Wyckoff is lucky to have a volunteer ambulance corps. Senate Bill S1421 could change that.[1]

The legislation, which moved from the Senate to the Budget and Appropriations Committee this month, would require municipalities to formally budget for emergency medical services — just as they already budget for fire and police. The practical effect, officials warned, would be to obligate towns to fund professional EMS operations and potentially phase out the volunteer corps that currently provide first-response care at no cost to taxpayers.

'We have volunteer ambulance corps, which we're lucky to have,' said Committeeman May Bogdansky, herself a member of the Wyckoff ambulance corps.[2] 'But this bill would essentially do away with volunteer EMS.'

Wyckoff's Emergency Medical Services Week proclamation, read earlier in the meeting, recognizes a service provided entirely by volunteers who give thousands of hours annually and receive no compensation.[3] Replacing that level of service with paid staff would add a significant new line to the municipal budget.

The New Jersey Emergency Medical Services community has mobilized against the bill. More than 200 emails opposing the legislation have been sent to senators, Bogdansky said. The outcome remains uncertain as the measure goes through the budget committee process.

'It's another bad thing coming from Trenton,' she said.