title
An Ordinance of the County of Allegheny, Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, establishing a policy of providing for an allocation for children's care or services when the County provides hospital funding through a direct appropriation, a subsidy or deferment of taxes, a bond project, or appropriate grant funded project.
body
WHEREAS, the County of Allegheny believes that improving the conditions under which children experience long term stays in our local hospitals is crucial to maintaining both the dignity and the morale of children who must endure long term stays in hospitals; and
WHEREAS, when utilizing public money for capital projects within the County, even as a subsidy or deferment, the public should receive some type of return on its investment that is beneficial to the general public; and
WHEREAS, establishing a policy in which a specific allocation is set aside for children's care or services enhances the abilities of local hospitals to care for children throughout the County; and
WHEREAS, it is the desire of Allegheny County Council, in cooperation with the Chief Executive, to continue to improve the health care experiences of its children through its support of financing improvements to local hospital facilities;
The Council of the County of Allegheny hereby enacts as follows:
Section 1. Policy Providing for Enhancements to Children's Health Care in Allegheny County
A. It shall be the policy of Allegheny County to provide a specific allocation for enhancements to children's health care facilities when the County, or its defined authorities, provide appropriations for capital improvement projects, including eligible bond projects, eligible grant-funded projects, and other eligible capital projects funded from other sources. Such allocation shall be used to improve the quality of children's stays in local hospitals by improving the various hospitals' ability to provide for children's entertainment, comfort, and other needs.
Section 2. Eligible Projects and Set-Asides
A. Any project that is paid for wholly, or in part, by the County, or the issuance of bonds by the County, for the construction or improvement of any hospital, other than routine or periodic maintenance, shall set-aside $50,000 of the County's authorized allocation, to the extent that such set-aside would not violate local, state or federal law.
B. Any project that is directly paid for wholly, or in part, by the Allegheny County Hospital Development Authority, or the issuance of bonds by such authority, for the construction or improvement of any hospital, other than routine or periodic maintenance, shall set-aside $50,000 of the County's authorized allocation, for use in improving children's care facilities when the Authority's contribution to said project exceeds $100,000, to the extent that such set-aside would not violate local, state or federal law. For avoidance of doubt, this Section does not apply to funds which are the subject of a loan, or any similar transaction, by any such authority to a third party.
C. No set-aside shall be required to be made until such time that the contract or agreement for completion of a specific project that meets the qualifications of this Ordinance is executed.
D. County Council may by Resolution, by majority vote, exempt any project from the scope of this ordinance prior to the execution or authorization of any project agreement.
Section 3. Use of Set-Asides
A. In each contract or agreement for the construction or improvement of any hospital for which a set-aside is made under the terms of this Ordinance, the hospital's foundation shall make a final determination within six months of execution of the contract or agreement for completion of a specific eligible project of what equipment or services are to be purchased, the vendor(s) for such equipment or services, and any rules governing the use of purchased equipment or services, so long as this determination is consistent with the policy articulated in Section 1 of this Ordinance. In the event that such a determination is not made within six months of execution of the contract or agreement, the set-aside funds shall revert to the budget for the eligible project from which the set-aside was originally taken.
Section 4. Severability. If any provision of this Ordinance shall be determined to be unlawful, invalid or unenforceable, then that provision shall be considered severable from the remaining provisions of this Ordinance which shall be in full force and effect.
Section 5. No Private Right of Action. Allegheny County, Pennsylvania shall have the sole right and authority to enforce this Ordinance. This Ordinance does not grant any individual, group of individuals, organization, entity or any other person any right to bring any action in or before a court, administrative agency or board or any similar body to enforce the provisions of this Ordinance.
Section 6. Any resolution or Ordinance or part thereof confliction with the provisions of this Ordinance is hereby repealed so far as the same affects this Ordinance.