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Jon Dunn reportingWhen disaster strikes, communication is incredibly important. However, a state program to improve emergency communications did not receive necessary funding from the legislature.
If, or when, the predicted earthquake hits Utah it's vital that responders can talk to each other. How important is it? Remember just a few months ago?
Phil Bates: "Katrina, they found out real quick, that when you took out communications in that area, the response to the problem is really complicated when if can't talk to each other."
The technology is called Omnilink, and its taken a long time and a lot of money to organize and link every emergency call center across the state. Phil Bates with the Department of Public Safety says how they will pay for it now in operation? Well, that's up in the air.
Phil Bates: "I think that they do the best they can, but, I know their frustration, They have a limited amount of dollars, they always have more requests for what they have to fund."
You see, the request for the $650 thousand needed for yearly funding was shot down by the legislature this session.
Phil Bates: "Last year, we didn't even make it through the governor's recommendations. This year, we've gone a lot further down the process. We've made it through the governor's recommended budget. We've made it in front of the legislature."
Doug Chandler with Information Technology Services for the state says they do need to figure out a way to pay for the costs soon.
Doug Chandler: "Without the ongoing funding to keep this alive, the impact to unplug this whole network is pretty ominous.
Chandler, like Bates says it's essential to have this network running not only for disaster response, but, also further money from the feds.
Doug Chandler: "Future Homeland Defense funding from the federal government requires our state to have an operable solution in place and a plan in place.
The funding request is on the list of issues for the special session, but, Chandler says if that doesn't happen, the books for this project will start to look red.
Doug Chandler: "What we're being asked to do is run this program in a deficit. In the hole."
