorum Court.

Davis Benton, chairman of the Nevada County Election Commission, said early and absentee voting can be done two weeks prior to the scheduled special election.

Nevada County Judge James Roy Brown said the election was set at this time because of a highway bond issue election slated for June 15 by Gov. Mike Huckabee.

Benton said the elections have to be at least 30 days apart by law, so the court decided to set an early balloting session. Otherwise, he said, it would have been July before the 9-1-1 election could have been held.

Dwight Williams, a representative with Southwestern Bell Telephone (SWB) spoke to the court, detailing what would be done to get the 9-1-1 system up and running.

The first step is to raise phone bills by 12 percent so the system can be paid for. This has already been done in Nevada County for the two phone services provided.

The increase for GTE customers will be $1.83 per month, while SWB users will see their bill go up $1.46 a month.

Williams said this will generate about $5,500 monthly for the 9-1-1 system, and should be more than enough to keep the system operational and maintained.

The projected cost of operating the system will be in the neighborhood of $3,000 a month, he said. The money generated from phone bills will pay for system expenses.

The equipment will be housed at the Nevada County Sheriff's Office and be operated by NCSO dispatchers. These dispatchers will receive training in proper use of the 9-1-1 system.

Area residents need to know the dispatchers will not be giving medical advice over the phone as has been shown on such television shows as "Rescue 9-1-1." In cases of medical emergencies, Williams said, calls will be transferred to the Nevada County Ambulance Service.

According to Williams, there has not been a case of a 9-1-1 election failing in the state of Arkansas since the program came into existence.

Should the voters approve the measure, the next step will be to map all roads in the county and assign new 9-1-1 addresses.

This, he said, will be the last new addresses county residents get. The addressing will be done using a; machine which ticks off in tenths of a mile. For every tenth of a mile there will be an address, whether a structure is there or not.

Then, should a house be built at this location, the address will already be in place.

The addressing will also make it easier for emergency crews to respond more promptly, as they are more logically set up than the current method.

When a call comes in on the 9-1-1 line the phone number, name of the person owning the phone and address will be displayed on the computer screen.

The information shown includes which fire district the caller is in, along with the nearest ambulance service.

But, Brown said, residents also need to remember the 9-1-1 system won't be installed immediately after the election, if it's successful. It will take at least three years before it will be fully operational.

Benton, discussing the highway bond issue, informed the court no tax is involved in the referendum. Gov. Huckabee signed a proclamation to sell bonds for the state's highway system.

Polling places for this election will be the same as those for the 9-1-1 election.

In other business, the court heard about Census 2000 from Allen Green.

Green said it is important for everyone to fill out the census forms they receive as it means state turnback money for the county and municipalities.

The turnback monies are used to help provide services to city and county residents and are paid at a rate of $62 per head.