Non-subscribers of Rural Metro Fire now must pay
Non-subscribers to Rural Metro Fire can expect a charge for services rendered starting this year.
During the mayor’s comments at the March 27 Board of Mayor and Aldermen meeting, Fire Chief Jeff Devlin announced, “In an effort to be transparent, we are … going to start charging non-subscribers for first responder emergency medical calls.
“Since 1977, we have not charged non-subscribers when we ran first responder emergency medical calls,” he added. “We always have for fires and HAZMAT (hazardous materials) emergency calls, so this is new.
The change “is not a cash grab,” Devlin said. “It’s a way to try to charge these folks a flat fee of $600; and if they will subscribe, we will throw out the bill. It’s 60 percent of our EMS calls, and it’s a way for us to get more touches with people and hopefully convince them to subscribe, which makes it more fair for everyone.
“I’ve been asked a few times, ‘Why are we doing this now?’ The main reason is I’m the fire chief now,” Devlin added. “The second reason is it makes it more fair.
“Our current subscribers deserve that we don’t give out any freebies anymore. And with the growth and expansion and demand for service in Knox County, we really can’t afford to be giving away anything for free at this point.”
The goal “is to work with people and make them subscribers, but ultimately, (the Board) may hear feedback when this happens, so we wanted to be transparent about it up front,” the fire chief said.
Devlin said the current subscription fee is based on the square footage of a home.
