(a) There is hereby created in the State Treasury a special revenue fund designated and known as the Emergency Medical Services Salary Enhancement Fund which is an interest- and earnings-accumulating account. The fund is established to support supplementing the salaries of, and providing crisis response for, county emergency medical service personnel as that term is defined in §16-4C-3(g) of this code or a county designated or contracted emergency medical service provider and all moneys must be spent to support increasing salaries of emergency medical service workers and providing crisis response to encourage retention. The fund consists of moneys appropriated by the Legislature, grants, gifts, devises, and donations from any public or private source. All interest and other returns derived from the deposit and investment of moneys in the Emergency Medical Services Salary Enhancement Fund shall be credited to the fund. Any balance, including accrued interest and other returns, remaining in the fund at the end of each fiscal year shall not revert to the General Revenue Fund but shall remain in the fund and be expended as provided in this section. The Director of the West Virginia Office of Emergency Medical Services shall administer the fund.

Terms Used In West Virginia Code 16-4C-25

  • Director: means the Director of the Office of Emergency Medical Service in the Bureau for Public Health. See West Virginia Code 16-4C-3
  • Emergency medical service personnel: means any person certified by the commissioner to provide emergency medical services as set forth by legislative rule. See West Virginia Code 16-4C-3
  • Emergency medical service provider: means any authority, person, corporation, partnership or other entity, public or private, which owns or operates a licensed emergency medical services agency providing emergency medical service in this state. See West Virginia Code 16-4C-3
  • Emergency Medical Services: means all services which are set forth in Public Law 93-154 "The Emergency Medical Services Systems Act of 1973" and those included in and made a part of the emergency medical services plan of the Department of Health and Human Resources inclusive of, but not limited to, responding to the medical needs of an individual to prevent the loss of life or aggravation of illness or injury. See West Virginia Code 16-4C-3
  • Fiscal year: The fiscal year is the accounting period for the government. For the federal government, this begins on October 1 and ends on September 30. The fiscal year is designated by the calendar year in which it ends; for example, fiscal year 2006 begins on October 1, 2005 and ends on September 30, 2006.
  • Oversight: Committee review of the activities of a Federal agency or program.
  • State: when applied to a part of the United States and not restricted by the context, includes the District of Columbia and the several territories, and the words "United States" also include the said district and territories. See West Virginia Code 2-2-10

(b) The Director of the Office of Emergency Medical Services shall propose legislative rules for promulgation and promulgate emergency rules pursuant to the provisions of § 29A-3-15 of this code. These rules shall include a means of distributing any available funds to counties to accomplish the purpose of this section with an emphasis on the following factors:

(1) Counties who may demonstrate the most need;

(2) Counties that have a special levy for emergency medical services;

(3) Counties that have reached the maximum allowable rate on regular levies; and/or

(4) Counties that have a challenge recruiting and retaining emergency medical services personnel due to interstate competition.  

(c) The Office of Emergency Medical Services shall prepare an annual report to the Legislative Oversight Commission on Health and Human Resources Accountability. The report shall provide:

(1) A county-by-county accounting of how the funds were distributed;

(2) An accounting by county of the number of emergency medical service workers receiving a salary enhancement; and

(3) Recommendations for continued funding.

The first report is due by July 1, 2024, and annually thereafter.