Bill Text: IA HF2408 | 2015-2016 | 86th General Assembly | Introduced

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Bill Title: A bill for an act relating to the distribution and permissible expenditures of the emergency communications service surcharge and the duties of the E911 communications council. (Formerly HSB 627) (See Cmte. Bill HF 2439)

Spectrum: Committee Bill

Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2016-03-23 - Withdrawn. H.J. 546. [HF2408 Detail]

Download: Iowa-2015-HF2408-Introduced.html

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House File 2408 - Introduced




                                 HOUSE FILE       
                                 BY  COMMITTEE ON PUBLIC
                                     SAFETY

                                 (SUCCESSOR TO HSB 627)

                                      A BILL FOR

  1 An Act relating to the distribution and permissible
  2    expenditures of the emergency communications service
  3    surcharge and the duties of the E911 communications council.
  4 BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF IOWA:
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PAG LIN



  1  1    Section 1.  Section 34A.7A, subsection 2, Code 2016, is
  1  2 amended to read as follows:
  1  3    2.  Moneys collected pursuant to subsection 1 and section
  1  4 34A.7B, subsection 2, shall be deposited in a separate E911
  1  5 emergency communications fund within the state treasury
  1  6 under the control of the program manager. Section 8.33 shall
  1  7 not apply to moneys in the fund. Moneys earned as income,
  1  8 including as interest, from the fund shall remain in the fund
  1  9 until expended as provided in this section. Moneys in the fund
  1 10 shall be expended and distributed in the following priority
  1 11 order:
  1 12    a.  An amount as appropriated by the general assembly to the
  1 13 director shall be allocated to the director and program manager
  1 14 for implementation, support, and maintenance of the functions
  1 15 of the director and program manager and to employ the auditor
  1 16 of state to perform an annual audit of the E911 emergency
  1 17 communications fund.
  1 18    b.  (1)  The program manager shall allocate to each joint
  1 19 E911 service board and to the department of public safety a
  1 20 minimum of one thousand dollars per calendar quarter for each
  1 21 public safety answering point within the service area of the
  1 22 department of public safety or joint E911 service board that
  1 23 has submitted an annual written request to the program manager
  1 24 in a form approved by the program manager by May 15 of each
  1 25 year.
  1 26    (2)  The amount allocated under this paragraph "b" shall be
  1 27 sixty percent of the total amount of surcharge generated per
  1 28 calendar quarter allocated as follows:
  1 29    (a)  Sixty=five percent of the total dollars available for
  1 30 allocation shall be allocated in proportion to the square miles
  1 31 of the service area to the total square miles in this state.
  1 32    (b)  Thirty=five percent of the total dollars available for
  1 33 allocation shall be allocated in proportion to the wireless
  1 34 E911 calls taken at the public safety answering point in
  1 35 the service area to the total number of wireless E911 calls
  2  1 originating in this state.
  2  2    (c)  Notwithstanding subparagraph divisions (a) and (b), the
  2  3 minimum amount allocated to each joint E911 service board and
  2  4 to the department of public safety shall be no less than one
  2  5 thousand dollars for each public safety answering point within
  2  6 the service area of the department of public safety or joint
  2  7 E911 service board.
  2  8    (3)  The funds allocated in this paragraph "b" shall be used
  2  9 for emergency communication equipment utilized by the public
  2 10 safety answering points for the implementation and maintenance
  2 11 of E911 services.
  2 12    b.  c.   From July 1, 2013, until June 30, 2026, the program
  2 13 manager shall allocate ten percent of the total amount of
  2 14 surcharge generated to wireless carriers to recover their costs
  2 15 to deliver E911 phase 1 services. If the allocation in this
  2 16 paragraph is insufficient to reimburse all wireless carriers
  2 17 for such carrier's eligible expenses, the program manager
  2 18 shall allocate a prorated amount to each wireless carrier
  2 19 equal to the percentage of such carrier's eligible expenses as
  2 20 compared to the total of all eligible expenses for all wireless
  2 21 carriers for the calendar quarter during which such expenses
  2 22 were submitted. When prorated expenses are paid, the remaining
  2 23 unpaid expenses shall no longer be eligible for payment under
  2 24 this paragraph.
  2 25    c.  d.  The program manager shall reimburse communications
  2 26 service providers on a calendar quarter basis for carriers'
  2 27 eligible expenses for transport costs between the selective
  2 28 router and the public safety answering points related to the
  2 29 delivery of wireless E911 phase 1 services.
  2 30    d.  e.  The program manager shall reimburse wire=line
  2 31 carriers and third=party E911 automatic location information
  2 32 database providers on a calendar quarterly basis for the
  2 33 costs of maintaining and upgrading the E911 components and
  2 34 functionalities beyond the input to the E911 selective router,
  2 35 including the E911 selective router and the automatic location
  3  1 information database.
  3  2    e.  (1)  The program manager shall allocate to each joint
  3  3 E911 service board and to the department of public safety a
  3  4 minimum of one thousand dollars per calendar quarter for each
  3  5 public safety answering point within the service area of the
  3  6 department of public safety or joint E911 service board that
  3  7 has submitted an annual written request to the program manager
  3  8 in a form approved by the program manager by May 15 of each
  3  9 year.
  3 10    (2)  The amount allocated under this paragraph "e" shall be
  3 11 forty=six percent of the total amount of surcharge generated
  3 12 per calendar quarter allocated as follows:
  3 13    (a)  Sixty=five percent of the total dollars available for
  3 14 allocation shall be allocated in proportion to the square miles
  3 15 of the service area to the total square miles in this state.
  3 16    (b)  Thirty=five percent of the total dollars available for
  3 17 allocation shall be allocated in proportion to the wireless
  3 18 E911 calls taken at the public safety answering point in
  3 19 the service area to the total number of wireless E911 calls
  3 20 originating in this state.
  3 21    (c)  Notwithstanding subparagraph divisions (a) and (b), the
  3 22 minimum amount allocated to each joint E911 service board and
  3 23 to the department of public safety shall be no less than one
  3 24 thousand dollars for each public safety answering point within
  3 25 the service area of the department of public safety or joint
  3 26 E911 service board.
  3 27    (3)  The funds allocated in this paragraph "e" shall be
  3 28 used for communication equipment utilized by the public safety
  3 29 answering points for the implementation and maintenance of E911
  3 30 services. 
  3 31    f.  (1)  If moneys remain in the fund after fully paying
  3 32 all obligations under paragraphs "a", "b", "c", "d", and "e",
  3 33 the remainder may be accumulated in the fund as a carryover
  3 34 operating surplus. shall be expended and distributed in the
  3 35 following priority order:
  4  1    (a)  (i)  The E911 communications council may provide a grant
  4  2 to any public safety answering point agreeing to consolidate
  4  3 with one or more other public safety answering points. Such
  4  4 a grant to a public safety answering point shall not exceed
  4  5 one=half of the projected cost of consolidation, or two hundred
  4  6 thousand dollars, whichever is less.
  4  7    (ii)  The grant program established in this subparagraph
  4  8 division shall expire on June 30, 2022.
  4  9    (iii)  The director, in consultation with the program
  4 10 manager and the E911 communications council, shall adopt rules
  4 11 governing the eligibility for and the E911 communications
  4 12 council's distribution of grants to public safety answering
  4 13 points pursuant to this subparagraph division.
  4 14    (b)  The program manager, in consultation with the E911
  4 15 communications council, shall allocate an amount, not to exceed
  4 16 one hundred thousand dollars per fiscal year, for development
  4 17 of public awareness and educational programs related to the
  4 18 use of 911 by the public, educational programs for personnel
  4 19 responsible for the maintenance, operation, and upgrading of
  4 20 local E911 systems, and the expenses of members of the E911
  4 21 communications council for travel, monthly meetings, and
  4 22 training.
  4 23    (c)  The program manager shall allocate remaining surplus
  4 24 shall be used moneys equally as follows:
  4 25    (i)  To public safety answering points to fund future network
  4 26 and public safety answering point improvements and for the
  4 27 receipt and disposition of 911 calls, including hardware and
  4 28 software for an internet protocol=enabled next generation
  4 29 network, and wireless.
  4 30    (ii)  Costs related to access the state's interoperable
  4 31 communications system.
  4 32    (iii)  Costs related to the receipt and disposition of 911
  4 33 calls.
  4 34    (iv)  Wireless carriers' transport costs related to wireless
  4 35 E911 services, if those costs are not otherwise recovered by
  5  1 wireless carriers through customer billing or other sources and
  5  2 approved by the program manager in consultation with the E911
  5  3 communications council.
  5  4    (2)  Notwithstanding section 8.33, any moneys remaining in
  5  5 the fund at the end of each fiscal year shall not revert to the
  5  6 general fund of the state but shall remain available for the
  5  7 purposes of the fund.
  5  8    g.  The director, in consultation with the program manager
  5  9 and the E911 communications council, shall adopt rules pursuant
  5 10 to chapter 17A governing the distribution of the surcharge
  5 11 collected and distributed pursuant to this subsection. The
  5 12 rules shall include provisions that all joint E911 service
  5 13 boards and the department of public safety which answer
  5 14 or service wireless E911 calls are eligible to receive an
  5 15 equitable portion of the receipts.
  5 16    Sec. 2.  Section 34A.15, Code 2016, is amended by adding the
  5 17 following new subsection:
  5 18    NEW SUBSECTION.  3A.  The council may provide grants, subject
  5 19 to available moneys in the E911 emergency communications fund,
  5 20 to public safety answering points agreeing to consolidate
  5 21 pursuant to section 34A.7A, subsection 2, paragraph "f".
  5 22    Sec. 3.  STUDY OF CONSOLIDATION OF PUBLIC SAFETY ANSWERING
  5 23 POINTS.  The department of homeland security and emergency
  5 24 management shall conduct a study to determine how public safety
  5 25 answering points can be consolidated to achieve operational
  5 26 and cost efficiencies. The study shall also review sections
  5 27 34A.7 and 34A.7A to determine the most efficient method
  5 28 of distributing surcharge revenues to support a network of
  5 29 consolidated public safety answering points. The department
  5 30 shall submit a report containing the results of the study no
  5 31 later than January 15, 2017.
  5 32                           EXPLANATION
  5 33 The inclusion of this explanation does not constitute agreement with
  5 34 the explanation's substance by the members of the general assembly.
  5 35    This bill relates to the distribution and permissible
  6  1 expenditures of the E911 emergency communications service
  6  2 surcharge.
  6  3    Under current Code section 34A.7A, a monthly surcharge
  6  4 is imposed on all communications service providers in Iowa.
  6  5 Moneys collected pursuant to the surcharge are deposited in
  6  6 a fund and are distributed by the E911 program manager in a
  6  7 priority order as listed in Code section 34A.7A(2), paragraphs
  6  8 "a" through "f".
  6  9    The bill establishes a higher priority of funding for
  6 10 the contents of Code section 34A.7A(2), paragraph "e", which
  6 11 relates to funding to be provided to joint E911 service boards
  6 12 and to the department of public safety (DPS), and increases the
  6 13 amount of moneys allocated for funding under this paragraph
  6 14 from 46 percent to 60 percent of the total amount of surcharge
  6 15 generated. The bill also specifies that the funds allocated to
  6 16 such joint E911 boards and to DPS shall be used for "emergency"
  6 17 communication equipment to receive and dispose of 911 calls.
  6 18    The bill amends Code section 34A.7A(2), paragraph "f",
  6 19 which relates to the distribution of any moneys remaining
  6 20 after fully paying all prioritized obligations under the
  6 21 previous paragraphs, by establishing a new priority order for
  6 22 the expenditure and distribution of such remaining moneys.
  6 23 First in this priority order is an amount allocated to the
  6 24 E911 communications council to provide grants to public
  6 25 safety answering points agreeing to consolidate, not to exceed
  6 26 one=half of the cost of consolidation, or $200,000, whichever
  6 27 is less. Such grants may be provided until June 30, 2022.
  6 28 Second in this priority order is an amount, not to exceed
  6 29 $100,000 per year, to be allocated only for the development
  6 30 of public awareness and educational programs relating to the
  6 31 use and maintenance of E911 systems and not for the expenses
  6 32 of members of the E911 communications travel for meetings and
  6 33 training. Third in this priority order is for any remaining
  6 34 moneys to be allocated equally to the following: public safety
  6 35 answering points to fund future network improvements; costs
  7  1 related to access the Iowa interoperable communications system;
  7  2 costs related to the receipt and disposition of 911 calls; and
  7  3 wireless carriers' transport costs for wireless E911 services,
  7  4 if applicable.
  7  5    The bill provides the E911 communications council with the
  7  6 authority to provide grants to consolidating public safety
  7  7 answering points under Code section 34A.15.
  7  8    The bill requires the department of homeland security and
  7  9 emergency management to conduct a study to determine the most
  7 10 efficient method to consolidate public safety answering points.
  7 11 The department must submit a report containing the results of
  7 12 the study no later than January 15, 2017.
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