Communicate on communications center

A new joint emergency communications center, scheduled to open this summer in Johnson County, is intended to strengthen communications among different public safety departments and emergency medical services throughout the county.

All residents stand to benefit from the new operation, which should make it easier for police, firefighters and emergency responders to cooperate when responding to emergencies.

But communication between the center's seven-member policy board, which includes elected officials from Coralville, Iowa City, North Liberty and Johnson County, and Johnson County supervisors appears to have been less than clear.

Johnson County Supervisor Rod Sullivan publicly recently lambasted the policy board for what he sees as a staff-heavy operations plan and a bloated budget.

Policy board members say they learned only last week, when they took next year's budget to county supervisors, that the county hadn't been collecting the full levy they had passed for the current fiscal year.

How that happened exactly remains unclear, but what is clear is that these issues must be resolved in the public's best interest - with transparency, clarity and accountability.

Critics are right to say the center must run a lean, efficient operation. Policy board members are smart to take a cautious and thoughtful approach to setting up and funding this new structure. All interested parties must work together to meet those goals.

Residents, too, must pay attention to the developing communications center budget and policies as they unfold. Local leaders must use the information they gain in this first year for planning.

The joint emergency communications center is governed by the independent policy board, which has authority to levy to fund its operations through the county - the only agency with authority to tax every county property owner.

However, the policy board has no authority to bond, and can only make educated estimates about appropriate staffing and costs to operate the new facility.

Board members assured us this week they are committed to running a lean operation. But they also must plan for critical redundancies and other needs specific to an always-open emergency response center.

To do that, they are building cash reserves and budgeting for staff positions without giving authorization to fill those positions.

That has raised suspicion with some critics who say that money collected is as good as money spent - and that's something to watch.

For now, the communications board only can estimate budgets and staffing using expert recommendations and others' experience. It makes sense to be cautious.

But it's equally important they use the data gathered this year to ensure future operations are as efficient as they are effective.