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HomeMy WebLinkAbout3433 Ordinance ORDINANCE NO. 3433 AN ORDINANCE AMENDING TITLE 3 OF THE PASCO MUNICIPAL CODE CONCERNING REVENUE AND FINANCE. WHEREAS, the City Council of the City of Pasco, Washington, has determined certain amendments to ambulance service excise tax provisions are necessary for establishing the practice of third-party billing of ambulance fees, updating language, and to establish and create a special fund to be known as the Ambulance Services Fund are warranted; NOW THEREFORE, THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF PASCO, WASHINGTON, DOES ORDAIN AS FOLLOWS: Section 1. Chapter 3.05 - Ambulance Service Excise Tax generally is hereby amended (deletions shown by interlineation and additions shown by underlining) as follows: CHAPTER 3.05 AMBULANCE SERVICE EXCISE TAX Sections: 3.05.010 Definitions. 3.05.010 3.05.020 Establishment of ambulance service. 3.05.020 3.05.030 Levy of tax. 3.05.030 3.05.040 Responsibility for Tax. 3 .-040 3.05.050 Nonpayment Penalty. 3.05.050 3.05.060 P-^^ eds of tam Ambulance Services Fund. 3.05.060 3.05.070 Emergeney sen4 . Ambulance Service Rates. 3.05.,7-0 3.05.080 Billing for Ambulance Service. 3.05.090 Ambulance Excise Tax Credit. 3.05.100 Medicare and Medicaid Patients. 3 05.110 Compliance with Medicare and Medicaid Requirements. 3.05.030 3.05.120 Reciprocity. 3 05.090 3.05.130 Payment Protest of tax. 3.05.140 Administrative Appeal. 3.05.150 Severabili . 3.05.010 DEFINITIONS. For the purpose of this chapter, these terms shall have the following meanings: A Household. "Household" includes each single-haMifly dwelling, apartment or individual unit in multiple dwellings and mobile home. (B) Business or Industry. "Business" or "Industry" means all activities, occupations, trades, pursuits or professions located and/or engaged in within the City with the object of gain, benefit, or advantage, directly or indirectly. (C) Scope of Household Coverage. The Ambulance Service Excise Tax excise tax) shall cover each individual who resides within a "household" as that term is defined in subsection (A) of this section and shall apply only to emergency emergengy and transport ambulance services. Guests staying overnight or longer at a household shall be treated as a member of the household if the need for emeLrgengy services arises for these individuals while visiting at that location. D Scope of the Business and Indusla Coverage. The excise tax shall cover each officer and employee of an industry or business paying excise tax and shall appLy only to emergency and transport ambulance services involving the officer or employee which arise within the City and which arise while the officer or employee is engaged in the regular course or scope of his or her employment or is traveling to the business or industry location to commence work or is traveling, from the business or indusily location followin the completion of work. Excise tax coverage for emergency and transport ambulance service shall also be extended to individuals who normally and re ularl reside as patients or clients on the premises of aLiy business or agency devoted exclusively to the care of persons who are physically. or mentally infirm, disabled or emotionally disturbed which_ business or agency pays the excise tax provided in this chapter. (E) Types of Service. To distinguish between_ non-emergency and emer enc services the following definitions shall a 1 : (1) _"Emergency" shall mean an apparent sudden need of medical attention based on injury or other unforeseen acute physical or mental event which poses an immediate threat to life or Physical well bein (2) "Transport" shall mean the movement of a patient by ambulance from the scene of an emergency to the closest appropriate hospital, (3) "Transfer" shall mean the movement of a patient by ambulance from or between one hospital to another, to_a medical facility: to a residence, to an airport for transfer to another city, to another city or to aLiy other designated location. 3.069.010 3.05.020 ESTABLISHMENT OF AMBULANCE SERVICE. There is established an ambulance service to serve as a public utility of the City of Pasco, for the health and welfare of the residents of the city. This service shall charge rates as approved by the city council. 3.05.020 3.05.030 LEVY OF TAX. In addition to any rates or charges as fixed by the council, an excise tax in the amount of three dollars ($3.00) per month shall be levied and collected from all households, businesses and industries located in the City and served by the ambulance service. Each separate physical location shall be assessed a tax. Separate water and/or sewer hookups shall be one criterion for determining a separate physical location. Multiple dwelling units, group and convalescent homes, parks for mobile homes, recreation vehicles and trailers licensed as a business under Chapter 5.04 of this code shall be taxed an amount equal to the amount of three dollars ($3.00) per month times (x) the number of units, spaces, or lots for rent or lease, whether or not rented or leased. "Multiple dwellings units" does not include hotels, motels or rooming houses. The City Manager or his designee shall be responsible for the billing and collection of this tax. The taxes shall be due and owing en the last day of eaeh month and shah be dehaqHefit if not paid in Pall twenty d 30 days after the billing date ef billin g and shall be delinquent if not paid in full by the due date A delinquency assessment of fifty cents .50 for each month or portion thereof the amount remains delinquent shall be due and owing and shall be added to the bill. No delinquency assessment may be added until one notice of delinquency has been mailed or delivered to the account's address. 3.05. 8 3.05.040 RESPONSIBILITY FOR TAX. The ei=r-a -"hE)usehE)j The owner of the property, the owner of the business, the applicant for water and/or sewer service to the property, and all adult residents and marital communities in of a household both 'ointl and separately shall be responsible and liable for the tax, although there is only one assessment for each separate physical location. Notice of the tax bill shall be sent to the applicant for water and/or sewer service to at the service location, if there sr siaeh sen4ee, unless notarized instructions from the property owner are received by the City requesting that the property owner be billed. In all other cases, the property owner shall be billed. In the event that the tax bill is included with the billing for water and/or sewer charges, any payments received shall be deemed to be first applied against this tax-.-+i s 3.05..040 3.05.050 NONPAYMENT PENALTY. Any person not paying the tax and any delinquency assessments imposed by this chapter after having notice thereof shall be chargeable with a civil violation with a penalty of not less than fifty dollars 50.00 and not more than five hundred dollars 500.00 . In addition to the civil penalty, such person shall be ordered to pay the taxes due and shall be punished for contempt of court in the event they are not paid within the time and in the manner ordered by the court. In addition, a willful failure to pay the tax and any delinquency assessments imposed by this chapter shall be a criminal violation of this code. 3.05.050 3.05.060 AMBULANCE SERVICES FUND. There is established and created a special fund to be known as the ambulance services fund. Any and all revenues received from ambulance services, including-the excise tax, shall be credited to the ambulance services fund All expenditures for the --pr$eeed�-efts-e eie a�� s a -1 �ed}ted tE) separate aeeeunt -;;:-R-d- s In-A I I- be used solely for- t operation, maintenance, and capital needs of the city ambulance service shall be paid out of the ambulance services fund. The City Manager ma use mone y in the ambulance services fund to pay the cost of providing ambulance service to city residents who are underinsured or uninsured. whieh the rwipient is in immeEhate need in er-Eler- to save or siastain his er- he !&, thM sepAee--`fieh is immediately neeessary to- pr_@ventser-i ns-Ro the-health or- sieal well-being-of the eeip t, er- tha per-son has been "wed as a result E)f an aeeklent. (Or-d. 207-8 See. 6, 197-9.) 3.05.070 SEPAWE FEE ADjU&TA49 AMBULANCE SERVICE RATES. and industi4es ki the City as set feAh below in the event the ehar-ge for- twxes pfoAded by this ehapter- is not delinquent; H944SEHOLD; Ther-e shall be 44A ehar-ge for- emergency sen4ee �qF residents and for per-sons staying &wfnight 0 longer at a household. qI4@r-@ shall be no eha:r-ge for- emeFgeney sefvie@ at the for aw efs, o fieefand employees of the-b:bisiness or- iadus4y-when- the n0ed r-egulaf eeuFse E)f his or- her- business or- employ or- is tfaveling to the business establish lower- base fees fer- the per-sons eover-ed by subseetion (I) of this seetien than for- othef: pef:sens. �Ord. 30265, See. 1, 1994-; Or-d. , Seet4ea 4, '° The followina rates are established for ambulance service: Base Rate for emergency,emergengy, transport and transfer services as defined in PMC 3 05 010 for all persons residina within Pasco cily limits is four hundred fifty dollars 450.00 and is five hundred forty dollars ($540.00) for all persons who reside outside of the city limits. These rates are set at a level to cover the actual costs incurred by the city in operating the ambulance service and mqy be amended from time to time by the City Council. Additional service fees for professional services, medical supplies and other items expended in the transfer or transport of the patient shall be charged at rates determined by the City Council. 3.05.080 BILLING FOR AMBULANCE SERVICE., Each person who utilizes the ambulance service ("patient") shall be billed by the City at the rates set forth in Section 3.05.070. The City Manager shall establish a procedure to bill and collect rates for the ambulance service. Under the procedure, the City may elect to bill the patient directly or bill the patient's insurance company, and if the patient's insurance does not cover all of the cost of the ambulance service, bill the remaining balance to the patient directly. The City may_ contract with a billing service to bill and collect the rates for the ambulance service. 3.05.090 AMBULANCE EXCISE TAX CREDIT. Each patient who resides in a household that pays the excise tax or is transported_ from an industry or business with whom they are employed and which pays the excise tax shall receive a credit (the "credit") against the emergency and transport ambulance service rate if the patient: A Provides the City with all re guested information and documentation including, but not limited to, insurance information and medical records relevant to billing for the ambulance service; and (B) Assigns to the City the patient's right to receive payment from all applicable third-p= RUers or any other party statutorily required to provide for the support of the patient; and (C) Is not more than 30 days delinquent in payment of the monthly excise tax. The credit shall equal that portion of the ambulance service rate that is not payable by third-party pavers. 3.05.100 MEDICARE AND MEDICAID PATIENTS. The credit established above in PMC 3.05.090 shall not apply to patients who are eligible for medicare benefits under Title XVIII of the Social Security Act ("medicare patients"), or medicaid benefits under Title XIX of the Social Security Act ("medicaid patients"). If past of the applicable deductible and co-payment amount will create a financial hardship for a medicare or medicaid patient, on a case-by-case basis and consistent with applicable medicare and medicaid requirements, such payments may be treated as uncollectible. 3,05,110 COMEIJMCE —WITH MEDICARE AND MEDICAJD REQUIREMENTS. This chapter and the charges for the ambulance service hereunder shall be construed and implemented in a manner consistent with applicable medicare and medicaid requirements. If gU part of this chapter is found to conflict with medicare or medicaid requirements, the conflicting part of this chapter shall be inoperative to the extent of the conflict and such finding or determination shall not affect the operation of the remainder of this chapter. 3.05.080 3.05.120 RECIPROCITY. Emergency and transport service as described in Section 3.05.060 3.05.010 of this chapter shall be provided at He ehar-ge to any member- of a -�- househeld, whieh household pays a--Rd is net delinquent in its payment af a ta* similar- to that ie-Aed by this ehapter- in e el�e�c�Feguir-es a edieal and am bulanee ,cr.z�=manic only in Uhe even-t- that they reside in a household in the eMes of Kennewiek a Riehland, Washington, at the ttme of the eeeuFFenee neeessita-ting the emergen- of the same nature as this ehapter- %4t-hin that eity�& #he-a-seise 1-e;'r4eE1 by this elapt°r- M. 2712 See. 3, 1988,:- ord. 2120 See. 197, 79;O 78 See. See. 8, 1979.) within the City's ambulance response and mutual aid areas to any resident of the cities of Kennewick and Richland under the terms of Sectign 3.Q5,090 of this chapter provided that: (A) The patient resides in a city that provides emergency and transport ambulance services within its ambulance response and mutual aid areas to Pasco residents under reciprocal terms; and (B) The patient resides in a household that pays a charge similar to the excise tax; and (C) Is not more than 30 days delinquent in payment of the monthly excise tax. 3.0 5.090 3.05.130 P )MME PROTEST OF TAX. Unless a written protest is filed along with the payment of any tax levied by the City under this chapter, no taxpayer may recover,judgment for the amount of any excessive or illegal tax paid. A written protest must be filed in order for a taxpayer to preserve his position in connection with the payment of a City excise tax under this chapter. (Ord. 2712 Sec. 4, 1988.) 3.05.140 ADMINISTRATIVE APPEAL. An taxpayer aggrieved by the amount of tax, any delinquency assessments imposed by this chapter or any other determination made by the City in the administration of this chapter, shall appeal such determination to the City Manager or his designee. Taxpayers shall be required to remit the amounts to be due under this chapter prior to filing an appeal. 3.05.150 SEVERABILITY. If any provisions of this chapter or its application to any person or circumstance is held invalid, the remainder of this chapter or the application of the provision to other persons or circumstances is not affected, and to this end, the provisions of this chapter are declared to be severable. Section 2. This ordinance shall take effect and be in force from October 1, 2000. PASSED by the City Council of the City of Pasco at a regular meeting this 18' day of September, 2000. llez - 10 Michael L. G on, Mayor ATTEST: APPROVED AS TO FORM: Catherine D. Seaman, Deputy City Clerk Leland B. Kerr, City Attorney