Residents of Indian Hill, Madeira, Mariemont, Terrace Park, and Sycamore Township who call the non-emergency dispatch line could be greeted by an artificial intelligence system instead of a human operator. But that rollout is on hold after the dispatchers' union pushed back.
The Hamilton County Communications Center, which handles 911 and non-emergency calls for all five east-side villages as part of its 42-jurisdiction coverage area, suspended plans in late June to implement AI-powered call handling after the Communications Officers of Hamilton County union issued a cease-and-desist letter, WCPO reported on Tuesday, July 15.
The union's letter called on the county to abandon what it described as "unilateral implementation of this AI software," arguing the move violated the collective bargaining agreement. The letter set a deadline of Monday, July 7, for the county to drop the plan and begin formal negotiations with the union.
The Hamilton County Communications Center employs 60 communications officers, nine supervisors, and eight administrative staff, according to the county's website. The center dispatches for 105 police, fire, and EMS departments from its facility behind the Hamilton County Sheriff's Patrol Headquarters.
Communications Director Andy Knapp declined to comment on the labor dispute itself but issued a written statement on Tuesday, July 15, saying any AI technology under consideration would apply only to the non-emergency line. Knapp said the goal was to free trained dispatchers to focus on emergencies "where every second counts."
The software in question comes from Aurelian, a company that has raised $14 million in venture funding and says it operates in more than 50 dispatch agencies nationwide. CEO Max Keenan told WCPO that 911 calls would never be affected.
"If you call 911 you get a human," Keenan said. "What we're talking about is that separate non-emergency line where you're kind of self-selected that this isn't an emergency."
According to Aurelian, the system would collect information on non-emergency situations like noise complaints, direct callers to the appropriate department, or escalate genuine emergencies that come in on the non-emergency line to a human 911 dispatcher.
Keenan said the company has not eliminated a single job at any of its partner agencies.
No timeline has been announced for when collective bargaining talks might begin or when the AI system could be reconsidered. County officials have not publicly responded to the union's July 7 deadline.
Residents across the east-side villages can reach non-emergency dispatch at (513) 825-2280. For emergencies, call 911.
