AGENDA DATE: 8/21/2024
TITLE:
Title
Cost Recovery Ordinance
BODY
SUBJECT/PROPOSAL/REQUEST: To conduct a public hearing to consider an ordinance addition in Chapter 6 to authorize cost recovery for appropriate emergency responses to a terrorism hoax, incident, bomb threat, or malicious activation of a fire alarm.
ITEM TYPE: Regular Action Item
STAFF CONTACT(S): Richardson, Henry, Rosenberg, Farley, Eggleston, Reeves
PRESENTER (S): Amanda Farley
LEGAL REVIEW: Yes
REVIEWED BY: Jeffrey B. Richardson
BACKGROUND: Virginia Code Section 15.2-1716.1 authorizes a locality to adopt an ordinance to recover costs of law enforcement, firefighting, and emergency medical agency response for acts committed in violation of Virginia Code Sections 18.2-46.6 (subsections B and C only); a felony violation of ? 18.2-83 or ? 18.2-84; or a violation of ? 18.2-212 or ? 18.2-461.1, if such acts are the proximate cause of the public safety response.
STRATEGIC PLAN: Mission - To enhance the well-being and quality of life for all community members through the provision of the of the highest level of public service consistent with the prudent use of public funds.
DISCUSSION: If an individual commits acts that violate the enumerated Virginia Code sections referenced above and the individual is convicted of those crimes, a local ordinance, such as proposed, would allow the County to recover some costs of the appropriate emergency response, if the commission of those particular crimes was the proximate cause of the emergency response. Virginia Code Section 15.2-1716.1 limits the recovery to $250 per incident or a minute-by-minute aggregation of costs up to $2500 per incident. County staff from the Department of Finance, Department of Police, and the Department of Fire and Rescue have determined that the administrative burden of minute-by-minute accounting would not result in a benefit to the County in most cases; however, a routine request for recovery at the time of an ...
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