$300.00 fee for 911 calls

reply to post by Snarf


All money is monopoly money, good Sir.
For the employees, they could simply sign checks. Their account is far far in the negative as is.
And for the suppliers, well... When a bully offers to pay you for your ice cream bar rather than simply take it, you really have no choice but to take whatever he offers.

reply to post by Mr Sunchine


In some places the 911 service is a private contractor, but the local government is still the source of revenue to support it.

Here is the way that I see this issue. If you fall and hurt yourself, you call an ambulance. The ambulance comes and takes you to the hospital and they bill you for the use of the service.

Why should it be different for 911 calls?

I do think that 300 dollars per call is excessive and I doubt very much that the service costs that much. I know that the staff at the 911 service don't make that kind of money. So, the local government has probably overstepped and is planning on using the "excess" revenue generated in their general fund. You know how politicians are, if a 100 per call fee is good then 300 dollars per call is three times as good.

Originally posted by FortAnthem
Only in California could a group of politicians come up with an idea this dumb. Now people will have to decide between calling for emergency care or being able to pay for food.

Tracy Residents Now Have To Pay For 911 Calls

Tracy residents will now have to pay every time they call 9-1-1 for a medical emergency.

But there are a couple of options. Residents can pay a $48 voluntary fee for the year which allows them to call 9-1-1 as many times as necessary.

Or, there's the option of not signing up for the annual fee. Instead, they will be charged $300 if they make a call for help.

"A $300 fee and you don't even want to be thinking about that when somebody is in need of assistance," said Tracy resident Greg Bidlack.

Residents will soon receive the form in the mail where they'll be able to make their selection. No date has been set for when the charges will go into effect.

Read more: CBS 13

[edit on 21-2-2010 by FortAnthem]

Do you realize though how many times people call 911 for things that are not emergencies.I mean it gets out of control sometimes.

They are just double dipping, because not only do you pay taxes for 911 service, and get charged when a service is provided. It won't last for long if the people let the govornment get away with it. I would never use 911, I have the non emergency number and the number to central dispatch if i need anything sitting right here on speed dial, so they wouldnt get that fine out of me.


If it really came down to they just wouldnt pay the fine. What are they going to do REFUSE to provide emergency assistance to specific phone numbers.

Also a fee like that should be something covered by health insurance and or homeowners insurance, just like ambulance rides and a fire breaking out in your home.

[edit on 21-2-2010 by TheNextDoctor]

Originally posted by ExPostFacto
reply to post by Mr Sunchine

 

The problem begins with the fact is that it's applied to everyone because of a few problems they have had. Like the calling 911 thing...just because you call 911 does not make it an emergency. What they need to do is create a number like 911 that is a non emergency number...this will cut down on people calling 911. I once saw a vehicle do a cartwheel down the freeway. I picked up my cell and dialed 911. 911 was busy. Everyone that saw the wreck probably called too. I'm guessing the reasoning behind this fee is to prevent massive calls or non emergency type calls from going through 911.

Following that logic, if it turns out that there was indeed a genuine emergency, there should be no charge. It would seem to me that if as you say it is the non-emergency calls to the service that are the problem then it is they who should be footing the bill, not the old guy having a heart attack who might not even have $300 in the first place. Also, does this not mean that you cannot dial 911 from a pay phone? How about a mobile? Part of me thinks this is yet another example of capitalism gone mad. Everything is for sale, even your life.

reply to post by fumanchu


Great points FuManChu...what happens when a company calls 911 for it's customers? What happens when you use a company cell phone to call 911? What about payphones? Great questions!

I blame prop 13 for all of California's financial problems...ok, maybe not all of them. In addition to their voter legislation system. As the saying goes, "A person is smart, people are stupid."

When 'regular' people want to call the police they call 911, emergency or not. I've called the police for non-emergencies...I used the phone book for the number but I'm not going to live with the karma of having some real emergency on hold or recieving a busy signal because somebody parked their car wrong or something just as silly.

California needs to fix their tax laws instead of creating fees all the time.

Ya know, many of you are getting very hot headed about this whole thing, when in reality, most phone companies have the local 911 service already included in your monthly bill (check under local and state taxes and charges). I don't really see what the big deal is other than the 300 bucks per call if you chose not to pay 45 bucks a year. They should just work out a deal with the local phone company to have that automatically added to future phone bills. Problem solved. No suppression, repression, slavery, etc. here.

Maybe this will cut down on the 911 calls because the local McDs is out of chicken nuggets.

I can see it now

ring ring
operator Hello 911 emergency what is your emergency

help we have a intruder and my wife has just had a heart attack .

operator what is your address sir

1234 first st

operator if you are a member of our frequent caller club please input the number now .

I'm not help my wife is dying

operator we will help please input your credit card number now and we will dispatch a officer and a medical team

Um i dont have a credit card

operator hmm input your checking account number and routing number and we will dispatch

never mind wife just died and the intruder is taking the phone away

click

reply to post by Lostinthedarkness


....that....OR


the citizens of that state finally wake up and realize that tax dollars need to go to things like 9-1-1 call centers, not not to give inmates cable TV, or lazy people more welfare.

Do you know that in California - the state spends 5 times as much on a prisoner as they do a student?

no wonder they have no money left for 9-1-1

sarcasm aside there use to be a federal subsidy to have a nation wide 911 service .

I agree with a charge for false alarms . But a charge like this will stop many people from calling 911 and risk more problem with strokes and heart attack and drive their loved one to the hospital to avoid extra costs . I am sure the random act of kindness of calling for a wreak you see will be reduced as well as calling in for suspicious people hanging around a neighborhood . The attitude of don't get involved will be fostered even more with this program Why should I call in for a mugging in progress when its gonna cost me 300 or call in if I see someone hurt on the street .

There has got to be a better way to fill the budget gap .

reply to post by Lostinthedarkness


Yep. How about people who see someone hit by a car, being beaten, having a health problem or they see a neighbor's house on fire? They call 911, not for themselves but because they're worried about another person's welfare? Should they be charged for another person's plight?

There are frivolous uses of the 911 system, but enough to pose an additional fee? Say a police officer or some firemen respond to a call. They're already on duty and performing the job they're already paid to do. What's the charge for? Gas to get to the scene? Maybe $10, $20 worth? Are they paying firemen for chafing to their thighs because they had to slide down a fire pole? The inconvenience of a police officer having a Krispy Kreme run interrupted?

I've called 911 maybe half a dozen times in my life and it's never been for myself. It's always been for one of the above reasons. Should I be charged for attempting to get help for someone else?

$48 for a year as opposed to $300 per call sounds like damned if you do, really damned if you don't. What are taxes for, anyway? Then again, we are talking about Kalifornia.

Give me a break.

Originally posted by Snarf
... the Bureaucrats of that state finally wake up and realize that tax dollars need to go to things like 9-1-1 call centers, not not to give inmates cable TV, or lazy people more welfare.

Do you know that in California - the state spends 5 times as much on a prisoner as they do a student?

no wonder they have no money left for 9-1-1

There. I fixed it for you.
Because everyone should already know that we the people don't decide where tax dollars go, even when we do vote for the various tax measures, bond initiatives, etc., that sometimes do cross our voting booths those dollars often are appropriated elsewhere.

[edit on 2/22/2010 by abecedarian]

reply to post by abecedarian


no no, you miss my point

My point is that the citizens of California are supporting these measures both in voice and by continually voting the same people back into office.

Once the citizens themselves realize "We should spend our money on things that actually matter" then i think some changes can start to happen.

So much for a "good Sumatran" calling 911 upon witnessing a crime or horrific auto accident. Good intentions, but bad strategy.

Originally posted by lunarminer
Maybe this will reduce the number of frivolous 911 calls, like the woman who called 911 because McDonald's was out of chicken McNuggets, or the one that called because her kid didn't get the prize they wanted in their Happy Meal, or the woman that was at Burger King and her hamburger was not what she ordered. There are thousands of these kinds of calls every year. I am all for charging these people 300 bucks per call.

In my area(Southern VA) we charge people with Obstruction of Justice and Filing a false police report if they make a frivolous call. It usually ends up costing them a $500-2,500 fine and community service(roadside cleanup). That is taking care of our frivolous call problem, of course it should be mention that we give them a written warning the first time.

Secure

In my city they have added a $3.00 or $4.00 additonal 911 fee to the telephone bill. Additionally a person can opt out of the fee. I have no problem with the fee and it beats my insurance only paying a partial amount. It's worth it. But $300.00?! Good god.

I wonder if they had the foresight to see the additional burden this will place on enforcement of this usurious fee. How many will end up in front of a judge and thrown in jail for not ponying up the dough to receive an emergency service? More money down the toilet.

Surely most 911 callers are elderly and live on fixed incomes.

Only in California! What travesty.

Sorry....double post.

[edit on 22-2-2010 by brilab45]

Originally posted by rcwj1975
When you have a state that has as many illegal NON TAX paying citizens, or residence or visitors, who still use the services EVERYONE ELSE is paying for, what do you expect. Best part, those "same folks" who don't pay taxes into the system now, will be the same ones calling 911 and still not paying a dime for it...and if the emergency services DON'T arrive to help because their not paying...the descrimination lawsuits are comin...and then your even in more over your head.

Bottom line, you may not like it, but how hard is it to see the reality of it all. When MILLIONS of people use the services provided, but don't pay into those services...the ship will sink. And its UNFAIR to keep asking regular tax payers to keep payin the bill, or pay more, or worse pay extra fees for services they already pay for.

Firstly, even if I were a multibillionaire I would never pay the bill if I was charged $300 for a 911 call that I wasn't expecting. Never. Unless you call the number and have to agree to the fee first, you never have agreed to pay it. People can't just do you things "out of the goodness of their heart" and then charge you enormous sums of profit$ and gouge you for it five seconds later. Its outrageous.

Secondly, there is no way in hell it should cost anywhere near $300. 911 is a way to reach a phone operator for God sakes. If I dial zero I'm charged $1. But $300 for a "special" operator? C'mon now! I'll rather dial zero and have them call the police/fire department for me! Hell I'll buy a CB radio and start my own 911 service for $30 per call. Maybe I should move to CA and make boatloads of money at $30 per call right now?

You'd have to be crazy to call 911 for $300 when you could call the fire department directly for $0.00 or the police department for $0.00. The extra two minutes is well worth the price, even if your house is on fire. In fact you could buy a CB radio for $20 off of Ebay and just talk to the police or fire department directly on CB radio! No more $48 per year for you, and no more $300 per call. You can even cut out the nasty fat-cat middle middle man earning an apparent $9,000 per hour at $300 for two-minute 911 calls.

Since the government is the only one with such a service in the area it makes it a price-gouging monopoly of the most disgusting proportions. Welcome to the best of fascist America where the government is doing the good of their heart for a price-tag any well-off person can afford. If they didn't charge big bucks for their service it would merely be socialism (public ownership of means of 911 service), but since they do charge a boatload of money it is nothing more than fascism.

If they merely privatized 911 service and made it easy for competition to come in then fine. But that isn't what happened because they've got to have the control over everything and they've especially got to have control over your money.