The Covington Business Council would like your input on Kenton County’s newly adopted system for funding a combined Northern Kentucky 911 emergency call system and how it affects your business. The CBC’s mission is to advocate for a healthy business climate and to foster a vibrant business community.
In the past funding from land line phone bills supported 911 services. Due to the precipitous decline in land lines as residents transitioned to cell phones, the County replaced that source with an annual $60 addition to property tax bills.
Kenton County, along with Boone and Campbell Counties, is converting the outdated analog 911 system to an entirely new digital 800 Mhz system, thereby improving communication and allowing first responders to better interact. The cost of the new digital system caused the County to re-evaluate the funding model.
The County reviewed 911 call origination records. A new funding system was adopted based on this historical data. The new structure is based on land use density and PVA land use designation, cross checked against historic usage of 911. The fee schedule is posted to the left.
The Covington Business Council recognizes that no business wants to face an additional financial hardship in doing business. However, the need for improved, reliable, state of the art communication services cannot be debated and must be funded in some form. An appeals process is available and can be accessed on the county website: www.kentoncounty.org.
Contact CBC’s Pat Frew at pfrew@cbcky.com with any of comments or concerns that can be passed along to county officials.
