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HB 3597

EMS-NONEMERGENCY CALL FEES

104th Regular Session Introduced by Jackie Haas

Authorizes Illinois towns and fire districts to bill residents for nonemergency ambulance/emergency-response calls, enabling local fee schedules and cost recovery.

Rule 19(a) / Re-referred to Rules Committee
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Bill Summary · HB 3597

Summary — HB 3597 (2025)

Status: Enacted — signed by the Governor 6/20/2025; effective 9/1/2025.
Primary sponsor: Rep. Jackie Haas. Adds new sections to the Illinois Municipal Code and the Fire Protection District Act (65 ILCS 5/11‑6‑12 new; 70 ILCS 705/11n new).

Purpose / Intent

HB 3597 authorizes municipalities and fire protection districts in Illinois to recover costs by charging residents reasonable fees for responses to certain nonemergency ambulance or emergency-service calls. The bill is intended to give local governments a tool to charge for services when a response is not for a true emergency.

Key provisions

  • Adds Section 11‑6‑12 to the Illinois Municipal Code and Section 11n to the Fire Protection District Act.
  • Defines “nonemergency calls for services” as ambulance or emergency-service calls that:
    • are not medical emergencies;
    • do not concern a threat to life, health, or property; and
    • do not correspond to any billing code for emergency response.
  • Authorizes (but does not require) a municipality or fire protection district to “fix, charge, and collect reasonable fees” from residents for any response, time, or services provided in connection with such nonemergency calls.
  • Applies to services rendered by municipal fire departments, firefighters, emergency response units, public safety employees of municipal departments, and fire protection districts.

Who is affected

  • Local governments: municipalities and fire protection districts gain explicit statutory authority to set and collect fees for specified nonemergency responses.
  • Residents and callers: individuals who request or receive nonemergency ambulance or emergency services may be billed by the local entity for response time or services.
  • Local emergency-response providers: administrative and billing processes may be required to implement fee collection.

Implementation and timeline

  • Legislative action: passed both chambers in May 2025, enrolled and sent to the Governor in late May; signed 6/20/2025.
  • Effective date: September 1, 2025.
  • Local adoption: Because the statute uses permissive language (“may”), each municipality or fire protection district must take local action (e.g., ordinance, board resolution, or fee schedule) to impose fees and establish billing procedures.

Considerations / likely impacts

  • Fiscal: enables local cost recovery for nonemergency responses; revenue amounts depend on local fee schedules.
  • Administrative: jurisdictions may need billing systems, policies to define “reasonable” fees, and procedures to determine when a call qualifies as nonemergency.
  • Equity & access: potential financial burden on residents who call for nonemergency assistance; local governments will determine exemptions or hardship policies.
  • Legal/operational: further guidance or intergovernmental coordination may be needed to align with insurance billing and existing emergency-response codes.

Statutory references added: 65 ILCS 5/11‑6‑12 (Municipal Code) and 70 ILCS 705/11n (Fire Protection District Act).

Compiled from official sources — confirm details with the bill’s official record.

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