Some Baltimore County tow truck owners Tuesday said proposed reforms to their industry are neither feasible nor necessary, while others called them long overdue.
Lawmakers are considering legislation aiming to open towing licenses to entrepreneurs by removing a requirement for new companies to identify a need for additional service.
The industry has been limited to about 30 towing licenses ? with only one black-owned ? for decades, a fact Wayne Frazier of the Maryland-Washington Minority Contractors Association called appalling.
“It?s antitrust. It?s anti-business,” Frazier told lawmakers. “You guys should be ashamed of yourself.”
But a key component of the bill calls for a third-party contractor to handle all police-initiated towing jobs in the county.
That contractor would have discretion over which towing companies to subcontract with, but would have to honor current licensees, said Mike Fields, an assistant county attorney.
The contractor, which would be selected through a competitive bid process, must supply computer software for dispatch and real-time monitoring of overcharges and response times, Fields said.
Supporters included county Police Chief James Johnson, who said the system will free up his desk officers who now have to field calls from officers at crash scenes, identify the closest tower, then dispatch them.
The automated system also will mean collisions are cleared away, he said.
But some council members questioned if the plan would be lucrative for a contractor, who would have to invest substantially in the software.
At an estimated $3 to $5 dispatch fee per tow, the contractor could at most net $45,000 a year, they said.
But if left to the contractor to determine, the surcharge could mean much higher costs for consumers, opponents said.
“We want to be clear ? the contractor?s charge will be passed through to customers, much the way that the state sales tax is passed through,” said Richard Pollard, owner of Pollard?s Towing Company.
The council is scheduled to vote on the bill Oct. 1.
CONSUMER PROTECTIONS
The bill also requires towing companies to remain open on weekends and holidays ? and accept credit cards.
