The Lincoln County Commissioners approved a vote of the people on dissolving the E911 Trust Authority at their regular meeting on June 1.
“If everything falls the way it’s supposed to, that election should be in November,” said District 3 Commissioner Lee Doolen. “The only thing that would change that is if they choose to vote to dissolve themselves or something happens and we don’t get the resolution into the election board on time, but I don’t expect that to happen.”
The vote would be to dissolve the Trust Authority entirely and bring 911 services under the county so that there would be financial guardrails in place to make sure all the money goes where it’s supposed to, Doolen said. He added that they are working on the ballot language, and plan to include having the current board of the Trust Authority work with the county to facilitate a transition for no longer than 12 months. However, that will ultimately come down to what is allowed by the State.
Doolen said if the county takes over running 911, there are several grants available to them, including a planning grant that will bring in someone to show the county everything they need to do to build the 911 system back where it needs to be.
“And the State pays 100 percent of that,” he said.
Chandler City Manager Jason Orr, who is on the board for the E911 Trust Authority, said that he is unsure of where the county commissioners are going to come up with the additional $300,000 to $400,000 it takes to run the Comm Center on top of the revenue that the Authority receives from 911 fees.
“It seems to me the better option for them would be to pitch in a fraction of that right now in order to help make the current system successful,” he said.
At the meeting, the Commissioners also approved the renewal of a personnel services contract with the Trust Authority. This was first put in place in March 2024.
Other items approved during the meeting include a contract with Redemption Correctional Healthcare Solutions, LLC, to provide mental and physical healthcare for the jail, the Legacy 4 Outfitters Subdivision Plat in District #3 and awarding bids for the Lincoln County Fair Board west wing remodel. They also approved the FY27 Creek County Juvenile Detention Center Agreement.
At a special meeting held on June 8, the County Commissioners approved a contract with Advantage Benefits Plus, a juvenile detention contract with Garfield County and FY2027 temporary appropriations for Lincoln County to help the county operate through October.