By Julie Poppen And Lynn Bartels
Rocky Mountain News
Copyright 2007 Denver Publishing Company
GOLDEN, Colo. — The city of Golden has collected only about a quarter of the nearly $35,000 it has billed for rescues since 2003, according to records obtained by the Rocky Mountain News.
Golden has so far taken in about $9,400 for rescues by firefighters outside the city limits but is still seeking about $14,000. The rest has been written off, reflecting a policy to collect at least some of the costs but also give a break to people who can’t afford to pay.
Most recently, the city forgave most of the cost of rescuing 35-year-old David Seals, of Topeka, Kan.
Seals was billed more than $5,000 for his harrowing June rescue in Clear Creek Canyon. Last month, he settled the account by paying about 10 percent of the fee.
“I think all parties ended up happy with the outcome,” Sabrina D’Agosta, spokeswoman for the city of Golden, said Monday.
The Rocky filed an open records request in July for detailed rescue billing records during the past five years. But William Hayashi, an attorney hired by the city, said much of the information was protected by the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act, otherwise known as HIPAA.
Golden officials would only release the total amount billed and collected per year since 2003.
“We are required by our municipal code to bill for services that happen outside our jurisdiction,” D’Agosta said. “That policy was created because we feel it’s our obligation to our taxpayers to at least attempt to collect on some of our expenses.”
Still, D’Agosta said, the city is willing to negotiate.
“We know that can be a hardship for people,” she said. “But these operations can be very expensive. We try to at least collect on some of that.”
It remains highly unusual for people who haven’t broken the law or rules such as skiing out of bounds to be charged for rescues in Colorado. Earlier this month, rescuers did not bill a Fort Collins couple who got lost on a wilderness hike in and near Rocky Mountain National Park.
If charges do occur, they happen most often in Jefferson County, according to Sue Schneider, who helps administer the Colorado Search and Rescue fund for the Department of Local Affairs in Grand Junction. Jefferson County Sheriff Ted Mink, however, has said that charging for rescues remains rare in his county.
Golden only bills for rescues in places where there is no mutual aid agreement with a fire district. That was the case for Seals, who was hiking on the south side of U.S. 6 near Tunnel 1 in unincorporated Jefferson County.
He injured his ankle and spent a night on a steep hillside. Roughly 30 firefighters from Golden and West Metro Fire Protection District spent about 12 hours negotiating a wet, 600-foot cliff to get him down June 12.
Golden sent Seals a $5,135 bill three days later, a move that attracted criticism from volunteer search and rescue crews. They said charging for rescues can discourage people in need from seeking help.
West Metro backed off plans to charge him $2,400. After numerous contacts by Seals’ hiking buddy, Golden sent Seals a revised bill of $502.11 on Aug. 20. It was promptly paid.
“I wasn’t expecting it to drop quite that low, but it was great that it did,” Seals said Monday.
However, the steakhouse cook is still trying to pay off $2,500 in medical bills.
Bill Barwick, spokesman for the Evergreen-based Alpine Rescue Team, said volunteers from his agency responded to Seals’ rescue but were never deployed.
He said Alpine never bills for a rescue.
“It is our feeling that to delay a call for help due to a fear of being charged could result in someone being injured,” Barwick said.
Colorado has a fund to reimburse volunteer groups or fire departments for search and rescue work.
The fund, however, does not cover salaries or stipends, and $3,300 of Seals’ original bill was for personnel costs. The fund does pay for fuel, repair and rental of fixed-wing aircraft, helicopters, snowmobiles, boats, horses and generators. It also covers mileage, food and lodging for search and rescue volunteers.