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TRENTON – A bill sponsored by Senators Joseph F. Vitale and Bob Smith to authorize local governments to issue five-year bonds for the reimbursement of an ambulance, rescue vehicle or similar public safety vehicle was approved by the Senate yesterday by a vote of 36-1.

“The fleets of public safety vehicles that serve New Jersey residents are a vital component in the State’s network of rapid response health care,” said Senator Vitale, D-Middlesex. “A state of the art ambulance or rescue vehicle can mean the difference between life or death for patients being transported to a hospital or other primary care facility. Municipalities need to have access to greater bonding ability to keep their rescue vehicles and ambulances in top condition.”

TRENTON – A bill sponsored by Senators Joseph F. Vitale and Bob Smith to authorize local governments to issue five-year bonds for the reimbursement of an ambulance, rescue vehicle or similar public safety vehicle was approved by the Senate Community and Urban Affairs Committee today by a vote of 3-0.

“This past weekend, we’ve seen firsthand the necessity of having well-equipped local rescue and first aid squads, as they played a key role in providing care to local residents who were affected by the winter storm,” said Senator Vitale, D-Middlesex. “Without quality rescue vehicles able to contend with snow drifts that were at least a foot high in most areas of the State, many of our first aiders would not have been able to reach those in need of serious medical assistance. Empowering local governments to fund rescue and first aid vehicle refurbishment is necessary to continue to allow local agencies to provide top notch services to our communities.”