For the first time residents will be billed directly for ambulance service under one of several measures aldermen approved Monday to balance the city’s 2003-04 budget.
The $340.13 fee for advanced life support services and $286.43 for basic life support are expected to generate $443,400. The fee was considered less onerous than raising taxes or creating new ones because Medicare and private insurance typically cover the fee.
The council also approved a $40.1 million budget for 2003-04 that includes $4.9 million for the Public Library and nearly $33.4 million to cover town operating expenses.
The total budget represents a 0.5 percent increase over the current budget, and the operating budget reflects a 4.4 percent increase.
Non-resident ambulance fees and the parking garage tax at Lutheran General Hospital are expected to raise $136,200. Another $670,000 was cut from funding requests submitted for the budget, including $27,100 for aldermanic pay raises and $100,000 from the funds used to fight expansion of O’Hare International Airport.
