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Title:
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1) Introduction of an Ordinance Amending Title 11, Business Regulations, of the Culver City Municipal Code to Add a New Chapter 11.15 Relating to the Licensing of Tobacco Retailers; and 2) Adoption of a Resolution Establishing a Tobacco Retailer License Fee and Establishing Penalties for Violations of Tobacco Retailer Licensing Regulations.
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City of Culver City, California
City Council Agenda Item Report
RECOMMENDATION:
Staff recommends the City Council (1) introduce an Ordinance amending Title 11,
Business Regulations, of the Culver City Municipal Code to add a new Chapter
11.15 relating to the licensing of tobacco retailers; and (2) adopt a Resolution
establishing a tobacco retailer license fee and establishing penalties for violations
of Tobacco Retailer licensing regulations.
BACKGROUND:
At the City Council meeting of October 27, 2008, several individuals from the
Culver City Youth Against Smoking organization spoke before the City Council
regarding the need for the City to take further action in preventing youth access to
tobacco. The City Council directed staff to return to Council with a proposed
ordinance establishing a tobacco retailer licensing program, similar to what other
communities have instituted in this regard.
Meeting Date: 06/22/09 Item Number: A-3
AGENDA ITEM: 1) Introduction of an Ordinance Amending Title 11, Business
Regulations, of the Culver City Municipal Code to Add a New Chapter 11.15
Relating to the Licensing of Tobacco Retailers; and 2) Adoption of a Resolution
Establishing a Tobacco Retailer License Fee and Establishing Penalties for
Violations of Tobacco Retailer Licensing Regulations.
Contact Person/Dept.: Jeff Muir, Chief
Financial Officer; and Heather Baker,
Assistant City Attorney
Phone Number: 310-253-5865; 310-253-
5660
Fiscal Impact: Yes [X] No [] General Fund: Yes [X] No []
Public Hearing: [] Action Item: [X] Attachments: [X]
Public Notification:
Master E-Mail Notification List (06/17/09); Published in the Culver City News (06/11/09);
County of Los Angeles Department of Health Services, Culver City Chamber of
Commerce, Downtown Business Association, individuals who spoke at prior Council
Meetings (06/ 11/09); Coalition for a Tobacco Free LA County (comprised of over
70 organizations including Culver City Youth Against Smoking – this notification was
emailed courtesy of the County of Los Angeles Department of Health Services)
(06/10/09); Culver City Tobacco Retailers (06/17/09), Culver City businesses with a
Cigarette and Tobacco Products Retailer's License from the State
Department Approval:
Jeff Muir (06/17/09)
Carol Schwab (by H. Baker) (06/17/09)
City Attorney Approval:
Carol Schwab (by H. Baker) (06/17/09)
Chief Financial Officer Approval:
Jeff Muir (06/17/09)
City Manager Approval: City of Culver City, California
City Council Agenda Item Report
DISCUSSION:
Tobacco Retailer Licensing Ordinance
The proposed Ordinance (Attachment 1) includes most of the provisions present
in similar ordinances in other California cities and counties (see matrix of other
cities/counties throughout the state – Attachment 2) and is modeled primarily
after the Ordinances adopted by the cities of Inglewood and Santa Monica, as
well as the Model California Ordinance Requiring a Tobacco Retailer License
provided by the Technical Assistance Legal Center, a project of Public Health
Law & Policy and the Public Health Institute. (collectively, Attachment 3).The
following is a summary of the principal provisions of the proposed Ordinance:
• Requires all sellers of tobacco products and tobacco paraphernalia to have
and display a tobacco retailer license.
• Prohibits tobacco product and paraphernalia sales to minors.
• Provides for suspension of the license after the first and second violations
within five years; and revocation of the license after the third violation within
five years, as well as suspension and revocation on other grounds.
• The administration, enforcement, and education of the program will be funded
by the annual license fee.
Although staff has prepared the proposed Ordinance for consideration, there may
be certain policy decisions the Council may wish to discuss, including the specific
prohibitions to include and how to address repeat violations. For example, the
current draft of the proposed Ordinance includes the regulation of the sale of
tobacco paraphernalia as well as tobacco products. The Council may consider
whether it wishes to solely regulate tobacco products. The prohibitions in the
proposed ordinance are fairly standard in relation to the many similar ordinances
throughout the State. The remedies for repeat violations vary widely in other cities.
Most cities provide for eventual revocation of the license after repeated violations
within a prescribed period (typically three to four violations within a five-year
period). However, the effects of revocation are diverse. Some cities allow the
offending business to re-apply within as little as sixty days. Others appear to
impose a permanent ban upon revocation. Other cities allow the business to re-
apply, but not until a period of five years or sometimes less has elapsed. Under
the proposed Ordinance a licensee whose license has been revoked cannot re-
apply for five years.
Staff has consulted with the City Attorney’s Office and Police Department
regarding the administration and enforcement of the proposed Ordinance. Staff City of Culver City, California
City Council Agenda Item Report
recommends that compliance monitoring and enforcement of the proposed
Ordinance to be coordinated between the Finance and Police Departments, as
well as the Enforcement Services Division of the Community Development
Department. The City Attorney’s Office would prosecute any criminal citations
issued. Staff also recommends the Finance Department oversee the administration
of the license application and fee process.
Resolution Establishing Tobacco Retail License Fee and Establishing Penalties for
Violations of Tobacco Retail Licensing Regulations
The proposed Ordinance requires a Resolution (Attachment 4) be adopted
establishing the annual fee. A survey of other cities with a tobacco retailer
licensing fees is attached (Attachment 5). While it is helpful to see where the
City’s fee is in relation to other communities, it is important to keep in mind that the
City must base its fee on its own costs. Based on staff’s analysis of the time
required by various positions in the Finance Department, Police Department and
City Attorney’s Office to administer this program, the appropriate fee has been
determined to be $235.
In addition, the proposed Resolution establishes the penalties for criminal
violations of the Ordinance. Similar to the fines established for other tobacco-
related violations (i.e. smoking in parks and outdoor dining areas), the proposed
fine structure is as follows:
Infraction: Misdemeanor: |1010|st
violation - $100 1
st
violation - $250 |1010|nd
violation within 1 year - $200 2
nd
violation within 1 year - $500 |1010|rd
& subsequent within 1 year - $500 3
rd
& subsequent within 1 year -
$1,000
FISCAL ANALYSIS:
Adoption of the proposed Ordinance would have minor financial impact. The
administrative and enforcement costs of the proposed tobacco retailer licensing
program would be borne entirely by fees collected from the covered businesses in
the form of the license fee. These fees would be adjusted annually to reflect
actual costs. The collection of fines for criminal prosecution would result in a
negligible source of revenue, as the court receives a portion of such fines and
those funds coming directly to the City would serve to offset costs of the potential
increase in enforcement activity by the Police Department. It is not possible at
this time to quantify an annual revenue receipt amount or forecast how much City of Culver City, California
City Council Agenda Item Report
additional criminal enforcement activity may be expended on this effort. Any fines
received in this regard would be deposited into the General Fund.
ATTACHMENTS:
1. Proposed Ordinance
2. Matrix of other cities/counties ordinances
3. Inglewood and Santa Monica ordinances, and Model California Ordinance
4. Proposed Resolution
5. Survey of other cities’ license fees
MOTION:
That the City Council:
1. Introduce an Ordinance amending Title 11, Business Regulations, of the
Culver City Municipal Code to add a new Chapter 11.15 relating to the licensing of
tobacco retailers; and,
2. Adopt a Resolution establishing a tobacco retail license fee, and establishing
penalties for violations of tobacco retail licensing regulations.