The Butler County Communications Council is recommending Motorola’s $10.3 million proposal to install a new 911 emergency call system.

The council on Monday cited the Chicago-based company’s lower cost compared to EF Johnson Technologies’ $12.6 million offer.

Steve Bicehouse, director of county emergency services, said he would forward the recommendation to the county commissioners.

The commissioners could then discuss the recommendation at their Dec. 21 meeting with a possible contract award on Dec. 28.

Bicehouse stressed the final price would differ as a final contract has yet to be negotiated.

“These numbers will vary a bit, but not significantly,” he said.

Not included in those numbers are annual maintenance costs, which still would be negotiated.

Bicehouse said this Motorola proposal was higher than its earlier $9.4 million bid due to some adjustments, including an initial underestimated count of radios used by emergency services departments across the county.

He said that number was originally believed to be 1,040, but is actually around 2,000.

The county is operating under an end of 2018 deadline when Motorola would no longer provide hardware or software support for the current system, which it maintains.

Another deadline is a federal mandate to vacate T-band frequencies, which the county uses now.

Those frequencies will be sold to private companies.

Bicehouse said the county needs to award a contract for the radio system installation this year to take advantage of company discounts.

However, bids received for converting T-band radio sites to different frequencies does not have to be acted on until next year.

Ray Steffler, communications council member, said it took some time to reach this point.

“It’s been a long, drawn out process,” he said. “Glad to see it come to an end.”

Of a budgeted $722,518 contingency in the proposed 2017 county budget, $380,000 is allotted for the first payment of new debt incurred by buying a new county emergency services radio system.

Under the county policy for distributing natural gas drilling impact fee revenue, 40 percent of the allocation, or no less than $750,000, funds the operations or service debt of county emergency services.

The county previously estimated the cost of a new 911 system at roughly $13 million.