Alternative Funding for Emergency Services

In today's tough economic times, emergency service organizations are trying to stay within budgets and make ends meet. Whether you rely on patient billing, municipal subsidies or a formal tax district, your organization is likely experiencing increasing operational costs while your revenue streams are either declining or staying flat. You are being asked to do more with less, which leads to reduction in service, staff layoffs or worse yet, closing your doors.

Never has it been more important for emergency service organizations to evaluate the potential for alternative funding streams that can supplement existing budgets. Whether you are looking to fund new vehicles, staffing or essential equipment, there are a myriad of alternative funding streams available. Below, we will outline some opportunities for alternative funding.

Grants: Grants is a general term describing a variety of federal, state and local programs available to both municipal emergency service organizations as well as not-for-profit organizations. There are generally strict application and eligibility requirements that must be met for the specific program, and often come with some sort of matching fund requirements.

There are also thousands of grant opportunities available from local and national foundations. A foundation grant is a monetary contribution or a contribution of goods and services to organizations and is meant to fulfill a specific need.

User Fees and Taxes:

Although sometimes controversial, user fees and certain taxes can be a source of revenue for fire and EMS organizations.

Most private and not-for-profit EMS organizations are not funded by either a direct ad-valorem tax (latin for according to value) or indirect municipal support. However, these can be a significant source of revenue for EMS agencies. Often times there is a high cost of readiness for EMS agencies, and these sources can assist with these costs. Contrarily, most fire departments are funded exclusively by ad-valorem taxes. These are usually calculated on a rate per $1,000 of assessed valuation of the property. For example, a property assessed at $100,000.00 with a tax rate of $2.00/thousand would pay $200.00 annually in tax ($100,000/1,000 x $2.00).

Sales Tax. Next to property tax, sales tax are also a significant source of revenue for emergency service organizations. Some organizations and municipalities prefer sales tax revenue because the tax also reaches non-residents who shop at or visit a municipality, and consume local services, but do not pay property taxes.

Similar to sales tax, some high tourist areas also enact "occupancy taxes" that are hotel rooms or rental vehicle usage. These visitors often have high emergency service utilization, however do not pay property taxes.

User fees: This model utilizes direct user fees on the patient, property owner or vehicle insurance. For example, If a patient utilizes an ambulance for services, the ambulance company may bill the patient or their insurance company directly for the services rendered. Fire Departments or municipalities may charge for rescue responses to motor vehicle collisions, false alarm fees or other direct user fees. Often times, there are legal prohibitions on what type of organizations can charge for differing types/levels of service. It is best to seek advice on what may be legal for your state/jurisdiction.

In closing, there is a myriad of ways to fund emergency services in your community. The experts at Summit Public Safety can assist you in navigating these often complex scenarios and apply a structure that is beneficial for your organization and the community that you serve.

Visit our website at: www.summitpublicsafety.com or contact us today to see how Summit Public Safety can help your emergency service organization.