O26751
City Council Meeting: July 13, 2021 Santa Monica, California
ORDINANCE NUMBER 2675 (CCS)
(City Council Series)
AN ORDINANCE OF THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF SANTA MONICA
AMENDING SANTA MONICA MUNICIPAL CODE SECTION 2.44.050 TO AUTHORIZE
THE CITY ATTORNEY AND THE RISK MANAGER TO SETTLE LIABILITY CLAIMS
UP TO $95,000, AUTHORIZE THE RISK MANAGER TO SETTLE WORKER’S
COMPENSATION CLAIMS UP TO $25,000, AND AUTHORIZE THE CITY MANAGER
TO APPROVE WORKER’S COMPENSATION CLAIMS IN EXCESS OF $25,000
WHEREAS, pursuant to requirements of state law, the City of Santa Monica
participates in California’s Worker’s Compensation program; and
WHEREAS, the Worker’s Compensation program establishes the sole remedy for
employees injured in the course of their employment and operates as a compulsory
scheme of employer liability, irrespective of fault, for injuries arising out of and in the
course of employment; and
WHEREAS, the City’s participation in the Worker’s Compensation program is
administered by the Risk Management Division of the City Manager’s Office; and
WHEREAS, Section 2.44.050 of the Santa Monica Municipal Code authorizes the
City Attorney, or designee, and the Risk Manager to settle liability claims up to $15,000
without City Council approval (the “Staff Liability Settlement Authority”); and
WHEREAS, the Staff Liability Settlement Authority has not been updated or
increased for inflation in several decades; and
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WHEREAS, increasing the Staff Liability Settlement Authority to $95,000 aligns
with existing staff authority to enter into professional service agreements and contractual
services agreements without City Council approval; and
WHEREAS, increasing the Staff Liability Settlement Authority would provide
greater efficiency in operations by reducing the need for settlement recommendation
memoranda, settlement summaries, and reduce the number of closed session items for
the City Council to hear, discuss, and approve; and
WHEREAS, Section 2.44.050 authorizes the Risk Manager to settle worker’s
compensation claims up to $15,000 (the “Risk Manager’s Worker’s Compensation
Settlement Authority”); and
WHEREAS, Section 2.44.050 authorizes the City Manager to approve the payment
of worker’s compensation settlements in excess of the Risk Manager’s Worker’s
Compensation Settlement Authority” by providing notice of such settlements to the City
Council; and
WHEREAS, the majority of worker’s compensation settlements exceed the Risk
Manager’s Worker’s Compensation Settlement Authority; and
WHEREAS, increasing the Risk Manager’s Worker’s Compensation Settlement
Authority to $25,000 would provide greater efficiency in operations by reducing the time
for staff and the City Manager to discuss routine worker’s compensation settlements; and
WHEREAS, increasing the Risk Manager’s Worker’s Compensation Settlement
Authority to $25,000 would also align with existing staff authority to enter into purchases
for convenience as provided in Chapter 2.24; and
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WHEREAS, Section 2.44.060, titled “City Attorney Settlement Authority -- Power,”
was adopted in 1955; does not appear to have since been modified; limits to $750 the
authority of the City Attorney, without City Council approval, to retain medical doctors,
appraisers, accountants, engineers or other professional services necessary to the
defense of any action; and as a result appears inconsistent with Section 2.24.080, titled
“City Attorney Authority,” which was adopted in 2019 and provides the City Attorney,
without a fixed monetary limit, authority to enter into contracts for legal services, including,
but not limited to, services provided by outside legal counsel, investigators, consultants
or experts in conjunction with claims against the City, pending or anticipated litigation, or
administrative or other legal proceedings; and
WHEREAS, Section 2.44.070 provides the City Attorney with specific settlement
authority to resolve specific matters arising from the risks identified in Section 2.44.020;
and
WHEREAS, the specific settlement authority provided in Section 2.44.070 is
unnecessary given the general settlement authority authorized in Section 2.44.050 as
modified by this Ordinance.
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NOW, THEREFORE, THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF SANTA MONICA
DOES HEREBY ORDAIN AS FOLLOWS:
SECTION 1. Santa Monica Municipal Code Section 2.44.050 is hereby amended
to read as follows:
2.44.050 Settlement and payment authority.
The City Attorney, or his or her duly authorized assistant or deputy, and the
Risk Manager are hereby authorized to settle or compromise any liability of the
City, whether a claim has been filed as provided by law or not, in all cases, other
than worker’s compensation claims, where the amount necessary to be expended
in order to settle or compromise such claim does not exceed ninety-five thousand
dollars ($95,000), without the necessity of first receiving the approval of the City
Council, and said City Attorney and Risk Manager in such event are authorized to
request the Director of Finance to draw a demand directly upon the appropriate
self-insurance fund for the payment of such sum. The Risk Manager is authorized
to approve the payment of worker’s compensation settlements up to twenty-five
thousand dollars ($25,000) without City Council approval. Additionally, the City
Manager is authorized to approve the payment of worker’s compensation
settlements in excess of twenty-five thousand dollars ($25,000), and he or she
shall notify the City Council of such settlements. The Director of Finance is
authorized to make payments consistent with the authorization provided in this
Section.
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SECTION 2. Santa Monica Municipal Code Sections 2.44.060 and 2.44.070 are
hereby deleted in their entirety.
SECTION 3. Any provision of the Santa Monica Municipal Code or appendices
thereto inconsistent with the provisions of this Ordinance, to the extent of such
inconsistencies and no further, is hereby repealed or modified to that extent necessary to
effect the provisions of this Ordinance.
SECTION 4. If any section, subsection, sentence, clause, or phrase of this
Ordinance is for any reason held to be invalid or unconstitutional by a decision of any
court of competent jurisdiction, such decision shall not affect the validity of the remaining
portions of this Ordinance. The City Council hereby declares that it would have passed
this Ordinance and each and every section, subsection, sentence, clause, or phrase not
declared invalid or unconstitutional without regard to whether any portion of the ordinance
would be subsequently declared invalid or unconstitutional.
SECTION 5. The Mayor shall sign and the City Clerk shall attest to the passage
of this Ordinance. The City Clerk shall cause the same to be published once in the official
newspaper within 15 days after its adoption. This Ordinance shall become effective 30
days from its adoption.
APPROVED AS TO FORM:
_______________________
GEORGE S. CARDONA
Interim City Attorney
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Approved and adopted this 13th day of July, 2021.
_____________________________
Sue Himmelrich, Mayor
State of California )
County of Los Angeles ) ss.
City of Santa Monica )
I, Denise Anderson-Warren, City Clerk of the City of Santa Monica, do
hereby certify that the foregoing Ordinance No. 2675 (CCS) had its introduction
on June 22, 2021 and was adopted at the Santa Monica City Council meeting
held on July 13, 2021, by the following vote:
AYES: Councilmembers Brock, Davis, de la Torre, Parra,
Mayor Himmelrich, Mayor Pro Tem McCowan
NOES: None
ABSENT: Councilmember Negrete
ATTEST:
_____________________________________ _________________
Denise Anderson-Warren, City Clerk Date
A summary of Ordinance No. 2675 (CCS) was duly published pursuant
to California Government Code Section 40806.
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7/29/2021