by Kate Shunney
Morgan County Commissioners and the county’s 911 Director agreed last week on the funding structure for an upgrade of the county’s emergency call-handling equipment.
Morgan County 911 will see their Motorola call-handling software upgraded to VESTA NXT, which will modernize dispatching processes in emergencies. The system allows for transcription of calls, translation of calls from other languages and the integration of community location data to refine emergency response.
911 Director Marshall Younker told county officials late last year that his center was due for the software upgrade, and he had received estimates for the cost of the equipment contract in the amount of $488,580.
Younker told commissioners that contract price included $315,000 in old debt – an amount the county had failed to pay Motorola for their last equipment contract.
On December 17, 2025, commissioners voted to accept Motorola’s proposal of a five-year contract at a cost of $490,000 with financing to be determined.
Commissioners last week voted to take $100,000 out of their opioid settlement funds and $50,000 from the 911 budget carryover as a down-payment on the contract price, and finance the rest as a lease with CNB Bank for 60 months, with a payment of $6,500 per month from the 911 budget.
Commissioner Sean Forney noted that a recent 911 fee increase would bring additional revenue into the 911 annual budget that would help cover the payment.
