Township of Plumstead, PA Part 10 EMERGENCY SERVICE COST REIMBURSEMENT

§ 1-1001 Title.

[Ord. 2002-16A, 10/15/2002, Art. I]

This Part shall be known as the "Plumstead Township Emergency Service Cost Reimbursement Ordinance."

§ 1-1002 Authority, Findings and Purpose.

[Ord. 2002-16A, 10/15/2002, Art. II]

1. 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.

2. Findings. The Township recognizes that the duties of volunteer fire companies requires 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.

3. Purpose. To grant any fire company operating in Plumstead Township ("Fire Departments") the authority to seek reimbursement for the reasonable costs of responding to such incidents, either directly or in coordination with the Office of Emergency Management, as provided below.

§ 1-1003 Recovery of Costs.

[Ord. 2002-16A, 10/15/2002, Art. III]

1. The Township authorizes the Fire Departments to recover the reasonable cost of emergency rescue tools, equipment and materials, hazardous material abatement tools, equipment and materials and personnel hours involving any hazardous material, environmental, fire safety and/or rescue incident or operation, including vehicular accidents.

2. 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.

3. The Fire Departments or third-party billing service shall only have the authority to recovery of the aforementioned costs from the applicable insurance company/carrier.

4. The reimbursement rates for the aforementioned tools, equipment and materials shall be set by the Fire Department, 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 be kept on file in the Municipal Building.

5. 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 and Response Act[1] or authorized by any other statute or law.

[1] Editor's Note: See 35 P.S. § 6022.101 et seq.

§ 1-1004 Responsibility of the Township.

[Ord. 2002-16A, 10/15/2002, Art. IV]

The Township shall not be responsible for any aspect of the recovery of costs under this Part. The Township shall not take any steps to assist the Fire Departments or any third-party billing service in the recovery of costs under this Part.

§ 1-1005 Revocation of Grant of Authority.

[Ord. 2002-16A, 10/15/2002, Art. V]

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 Part.