(The Center Square) – After years of negotiations and a state-led resolution, Spokane Regional Emergency Communications announced Thursday that it’s cutting ties with the city of Spokane in six months.
SREC issued a similar termination notice in January, following a year of negotiations with Mayor Lisa Brown. The primary Public Safety Answering Point, or PSAP, had given the city until 2026 to set up its dispatch services, but the Legislature intervened, and the parties agreed to mediate.
The state settled how Spokane County and the city will split tax revenue used to fund SREC in addition to its member fees. The compromise followed seven years of back-and-forth negotiations between the two parties, predating Brown, and will guide the start of a new dispatch system for the city.
“SREC is currently implementing key initiatives to support current and future growth,” the SREC Governing Board wrote in a letter to Brown. “As we continue preparing for the future, decisive action is required to support the evolution of regional emergency communication services.”
SREC was formed as a regional dispatch service in 2018, including 14 fire agencies and seven law enforcement agencies across the county. The model serves around 550,000 people, with about 50% residing within the city of Spokane; Brown has said she’s doing what is best for her taxpayers.
The regional framework relies on a 0.1% sales tax approved in 2017, a 95-cent 911 tax on every phone line, and member fees, which Brown calls a second tax on the city. Every other member has already agreed to continue paying the fees to fund a new facility, but Brown wants to retain local control.
The Spokane Fire Department joined SREC in 2022, but the Spokane Police Department never fully committed. SREC pushed the city to bring SPD into the fold, hoping to expand its member fees, but the June 11 mediation ultimately resulted in the two parting ways, effective Jan. 1.
“The City’s suggested changes to the governance model conflicted with the collaborative, countywide model designed to serve all agencies equitably and efficiently — one that was purposely designed to remove politics and prioritize public safety,” SREC wrote to Brown.
Spokane has until next year to establish its own services. According to a news release, SREC acquired SFD with two months’ notice in 2022, facilitating a smooth transition, which the board says the city can replicate within six months. SPD already has dispatchers, just not for SFD yet.
The state-mandated solution requires the county to transfer a portion of its 911 tax revenue to the city based on the criteria outlined in RCW 82.14.420 (7) and (8). That statute directs the county to transfer an equitable apportionment, meaning tax dollars from the city stay in the city.
“A year ago, the SREC Board threatened to kick out Spokane Fire if Spokane Police did not join. Today, they are following through on that threat despite our continued good-faith efforts,” Brown wrote in a news release. “I have no doubt the City of Spokane can create an emergency communications system that ensures uninterrupted, high-quality service to the people we serve and the first responders providing that service. As we work to implement the new system, it is important that arbitrary deadlines not be applied to the process in order to ensure a safe transition.”
SREC warned that Spokane’s decision to leave the model would result in duplicative services and higher operational costs for city taxpayers. The board says the path highlights a regional divide.
Vice Chair Brad Richmond, who also serves as chief of the Airway Heights Police Department, reaffirmed SREC’s commitment to providing the best value and service in the board’s release.
“We’ve maintained a balanced budget, received clean audits from the State Auditor three cycles running, and have purposefully planned ahead for critical investments like a new CAD system and facility to serve the region for decades — fully aligned with our strategic plan published in 2021,” Richmond wrote. “These facts demonstrate that our budgeting approach is rooted in accountability, long-term vision, and a commitment to minimizing financial impact on the public.”
