‘Difficult decision’ looming for the future of police dispatchers in southwest IL city

Highland leaders are facing what the mayor calls “a difficult decision” for the future of its police dispatchers.

The police dispatchers say they believe the decision has already been made.

In 2015, the state passed the 911 consolidation bill that required Madison County to go from 16 “public safety answering points” or PSAPs to eight. The current consolidation plan will require that Highland’s 911 calls be routed through the Collinsville Police Department.

The plan has met with strong resistance since its inception. Concerns about local control, differing technology and the non-911 tasks performed by dispatchers have been raised; most dispatchers handle paperwork and documents, assist people walking in off the street, and other work unrelated to 911 calls.

City Manager Chris Conrad said when the bill was first passed, he was a lieutenant in the Highland Police Department and then-Chief Terry Bell served on the local advisory the Emergency Telephone System Board. Both spent time locally and at the state level lobbying against the bill, he said, and later to try for an exemption for Madison County.

“We lost, and Chief Bell was removed from the local ETSB by (Madison County Board) Chairman (Kurt) Prenzler,” Conrad said. “At that point, Highland no longer had a voice at the table concerning the eventual consolidations.”

Conrad said the meetings surrounding the consolidation were often “highly emotional and political.”

In the meantime, Conrad said the staff has been working on contingency plans. Highland currently budgets $476,000 a year for salaries, benefits, insurance etc. for six dispatchers.

Approximately $40,000 a year is reimbursed by the ETSB, which will end after consolidation, according to Conrad’s memo. The city will also have to start paying for records management system currently funded by the county, which would mean an additional $50,000 a year to “maintain the status quo” after consolidation.

Conrad said most Illinois towns have chosen not to keep local dispatchers after consolidation for financial reasons and the logistical problems with having two dispatch centers. But the Highland dispatchers disagree.

“We knew that consolidation would happen with 911, but we’ve always been told that dispatch will never be taken away from Highland, that there is a need and it’s what’s best for the city,” said dispatcher Tarah Rottmann. “That’s not what’s happening.”

Rottmann is a part-time dispatcher with 18 years with the Highland Police. She has another full-time job, so she said it won’t be as difficult for her family if the dispatchers are laid off after consolidation. But she believes it’s still important to have dispatchers on duty at the police station.

“When you walk into the police department, you won’t talk to anybody,” she said. “There’ll be a phone that calls to Madison County. You lose that face-to-face communication, you lose a lot of the services that our residents are accustomed to and deserve. It’s a shame. The citizens of Highland and the non-residents we serve… have a high level of expectation for us.”

Courtney Yearian has been a full-time dispatcher for six years. While she also understands the 911 consolidation is being forced by the state, she said 911 is “a small percentage” of their jobs. For example, divorced parents with acrimonious history are encouraged to do their custody exchange in the parking lot where the dispatchers are watching on the cameras.

“Now nobody is going to be there, because we can’t guarantee an officer is there 24/7,” Yearian said.

There are many other tasks, including paperwork, that the dispatchers handle besides 911, Yearian said.

“They can’t just be forgotten,” she said. “It has to be covered by additional positions…. The numbers sound good on paper, but when you really dive into them, it’s not an accurate picture.”

Conrad told the Highland City Council last week he has opened discussions with the Madison County Sheriff’s Department, as he believes it will be more practical to have them handle Highland’s 911 rather than Collinsville. Councilwoman Peggy Bellm pointed out that by taking action now, they could at least mitigate the impact.

“If we wait until they (force us), we’re going to Collinsville,” Bellm said. “Whereas if we make our arrangements early, we can choose something that may be better for us.”

Costing department police officers?

But keeping the dispatchers on after consolidation would cost money that could be used for police officers, Conrad said.

“Do we want to spend our limited resources on local people answering phone calls? Or local people with guns, badges and radios physically answering calls for the police?” Conrad said. “I think we can all agree we want the people with badges and guns answering calls and responding when needed.”

Conrad said the only Illinois community he could find that kept their dispatchers on after 911 consolidation was Chatham, and it cost them three police officers in the long run, he said. But while the financial issues are strong, he said it isn’t the biggest factor.

The biggest concern, he said, was a court case titled Coleman vs. East Joliet Fire Protection District, a wrongful death suit that went through the courts in 2016 after confusion between two dispatch centers delayed medical help for a woman who had called 911 and did not receive help for 41 minutes.

“That case was decided in 2016, and I don’t think it was coincidence that nobody since then has tried to keep a dispatch center,” Conrad said. “This is a very tough decision on the emotional side of it, but on the operational side of it, they didn’t really leave us a choice.”

‘It’s a done deal’

Both Yearian and Rottmann said no matter the vote, they believe the decision has already been made, and Yearian said two people have already accepted a severance package.

“We were told that we are losing our jobs,” Rottmann said. “It’s a done deal ... we feel upset and betrayed.”

Conrad confirmed that city leaders have been negotiating with the telecommunications’ union since February, and will issue a 90-day notice Friday, Oct. 1, with anticipated switchover on Saturday, Jan. 1. However, the council won’t make its decision until the contracts are settled with Madison County, and the future of the dispatchers will be part of that decision.

In addition, Conrad said, they hope to hire a citywide receptionist and a police aide to take up some of the tasks the dispatchers currently perform. He said he was patterning their plan on the procedures set up by Maryville, Swansea, Shiloh, Fairview Heights and others.

“There will be a presence in the police department,” he said. “It’s not going to be 24 hours, but… that’s what we’re looking at after the fact.

‘We all know this is an emotional issue’

Mayor Kevin Hemann said it is a “difficult decision.”

“We all know this is an emotional issue,” he said. “Ultimately we have to abide by the law, but it isn’t that we don’t appreciate the services that our telecommunicators and police officers provide.”

Conrad said it is a “complex issue with a lot of moving parts,” and is distressing for everyone involved.

“I can assure you that nobody from me, the council, or any of the directors like where this law has led us, but I hope our citizens understand that I can’t make a recommendation to the council that the data and research tell me will result in fewer cops on the street in the future,” he said.

Yearian said she isn’t sure what she’s going to do when the dispatchers are laid off.

“It’s a matter of what do I want to do with my life,” she said. “I know the value that we have in this department ... It’s a big decision.”