Connecticut 2013 Regular Session

Connecticut House Bill HB06334 Compare Versions

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11 General Assembly Committee Bill No. 6334
22 January Session, 2013 LCO No. 5048
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44 Referred to Committee on PLANNING AND DEVELOPMENT
55 Introduced by:
66 (PD)
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88 General Assembly
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1010 Committee Bill No. 6334
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1212 January Session, 2013
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1414 LCO No. 5048
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1818 Referred to Committee on PLANNING AND DEVELOPMENT
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2020 Introduced by:
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2222 (PD)
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2424 AN ACT MANDATING THE REGIONALIZATION OF CERTAIN PUBLIC SAFETY EMERGENCY TELECOMMUNICATIONS CENTERS AND A STUDY OF CONSOLIDATION.
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2626 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General Assembly convened:
2727
2828 Section 1. Section 28-24 of the general statutes is repealed and the following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective October 1, 2013):
2929
3030 (a) There is established an Office of State-Wide Emergency Telecommunications which shall be within the Department of Emergency Services and Public Protection. The Office of State-Wide Emergency Telecommunications shall be responsible for developing and maintaining a state-wide emergency service telecommunications policy. In connection with said policy, the office shall:
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3232 (1) Develop a state-wide emergency service telecommunications plan specifying emergency police, fire and medical service telecommunications systems needed to provide coordinated emergency service telecommunications to all state residents, including the physically disabled;
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3434 (2) Pursuant to the recommendations of the task force established by public act 95-318 to study enhanced 9-1-1 telecommunications services, and in accordance with regulations adopted by the Commissioner of Emergency Services and Public Protection pursuant to subsection (b) of this section, develop and administer, by July 1, 1997, an enhanced emergency 9-1-1 program, which shall provide for: (A) The replacement of existing 9-1-1 terminal equipment for each public safety answering point, provided, on or after July 1, 2019, if such answering point is located in a municipality with a population of forty thousand or less, such answering point is part of a regional public safety emergency telecommunications center; (B) the subsidization of regional public safety emergency telecommunications centers, with enhanced subsidization for municipalities with a population in excess of forty thousand; (C) the establishment of a transition grant program to encourage regionalization of public safety telecommunications centers; and (D) the establishment of a regional emergency telecommunications service credit in order to support regional dispatch services;
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3636 (3) Provide technical telecommunications assistance to state and local police, fire and emergency medical service agencies;
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3838 (4) Provide frequency coordination for such agencies;
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4040 (5) Coordinate and assist in state-wide planning for 9-1-1 and E 9-1-1 systems;
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4242 (6) Review and make recommendations concerning proposed legislation affecting emergency service telecommunications;
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4444 (7) Review and make recommendations to the General Assembly concerning emergency service telecommunications funding; and
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4646 (8) On or before January first of each year, prepare the annual budget for the use of funds from the Enhanced 9-1-1 Telecommunications Fund and submit such budget to the Secretary of the Office of Policy and Management for the secretary's review and approval. On or before January fifteenth of each year, said secretary shall submit a report concerning the proposed use of such funds to the joint standing committees of the General Assembly having cognizance of matters relating to appropriations and the budgets of state agencies, finance, revenue and bonding, and public safety in accordance with the provisions of section 11-4a.
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4848 (b) The Commissioner of Emergency Services and Public Protection shall adopt regulations, in accordance with chapter 54, establishing eligibility standards for state financial assistance to local or regional police, fire and emergency medical service agencies providing emergency service telecommunications. Not later than April 1, 1997, the commissioner shall adopt regulations, in accordance with chapter 54, in order to carry out the provisions of subdivision (2) of subsection (a) of this section.
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5050 (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, (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 29-1j. The commissioner shall communicate the commissioner's findings to the Public Utilities Regulatory Authority not later than April first of each year.
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5252 (d) For the fiscal year ending June 30, 2019, and each fiscal year thereafter, any municipality with a population of forty thousand or less that has not joined with two or more municipalities to form a regional emergency telecommunications center shall not be eligible to receive any funds pursuant to this section.
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5454 [(d)] (e) The office may apply for, receive and distribute any federal funds available for emergency service telecommunications. The office shall deposit such federal funds in the Enhanced 9-1-1 Telecommunications Fund established by section 28-30a, as amended by this act.
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5656 [(e)] (f) The office shall work in cooperation with the Public Utilities Regulatory Authority to carry out the purposes of this section.
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5858 Sec. 2. Subsection (a) of section 28-30a of the general statutes is repealed and the following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective October 1, 2013):
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6060 (a) There is established a fund to be known as the "Enhanced 9-1-1 Telecommunications Fund". The fund shall contain any moneys required by law to be deposited in the fund, including, but not limited to, any federal funds collected pursuant to subsection [(d)] (e) of section 28-24, as amended by this act, and fees assessed against subscribers of local telephone service, subscribers of commercial mobile radio services pursuant to section 16-256g and revenues from the prepaid wireless E 9-1-1 fee imposed pursuant to section 28-30e. The Enhanced 9-1-1 Telecommunications Fund shall be held separate and apart from all other moneys, funds and accounts. Interest derived from the investment of the fund shall be credited to the assets of the fund. Any balance remaining in the fund at the end of any fiscal year shall be carried forward in the fund for the fiscal year next succeeding.
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6262 Sec. 3. (Effective from passage) The Office of State-Wide Emergency Telecommunications shall conduct a study to determine a range of feasible arrangements of public safety answering points, including, but not limited to: (1) What number of answering points would achieve a balance between cost-effectiveness, operational efficiency and efficient use of new and existing resources; (2) which answering points could be consolidated, after considering cost, efficiencies, and natural or selected operational groupings; (3) what further consolidation of police, fire and emergency medical dispatching services and any related services is recommended; and (4) any and all costs associated with all aspects of and various options for consolidation, including municipal and state costs. Such study shall be paid for out of the Enhanced 9-1-1 Telecommunications Fund.
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6464 (b) The Office of State-Wide Emergency Telecommunications shall, not later than July 1, 2017, submit a report containing the findings of said study to the joint standing committees of the General Assembly having cognizance of matters relating to municipalities and public safety, in accordance with the provisions of section 11-4a of the general statutes.
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6969 This act shall take effect as follows and shall amend the following sections:
7070 Section 1 October 1, 2013 28-24
7171 Sec. 2 October 1, 2013 28-30a(a)
7272 Sec. 3 from passage New section
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7474 This act shall take effect as follows and shall amend the following sections:
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7676 Section 1
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7878 October 1, 2013
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8080 28-24
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8282 Sec. 2
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8484 October 1, 2013
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8686 28-30a(a)
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8888 Sec. 3
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9090 from passage
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9292 New section
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94+Statement of Purpose:
95+
96+To provide funding to those municipalities that have formed a regional emergency telecommunications center and to require the Office of State-Wide Emergency Telecommunications to conduct a study of the feasibility of consolidating emergency telecommunications centers.
97+
98+[Proposed deletions are enclosed in brackets. Proposed additions are indicated by underline, except that when the entire text of a bill or resolution or a section of a bill or resolution is new, it is not underlined.]
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96-PD Joint Favorable
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98-PD
102+Co-Sponsors: REP. LOPES, 24th Dist.; REP. ZONI, 81st Dist.
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100-Joint Favorable
104+Co-Sponsors:
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106+REP. LOPES, 24th Dist.; REP. ZONI, 81st Dist.
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108+H.B. 6334