How NG911 Cloud Solutions Are Helping Public Safety Agencies Cut Down Costs

On average, around 240 million 911 calls are made annually in the United States. Handling about 600,000 emergency calls per day is no easy feat, and the responsibility falls to Public Safety Answering Points (PSAPs) as they continue to face numerous challenges such as:

Pinpointing 911 caller locations in minimal time
Deploying the right emergency resources
Translating emergency calls when call-takers and callers don’t speak the same language
Maintaining a constant stream of records and requests required by law
Managing overhead costs and technology maintenance
Improving employee retention during staffing shortages industry-wide

With all the responsibilities and challenges PSAPs face, how can agencies overcome these obstacles while reducing overhead costs? The answer lies with NG911 cloud solutions.

In this blog from trusted NG911 providers, NGA, we’ll explore how NG911 cloud solutions can help public safety agencies reduce costs while improving service delivery effectiveness.

Table of Contents:

Why is Adopting Cloud Solutions Technology Essential for The Public Safety Industry?
What Are NG911 Cloud Solutions Exactly?
Understanding How NG911 Cloud Solutions Help Cut Costs
Emergency Caller Location Time Savings
Dispatch Resource Efficiency Savings
911 System Technology Savings
Required Records Savings
Savings on Language Translation
Saving on Employee Retention
Conclusion

Why is Adopting Cloud Solutions Technology Essential for The Public Safety Industry?

It's no secret that cloud-based computing technologies have revolutionized industries from air travel to medicine. And leaders in the public safety industry are working hard to accelerate the deployment and implementation of cloud technologies in PSAPs and other emergency services organizations throughout the country.

Aside from these technologies making 911 service more accessible to the general public, cloud-based systems are designed to deliver ground-breaking results by saving over a quarter-million dollars each year.

What Are NG911 Cloud Solutions Exactly?

NG911 stands for “Next Generation 911.” It’s essentially a digitized emergency telecommunications system that provides streamlined communication between the 911 caller, dispatchers, and first responders out in the field.

This technology also enables PSAP dispatchers to receive text messages, voice calls, pictures, videos, and other types of multimedia from individuals reporting emergencies. It also allows dispatch centers to access information from various databases in real-time, which helps cut down response times.

With NG911 cloud solutions, each solution utilizes cloud technology and secure, cloud-based networks to deliver revolutionary services. By doing so, these solutions can aid individuals in need and give public safety professionals quick access to the real-time data they need to make more accurate decisions about the best response in an emergency.

Understanding How NG911 Cloud Solutions Help Cut Costs

Using NG911 cloud solutions can help public safety agencies cut down on costs in several ways:

Emergency Caller Location Time Savings

On average, a PSAP call-taker handles over 40,000 emergency calls annually. Standard operating procedures require the dispatcher to determine the caller’s location and emergency first.

With rational 911 systems, the time it takes to locate a caller, and their emergency can take as long as five minutes. While five minutes doesn’t seem like a long time in the general sense, every second counts in an emergency.

Modern 911 call-handling solutions running on the cloud often reduce this time to one minute or less.

Dispatch Resource Efficiency Savings

Once a PSAP dispatcher determines the exact location of the 911 caller, they must send aid and fast. Typically, around 60% of a PSAP’s 41,000 yearly calls result in the dispatching of unity and other resources to the scene of an emergency.

Using NG911 cloud solution technology, such as real-time text messaging, video streaming, and pinpoint caller location, PSAPs can reduce unnecessary dispatcher resource costs by up to 12%.

911 System Technology Savings

Believe it or not, outdated 911 systems can often cost PSAPs millions of dollars annually to help keep up with system technology updates and maintenance. PSAPs employing state-of-the-art infrastructures like NG911 know this and the creeping costs associated with dated systems.

For this reason and many others, many public safety agencies nationwide opt for cloud-computing solutions where system technology maintenance is often included with little to no extra charge. This can result in significant savings compared to legacy systems.

Required Records Savings

In addition to handling high volumes of emergency calls and undergoing numerous challenges, PSAPs must also service a constant stream of record requests daily. This influx of requested records has led to some PSAPs having to dictate one or more full-time employees to serve them required by law.

Extracting and gathering these records sometimes involves doing so from incompatible systems, resulting in more time devoted to the records instead of handling emergency calls. Typically, this task can take over sixty-five hours per month.

PSAPs utilizing NG911 cloud solutions with integrated record management services can cut this time in half. Based on numbers, that’s an annual savings of about $7,000 per year just by streamlining requested records alone.

Savings on Language Translation

While most emergency calls are typically made by English speakers, it's estimated that around 8% of these callers do not speak English.

For medium to large PSAPs handling about 48,000 calls annually, the number of calls made by non-English-speaking callers translates into about 4,000 calls annually.

It's important to note that this number varies depending on the location of the PSAP. However, employing language translators for up to five minutes per call can result in up to 20,000 minutes annually.

Translating costs that once averaged $3/minute are being driven down through automated language detection and AI-powered real-time translation tools. With cloud-based solutions from systems like Next Generation 911, translation capabilities can significantly cut down time and thus cut down associated costs.

Saving on Employee Retention

While helping to save lives is an invaluable and inspirational feat, it also comes with high stress levels from constantly being exposed to emergencies. As a result, burnout, employee turnover, and staffing challenges add to the stresses of running a PSAP.

Research has shown that the impacts and costs of replacing an employee can include up to $40,000 with onboarding, interview time, temporary workers, and recruitment. PSAPs and other public safety agencies can help overcome these challenges by implementing NG911 cloud solutions.

These cloud-computing services often include features that improve user interfaces, which can help reduce mental overload and employee turnover.

Emerging Considerations and Enhancements for NG911 in 2025

AI is transforming NG911 workflows Vendors are integrating artificial intelligence to help dispatchers make faster, smarter decisions during emergency calls.

Predictive dispatching is reducing response delays AI tools can analyze real-time data to suggest optimal deployment of emergency resources based on call patterns and location.

Mental wellness support is built into modern systems Some platforms now include features designed to monitor and reduce dispatcher stress, improving retention and job satisfaction.

Cybersecurity is a top priority in 2025 NG911 providers are meeting compliance standards like CJIS, NIST, and FedRAMP to ensure sensitive data stays protected.

Federal and state grants are still available Ongoing public funding continues to support agencies looking to upgrade to NG911, easing the financial burden of implementation.

Conclusion

As you can see, many compelling reasons exist for public safety agencies to switch to an NG911 cloud solution. Not only can it help save money, but it can also improve performance and resilience while providing greater flexibility in terms of disaster recovery and scalability.

If your agency wants to cut costs without compromising quality or service levels, switching to an NG911 cloud solution should be on your radar.

Would you like to know more?

Connect with our NG911 experts and trusted providers today!

Resources:

https://www.nena.org/page/911statistics

https://www.waldenu.edu/online-masters-programs/ms-in-criminal-justice/resource/ten-things-you-might-not-know-about-the-united-states-911-emergency-telephone-number

https://www.doi.gov/ocio/policy-mgmt-support/information-and-records-management/records-management-questions?utm_source=chatgpt.com