Lane County Sheriff’s Office addresses dispatch services concerns

LANE COUNTY, Kan. (KSNW) — The Lane County Sheriff’s Office addressed concerns over dispatch services in a Facebook post on Monday.

According to the LCSO, they have been operating dispatch with three full-time and two part-time dispatchers. Altogether, they have been providing 24/7 coverage.

The LCSO says there is one position that has been vacant since February 2023, and a second position has been vacant since “about a month ago,” or since September.

The LCSO says they have been actively recruiting and that since February, they have not been able to find people to fill the positions.

“This has put us in a position where we have to explore alternatives to cover the hours,” said the LCSO. “While dispatch is housed at the Sheriff’s Office, by statute, it is the County Commissiners who are responsible for ensuring dispatch services. To that end, I have been exploring alternatives to present to the board.”

The LCSO says in the end, this will likely mean that some, or all, depending on future staffing, that dispatch services will need to be consolidated with another county.

“To put things in perspective, our dispatch center handles approximately 5.3 calls for services every 24-hour period. Between the hours of midnight – 8 a.m., the number drops to less than 1 call for service every 24 hours. We spend, on average, $180,000 a year on dispatch services. Our 911 fund for 2024 will be $119,000,” said the LCSO.

One of the challenges of the LCSO in the past several years was operating within budget, according to the post.

The LCSO says this has been one of the contributing factors to being over budget.

“Our tax base continues to diminish, which impacts the amount of funds that are available,” said the LCSO.

To read the Lane County KS Sheirff’s Office Facebook post in its entirety, click here.