(The Center Square) – Spokane officials are losing sleep over the city's relationship with a regional emergency dispatch center, as member fees doubled what was anticipated this year amid a $50 million deficit.
Spokane Regional Emergency Communications, or SREC, started operating in 2018 and began providing services to Washington’s second-largest municipality in 2022. The partnership took several years to reach, spanning multiple administrations, but now it might crumble.
SREC serves around 550,000 people throughout Spokane County by answering emergency and non-emergency calls while providing a dispatch service for 14 local fire protection authorities, one being the Spokane Fire Department, and six law enforcement agencies.
During a meeting last week as part of Spokane’s annual mid-year budget review, Chief Financial Officer Matt Boston said SREC’s member fees far exceeded what the city anticipated this year. Despite budgeting for a 16% to 17% year-over-year increase, the reality was 33%.
All the while, SREC touts financial reserves upwards of $30 million, with that total expected to increase to around $38 million by the end of the fiscal year.
“Their ultimate goal is to fund a new facility that I think they’re currently pricing out to be on county land and be in the tune of about $40 million,” Boston said. “With what we know is going on with commercial real estate at this time, there are much more cost-effective options.”
SREC is funded through Washington’s 911 excise tax, a voter-approved 0.1% communication sales tax and fees that each participating agency must pay. Last year, SFD’s fees totaled approximately $1.8 million.
That total is expected to increase to $2.4 million this year, with the corresponding tax revenue following. Last year, SREC generated around $9.45 million in tax revenue from Spokane, which is about 45% of its total annual revenue outside of member fees.
Last month, Mayor Lisa Brown responded to a letter from SREC stating that Spokane needed to decide whether the Spokane Police Department would join the partnership or vacate the agreement altogether.
Brown negotiated an extended deadline through the end of the summer but also included a few requests in the exchange.
“Rather than pooling resources to subsidize costs, SREC imposes user fees that function as a second tax on city residents,” Brown wrote in the letter. “This is unacceptable under any circumstance and particularly now considering the City’s current budget reality. Based on the City’s analysis, SREC could eliminate user fees and still achieve a balanced budget.”
However, each of SREC’s 20 member agencies previously agreed not to decrease fees as it prepares to build the new center, according to The Spokesman-Review.
Additionally, SREC wants SPD to front half of the $5 million needed to transition each agency to a new integrated Computer Aided Dispatch system, an expenditure that SREC would bear the total cost of if Spokane decides to vacate the agreement.
If SPD is added to SREC, it would undoubtedly entail additional financial commitments. Those obligations would tack onto an already extensive list as Spokane grapples with a $50 million structural deficit heading into the 2025 budget process.
SFD accounts for over 50% of fire-related calls to SREC. Adding SPD to the list of members means it would likely account for over 50% of law enforcement calls as well. Despite this, Spokane only occupies 20% of SREC’s board but requires a 70% majority when taking action.
Brown wants more stake in the game, requesting in her letter that SREC grant Spokane another seat on the board and reduce the majority vote needed for action to 60%.
“It’s not just about the finances; it’s about having a great service there,” Brown said during the meeting on Thursday. “But it also has to be about the finances and fiscal responsibility on behalf of the people of Spokane.”
Spokane has until August 24 to decide whether to add SPD to the list of member agencies or pull SFD. The latter would require the city to prop up and fund its own dispatch service capable of sustaining both agencies.
