Batesville to hand 911 dispatch duties to Independence County

Independence County will soon take over 911 system dispatching duties from Batesville, which for years has handled emergency dispatching for the county and the city.

The city has agreed to pay $63,900 annually for the county to take over the dispatching this summer.

Batesville has operated the county's emergency dispatch center for more than three decades. For that service, the county has paid the city $70,000 each year.

In March, however, the city asked the county to start paying $213,000 a year or it would stop the dispatching service for the county on June 12.

County officials balked, and the new dispatching arrangement was negotiated.

"We felt the county's proposal to take over dispatching was equitable," Batesville Mayor Rick Elumbaugh said. "We felt like this was a good deal for us."

Elumbaugh said the city will save about $150,000 a year under the new arrangement.

The city has handled the county's 911 system and dispatching for Independence County sheriff's deputies and for all county fire departments.

In the early 1980s, the city and county combined their police protection services, and deputies patrolled the city. Last summer, however, Batesville decided to again create its own Police Department.

Elumbaugh said the increase in what the county was asked to pay for dispatch service was based on rising technology costs and a decrease in landline telephone service fees -- because more people now use cellphones -- that were used to help pay for the 911 system.

County Judge Robert Griffin and justices of the peace opposed the increase, saying a large portion of the county's residents live in Batesville and that city residents use the 911 services much more than county residents do. He said the amount paid for the dispatch service should be assessed accordingly.

Under the new plan, the county will retain the 10 dispatchers the city has used and move them to the county's Criminal Investigation Building at the sheriff's office in Batesville, Griffin said. Construction should begin on a new evidence storage facility within a week.

Plans also call for raising the height of the city's dispatch tower, making repairs to radios and replacing trunk lines to the 911 center's terminals.

Griffin said he expects the county to take over the dispatching within 90 days.

The county has budgeted $400,000 a year to handle the service.

"Everyone was in agreement with this plan," Elumbaugh said. "We needed to sit down together and discuss this.

"We have constituents we all have to take care of and look after," the mayor said.

Griffin said he also plans to start an intern program to train students from a local college to help with the dispatching. They could be hired later if needed, he said.

The dispatching agreement ends some animosity between the city and county that started when Batesville sought to annex Southside -- a small community just to the south of the city. Southside residents opposed the annexation, and rather than become part of the Independence County seat, they voted to incorporate Southside as a town last fall. Griffin, as county judge, granted that incorporation.

When Batesville created its own police force last year, county and city officials squabbled over the costs involved with holding prisoners and evidence.

Elumbaugh said he believes the dispatching agreement has helped soothe hard feelings.

"Judge Griffin is moving forward with this," he said. "I think this will help with future partnerships.

"We hope the transition goes smoothly."

State Desk on 04/18/2016

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