BILL NUMBER:S4206

TITLE OF BILL:
An act
to amend the general municipal law, in relation to general ambulance
services operated jointly by two or more municipalities

PURPOSE OF BILL:
This bill clarifies the boundaries in which a municipality may
provide an emergency medical service when the service is operated
jointly by two or more municipalities.

SUMMARY OF PROVISIONS:
Section 1 amends the General Municipal Law section 122-b to add the
words "or the municipalities acting jointly" to allow the boundary
in which a municipality may operate an emergency medical service to
include the physical boundaries of all municipalities who share the
service.

Section 2 sets the effective date as immediately.

JUSTIFICATION:
With the growing desire for smaller municipalities to share services
for cost saving measures to the taxpayer and State, General
Municipal Law Section 122-b has been used as a bar to consolidation
of services.
              

Without clarification of how "jointly" should be applied as it is
found in Section 122-b, the law has been applied to bar a single
municipality from operating a service outside of its own physical
boundary even when an intermunicipal agreement exists between
multiple municipalities. Please see
In The Matter of the Appeal by
Cooperstown Medical Transport Inc. vs.
Susquehanna Regional Emergency Medical Systems Council, Inc.
(unpublished ALJ Report dated 11/17/10 to State Emergency Medical
Services Council).

This Bill would overturn that decision and allow the municipality to
operate within its own physical boundary as well as within the
physical boundaries of the municipalities it has jointly contracted
with to perform such services.

LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:
New Bill.

FISCAL IMPLICATIONS:
None.

EFFECTIVE DATE:
This act shall take effect immediately.