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Neb. commission denies 911 funds for translation
Published 04:00 p.m., Sunday, September 25, 2011
Source: http://www.chron.com/news/article/Neb-commission-denies-911-funds-for-translation-2188279.php
GRAND ISLAND, Neb. (AP) — The Nebraska Public Service Commission has denied Grand Island's request to use 911 funding for a translation service.
The city spends about $3,000 a year for a service that translates 911 calls in more than 90 languages. It had asked the state commission for help paying for it but was told this month that the cost is considered a personnel expense and won't be covered.
Census data cited by the Independent shows almost 18 percent of Hall County residents don't speak English as their first language. Most of the city's non-English calls to 911 have been in Spanish, Arabic, Vietnamese, Somali and Somali Arabic.
Emergency management director Jon Rosenlund told NTV-TV that the 911center employs some bilingual dispatchers but they can't cover every shift or speak every language.
The city spends about $3,000 a year for a service that translates 911 calls in more than 90 languages. It had asked the state commission for help paying for it but was told this month that the cost is considered a personnel expense and won't be covered.
Census data cited by the Independent shows almost 18 percent of Hall County residents don't speak English as their first language. Most of the city's non-English calls to 911 have been in Spanish, Arabic, Vietnamese, Somali and Somali Arabic.
Emergency management director Jon Rosenlund told NTV-TV that the 911center employs some bilingual dispatchers but they can't cover every shift or speak every language.
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