Lake County 911 Executive Director Mark Swiderski told the county council that the department has staffing issues — and it’s affecting their call times.
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According to council documents, Lake County 911 is requesting $350,000 from protective services to pay for department overtime to maintain operations.
“We’re understaffed, and we’re still trying to get a handle on that,” Swiderski told Lake County Council members during their Thursday morning study session. “That’s hopefully going to last us through the end of the year.”
Councilman Randy Niemeyer, R-7th, said Lake County 911 used contractors last year to help ease its staffing challenges. The county moved money to pay for contractors and reduce overtime pay.
The agreement with contractors expired in October 2025, Swiderski said. The department entered into six-month agreements with 12 contractors, but only six fulfilled the agreement.
“The amount of calls, the types of calls that we endure in this area, are unlike some of those people had ever experienced at this rate,” Swiderski said, “which may also continue to be a difficult situation for us.”
Lake County 911 has 74 employees but can have up to 105, he added. In 2019, the department had 98 out of 100 possible employees, Swiderski said, which are their highest employment numbers.
“COVID changed the game,” he said. “These other companies are paying people more than they had in the past.”
Niemeyer asked why the county continues to fund 105 positions if they haven’t met those numbers.
Swiderski said that’s “the magic number” to best provide services.
According to Post-Tribune archives, on Aug. 27, after a guest at a Food Bank of Northwest Indiana event needed medical attention, calls to 911 went unanswered. A Lake County 911 report showed that about 160 calls went through the communications center between 10:15 a.m. and 11 a.m., 100 emergency calls and 60 non-emergency.
“We consistently need to make sure that we hit a specific number,” Swiderski said. “We should be answering about 90% of our calls in 15 seconds, 95% in 20 seconds. There are times throughout the day that we do not hit that metric.”
On Aug. 27, scheduled maintenance of the computer aided dispatch system began at about 10 a.m., and the phone system remained operational. The county’s automated non-emergency artificial intelligence call-handling system also had to be taken offline during the maintenance and was back online at about 11 a.m.
Niemeyer also asked Swiderski how the department utilizes AI, saying the department needs to make some changes to get to a more sustainable number and keep turnover down.
“I know, around the country right now, when it comes to emergency calls, that’s very effective, not to take the place of a dispatcher but to serve as that buffer,” Niemeyer said, “so you can actually handle higher volume per person.”
The department uses AI for its nonemergency lines, Swiderski said. Using AI is not as accepted in emergency situations, he said, adding that people trust working with representatives more than the technology.
Lake County Commissioner Mike Repay, D-3rd, also previously expressed concerns with the 911 system following the Aug. 27 incident, according to Post-Tribune archives. Repay said there needs to be better communication when systems are down, and staffing issues could’ve contributed.
Niemeyer asked if they could eliminate positions to pay people more and have more retention. Council Vice President Ron Brewer, D-2nd, agreed that starting salaries need to increase, adding that they can make additional decisions from there.
In the past decade, operator salaries have almost doubled, Swiderski said, increasing from $12.98 an hour to $23 an hour in training and $24 an hour out of training.
“But the cost of living continues to increase,” he said. “… I believe the starting salary is one of the biggest concerns because somebody can get the training here and then go to Illinois, and that’s always going to be our problem. They can go right across the state line and make $10 more an hour.”
The council will make its decision on shifting funds to Lake County 911 overtime at its upcoming Tuesday meeting.
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