Porterville Municipal Code Ch. 4A Ambulances (CA)

SECTION:

4A-1: AMBULANCE OPERATION WITHIN CITY LIMITS:

A. Ambulance operation in the city applies only to those ambulance companies who routinely do business within the city, except those ambulance companies who deliver patients to their homes or medical facilities within the city from points outside the city.

B. This chapter does not pertain to those ambulance services who may be called to assist with transportation from medical facilities in emergency situations. (Ord. 1537 § B17, 8-6-1996)

4A-2: CERTIFICATE OF PUBLIC CONVENIENCE FOR AMBULANCE REQUIRED:

A. No person shall engage in the business of operating an ambulance or ambulances for profit on a for hire basis within the city without first obtaining a certificate of public convenience, as hereinafter provided, from the fire chief, and this certificate shall be in addition to any business license required by this code. This chapter shall not apply in the event of a "disaster" as defined by section 9-2 of this code.

B. A certificate of public convenience is not needed when an ambulance company licensed by the state is contracted to handle special events only. A "special event" is defined as a sporting event, entertainment event or any other activity where an ambulance may be needed. This chapter does not waive the necessity of any ambulance company handling special events within the city from obtaining a city business license. (Ord. 1537 § B17, 8-6-1996)

4A-3: APPLICATION FOR CERTIFICATE:

Any person desiring to obtain a certificate of public convenience shall make application therefor on forms available from the office of the fire chief. Each application shall be accompanied by a policy of insurance in the amount provided for by this chapter. The application shall include the following:

A. A copy of the ambulance license issued by the California highway patrol.

B. The number of ambulances actually owned and/or leased, and the number of ambulances actually operated by such applicant on the date of application, if any.

C. A description of each ambulance, including the make, model, year of manufacture, engine and serial numbers, state motor vehicle license number, and the number of the emergency vehicle permit issued by the California highway patrol.

D. The business address and a description of the premises at and from which it is proposed to maintain such ambulances.

E. A description of the proposed color scheme, insignia, trade style and any other distinguishing characteristics of the proposed ambulance design.

F. Submittal of two (2) colored photographs of each ambulance in operation or additional ambulance henceforth, and that one colored photograph expose the rear left of the ambulance and one expose the right front of the ambulance.

G. An application fee shall be submitted with each application. The application fee shall be in addition to any business license fee which the applicant shall be required to pay. The amount of said application fee shall be fixed by resolution of the city council. (Ord. 1537 § B17, 8-6-1996)

4A-5: INVESTIGATION:

Before any application is acted upon, the fire chief shall cause an investigation to determine if the applicants, the drivers and the attendants are properly licensed by the California highway patrol. (Ord. 1537 § B17, 8-6-1996)

4A-6: NOTICE OF DECISION:

The fire chief shall give the applicant written notice of decision to grant or deny a certificate of public convenience and shall state the reasons for the decision within thirty (30) days. (Ord. 1537 § B17, 8-6-1996)

4A-8: SUSPENSION OR REVOCATION OF CERTIFICATE:

A. A certificate of public convenience may be revoked pursuant to subsection B of this section on the following grounds:

The certificate holder, knowingly and after written notice from the fire chief, fails to operate his business in accordance to the provisions of this chapter and any and all state and federal laws applicable to the ambulance business.
The ambulance license is suspended or revoked or disciplinary action is taken against said license holder by the California highway patrol.
The certificate holder shall abandon its operation of the ambulance business for a period of thirty (30) days.

Acts of God and other acts beyond the control of the certificate holder which cause abandonment or limitation of service shall not be considered an abandonment within the meaning of this chapter.

B. No suspension or revocation shall be made effective until a hearing has been held by the fire chief, unless the fire chief finds there is a threat to the general public by continued operation of such licensee, in which case suspension shall be immediate. The certificate holder shall have not less than ten (10) days' notice of the hearing by registered mail or personal service.

C. No person who has had their ambulance license revoked pursuant to this chapter shall be eligible to reapply before the expiration of one year from the date of revocation. (Ord. 1537 § B17, 8-6-1996)

4A-9: DISPOSITION AND ISSUANCE OF CERTIFICATE AFTER REVOCATION:

Upon the conclusion of a hearing pursuant to subsection 4A-8B of this chapter, the fire chief may, based upon his findings, terminate such suspension and restore the certificate, or continue such suspension for a time so specified, or in the alternative revoke such certificate. (Ord. 1537 § B17, 8-6-1996)

4A-11: SURRENDER OF CERTIFICATE:

Whenever a certificate has been suspended or revoked, the owner of the ambulance for which such certificate was issued shall forthwith surrender such certificate to the fire chief, and the operation of such ambulance shall cease. (Ord. 1537 § B17, 8-6-1996)

4A-14: LIABILITY INSURANCE:

No certificate of public convenience shall be issued unless there is on file with the city an insurance policy approved by the city's insurance carrier or insurance administrator, whereby the owner and the driver of each of the vehicles described in said certificate are insured against liability or damage to property and for injury to or death of any person resulting from the ownership, operation or other uses thereof. Said policy shall be in a sum of not less than two hundred fifty thousand dollars ($250,000.00) for personal injury or death of any one person in any single accident and five hundred thousand dollars ($500,000.00) for personal injury or death of more than one person in any single accident, and the limits on each such vehicle shall be not less than one hundred thousand dollars ($100,000.00) for damage to or destruction of property in any single accident. The insurance policy shall contain an endorsement providing that the city is named as an additional insured party and that said policy of insurance will not be canceled until notice in writing shall have been given to the city of Porterville, addressed to the city clerk, 291 North Main Street, Porterville, CA 98257, at least thirty (30) days prior to the cancellation becoming effective. The insurance policy must be issued by a solvent and responsible company authorized to do business in the state. Said policy shall further provide that there shall be a continuing liability thereon, notwithstanding any recovery on said policy. If, at any time, said insurance policy shall be canceled by the company issuing the same, or the authority of said company to do business in the state shall be revoked, the certificate holder shall replace said policy with another policy approved as above prior to the expiration date of cancellation of said policy. (Ord. 1537 § B17, 8-6-1996)

4A-15: AMBULANCE RATES:

Any holder of a certificate of public convenience pursuant hereto shall, before commencing service in the city, file with the fire chief and with the city clerk a schedule of rates for ambulance services provided. Further, any change in rates by any certificate holder shall not be effective until a period of thirty (30) days after such notice had been filed. (Ord. 1537 § B17, 8-6-1996)

4A-16: AMBULANCE AND RECORDS INSPECTION:

The fire chief or his authorized representative may inspect ambulances used for emergency services under this chapter, the personnel records of the drivers and attendants, and any records pertaining to the operation of ambulances, including, but not limited to, preventative maintenance and records of calls. (Ord. 1537 § B17, 8-6-1996)

4A-16.1: AMBULANCE CALL ROTATION:

The fire chief or his authorized representative may assign the number of places in the normal rotation of calls for ambulance service from the city's communication service based upon the number of staffed ambulances maintained by the ambulance company. This decision may be reviewed on a month to month basis and, in making his decisions, the fire chief or his representative shall consider any outages of service that are beyond an amount reasonable for maintenance of the vehicles. (Ord. 1537 § B17, 8-6-1996)

4A-17: COMPLAINT PROCEDURE:

Any person who is dissatisfied with or has a complaint with any ambulance company holding a certificate should make that complaint known to the fire chief, who shall notify the city council. (Ord. 1537 § B17, 8-6-1996)

4A-18: VIOLATION AND PENALTIES:

A violation of any provision of this chapter shall constitute an infraction. (Ord. 1537 § B17, 8-6-1996)