The state of Illinois has imposed a statewide funding rate of 87 cents per month for land lines, cell phones and other devices. | File photo
The state of Illinois has imposed a statewide funding rate of 87 cents per month for land lines, cell phones and other devices. | File photo
The Urbana City Council unanimously approved a resolution March 7 calling for local control of 911 funding levels.
The resolution charges that the state's 2015 decision to impose a statewide funding rate of 87 cents per month for land lines, cell phones and other devices forces Champaign County to charge less than it would otherwise. The decrease in available funding puts an additional strain on local governments, who have to then find other sources of funding their local 911 programs, city officials said.
The county passed its own rate of $1.50 per land line more than 20 years ago, providing more funding for the program than the new state rate allows.
The resolution cited as a precedent the exemption granted to Chicago, which allows the city to charge between $2.50 and $3.90 per line.
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