(a) Funds received by a district pursuant to Section 11-98-5.2 shall be used to establish, operate, maintain, and replace an emergency communication system that, without limitation, may consist of the following:
(1) Telephone communications equipment to be used in answering, transferring, and dispatching public emergency telephone calls originated by persons within the service area who dial 911.
(2) Emergency radio communications equipment and facilities necessary to transmit and receive dispatch calls.
(3) The engineering, installation, and recurring costs necessary to implement, operate, and maintain an emergency communication system.
(4) Facilities to house E-911 operators and related services as defined in this chapter, with the approval of the creating authority, and for necessary emergency and uninterruptable power supplies for the systems.
(5) Administrative and other costs related to subdivisions (1) to (4), inclusive.
(b) A district or county or municipal governing body may receive federal, state, county, or municipal real or personal property and funds, as well as real or personal property and funds from private sources, and may expend the funds or use the property for the purposes of this chapter.
(c) Subject to the remaining provisions of this chapter and the approval of the 911 Board and the creating authority, two or more districts, cities, or counties, or a city and a county in another district may agree to cooperate, to the extent practicable, to provide funding and service to their respective areas, and a single board of commissioners of not more than seven members may be appointed to conduct the affairs of the entities involved. In the event that two or more districts are consolidated for purposes of this chapter, the base distribution amount as defined in Section 11-98-5.2 (b)(3) shall include the combined base distribution amounts that would have been calculated for the individual districts.
(d) Subject to rules that may be adopted by the 911 Board, a district may expend available funds to establish a common address and location identification program and to establish the emergency service number data base to facilitate efficient operation of the system. The governing body and the E-911 Board of each county or city affected shall be jointly responsible for purchasing and installing the necessary signs to properly identify all roads and streets in the district.
(e) Beginning with fiscal year 2013, the Department of Examiners of Public Accounts shall audit each district on a biennial basis to ensure compliance with the requirements of this chapter regarding both revenues and expenditures.
(Acts 1984, No. 84-369, p. 854, §5; Acts 1992, No. 92-562, p. 1165, §1; Act 98-338, p. 584, §1; Act 2007-459, p. 950, §1; Act 2012-293, p. 592, §1.)