SR 07-12-2016 3I
City Council
Report
City Council Meeting: July 12, 2016
Agenda Item: 3.I
To: Mayor and City Council
From: Jacqueline Seabrooks, Police Chief, Police Department
Subject: Accept Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control (ABC) Grant
Recommended Action
Staff recommends that the City Council:
1. Adopt the attached resolution authorizing the acceptance of grant funds in the
amount of $56,540 from the California Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control (ABC)
for the Minor Decoy Program, Shoulder-Tap Program, and IMPACT (Informed
Merchants Preventing Alcohol-Related Crime Tendencies) inspections;
2. Authorize the City Manager to execute all necessary documents to accept the grant;
3. Authorize budget changes as outlined in the Financial Impacts & Budget Actions
section of this report.
Executive Summary
The Santa Monica Police Department (SMPD) has been awarded a California
Department of Alcohol Beverage Control (ABC) grant in the amount of $56,540. Funds
must be used by the end of the grant period, June 30, 2017. No local match is required.
The purpose of this grant is to assist the Police Department in conducting operations to
reduce the instances in which licensed alcohol establishments illegally sell alcohol
and/or furnish alcohol to minors or adults who furnish alcohol to minors, as well as
providing education to merchants through inspections. All enforcement operations
would be conducted on an overtime basis which would be funded by the grant.
Background
The ABC-Office of Traffic Safety Grant Program, previously called the ABC Multi-
Program Mini Grant, provides funding to support three programs; the Minor Decoy
Program, Shoulder-Tap Program, and IMPACT (Informed Merchants Preventing
Alcohol-Related Crime Tendencies) inspections. Funding for the project comes from
the Office of Traffic Safety through the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.
The City has been a recipient of funding from this ABC grant program previously in
2011, 2014 and 2015. The 2016 grant program would provide funding for overtime
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costs associated with education and enforcement operations. The funds must be spent
by June 30, 2017.
Discussion
include the illegal purchasing and distribution of alcohol to minors. With 340 ABC active
licensees, Santa Monica has one of the highest ratios of alcohol establishments-to-
population in the State.
The goal of the Minor Decoy Program is to reduce the number of licensees who sell
alcohol to minors. The Minor Decoy Program uses supervised individuals, who are
under the age of 20, to attempt to purchase alcohol at licensed premises. Any sale of
alcohol to a minor decoy subjects the seller/employee and the licensee to criminal and
administrative sanctions. The Minor Decoy Program has proven to be a significant and
effective tool in promoting responsible practices in the sale of alcoholic beverages by
licensees, reducing substance abuse, and enhancing community welfare by limiting
underage access to alcohol. Following each operation, the Police Department issues a
press release sharing the results of the operation. This strategy serves as a deterrent
by notifying the community that enforcement is happening and encouraging ABC
licensed establishments to follow the laws.
The Shoulder Tap Program targets adults who furnish alc
near off-sale retail outlets. Data collected from prior Shoulder Tap Programs reflected
one-third of the adults arrested for purchasing alcohol for minors were on parole,
probation, or had outstanding warrants or extensive criminal histories. Similarly to the
Minor Decoy Program, the Shoulder Tap Program uses supervised individuals, who are
under the age of 20, to attempt to have an adult purchase alcohol for them at ABC
licensed establishments.
IMPACT Inspections focus on licensee education. Officers randomly select licensed
outlets to conduct business-friendly compliance inspections. The officers look for
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loitering, litter, graffiti, posted sign violations, lack of food service in restaurants, illegal
weapons, or other violations. The licensee must then correct any identified problem
areas. Follow up visits are conducted to ensure the licensee has corrected the problem.
This grant focuses on education and enforcement. The funds would allow the Santa
Monica Police Department to expand its present efforts in identifying and targeting
problematic ABC licensed establishments. The grant would fund ten overtime minor
decoy operations, five shoulder tap operations, five trap door operations, and 40
IMPACT inspections. In addition, Santa Monica would host a LEAD (Licensee
Education on Alcohol and Drugs) class, and conduct three roll call training sessions for
all sworn personnel.
During the 2015 grant period, staff used the grant monies to fund 11 enforcement
operations targeting the illegal distribution and purchasing of alcohol by and to minors.
During the course of the operations, minor decoys visited 10 ABC licensed
establishments and contacted over 122 , resulting in two
citations, and entered 20 establishments to purchase alcohol, resulting in no violations.
In addition, investigations inspected a total of 51 --
censes, resulting in 15 violations and 3 re-inspections. Staff conducted one
LEAD class providing merchant education.
Financial Impacts and Budget Actions
Award of $56,540 grant from the California Alcoholic Beverage Control requires the
following FY16-17 budget changes:
1. Establish revenue budget account 20306.406043 in the amount of $56,540.
2. Appropriate the following expenditure to reflect receipt of California Alcoholic
-OTS grant: $2,000 at account 20306.555291 and
$54,540 at account 20306.511490 89010W.
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Prepared By:
Neela Patel, Senior Administrative Analyst
Approved Forwarded to Council
Attachments:
A. Resolution
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