Deltek Manager Jeff Webster reports
This week marks the annual celebration of public safety telecommunicators across the country. The Deltek public safety team not only wants to recognize the front-line dispatchers nationwide, but also the IT systems and services that assist in emergency response. Without these two key elements (people and technology), emergency response would have a very different look and feel; and without funding, citizens would not receive the proper dispatching and response they have become so accustom to.
Over the last three years, spending for public safety dispatch and 911 has seen a decrease as agencies across the U.S. struggle to make ends meet. Budget woes are seen all the way down to the local public safety answering point (PSAP), which is the core of any emergency response. These strains along with a decrease in overall federal aid have forced PSAPs to continue using outdated technologies while seeking consolidation to save money and use scarce resources efficiently. Below is a chart outlining a variety of variables that drive public safety technology spending.
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