As they seek to close the gap between operating costs and revenue, those who run Kingfisher County 911 are keeping an eye on current legislation that could provide help.

They’re encouraging county citizens to push their legislators to support it as well.

Although two proposed bills are currently in committee, it’s House Bill 1924 that has support from the Board of County Commissioners, which is also the board for the county’s 911 system, and Director Ryan Deatherage.

Authored by Rep. Lonnie Sims of Jenks, the bill is currently in the Agriculture and Rural Development Committee.

“I’m asking you to contact our legislators, reach out to them and ask them to support this,” Deatherage said when addressing the Kingfisher City Commission last month.

Kingfisher County 911 funding currently comes from multiple streams, though one of them has been greatly affected over the years.

When 911 services became a mandate, there were fees associated with land lines and cellular lines set aside for it.

“What’s changed in the last 15 years?” Heath Dobrovolny said at the city meeting. “It’s landlines. I haven’t had one in five years.”

The cellular fees are tied to the billing address of each device, not where they’re used.

The county 911 system also gets 9 percent of a county sales tax that was passed in 2019. In readjusting the tax to that amount, it pulled from what county roads, fair board, the museum and libraries were to receive.

Despite that increase for 911, it’s still about $300,000 short annually in what it needs to operate.

It also needs to upgrade a system that’s currently out of date.

“Part of the problem now is we have an antiquated system that is not upgradeable,” Dobrovolny told the Kingfisher commission.

The BOCC took over as the 911 board about two years ago. It hired Deatherage in his current role last year.

Dobrovolny and Deatherage spoke at the Feb. 13 meeting to answer questions brought forth after a request by the BOCC for three county municipalities to pay an annual fee to help cover the shortfall.

The county has pledged to pay $141,740.30.

It asked $95,217.06 from Kingfisher, $41,394.54 from Hennessey and $21,648.10 from Okarche.

The amounts are based on populations.

Cashion uses the service through Logan County while the smaller towns of Dover and Loyal are not being asked to provide funding.

Hennessey and Okarche already approved to fund the requested amount.

Kingfisher has not yet held a vote on the request.

If passed, HB 1924 would raise the monthly 911 fee for wireless, voiceover, internet protocol and prepaid wireless services from to 75 cents to $1.25. It also raises the amount of 911 telephone fees deposited into the Oklahoma 911 Management Authority Revolving Fund from 5 cents to 25 cents.

The proceeds would be used to fund Next Generation 911 technology statewide.

The distribution of revenue from 911 fees would also be modified. Eligible governing bodies are to be given a flat rate of $3,000 per month per Public Safety Answering Point (PSAP).

Of the remaining revenue, 10 percent will be distributed based on response area and 90 percent will be distributed based on population.

Among other parts of the bill is required training for 911 employees.

Deatherage told city commissioners that, if passed, HB 1924 would generate an estimated $114,000 annually in increased revenue for Kingfisher County 911. On top of necessary upgrades to the system, money will be used to supplement payroll, pay for training and other operating expenses such as dispatching.