The Happy Squirrel
07-19-2008, 08:20 AM
what are your thoughts on this??? ANyone have this already in place???
http://www.duluthnewstribune.com/articles/index.cfm?id=70636§ion=News
Pay a fee if your house is on fire? Duluth councilors might consider it
Patrick Garmoe Duluth News Tribune
Published Saturday, July 19, 2008
Next time you get into a car accident, or need firefighters to douse your home with water, brace for a bill.
Charging flat fees for these police and fire responses is an idea the Duluth City Council may vote onJuly 28.
City administrators are contemplating charging homeowners or drivers a flat $500 fee when firefighters extinguish a fire at a home, extract someone from a mangled car, or if police have to investigate a car accident.
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Patrick Garmoe Archive
“We don’t know what the fees are yet,” city spokesman Jeff Papas said.
If councilors approve the notion of charging the fees, they would then — perhaps also on July 28 — have to separately vote on the fees.
While the fire response and vehicle extraction would apply to everyone, the plan to charge to investigate car accidents would only be assessed to non-residents, if the city can legally pass an ordinance that differentiates between the two groups, Papas said. The city attorney’s office still is checking whether the ordinance can differentiate between residents and non-residents of Duluth.
“You’re dealing with about 300 to 330 accidents a year,” Papas said, of which about half involve drivers who reside outside of Duluth.
The idea is supposed to net the city an additional estimated $100,000 annually, Papas said, about half from fire calls, and the other half from police investigations.
It would be another budget boost for a city that this year is facing a $4.5 million deficit.
According to the ordinance, the city would bill the insurance company. But if the insurance company wouldn’t pay, or there was no insurance, then the homeowner would be billed. If he or she didn’t pay, the charge could be assessed on the following year’s property taxes, the proposed ordinance says.
The idea was modeled after a similar ordinance in Burnsville, Minn., Papas said.
The Burnsville Fire Department charges varying fees for vehicle extractions, and having to go into licensed care facilities to lift patients, said Steven Harklerode, Fire Chief, but not for fighting blazes.
Nothing is charged for fires or for police assistance, Harklerode said.
Edie Clark, director of communications for the International Association of Fire Chiefs, said there is a smattering of cities across the country that has begun charging fees.
Some councilors voiced strong philosophical opposition.
“I don’t like it,” said Councilor Sharla Gardner. “People are already paying for those services through their taxes. I don’t think it’s at all fair.”
Councilor Jim Stauber said the city’s administration should focus on cost-cutting, not charging residents more.
“Our fire department is the most expensive per capita, than any other fire department in the state,” Stauber said.
He also worried charging a fee might make people reluctant to call the police or fire departments.
“I just think it’s a very bad idea,” he said. He also feared that once implemented, fees would end up rising annually.
While Councilor Jeff Anderson hadn’t decided where he stands, he said he definitely won’t support it if the ordinance doesn’t include an expiration date.
“We have to recognize that eventually we’ll be in a more solvent position,” he said, and therefore these fees should only be charged during this stretch when the city is cash-strapped, Anderson said.
Council President Roger Reinert said other cities have fees for various city services He said he will consider the idea, but would like to know if insurance would pick up the tab in most cases.
“I’m certainly interested in hearing about it,” he said. Increasingly, the city is asked to offer more and more services with fewer dollars. This would be one way to help remedy that, he said. “It’s not a dead-on-arrival proposal.”
http://www.duluthnewstribune.com/articles/index.cfm?id=70636§ion=News
Pay a fee if your house is on fire? Duluth councilors might consider it
Patrick Garmoe Duluth News Tribune
Published Saturday, July 19, 2008
Next time you get into a car accident, or need firefighters to douse your home with water, brace for a bill.
Charging flat fees for these police and fire responses is an idea the Duluth City Council may vote onJuly 28.
City administrators are contemplating charging homeowners or drivers a flat $500 fee when firefighters extinguish a fire at a home, extract someone from a mangled car, or if police have to investigate a car accident.
RELATED CONTENT
Patrick Garmoe Archive
“We don’t know what the fees are yet,” city spokesman Jeff Papas said.
If councilors approve the notion of charging the fees, they would then — perhaps also on July 28 — have to separately vote on the fees.
While the fire response and vehicle extraction would apply to everyone, the plan to charge to investigate car accidents would only be assessed to non-residents, if the city can legally pass an ordinance that differentiates between the two groups, Papas said. The city attorney’s office still is checking whether the ordinance can differentiate between residents and non-residents of Duluth.
“You’re dealing with about 300 to 330 accidents a year,” Papas said, of which about half involve drivers who reside outside of Duluth.
The idea is supposed to net the city an additional estimated $100,000 annually, Papas said, about half from fire calls, and the other half from police investigations.
It would be another budget boost for a city that this year is facing a $4.5 million deficit.
According to the ordinance, the city would bill the insurance company. But if the insurance company wouldn’t pay, or there was no insurance, then the homeowner would be billed. If he or she didn’t pay, the charge could be assessed on the following year’s property taxes, the proposed ordinance says.
The idea was modeled after a similar ordinance in Burnsville, Minn., Papas said.
The Burnsville Fire Department charges varying fees for vehicle extractions, and having to go into licensed care facilities to lift patients, said Steven Harklerode, Fire Chief, but not for fighting blazes.
Nothing is charged for fires or for police assistance, Harklerode said.
Edie Clark, director of communications for the International Association of Fire Chiefs, said there is a smattering of cities across the country that has begun charging fees.
Some councilors voiced strong philosophical opposition.
“I don’t like it,” said Councilor Sharla Gardner. “People are already paying for those services through their taxes. I don’t think it’s at all fair.”
Councilor Jim Stauber said the city’s administration should focus on cost-cutting, not charging residents more.
“Our fire department is the most expensive per capita, than any other fire department in the state,” Stauber said.
He also worried charging a fee might make people reluctant to call the police or fire departments.
“I just think it’s a very bad idea,” he said. He also feared that once implemented, fees would end up rising annually.
While Councilor Jeff Anderson hadn’t decided where he stands, he said he definitely won’t support it if the ordinance doesn’t include an expiration date.
“We have to recognize that eventually we’ll be in a more solvent position,” he said, and therefore these fees should only be charged during this stretch when the city is cash-strapped, Anderson said.
Council President Roger Reinert said other cities have fees for various city services He said he will consider the idea, but would like to know if insurance would pick up the tab in most cases.
“I’m certainly interested in hearing about it,” he said. Increasingly, the city is asked to offer more and more services with fewer dollars. This would be one way to help remedy that, he said. “It’s not a dead-on-arrival proposal.”