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Regional communications center balances budget, reports higher call volume [The Times-News, Twin Falls, Idaho](Times-News (Twin Falls, ID) Via Acquire Media NewsEdge) Jan. 18--JEROME -- In its monthly meeting, the Southern Idaho Regional Communications Center's governing board learned that the regional emergency dispatch center's annual audit had gone very well. "It was a very clean report," HCM Holmstead auditor Scott Hunsaker told the Joint Powers Board on Monday.. Hunsaker said the center's cash reserves can cover more than five months of operating costs. The suggested reserve is between three and six months of expenses. SIRCOMM's balance sheet has continued to improve since 2008, when a number of accounting issues were flagged. Revenue is up 6 percent, Hunsaker said. Some trends in SIRCOMM's revenue were predictable, he said. As the world goes more digital the center has seen a decrease in landline revenue and an increase in wireless dollars. New officers were also elected to the board during the year's first meeting. Twin Falls County Commissioner Leon Mills was installed in the seat that former Twin Falls Commissioner Tom Mikesell previously held. Lincoln County Commis-sioner Charlie Ritter was chosen board chairman, while Jerome County Commissioner Charlie Howell will serve as vice chairman. Gooding County Commis-sioner Tom Faulkner continues to represent his county among the four counties SIRCOMM provides service to. In other business, Director John Moore said the U.S. Bureau of Land Management increased SIRCOMM's lease fee for communications towers by $1,300. Because cell towers provide both phone and Internet service, the BLM considers each tower as belonging to two vendors. Moore said cellular companies are responsible for their part of each lease, so SIRCOMM has to collect money from SafeLink Wireless, Filer Mutual Telecommunications and AT&T. As of Monday, the Hagerman tower site was restored after being destroyed in the Long Butte Fire in July. Moore also compiled a summary of calls going through SIRCOMM since 2004. In its first year, SIRCOMM received about 80,000 calls for service. That number has gradually increased to almost 100,000 in 2010. On average, August is the busiest month for SIRCOMM operators, while the first few months of the year are quieter. About three-quarters of the calls in an average day are non-emergency. To see more of The Times-News, or to subscribe to the newspaper, go to http://www.magicvalley.com Copyright (c) 2011, The Times-News, Twin Falls, Idaho Distributed by McClatchy-Tribune Information Services. For more information about the content services offered by McClatchy-Tribune Information Services (MCT), visit www.mctinfoservices.com, e-mail [email protected], or call 866-280-5210 (outside the United States, call +1 312-222-4544) |