National City Municipal Code Ch. 4.70 Emergency Response Cost Recovery Fee

A. The City of National City is authorized to provide any service relating to the protection of lives and property including, but not limited to, fire protections services, rescue services, emergency medical services, hazardous material emergency response services, and other emergency response services.

B. The City of National City finds that the quantity and scope of services provided by the National City Fire Department are an increasing burden on the City of National City.

C. The City of National City may charge a fee to recover the reasonable costs of services necessary to protect the public health and safety associated with motor vehicle incidents, hazardous materials spills or discharges, motor vehicle fires, motor vehicle extrications, pipeline or power line incidents, and fire cause and origin investigations.

(Ord. No. 2010-2341, 6-1-2010)

The City of National City shall charge fees for the cost of services that the National City Fire Department provides related to motor vehicle incidents, motor vehicle fires, motor vehicle extrications, hazardous materials spills or discharges, pipeline or power line incidents, and fire cause and origin investigations. The fees shall not exceed the reasonable cost to provide such services and shall be charged according to the usual, customary, and reasonable fees as set by a schedule of fees. A motor vehicle incident, for the purposes of this chapter, means any matter involving an emergency response to a motor vehicle, including, but not limited to, collisions, accidents, fire, and extrication.

(Ord. No. 2010-2341, 6-1-2010)

The City of National City adopts the fee schedule set forth in Exhibit A, and incorporates them herein as the usual, customary, and reasonable costs of the services identified in Exhibit A. The city council may amend, as needed, the schedule of fees in Exhibit A by resolution.

(Ord. No. 2010-2341, 6-1-2010)

The fees shall be billed, as determined by the director of emergency services, his or her designee or third party billing service, to any person or persons whose negligent or willful act is a cause of any motor vehicle incident or a technical rescue, and to any person or persons who is the owner of, or has custody and control over any vehicle involved in a motor vehicle incident. Fees for motor vehicle incidents shall not be billed to residents of the City of National City. Fees not related to motor vehicle incidents, such as those for hazardous material discharges or releases, or cause or origin investigations, shall be billed to the responsible party regardless of fault or residency, as determined by the director of emergency services, his designee or third party billing service.

(Ord. No. 2010-2341, 6-1-2010)

If any sentence, clause, section or part of this chapter, or any fee imposed upon any person or entity is found to be unconstitutional, illegal or invalid, such unconstitutionality, illegality, or invalidity shall affect only such clause, sentence, section, or part of this chapter, or person or entity; and shall not affect or impair any of the remaining provisions, sentences, clauses, sections, or other parts of this chapter, or its effect on other persons or entities. It is declared to be the intention of the city council that this chapter would have been adopted had such unconstitutional, illegal, or invalid sentence, clause, section, or part of this Chapter not been included herein; or had such person or entity been expressly exempted from the application of this chapter. To this end the provisions of this chapter are severable.

(Ord. No. 2010-2341, 6-1-2010)

EXHIBIT A COST RECOVERY FEES BASED ON PER HOUR

MOTOR VEHICLE INCIDENTS

Level 1 - $435.00

Provide hazardous materials assessment and scene stabilization. This will be the most common "billing level." This occurs almost every time a fire department responds to an accident/incident.

Level 2 - $495.00

Includes Level 1 services as well as clean up and material used (sorbents) for hazardous fluid clean up and disposal. We will bill at this level if the fire department has to clean up any gasoline or other automotive fluids that are spilled as a result of the accident/incident.

Level 3 - CAR FIRE - $605.00

Provide scene safety, fire suppression, breathing air, rescue tools, hand tools, hose, tip use, foam, structure protection, and clean up gasoline or other automotive fluids that are spilled as a result of the accident/incident.

Level 4 - $1,800.00

Includes Level 1 & 2 services as well as extrication (heavy rescue tools, ropes, airbags, cribbing etc.). We will bill at this level if the fire department has to free/remove anyone from the vehicle(s) using any equipment. We will not bill at this level if the patient is simply unconscious and fire department is able to open the door to access the patient. This level is to be billed only if equipment is deployed.

Level 5 - $2,200.00

Includes Levels 1, 2, & 4 services as well as Air Care (multi-engine company response, mutual aid, helicopter). We will bill at this level any time a helicopter is utilized to transport the patient(s).

Level 6

Itemized Response: You have the option to bill each incident as an independent event with custom mitigation rates, for each incident using, itemized rates deemed usual, customary and reasonable (UCR). These incidents will be billed, itemized per apparatus, per personnel, plus products and equipment used.

HAZMAT

Level 1 - $700.00

Basic Response: Claim will include engine response, first responder assignment, perimeter establishment, evacuations, set-up and command.

Level 2 - $2,500.00

Intermediate Response: Claim will include engine response, first responder assignment, hazmat certified team and appropriate equipment, perimeter establishment, evacuations, set-up and command, Level A or B suit donning, breathing air and detection equipment. Set-up and removal of decontamination center.

Level 3 - $5,900.00

Advanced Response: Claim will include engine response, first responder assignment, hazmat certified team and appropriate equipment, perimeter establishment, evacuations, first responder set-up and command, Level A or B suit donning, breathing air and detection equipment and robot deployment. Set-up and removal of decontamination center, detection equipment, recovery and identification of material. Disposal and environment clean up. Includes above in addition to any disposal fees of material and contaminated equipment and material used at scene. Includes 3 hours of on scene time—Each additional hour @ $300.00 per HAZMAT team.

PIPELINE INCIDENTS/POWER LINE INCIDENTS

(Includes, but not limited to: Gas, Sewer, Septic to Sewer, and Water Pipelines)

Level 1 - $400.00

Basic Response: Claim will include engine response and first responder assignment, perimeter establishment, evacuations, first responder set-up and command. Includes inspection without damage or breakage.

Level 2 - $1,000.00

Intermediate Response: Claim will include engine response, first responder assignment, and appropriate equipment, perimeter establishment, evacuations, first responder set-up and command. May include HAZMAT team, Level A or B suit donning, breathing air and detection equipment. Supervise and/or assist pipeline repair.

Level 3 - Itemized Claim Charges

Advanced Response: Claim will include engine response, first responder assignment, and appropriate equipment, perimeter establishment, evacuations, first responder set-up and command. May include HAZMAT team, Level A or B suit donning, breathing air and detection equipment. Supervise and/or assist pipeline repair of intermediate to major pipeline damage. May include set-up and removal of decontamination center, detection, recovery and identification of material. Disposal and environment clean up.

FIRE INVESTIGATION

Fire Investigation Team - $275.00 per hour

Includes:

• Scene Safety

• Investigation

• Source Identification

• K-9/Arson Dog Unit

• Identification Equipment

• Mobile Detection Unit

• Fire Report

The claim begins when the Fire Investigator responds to the incident and is billed for logged time only.

FIRES

Assignment - $400.00 per hour, per engine / $500.00 per hour, per truck

Includes:

• Scene Safety

• Investigation

• Fire/Hazard Control

This will be the most common "billing level." This occurs almost every time a fire department responds to an incident.

OPTIONAL: A fire department has the option to bill each fire as an independent event with custom mitigation rates.

Itemized, per person, at various pay levels and for itemized products use.

WATER INCIDENTS

Level 1

Basic Response: Claim will include engine response, first responder assignment, perimeter establishment, evacuations, first responder set-up and command, scene safety and investigation (including possible patient contact, hazard control). This will be the most common "billing level." This occurs almost every time a Fire Department responds to a water incident.

Billed at $400.00 plus $50.00 per hour, per rescue person.

Level 2

Intermediate Response: Includes Level 1 services as well as clean up and material used (sorbents), minor hazardous clean up and disposal. We will bill at this level if the fire department has to clean up small amounts of gasoline or other fluids that are spilled as a result of the incident.

Billed at $800.00 plus $50.00 per hour, per rescue person.

Level 3

Advanced Response: Includes Level 1 and Level 2 services as well as D.A.R.T. activation, donning breathing apparatus and detection equipment. Set up and removal of decontamination center, detection equipment, recovery and identification of material. Disposal and environment clean up. Includes above in addition to any disposal fees of material and contaminated equipment and material used at scene.

Billed at $2,000.00 plus $50.00 per hour per rescue person, plus $100.00 per hour per HAZMAT team member.

Level 4

Itemized Response: You have the option to bill each incident as an independent event with custom mitigation rates, for each incident using, itemized rates deemed usual, customary, and reasonable (UCR). These incidents will be billed, itemized, per trained rescue person, plus rescue products used.

BACK COUNTRY OR SPECIAL RESCUE

Itemized Response: Each incident will be billed with custom mitigation rates deemed usual, customary and reasonable (UCR). These incidents will be billed, itemized per apparatus per hour, per trained rescue person per hour, plus rescue products used. Minimum billed $400.00 for the first response vehicle plus $50.00 per rescue person. Additional rates of $400.00 per hour per response vehicle and $50.00 per hour per rescue person.

CHIEF RESPONSE

This includes the set-up of Command, and providing direction of the incident. This could include operations, safety, and administration of the incident.

Billed at $250.00 per hour.

MISCELLANEOUS

Engine billed at $400.00 per hour.

Truck billed at $500.00 per hour.

Miscellaneous equipment billed at $300.00

MITIGATION RATE NOTES

The mitigation rates above are average "billing levels," and are typical for the incident responses listed, however, when a claim is submitted, it will be itemized and based on the actual services provided.

These average mitigation rates were determined by itemizing costs for a typical run (from the time a fire apparatus leaves the station until it returns to the station) and are based on the actual costs, using amortized schedules for apparatus (including useful life, equipment, repairs, and maintenance) and labor rates (an average department's "actual personnel expense" and not just a firefighter's basic wage). The actual personnel expense includes costs such as wages, retirement, benefits, workers comp, insurance, etc.