File No. 158

Senate, March 29, 2012

The Committee on Public Safety and Security reported through SEN. HARTLEY of the 15th Dist., Chairperson of the Committee on the part of the Senate, that the bill ought to pass.

AN ACT CONCERNING THE CONNECTICUT PUBLIC SAFETY DATA NETWORK.

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General Assembly convened:

Section 1. (NEW) (Effective from passage) (a) The Commissioner of Emergency Services and Public Protection, in consultation with the Chief Information Officer of the Division of Information Technology within the Department of Administrative Services, shall establish a public safety data network in an electronic format that allows for the exchange of information among public safety and criminal justice entities.

(b) Prior to July 1, 2012, the Office of State-Wide Emergency Telecommunications shall create technical and operational standards for the establishment of the public safety data network.

(c) The commissioner shall ensure that implementation of the public safety data network complies with all state and federal requirements for controlled or limited access data.

(d) The commissioner may enter into memoranda of understanding with public safety or criminal justice agencies that are connecting to the public safety data network concerning the use of the network. Such memoranda may address cost-sharing related to such use.

(e) Sources of revenue that provide funding for existing networks may be used to fund the use of the public safety data network.

Sec. 2. Subsection (c) of section 28-24 of the 2012 supplement to the general statutes is repealed and the following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective July 1, 2012):

(c) Within a time period determined by the commissioner to ensure the availability of funds for the fiscal year beginning July 1, 1997, to the regional public safety emergency telecommunications centers within the state, and not later than April first of each year thereafter, the commissioner shall determine the amount of funding needed for the development and administration of the enhanced emergency 9-1-1 program. The commissioner shall specify the expenses associated with (1) the purchase, installation and maintenance of new public safety answering point terminal equipment, (2) the implementation of the subsidy program, as described in subdivision (2) of subsection (a) of this section, (3) the implementation of the transition grant program, described in subdivision (2) of subsection (a) of this section, (4) the implementation of the regional emergency telecommunications service credit, as described in subdivision (2) of subsection (a) of this section, provided, for the fiscal year ending June 30, 2001, and each fiscal year thereafter, such credit for coordinated medical emergency direction services as provided in regulations adopted under this section shall be based upon the factor of thirty cents per capita and shall not be reduced each year, (5) the training of personnel, as necessary, (6) recurring expenses and future capital costs associated with the telecommunications network used to provide emergency 9-1-1 service and the public safety services data networks, (7) for the fiscal year ending June 30, 2001, and each fiscal year thereafter, the collection, maintenance and reporting of emergency medical services data, as required under subparagraph (A) of subdivision (8) of section 19a-177, provided the amount of expenses specified under this subdivision shall not exceed two hundred fifty thousand dollars in any fiscal year, (8) for the fiscal year ending June 30, 2001, and each fiscal year thereafter, the initial training of emergency medical dispatch personnel, the provision of an emergency medical dispatch priority reference card set and emergency medical dispatch training and continuing education pursuant to subdivisions (3) and (4) of subsection (g) of section 28-25b, [and] (9) the administration of the enhanced emergency 9-1-1 program by the Office of State-Wide Emergency Telecommunications, as the commissioner determines to be reasonably necessary, and (10) the implementation and maintenance of the public safety data network established pursuant to section 1 of this act. The commissioner shall communicate the commissioner's findings to the Public Utilities Regulatory Authority not later than April first of each year.

Sec. 3. Section 28-29a of the 2012 supplement to the general statutes is repealed and the following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective July 1, 2012):

(a) There is established an E 9-1-1 Commission to (1) advise the office in the planning, design, implementation and coordination of the state-wide emergency 9-1-1 telephone system to be created pursuant to sections 28-25 [, 28-25a, 28-25b, 28-26, 28-27, 28-27a, 28-28, 28-28a, 28-28b, 28-29 and] to 28-29b, inclusive, and (2) in consultation with the Coordinating Advisory Board established pursuant to section 29-1t, advise the Commissioner of Emergency Services and Public Protection in the planning, design, implementation, coordination and governance of the public safety data network established pursuant to section 1 of this act.

(b) The commission shall be appointed by the Governor and shall consist of the following members: (1) One representative from the technical support services unit of the Division of State Police within the Department of Emergency Services and Public Protection; (2) the State Fire Administrator; (3) one representative from the Office of Emergency Medical Services; (4) one representative from the Division of Emergency Management and Homeland Security within the Department of Emergency Services and Public Protection; (5) one municipal police chief; (6) one municipal fire chief; (7) one volunteer fireman; (8) one representative of the Connecticut Conference of Municipalities; (9) one representative of the Council of Small Towns; (10) one representative of telecommunicators, as defined in section 28-30; (11) one representative of the public; (12) one manager or coordinator of 9-1-1 public safety answering points serving areas of differing population concentration; and (13) one representative of providers of commercial mobile radio services, as defined in 47 Code of Federal Regulations 20.3, as amended. Each member shall serve for a term of three years from the date of his or her appointment or until a successor has been appointed and qualified. No member of the commission shall receive compensation for such member's services.

The following Fiscal Impact Statement and Bill Analysis are prepared for the benefit of the members of the General Assembly, solely for purposes of information, summarization and explanation and do not represent the intent of the General Assembly or either chamber thereof for any purpose. In general, fiscal impacts are based upon a variety of informational sources, including the analyst's professional knowledge. Whenever applicable, agency data is consulted as part of the analysis, however final products do not necessarily reflect an assessment from any specific department.

OFA Fiscal Note

State Impact:

Municipal Impact: None

Explanation

The bill codifies current practice of the Office of Statewide Emergency Telecommunication (OSET). OSET is responsible for implementing and maintaining the Public Safety Data Network as a stipulation of a $93.8 million federal grant. The annual maintenance of the network is included in the OSET budget. The annual maintenance cost for the network is $4.0 million.

There are no costs anticipated for oversight of the network.

The Out Years

The annualized ongoing fiscal impact identified above would continue into the future subject to inflation.

OLR Bill Analysis

SB 62

AN ACT CONCERNING THE CONNECTICUT PUBLIC SAFETY DATA NETWORK.

SUMMARY:

This bill requires the (1) Department of Emergency Services and Public Protection (DESPP) to establish a public safety data network (PSDN) in an electronic format for exchanging information among public safety and criminal justice entities and (2) Office of State-Wide Emergency Telecommunications (OSET) to create technical and operational standards for the network's establishment.

The bill requires the E 9-1-1 Commission, in consultation with the Coordinating Advisory Board, to advise the DESPP commissioner in the planning, design, implementation, coordination, and governance of the network. The commission currently plays a similar role with regard to the E 9-1-1 system.

The bill adds the expenses associated with implementing and maintaining the PSDN to the other expenses the commissioner must consider when determining the amount of funding necessary for the E 9-1-1 program (see BACKGROUND).

EFFECTIVE DATE: Upon passage for the establishment of the PSDN; July 1, 2012 for the remaining provisions.

ESTABLISHMENT OF PSDN

The DESPP commissioner must (1) establish the PSDN, in consultation with the chief information officer of the Department of Administrative Services' Division of Information Technology, and (2) ensure that implementation of the network complies with state and federal requirements for controlled or limited access data. He may enter into memoranda of understanding (MOUs) about the use of the network with public safety or criminal justice agencies that use it. The MOUs may address cost-sharing related to this use.

The bill allows sources of revenue that provide funding for existing networks to be used to fund the network.

BACKGROUND

Funding for the E 9-1-1 Program

The DESPP commissioner must annually determine and report to the Public Utilities Regulatory Authority (PURA) the associated expenses and amount of funding needed to develop and administer the enhanced emergency 911 (E-911) system. Funding can be provided for:

1. buying, installing, and maintaining new public safety answering point (PSAP) terminal equipment;

2. transition grants to encourage PSAPs to regionalize;

3. subsidies for regional centers, with enhanced subsidies for municipalities with more than 40,000 residents;

4. coordinated medical emergency direction services that provide medical instructions to an E-911 caller before medical assistance arrives;

5. personnel training and related costs;

6. capital costs and recurring expenses associated with the telecommunications system that supports the E-911 system;

7. collecting, maintaining, and reporting emergency medical services data as required by state law, up to $250,000 per year; and

8. OSET's administrative costs (CGS § 28-24(7)(c)).

Related Bill

sHB 5378, reported favorably by the Public Safety and Security Committee on March 15, increases, from 50 cents to 75 cents per month, per access line, the maximum amount that the Public Utilities Regulatory Authority may assess telecommunications subscribers to fund the E 9-1-1 program.

COMMITTEE ACTION

Public Safety and Security Committee

Joint Favorable