Members of the conference committee discussed two operational items in Senate Bill 2012: an additional DOT FTE for the statewide SIREN radio-tower network and added costs and staffing for state aircraft operations.

On the siren network, committee members said the project has expanded from an initial roughly 40 maintained towers to a planned system of about 144 towers when complete. Committee discussion split maintenance responsibilities into two roles: one IT-focused FTE (already in an IT budget) for technical network operations, and one DOT FTE for the mechanical, grounds and lease-management tasks associated with dozens of additional towers. A committee member summarized the DOT FTE as intended to handle "the mechanical side" — road access, grounds, leases and physical upkeep — rather than the network's IT functions.

Committee members said most of the additional towers are already in place or nearly so, with fewer than 10 remaining to be sited and leased; the planned statewide coverage aimed for full operation in summer 2026. Senator Eberly and others asked whether existing DOT staff were absorbing maintenance of the original towers; members clarified that current staff maintain the initial towers as part of regular duties but the expansion of more than 100 towers would justify the dedicated mechanical FTE to track leases, landowner arrangements and physical tower upkeep.

On aircraft operations, the House added $1.2 million to an existing plane-operations line and discussed establishing a more regular schedule for state plane flights and the need for additional pilot staffing. Committee members said agencies currently may use state aircraft but must pay a fee; the House proposal envisions a scheduled-use model — similar to an airline route calendar — that would require pilots to be reliably available and could require a full-time pilot. Committee discussion noted the state owns two King Air–type aircraft and that replacing one at market cost would likely fall in a range of $6–8 million if pursued in the future. The $1.2 million addition was discussed as an incremental increase on top of an existing plane-operations total shown elsewhere in the bill as $3.5 million, meaning the House added $1.2 million to base operating costs.

Committee members did not record a formal vote on either operational item during the excerpted session. The discussion clarified the functional split between technical network maintenance and mechanical/lease administration for towers and highlighted staffing and cost implications for the state plane schedule.

Discussion vs. decision
- Discussion: scope of the siren-tower network, division of duties between IT and DOT, timing for siting remaining towers, the economics of scheduled plane service versus agencies driving to distant meetings.
- Direction: the House proposal includes one IT technical FTE and one DOT mechanical/grounds FTE for the siren network; the House added $1.2 million to plane operations and discussed the need for additional pilot staffing.
- Formal action: none recorded in the provided transcript excerpt.