PERRY VOTERS TO DECIDE WORTH OF 911 SERVICE

PERRYVILLE -- Perry County voters will decide April 4 whether to pay 80 cents to $1 more a month for an improved 911 emergency response system.

Currently Perry County residents pay 4 percent on their basic phone bills for a 911 system that records the telephone number of the caller. The system on the April 4 ballot would give the telephone number, the address of from where the call is made and the name of the person who lives at that address.

The Enhanced-911 system would be paid for through a 15 percent surcharge of the basic telephone bill. That means that residents with a 547 exchange who pay 36 cents for the basic 911 service would pay $1.37 a month.

People in the county with other exchanges would have their rate increased from 30 cents a month to $1.13 a month.

For Perryville businesses, their charges would increase from $1.20 a month to $4.50.

Chief Deputy Sheriff Dan Bowman said 911 advisory board members are available to give group presentations or answer questions about the proposed improvement to Perry County's 911 system.

Currently, Bowman said, when there is a 911 call, emergency personnel have to look up the address for the telephone number.

That takes time, he said, adding that it is often difficult to find the people calling because they have rural routes and box numbers for addresses.

With an enhanced system, all residences and businesses would have a permanent address that can be easily located, Bowman said. The right kind of mapping system would also allow room for additional addresses, he said.

Frohna Fire Chief Tom Unger has given some presentations on the eastern end of the county. He represents the rural fire departments on the advisory board.

Mary Bohnert, director of the Perry County ambulance service, has scheduled a presentation for Thursday at 7 p.m. with some of the senior citizens living in the Barnwell Apartments in Perryville. She said the presentation will cover the proper use of 911 and what might be considered an emergency.

The advisory board has met with county and city officials and Southwestern Bell representatives, Bowman said.

Besides informational meetings, residents will receive information about the proposed Enhanced-911 system in their March phone bills, Bowman said. He estimated that about 98 percent of county residents will be covered with this mailing.

The next scheduled meeting for the advisory board is March 15 at 7 p.m. at the Frohna City Hall.