Pennsylvania lawmakers once again declined to increase the state\u2019s 911 surcharge in this year\u2019s budget, leaving counties to cover rising costs for emergency call centers on their own.<\/p>\n
The surcharge \u2014 a monthly, flat-rate phone fee Pennsylvanians pay to support emergency services \u2014 helps cover the costs of personnel, technology, and maintenance of 61 call centers operating statewide. But according to 2024 data from the County Commissioners Association of Pennsylvania, counties end up covering almost 20% of those expenses themselves.<\/p>\n
The association advocated for increasing the monthly surcharge from $1.95 to $2.20 in the 2026-27 budget for all landline, wireless, and internet phones.<\/p>\n
Lisa Rice, director of Tioga County\u2019s 911 center, started as a part-time dispatcher in 1994 \u2014 back when there were no computers and the role relied on handwritten notes and physical maps. Her sparsely populated county already struggles to keep up with infrastructure costs, and they also support Potter County, making their dispatch center one of the largest in the commonwealth.<\/p>\n
The center is still fully operational, but has funding gaps that affect everything from staffing to technological upgrades. While the latest proposed surcharge wouldn\u2019t have totally covered costs for Rice, it would\u2019ve helped lessen the strain on her county.<\/p>\n
CCAP Executive Director Kyle Kopko was surprised that the increase didn\u2019t make it into Pennsylvania\u2019s $50.8 billion budget that passed in early July. He told Spotlight PA that dozens of counties and municipalities across the commonwealth reached out to members of the legislature and the governor\u2019s office.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019ve had a pretty strong grassroots effort here where a lot of local officials took this upon themselves to reach out to their local lawmakers and leadership to express their concerns, because we never want the system to falter,\u201d Kopko said. \u201cIt has to operate without fail every time.\u201d<\/p>\n
The surcharge model was first created in 1990 and set at $1.00 but\u00a0has only increased twice in the past three decades<\/a> \u2014 in 2015 to $1.65 and in 2023 to its current rate of $1.95. Even still, the 2023 increase only avoided the \u201cworst-case scenario,\u201d according to\u00a0previous reporting from Spotlight PA<\/a>.<\/p>\n \u201cGovernor Shapiro knows municipal and county governments are on the frontlines of keeping our communities safe \u2014 that\u2019s why he secured a $47.7 million increase in state funding for the 911 system in his first budget, and has secured continued funding in the last three state budgets,\u201d Rosie Lapowsky, spokesperson for Democratic Gov. Josh Shapiro, told Spotlight PA in an email, referring to the 2023 increase. \u201cWhile that is a significant step forward, the final product reflects the realities of working with one of the only divided legislatures in the entire country \u2014 the Governor will continue to build on that work and fight to fund critical needs, including more support for our first responders and the 911 system.\u201d<\/p>\n Elizabeth Rementer, a spokesperson for state House Majority Leader Matt Bradford (D., Montgomery), told Spotlight PA in an email that Democrats in the House \u201crecognize that 911 call centers are a literal lifeline, especially for rural communities.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cThat\u2019s why we advocated for an increase in the fiscal code during budget negotiations,\u201d she said. \u201cUnfortunately, Senate Republicans refused to engage on this issue.\u201d<\/p>\n State House Speaker Joanna McClinton (D., Philadelphia) and Senate Majority Leader Joe Pittman (R., Indiana) didn\u2019t respond to requests for comment.<\/p>\n No less than 83% of the\u00a0surcharge funding goes to counties<\/a>, with the vast majority allocated proportionally based on population total and density, and square miles. Up to 15% is used for statewide interconnectivity of 911 systems, and up to 2% can be retained by the Pennsylvania Emergency Management Agency for administrative costs related to the statute.<\/p>\n