Bill Text: IA SF2241 | 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 name of the surcharge fund. (Formerly SSB 3145.)

Sponsorship: Committee Bill

Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2016-03-23 - Fiscal note, revised. SCS. [SF2241 Detail]

Download: Iowa-2015-SF2241-Introduced.html

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Senate File 2241 - Introduced




                                 SENATE FILE       
                                 BY  COMMITTEE ON STATE
                                     GOVERNMENT

                                 (SUCCESSOR TO SSB
                                     3145)

                                      A BILL FOR

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