Times Record Enhanced 911 services and more supervisory personnel will be added to Fort Smith's dispatch services in 2021. The city has approved more than $1.8 million to fund a computer-aided dispatch and records management system for the Fort Smith police and fire departments and round-the-clock dispatch supervision for the Police Department. The Fort Smith police and fire chiefs say these measures will enhance the efficiency and effectiveness of the services provided to citizens while also improving the workplace environment. These dispatch improvements will be paid out of the roughly $3.4 million the city received in CARES Act appropriations. About $1.5 million of the money will go toward the computer-aided dispatch system, which Fire Chief Phil Christensen said pushes the city's dispatch services "into next-generation 911." The Fire Department's dispatch system has not been replaced since 1997.