In a split decision, Lincoln County commissioners voted to begin negotiations for a Damariscotta property as a possible new public safety building complex. County officials began considering moving the sheriff’s department, emergency management agency and communication center in 2023 following a consultant’s report. The decision was made following a structural assessment of the sheriff’s building. An advisory committee consisting of Sheriff Todd Brackett, EMA Director Emily Huber and Communications Director Tara Doe are the current committee members charged with finding a suitable centralized location with easy access to Route One and 15 acres of land for the complex. On Dec. 16, the search possibly came to a conclusion as a possible location was identified by the committee. Commissioners William Blodgett and David Levesque voted to begin negotiations with a Damariscotta landowner. District 1 Commissioner Evan Goodkowsky opposed the location. “Not for me,” Goodkowsky said. “I want it west of the Damariscotta River.” Goodkowsky opposed the location due to unacceptable emergency response times to his district which includes towns in the Boothbay region, Wiscasset and Westport Island. County Administrator Carrie Kipfer responded the search committee had searched in the location preferred by Goodkowsky without success. She reported one parcel was too small (five acres), a second was not for sale, and a third one, near Sherman Lake, had unbuildable terrain. Brackett urged commissioners to reach a unanimous decision, and believed a “united front” was important for the project. He told commissioners this was the largest county project since Two Bridges Regional Jail. He suggested, if taking more time helped reach a unanimous decision, the board should consider it. He also recommended possibly considering locations just off Route One. “If you want us to look further, there are a couple sites further up the Sheepscot River. Nobody looked at them because we focused on easy access to Route One,” he said. “As we move forward, it’s crucial we all be on the same page. This may go to referendum so unanimous support, from the board, maybe worthwhile in the long term.” Blodgett disagreed. He wanted the commissioners to follow recommendations made by the consultant and search committee to finalize a site location. “I really don’t think more time will result in a better location. So, let’s go ahead,” he said.  Kipfer cautioned that the project still has many hurdles to clear prior to the new public safety center becoming a reality. 

SPOKANE, Wash. – Leaders from the city and county reached a significant agreement that will shape the future of emergency call services in Spokane. The city plans to establish its own 911 dispatch center, moving away from its contract with the Spokane Regional Emergency Communications Center (SREC).

CLEVELAND, Ohio — Residents seeking non-emergency services from Akron police will now be routed to “Ava,” an artificial intelligence virtual assistant, the department said. Those who call 911, however, will still speak to a person.

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, Congressman Richard Hudson (NC-09), Chairman of the Subcommittee on Communications and Technology, led a hearing titled Legislative Improvements to Public Safety Communications in the United States.“Important things like upgrading our 911 call centers, improvements to our wireless emergency alerting, and improvements to our outage reporting are crucial improvements that we now can look at through a legislative lens,” said Chairman Hudson.

Groveland says residents will be better served beginning Tuesday as all emergency dispatch services transition to the North Shore Regional 911 Center.
The call center is described as an established, state-of-the-art public safety communications hub, operated by the State 911 Department. Officials say Groveland will benefit from improved call response capacity, advanced technology and a dedicated team trained to handle emergency communications for multiple communities across the region.

PRESS RELEASEDALLAS — As first responders work tirelessly to respond to the devastating flooding in western Washington, here’s how FirstNet, Built with AT&T and the AT&T Network Disaster Recovery (NDR) team are helping.FirstNet and AT&T assets on the grounds

The Chippewa County Board of Supervisors on Oct. 8 approved two measures aimed at stabilizing staffing in the Emergency Communications Center: a one‑time appreciation bonus for ECC employees and a conversion of a vacant full‑time telecommunicator position into two...

A.J. Gary, director of the Division of Emergency Management and chair of the newly reconfigured Arkansas 9‑1‑1 board, told the joint committees the board has met three times since appointments and is advancing preparations for NextGen 9‑1‑1 and PSAP consolidation....

Motorola Solutions has achieved interoperability between its Emergency Services IP network (ESInet) and the ESInet of AT&T within the state of Maryland, allowing the transfer of next-generation 911 (NG911) calls to be transferred between the vendors with all...

  WENATCHEE — RiverCom 911 is moving forward with a cost-saving plan to build a modern, resilient regional emergency communications center—without the price tag of new construction. The agency has purchased an existing building at 2525 Euclid Way in Wenatchee’s...

BRIGHAM CITY, Utah (KUTV) — Emergency responders in Box Elder County will soon switch to a new dispatch center, after what the police chiefs of both Brigham City and Tremonton-Garland call repeated problems that have put first responders at risk for years.

Polk County celebrates opening of new E-911 Communication Center COLUMBUS—On Thursday, December 4, Polk County marked a significant milestone with the opening of the new E-911 Communication Center at the site of the former sheriff’s office. A ribbon-cutting ceremony...

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — The Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office has updated its 911 Communications Dispatch policy after an officer-involved shooting on Nov. 1, 2025. During a press conference on Wednesday, State Attorney Melissa Nelson determined the shooting was justified,...

A letter that Rockingham County leaders sent to the city of Harrisonburg back in June circulated on social media this week. In it, the county expresses their intention to terminate the legal agreement governing the Harrisonburg-Rockingham Emergency Communications...

When summer winds down, many families prepare to send students away from home for the first time to attend college. At the same time, colleges and universities nationwide diligently work behind the scenes to welcome students to a safe and secure campus.  Ensuring...

  Moberly Joint Communications is now dispatching fire calls for multiple Randolph County agencies, according to a Wednesday news release from the city of Moberly. According to the release, this is a major step toward a fully consolidated countywide dispatch...

911 call centers, also known as PSAPs (Public Safety Answering Points), are the critical lifeline between the public and first responders. Every year, these centers process hundreds of millions of calls, from life-threatening emergencies to routine, non-urgent...

  The Lyon County Emergency Communications Center has officially begun piloting its new AI call bot, named “Betty”, starting Monday, Dec. 1. The AI bot will begin answering ten types of select low-risk non-emergency call types, such as simple information requests...

Garrett County Government announced that county 9-1-1 communications have transitioned under the Garrett County Government, Emergency Management Division. This move strengthened the coordination and service continuity across law enforcement, fire, and Emergency...