[HISTORY: Adopted by the Borough Council of the Borough of
Lehighton as indicated in article histories. Amendments noted where
applicable.]
[Adopted 2-22-1999 by Ord. No. 486]
A.
The terms used in this article which are defined in the Pennsylvania
Hazardous Materials Emergency Planning and Response Act, 35 P.S. § 6022
et seq., or any amendments thereto, shall have the same meaning as
in that Act unless defined differently herein.
B.
BOROUGH
BOROUGH COUNCIL
EMERGENCY INCIDENT
EMERGENCY RESPONSE AGENCIES
EMERGENCY SERVICE COSTS
(1)
(2)
(3)
(4)
FIRE CHIEF
As used in this article, the following words shall have the meanings
indicated:
The Borough of Lehighton.
The Lehighton Borough Council.
An occurrence involving a risk of harm and/or imminent threat
to private or public property, life or potential threat to the environment
or public health or safety caused by, related to or arising from the
release or threatened release of hazardous materials.
The Lehighton Fire Department, Lehighton Police Department
and similar emergency response agencies from other municipalities
responding to a request for assistance/aid under a mutual aid agreement
and employees of the borough responding to an emergency incident at
the request of an emergency response agency.
All direct and indirect costs and expenses incurred/expended
by the borough and/or any emergency response agency in connection
with any emergency incident, including, but not limited to, the following:
The cost 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 borough to borough personnel
involved in responding to any emergency incident or, in the case of
emergency response agency volunteer personnel, in accordance with
a fee/rate schedule adopted by the Lehighton Fire Department, taking
into account the funds expended to train and properly equip such volunteer,
times the number of hours worked by each such volunteer, less one
hour, in response to any emergency incident.
The cost of all nonreusable materials and all contaminated or
consumed materials utilized in connection with any emergency incident.
Fifteen percent of the sum of Subsections A and B above to cover
the administrative costs and expenses incurred in effectuating and
administering the cost recovery.
Attorney's fees and costs associated with collecting any
billing hereunder.
The Fire Chief of the Lehighton Fire Department or his/her
appointed designee.
A.
The Fire Chief shall assemble/compile a bill of costs for each emergency
incident as follows:
(1)
Within 30 days after rendering services in connection with an emergency
incident, or as soon thereafter as possible, the chief operating officer
for each involved emergency response agency and the Borough Secretary
shall submit to the Fire Chief an itemized bill of costs calculated
in accordance with the provisions of this article.
(2)
The Fire Chief shall review all such bills of cost, correct any errors
or duplications and compile a final documented total bill of cost.
(3)
Upon compilation of a complete bill of costs, the Fire Chief shall,
within 45 days of the emergency incident, or as soon thereafter as
possible, render an itemized billing statement to the responsible
party/parties for the total amount of all submitted bills of cost
plus 15% for administrative costs and expenses.
(4)
If the responsible party/parties have not paid the bill of costs
within 45 days from the date the same was billed, the Fire Chief shall
take appropriate enforcement/collection action against the responsible
party/parties.
B.
As an alternative to the foregoing procedure, the chief executive
officer of any emergency response agency which responded to an emergency
incident, or the Borough Secretary, may prepare, or cause to be prepared,
an itemized bill of costs compiled in accordance with this article
for his or her emergency response agency only, or the borough, whichever
is applicable, and submit the same directly to any responsible party/parties
for payment or submission for third party payment. However, any emergency
response agency, or the borough, whichever is applicable, which elects
this alternative procedure shall not, without the consent of the Fire
Chief, thereafter be entitled to submit such cost billing to the Fire
Chief for collection efforts in the event of nonpayment, partial payment
or dispute concerning responsibility for payment or the amount of
the cost billing.
C.
Neither any emergency response agency nor the borough shall seek
recovery for itself pursuant to this article for emergency service
costs for which it is fully compensated by some person or entity other
than the responsible party/parties. This provision is intended to
prevent any emergency response agency or the borough from a "double"
recovery of all or any part of its emergency service costs. Nothing
in this article is intended, nor shall it be construed, to control
or in any way interfere with or adversely affect such person or entity
from recovering from the responsible party/parties any amount paid
to an emergency response agency or the borough, either in said person
or entity's own name or in the name of the appropriate emergency
response agency or the borough.
All moneys received/recovered by the Fire Chief under the provisions
of this article in connection with an emergency incident shall be
deposited in the Fire Department's general fund and, upon completion
of the cost recovery effort, the Fire Chief shall disburse the funds
recovered as follows:
A.
Fifteen percent of the total moneys actually received/recovered shall
be retained by the Fire Company for the administrative costs incurred
in effectuating and administering the cost recovery.
B.
If the Fire Chief refers a bill of costs to a lawyer for collection,
the Fire Department shall be reimbursed, in addition to the aforesaid
15% of the total moneys actually received/recovered, the full amount
of all costs and fees incurred in connection with the legal services
performed by its lawyer.
C.
The Fire Chief shall distribute the balance between the emergency
response agencies and the borough, in accordance with the amount claimed
by each emergency response agency and the borough; and, in the event
there are insufficient moneys received/recovered to pay all claims
in full, the moneys received/recovered shall be paid in pari passu
by and between the various claimants.
D.
Notwithstanding anything to the contrary in the foregoing, the Fire
Chief may disregard all or any portion of a claim made by an emergency
response agency or the borough for which moneys were not received/recovered
or for which the Fire Chief reasonably believes moneys were not received/recovered.
Nothing in this article shall be construed to conflict with
state or federal laws requiring persons causing or responsible for
releases or threatened releases of hazardous materials from engaging
in remediation activities or paying the costs and expenses thereof,
or both.