01-25-10 Council Agenda & Packet

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ORDINANCE NO. ORDINANCE O INDIANA, APPROPRIATING $2,750,000-00 FROM EXCESS WELFARE DISTRIBUTION FUND (#252) TO UPGRADE SOUTH BEND'S PUBLIC SAFETY RADIO SYSTEM TO 800 MEGAHERTZ PER AN AGREEME NT BETWEEN ST. JOSEPH COUNTY i, THE STATE OF INDIANA STATE_ , NT OF PURPOSE AND INTENT In late 2009 the City of South Bend (South Bend) received from St. Joseph County (County) in the State of Indiana (State) a one time refund amounting to $2,922,079 of unused property tax revenues collected in 2008 originally intended to fund child welfare programs in the county. HEA 1001 legislation passed at the State level included provision that any unused portion of these be returned to the taxing units. As a condition of returning these monies to the individual taxing units, the State enacted legislation required that they be expended solely for public safety purposes. Following State Board of Account instruction, the tax refund was recorded in Fund 252 Excess Welfare Distribution. In December 2009, the St. Joseph County Commissioners entered an agreement with the State to join the "Project Hoosier Safe -T" 800 megahertz (Mhz) statewide radio system. With St. Joseph County's addition to the State communications system, full interoperability among safety responders of the County and cities of South Bend and Mishawaka can be achieved. This will further enable all public safety responders within the St. Joseph County boundaries to cooperate with state, local, and surrounding county police and fire departments, as well as federal agencies, in the face of a massive emergency, and in day to day law enforcement. South Bend's current portable public safety radio system is not compatible with 800 Mhz technology and thus impedes effective interagency communication. To upgrade South Bend's public safety (police and fire) radio system to an 800 Mhz system fully integrated with that of the County and City of Mishawaka requires an expenditure by South Bend of $2,750,000.00 as its cooperative portion of the cost of (1) upgrading five (5) Safe -T towers by adding two additional 800 Mhz channels per cell tower, (2) purchasing associated equipment and upgraded software, and (3) purchasing for South Bend's public safety officers three hundred sixty (360) in- vehicle mobile radios and four hundred five (105) portable radios. Tho cost for all of these upgrades is being furnished at a competitive discount offered by Motorola because of the County -wide participation. The upgrade process should be completed within approximately fifteen. months. NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT ORDAINED by the Common Council of the City of South Bend, Indiana, as follows: