Pa. County Council May Not Include Radio System in Budget

Nov. 06--Funding for a proposed $26.4 million countywide radio system for local emergency responders might not be part of Erie County's 2015 budget after all.

County Council Chairman Kyle Foust said Tuesday night that council members are now unlikely to include a portion of the radio system funding in the spending plan, as Erie County Executive Kathy Dahlkemper has requested.

Foust said that while most council members believe the new radio system is necessary, council wants to make sure it knows exactly how the system would be paid for long term.

Dahlkemper wants County Council to sign off on using $10.5 million in county reserve funds to make debt payments for at least the first five years of a 20-year capital improvement bond to fund the radio system. The request is part of Dahlkemper's proposed $96.3 million county budget for 2015.

Council, which has the final say on budgets, is expected to pass the budget at its next meeting Nov. 18.

"I don't think any of us are comfortable moving it forward in this budget," Foust said. "That doesn't mean we don't support it, and I don't think it will delay the project."

The multimillion-dollar "next generation" radio system for the region's emergency responders would allow local emergency responders to communicate on common frequencies and replace the fragmented system they now use.

McMurray-based MCM Consulting Group Inc., which conducted a $65,190 county-funded study of the radio issue, has concluded the current system in use countywide, which includes both high-band and low-band frequencies, is inefficient and should be scrapped.

MCM recommends a system that puts all agencies into a single band of UHF radio frequencies, saying that is a more reliable, high-frequency option.

Councilman Edward T. DiMattio Jr. agreed with Foust that County Council needs more time to figure out "all of the possible funding" for the system. DiMattio also said he is uncomfortable with locking down funding for just the first five years of the radio project.

In addition to gambling revenues, other potential funding sources for the radio system could be grants; private funds from businesses and foundations; contributions from affected municipalities, police agencies, volunteer fire departments and ambulance companies; or additional county funds.

"Everyone agrees the radio project is what we need to do," DiMattio said. "But we need more time to figure this out."

KEVIN FLOWERS can be reached at 870-1693 or by e-mail. Follow him on Twitter at twitter.com/ETNflowers.

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