ATLANTA, Ga. — When Georgians reach the bottom of their Nov. 3 ballot, one of the three statewide questions waiting for them deals with something most people only think about in an emergency: whether calling 911 works as well as it should.
Amendment 3 would let the General Assembly set up a dedicated account, to be known as Georgia’s Next Generation 9-1-1 Fund, and pass laws steering specific revenue into it. Money in the fund could be spent only to expand, maintain and run the state’s 911 systems, including moving the current setup onto a newer internet-based network.
A yes vote does not put a single dollar into the fund. Lawmakers would still need to pass enabling legislation, expected next year, deciding where the money comes from and how it is split among cities and counties. One piece of that would involve turning the existing local 911 fee into a state fee. Without that follow-up law, the fund would exist on paper but sit with nothing in it.
Supporters say the need is real. State emergency communications figures show more than 80% of 911 calls in Georgia now come from cell phones, yet much of the equipment behind the system has changed little since it began in 1968, when landlines were the norm. A next-generation network would pinpoint callers more precisely and let people send texts, photos and video to dispatch centers.
Today only 17 of Georgia’s 159 counties meet the next-generation standard. Georgians pay a $1.50 monthly fee on cell phone bills meant for local 911 service, and supporters argue a dedicated fund would let unspent dollars roll over each year instead of being diverted.
The resolution placing the question on the ballot cleared both chambers of the Legislature unanimously, and two statewide groups, the Georgia Municipal Association and the state’s emergency communications authority, have endorsed it. A grassroots group, Galvanize Georgia, has raised concerns that the money could pay for automated license plate cameras, a claim the House Speaker’s office has rejected. Georgia voters have approved seven of the nine amendments put before them since 1990 that set up dedicated funds.
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