A local lawmaker has testified in support of a bill clarifying how to access 911 services.  The legislature’s Public Health Committee held a hearing on a bill about instructions for multi-line telephone systems.  Many of those systems require users to dial 9 or 8 in order to access an outside line. 

Monroe Representative JP Sredzinski says many people don’t realize that includes 911, especially during a chaotic or emergency situation. 

The proposal would require clear instructions be posted on how to dial an outside line to ensure people can access emergency services in a timely manner. 

Sredzinski is public safety dispatch supervisor and offered his professional opinion on the bill.  He says every second counts when someone is choking, going into labor, witnessing a crime or seeing a fire.  Sredzinski noted that people shouldn’t have to spend valuable time trying to figure out how to reach an outside line.