Citizen Petition to the City of Palm Bay

TO: The Mayor and Members of the Palm Bay City Council

We, the undersigned residents, taxpayers, business owners, employees, public safety professionals, and members of the Palm Bay community, respectfully call upon the Palm Bay City Council to keep Palm Bay’s 911 emergency communications and dispatch operations locally operated and to reject any proposal that would transfer or consolidate Palm Bay Police 911 call-taking or dispatch services with the Brevard County Sheriff’s Office (BCSO).

Palm Bay residents depend on our 911 system during some of the most critical moments of their lives. Emergency communications are the first link in the public-safety response chain. Decisions concerning the future of Palm Bay’s 911 operations should prioritize the safety, service, accountability, reliability, and resilience of the Palm Bay community.

OUR POSITION

Our position is clear: Palm Bay Police 911 call-taking and dispatch should remain a locally operated Palm Bay service.

We are asking the City Council to preserve Palm Bay’s Communications Center and maintain local control of this essential public-safety function. We are not asking the City to delay consolidation simply for the sake of further study. We are asking the City to recognize the value of maintaining local public-safety capability and to reject any transfer unless a transparent, evidence-based process demonstrates that an alternative would provide equal or better protection and service to Palm Bay residents.

Emergency communications are a core public-safety responsibility. Palm Bay’s dispatch personnel develop direct knowledge of our city’s roads, neighborhoods, intersections, landmarks, officers, operating practices, and community needs. That local knowledge and institutional experience have value that cannot be measured solely as a line item in a budget.

Regional cooperation, mutual aid, compatible technology, CAD interoperability, and coordination with BCSO and Fire/EMS can and should continue to improve. Those goals do not require Palm Bay to surrender its own Police Communications Center.

We support fiscal responsibility and expect the City to pursue efficiencies wherever possible. However, potential cost savings should be pursued without eliminating Palm Bay’s local police dispatch capability. If improvements are needed, we ask the City to invest in, modernize, properly staff, train, and strengthen the existing local system rather than transfer it away.

WE ASK THE CITY OF PALM BAY TO:
1. Keep Palm Bay’s primary 911 answering and dispatch functions locally operated.

2. Reject any consolidation or transfer of Palm Bay 911 operations to BCSO unless the City can demonstrate, through transparent and independently verifiable analysis, that the proposed change will provide equal or better service and protection to Palm Bay residents.

3. Require a comprehensive public evaluation before any decision is made to consolidate or regionalize Palm Bay’s 911 operations, including consideration of:

• 911 answer times;
• abandoned and unanswered 911 calls;
• emergency call volume;
• staffing levels and vacancies;
• employee turnover and retention;
• dispatcher training and experience;
• response times;
• call-processing efficiency;
• operational resilience;
• backup PSAP capabilities;
• disaster and mass-casualty preparedness;
• technology and interoperability;
• financial costs and projected savings;
• the effect on Palm Bay residents during periods of unusually high call volume; and
•  The ability to maintain effective local accountability

4. Provide Palm Bay residents with meaningful public transparency and an opportunity to be heard before any final decision is made regarding the future of Palm Bay’s 911 operations.

5. Prioritize the continued development, staffing, training, retention, and technological improvement of Palm Bay’s existing 911 communications system as a viable alternative to consolidation.

6. Maintain local accountability and decision-making for Palm Bay’s emergency communications so that the community continues to have a direct voice in this essential public-safety service.

REGARDING STATEWIDE CONSOLIDATION

The statewide emergency-communications consolidation proposals considered during Florida’s 2026 legislative session did not become law. Future legislation may or may not be introduced and may take a different form.

Palm Bay should make decisions based on what best serves Palm Bay—not permanently relinquish local public-safety capability in anticipation of a state requirement that does not currently exist.

OUR REQUEST

We respectfully ask the Palm Bay City Council to VOTE NO on any proposal that transfers Palm Bay Police 911 call-taking or dispatch operations to BCSO and to commit to keeping Palm Bay Police emergency communications local.

Palm Bay deserves a 911 system that is accessible, accountable, resilient, properly staffed, locally knowledgeable, and responsive to the unique needs of our community.

We ask the City Council to protect this essential local public-safety capability and to ensure that any proposed change is evaluated based on public safety and measurable service outcomes—not simply projected cost savings.

 
This is a community advocacy petition requesting action by the Palm Bay City Council. It is not being circulated as a ballot initiative or referendum petition