City of Suisun Police Department*

- There is a general acceptance among emergency service providers in the County to the idea of a consolidated dispatch center. Respondent does not agree with finding. The City of Suisun City has one dispatch center for their police and fire services. While there may be some acceptance to the idea consolidating dispatch services for Fire would be agreeable, the idea of consolidating dispatch services county-wide for law enforcement is not recommended by Suisun City's Police Chief. Currently, Suisun City Public Safety Dispatchers (PSD's) are tasked with a multitude of duties that are beyond that of just dispatching. The PSD's answer the police department's main business and records telephone lines, and they consolidate and compile police reports and other records that are disseminated county-wide for various purposes including prosecution and discovery preparation. The PSD's also staff the business counter of the Police Department and often monitor the city's various surveillance cameras when a crime is in progress. Additionally, the PSD's will coordinate with the city's public works department and water department during off hours to ensure the community is receiving the correct services. A transition to county-wide dispatch services for law enforcement would cause the city to divert funding to the County for police dispatch services, while also needing to retain several staff members that are currently housed in the dispatch division. These staff members would be needed to continue conducting records related duties, staffing the front counter of the Police Department, and be the "business face" of the police department. This would likely cause an undue financial strain on the City of Suisun City. With regard to a county-wide dispatch center, providing consolidated services solely for fire agencies in the county might be more practical. Due to the procedures already in place, certain alarm level responses by the municipal fire departments will trigger an automatic turnover of dispatch services to Solano County after that alarm level has been reached. These types of protocols do not exist on the Law side of dispatching. It is also arguable the Suisun City Community has certain expectations of their police department during both emergencies and non-emergencies or incidents that are specific to our community. Moving to a county-wide model for law enforcement dispatch services removes the local control by the Suisun City Police Department to ensure that our community's priorities are being met. National incidents over the past several years City of Suisun City Police Department 701 Civic Center Blvd Suisun City, CA 94585 have placed a focus on the expectations our community has when contacting its police department. A consolidated dispatch center for Suisun City would likely cause community concern if their needs and priorities are not being acknowledged by a dispatcher who has no connection to, or familiarity with, the community. City of Suisun City Police Department 701 Civic Center Blvd Suisun City, CAI 94585