Denison City Council voted Monday night to charge fees when the fire department is called to some emergencies.

The fire department cited "increasing costs for providing adequate fire prevention and protection and other public emergency services."

For example, the ordinance said a charge for a crash costs close to $500 an hour without clean-up or extra tools.

But City Manager Jud Rex said if someone can't afford it, they won't bill them.

"You're not going to pass this without a fight," said Joey Steele, who attended the meeting.

The fire department fees received a heated response from some of the crowd Monday night.

"We pay our taxes, we all contribute to the local community here, we are entitled to services like a fire department," Steele said.

The city said the rates would cover emergency and non-emergency services for personnel, supplies and equipment that aren't already covered by taxpayer dollars.

For example, Monday's city council agenda lists a car crash as costing a minimum of around $500 per hour.

A fire could cost more than $1,000 if an engine and truck are used.

The agenda states claims would be itemized based on the services provided.

Rex said the amendment allows the city to bill insurance companies of the parties involved, something already in place for EMS responses.

"This is not money that's going to the Downtown Project or anywhere else. This is really to protect the taxpayers of Denison from extreme examples that happen in the community," Rex said.

He said taxpayer dollars will still fund the fire department with their budget of $5 to $6 million a year.

Any emergencies like crashes, fires or hazmat would be an extra cost billed through insurance.

"Similar to how we run our EMS, if we see that folks are in a position where they can't pay for the fee, cover that expense, we're not going to bill, we're not going to go after that. That's not been our practice in the past and we're not going to do that in the future," Rex said.

Cities like Paris, Gainesville and Sherman don't charge for fire department services.

The Bonham Fire Department started charging for responses a couple weeks ago. They said it's directly billed through insurance and the fees vary depend on the service provided.

For a full list of rates for fire department services, see Related Links.