The center’s goal is to answer calls quickly and resolve caller’s issues without transferring their call to another department. Each day more than 4,000 calls are answered, with an average wait time of less than 40 seconds to reach a live operator, and 77 percent of all calls are resolved on first contact.

Serving as a single point of contact for all non-emergency public services, including information and service requests, Miami-Dade’s 3-1-1 Answer Center handled more than one million calls during its first year of operations. The technology solution behind 3-1-1 is highly sophisticated, integrating the entire customer service process into a single system.

“The establishment of the 3-1-1 Answer Center serves as the front door for County government,” said Miami-Dade County Manager George M. Burgess. “Residents can reach us and access our services through one easy number.”

Judi Zito, Director of Miami-Dade’s Government Information Center echoes the manager’s sentiments adding,  “Today our 3-1-1 system provides our customers with one easy-to-remember number to get one-on-one service for help with information and services provided by both the County and the City of Miami.  Our goal is to provide seamless service for all citizens of the County, regardless of where they live.” 

Information regarding each call placed to 3-1-1 is captured, providing the ability for real time assessment of community needs. On-the-spot decision-making related to all phases of emergency management, based on the need for service, is enabled through an assessment of 3-1-1 data. Moreover, a retrospective analysis of this information is invaluable as a tool for continuous improvement of emergency plans.

The need for 3-1-1 was proven to be particularly critical during hurricane activations by providing residents easy access to government information while diverting calls from 9-1-1 emergency systems. This enabled 9-1-1 to remain available for truly life-threatening situations.

During the Wilma activation, call-takers went from being information specialists to “friends in need” providing reassurance to thousands of residents during the worst hours of the storm. Calls to the 3-1-1 Answer Center peaked the day after the storm, a 1200% increase over average daily call volume! Maps of the service requests that were taken during the activation period were used to assist the County as well as other agencies (FEMA, Army Corp of Engineer’s ‘Operation Blue Roof’ program) in determining where to allocate resources.

The Government Customer Support Excellence Awards foster the sharing and implementation of effective practices in the support of government's customers, both internal and external. Any questions related to these awards should be e-mailed to: Daryl.L.Covey@noaa.gov