Tracy, CA Residents Now Have To Pay For 911 Calls

cbs13.com ^ | 2-19-10

[Justaham]

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.

[TokuMei]

How deliciously ironic:

At a time when the administration is expanding the public sector most aggressively and maligning the private sector, it is exactly that public sector that BILLS people just as the PRIVATE sector would.

We will end up with a public sector wastefulness, paired with a private sector penchant for monetization.

[VeniVidiVici]

Wow! It really is coming down to all of the taxes you are paying are mainly going to feed, clothe, house and give huge tax refunds to illegal aliens.

[television is just wrong]

how about telling those welfare recipients, (dead weight) their checks aren’t coming anymore...

[jocon307]

$300.00?!?!?!?!?!?!

That’s ridiculous, that is not in the public’s best interest, what kind of people live in this town, this is going to cost lives, this is really stupid, what the hell do we pay taxes for?

[ntmxx]

Absolutely correct, 911 is already paid for through property taxes!

[Razz Barry]

Will those people who get the free gooberment phones have to pay?
Government imposed fees and taxes makeup 30% of my phone bill. That's probably low to some people, but in my book it's to much. I don't like the idea of having to pay for the hearing impaired relay. I've dealt with three relay calls and all three of the deaf people were @ssholes. I can't believe the relay operators pass along the threats the deaf people make. One operator refused to give her name or allow me to talk to her supervisor. She just hung up. I pay so people can call me and waste my time.

[1_Rain_Drop]

Good thing street phone booths are extinct. Imagine carrying $300.00 in quarters.

Either Tracy has too many 911 calls, or not enough.
I could see my town charging $300 per call since there is no local ambulance (yeah in Central NY!!)

[yadent]

Stuff like this could cause an upswing in little plane crashes...would 9-1-1 be free in that instance?

[Zack Attack]

So a robber knocks on your door pulls a gun and says I only want $200 or you can call 911. What’s your choice? :)

[eyedigress]

911 has been paid and forced through taxes ever since it existed. They want pay for the after effect. What a sham. Property taxes pay the cops salary and the contract ambulatory services.

[CurlyDave]

Well, that makes it all better. Guess if someone is having a heart attack, I should punch him/her and then make an assault-in-progress call.

I never said it was alright.

What I did want to point out was that going off half-cocked and whining about being charged $300 for law enforcement emergencies, fires, car accidents, etc. makes us all sound like a bunch of illiterate morons, since none of that stuff is happening.

If we want to discuss the real issue, instead of claiming that the sky is falling, we might be viewed in a better light.

My personal guess is that there are a lot of 911 calls for medical non-emergencies, which might well interfere with responding to real emergencies.

I have had a few serious injuries where I got to the hospital under my own power (try a broken leg, both tibia and fibula) and so I have the chops to say that calling 911 because your toddler has a fever and you couldn't be bothered to get her to the ER, or better yet, your family doctor, on your own is wrong, and I don't want my property taxes to pay for your laziness.

[dasboot]

My recollection is that the 911 system was/is paid for by taxes on all phone communication. I think we’re gonna have to pay twice, eventually. For everything.

We’re gonna build you a bridge for a million bucks. What we won’t tell you is that it’ll cost you another million every year to keep it from falling in the river....

[oldteen]

Every month there is a listed tax for 911 on my telephone bill. So, if those folks in Tracy (not too far from where I am) pay that extra $48 or $300, who gets THAT money? As if California wasn’t already in the crapper, things like this will have more folks moving out and not enough of us left to fight. *sigh*

[sten]

implemented the same bs here in Clearwater/Tampa Florida

this is total crap. now, instead of the little old lady calling the cops because she hears something, she has to worry about paying for it. the net result will be less people calling in... and more people feeling less safe

if they are going to charge... then there better be no tax money going to them. (this is one of the few things I could actually get with all that tax money)