Rockford, Winnebago County 911 centers could be merged

ROCKFORD, Ill. (AP) - Officials in the city of Rockford and Winnebago County say they're ready to discuss merging their 911 emergency call centers.

The Rockford Register Star reports that (http://bit.ly/1wwuMNU ) local leaders are willing to analyze how a merger would work almost a decade after the two systems were separated.

The Winnebago County Sheriff's Department handles emergency calls outside of Rockford, while the city's 911 center dispatches police and fire help to callers inside the city limits.

They serve as backup centers to each other.

Alderman Jamie Getchius introduced a resolution last week that would direct fire and police officials to explore a merger and report back to the City Council at the end of May.

Getchius says both municipalities want to reduce costs because of budget deficits and improve services to residents.