TURNER — Selectmen raised municipal fees for ambulance service and copies for town forms Monday night.

Selectman Ralph Caldwell pointed out that billing usually covers all of the expenses of the Rescue Department except for major equipment replacement. This year it did not.

Maria Higgins, who does the billing for Turner Rescue, told selectmen that they could raise ambulance fees and still be lower than surrounding towns.

Town policy is to accept Medicare and Medicaid payments for ambulance service, however, most insurance companies will pay more than these rates, according to Higgins. Caldwell made it clear that the town was not going to chase indigents for the price of an ambulance ride.

Many of the other town fees have been unchanged for 15 years and do not adequately cover the town’s cost, according to Selectman Kurt Youland. The rest of the board agreed.

Selectmen agreed when Chairman Angelo Terreri said that the town was providing a service to taxpayers, but also agreed with Caldwell, who said, “People who use the service should expect to pay what it costs for the service.”

Rescue rates will increase as follows:

* Advanced Life Support (ALS) 1 emergency from $405 to $500.

* ALS 2 emergency from $555 to $645.

* ALS transport from $255 to $300.

* Basic life support emergency from $340 to $400.

* BLS transport from $235 to $350.

The fees for most copies of town forms went up to $1. Reproductions went from 25 cents to 50 cents.

Selectmen were interested in encouraging marriages. Caldwell’s motion to reduce the cost of a marriage license was dropped when Town Manager Eva Leavitt said that the state sets the charge at $40.

Selectmen set the fee for a town notary performing a marriage at the town office at $30. The notaries can make their own arrangements for marriages performed on their own time.

Code Enforcement Officer Roger Williams reported problems with the road to the U.S. Cellular cell tower. His major interest was that the road be passable for fire equipment and not cause erosion.

Selectmen gave Williams authorization to proceed with legal action to bring the road into compliance with the permit. Youland accompanied Williams on his inspection.

The town had given U.S. Cellular waivers on the usual specifications for commercial driveway width and slope. The actual slope in one area is 27 degrees, even though the permit specified 16 degrees maximum. Also additional riprap is needed to control erosion.

The town has been under pressure to switch to the Lewiston-Auburn E-911 call center. Selectmen have resisted since the first responders are happy with their present service and the L-A service would be more expensive.

Terreri said the county sheriff is now recommending they use the L-A center.

“Since the sheriff recommended L-A, they have already upped their price so that it will increase the cost to Turner by approximately 50 cents per call to about $5 a call,” Terreri said.

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