Alabama 2025 Regular Session

Alabama House Bill HB263 Compare Versions

Only one version of the bill is available at this time.

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1	1	HB263INTRODUCED
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3	3	HB263
4	4	7DNPE2E-1
5	5	By Representatives Oliver, Wood (D)
6	6	RFD: Ways and Means General Fund
7	7	First Read: 12-Feb-25
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12	12	5 7DNPE2E-1 02/05/2025 JC (L)lg 2025-450
13	13	Page 1
14	14	First Read: 12-Feb-25
15	15	SYNOPSIS:
16	16	Existing law provides for the deposit of all
17	17	revenues from service charges paid by voice
18	18	communications service providers and wireless 911
19	19	charges into a 911 Fund. Most of the revenues are
20	20	distributed to local 911 districts, both on a monthly
21	21	basis and as grants.
22	22	This bill would alter the basis upon which the
23	23	monthly distribution to existing 911 districts is made.
24	24	This bill would allocate revenue to administer a
25	25	statewide 911 voice and data system and provide for the
26	26	use of any remaining funds to train public safety
27	27	telecommunicators, pay for advisory services, or to
28	28	fund grants for districts in financial hardship.
29	29	This bill would also make nonsubstantive,
30	30	technical revisions to update the existing code
31	31	language to current style.
32	32	A BILL
33	33	TO BE ENTITLED
34	34	AN ACT
35	35	Relating to the 911 Fund; to amend Section 11-98-5.2,
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63	63	28 HB263 INTRODUCED
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65	65	Relating to the 911 Fund; to amend Section 11-98-5.2,
66	66	Code of Alabama 1975, to further provide for the distribution
67	67	of monies to local 911 districts; to allocate revenue to
68	68	administer a state 911 voice and data system and designate
69	69	uses for remaining funds; and to make nonsubstantive,
70	70	technical revisions to update the existing code language to
71	71	current style.
72	72	BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF ALABAMA:
73	73	Section 1. Section 11-98-5.2, Code of Alabama 1975, is
74	74	amended to read as follows:
75	75	"§11-98-5.2
76	76	(a) Effective October 1, 2013, the 911 Fund shall be
77	77	created as an insured interest-bearing account into which the
78	78	911 Board shall deposit all revenues derived from the service
79	79	charge levied on voice communications service providers under
80	80	this chapter and all prepaid wireless 911 charges received
81	81	from the department. The revenues deposited into the 911 Fund
82	82	shall not be monies or property of the state and shall not be
83	83	subject to appropriation by the Legislature. The 911 Board
84	84	shall administer the fund and shall credit the 911 Fund all
85	85	revenues received. The fund and revenues generated by the fund
86	86	may only be used as provided in this chapter.
87	87	(b) Effective October 1, 2013, there shall first be
88	88	deducted, no more than one timeonce during each calendar
89	89	month, from the total amount of the statewide 911 charges paid
90	90	over to the 911 Board during suchthe month, a sum not to
91	91	exceed one percent of the total amount, to be applied by the
92	92	911 Board exclusively for payment of administrative expenses
93	93	theretofore incurred by it and, at the board's discretion, the
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123	123	theretofore incurred by it and, at the board's discretion, the
124	124	awarding of additional operational grants to districts outside
125	125	of the other distribution criteria in this subsection upon a
126	126	showing of hardship. The balance of the total amount of the
127	127	statewide 911 charges paid over to the 911 Board during each
128	128	calendar month shall be deposited into the 911 Fund and shall
129	129	be apportioned and distributed in accordance with the
130	130	succeeding provisions of this subsection.
131	131	(1) There shall be distributed each month among all
132	132	then existing districts, from the monies moneys then on
133	133	deposit in the 911 Fund, an aggregate amount equal to the sum
134	134	of a. 80 percent of the portion of the statewide 911 charges
135	135	remitted to the 911 Board with respect to the month by CMRS
136	136	providers and for prepaid wireless 911 charges, plus b. 100
137	137	percent of all other statewide 911 charges remitted to the 911
138	138	Board with respect to the month or an amount sufficient to
139	139	satisfy the base distribution amount as defined in
140	140	subdivisions (3) and (4), whichever is larger .
141	141	(2) There shall be paid each month to each then
142	142	existing district, out of the amount described in subdivision
143	143	(1), one-twelfth of the sum of the base distribution amount
144	144	defined, as applicable, in subdivisions (3) and (4), plus the
145	145	per capita distribution amount defined in subdivision (5).
146	146	(3) The term "base distribution amount, " as used in
147	147	this section with respect to any district with a functioning
148	148	911 system as of September 30, 2011, and except as otherwise
149	149	provided in this subdivision and subdivision (4), means the
150	150	highest dollar amount per annumyear of emergency telephone
151	151	service charges, excluding any fees received from the CMRS
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181	181	service charges, excluding any fees received from the CMRS
182	182	Fund, if any, received by the district during the five prior
183	183	consecutive fiscal years ending on September 30, 2011;
184	184	provided, that, if the district first levied any such service
185	185	charge, or if the district by vote of the commissioners of the
186	186	district, during the fiscal year ending on September 30, 2011,
187	187	or seven months thereafter, increased the rate of the charge
188	188	effective on or before January 1, 2013, then the total dollar
189	189	amount of the emergency telephone service charges with respect
190	190	to the fiscal year ending September 30, 2011, shall be deemed
191	191	to be the amount that would have been collected had the
192	192	increased rate been in effect for the entire fiscal year
193	193	ending September 30, 2011. Any vote of the commissioners
194	194	authorizing an increase in fees under the preceding sentence
195	195	may be contingent upon the enactment of Act 2012-293. No
196	196	adjustment shall be made under the preceding sentence to take
197	197	into account any increase in an emergency service charge
198	198	adopted by a district after January 1, 2012, if such district
199	199	shall have otherwise increased its emergency service charge
200	200	since January 1, 2011. For any district established prior to
201	201	September 30, 2011, but which initiated 911 service between
202	202	September 30, 2011, and June 1, 2012, the base distribution
203	203	amount shall be deemed to be the amount that would have been
204	204	collected if the 911 charge imposed by the district on August
205	205	1, 2012, had been in effect for the entire fiscal year. For
206	206	any county or municipal district that was funding an E-911
207	207	system on September 30, 2011, without a separate 911 fee, the
208	208	base distribution amount shall be the product of: That amount
209	209	determined by the board to be the county or municipality's
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239	239	determined by the board to be the county or municipality's
240	240	total funding of its E-911 system for purposes of calculation
241	241	of the initial statewide rate under subsection (a) of Section
242	242	11-98-5(a), multiplied by a fraction, the numerator of which
243	243	is the total wireline 911 fees paid to all districts as of
244	244	September 30, 2011, and the denominator of which is the total
245	245	wireline and wireless 911 fees determined by the board to have
246	246	been paid to all districts and the CMRS Board for the same
247	247	period. Within 90 days of the effective date of any adjustment
248	248	in the statewide 911 charge to increase the baseline 911
249	249	revenues under subdivision (2) of subsection (c) of Section
250	250	11-98-5(c)(2), the base distribution amount shall be increased
251	251	by an amount equal to the product of: a. the total amount
252	252	distributed to the district in the immediately preceding
253	253	fiscal year, multiplied by b. the rate of growth, determined
254	254	as a percentage, in the CPI-U utilized by the 911 Board for
255	255	the prior five-year period pursuant to subdivision (2) of
256	256	subsection (c) of Section 11-98-5 (c)(2).
257	257	(4)a. Any district that has, prior to March 1, 2011,
258	258	entered into one or more contracts, including, without
259	259	limitation, any lease, lease-purchase, or purchase agreement
260	260	or contract, to acquire equipment utilized or to be utilized
261	261	as part of a single, comprehensive, countywide radio system to
262	262	be operated within the boundaries of the district, may, no
263	263	later than December 31, 2012, may provide the 911 Board a copy
264	264	of a pro forma financial statement setting forth revenue and
265	265	expense projections demonstrating the ability of the district
266	266	to pay all principal and interest maturing or coming due with
267	267	respect to any contracts, and any bonds or other obligations
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297	297	respect to any contracts, and any bonds or other obligations
298	298	issued or incurred by the district to evidence the borrowing
299	299	of money by the district in connection with the planning,
300	300	acquisition, construction, and equipment of the countywide
301	301	radio system, and other system costs. Such revenue projections
302	302	shall set forth the district's annualized revenues that would
303	303	be included in the base distribution amount as calculated in
304	304	subdivision (3), for the fiscal year of the district ending on
305	305	September 30, 2011, or any fiscal year thereafter during which
306	306	the contracts, bonds, or other obligations are expected to be
307	307	outstanding and unpaid, and the amount received by the
308	308	district during the fiscal year ending September 30, 2011,
309	309	from the CMRS Fund. The pro forma statement shall be
310	310	accompanied by such supporting information as may be
311	311	reasonably requested by the 911 Board, whose review shall be
312	312	limited to the accuracy and reasonableness of the revenue and
313	313	expense projections contained therein solely for the purposes
314	314	of this subsection and which shall not extend to the approval
315	315	or disapproval of any projects authorized by the district
316	316	under existing law.
317	317	b. For a district meeting the requirements of this
318	318	subdivision, the base distribution amount for the district,
319	319	during any fiscal year or years in which the contracts, bonds,
320	320	or other obligations outstanding and unpaid, shall be
321	321	increased by the difference, if any, between the revenue
322	322	projections shown in the pro forma financial statement and the
323	323	base distribution amount as calculated under subdivision (3),
324	324	and the district's per capita distribution amount, as defined
325	325	in subdivision (5), shall be reduced by an amount equal to the
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355	355	in subdivision (5), shall be reduced by an amount equal to the
356	356	difference, with the amount of the reduction added to the
357	357	amount available for payment to other districts under
358	358	subdivision (5).
359	359	(5) The term "per capita distribution amount, " as used
360	360	in this section with respect to any district, means the
361	361	district's pro rata share, computed according to the
362	362	distribution formula, of the amount described in subdivision
363	363	(1) that remains after payment in full of the aggregate base
364	364	distribution amounts required to be paid to all districts.
365	365	(6) Notwithstanding the preceding provisions of this
366	366	subsection, there shall never be paid to any district, during
367	367	any fiscal year, from the moneys monies deposited into the 911
368	368	Fund, an amount less than the sum of the total dollar amount
369	369	of the initial base distribution amount received by the
370	370	district as calculated under subdivision (3) plus, without
371	371	duplication, the amount received by the district from the CMRS
372	372	Fund during the fiscal year ending September 30, 2011. For any
373	373	county or municipal district that was funding an E-911 system
374	374	on September 30, 2011, without a separate 911 fee, there shall
375	375	never be paid from the moneys monies deposited into the 911
376	376	Fund, during any fiscal year, an amount less than the sum of
377	377	that amount determined by the board to be the county or
378	378	municipality's funding of its E-911 system for purposes of
379	379	calculation of the initial statewide rate under this section.
380	380	(7)a. Except as otherwise provided in subdivision (6),
381	381	there shall be set aside and deposited each month, into a
382	382	separate account, which may, but need not, form a part of the
383	383	911 Fund, an amount equal to 20 percent of the portion of the
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413	413	911 Fund, an amount equal to 20 percent of the portion of the
414	414	remaining balance of the statewide 911 charges remitted to the
415	415	911 Board with respect to the month by CMRS providers . All
416	416	moneys monies in the separate account shall be used
417	417	exclusively for the costs related to administering a statewide
418	418	911 voice and data system in compliance with the technological
419	419	requirements established by the FCC order and as provided in
420	420	Section 11-98-4.1(e)(8); and for the payment of actual and
421	421	direct costs incurred by CMRS providers in complying with
422	422	wireless E-911 service requirements established by the FCC
423	423	Order and complying with any rules or regulations adopted at
424	424	any time by the FCC pursuant to the FCC Order; and the costs
425	425	may include, without limitation, costs and expenses incurred
426	426	in connection with designing, upgrading, purchasing, leasing,
427	427	programming, installing, testing, or maintaining all necessary
428	428	data, hardware, and software required in order to provide
429	429	Phase II Enhanced 911, and the incremental costs of operating
430	430	Phase II Enhanced 911.
431	431	b. After the requirements of paragraph a. are
432	432	fulfilled, the remaining funds shall be allocated for one or
433	433	more of the following purposes: (i) to fund the costs of all
434	434	required training and certification of public safety
435	435	telecommunicators; (ii) to fund the costs of advisory services
436	436	provided to the districts; (iii) to fund a grant program for
437	437	districts demonstrating financial hardship; or (iv) equally
438	438	among the districts as determined by majority vote of the
439	439	board. The board, by rule, shall establish the maximum balance
440	440	to be carried over in the separate account at the conclusion
441	441	of each fiscal year.
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471	471	of each fiscal year.
472	472	(c) Each CMRS provider wishing to participate in the
473	473	payments provided in subdivision (b)(7) of subsection (b) for
474	474	expenses related to providing Phase II Enhanced 911 shall
475	475	certify to the 911 Board that it does not then collect a
476	476	cost-recovery or other similar separate charge from its
477	477	customers. CMRS providers failing to provide the certification
478	478	by October 1 are ineligible to receive any payments until such
479	479	certificate is provided to the 911 Board. Any CMRS provider
480	480	electing to collect cost-recovery or other similar separate
481	481	charges at any time following its October 1 certification
482	482	shall immediately notify the 911 Board and is ineligible to
483	483	participate in the payments established in this subsection
484	484	until ceasing the collection from its customers and providing
485	485	the notice required herein. This requirement shall only apply
486	486	to payments for expenses related to providing Phase II
487	487	Enhanced 911.
488	488	(d) Any CMRS provider wishing to receive reimbursement
489	489	of costs under the guidelines established by subsection (c)
490	490	shall also comply with Section 11-98-7.
491	491	(e) In the event that there are wireless emergency
492	492	telephone services that cannot be efficiently performed at the
493	493	district level or there are expenses that cannot be properly
494	494	allocated at the district level, the 911 Board may determine
495	495	the smallest practical unit basis for joint implementation and
496	496	provide reimbursements in accordance with this section."
497	497	Section 2. This act shall become effective on October
498	498	1, 2025.
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