Chapter 8.44
SURCHARGE FOR ENHANCEMENT OR IMPROVEMENT OF TELEPHONE SYSTEM USED FOR REPORTING EMERGENCIES
Sections:
8.44.010 Authority and purpose.
8.44.040 Chair, election and duties.
8.44.050 Rules, regulations and bylaws.
8.44.080 Imposition of telephone surcharge.
8.44.090 Creation of special revenue fund—Use of money in fund.
8.44.100 Penalty for failure to remit surcharges.
8.44.110 Commencement and annual review.
8.44.010 Authority and purpose.
This chapter is enacted pursuant to NRS 244A.7641 through 244A.7647 for the following purposes:
A. To establish an advisory committee to develop a five-year master plan for the enhancement of the telephone system for reporting emergencies in Humboldt County and for the purpose of purchasing and maintaining portable event recording devices and vehicular event devices, and to oversee any money allocated for that purpose.
B. To impose a surcharge for the enhancement or improvement of the telephone system for reporting emergencies in Humboldt County and for the purpose of purchasing and maintaining portable event recording devices and vehicular event recording devices on:
1. Each access line or trunk line of each customer to the local exchange of any telecommunications provider providing those lines in Humboldt County; and
2. The mobile telephone service provided to each customer of that service whose place of primary use is in Humboldt County. (Ord. 8-05-19a § 1; Ord. 9-08-09B § 1)
8.44.020 Definitions.
As used in this chapter, the words and terms defined in this section have the meanings ascribed to them under NRS Chapter 244A. (Ord. 9-08-09B § 1)
8.44.030 Establishment of an advisory committee to develop a plan to enhance or improve telephone system for reporting emergencies.
A. The board of county commissioners of Humboldt County (“board”) hereby creates a five-member advisory committee called the “9-1-1 surcharge advisory committee” to develop a five-year master plan for the enhancement of the telephone system for reporting emergencies in Humboldt County, and for the purpose of purchasing and maintaining portable event recording devices and vehicular event recording devices, and to oversee any money allocated for that purpose. The master plan must include an estimate of the cost of the enhancement of the telephone system, and the cost of purchasing and maintaining portable event recording devices and vehicular event recording devices, and all proposed sources of money for funding that purpose. The five-member advisory committee shall consist of the following:
1. Members will serve without compensation.
2. A member appointed to the committee must:
a. Be a resident of Humboldt County;
b. Possess knowledge concerning telephone systems for reporting emergencies; and
c. Not be an elected public officer.
3. As Humboldt County has a population of less than one hundred thousand, at least one member of the committee must be a representative of an incumbent local exchange carrier that provides service to persons in Humboldt County.
4. At least one member of the committee must be the Humboldt County sheriff’s designee (subject to the provisions of subsection (2)(c) of this section).
5. At least one member of the committee must be the Winnemucca police department’s chief law enforcement officer or designee.
B. Members will be selected at large by the board at its discretion.
C. The board must appoint members for a term of two years, except for the initial terms. In order to stagger the terms, the board must set the initial appointed members’ terms to provide for terms of three of the appointed members to end on December 31, 2011, and for the terms of two of the appointed member’s terms to end on December 31, 2010. A member may be reappointed to subsequent terms of two years. Any vacancy occurring during a member’s term will be filled by the board. A person appointed to fill a vacancy occurring during a term must serve out the unexpired term of the member replaced.
D. Humboldt County sheriff’s office and the Winnemucca police department shall provide the board with written notification of each of its requested members to be appointed, including the member’s term. (Ord. 8-05-19a § 1; Ord. 9-08-09B § 1)
8.44.040 Chair, election and duties.
A. Chair and Election.
1. The committee must elect from its membership a chair and vice-chair.
2. The election of the chair and vice-chair shall be at the first meeting of the committee and thereafter at the first meeting in January of each year, and the terms of the chair and vice-chair shall be for one year, unless reelected by the membership.
B. Duties.
1. The chair will preside at meetings and be the signatory of any correspondence necessitated by operation of the committee.
2. The vice-chair will carry out the duties of the chair in his/her absence.
3. The 9-1-1 surcharge advisory committee shall:
a. Develop a plan for the enhancement of the county’s 9-1-1 emergency response system;
b. Recommend to the county the expenditures of money collected through the telephone line surcharge for the enhancement of the telephone system for reporting an emergency in accordance with NRS 244A.7645(3)(a); and
c. Recommend to the county the expenditures of money collected through the telephone line surcharge for the acquisition, maintenance, data storage, upgrade and replacement of equipment and software necessary for the operation of portable event recording devices and vehicular event recording devices.
C. A member may be removed by the board for good cause. (Ord. 8-05-19a § 1; Ord. 9-08-09B § 1)
8.44.050 Rules, regulations and bylaws.
The committee may adopt rules, regulations and/or bylaws regarding its meetings and procedures. (Ord. 8-05-19a § 1; Ord. 9-08-09B § 1)
8.44.060 Quorum.
Three members of the committee will constitute a quorum and action may be taken upon an affirmative vote of a majority of a quorum. (Ord. 8-05-19a § 1; Ord. 9-08-09B § 1)
8.44.070 Meetings.
The committee must hold a public meeting not less than quarterly. Any member of the committee may request a meeting of the committee for special purposes. Such requests shall be made to the chair, or in his/her absence, the vice-chair. The conduct of the meetings of the committee, including but not limited to providing notice, taking minutes, recording meetings, and retaining records must comply with the provisions of NRS Chapter 241, Nevada Open Meeting Law. (Ord. 8-05-19a § 1; Ord. 9-08-09B § 1)
8.44.080 Imposition of telephone surcharge.
A. Imposition of the surcharges set forth in this section will not commence until the board adopts a five-year master plan or updated master plan as set forth in HCC 8.44.030.
B. When the board imposes a surcharge for the enhancement of the telephone system for reporting emergencies in Humboldt County and for the purpose of purchasing and maintaining portable event recording devices and vehicular event devices, the surcharge will be placed on:
1. Each access line or trunk line of each customer to the local exchange of any telecommunications provider providing those lines in Humboldt County; and
2. The mobile telephone service provided to each customer of that service whose primary use is in Humboldt County.
C. The surcharge on access lines to the local exchange of a telecommunications provider will be one dollar per month per line.
D. The surcharge on trunk lines to the local exchange of a telecommunications provider will be at least ten dollars per month per line.
E. The surcharge for each telephone number assigned to a customer by a supplier of mobile telephone service will be one dollar per month per telephone number.
F. A telecommunications provider that provides access lines or trunk lines in Humboldt County and a supplier that provides mobile telephone service to customers in Humboldt County must collect the surcharge from its customers each month. Except as otherwise provided in NRS 244A.7647, each telecommunications provider and supplier must remit the surcharge it collects to the Humboldt County treasurer no later than the fifteenth day of the month after the month it receives payment of the surcharge from its customers. In accordance with NRS 244A.7647, a telecommunications provider or supplier that collects the surcharge imposed pursuant to this section is entitled to retain an amount of the surcharge collected that is equal to the cost to collect the surcharge.
G. Telecommunications providers and mobile telephone service suppliers affected by this chapter must begin imposing the surcharges described in this section within sixty days after the board approves a five-year master plan or updated master plan for the enhancement or improvement of the telephone system for reporting emergencies and for the purpose of purchasing and maintaining portable event recording devices and vehicular event devices in Humboldt County, commencing with a full monthly billing cycle.
H. The county administrator may adopt procedures as necessary to effectuate the provisions of this section. (Ord. 8-05-19a § 1; Ord. 9-08-09B § 1)
8.44.090 Creation of special revenue fund—Use of money in fund.
A. The board hereby creates a special revenue fund for the deposit of any money collected pursuant to HCC 8.44.080. The money in the fund must be used only:
1. With respect to the telephone system for reporting an emergency:
a. To improve the telephone system for reporting an emergency in Humboldt County.
2. With respect to purchasing and maintaining portable event recording devices and vehicular event recording devices;
a. Paying costs associated with the acquisition, maintenance, storage of data, upgrade and replacement of equipment and software necessary for the operation of portable event recording devices and vehicular event recording devices.
B. If the balance in the fund created pursuant to subsection (A) of this section, which has not been committed for expenditures, exceeds five hundred thousand dollars at the end of any fiscal year, the board must reduce the amount of the surcharge imposed during the next fiscal year by the amount necessary to ensure that the unencumbered balance in the fund at the end of the next fiscal year does not exceed five hundred thousand dollars. (Ord. 8-05-19a § 1; Ord. 9-08-09B § 1)
8.44.100 Penalty for failure to remit surcharges.
Any telecommunications provider or mobile telephone service supplier that fails to remit surcharges due within ninety days after the date that the telecommunications provider or supplier must otherwise remit the surcharges to the Humboldt County treasurer will be subject to a penalty of five percent of the cumulative amount of surcharges owed by the telecommunications provider or supplier. (Ord. 8-05-19a § 1; Ord. 9-08-09B § 1)
8.44.110 Commencement and annual review.
A. Imposition of the surcharges described in HCC 8.44.080 cannot commence until the board adopts a five-year master plan or updated master plan for the enhancement of the telephone system for reporting emergencies in Humboldt County and for the purpose of purchasing and maintaining portable event recording devices and vehicular event recording devices. All other provisions of the ordinance codified in this section are effective upon publication as provided in NRS 244.117(3).
B. For the duration of the imposition of the surcharge, the board shall, at least annually, review and, if necessary, update the master plan. (Ord. 8-05-19a § 1; Ord. 9-08-09B § 2)