Aldermen heard a briefing on state legislation—House Bill 83 and Senate Bill 160—that, if enacted as drafted, would require municipalities to reimburse counties for ambulance service in proportion to population share.

Alderman James Baltimore outlined the bills and presented figures from a fiscal example included in the meeting packet. Using the populations cited in the briefing—Dyer County about 36,000 and the city of Dyersburg about 16,000—Baltimore said the city's share would be roughly 44 percent and that, by the packet calculation, the annual reimbursement could amount to $550,000 for Dyersburg. "I personally don't feel that's fair because we live in the city. We pay county taxes," Baltimore said.

Baltimore said he included a fiscal note example in the packet that estimated the legislation could increase local expenditures statewide by significant sums if broadly applied. He told the council the bill, as drafted, would take effect July 1, 2025, if passed and warned of consequential budget impacts to municipalities that do not currently provide ambulance service.

Baltimore said the West Tennessee Mayor's Association and the Tennessee Municipal League were opposing the measure and that the city had sent a letter opposing the proposal. He asked aldermen to contact members of the House subcommittee and provided the committee's contact details that were distributed in the council packet. "If you feel a need to call some folks and let them know how you feel about it, that you oppose it, I appreciate your help," he said.

Council members asked for clarification on immediate operational impacts; Baltimore said the legislation, as described in the packet, would not directly force layoffs of ambulance staff but would shift fiscal responsibility and increase municipal expenditures in many jurisdictions. He said the council would be updated after the subcommittee met later in the week.