North Dakota Century Code requires the SECC to provide dispatch services to all counties with fewer than 25,000 people, because they often can't afford services on their own, according to SECC Division Director Darin Anderson. The counties that most recently voted to transfer services are Eddy, Nelson and Sioux.
"Those last couple of counties that we've added on were a myriad of reasons," Anderson said. "Critical staffing, financial and then just updated 911 mapping."
Anderson says he understands residents' concerns when the state agency takes over their dispatch services, but he emphasizes that the SECC — though physically stationed in Bismarck — specializes in local, rural communities.
Some counties have fewer than 2,000 residents, and maybe two law enforcement officers to serve the entire population, he said. With few other area resources, small communities have to rely on the SECC in emergency situations to determine where they are and who can be dispatched to help. Rural areas not only have limited resources, but also typically have fewer cell towers, creating less precise locations for 911 callers. State dispatchers have to learn each county's commonplace names — often used in place of street names or other official locators — which 911 coordinators then input in the computer-aided dispatch (CAD) system.
With the three newest additions, the SECC serves 29 counties, along with state agencies such as the Game and Fish, Parole and Probation, North Dakota Highway Patrol and Parks and Recreation. The agency has 28 staff and four vacant positions. The main dispatch center is located at the freight barracks in Bismarck, and a backup center is located in the south part of town near the airport. There are 10 positions at the main location at any given time, and six at the backup site, Anderson said.
The SECC has now nearly reached its cap for the number of residents it can safely serve before additional staffing is necessary. Because Gov. Kelly Armstrong's office has made statements asking state agencies to refrain from adding new expenditures for the biennium, Anderson feels this won't happen in the immediate future.
Sioux County petitioned to move from its Mobridge, South Dakota, dispatching services to the state, and was approved to do so after completing its next-generation mapping over the last calendar year. This is a major technology milestone, according to a press release, replacing decades-old 911 technology and enabling the public to send photos and text messages directly to the Public Safety Answering Point.
The transition will happen in the summer and, in the meantime, the SECC has started learning relevant procedures. It takes about three meetings to get everyone involved up to speed. This includes any complexities related to serving border communities and counties located on Indigenous reservations, Anderson said.
"I think the biggest hurdle we have is working with the local rural responders, and putting their minds at ease," he said.
Anderson recognizes it's a change, but feels that in many cases, it's a small one. Any mistakes that could be made are corrected after the first error, "because seconds save lives," and at the end of the day, everyone involved is part of the same business, he said.
Nelson and Eddy counties made the decision to switch to SECC mainly for cost-saving purposes, as neither county has its own dispatch services and contracts with Lake Region. By transitioning to SECC at the end of the year, Nelson County expects to save approximately $107,000 each year moving forward, according to Angela Herda, Nelson County emergency manager.
With the 3% annual increase cap on property taxes, the county is looking to save money anywhere it can, Herda said. The county first started looking into the correctional services Lake Region has been providing, and ultimately decided to transition to the Grand Forks County Correctional Center. Throughout this process, county officials began considering a transition for dispatch services as well.
Herda says there hasn't been any pushback from community members or responding agencies, including fire departments, ambulance services and the sheriff's office. She also has heard positive feedback from other counties that made the switch in recent years.
"We're very confident in the decision that we made," Herda said.
Some services previously provided by Lake Region will become Nelson County's responsibility, including storm sirens, weekly department paging and managing the public emergency alert system. Herda will also take on the 911 coordinator role, which includes updating the county's database, attending meetings and keeping everyone informed on changes.
"We're hoping for a smooth transfer," she said. "It's probably going to be about a seven-month process to get everything set in place to make the switch, but we should have absolutely zero disruption in any services while we are transferring over. The public probably won't even know it's happened."
© 2026 the Grand Forks Herald (Grand Forks, N.D.). Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.
