Bill Text: PA HB1097 | 2009-2010 | Regular Session | Introduced

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Bill Title: Relating to the reimbursement of municipalities for cleanup costs incurred as a result of certain events; providing for liability insurance coverage; and providing for penalties.

Spectrum: Slight Partisan Bill (Republican 21-11)

Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2009-03-25 - Referred to VETERANS AFFAIRS AND EMERGENCY PREPAREDNESS [HB1097 Detail]

Download: Pennsylvania-2009-HB1097-Introduced.html

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PRINTER'S NO. 1294
THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF PENNSYLVANIA
HOUSE BILL
No. 1097 Session of2009
INTRODUCED BY BOYD, BARRAR, BEYER, BRENNAN, CALTAGIRONE, CONKLIN, CREIGHTON, CUTLER, DeLUCA, GEIST, GIBBONS, GILLESPIE, GINGRICH, GROVE, GRUCELA, HENNESSEY, HICKERNELL, HUTCHINSON, KILLION, KORTZ, MILLER, O'NEILL, PALLONE, PHILLIPS, PYLE, QUINN, READSHAW, K. SMITH, SOLOBAY, STEVENSON AND TRUE, MARCH 25, 2009
REFERRED TO COMMITTEE ON VETERANS AFFAIRS AND EMERGENCY PREPAREDNESS, MARCH 25, 2009
AN ACT
Relating to the reimbursement of municipalities for cleanup
costs incurred as a result of certain events; providing for
liability insurance coverage; and providing for penalties.
The General Assembly of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania
hereby enacts as follows:
Section 1. Short title.
This act shall be known and may be cited as the Municipal
Government Emergency Services Reimbursement Act.
Section 2. Legislative findings and declaration.
The General Assembly finds and declares as follows:
(1) Municipal and volunteer emergency services
organizations are experiencing ever-increasing financial
burdens.
(2) The increasing financial burdens and costs are
having an adverse and seriously negative impact upon
maintaining and providing adequate emergency services
response capabilities for communities across this
Commonwealth.
(3) Municipal and volunteer emergency services
organizations can no longer realistically afford or be
expected to exist and provide services at a financial loss.
(4) It is vital to establish for our municipal and
volunteer emergency services providers a mechanism and
process whereby they can be reimbursed financially for real
and reasonable expenses related to responding to emergency
situations, incidents or events.
(5) Such a process and mechanism should be self-
supporting.
Section 3. Definitions.
The following words and phrases when used in this act shall
have the meanings given to them in this section unless the
context clearly indicates otherwise:
"Emergency situation, incident or event." An automobile
accident that necessitates fire suppression, rescue services or
emergency site cleanup services by a municipal or volunteer
emergency services organization.
"Municipal emergency services organization." A fire company,
rescue squad or hazardous material response team that is funded
and operated by a municipality.
"Officially recognized dispatch." Either of the following:
(1) The dispatch of a municipal or volunteer emergency
services organization by an officially recognized and
approved emergency communication center or response to a
special call or request from the Pennsylvania State Police or
local police, regardless of whether the call or request comes
through an emergency communications center where the
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emergency communication center approves the response and
assigns a dispatch number to the municipal or volunteer
emergency services organization and then contacts the
municipal or volunteer emergency services department,
organization or person making the request to confirm the
request.
(2) The response of a municipal or volunteer emergency
services organization to a call or request from the
Pennsylvania State Police or local police that has not come
through an officially recognized and approved emergency
communication center prior to the special call or request.
"Person." The term includes a corporation, partnership,
business trust, other association, governmental entity other
than the Commonwealth, estate, trust, foundation or natural
person.
"Volunteer emergency services organization." A volunteer
fire company, volunteer rescue squad or volunteer hazardous
material response team.
Section 4. Requirement to pay for response to emergencies.
A person involved in an emergency situation, incident or
event that necessitates a response from a municipal or volunteer
emergency services organization shall be liable for the real and
reasonable response costs incurred in the response unless the
person:
(1) has paid to the municipality wherein the municipal
or volunteer emergency services organization is located a tax
that funds at least in part the municipal or volunteer
emergency services; or
(2) has made a monetary contribution, as defined by the
municipality, to an annual fund drive of the municipal or
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volunteer emergency organization recognized by the resident's
municipality within the preceding 12 months from the date of
the emergency situation, incident or event that necessitates
a response from the municipal or volunteer emergency services
organization.
Section 5. Establishment of reimbursement procedures.
(a) Billing.--A municipal government may bill for real and
reasonable reimbursement for costs related to an officially
recognized dispatch to an emergency situation, incident or event
to which a municipal or volunteer emergency services
organization responded within the municipal government's
borders.
(b) Reimbursement.--
(1) When a person receives a bill for reimbursement from
a municipal government, the person shall be responsible for
payment.
(2) If the person forwards the bill for reimbursement to
an insurance company, the person shall notify the municipal
government from which the bill for reimbursement was
received.
(3) Forwarding the bill for reimbursement to an
insurance company does not relieve the person from financial
responsibility for payment.
(c) Legal process.--
(1) If negotiations to recover response costs do not
resolve the dispute to the satisfaction of the parties
involved, the municipality may recover its response costs in
an action at law or in equity brought before a court of
competent jurisdiction.
(2) If more than one municipality incurs response costs
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for the same emergency situation, incident or event, the
municipality involved may file a joint action at law or in
equity and may designate one such organization to represent
the others in the action.
(d) Use of funds.--
(1) A municipal government may retain no more than 2% of
the funds collected from each person's bill for
administrative costs. The remainder of this collected bill
amount shall be remitted to the volunteer emergency services
organization which rendered the emergency response.
(2) If the emergency response was performed by a
municipal emergency services organization, funds collected
may be remitted to the municipality's general operating fund
or a designated emergency services fund.
Section 6. Liability insurance coverage.
A liability insurer that insures any motor vehicle of the
type required to be registered under 75 Pa.C.S. (relating to
vehicles) shall make available for purchase insurance coverage
with benefits up to the maximum of $1,000 for real and
reasonable expenses related to an emergency situation, incident
or event.
Section 7. Rules and regulations.
The Office of State Fire Commissioner, in consultation with
the Fire Safety Advisory Committee established under the act of
November 13, 1995 (P.L.604, No.61), known as the State Fire
Commissioner Act, shall promulgate rules and regulations
pertaining to the real and reasonable expenses related to
emergency situations, incidents or events that are eligible for
reimbursement by municipal and volunteer emergency services
organizations.
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Section 8. Penalties.
A municipal government that files a false request for
reimbursement commits a summary offense and shall, upon
conviction, be sentenced to pay a fine of not more than $100 for
each false request.
Section 9. Effective date.
This act shall take effect in 180 days.
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