Rhode Island’s 911 system was created in 1988 to give people a way to get help quickly and easily in an emergency. But the agency has seen continual decreases in manpower over the past decade, resulting in more than 16,000 callers put on hold in 2014 – up 25 percent in four years. We found a surcharge on everyone’s cell phone and landline that generates millions of dollars originally earmarked for the agency isn’t going to 911. Jim Hummel explains where the money is going.
