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HomeMy WebLinkAboutordinance.council.042-94 ORDINANCE ~--~ (Series of 1994) AN ORDINANCE INCREASING THE EMERGENCY TELEPHONE CHARGE UPON TELEPHONE EXCHANGE ACCESS FACILITIES WITHIN THE CITY OF ASPEN AND AUTHORIZING THE MAYOR TO SIGN A REVISED INTERGOVEPdqMENTAL AGREEMENT CONCERNING AN EMERGENCY TELEPHONE SERVICE AUTHORITY IN ORDER TO ESTABLISH AND OPEP~ATEANEMERGENCY TELEPHONE SERVICE SYSTEM IN THE CITY OF ASPEN WHEREAS, in the interest of protecting and preserving public safety and welfare, it is desirable that the citizens of the City of Aspen, Colorado, be provided with emergency telephone service to aid the timely provision of emergency service; and WHEREAS, the City Council of the City of Aspen, Colorado finds that the City is lawfully authorized to impose a charge upon telephone subscribers within the City of Aspen, Colorado, and to authorize telephone service suppliers to collect said charge, and to enter into an agreement with the governing bodies of other public agencies pursuant to Colorado Revised Statute Section 29-11- 101 et seq. as amended, in order to establish and maintain the emergency telephone service system within the city of Aspen; and WHEREAS, the Aspen-Pitkin County Emergency Telephone Service Authority has provided quality emergency telephone service since September 11, 1991, to the citizens of the City of Aspen, Colorado, and WHEREAS, it has become necessary to increase the monthly fee charged to telephone subscribers in order that the Aspen-Pitkin County Emergency Telephone Service meet its current and future financial obligations; and WHEREAS, such an increase would be in the best interest of the citizens of the City of Aspen. NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT ORDAINED BY THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF ASPEN COLORADO: Section 1 The Mayor is authorized to sign the attached revised intergovernmental agreement creating an emergency telephone service authority in order to establish and maintain an emergency telephone service system in the County of Pitkin, Colorado. Section 2 There is hereby imposed, pursuant to C.R.S. Section 29-11-101, et. seq., as amended, upon all telephone exchange facilities within the City of Aspen an emergency telephone charge in an amount not to exceed seventy (70) cents, as approved by the Public Utilities Commission. Upon recommendation of the emergency telephone service authority, the City Council may, by Resolution, raise or lower the emergency telephone charge but in no event shall such charge exceed the amount of seventy (70) cents, as approved by the Public Utilities Commission. Section 3 Telephone service suppliers providing telephone service in the City of Aspen are hereby authorized to collect the emergency telephone charge imposed by this ordinance in accordance with the C.R.S 29-11-101, et. seq., as amended, Section 4 That if any section, subsection, sentence, clause, phrase or portion of this ordinance is for any reason held invalid or unconstitutional in a court of competent jurisdiction, such portion shall be deemed a separate, distinct and independent provision and shall not affect the validity of the remaining portions thereof. Section 5 That this ordinance shall not have any effect on existing litigation and shall not operate as an abatement of any action or proceeding now pending under or by virtue of the ordinances amended as herein provided, and the same shall be construed and concluded under such prior ordinances. A public hearing on the ordinance shall be held on the day of Chambers, Aspen City Hall, Aspen, Colorado. INTRODUCED, READ kND ORDERED PUBLISHED as provided by law by the City Council of the City of Aspen on the ~day of John $. Bennett, Mayor ATTEST: 'Kathr~n ~. Koch, City Clerk /, · FINALLY adopted, passed and approved this /~ day of ~a~hryn S.'"/och, City Clerk INTERGOVERNMENTAL AGREEMENT CONCERNING THE CONTINUED IMPLEMENTATION OF AN "ENHANCED 9-I-1" EMERGENCY TELEPHONE SERVICE" THIS AGREEMENT, made and entered into the 16th day of August, 1994, by and between the following parties: COUNTY OF PITKIN, a body politic and corporate hereinafter referred to as "County", the CITY OF ASPEN, a municipal corporation hereinafter referred to as "Aspen", the TOWN OF SNOWMASS VILLAGE, a municipal corporation hereinafter referred to as "Snowmass", the TOWN OF BASALT, a municipal corporation hereinafter referred to as "Basalt", the ASPEN FIRE PROTECTION DISTRICT, a quasi-municipal corporation hereinafter referred to as "Aspen Fire", the SNOWMASS-WILDCAT FIRE PROTECTION DISTRICT, a quasi-municipal corporation hereinafter referred to as "Snowmass Fire", the BASALT AND RURAL FIRE PROTECTION DISTRICT, a quasi-municipal corporation hereinafter referred to as "Basatt Fire", the ASPEN AMBULANCE DISTRICT, hereinafter referred to as "Aspen Ambulance", the CARBONDALE AND RURAL FIRE PROTECTION DISTRICT, hereinafter referred to as "Carbondale Fire". WITNESSETH: WHEREAS, pursuant to Article 11 of Title 29, C.R.S., as amended, the above- listed parties are delegated the power to enter into agreements for the purpose of providing em, ergency telephone service; and WHEREAS, Part 2 of Article 1 of Title 29, C.R.S., as amended, encourages and authorizes agreements of this nature; and Final - 8/16/94 1 Aspen-Pitkin County Emergency Telephone Service Authority Intergovernmental Agreement WHEREAS, it would serve the public welfare and be in the best interest of all of the above-references parties to continue to participate in the organization, administration and common use of a central emergency telephone service authority; and WHEREAS, the parties desire to enter into this Intergovernmental Agreement for the following purposes: 1. to establish a separate legal entity tO be known as the "Aspen-Pitkin County Emergency Telephone Service Authority" (hereinafter referred to as the "Authority") which shall be responsible for administering the operation of the emergency telephone service program; and 2. to define the manner in which each of the parties will participate in the Authority; and NOW, THEREFORE, in consideration of the mutual covenants hereinafter contained, the parties agree as follows: I. DEFINITIONS The definitions for the terms "emergency telephone charge", "emergency telephone service", "exchange access facilities", "governing body", "public agency", "service supplier", "service user", and "tariff rates" as used in this Intergovernmental Agreement shall be the same as the definitions provided for those terms in Section 29-11-101, C.R.S., as amended. 11. GENERAL PROVISIONS The parties hereby establish a separate legal entity to be known as the "Aspen-Pitkin County Emergency Telephone Service Authority" which shall be Final - 8/16/94 2 Aspen-Pitkin County Emergency Telephone Service Authority Intergovernmental Agreement responsible for administering the operation of the emergency telephone service program as described below. III. EMERGENCY TELEPHONE SERVICE AUTHORITY BOARD The governing Board for the Authority shall consist of five '(5) members to be selected in the following manner: 1. Two members shall be the Pitkin County Sheriff and the Aspen Police Chief. 2. One member shall be the Snowmass Village Police Chief or the Snowmass-Wildcat Fire Protection District Chief as selected by Snowmass and Snowmass Fire. 3. Two members selected by Aspen Ambulance, Aspen Fire, Basalt, Basalt Fire, and Carbondale Fire. One member shall serve a term of one year on the Board and the other member shall serve a term of two years. After the initial one year term, each of the members selected shall serve a term of two years. Members may serve consecutive terms upon approval of the majority vote of the eligible entities. IV. RULES AND REGULATIONS The governing board for the Authority may pass supplementary rules and regulations as it deems necessary provided the supplementary rules and regulations are in compliance with Articles I and II of Title 29, C.R.S., as amended, and this Intergovernmental Agreement. Any capital expenditure of $25,000.00 or greater shall require a two-thirds (2/3) vote by the governing board of the Authority. V. POWERS OF THE CORPORATION The parties hereto agree that the Authority shall be empowered with the authority to contract for the installation and operation of an emergency telephone Final - 8/16/94 3 Aspen-Pitkin County Emergency Telephone Service Authority Intergovernmental Agreement service and may pay such costs by collecting an emergency telephone charge for such service in the service area which is within the jurisdiction and authorized by this Intergovernmental Agreement and by ordinance or resolution of the respective parties hereto. The Emergency Telephone Service Authority is hereby authorized to collect an emergency telephone charge as imposed by the governing bodies of the respective parties in an amount not to exceed seventy cents ($.70), in those portions of the service area for which emergency telephone service is to be provided. The funds so collected shall be spent solely to pay for the equipment costs, installation costs, costs directly related to the continued operation of an emergency telephone service, and for the monthly recurring charges billed by the service supplier for the emergency telephone service. The funds so collected shall be credited to a cash fund separate and apart from the general fund of any public agency parties under this Intergovernmental Agreement. Any funds remaining in the account at year end shall be carried over to the next succeeding year for the same purposes in supplying emergency telephone service. If the emergency telephone service is ever discontinued, any balance in the account may be transferred to the general fund of the public agencies on a proportionate basis as to the contributions made by each respective public agency. In addition, the Authority may do any other act as may be necessary for the provision of initial services and for the continued operation of the emergency telephone service; including, specifically, the ability to negotiate with equipment vendors and service suppliers for the purpose of obtaining the benefit of Final - 8/16/94 4 Aspen-Pitkin County Emergency Telephone Service Authority Intergovernmental Agreement technological developments which the Authority deems necessary to improve or enhance the quality and efficiency of service to be provided to the users. VI. BASIS FOR CONTRIBUTION AND CHARGES TO BE IMPOSED BY THE AUTHORITY The parties hereto agree that the basis for contribution and charges to be imposed on "Service Users" shall be in accordance with the provisions governing the same in C.R.S. 29-11-101 et seq. The parties agree that the Authority may request from the service supplier those figures required to impose a contribution or charge and to make a determination of the contribution or charge based on those figures. The parties further agree whenever those figures are required for any contribution or charge, the figures used shall be the most recent available at the time such figures are needed, unless otherwise specified herein. VII. BUDGET AND OPERATING COSTS In the event that the Authority believes funds for operating costs not paid by the emergency telephone charge are necessary, it shall prepare a budget and submit a budget request to the Board of County Commissioners by July 15 of each year that this Agreement is in effect. The Board of County Commissioners shall consider funding the budget request in the County's annual appropriation. Should funding from the Board of County Commissioners not be forthcoming, or if any funding so provided shall be deemed insufficient by the Authority, the Authority may then present its request to the parties hereto who shall consider the budget submitted and determine a basis for contributing to the budget Final - 8/16/94 5 Aspen-Pitkin County Emergency Telephone Service Authority Intergovernmental Agreement request at that time; however, no party may be obligated for the payment of any monies without its prior approval. VIII. FUNDS AND OPERATIONS The various monies paid into the Authority by the parties Hereto, for operating costs shall be used by the Authority solely for operating costs. Further, the various monies paid into the Authority pursuant to the uniform charge per exchange access facility shall be placed in a separate designated cash fund and shall be paid from said fund only for equipment costs, installation costs, costs directly related to the continued operation of an emergency telephone service, and for the monthly recurring charges billed by the service supplier for the emergency telephone service. No disbursement shall be made from the funds of the Authority except by check and unless a verified claim for services or commodities actually rendered or delivered has been first submitted and approved for payment by the Authority, said approval being evidenced by the President and Secretary of said Authority. The Authority shall not borrow money nor shall it approve any claims or incur any obligations for expenditure unless there is sufficient unencumbered cash in the appropriate fund, credited to the Authority, with which to pay the same. The Authority may invest any funds paid into the Authority only in accordance with any applicable laws of the State of Colorado governing the investment of public funds. Final - 8/16/94 6 Aspen-Pitkin Cour~ty Emergency Telephone Service Authority Intergovernmental Agreement Nothing herein, however, prevents the Authority from returning any surplus operating revenues provided by the parties hereto for the operation of this emergency telephone service to the respective parties hereto in the same proportion that said parties were originally required to contribute for operation. IX. BOOKS AND RECORDS The Authority shall maintain adequate and correct accounts of their funds, properties and business transactions, which accounts shall be open to inspection at any reasonable time by the parties hereto, their attorneys, or their agents. The Authority shall cause to be conducted an annual audit, which audit shall be conducted by an independent certified public accountant licensed to practice in the State of Colorado. The Authority shall file a copy of said audit with the governing bodies of the respective parties hereto. X. REPORTS Within one hundred eighty (180) days after the end of each fiscal year, the Authority shall prepare and present to the respective city councils, boards of directors of the special districts, and Board of County Commissioners of Pitkin County, a Comprehensive Annual Report of the Authority's activities and finances during the preceding year. The Authority shall also prepare and present such reports as may be required by law, regulation or contract to any authorized federal and/or state officials or to whom such report is required to be made in the course and operation of the Emergency Telephone Service Authority. Final - 8/16/94 7 Aspen-Pitkin County Emergency Telephone Service Authority Intergovernmental Agreement The Authority shall also render tO the parties hereto, at reasonable intervals, such reports and accounting as the parties hereto may from time to time request. Xl. DEFAULT IN PERFORMANCE In the event any party fails to pay its share of the operating costs then due, or to perform any of its covenants and undertakings under this Agreement, the Authority shall cause written notice of the Authority's intention to terminate said Agreement as to such party in default to be given to that party's governing body unless such default is cured within thirty (30) days from the date of such notice. Upon failure to cure said defaults within said thirty (30) day period, the membership in the Authority of the defaulting party shall thereupon terminate and said party shall thereafter have no voting rights as a member of the Authority at any annual or specific meetings thereof, nor be entitled to representation on the Authority, and said party shall thereafter be denied service by the Authority. Furthermore, any party who is terminated under the provisions of this Section of the Agreement shall forfeit all right, title and interest in and to any property acquired by the Authority to which said party may otherwise be entitled upon the dissolution of this Agreement. This article is not intended to limit the right of any party under this Agreement to pursue and all other remedies it may have for breach of this Agreement. Final - 8/16/94 8 Aspen-Pitkin County Emergency Telephone Service Authority Intergovernmental Agreement Xll. TERMINATION OF AGREEMENT A. This Agreement shall be in full force and effect upon the execution of this Agreement by all of the parties listed herein, and shall continue in full force and effect, subject to amendments, or until sooner termination by a majority of the parties hereto. B. This Agreement, or any party's participation in this Agreement, may be terminated by written notice from the party or parties to the Authority at least one hundred eighty (180) days prior to January 1 of any given year. C. Upon termination by mutual agreement of a majority of the parties to this Agreement, the powers granted to the Authority under this Agreement shall continue to the extent necessary to make an effective disposition of the property, equipment and monies required to held pursuant to this Agreement. D. In the event that any party hereto elects to terminate its participation in the Agreement prior to the end of any period of this Agreement not in accordance with subsection B of this Agreement and accordingly shall forfeit its entire interest in the emergency telephone service. Provided however, if in the event that any party hereto elects to participate in an emergency telephone service authority other than the Authority created hereby, such party or parties shall have the right to utilize any and all network equipment installed in service supplier facilities and paid for by the Authority without charge or reimbursement to this Authority subject, however, to any or all costs charged by the service supplier. Xlll. AMENDMENT This agreement may be amended by the parties from time to time, but any amendment shall be in writing and executed by all the parties hereto. XIV. SEVERABILITY CLAUSE If any provision of this Agreement or the application hereof to any party or circumstances is held invalid, such invalidity shall not affect other provisions or Final - 8/18/94 9 Aspen-Pitkin County Emergency Telephone Service Authority Intergovernmental Agreement applications of the Agreement which can be given effect without the invalid provision or applications, and to this end the provisions of the Agreement are declared to be severable. IN WITNESS WHEREOF, the parties hereto have caused their representatives to affix their respective signatures hereto, as of the day and year herein set forth. COUNTY OF PITKIN CITY OF ASPEN By By TOWN OF SNOWMASS VILLAGE TOWN OF BASALT By By ASPEN FIRE PROTECTION DISTRICT SNOWMASS-WILDCAT FIRE PROTECTI,QN DISTRICT By By Final - 8/16/94 10 Aspen-Pitkin County Emergency Telephone Service Authority Intergovernmental Agreement BASALT AND RURAL FIRE ASPEN AMBULANCE DISTRICT PROTECTION DISTRICT By By CARBONDALE AND RURAL FIRE PROTECTION DISTRICT By Final - 8/16/94 11 'M M To: i'~,~ ~,~.Through: Amy Margeru Through: Tom Stephenson, lice From: Brent Finster,.': Director of Communications r~ Date: August 22~ t994 Subj: 9-1-1 Surcharge Increase The Aspen-Pitkin County Emergency Telephone (9-1-1) Service Authority seeks;to raise its surcharge on residential and commercial phone lines from,5Ocents to 70 cents per month.~t~ached,,, ,There ,, documents. ,,,~,H~wever,,are several reasons to_ in su~nma~jUstify the ' 0 explained in the decreased at the same time,.:expepdituces:,' have increased, request. ,.;-', ,,;,..,,;~,-;,, ,, i ,..:.: ,. , ,,, ~ ,' ~ ,,': i Without the ncrease;rthe ;~l~h~ritY; will;be'.ishort:~)~er $i'8 00( In 1995, a 70 cents per month sUrcharge,wiil mean an incre current 50 cents per m°nth!evel. Over the'course of the next kept in a contingency to'pay for a. Portion of the replacement: Aided Dispatch equipment, currently scheduled for 2001 .... All nine entities (Pitkin County, 3 municipalities, 4 fire districts, and an ambulance district) that created the Authority in 1990 are being asked to pass an ordinance or resolution that modifies the IGA to allow for the increase. This action ~s in accordance with the 9-1-1 enabling legislation and has been reviewed by the Authodty's legal counsel and is not in violation of any provision of Amendment 1. It '~s requested that,the' City of Aspen support this increase by passing an ordinancel, authorizing the Mayor to sign a revised IGA. The deadline for the Authority Board to notify U.S. West is October. I, 1994 and the sUrcharge would become effective January ~O 1, 1995. 506 East Main Street Aspen, Colorado 81611 (303)920,5310 ASPEN-PITKIN COUNTY EMERGENCY TELEPHONE SERVICE AUTHORITY Description of the Proc~ram Colorado state statute allows for cities, towns, counties, and special districts to form a governing body called an Emergency Telephone Service Authority. This Authority is empowered to collect up to 70 cents per month from each telephone line (up to a maximum of 100 per customer billing). The purpose of the Authority is to establish and operate an Enhanced 9-1-1 telephone system. Enhanced 9-1-1 is an upgrade to those areas that have existing 9-1-1 service. The Enhanced features include the ability for a caller to dial 9-1-1 and when the call is answered by the dispatcher, a computer screen automatically will show the telephone number that the caller is calling from (ANI - Automatic Number Identification) and what name and address is associated with that phone number (ALI - Automatic Location Identification). Even if the caller is unable to communicate what the problem is, this information provides the dispatcher with the ability to sent emergency assistance (law enforcement, fire, or ambulance). A highly transient population made up of a considerable amount of tourists can sometime create headaches for dispatchers as well as police officers. Someone calling for an ambulance may be unfamiliar with the address or even the name of a condo that they are staying in. By just dialing 9-1-1, the dispatcher instantly knows where the person is calling from. Another feature of an Enhanced 9-1-1 system is Selective Routing. This allows a particular phone number to be pre-programmed to ring into the correct Public Safety Answering Point (PSAP). In the case of Pitkin County, this would be the Aspen-Pitkin County Communications Center. However, in the case of residents outside Pitkin County that are included in the system, we can determine whether the system should be programmed to route those calls (including ANI and ALI) to either the fire/ambulance dispatcher (Aspen) or the law enforcement dispatcher (Garfield County Communications or Eagle State Patrol). In addition to these features, a Computer Aided Dispatch system is linked to the Enhanced 9-1-1 system. A call for emergency help comes into the Communications Center, the dispatcher answers the phone and instantly the phone number, address, name, previous call history, hazards (potential for violence, hazardous materials), water~, gas and electric shutoffs, fire hydrants, etc. appears on the screen. 7'he dispatcher merely has to enter a brief code for the nature of the call (theft, burglary, prowler, fire, ambulance, etc.) into the system and press a key that transfers :that information to the radio dispatcher. The radio dispatcher then dispatches the appropriate units that are needed. A complete computer-derived history is assembled and available for later documentation and statistical analysis. Money collected from the surcharge goes into a separate account maintained by the Pitkin County Treasurer. This money is used to pay the ongoing monthly network charges tO U.S. West, the lease purchase payments on the 9-1-1/C.A.D. hardware, and the hardware/software maintenance costs. The Authority Board is made up of the Aspen Police Chief, the Pitkin County Sheriff, either the Snowmass Village Police Chief or Fire Chief, and two re@resentatives of the other fire and ambulance districts in the County. The Authority Board holds regular meetings. The Director of Communications acts as an Administrative Assistant to the Board carrying out the day-to-day business. The Board set up Bylaws for its operation and signed a letter 'of intent with U.S. West for the implementation of the system. The researched the hardware and software that was available and entered into a contract with SCC, Inc. to provide the 9-1-1/C.A.D. equipment. Enhanced 9-1-1 went live on September 11, 1991 and C.A.D. was implemented in November, 1991. The system has had a 99.9% up time since it was installed. AIthough there has not been any dramatic, life-saving situations that have caught the attention of the media or the public, Enhanced 9-1-1 in Pitkin County is used on a daily basis. There is an average of approximately forty 9-1-1 calls received each day at the Aspen-Pitkin County Communications Center. The vast majority of these are non- emergency calls or misdials. However, dispatchers are routinely handling in-progress crimes, requests for Emergency Medical Services, or fire department related calls on these lines. Enhanced 9-1-1 reduces the time from recognition of a problem (law enforcement, fire, or EMS) by the citizen to the time that the appropriate officer or agency is dispatched. 2 INCREASE SURCHARGE TO ?0 CENTS Reasons/Back.ground 1. Carbondale Withdrawal from Authority The portion of the Carbondale and Rural Fire Protection District that lies within Garfield County and the Town of Carbondale was withdrawn from the Authority Board because of the implementation of a Garfield County 9-1-1 board. Impact is ($16,000) per year. 2. Increase Expenses Due to Software/Hardware Maintenance After the original financial plan was approved, a contract was let with SCC, Inc. for the CAD/9-1-1 equipment. This contract had a quoted amount of $18,300 per year for software maintenance and $6,900 per year for hardware service contracts after the warranty period was to expire. The warranty expired in late 1993 and the $25,200 per year expense started. However, due to an oversight, the original financial plan was never modified to include the additional costs. Impact is ($25,000) per year. 3. Decreased Interest Rates Interest rates have plummeted since 1990 from 8.25% to 3.5%. Impact is ($2,000) per year. 4. Increased Administration Costs Costs to the Authority charged by Pitkin County Budget, Finance, and Administration Departments are higher than what was originally anticipated due to the complexities of lease purchase financing, Amendment 1 compliance, and state statutes regarding audit and reporting. Impact is ($1,500) per year. 5. Cash for Asset Replacement The ten-year financial plan approved in 1990 did not take into consideration the need to save cash for the replacement of the capital equipment in the year 2000. Impact is ($500,000) in 2000. Parting Thoughts 70 cents is a 40% increase over 50 cents. However, if you look at the rate of inflation (based on United States Consumer Price Index - All items) since 1989 the sum of the inflation in 1994 is a 25.9% increase! And besides, Enhanced 9-1-1 in Pitkin County works and it works well... 3 1994-1999'Financial Plan (70 Cent per Month Surcharge) Fund Bal. Revenue Lease Network Operating Eagle Fund Bal. on Jan. 1 Purchase Expense Expense PSAP on Dec.31 1993 23,318 119,951 69,326 33,787 23,383 0 ' 16,773 1994 16,7'/3 125,576 69,326 35,000 37,700 0 315 1995 315 178,650 69,326 37,151 39,593 0 32,895 1996 32,895 193,074 69,326 40,470 81,573 25,529 9,071 1997 9,071 208,666 69,326 43,789 43,651 0 60,971 1998 60,971 225,514 34,663 47,108 45,834 0 158,880 1999 158t880 243,726 0 50,427 48t126 25,529 278,524 Total $1,295,157 $381,293 $287,7~2 $319,868 $51,058 $255,206 REVENUES Financial Plan (70 Cent per Month Surcharge) Year Stations 50 Cents 60 Cents 70 Cents 1994 20250 122~826 0 0 1995 218~5 127,607 153,128 178,650 1996 23652 137,910 165,492 193,074 1997 25562 149,047 178,856 208,666 1~8 27626 161,082 193,298 225,514 1999 29857 174,090 208,908 243,726