What Happened To State's 90-Cent 9-1-1 Phone Fee? Monmouth Officials Want Answers

Freehold, NJ -- Do you know where your 90 cents is going?

Every resident who has a smart phone, a landline, a flip phone in New Jersey pays a 90-cent monthly fee per phone number to support upgrades to the state's 9-1-1 system.

Monmouth County officials, however, are asking what has happened to the money, as the county seeks to upgrade its systems and as the state considers raising that surcharge to 99 cents.

Freeholder Director Thomas A. Arnone said Monmouth County taxpayers contribute an estimated $5.5 million to the statewide 9-1-1 fund annually for the purpose of upgrades to the state, county and local 9-1-1 systems. The upgrades of infrastructure at 9-1-1 centers, also known as Public Safety Answering Points (PSAPs), would allow for text messages, photos and videos during emergency situations.

The 9-1-1 system and emergency response fee is charged to taxpayers on all phone bills for every number. Statewide, the fee generates an estimated $120 million annually, Monmouth County officials said.

“Monmouth County wants to move forward with timely upgrades and improvements to its 9-1-1 system, yet we are wondering why the funds being collected for this purpose are not finding their way to the county treasury,” Arnone said. “We estimate that our taxpayers are paying more than $5 million annually as their share of the 9-1-1 system fee. We want that money to come back to fund 9-1-1 improvements that will serve residents, businesses and visitors.”

Next Gen internet-protocol 9-1-1 systems will facilitate public safety telecommunicators throughout the state, allowing them to receive digital information in the form of emergency text messages, photos and videos. While the technology is available, upgrades, plans, coordination and training can’t be implemented without adequate funding.

“Our 9-1-1 systems need to be upgraded with this technology in order for PSAPs to enhance the public safety and well-being of our residents during emergency situations,” Sheriff Shaun Golden said. “Without this funding, which we believe has not been spent appropriately, no advancement will take place. We are calling on the state to return the funds back into the account in an effort to move ahead with the original plan of building a cutting edge 9-1-1 system.”

Officials said that an FCC report for 2014 said $120 million was generated for the trust fund, of which an estimated $107 million was used for other purposes. Monmouth County hasn’t received any funding since 2011, county officials said, and since the inception of the trust fund in 2005, the county received a total of $1.14 million for 9-1-1 services. If the county had been reimbursed at the 2008 amount of $350,000, it would have received nearly $2.5 million over the past six years, officials said.

A proposed state assembly bill (A-3461/3544), is calling for an additional 9 cents to be added to the 9-1-1 system and emergency response fee, raising the surcharge for taxpayers from 90 cents to 99 cents a month.

“We are vehemently opposed to this bill, since taxpayers should not have to bear the burden of paying additional money into the fund when it is being used for other purposes,” Golden said. “Such an increase is unjust, especially without an explanation from the state as to where the funding went or if it will replenished.”

“The wireless carriers and the landline providers are forwarding the collected 9-1-1 system fees to the state’s coffers, but we would like an accounting of where that money goes from there,” said Freeholder Lillian G. Burry, liaison to the sheriff’s office. “This fee is meant to be a funding source for 9-1-1 communication upgrades. It is time to have the money disbursed to Monmouth County.”

Officials said the Monmouth County 9-1-1 Communications Center is a state of the art facility and blueprint for emergency services nationwide. Its 118 employees answer 9-1-1 calls for 49 jurisdictions and handle 650,000 calls annually, dispatching for 21 police agencies, 59 fire departments and 32 EMS agencies.

See video of the officials' statements below: