Frequently Asked Questions
what is Tri-Com?
Tri-Com was formed in 1976 by the cities of Batavia, Geneva and St. Charles to provide emergency communications services to those communities.
is tri-Com privately owned?
No. Tri-Com is a unit of local government with the same rights, responsibilities, duties and obligations as any other unit of local government with two exceptions. Tri-Com cannot levy a tax and Tri-Com cannot float a bond. All Tri-Com employees are considered municipal employees of the City of Geneva and belong to the Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund.
if Tri-Com cannot float bonds or levy a tax, how does it receive its funding?
Tri-Com is funded in many different ways. The main source of our Operational funding comes from the Cities of Geneva, Batavia and St. Charles. Tri-Com also receives lease fees from agencies that lease space on our tower. Tri-Com also receives wireless surcharge money, support from the Kane County ETSB and Tri-Com collects dispatch fees from Elburn Police, Elburn Fire and Tri-City Ambulance (non-voting members). This funding allows Tri-Com to not only maintain its day to day operations, but to be on the cutting edge of technology for 9-1-1 communications.
DO
YOU KNOW WHERE I AM CALLING FROM WHEN I DIAL
9-1-1 FROM MY CELLULAR PHONE?
DO
YOU KNOW WHERE I AM CALLING FROM IF I HAVE VOICE OVER INTERNET
PROTOCOL PHONE SERVICE?
Unfortunately, VOIP technology does not enable us to see where you
are calling from. If we are delivered location information, it is
generally the address that the device is registered to and it has no
bearing on where the phone is actually located. The phone call could
originate from another city or state and we would only (possibly)
have access to the address registered by the customer. For a
detailed description of VOIP technology, view this article on
Wikipedia.
Click Here
can i take a tour of tri-com?
Unfortunately, we cannot accommodate individual tours. We do provide tours to community groups such as scouts, civic associations, etc. To arrange for a group tour please contact the Deputy Director at (630)232-4739.
will tri-com provide a speaker for my group or meeting?
Yes. With sufficient notice we will be happy to provide a speaker for your group or meeting to talk about 9-1-1 and Tri-Com. Please contact the Deputy Director at (630)232-4739.
Radio Frequencies
Tri-Com operates on 2 UHF and 1 VHF channel and several tactical frequencies which include voice and digital communications. We also maintain operations on several inter-agency VHF/UHF frequencies as authorized by the FCC.
Frequencies List
Unit ID List
CAN I HOOK UP A
PRE-RECORDED MESSAGE TO 9-1-1 (i.e. elevator phone or home security
system)?
It
is illegal to have a pre-recorded message hooked up to a 9-1-1 line.
All pre-recorded messages originating from elevator phones should
come from a 7-digit emergency line.
Click Here
State Law regarding ALI for 911. Sections: 726.205 & 727.205 - For Public Use Section726.205 Section727.205
