Douglas County is joining a statewide effort to persuade the governor and Wisconsin Legislature to provide funding to upgrade emergency 911 systems for the digital age using revenue generated by fees paid by telephone users. According to the Wisconsin Department of Revenue, the police and fire protection fee is charged to consumers for each voice communications connection with an assigned telephone number including landlines, cellular phones and communication services provided by a VoIP connection. In effect since Sept. 1, 2009, the fee was created to help emergency call centers implement new technology.