Title
Emergency Medical Services, a division of the Chief Administrative Office, recommending the Board adopt and authorize the Chair to sign Resolution 081-2025 which finds that the repayment of the Fiscal Year 2024-25 General Fund contribution of $750,000 in Discretionary Transient Occupancy Tax (DTOT) to County Service Area 3 (CSA 3) would create economic hardship for the residents of CSA 3 and waives the repayment in whole (4/5 vote required).
FUNDING: General Fund - DTOT.
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DISCUSSION / BACKGROUND
County Service Area No. 3 was established on January 21, 1963, for the purpose of providing extended services, namely mosquito abatement, via Resolution No. 9-63. On August 10, 1982, the Board of Supervisors amended the authority of CSA 3, through Resolution No. 210-82, to include extended ambulance services to be provided within the unincorporated area of CSA 3. On April 28, 1987, the Board of Supervisors approved Resolution 132-87, extending ambulance services to the incorporated area of CSA 3.
CSA 3 ambulance services are funded by a special tax, benefit assessment, and ambulance fees; however, the CSA is currently operating at a deficit and requires additional funding to support ambulance services. The ambulance rate schedule for CSA 3 was last reviewed and updated in 2022, increasing ambulance fees to within the 75th percentile of comparison agencies, including base rates for residents and non-residents (Legistar file 22-0380). In addition, the rates have been increased each fiscal year by the increase in the Consumer Price Index (CPI). To address the ongoing deficit, County staff are currently reviewing the possibility of an additional increase to ambulance fees and continue to assess the ambulance billing system to find process improvements and increase revenue.
On June 11, 2024, as part of the Fiscal Year 2024-25 (FY24-25) budget, the Board approved a General Fund Contribution of $750,000 in Discretionary Transient Occupancy Tax (DTOT) to CSA 3 to s...
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