HomeMy Public PortalAboutOrdinance No. 851-98 11-10-1998 ORDINANCE NO. 851_98
AN ORDINANCE AMENDING CHAPTER 1 "GENERAL
PROVISIONS" OF THE CODE OF ORDINANCES OF THE CITY
OF RICHLAND HILLS, TEXAS, AS AMENDED, BY THE
ADDITION THERETO OF A NEW SECTION 14 "STANDARD
OF CARE FOR EMERGENCY ACTION' ; PROVIDING A
SEVERABILTTY CLAUSE; PROVIDING A SAVING CLAUSE;
AND AN EFFECTIVE DATE.
WHEREAS, the City of Richland Hills is surrounded by neighboring cities within
the Dallas/Fort Worth Metroplex; and
WHEREAS, the City of Richland Hills, with or without specific agreement
therefor, on occasion provides mutual aid assistance in fire, police, EMS and other
areas to such neighboring cities; and
WHEREAS, it is desirable to establish a standard of care for emergency action
to expressly authorize City of Richland Hills employees, officers and agents to act in
good faith in reacting to emergency situations; and
WHEREAS, the following ordinance provision is desirable to assure effective
action in emergency situations by those entrusted with the responsibility of saving
lives and property, by protecting the City from liability, and the City's employees,
• agents and officers from non-intentional tort liability to the fullest extent permitted
by law; and
WHEREAS, the accomplishment of the aforestated objectives will be in the best
interests of the health, safety and welfare of the citizens of the City of Richland
Hills, Texas.
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT ORDAINED BY THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY
OF RICHLAND HILLS, TEXAS:
I.
That Chapter 1 "GENERAL PROVISIONS" of the Code of Ordinances of the City
of Richland Hills, Texas, as amended, be hereby amended by the addition thereto of a
new Section 14 "STANDARD OF CARE FOR EMERGENCY ACTION", which new
section shall hereafter be and read as follows:
Section 14 -STANDARD OF CARE FOR EMERGENCY ACTION
Every officer, agent or employee of the City and every officer, agent or
employee of an authorized provider of emergency services, including, but not
limited to every unit of government or subdivision thereof, while responding to
emergency calls or reacting to emergency situations, regardless of whether any
declaration of emergency has been declared or proclaimed by a unit of
government or subdivision thereof, is hereby authorized to act or not to act in
such a manner to effectively deal with the emergency. An action or inaction is
"effective" if it in any way contributes or can reasonably be thought by the
provider of such emergency service to contribute to preserving any lives or
property. This Section shall prevail over every other ordinance of the City and,
to the extent to which the City has the authority to so authorize, over any other
• law establishing a standard of care in conflict with this Section. Neither the
City nor any employee, agent or officer thereof, or other unit of government or
subdivision thereof or its employees, agents or officers shall be liable for failure
to use ordinary care in such emergency. It is the intent of City government, by
passing this ordinance, to assure effective action in emergency situations by
those entrusted with the responsibility of saving lives and property by protecting
such government units from liability, and their employees, agents and officers
from nonintentional tort liability to the fullest extent permitted by statutory
and constitutional law; this ordinance shall be liberally construed to carry out
the intent of City government.
II.
Severability Clause. That it is hereby declared to be the intention of the City
Council that the sections, paragraphs, sentences, clauses and phrases of this
ordinance are severable, and if any phrase, clause, sentence, paragraph or section of
this ordinance shall be declared invalid or unconstitutional by the valid judgment or
decree of any court of competent jurisdiction, such invalidity or unconstitutionality
shall not affect any of the remaining phrases, clauses, sentences, paragraphs and
sections of this ordinance, since the same would have been enacted by the City
Council without the incorporation in this ordinance of any such invalid or
unconstitutional phrase, clause, sentence, paragraph or section.
III.
Saving Clause. That Chapter 1 of the Code of Ordinances, City of Richland
• Hills, Texas, as amended, shall remain in full force and effect, save and except as
amended by this ordinance.
IV.
Effective Date. This ordinance shall be in full force and effect from and after
its passage and publication as provided by the Richland Hills City Charter and the
laws of the State of Texas.
PRESENTED, GIVEN FIRST READING AND APPROVED at a regular meeting of
the Richland Hills City Council on the l~~day of Novotnber 1998, by a vote
of ayes, ~ nays, and ~ abstentions.
APPROVED:
y!
C. F. Kelley, Mayor
ATTEST:
~--~--~J
Terri is, C ty Secretary
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ORDINANCE NO. 851-98 PAGE 2
A AS TO AND LEGALITY:
Jam A Cribbs, City Attorney
rh1ib270/bh/110498
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ORDINANCE NO. 851-98 PAGE 3