HomeMy WebLinkAboutAgenda - 11-03-2004-5cORANGE COUNTY
BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS
ACTION AGENDA ITEM ABSTRACT
Meeting Date:
November 3, 2004
Action Agenda
Item No. 5- G
SUBJECT: Establishment of Public Hea
DEPARTMENT: Emergency Management)
Attorney
for EMS & Rescue Franchise Agreem
PUBLIC HEARING: (Y(N) No
ATTACHMENT(S): INFORMATION CONTACT:
None Kent McKenzie, ext 3030
Sean Borhanian, 732-2196
TELEPHONE NUMBERS:
Hillsborough 732-8181
Chapel Hill 968-4501
Durham 688-7331
Mebane 336-227-2031
PURPOSE: To establish public hearings on granting proposed ambulance franchise
agreements to the two active volunteer rescue squads in the county.
BACKGROUND: The Orange County EMS, Rescue, and First Responder Franchise
Ordinance (reissued April 20, 1993) requires that organizations which provide Emergency
Medical Services (EMS) or Rescue services be franchised by the County to engage in those
activities, North Carolina law establishes a public hearing notice/scheduling requirement related
to the granting of ambulance franchises. NCGS §153A-250(a) states that "before it may adopt
an ordinance pursuant to [that] subsection, the board of commissioners must first hold a public
hearing on the need for ambulance services," The purpose of the public hearing is to help the
BOCC find if the franchise is "necessary to assure the provision of adequate and continuing
ambulance service and to preserve, protect, and promote the public health, safety, and
welfare." Once the BOCC makes this finding, it can permit the franchise by ordinance. NCGS
§153A-46 provides that "no ordinance making a grant, renewal, extension, or amendment of
any franchise may be finally adopted until it has been passed at two regular meetings of the
board of commissioners" and that "no such grant, renewal, extension, or amendment may be
made except by ordinance."
Prior to January 2000, there were two separate franchised rescue squads in Orange County:
Orange County Rescue Squad in Hillsborough and South Orange Rescue Squad in Carrboro.
Each of these agencies was franchised by the Commissioners to provide Emergency Medical
and Rescue services, In January 2000, the two squads merged to form one agency, Orange
EMS & Rescue Squad, Incorporated, Orange County has continued to contract with this
merged agency to continue providing EMS and Rescue Services.
In the Spring of 2004, because of internal disagreement among the membership of Orange
EMS & Rescue Squad, a mediation process was started that has resulted in the spin-off of a
new corporation, Technical Rescue Services, Incorporated, which conducts business as South
Orange Rescue Squad. Through the mediation process, the assets of Orange EMS & Rescue
Squad have been divided between the surviving corporation and the new corporation, and some
volunteers from the surviving corporation have transferred their membership into the new
corporation. The result of this process is effectively a return to the pre-merger status of the two
separate rescue squads, both of which are valuable partners with Orange County in the
provision of Emergency Medical and Rescue services.
County staff has been working to draft new franchise documents for these agencies, Staff
proposes that the Board schedule the statutorily required public hearing far bath franchise
agreements for the regular meeting on November 16, 2004 at the Southern Human Services
Center. As noted above, State statutes also provide that notice of public hearing be published
once a week for two successive weeks before the hearing, Staff will arrange for publication of
this notice during the weeks ending November 5 and November 12,
Orange EMS & Rescue Squad, Incorporated, in Hillsborough, will continue to provide volunteer
EMS primarily for special events throughout the county and will continue to provide vehicle and
heavy extrication. Technical Rescue Services (dba South Orange Rescue Squad) will begin
providing volunteer EMS primarily for special events in Chapel Hill and at the University of North
Carolina, and will continue to provide technical rescue including swift water, confined space,
and high and low angle rescue services.
FINANCIAL IMPACT: There is no financial impact associated with scheduling the public
hearing or subsequently, with the awarding of these franchises, Funding to provide monthly
stipends to bath squads has already been appropriated in the FY 2004-05 budget for the
Emergency Management Department, in keeping with the County's agreement for FY 2004-05
with Orange EMS & Rescue Services, Both squads have agreed in writing to share the monthly
stipend from the County on a 50-50 basis for the remainder of the current fiscal year.
RECOMMENDATION(S): The Manager recommends that the Board schedule the public
hearing for bath franchise agreements for the regular BOCC meeting on November 16, 2004 at
the Southern Human Services Center,