Back in December 21, 2015, I submitted Freedom of Access Act (FOAA) requesting information from the Town. The FOAA read and I quote “Respectfully Request a copy of ALL certification of Dispatch personnel that pertain to Emergency Service/Dispatch.” Since Lisbon has four (4) regular Dispatchers and six (6) Reserve Dispatchers this should be a simple task. I received information on only nine 9 Dispatchers. One Dispatcher apparently does not have any training or no longer works for the town. However, anytime you are dealing with the Police Department it is never simple.
I received on January 26, 2016, what I perceived to be the information I had requested, especially since it cost me $50.50. I received 71 pages of information which broke down to this: 11 duplicate pages, 5 pages had the Course Name redacted, and one blank page. Since I had to pay $.50 per sheet, 17 pages were completely useless but I still had to pay. Chief Brooks always tries to bury me in paperwork making it more difficult to extract the information I am looking for. Before I accepted this packet, I asked the Town Manager, Diane Barnes if she was comfortable with the information. I also asked the Town Clerk, Twila Lycette, if she was comfortable with the information I was being provided in response to the FOAA. Both said “YES” but I have 17 useless pages.
This gets even worst because even though I submitted this over the Christmas holidays it took 29 days to be completed. Normally, dealing with the Police Department it is around 30 days before I get any response. During the course of this FOAA, I received emails from the Town Clerk. One was asking me to come in the next day between 03:00-03:30 to review the training packets which I refused. Since I asked for copies there should have been no need for me to come in. In another email, I had to explain again, that I was looking for certification of training.
Now, I am going to provide you with a sample of what I received on one Dispatcher:
COURSE NAME DATE COMPLETED
Maine State Police Tier 2 Security Awareness Training 09/11/2015
MAARS-View & APU Operator Certification (State Enhanced 9-1-1 System) 04/5/2001
MAARS-View & APU Operator Certification (State Enhanced 9-1-1 System) 04/5/2001
EMERGENCY MEDICAL DISPATCH 12/14/2006
Re-certification (Course Name Redacted) 12/5/2014
Certificate of Attendance (Maine IF&W and Dispatch) 04/10/2013
Certificate of Attendance (Maine IF&W and Dispatch) 04/10/2013
Certificate of Attendance (School Violence) 04/10/2013
Certificate of Attendance (School Violence) 04/10/2013
Certificate of Attendance (State Police Cell Analysis Team) 04/10/2013
Certificate of Attendance (State Police Cell Analysis Team) 04/10/2013
EMERGENCY MEDICAL DISPATCH 12/14/2006
EMERGENCY MEDICAL DISPATCH 12/14/2006
Weapons of Mass Destruction First Responders Awareness Level Course
02/2/2004
EMERGENCY MEDICAL DISPATCHER 10/22/2003
Hazardous Materials First Responder Awareness Level Course 10/20/2003
Re-Certification as Terminal Operator 07/01/2003
Dispatcher & Domestic Violence Crisis Communication Training Program
10/24/1999
WMD/HAZMAT Awareness – Role of the First Responder 12/18/2007
WMD/HAZMAT Awareness – Impact of WMD/HAZMAT Incidents 12/18/2007
WMD/HAZMAT Awareness – Response, Control and Communication 12/19, 2007
WMD/HAZMAT Awareness – Incident Protective Actions 12/19/2007
WMD/HAZMAT Awareness – Identifying Presence 12/19/2007
This is a sample of what I received for “Certification pertaining to Emergency Services/Dispatching.” I understand a lot of this has to do with Weapons of Mass Destruction (WMD) and HAZMAT Awareness training which could be mandatory training for Dispatchers but I never asked for Certification for Attendance.
This is the quality of service one can expect from the Town of Lisbon.
Larry Fillmore
