Why ambulance fees will double in Kennewick but you’ll still need to pay for the ride
Kennewick city leaders worry that if they don’t do something about their ambulance fees now, they’re not going to be able to keep up with a booming demand in service.
The city’s utility bill fee funding ambulance services will double over the next five years as the city aims to address inflation, rising wages and more calls in the growing community.
City residents currently pay a monthly $15.14 fee on their utility bill. That fee covers part of the cost to operate the city’s EMS units.
But a recent rate study funded by the city government found the amount insufficient to cover existing services and future needs.
Beginning next year, the fee will jump to $19.69 to cover existing services and to add a new six-person, peak-hour unit.
Then, in 2026, the city plans to add a $5.11 charge to hire 14 full-time staff at a future Southridge fire station, increasing the monthly ambulance fee to $25.86.
From there, the charge will gradually increase until it reaches a peak of $30 in 2029.
The Kennewick City Council voted unanimously this week in favor of the new schedule, acknowledging the heavy burden it may have on customers. Over the next two years, revenue from fee increases will generate an additional $6.5 million to cover medical services.
Mayor Gretl Crawford said while nobody likes to pay more for existing services, especially when they feel they may not benefit from them, many constituents tell them they want quality city services funded adequately. These dollars also stay in their community.
“Even though nobody really likes paying a lot of taxes, this is something that I feel is probably necessary to continue the services,” she said.
Recent increases to the fee have been nominal, rising a few percent each year based on the consumer price index.
Like its peers in Richland and Pasco, Kennewick has seen substantial growth in recent years, with developments sprawling south and away from its city center. The city grew by more than 10,000 from 2010 to 2020, according to U.S. Census data, and its current population is estimated to be about 85,000.
As a result, emergency services calls have shot up.
Between 2018 and 2023, Kennewick Fire Department reported a 37% increase in calls each year. More than 13,000 calls were made in 2023 alone.
Fire Chief Chad Michael said it’s gotten to the point where his staff are having a hard time keeping up with demand. He called the utility change increase a “good, positive step” toward addressing rising call volumes.
“If you want to maintain the level of services you have and enhance for growth, then you have to have that change,” Michael said.
Kennewick hopes to build Station 6 at a property near the intersection of Colorado Street and Bob Olson Parkway. The city still needs to decide when to pursue the project, but Michael estimates it will take just two years to design and build the project.
Opening the new station in 2027, as well as staffing it with 14 firefighters and EMT, would cost the city about $2.7 million.
And the demand will be there. Michael estimates annual calls for service to the Southridge station will hit 1,000 the year it opens.
The city also charges patients for each ambulance transportation. Those base rates — $660 for residents and $990 for non-residents, plus $10 per transport mile — will not change with the utility fee increase.
Michael explains that the utility fee covers the availability of the service while the transport charges cover the actual use of the service.
