[HISTORY: Adopted by the Board of Supervisors of the Township of North Whitehall 12-16-1998 by Ord. No. 1998-4. Amendments noted where applicable.]
This chapter shall be known as the "North Whitehall Township Emergency Response and Reimbursement Ordinance of 1998."
A. 
Terms used in this chapter which are defined in the Pennsylvania Hazardous Material Emergency Planning and Response Act, 35 P.S. § 6022.101 et seq., or any amendments thereto, shall be presumed to have the same meaning as set forth in that Act, unless expressly defined differently herein.
B. 
Terms used in this chapter which are defined in the 1992 and 1994 amendments to the Pennsylvania Insurance Company Law, Acts 1992-98 and 1994-93, respectively, or any subsequent amendments thereto,[1] shall be presumed to have the same meaning as set forth in that Act, unless expressly defined differently herein.
[1]
Editor's Note: See 40 P.S. § 341 et seq.
C. 
Specifically defined terms. As used in this chapter, the following terms shall have the meanings indicated:
ACCIDENTAL FALSE ALARM
Any false alarm which is not intentionally caused and which occurs when an actual intrusion, crime, fire or other emergency has not taken place.
ALARM
Any siren, bell, horn, or other device which is attached to the interior or exterior of a structure and emits a warning signal audible outside the structure, or transmits a prerecorded voice alarm or other signal and is designed to attract attention, or transmits a message to an emergency communication center, when activated by a criminal act or other emergency requiring emergency response agencies to respond. The term "alarm" shall include automatic protection devices and sensory devices.
ALARM DEVICE
A device designated to automatically transmit an alarm by wire, telephone, radio signal or other means:
(1) 
To the Lehigh County Communication Center or any fire department directly; or
(2) 
To a person who is instructed to notify the Lehigh County Communication Center.
AUTOMATIC PROTECTION DEVICE
An electrically operated instrument composed of sensory apparatus and related hardware which automatically transmits a prerecorded voice alarm or other similar message over telephone line, by direct or indirect connection, to an emergency communication center upon receipt of a stimulus from sensory apparatus that has detected a physical force or other stimulus inherently characteristic of a fire intrusion.
BOARD
The Board of Supervisors of North Whitehall Township, Lehigh County, Pennsylvania.
EMERGENCY COMMUNICATION CENTER
A protection system or group of such systems, operated privately for customers or publicly by a person, firm, corporation, or governmental entity which maintains, supervises, or accepts recorded messages from automatic protection devices at a central station having operators that have the duty to take appropriate action upon receipt of a signal or message.
EMERGENCY INCIDENT
An occurrence involving a risk of harm and/or imminent threat to private or public property, life, or a potential threat to the environment or public health or safety, including but not limited to fires, petroleum, chemical or hazardous material spills and releases, and building, well, trench or sinkhole collapses.
EMERGENCY RESPONSE AGENCIES
Fire companies, ambulance corps, fire police and other emergency providers serving the residents of the Township or responding to requests for and/or assistance pursuant to any mutual aid agreement duly authorized by the Township, and Township employees responding to an emergency incident at the request of any emergency response agency.
EMERGENCY SERVICE COSTS
(1) 
All direct and indirect costs and expenses incurred or expended by the Township or any emergency service agency, or both, in connection with any emergency incident, including, but not limited to, the following:
(a) 
The costs of labor calculated by determining the actual hourly wage rate plus the hourly cost of fringe benefits (and including overtime rates, if applicable) normally paid by the Township to Township personnel involved in responding to any emergency incident, times the number of hours worked in response to any emergency incident, or, in the case of emergency response agencies, volunteer personnel, the reasonable hourly value of the volunteer personnel as determined by the Township Board of Supervisors from time to time, taking into account the funds expended to train and properly equip each such volunteer, times the number of hours worked by each such volunteer in response to any emergency incident; and
(b) 
The cost of all nonreusable materials and all contaminated or consumed materials utilized in connection with any emergency incident; and
(c) 
The cost of all equipment, calculated by estimating the number of hours of the useful life of such equipment and dividing the same into the replacement cost plus the maintenance cost of said equipment and then multiplying the result by the number of hours such equipment was in service in response to any emergency incident; and
(d) 
The administrative cost of recordkeeping, information processing and compilation of a bill of costs; and
(e) 
The reasonable attorney's fees and costs (including witness fees) of pursuing any and all enforcement or collection actions for emergency service costs against responsible parties.
(2) 
In no event shall the emergency service costs assessed and collected for any single emergency response agency as a result of any individual incident exceed $1,000 under the terms and provisions of this chapter, except in the case of emergency incidents involving hazardous materials, in which event the full emergency service cost shall be assessed and collected.
FALSE ALARMS
Any alarm or signal activated by an automatic protection device, or any other kind of direct or indirect signal given to an emergency communication center, or any signal given from a sensory device, to which fire or emergency personnel respond, which is not the result of weather extremes, burglary, robbery, fire or similar emergency.
FIRE LOSS
Any loss occurring after the effective date of this chapter and covered under a policy of fire insurance, including all endorsements or riders to the policy.
INSURING AGENT
Any fire or casualty insurer which provides reimbursement for emergency response agency costs or expenses in the event of an emergency incident.
REMOTE STATION PROTECTIVE SIGNALING SYSTEM
An installation using supervised dedicated circuits, installed to transmit alarm, supervisory and trouble signals from one or more protected premises to a remote location at which appropriate action is taken.
RESPONSIBLE PARTY/PARTIES
The following person(s) or legal entities shall, for the purposes of this chapter, be deemed responsible parties:
(1) 
The owner of any petroleum, petroleum distillate or by-product, hazardous material or chemical, and any carrier, including pipeline owner, of any such material, which is spilled, released, dumped, deposited or stored and to which there is a response by an emergency response agency.
(2) 
The owner of the real property on which any petroleum, petroleum distillate or by-product, hazardous material or chemical is spilled, released, dumped, deposited or stored and to which there is a response by an emergency response agency.
(3) 
The owner of real or personal property on or in which there occurs an unfriendly fire; a building, well, trench or sinkhole collapse requiring rescue efforts or otherwise threatening life, property or the environment, or vehicular accidents involving fire, personal injury or loss of life, to which there is a response by an emergency response agency.
(4) 
All person(s) and legal entity or entities found to be legally responsible in any court of competent jurisdiction for causing of any emergency incident.
SILENT ALARM
A protective system that does not emit an audible signal or tone when activated at a protected site and is monitored by an intermediary or an emergency communication center.
TOWNSHIP
The Township of North Whitehall, Lehigh County, Pennsylvania.
UNFRIENDLY FIRE
A fire which is undesirable, out of control, threatening to persons or property, deemed to be a nuisance by the Township, or any one of the foregoing or combination thereof.
A. 
Payment of municipal claims and lienable amounts.
(1) 
Certificates of municipal claim.
(a) 
The Township's designated officer shall, upon the written request of the named insured specifying the tax description of the property, name and address of the insuring agent and the date agreed upon by the insuring agent and the named insured as the date of the receipt of a loss report of the claim, furnish the insuring agent with either of the following within 14 days of the request:
[1] 
A certificate to the effect that, as of the date specified in the request, the Township has not certified any amount as total costs incurred by the Township for the removal, repair or securing of a building or other structure on the property;
[2] 
A certificate and bill showing the amount of the total costs, if any, certified by the Township Treasurer that have been incurred for the removal, repair or securing of a building or other structure on the property.
(b) 
For the purposes of this subsection, the emergency response agency shall provide to the Township Treasurer the total amount, if any, of such costs, if available, or the amount of costs known to the emergency response agency at the time of the Township Treasurer's certificate.
(c) 
A cost or charge becomes delinquent at the time and on the date a lien could otherwise have been filed against the property by the Township under applicable law.
(2) 
Fire losses.
(a) 
Upon the receipt of a certificate and bill pursuant to § 224-3A(1)(a)[2] of this chapter, the insuring agent shall return the bill to the Township Treasurer and transfer to the Township Treasurer an amount from the insurance proceeds necessary to pay the charges and costs as shown on the bill, or the full amount of the insurance proceeds, whichever is the lesser amount. The Township shall receive the amount and apply or credit it to payment of the items shown in the bill. Further, the terms of § 224-3A(2)(b)[1] shall be followed, if applicable. Nothing in this section shall be construed to limit the ability of the Township to recover any deficiency.
(b) 
Upon receipt of a certificate pursuant to § 224-3A(1) of this chapter, the insuring agent shall pay the claim of the named insured in accordance with policy terms, except that if the fire loss agreed upon by the named insured and the insuring agent equals or exceeds 60% of the aggregate limits of liability on all fire insurance policies covering the building or other structure, the following procedures shall be followed:
[1] 
The insuring agent shall transfer from any insurance proceeds to the Township Treasurer the sum of $2,000 for each $15,000 of the policyholder's claim and for each fraction of that amount of a claim. If the total claim is $15,000 or less, the amount transferred to the Township shall be $2,000.
[2] 
If, at the time of a fire loss report, the named insured has submitted a contractor's signed statement of the costs of removing, repairing or securing the building or other structure in an amount less than the amount calculated under § 224-3A(2)(b)[1] above, the insuring agent shall transfer to the Township from the insurance proceeds the amount specified in the estimate.
[3] 
The transfer of proceeds to the Township shall be on a pro rata basis by all companies, associations or exchanges insuring the building or other structure. Policy proceeds remaining after the transfer to the Township shall be disbursed in accordance with the policy terms.
[4] 
After the transfer, the named insured may submit a contractor's signed estimate of the costs of removing, repairing or securing the building or other structure, and the Township Treasurer shall return the amount of the funds transferred to the Township in excess of the estimate to the named insured, if the Township has not commenced to remove, repair or secure the building or other structure.
[5] 
Upon receipt of proceeds under this section, the Township shall do the following:
[a] 
The Township Treasurer shall place the proceeds in a separate fund to be used solely as security against the total costs of removing, repairing or securing the building or structure which are incurred by the Township. Such costs shall include, without limitation, any engineering, legal or administrative costs incurred by the Township in connection with such removal, repair or securing of the building or any proceedings related thereto; and
[b] 
It is the obligation of the insuring agent when transferring the proceeds to provide the Township with the name and address of the insured. Upon receipt of the transferred funds and the name and address of the named insured, the Township Treasurer shall contact the named insured, certify that the proceeds have been received by the Township, and notify the named insured that the procedures under this subsection shall be followed; and
[c] 
When repairs, removal or securing of the building or other structure have been completed in accordance with all applicable regulations and orders of the Township and the required proof of such completion received by the Township Treasurer, and if the Township has not incurred any costs for repairs, removal or securing, the fund shall be returned to the named insured. If the Township has incurred costs for repairs, removal or securing of the building or other structure, the costs shall be paid from the fund, and, if excess funds remain, the Township shall transfer the remaining funds to the named insured; and
[d] 
To the extent that interest is earned on proceeds held by the Township pursuant to this section and such proceeds are not returned to the named insured, such interest shall belong to the Township. To the extent that proceeds are returned to the named insured, interest earned on such proceeds shall be distributed to the named insured at the time that the proceeds are returned.
(3) 
Claim payment limitations and fire losses. No insuring agent doing business in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania shall pay a claim of a named insured for fire damage to a structure located within the Township where the amount recoverable for the fire loss to the structure under all policies is in excess of $7,500, unless the insuring agent is furnished by the Township Treasurer with a municipal certificate pursuant to Section 638(a) of the Insurance Law and § 224-3A of this chapter, and unless there is compliance with Section 638(c) and 638(d) of the Insurance Law[2] and with the provisions of this chapter.
[2]
Editor's Note: See 40 P.S. § 638(a), (c) and (d).
B. 
Emergency service cost reimbursement.
(1) 
Invoicing procedure. The Township Treasurer shall, upon the written request of any emergency response agencies, remit invoices to the responsible party/parties involved in any emergency incident, which specify the emergency incident and the request for reimbursement for emergency service costs, within 60 days of the invoice date.
(2) 
The responsible party/parties shall promptly remit the invoice referenced in § 224-3B(1) above to his/her/its/their insuring agent, if any, which evidences the sixty-day response date.
(3) 
If the responsible party/parties' insuring agent shall not have paid the invoice remitted to it within the said sixty-day period, the responsible party/parties shall be deemed responsible for immediate payment of the emergency service costs evidenced thereby.
C. 
Designated officer. The Treasurer of North Whitehall Township or the Treasurer's designee is hereby appointed as the designated officer authorized to carry out the duties and responsibilities set forth in this section.
D. 
Limitation of actions. Nothing in this section will be construed to limit the ability of the Township to recover any deficiency by lien, fine, or action in law or in equity. Furthermore, nothing in this subsection shall be construed to prohibit the Township and the named insured from entering into an agreement that permits the transfer of funds to the named insured if some other reasonable disposition of the damaged property has been negotiated.
E. 
Rules and regulations. The Board of Supervisors may, by resolution, adopt procedures and regulations to implement Section 638 of the Insurance Law, 40 P.S. § 638, and this chapter and may, by resolution, fix reasonable fees to be charged for municipal activities or services provided pursuant to the Insurance Law and this chapter, including but not limited to issuance of certificates and bills, performance of inspections and opening separate fund accounts.
[Amended at time of adoption of Code (see Ch. 1, General Provisions, Art. I)]
F. 
Penalties for violations. Any owner of property, any named insured or any insuring agent who or which violates any provision of § 224-3 of this chapter shall, upon a judicial determination thereof, be subject to a penalty as set forth in § 1-16A of this Code. All such claims shall be paid to the Township.
[Amended at time of adoption of Code (see Ch. 1, General Provisions, Art. I)]
A. 
Designation of nuisances. The occurrence of unfriendly fires; hazardous material, petroleum and chemical-type spills and releases; vehicular accidents involving fire, personal injury or loss of life; and the unexpected collapse of wells, trenches, structures, and sinkholes requiring rescues or otherwise threatening life, property or the environment are each declared to be public nuisances and are hereby declared to be emergency incidents.
B. 
Liability of responsible party/parties. The responsible party/parties shall be liable for and shall reimburse the emergency response agency for all or part of the direct or indirect emergency service costs incurred or expended by any emergency response agency, for labor, materials and equipment, including but not limited to the removal of any vehicle carcass or part thereof, used in connection with the emergency incident.
C. 
This chapter shall not be construed to require reimbursement to the Township for those municipal services normally provided to the Township residents and others as a matter of the Township's general operating procedure and for which the levying of taxes or for which the demand for reimbursement is normally made under the provisions of other Township ordinances.
[Added at time of adoption of Code (see Ch. 1, General Provisions, Art. I)]
A. 
Accidental false alarms. Any person causing accidental false alarms for any reason shall pay to the fire company a charge for each and every accidental false alarm to which the fire service responds, in each calendar year, as follows:
(1) 
First alarm each year shall be followed by a warning.
(2) 
Second alarm each year shall be followed by a warning, which specifically includes the warning that subsequent false alarms will result in a charge.
(3) 
Third to fifth alarm each year will be charged as determined from time to time by resolution.
(4) 
Sixth to tenth alarm each year: as determined from time to time by resolution.
(5) 
Ten or more alarms each year: as determined from time to time by resolution.
B. 
The charges imposed by this chapter shall not apply to false alarms due to weather conditions or the first two false alarms which shall occur during the first three months from initial installation of the system due to system malfunction.
C. 
When an accidental false alarm occurs, the fire company shall notify the person responsible for the alarm device from which the false alarm emanated that a false alarm charge is due and the amount thereof.
D. 
An accidental false alarm charge shall be due and payable to the fire company 30 days from the date of the notice of the charge, and otherwise comply with the incident fee schedules and provisions as expressed herein.
E. 
A person that owns, uses or possesses an alarm device or automatic dialing device may not, after causing or permitting three false alarms to occur in a consecutive twelve-month period, cause or permit a subsequent false alarm to occur in the same consecutive twelve-month period. A person that violates this subsection commits a summary offense and shall, upon conviction, be sentenced to pay a fine of not more than $300.
[Added at time of adoption of Code (see Ch. 1, General Provisions, Art. I)]
A. 
The chiefs of all fire companies within the Township shall prepare a joint proposed written fee schedule, within 30 days after the effective date of this chapter, to establish and propose a written schedule of fees for the various classes and items of manpower, equipment, tools, supplies and consumables which are customarily or likely to be utilized at automobile accidents and other incidents, including false alarm responses, by the fire companies.
B. 
The schedule may be expressed in terms of hours, gallons, or any other convenient or regularly used unit of measurement.
C. 
The schedule shall be based upon and reflect either the actual experienced or likely projected costs and expenses as incurred by the fire company for such operations and responses to automobile accidents and other incidents, as best as the fire company is able to compute and establish those amounts.
D. 
The schedule may include a minimum fee for any one or more classes or items, and may also include a percentage add-on for overhead and handling.
E. 
All such schedules shall specifically include the general statement as follows: "All costs of collection of these fees, including court costs and reasonable attorney's and witness fees and expenses, will be additional if further collection actions are necessary because of delinquent payment."
All such proposed incident fee schedules shall be subject to review and approval by the Board of Supervisors, which may, in its discretion, add to, alter, amend, change, or revise any item or class of fees. The proposed incident fee schedule, as it may be amended, shall become effective five days after approval by the Board of Supervisors by a duly authorized resolution.
Thereafter, the incident fee schedules may be updated and amended in like manner from time to time, upon either a written request by the Board of Supervisors or receipt of a written joint submission from the fire companies of the Township.
For all automobile accidents or other incidents to which any fire company responds, including both those within North Whitehall Township and those which occur on or outside of the several boundary roads of the Township to which a fire company responds pursuant to a mutual aid agreement or otherwise, the officers of each fire company are hereby authorized, empowered and directed to collect fees for the response to those accidents and incidents by that fire company, in accordance with the currently approved incident fee schedule, from either any person or persons who are involved in such accident or incident or any insurance company or other person who is or may be financially responsible or legally liable therefor.
A. 
The fire chief or his/her designated representative of each fire company is also hereby authorized, empowered, and directed to compromise, settle, waive, modify, reduce, and discharge such incident fees, when, in their opinion, such action is justifiable or reasonable under the circumstances, which may include but are not limited to cases where or when:
(1) 
The likely cost of collection will exceed the amounts of the incident fees;
(2) 
Liability or responsibility for the incident fees is not clear;
(3) 
More than one person is or may be responsible for the fees;
(4) 
When the actual costs or the amounts of the fees are minimal; or
(5) 
Upon other good cause shown.
B. 
Provided, however, that a brief written explanation of any such action, including the amount, shall be included in the annual report of the fire company.
C. 
The fire company may engage counsel to assist in its collection efforts, which may be but need not be the Township Solicitor; provided that any legal fees so incurred shall be the sole responsibility of the fire company and not the Township;
A report of the amounts and collections of all such incident fees shall be included within the annual report which is required to be made to the Township Supervisors for each completed fiscal year of the Township by the fire companies by Section 1803 of the Second Class Township Code (53 P.S. § 66803), as amended, including any waivers or reductions as aforesaid.
All commercial structures located within the Township shall have displayed and maintained at all times, in at least one prominent location, on the front side of the structure, the name and telephone number of at least one party designated as the party to contact for emergency incidents related to that particular structure. The contact name and telephone number shall be displayed in characters no less than two inches in height and constructed of a reflective material or illuminated by a continuous light source.
The Township Secretary is hereby authorized and empowered to issue certified copies of this chapter, together with any applicable resolutions approving the incident fee schedules for each fire company and copies of those incident fee schedules. All such copies shall be accepted and treated the same as the original of this chapter or such resolution incident and fee schedule, as the case may be, when bearing or accompanied by the signature of the Township Secretary, or a facsimile thereof, and the raised, embossed impression of the Township's Seal.
All other ordinances or parts of ordinances in conflict herewith in whole or in part are hereby repealed, but only to the extent of such conflict.
The provisions of this chapter hereby adopted shall not be construed to affect any suit or proceeding now pending in any court, or any rights acquired, accrued or liability incurred, or any cause or causes of action acquired or existing under any section, act or ordinance hereby repealed as cited in this chapter; nor shall any just or legal right or remedy of any individual or entity of any character be lost, impaired or affected by this chapter.
In the event that any provision, section, sentence, clause or other part of this chapter, or any application thereof, is held to be invalid by a court of competent jurisdiction, then such invalidity shall not affect or impair any other remaining provision, section, sentence, clause or other part of this chapter, or any application thereof, it being the express intent of the Township that the remainder of this chapter and its applications shall be and shall remain in full force and effect, as completely as if the part or parts or application held invalid had not been included herein.
This chapter shall take effect five days after the enactment thereof.
The Township Secretary to the Board of Supervisors of North Whitehall Township shall certify to the adoption of this chapter, and shall cause the same to be filed and/or published as required by law.
The Township Secretary, the Township Solicitor, and the Code Enforcement Officer are hereby authorized and empowered to take actions, execute documents, and do things which are or appear to be convenient, necessary, or required to effectuate and implement the intent, purposes, and procedures of this chapter.