Referred to: The Law Enforcement and Public Safety Committee (Chairman Briggs

and Legislators Gregorius, Loughran, Maio, and Ronk) and The Public Health and

Social Services Committee (Chairman Lopez and Legislators Allen, Belfiglio, Litts

and Provenzano)

Chairman John Parete and Legislators Carl Belfiglio, Thomas Briggs, Craig Lopez

and Mary Wawro offer the following:

WHEREAS, Pursuant to Article 5 Section 223-B (EMS training and mutual

aid programs) of New York County Law, “Any county may create a County EMS

Advisory Board and may establish the office of county EMS coordinator”; and

WHEREAS, Pursuant to Resolution No. 253 of 2009, the Ulster County

Legislature supported the creation of a Volunteer Coordinator For Emergency

Medical Services in Ulster County; and

 WHEREAS, Section C-11K of the Ulster County Charter authorizes the

County Legislature to appoint citizens' committees, commissions and boards.” and

Section C-16 of the Charter states, “Members of all citizens’ committees,

commissions and boards appointed pursuant to § C-11K of this Charter shall serve at

the pleasure of the County Legislature. They shall serve without compensation other

than for actual and necessary expenses within appropriations made therefor, unless

otherwise provided by resolution of the County Legislature. The Chairman of the

County Legislature shall be a member ex officio of all such committees,

commissions and boards.”; and

WHEREAS, the Ulster County Legislature recognizes that volunteers and

career personnel serve as the backbone of the local Fire Departments, Emergency

Responders and Ambulance/ Rescue Squads and as such, is committed to supporting

these professionals to ensure the safety of all Ulster County’s residents and visitors;

and

WHEREAS, Emergency Medical Services ("EMS") are a branch of

emergency services dedicated to providing out-of-hospital acute medical care and/or

transport to definitive care, to patients with illnesses and injuries which the patient, or

the medical practitioner, believes constitute a medical emergency; and

WHEREAS, the goal of EMS is to provide treatment to those in need of

urgent medical care, with the goal of satisfactorily treating the injury / illness, and

arranging for timely transportation of the patient to the next level of definitive care;

and 

- Page 2 -

Resolution No. 276 August 19, 2014

Creating An EMS Advisory Board For The County Of Ulster

WHEREAS, the term Emergency Medical Service evolved to reflect a change

from a simple transportation system (ambulance service) to a system in which actual

medical care occurred in addition to transportation; and

 WHEREAS, it shall be the duty of such board to cooperate with appropriate

state agencies in relation to such programs for EMS training, EMS-related activities

and mutual aid; to act as an advisory body to the county government and to the

county EMS coordinator in connection with the county participation in such

programs for EMS training, EMS-related activities and mutual aid and mutual aid

programs in cases of emergencies in which the services of EMS providers would be

used; to perform such other duties as may be prescribed in relation to EMS training,

EMS-related activities and mutual aid in cases of emergencies in which the services

of EMS providers would be used; now, therefore, be it

RESOLVED, the Ulster County EMS Advisory Board shall consist of not

more than 21 voting Members to be appointed by the Chairman of the Ulster County

Legislature bi-annually, and is hereby created and established for the purposes of:

i) Advising the Ulster County Legislature on EMS-related issues

ii) Advising the Legislature on the adoption, repeal or amendments to

Laws and Regulations as they relate to Ulster County EMS-related

functions;

and, be it further

RESOLVED, membership of the Ulster County EMS Advisory Board should

include, but not be limited to, representatives from the Ulster County Fire

Coordinator’s Office, volunteer fire departments, ambulance / rescue squads, basic

life support first responder agencies, health care professionals, and local government

officials; and, be it further

RESOLVED, representatives from Ulster County government may be called

upon from time to time to advise the EMS Advisory Board at the request of the

Chairman of the Ulster County Legislature or the EMS Advisory Board; and, be it

further

RESOLVED, the Ulster County EMS Advisory Board shall issue an annual

report to the County Legislature no later than March 1st of the proceeding year,

and move its adoption.

- Page 3 -

Resolution No. 276 August 19, 2014

Creating An EMS Advisory Board For The County Of Ulster

 ADOPTED BY THE FOLLOWING VOTE:

 AYES: 22 NOES: 0

 (Absent: Legislator Fabiano)

Passed Committee: Law Enforcement and Public Safety on August 4, 2014

Passed Committee: Public Health and Social Services on August 4, 2014

FINANCIAL IMPACT:

NONE

STATE OF NEW YORK

 ss:

COUNTY OF ULSTER

This is to certify that I, the undersigned Clerk of the Legislature of the County of Ulster have compared the

foregoing resolution with the original resolution now on file in the office of said clerk, and which was adopted by said

Legislature on the 19th Day of August, 2014, and that the same is a true and correct transcript of said resolution and of the

whole thereof.

IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand and seal of the County of Ulster this 20th Day of August

in the year Two Thousand and Fourteen.

|s| Victoria A. Fabella

Victoria A. Fabella, Clerk

Ulster County Legislature