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MINUTES OF THE PUBLIC SAFETY COMMITTEE JUNE 27, 2022 AUDITORIUM Present: Councilmembers Baker(Chair), Marx, & Shachner Also Present: Councilmembers Bullock, Kepple, Litten, & Rader, Mayor George, Chief Kaucheck, Chief Dunphy, Mike Coletta& Ed Hassing of IT, Director Leininger, Chief of Staff John Storey, Clerk Bach, State Representative Mike Skindell, many members of Lakewood Police, Lakewood Dispatchers, members of the public & Deputy Clerk Lascu taking minutes Call to Order: 7:09 p.m. Approval of the minutes of the June 21, 2022 meeting of the Public Safety Committee. Motion by Councilmember Shachner, seconded by Chair Baker to approve the minutes from the committee's last meeting. All in favor. Motion passed. Communication from Mayor George, Chief Kaucheck, Chief Dunphy, and Director Coletta regarding City of Lakewood Dispatch Centers. Chair Baker provided an outline of the discussion regarding Lakewood's dispatch center. Mayor George thanked members of the safety forces in attendance at the meeting and spoke briefly about how issues with state law and county funding for dispatch have loomed over Lakewood for years. She noted that she met with the public safety chiefs, dispatchers, and State Representative Mike Skindell on the funding issues and about a potential move to use Cuyahoga Valley Dispatch services in lieu of continuing the city's service. Rep. Skindell reviewed state legislation that was passed in 2009 that set up guidelines for disbursement of state funding for wireless 911 systems, intended to incentivize the consolidation of dispatch services. Key to this legislation is that it allowed for 3 public safety answering points (PSAPs) in counties with populations of 75,000 or more. Councilmember Shachner clarified that there currently is only 1 wireless PSAP in Cuyahoga County. Rep. Skindell continued to inform the committee of new state legislation that would curtail the limit on the number of PSAPs in a county. He added that the legislation is not anticipated to move forward, as one of its bi-partisan cosponsors is no longer in the General Assembly. Councilmember Shachner asked if Lakewood Dispatch receives any wireless calls directly. Chief Kaucheck indicated that wireless calls are routed through CECOMS (county wireless dispatch). Mr. Shachner continued to state that the state legislation cited by the administration is irrelevant, as Cuyahoga County only has 1 PSAP and falls under the required threshold. Mayor George referred to a letter from Cuyahoga County Public Safety & Justice Services that indicated the county may be considering charging communities higher fees. Upon further discussion, it was established that the fee would be approximately $357 per month and that the county's current contract with AT&T goes through 2025. The mayor stated uncertainty about infrastructure costs or Lakewood's monthly payment after that year. 1