H. B. 2279


(By Delegate Heck)
[Introduced February 25, 1993; referred to the
Committee on the Judiciary.]




A BILL to amend and reenact section five, article six, chapter twenty-four of the code of West Virginia, one thousand nine hundred thirty-one, as amended, relating to local emergency telephone systems and requiring the public service commission to appoint a committee to monitor the enhanced emergency telephone system.

Be it enacted by the Legislature of West Virginia:
That section five, article six, chapter twenty-four of the code of West Virginia, one thousand nine hundred thirty-one, as amended, be amended and reenacted to read as follows:
ARTICLE 6. LOCAL EMERGENCY TELEPHONE SYSTEM.

§24-6-5. Enhanced emergency telephone system requirements.

(a) An enhanced emergency telephone system, at a minimum, shall provide that:
(1) All the territory in the county, including every municipal corporation in the county, which is served by telephone company central office equipment that will permit such a systemto be established shall be included in the system;
(2) Every emergency service provider that provides emergency service within the territory of a county participate in the system;
(3) Each county answering point be operated constantly;
(4) Each emergency service provider participating in the system maintain a telephone number in addition to the one provided for in the system; and
(5) If the county answering point personnel reasonably determine that a call is not an emergency the personnel provide the caller with the number of the appropriate emergency service provider.
(b) To the extent possible, enhanced emergency telephone systems shall be centralized.
(c) In developing an enhanced emergency telephone system, the county commission or the department of public safety shall seek the advice of both the telephone companies providing local exchange service within the county and the local emergency providers.
(d) The public service commission shall appoint a committee to monitor the operations of the enhanced emergency telephone system. The committee shall consist of the department head or designee of each emergency organization represented or participating in the enhanced emergency telephone system. The committee shall meet once a month to determine policy, promulgate rules and regulations conducive to the efficient operation of theenhanced emergency system. The committee may employ a director of communications director of 911 to be a pensioned law- enforcement officer or pensioned firefighter and additional personnel as needed to effectively staff the enhanced emergency telephone system. The director or his or her designee, shall report to the committee during monthly meetings and will advise the committee of the day to day operations of the enhanced emergency telephone system. The director serves in an advisory capacity when testifying before the committee and he or she may make recommendations for change whenever possible as a pensioned law officer or pensioned firefighter will be placed in charge of each respective 911 shift supervising all civilian employees.
The committee may make recommendations to each county commission president, mayor of a municipality involved, and if applicable, the superintendent of division of public safety, concerning any request for additional revenue. The president of a county commission and the mayor of a municipality, and if applicable, the superintendent of the division of public safety shall present the revenue increase before the public service commission.



NOTE: The purpose of this bill is to require the Public Service Commission to appoint a committee to monitor the requirements of the Enhanced Emergency Telephone System.

Strike-throughs indicate language that would be stricken from the present law, and underscoring indicates new language that would be added.