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St. Lawrence County legislators want state police dispatchers to remain local, not move to Essex County

Posted 5/24/14

By JIMMY LAWTON St. Lawrence County Legislators want state police dispatchers to remain in the county. At a Monday meeting of the finance committee legislators passed a resolution asking troopers to …

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St. Lawrence County legislators want state police dispatchers to remain local, not move to Essex County

Posted

By JIMMY LAWTON

St. Lawrence County Legislators want state police dispatchers to remain in the county.

At a Monday meeting of the finance committee legislators passed a resolution asking troopers to reevaluate a decision relocate dispatch operations outside of the county.

A resolution passed by legislators says the New York State Police recently announced that they were looking at a plan to consolidate all state police dispatching in Troop B, at the 911 Center in Essex County.

The decision was made in an effort to "improve efficiency and effectiveness while maintaining the same or improved levels of service,” the resolution says.

Troopers justified the plan by saying "one of the immediate benefits will be having troopers, formerly assigned to dispatch duty, available for patrol assignment to respond to calls for service."

County officials however say the change would hurt trooper response in St. Lawrence County.

“In the past several years, the number of civilian communications specialists in the employ of the New York State Police has dropped from a high of 252 to a current level of approximately 134, and in the Canton Zone, dispatchers staffing levels have decreased from six to four and in mid-May, the level will drop to three with the retirement of one of the dispatchers,” the resolution says. “This is the reason that in some areas of the state, and in Canton, uniform Troopers have to take on dispatch duties, failure to fill vacant civilian positions have consequences.”

Legislators argue that moving an effective dispatch operation, staffed by people who have amassed “a great deal of knowledge about not only the physical attributes of the area, but the people who live there,” would be detrimental to for county residents.

“A move that will do nothing to enhance the safety and security of the residents of the largest county in the State of New York, and will not result in a significant increase in the numbers of uniform Troopers assigned to patrol duties and will in all likelihood result in additional costs to taxpayers of St. Lawrence County.

The full board of legislators is expected to approve the resolution at the June 3 meeting. Copies of the resolution will be sent to Gov. Andrew Cuomo, Superintendent of the New York State Police Joseph D'Amico, Sen. Patty Ritchie, Sen. Joe Griffo, Sen. Elizabeth Little, Assemblyman Marc Butler, Assemblyman Ken Blankenbush, Assemblywoman Janet Duprey, Assemblywoman Addie J. Russell, and the New York State Association of Counties.