Gogebic County Enhanced 911 Committee to Meet in Wakefield Wednesday

WAKEFIELD, MI - Tuesday, April 07, 2009 - The Gogebic County Enhanced 911 Committee will be meeting tomorrow, Wednesday, April 08, 2009, at 1:00 PM, at the Gogebic County Mental Health Building in Wakefield.

The purpose of tomorrow's meeting is to discuss strategies to educate the public regarding the value of enhanced 911 service and the importance of the service to the county. On May 5th the voters will be asked to support a referendum that will permit an increase in the per unit 911 surcharge on all cell, land-line and VOIP (voice over Internet protocol) telephone devices from the current 30¢ to up to $1.65.

Supporters of the proposal contend that the current 30¢ surcharge will not generate enough revenue to continue any form of 911 service to Gogebic County beyond 2009. An increase in the surcharge will provide the county with enough money to not only insure continued 911 services, but it will also allow for necessary upgrades to the equipment to makes the service possible.

The Committee is hopeful that the voters will realize the importance of having Enhanced 911 within the county and they will realize the low cost is per unit is money well spent.

Enhanced 911, or E-911, is an enhanced version of a typical Caller ID system. The difference between Enhanced 911 and regular Caller ID is the amount of information provided to dispatchers when you call 911. Regular Caller ID provides the caller's name and phone number. Enhanced 911 displays the caller's name, phone number, street address, apartment or space numbers, the type of phone, additional phone numbers at that location, and a recommendation for police, fire, or paramedic response. It also keeps numbers from being blocked, even if they are unlisted.

Having the location immediately displayed on each 911 call allows the dispatcher to quickly confirm the location where help is needed. The sooner dispatchers can verify a location, the sooner they can send help to you. With all of the information provided through Enhanced 911 help can easily be dispatched even if the caller is unable to speak to the dispatcher.