Hawthorne Municipal Code Ch. 3.48 Emergency Response Cost Recovery Program

"Expense of emergency response"

means those costs incurred by the city in making an appropriate emergency response to the incident, and shall be comprised of all costs directly arising because of the response to the particular incident, including but not limited to the costs providing police, fire fighting, rescue, and emergency medical services at the scene of the incident, as well as the salaries of the personnel responding to the incident.

(Ord. 1477 § 1, 1989)

Pursuant to the authority vested in the city by state statute, each person who is under the influence of an alcoholic beverage or any drug, or the combined influence of an alcoholic beverage and any drug, whose negligent operation of a motor vehicle, boat, vessel, or aircraft caused by that influence approximately causes any incident resulting in an appropriate emergency response, or whose intentionally wrongful criminal act approximately causes any incident resulting in appropriate emergency response, shall pay to the city the expense of such emergency response. In no event shall a person's liability under this chapter exceed the maximum allowable under state statute, and all costs assessed pursuant to this chapter shall reasonably relate to the actual cost of the expense incurred by the city.

(Ord. 1477 § 1, 1989)

The expense of an emergency response shall be charged against the person liable for the expenses under this chapter. The charge constitutes a debt of that person to the city, and is collectable by the city in the same manner as in the case of an obligation under a contract, expressed or implied.

(Ord. 1477 § 1, 1989)