Emergency Telecommunicator Training
On September 1, 2019 Texas House Bill 1090 officially recognized and reclassified Emergency Telecommunicators as First Responders in the State of Texas. The State of Texas made history by becoming the first state in the country to recognize and reclassify its Emergency Telecommunicators as First Responders. Governor Greg Abbott signed House Bill 1090 into law on June 10, 2019.
9-1-1 Telecommunicators receive specialized training in order to handle a broad range of potential call types in the PSAP. Texas requires all law enforcement Telecommunicators to complete a 40-hour Basic Telecommunicator training course prior to taking TCOLE’s licensing exam within their first year of employment. In addition, Telecommunicators must complete several hours of “field training” before receiving their Basic Telecommunications Certification from TCOLE.
The Texas Department of Public Safety also requires all PSAPs performing law enforcement functions to attend 24 hours of training on the Texas and the National Law Enforcement Telecommunications Systems (TLETS/NLETS) within their first 6 months of employment. CCECD offers this, and additional training in: Law Enforcement Dispatch, Fire Service Dispatch, Emergency Medical Dispatch, Communication Training Officer, Basic Spanish, Ethics, Crisis Communications and more to assist Telecommunicators with advancing to intermediate and advance certification levels.
Telecommunicators are required complete 20 hours of continuing education training every two years or TCOLE training cycle in order to maintain their Telecommunicator license. Seasoned Telecommunicators have an opportunity to progress from a Basic Proficiency Certificate to an Intermediate Proficiency Certificate, Advance Proficiency Certificate and a Master Proficiency Certificate. For more information visit the TCOLE website.
In order to comply with the Americans with Disabilities Act, all call-takers must attend training on Telecommunications Device for the Deaf (TDD) at least once every six months. This training provides familiarity with the equipment, and keeps them abreast of changes in technology.
CCECD also offers training from various organizations such as the National Emergency Number Association (NENA) and the Association of Public-Safety Communications Officials (APCO) that specialize in issues affecting public safety.
CCECD is committed to assisting each Public Safety Answering Point it serves with continuing education training for the professional development of their 9-1-1 Telecommunicators.
