[HISTORY: Adopted by the Board of Supervisors of the Township of Hilltown as indicated in article histories. Amendments noted where applicable.]
[Adopted 5-14-1990 by Ord. No. 90-3]
As used in this chapter, the following terms shall have the meanings indicated:
BUSINESS
Any person or persons, corporation, partnership, or other entity engaged in the buying, selling, storing, transferring, transporting and/or manufacturing of properties, merchandise, chemicals or other fuels, and/or goods, and who do so for any form of compensation.
INDUSTRIAL ACCIDENT
Any incident that occurs from the storage, transportation, use and/or manufacturing of any substance potentially dangerous to the public health and welfare at large that necessitates:
A. 
The intervention of the Hilltown Township Police Department or any of the emergency agencies, including fire, ambulance, or rescue squads which may serve Hilltown Township, including, but not limited to, the fire companies, or any rescue squad operating or providing service in Hilltown Township or the Hilltown Township Emergency Management Organization;
B. 
The need for cleanup and/or abatement measures to be performed by Township employees, or other matters resulting in expense to the Township.
PUBLIC THOROUGHFARE
Bridges, state highways, Township streets, any navigable waterways or other roadways or watercourses owned by a Township governmental unit, or other privately owned street, parking lot, or accessway to which the public has access.
A. 
The business on whose premises an industrial accident occurs shall bear all costs that occur as a direct or consequential result of such industrial accident. In the event an industrial accident occurs during transportation on a public thoroughfare, or in delivery to an entity other than a business as defined in § 74-1 hereinabove, the entity who or which owns or had custody and/or control of the vehicle and/or substance involved in the industrial accident shall bear all costs that occur as a direct or consequential result of such accident. Nothing contained herein shall prevent such business or entity from recovering any incurred or subsequent costs from a third party whose negligence may have caused such industrial accident.
B. 
In the event that any person undertakes, either voluntarily or upon order of the Emergency Management Coordinator or other Township official, to clean up or abate the effects of an industrial accident, the Emergency Management Coordinator may take such action as is necessary to supervise or verify the adequacy of the cleanup or abatement. The business or entity described in Subsection A hereinabove shall be liable to the Township for all costs incurred as a result of such supervision or verification.
C. 
For the purpose of this section, costs of an industrial accident shall include, but are not limited to, the following: expenses incurred by police, fire, and/or emergency medical services; actual labor costs of Hilltown Township personnel, including benefits and administrative overhead; costs of consultants or others preparing reports concerning the industrial accident; costs of equipment operations; costs of materials obtained directly by the Township; cost of any contractual labor and materials for cleanup and/or abatement; costs of the Township Solicitor and/or Township Engineer connected with the industrial accident.
D. 
The costs of such industrial accident as set forth in Subsection C hereinabove shall be determined by the Township Board of Supervisors.
E. 
Such costs when determined shall be paid to the Township within 30 days from the date on which the Township issues an invoice for such charges.
[Adopted 9-22-2014 by Ord. No. 2014-1]
This article shall be known as the "Hilltown Township Emergency Service Cost Reimbursement Ordinance."
A. 
Authority. Under Section 1803(b) of the Second Class Township Code, 53 P.S. § 66803(b), the Township has the authority to make rules and regulations for the government of fire companies located within the Township.
B. 
Findings. The Township recognizes that the duties of volunteer fire companies require specialized emergency rescue tools and equipment, emergency rescue materials, hazardous material abatement equipment and hazardous abatement materials during emergency responses. The Township recognizes that such tools and equipment place a financial burden on volunteer fire companies and the replacement of such materials and specialized training add to the additional financial burden for volunteer fire companies.
C. 
Purpose. To grant each fire company operating in Hilltown Township ("Fire Departments") the authority to seek reimbursement for the reasonable costs of responding to such incidents in their service area, either directly or in coordination with the Office of Emergency Management, as provided below.
A. 
The Township authorizes the Fire Departments serving Hilltown Township to recover the reasonable costs of emergency rescue tools, equipment and materials; hazardous material abatement tools, equipment and materials; and personal hours involving any hazardous material, environmental, firesafety and/or rescue incident or operation, including vehicular accidents which occur in their service area as shown on Exhibit "A" attached hereto[1] and incorporated herein by reference.
[1]
Editor's Note: Exhibit A is on file in the Township offices.
B. 
The reasonable costs outlined above may be recovered directly by the Fire Departments or through a third party billing service as an authorized agent for the collection of such costs.
C. 
The Fire Departments or third party billing service shall only have the authority to recover the aforementioned costs in the Fire Department's service area from the applicable insurance company/carrier up to the limit of the applicable insurance company/carrier's policy limits.
D. 
The reimbursement rates for the aforementioned tools, equipment and materials shall be set by the Fire Departments from time to time and shall be only applied to the recovery of costs arising out of incidents that occurred subsequent to the setting of the rates. These rates shall be approved by the Township and kept on file in the Township Building.
E. 
In addition to the aforementioned reasonable costs, the Fire Departments or third party billing service shall be authorized to collect reasonable interest, as well as a reasonable administrative fee for collecting the same, and any and all additional fees as may be authorized by the Hazardous Material and Emergency Planning Response Act, 35 P.S. § 6022.101 et seq., or authorized by any other statute or law.
F. 
Fire Departments who respond to a fire in another Fire Department's service area are not authorized to bill for their costs. Only the Fire Department in whose service area the fire occurs may bill for their costs.
A. 
The Township shall not be responsible for any aspect of the recovery of costs under this article. The Township shall not take any steps to assist the Fire Departments or any third party billing service in recovery of costs under this article.
B. 
The Township shall not be responsible to reimburse the Fire Departments for any services rendered to the Township or Township personnel or vehicles while on duty.
Any attempt by a Fire Department or third party billing service to recover costs from any individual/entity other than the appropriate insurance company/carrier shall result in the immediate revocation of the authority to recover such costs granted under this article.
If any sentence, clause, section or part of this article is for any reason found to be unconstitutional, illegal or invalid, such unconstitutionality, illegality or invalidity shall not affect or impair any of the remaining provisions, sentences, clauses, sections or parts of this article. It is hereby declared to be the intent of the Township Supervisors that this article would have been adopted had such unconstitutional, illegal or invalid sentence, clause, section or part thereof been included herein.