Cost of necessary help

Just ran across this blog article during lunch. I had an idea that many cities and agencies probably have a price for 911 calls. I think ours is included within our phone bill/plan. I know in some areas regarding house fires, firefighters may not try to put it out because the family hasn't paid for some kind of tax - I know what its called. Ugh, its on the tip of my tongue. But hell, if I need 911 I'm going to call and I'll dispute the costs later.

In The News: Paying for 911 calls

When the city of Tracy, California, announced it would charge residents $300 for placing a 911 emergency medical call, a solution to municipal deficit mushroomed into a national debate about personal versus governmental responsibility.

Sacramento’s CBS 13 news reported that the city planned to fill some of its $9 million budget deficit by levying 911 fees, giving Tracy residents a choice of paying a “voluntary” annual charge of $48 per household for unlimited 911 calls, or $300 at the time of a call.

Residents were predictably opposed to the plan. “This is a terrible idea,” one commented, “especially when people already pay taxes for emergency services.” Another hypothesized, “I see a cop get shot by a thug. So the city is going to charge me $300 for calling 911?”

The story gathered national attention, culminating with an opinion piece by Thomas L. Friedman in The New York Times. Writing about the Tracy 911 charges in a column entitled “The Fat Lady Has Sung,” Friedman said “it feels as if we are entering a new era” — described by Johns Hopkins University foreign policy expert Michael Mandelbaum as one “where the great task of government and of leadership is going to be about taking things away from people.”

Tell us what you think: Is it right for governments to charge residents for placing 911 emergency calls? How much would you be willing to pay per call?