NJ Lawmakers Back Constitutional Change to End State 911 Fee Diversion
TRENTON -- To end New Jersey 911 fee diversion, legislators from both parties committed to seek a constitutional amendment to guarantee revenue collected for the emergency network goes to that purpose. “Let’s do it,” said Assemblyman Jay Webber (R), agreeing with two Democrats at a Thursday hearing of the Assembly Homeland Security and State Preparedness Committee. The FCC in February identified New Jersey as the nation’s biggest diverter, saying it used about 89 percent ($108.1 million) of the revenue for non-911 purposes in 2016.
Sign up for a free preview to unlock the rest of this article
Timely, relevant coverage of court proceedings and agency rulings involving tariffs, classification, valuation, origin and antidumping and countervailing duties. Each day, Trade Law Daily subscribers receive a daily headline email, in-depth PDF edition and access to all relevant documents via our trade law source document library and website.
The panel cleared four bills meant to enhance state 911. Local government and wireless industry witnesses said many of the proposed requirements would amount to unfunded mandates that wouldn’t get the state to next-generation 911. The committee approved bills to require at least 10 percent of 911 revenue go to public safety answering points (A-2371), increase 911 fees by 10 percent and require that portion to be used for NG-911 (A-3742), apply the 911 fee to prepaid wireless (A-3743), and raise standards for PSAPs and dispatchers (A-122). Four members voted yes on all bills. Webber voted no on the prepaid wireless and NG-911 bills and abstained from the bill to require standards.
“We cannot let this diversion of fees put public safety in jeopardy,” said Chairwoman Valerie Vainieri Huttle (D). But New Jersey can’t end fee misuse without changing the state constitution, which currently lumps 911 fees in with other taxes that go into the general fund (see 1803300034), she said. The assemblywoman supported that change for years but has been frustrated, she said. The four bills under consideration are good first steps even if they don’t solve the big problem, she said: “At least start the conversation.”
“Jersey is simply not keeping faith with the people who are paying the bills,” Webber said. Of all the states diverting 911 fees, it's the “biggest offender by far,” the Republican said. “It’s unconscionable.” Webber opposed adding 9 cents more to the 90-cent fee specifically for NG-911. “We can do nine times better than that without increasing the fee by one penny by simply committing to using the fee that we collect for its intended purpose,” he said. Democratic and Republican administrations alike diverted fees, he noted.
Assemblywoman Carol Murphy promised to speak with the Budget Committee, of which she's a member. The Democrat wants “to make sure that the money that is taken is not diverted elsewhere.”
Camden County hasn’t received “one dime” of about $6 million its residents pay yearly to state 911, since 2008, said the county’s Freeholder Jonathan Young. Most of the money should go to counties, which handle the bulk of 911 calls in the state, he said. Camden is one of about three state counties with text-to-911, but it’s a “Band-Aid” that’s inferior to sending pictures through NG-911, he said. There’s not enough money, Young said. Ensuring 911 fees pay for 911 is “not asking for a lot,” he said.
Monmouth County saw "zero" of $6 million-$7 million yearly in 911 fees collected from its residents since 2010, said Sheriff Shaun Golden. He praised legislators’ interest in 911, but said none of the bills provides specific funding to local governments. Adding another 9 cents to the fee guaranteed for NG-911, as proposed in the NG-911 bill, “doesn’t alleviate the problem … for county and local PSAPs,” he said. The county’s 911 system runs on modems from the ’70s, he said. “We are way behind.”
Upgrading New Jersey to NG-911 may cost $70 million to $100 million, estimated New Jersey Wireless Association President Rob Ivanoff. “Doing nothing is really not an option.” Funding provided by the proposed NG-911 bill would bring in about $13 million yearly, which isn’t enough, Golden said. Continued diversion may prevent the state from getting federal NG-911 funding, warned NJWA Public Safety Committee Chair Dominic Villecco.
Requiring at least 10 percent of 911 revenue for its purpose is no improvement over New Jersey’s panned 2016 performance, said Allen Weston, New Jersey Association of Counties legislative director. “We would still have been in compliance under this bill.”
The state's diversion rate “is staggering,” testified National Emergency Number Association CEO Brian Fontes, who called 911 “a last-century, voice-centric technology.” Upgrading it takes leadership, ownership and a plan, he said. “It won’t happen if there isn’t money to make it happen.”