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La Verne directs staff to study expanding Measure GG to shore up EMS funding
Summary
After a presentation showing a multi-hundred‑thousand dollar shortfall in EMS funding, the council asked staff to return with a detailed Measure GG ballot proposal, outreach plan and revenue projections tied to possible monthly assessment increases.
La Verne’s City Council on June 1 gave staff direction to develop a ballot proposal to update Measure GG, the local paramedic assessment first approved by voters in 1980, citing a growing gap between revenues and the cost to provide modern emergency medical services.
Lede: Fire department leaders told the council Measure GG currently generates about $1.06 million annually while EMS billing brings roughly $1.7 million in net revenue; the estimated annual cost of paramedic and ambulance services is approximately $3.88 million, leaving roughly $1.04 million of annual costs covered from the general fund.
Nut graf: Staff presented several illustrative assessment levels that would increase revenue — for example, raising the assessment to $12.50 per month could generate about $1.92 million annually; $14 per month about $2.15 million; and $15 about $2.3 million — and asked whether the council wanted staff to prepare a formal ballot package and community outreach plan ahead of an upcoming election deadline.
What supporters and staff said: Fire officials described improved clinical outcomes under the current deployment model — CARES cardiac arrest metrics rose from a prior 14.8% to 33.3% with survival to hospital discharge improving from about 3.7% to 11.1% — and said a stable revenue source is needed to sustain advanced life support staffing, equipment replacement and training.
Concerns and choices: Council members and residents asked about the burden on fixed‑income households, alternatives such as a voluntary subscription model, and whether insurance billing could be increased. Staff said billing practices already produce ~ $1.7 million annually and that some uncollected amounts are legally limited by confidentiality and insurance contracts.
Next steps: Council directed staff to return with more detailed financial modeling, legal considerations, outreach plans and proposed escalation mechanisms, and scheduled follow‑up discussion in mid‑June to allow time for public input ahead of an early August filing deadline for a November ballot if the council elects that schedule.
