UNION – The director of Franklin County Communications & 911 program said Gerald Police Department’s request to receive dispatching services from Gasconade County is rooted in a dispute with the Franklin County Sheriff’s Office, not that county’s 911 program as indicated in a recent article in the Gasconade County Republican.

Jeff Titter said Gerald’s request to the Gasconade County E-911 program is a result of the Franklin County Sheriff’s Office decision to no longer enter warrants issued by municipalities into a statewide computer system.

“Franklin County 911 is not reducing services to Gerald or any of the other agencies we serve,” Titter told the Gasconade County Republican. “Those (municipal) warrants are currently entered by the Franklin County Sheriff’s Office Warrant Division. The Sheriff’s Office – not Franklin County 911 – recently decided it would no longer enter warrants for municipal agencies. This decision does not change the warrant searches Franklin County 911 performs as part of our dispatching services.”

Gerald’s request for dispatching service from Gasconade County E-911 was an item of consideration at this month’s Gasconade County E-911 Board of Directors meeting. It was also mentioned during the meeting that Gerald might be facing a fee increase in the coming year for dispatching services from Franklin County. That was given as another possible reach for Gerald’s request to Gasconade County.

Titter said any talk of a fee increase to any customer of the county 911 program is premature.

“We are currently preparing next year’s budget and there has been no discussion or decision to increase Gerald’s fee,” he said.

As a First-Class county, Franklin County’s operating budget must be in place by Jan. 1. Third-class counties such as Gasconade County have until the end of January to approve an operating budget.

Mike Lockhart, executive director of Gasconade County E-911, who outlined Gerald’s request to the local 911 board members at their Aug. 12 meeting, expressed regret about any confusion regarding the issues surrounding the request. He said he probably could have done a better job of explaining the different roles played by Franklin County 911 and the Franklin County Sheriff’s Department in serving that county’s municipalities.

Unlike Gasconade County E-911, which is a separate, independent agency with its own elected board, Franklin County 911 operates as a department under Franklin County government. It originally was operated by the Sheriff’s Office, but several years ago, was given its own departmental designation. It does, however, continue to operate under the oversight of the Franklin County Commission.

Gasconade County E-911 will present Gerald with a proposed contract, which includes entry of municipal warrants in the Missouri Uniform Law Enforcement System (MULES). The cost of services from Gasconade County would be equal to what Franklin County 911 now charges the municipality at about $6,300 a year.