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Fees Tacked Onto Phone Bills For 911 Services

Last updated on Thursday, March 1, 2012

(INDIANAPOLIS) - Indiana lawmakers are about to start final negotiations on proposals that would balance the fees tacked onto landline and cellphone bills for 911 emergency services.

Those plans would increase the monthly fees charged to cellphones and generally reduce the typically higher fees on landlines in what lawmakers say is an attempt to stabilize funding for 911 services.

That's because the ongoing shift away from landline phones has cost counties millions of dollars needed to run their emergency dispatch centers.

The Indiana House approved a plan putting the monthly fee for most phones at 75 cents. The Senate is expected to vote on a bill putting the fee at $1.

The Indiana Association of Counties estimates 911 fee revenue has dropped about $20 million in five years.

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