Section 503. Award of grants.
(a) Authorization.--The agency is hereby authorized to make a grant award to each eligible volunteer ambulance service for the following:
(1) Construction and/or renovation of the volunteer
ambulance service's facility and purchase or repair of
fixtures, furnishings, office equipment and support services
necessary to maintain or improve the capability of the
ambulance service to provide ambulance, emergency medical,
basic life support and advanced life support services.
(2) Repair of ambulance equipment or purchase thereof.
(3) Debt reduction associated with paragraph (1) or (2).
(4) Training and certification of members.
(b) Limits.--
(1) Grants shall be not less than $2,500 and not more
than $10,000 per volunteer ambulance service.
(2) Grants may be awarded on a pro rata basis if the
total dollar amount of approved applications exceeds the
amount of funds appropriated by the General Assembly for this
purpose.
(3) If two or more volunteer ambulance services
consolidated their use of equipment, personnel and services
within five years preceding the date of the current year
application submission deadline, the consolidated entity
shall be deemed eligible to receive a grant not to exceed the
amount of the combined total for which the individual
companies would have been eligible had they not consolidated.
(c) Time for filing application and department action.--
(1) Within 30 days of the effective date of this
paragraph for the fiscal years commencing July 1, 2006, and
July 1, 2007, and by September 1 of each year thereafter, the
agency shall provide written instructions for grants under
this act to the president of every volunteer ambulance
service in this Commonwealth.
(2) Within 45 days of the effective date of this
paragraph for the fiscal years commencing July 1, 2006, and
July 1, 2007, and by September 8 of each year, the agency
shall provide applications to the president of every
volunteer ambulance service. The application for the fiscal
years commencing July 1, 2006, and July 1, 2007, shall be a
combined application. Volunteer ambulance services seeking
grants under this act shall submit completed applications to
the agency. The application period shall remain open for 45
days each year. The agency shall act to approve or disapprove
applications within 60 days of the application submission
deadline each year. Applications which have not been approved
or disapproved by the agency within 60 days after the close
of the application period each year shall be deemed approved.
(503 amended June 28, 2007, P.L. , No.10)