Chapter 3.20
ENHANCED 911 SERVICES
Sections:
3.20.010 Establishment, service area.
3.20.030 Acquisition of equipment and services.
3.20.080 Inspection of records.
3.20.090 Credit for administrative costs.
3.20.010 Establishment, service area.
A. Pursuant to AS 29.35.131 through 29.35.137, any telephone company providing service within the city shall, together with the police department, fire department and other emergency service providers using the system, cooperate in the establishment of an enhanced 911 emergency reporting system to serve the entire city.
B. The city hereby designates the entire city as the enhanced 911 service area for the city under AS 29.35.137(2). (Ord. 21-12 § 1; Ord. 17-08 § 1 (part): Ord. 04-01 § 1 (part))
3.20.020 Definitions.
A. For the purposes of this chapter, any word or term not interpreted or defined by this section shall be used with a meaning of common or standard utilization.
B. The following words and phrases shall have the meanings respectively ascribed to them by this section:
“911 service area” and “enhanced 911 service area” mean the area within the city that has been designated to receive an enhanced 911 system. An area designated to receive an enhanced 911 system is not a service area under Article X, Section 5 of the State Constitution or Charter Section 9.01.
“Enhanced 911 equipment” means any equipment dedicated to the operation of, or use in, the establishment, operation or maintenance of an enhanced 911 system, including customer premises equipment, automatic number identification or automatic location identification controllers and display units, printers, cathode ray tubes, recorders, software and other essential communication equipment.
“Enhanced 911 system” or “system” means a telephone system consisting of network, database and enhanced 911 equipment that uses the single three-digit number “911” for reporting police, fire, medical or other emergency situation, and which enables the users of a public telephone system to reach a public safety answering point to report emergencies by dialing 911. An enhanced 911 system includes the personnel required to acquire, install, operate and maintain the system and its facilities and to dispatch the calls generated by the system.
“Local exchange access line” means a telephone line that connects a local exchange service customer to the local exchange telephone company switching office and has the capability of reaching local public safety agencies, but does not include a line used by a carrier to provide interexchange services.
“Local exchange service” means the transmission of two-way interactive switched voice communications furnished by a local exchange telephone company within the city, including access to enhanced 911 systems.
“Local exchange telephone company” or “wireline telephone company” means any telephone utility certified to provide local exchange service or wireline telephone service in the city by the Regulatory Commission of Alaska.
“Public safety answering point” means a twenty-four-hour local communications facility that receives 911 service calls and directly dispatches emergency response services or that relays calls to the appropriate public or private safety agency.
“Surcharge” means an enhanced 911 system surcharge imposed by this chapter on wireline and wireless telephones for support of the enhanced 911 system.
“Telephone company” means a local exchange telephone company, wireline telephone company or wireless telephone company as defined in this section.
“Wireless telephone” means any telephone that is not a wireline telephone that is capable of communication with another device by use of radio waves or satellite signal, which includes cellular, mobile, radio-based, and broadband telephones. Each wireless telephone number is considered a separate wireless telephone for purposes of the surcharge.
“Wireless telephone company” means any telephone company that provides wireless telephone service through cellular, satellite, broadband, radio-based telephone or data transport service, and bills or sells wireless telephone service to a customer with an address within the city.
“Wireline telephone” means any telephone that uses a local exchange access line. (Ord. 21-12 § 1; Ord. 17-08 § 1 (part): Ord. 04-01 § 1 (part))
3.20.030 Acquisition of equipment and services.
A. The city may purchase, lease or contract for any enhanced 911 equipment or services required to establish, maintain, or upgrade an enhanced 911 system at public safety answering points from a wireline telephone company, wireless telephone company, or other qualified vendor of an enhanced 911 system.
B. If the enhanced 911 system is to be provided for an area that is included in more than one telephone company service area, the city may enter into such agreements as are necessary to establish and operate the system. (Ord. 21-12 § 1; Ord. 17-08 § 1 (part): Ord. 04-01 § 1 (part))
3.20.040 Surcharge.
A. A surcharge of two dollars per month per local access line and for each wireless telephone number that is billed or sold to a customer with an address within the city shall be collected to fund the enhanced 911 system.
1. A wireline telephone or wireless telephone customer shall not be subject to more than one surcharge per local access line or wireless telephone number.
2. A customer with more than one hundred local exchange access lines from a wireline telephone company in the city is liable for the surcharge only on one hundred local exchange access lines.
B. Any telephone company operating within the city shall bill and collect the surcharge from its wireline and wireless telephone customers who are subject to the surcharge. The surcharge shall be stated as a separate line item on the billing statement or similar document.
C. A wireless or wireline telephone customer is liable for payment of the surcharge in the amounts billed by a telephone company until the amounts have been paid to the telephone company.
D. The telephone company shall remit the amounts collected no later than sixty days after the end of the month in which the amount was collected.
E. The telephone company shall submit to the finance director a return, upon forms provided by the finance department, and submit payment for the surcharges due the city.
1. A surcharge return shall be filed every month, even if there are no surcharges due for the month being reported.
2. Each monthly surcharge return is due on or before the last day of the second month following the month in which the surcharges were billed.
3. Surcharge returns and surcharges to be remitted under this chapter must be received by the finance director within the time prescribed by this section.
F. The return shall be signed upon oath executed by the agent of the telephone company preparing the return and must include:
1. The name and address of the telephone company;
2. The name and title of the person preparing the return;
3. The month being reported for which the surcharges were billed;
4. The amount of gross surcharges billed for the month;
5. The amount of deduction claimed for surcharges previously billed and remitted to the finance director, but charged off as uncollectible during the month being reported or estimated charge-offs;
6. The prorated recoveries, representing the month’s collection of surcharges previously written off as uncollectible;
7. The amount of deduction claimed for the telephone company’s administrative costs to collect the surcharges provided the surcharge return is timely filed and surcharges are timely remitted;
8. The net amount of remittance due to the finance director; and
9. Other information and supporting documentation which may be required by the city.
G. Any surcharge return filed under this section may be amended by the telephone company. If surcharges remitted exceed the amount due, the finance director shall, upon written request of the telephone company, refund the excess to the telephone company, without interest, and reduced by the excess portion of the credit for administrative costs claimed on the original surcharge return. Any claim for a refund filed more than one year after the due date of the surcharge return is forever barred.
H. A telephone company is not obligated to take legal action to enforce collection of the 911 surcharge. However, if a telephone company is attempting to collect an unpaid debt from a customer, the telephone company shall also attempt to collect any unpaid 911 surcharge that the customer owes. If a customer pays a portion of a bill that includes a 911 surcharge, the amount paid shall be prorated between the telephone company and the 911 surcharge. The telephone companies shall annually furnish a complete list of amounts due for nonpayment of 911 surcharges, together with the names and addresses of those customers who carry a balance that can be determined by the company to be for nonpayment of the enhanced 911 surcharge. (Ord. 21-12 § 1)
3.20.050 Annual review.
The chief of police and fire chief shall annually, in conjunction with the city manager and in connection with preparation of the municipal budget, review the revenues generated from the surcharge and the expenses incurred for operation, maintenance, and upgrade of the enhanced 911 system to determine whether the level of surcharge is adequate, excessive or insufficient to meet the enhanced 911 system needs. (Ord. 21-12 § 1)
3.20.060 Penalties.
A. A telephone company failing to file a surcharge return within seven calendar days following its due date shall automatically incur a civil penalty equal to ten percent of the surcharge amount due to the city. A telephone company failing to remit the full amount of surcharges due seven calendar days following the due date shall automatically incur an additional civil penalty equal to ten percent of the surcharges due to the city but remaining unpaid.
B. A telephone company failing to bill the surcharge levied by this chapter shall become liable for the amount of the surcharge that should have been billed to the customer. (Ord. 21-12 § 1)
3.20.070 Interest.
In addition to any penalties imposed, interest at the rate of twelve percent per annum shall accrue and be due on the unremitted balance of surcharges after the date on which their remittance was due. (Ord. 21-12 § 1)
3.20.080 Inspection of records.
A. The city may, at its own expense, require an audit of a telephone company’s books and records concerning the collection and remittance of the surcharge.
B. No telephone company shall deny the chief fiscal officer, subsequent to identification during normal business hours, access to the telephone company’s records documenting the billing, collecting, prorating, reporting, and remitting of the surcharge for purposes of inspection under this chapter. (Ord. 21-12 § 1)
3.20.090 Credit for administrative costs.
A. Provided a surcharge return is timely filed and the related amount due is timely remitted pursuant to Section 3.20.040, a telephone company may deduct and retain, as the cost of administration for collecting the surcharge, the greater of:
1. One hundred fifty dollars; or
2. One percent of the surcharge due to the municipality for the month being reported.
B. The amount of credit claimed for a month shall not exceed the net reported amount of surcharge, charge-offs, and recoveries for the month. (Ord. 21-12 § 1)