New York Gov. Kathy Hochul this week announced the state is releasing $62.5 million to help counties upgrade the wireless technology that first responders and public safety officials use to communicate.
The funding, which comes through a state grant program, accelerates upgrades of outdated technology that are funded by surcharges tacked onto the bills of phone customers. But as with many states, those 911 fees are dumped into New York’s general coffers and don’t immediately or entirely wind up funding emergency systems, a spokesperson from the New York State Association of Counties told StateScoop.
