Government
BY RACHEL LELAND
Also of note
League City ups Dickinson’s EMS fees
City Manager John Baumgartner said that before implementing the fee in 2020, League City received more than 200 calls a year, prompting the city to implement fees. This led to a decrease in calls from Dickinson, who sought EMS support from the Galveston County Health District. A year ago, Galveston County began charging Dickinson for EMS services at a higher rate than League City currently charges, resulting in a higher number of calls in 2026 than previous years. Mayor Nick Long said the city has increased its fleet of ambulances by three in recent years at roughly $500,000 per vehicle. “We’re not profiting from this rate at all,” Long said. “This is the rate that it costs to run those ambulances.”
League City City Council voted 7-1 to amend a mutual aid agreement with Dickinson to increase fees for emergency medical services at its April 28 meeting. The two cities entered into the agreement in 2020, under which the requesting party receives EMS services and later reimburses the other city, according to city documents. However, League City tracked an increase in EMS requests from Dickinson, and the reimbursement rates established in 2020 no longer reflect the cost of maintaining EMS readiness, according to city documents. Council member Sean Saunders opposed the fee increase, saying he understood the charges due to high call volume, but noted other cities don’t do this. Council member Chad Tressler supported it, noting League City charges the fee because neighboring Dickinson has been “abusing” the agreement.
Calls for service from Dickinson
136 143 135
94
7 5 5 6 3
Year
City Council approved the following new rates, which represents an increase of 150% and 70% from 2020 rates, respectively:
$375 per non-transport response
$1,700 per transport
*2026 DATA RUNS THROUGH APRIL 30
SOURCE: LEAGUE CITY/ COMMUNITY IMPACT
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BAY AREA EDITION
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