The Madison County Emergency Communications District was created by referendum in 1987. The District is its own municipality pursuant to Tennessee Code Annotated 7-86-106 which reports directly to a nine-member Board of Directors appointed by the County Mayor and confirmed by the County Commission. The District is governed by the Tennessee Emergency Communications Board and is required to follow their rules and regulations. The District's only source of revenue is from a surcharge placed on devices that can contact 911.
The District collected a 911 surcharge for all landline telephones beginning in 1987. Our rates were set at $0.45 for residential and $1.64 for business. The District had the flexibility to increase those rates to $1.50 and $3.00 respectively, however the Board of Directors chose to keep the rates as low as possible for the citizens of our County. In 1999, the State of Tennessee began collecting $1.00 per wireless device and remitting 25% of those funds back to the District. As of January 1, 2015, funding for 911 changed as the Tennessee General Assembly enacted the 911 Funding Modernization and IP Transition Act which set the rate for all devices statewide at $1.16. In 2020, the Tennessee General Assembly approved an increase to the surcharge which will be set at $1.50 per device statewide beginning in January of 2021. These funds are used to purchase 911 equipment ensuring we are able to provide the most up to date 911 technology to the citizens of Madison County.