ALABAMA NENA
Second Quarter 2016
Business Meeting Minutes
April 21, 2016, 10:00 A.M.
Orange Beach, Alabama (The Warf Convention Center)
1. Call to Order and Welcome of Guest
President Larry Fisher called the meeting to order. Jackson Miller was welcomed as a new member.
2. Invocation
Lon Jones led the invocation.
3. Review and Approval of January 24, 2016 Minutes
Motion to Approve by Roger Wilson; 2nd by Becky Nugent. Motion passed unanimously.
4. Review and Approval of Financial Reports and Expenditures, Quarter Ending March 31, 2016
Motion to Approve by Bill Brodeur; 2nd by Chuck Mckinley. Motion passed unanimously.
5. State 9-1-1 Board Report – Ernie Blair
The review of the ANGEN RFPs is underway. Everyone is encouraged to attend the May state board meeting.
6. ANGEN– Alan Campbell
Four RFPs have been received by the state board: the low bid around eight million and the high bid around twelve million. The low bid was due to portions of the RFP being omitted due to questions regarding clarity of the bid. Their price will most likely be closer to the other three bidders once those questions are answered. An evaluation team has been composed to review the RFPs and make a recommendation to the board; they have been meeting every Thursday to review the bids. Follow up questions and oral presentations will be done in May, with a hopeful recommendation following that. If cost recovery money was used to fund the project, the cap on the cost for the project would be close to ten million. All the proposals are currently over ten million, but bottom line prices will not be established until further questions are answered. A draft of legislation will be presented at the AAND work session in July concerning cost recovery funding the ANGEN project.
7. Committee Reports (Conference, Training Standards, Awards Program, Web Site & ECD DB)
Conference – Rod Coleman
Rod reminded everyone that the conference dates have changed to October 11-14 of this year. This is one week earlier than last year’s and precedes the Shrimp Festival. This means the conference will start on a Tuesday. Everyone is also encouraged to stay at the resort so that the minimum number of rooms reserved are met.
Legislative Report – Larry Fisher
Three counties have requested state legislation to assist in funding the 9-1-1 system for their counties.
Training and PSAP Standards – Larry Fisher
Larry updated the board on the League of Municipalities’ representative’s request on the AFRWC to set minimum standards. Currently, there is no push for this type of regulation on behalf of the AFRWC, nor is it their responsibility. A motion was made and passed during the executive board meeting that Alabama NENA does not want the AFRWC to set minimum standards for the state.
Awards Program – Larry Fisher
The awards program will be conducted again this year with the ceremony being held during the state conference. All are encouraged to nominate someone for the awards by August 26th. More information can be found on the Alabama NENA website.
Membership – Larry Fisher
Larry encouraged the enrollment of Telecommunicators in the NENA Telecommunicator Caucus.
Web Site – Chuck McKinley
Forms for the awards program will be available on the website so that we can move to paperless submission for applicants. Also, Chuck informed the group that approximately one third of those on the yahoo group does not receive emails; he plans on changing the settings so that everyone receives the emails and then it will be up to the user to decide if he or she wants to unsubscribe.
GIS Conference – Rod Coleman
Rod extended thanks to the GIS conference for hosting the quarterly NENA meeting.
BREMSS – Caleb Branch
BREMSS now offers EMD guides and certification free of charge to any PSAP in Alabama.
TERT – No report
AFRWC – Ernie Blair
The question regarding Telecommunicator certification has not resurfaced. Chuck Murph is now with First Net and nominations for his replacement are now being taken. Also, the AFRWC has developed a strategic plan that is now available on the AFRWCs website.
AAND – Marvin McIlwain
The AAND workshop is scheduled for July 19th through the 20th with more work being done regarding ANGEN funding at that time. Also, Marvin explained the need for additional AAND membership, stating that less than fifty percent of the districts in Alabama are ANND members.
APCO – Becky Nugent
The APCO Workshop will be held May 25th and 26th in Prattville.
National NENA – Larry Fisher
National NENA is currently pushing for NG 911 implementation by 2020. They hope to assist in funding this by persuading the FCC to sale frequencies and utilize that money to fund the NG project.
8. LATA Reports: Birmingham, Mobile, Huntsville, Montgomery and Commercial
Birmingham LATA – Bill Brodeur
Tuscaloosa is currently clearing timber in preparation for their new facility. Cherokee is also in the process of planning for a new center and the city of Birmingham is looking to consolidate is fire and law enforcement dispatch. Etowah is evaluating joining the AIRS radio system.
Huntsville LATA – Ernie Blair
Huntsville/Madison 9-1-1 is researching the implementation of a backup facility. Limestone and Marshall are currently discussing joining the AIRS system.
Mobile LATA – Chuck McKinley
Gary Tanner is no longer the director at Mobile County; Charlie McNichol has been named the interim director. Baldwin County is still working toward a new facility, with bids going out next month.
Montgomery – Lon Jones
Wiregrass project has been completed. Dothan’s new PSAP walls are up and the facility is moving toward completion. The City of Montgomery is currently working on interoperability concerning radios with adjoining agencies.
Commercial
No report
9. Old Business
· Caleb reported that 9-1-1 Goes to Washington was a success, with equality of access for grant funding being discussed as well as ease of access for MTLS to 9-1-1. Representative Bradley Byrne followed up with Chuck concerning seeking grant funding for projects going on within the state.
· Johnny Robinson has volunteered to the Alabama NENA chapter historian.
· Mobile, Montgomery, and Huntsville have all submitted packets to national NENA to host the yearly conference. Birmingham is scheduled to submit their packet before the end of the month, with the goal of hosting a national convention in five years or so.
10. New Business – Larry Fisher
· Larry discussed the Scholarship Program for sending upcoming leaders to the national NENA conference. The goal for the program is send four individuals to National NENA to learn more about the industry with hopes they will advance their career in the field. Roger Wilson had a question related to the implementation of the program and how the stipend would be funded. Following clarification, a motion was made by Lon Jones and seconded by Caleb Branch to move forward with the program. Motion passed unanimously.
· Discussion was held between Larry, Margaret Bishop, and Christine Heger regarding appropriation of money by the board for the scholarship program. Larry agreed that representation was needed on the part of state NENA regarding legal questions. Christine stated the Mark Ryan has agreed to provided that representation and counsel if needed. Alan gave an oral review of the bylaws concerning the ability of the executive board to ear mark money for spending.
· A motion was made by Christina to continue to Scholarship Program to include the state conference. The only changes would be the scholarship amount (reimbursement up to $1,500) and the number of recipients -two. The motion was seconded by Marvin McIlwain and passed unanimously.
· A motion was made by Bill to begin a Service Award program, highlighting those who had contributed ten, fifteen, twenty, twenty-five, and thirty years to state NENA. Caleb seconded, and it passed unanimously.
· A nominating committee for FY 2017 officers has been appointed. The committee consists of Greg Silas, Brandon Wallace, and Alan Campbell.
· A motion was made by Margaret to acquire bonds for the president, vice president, and conference co-chairs and was seconded by Christina. Motion passed unanimously.
· Roger Wilson volunteered to file the yearly taxes and will work in coordination with Caleb, Alan, and a CPA to do so.
11. Next Quarterly Meeting: July 28, 2016 in Alexander City, Alabama.
Motion to adjourn made and seconded. Motion unanimously approved; meeting adjourned.
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