Regional Dispatch

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implementing regional dispatch in chittenden county

At Town Meeting on March 6, 2018, voters in seven communities were asked whether to form the Chittenden County Public Safety Authority (CCPSA), a new union municipal district to provide regional emergency dispatch services. Voters in Burlington, Colchester, Milton, South Burlington, Williston and Winooski all passed the ballot item. It did not pass in Shelburne.

This proposal came after the issue was first considered 50 years ago and follows on the success of the combined Colchester/Milton public safety dispatch service. A Joint Survey Committee (JSC)  with representative officials from Burlington, Colchester, Essex, Milton, Shelburne, South Burlington, Williston and Winooski, conducted a 2016 study that focused on the implementation of studies completed in 1995 and 2000, both of which determined that regional public safety dispatch was possible and desirable.

The JSC determined that a regional dispatch center/911 call center combined in one location can reduce response time by an average of 71 seconds per call by eliminating the call transfer required when 911 calls go first to the 911 Call Center, then relayed to a local dispatch. This means faster response by police, fire, and emergency medical staff to residents and businesses in need. Other benefits of a regional public safety dispatch service include improvement of mutual aid between towns, an increased number of dispatchers on duty, and dedicated oversight of services.

The Committee also spent considerable time analyzing the most effective governance structure for a regional dispatch and it now proposes the creation of a union municipal district to deliver regional public safety dispatch service in Chittenden County.

Other benefits of a regional public safety dispatch service include:

  • Improvement of mutual aid among towns, which happens regularly for fire and rescue services,
  • Increased number of dispatchers on duty in a single location, allowing more dispatchers to resource multiple emergencies in a single community,
  • Additional resources to contribute to supervision, quality assurance, training, and career advancement opportunities within the field of public safety dispatch, and
  • Dedicated oversight to more fire and emergency medical services, increasing responder safety.

SEE BELOW FOR MORE INFORMATION ON:
CHITTENDEN COUNTY PUBLIC SAFETY AUTHORITY »
JOINT SURVEY COMMITTEE »
TECHNICAL ADVISORY GROUP »
IMPLEMENTATION & GOVERNANCE STUDY »
IN THE NEWS »
CCPSA BOARD »
CONTACT »
BACKGROUND MATERIALS »

CHITTENDEN COUNTY PUBLIC SAFETY AUTHORITY

Meeting Agendas & Minutes

Joint Survey Committee For Chittenden County Regional Dispatch

Meeting Agendas & Minutes

Additional Materials

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TEchnical Advisory Group FOR CHITTENDEN COUNTY REGIONAL DISPATCH

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Regional Dispatch Implementation and Governance Study

Governance Working Group Meeting Agendas & Notes

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IN THE NEWS

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CCPSA Board

A Board of Directors was appointed with representation from each of the six municipalities in spring 2018 to form the new government structure for the CCPSA. The Board, and municipalities acting through their Directors, will proceed to develop a framework for the regional dispatch center to become operational using input from the public safety community including dispatchers.

As a final step, for a municipality to receive dispatch services, its Selectboard or City Council will have to enter into a memorandum of understanding. Municipalities are not responsible for operating costs until a municipality enters into a service agreement with the CCPSA.

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Contact

For more information, please contact Charlie Baker, CCRPC Executive Director, at (802) 846-4490 x 123 or one of the CCPSA members below:

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Background Materials

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