The city of Pine Bluff’s exclusive ambulance franchise agreement will be put out to bid in 2013 and every five years thereafter because of an amendment to a city ordinance approved Monday by the Pine Bluff City Council.
Since 1999, the city has had an exclusive franchise agreement with Emergency Ambulance Service Inc. and Ambulance Transport Service. The agreement was set up so that it self-renewed every three years.
Attention was drawn to the ordinance earlier this year when Galbraith Emergency Medical Services Ambulance Service Inc. opened offices in Pine Bluff and began approaching the City Council asking them to consider changing the ordinance so that they could also do business in Pine Bluff. None of the aldermen sponsored such a change, but GEMS’ efforts drew attention to the fact that city’s ordinance did not give other companies a periodic opportunity to submit bids for the franchise agreement, as is required by state law.
City Attorney Althea Hadden-Scott suggested to the council that they amend the 1999 ordinance, which she argues will resolve the issue. The council voted 7-0 to approve her recommended amendment. Alderman Irene Holcomb was absent.
Under the amended ordinance, the bidding process will be held from June 20, 2013, to Sept. 20, 2013. The dates were selected because the current cycle of the agreement with EASI and ATS expires on Sept. 20, 2013. The bidding process will start 30 days before the expiration date.
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Hadden-Scott recommended an agreement period of five years because of the high cost associated with the equipment and infrastructure involved in the ambulance service business. The council briefly considered a period as long as 10 years before accepting Hadden-Scott’s recommendation for five years, which she said was based on her research of how other nearby Arkansas cities have set up their ambulance franchise agreements.
Meanwhile, GEMS’ representatives do not agree with Hadden-Scott’s position that the amendment rectifies the situation. GEMS Director of Operations John Galbraith and his lawyer, Leon Jones Jr. of Fayetteville, have argued that the ordinance is null and void because of the elements that ran counter to state law.
They argued that the competitive bid process should be held immediately and have filed their complaints against the city in Jefferson County Circuit Court.
GEMS’ complaint, which was filed April 16, asks for a temporary restraining order against the city; that the city’s cease and desist order against GEMS preventing them from running emergency ambulance calls in the city limits be revoked; the 1999 ordinance establishing the exclusive franchise agreement be declared void; and the city be ordered to open a competitive bid process to select a company with which to contract for emergency medical services.
On May 15 and May 16, Hadden-Scott filed responses to GEMS’ complaints, asking the judge to dismiss the complaint for several reasons: the complaint was not delivered to the correct city official when it was filed; GEMS has not demonstrated “irreparable harm or damage” might result if the request is not granted, but rather cites a loss of income, which does not rise to that legal standard; and fulfilling GEMS’ requests would cause the city to violate its agreement with EASI and ATS.
The city ordinance does not prevent GEMS from running non-emergency calls within Pine Bluff.