Edmond Waiving Utilities Charges For Spouses Of First Responders Killed In Line Of Duty

Edmond City Council approved a measure that waives utilities charges for spouses of Edmond police officers and firefighters who are killed in the line of duty.

Councilmembers unanimously approved the policy on Monday.

"We're the first that we know of in the state of Oklahoma, we believe in the country, to provide a survivor benefit," said Ward 1 Councilmember Tom Robins, who introduced the measure. "In Edmond, our No. 1 priority is to support our police and fire. And when I found out that we owned our own utilities, I just kind of put two and two together and thought, 'Wouldn't it be a good idea to extend this to our police and fire employees?'"

To qualify, a surviving spouse's primary residence has to be within Edmond city limits and be serviced by Edmond Electric and/or Edmond Water Resources.

The passage of the policy came roughly a year after Edmond suffered its first line-of-duty death: Sgt. CJ Nelson.

Edmond resident Jennifer Meyer-Conklin said she's all for the new policy. Her late father, Capt. Charles Meyer, served as a Weatherford firefighter for 25 years. Although he did not die in the line of duty, some of his friends did, Meyer-Conklin said.

"I've never seen anybody work harder and put up with more for the pay that they got. But he didn't do it for the pay," said Meyer-Conklin.

Instead, he did it for his community.

"They saved the people (in a house fire) and then (my father) went back and he had actually saved a mother dog and her puppies and resuscitated one of the puppies and brought them back to life," Meyer-Conklin said.

She added that her father would probably approve of Edmond's new measure as well.

"He was a very big supporter of the families that were left behind." said Meyer-Conklin. "You don't forget about them."

Edmond's policy comes after the city approved new contracts for both the Police and Fire Departments, along with a new program that provides longer maternity and paternity leave for new parents, and paid time off for any city employee adopting or fostering a child, the city said in a news release.