O2126
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City Council Meeting 6-15-04 Santa Monica, California
ORDINANCE NUMBER 2126 (CCS)
(City Council Series)
AN ORDINANCE OF THE CITY COUNCil OF THE CITY OF
SANTA MONICA AMENDING SECTIONS 6.04.110, 6.04.160, 6.04.170, 6.04.220,
6.48.010, 6.48.040, 6.48.050, 6.48.060, 6.48.090, 6.48.100, AND 6.48.130, AND
ADDING SECTION 6.48.150 TO THE SANTA MONCIA MUNICIPAL CODE RELATING
TO TAXICAB OWNERS AND DRIVERS
WHEREAS, the City issues permits and licenses to taxicab owners and drivers;
and
WHEREAS, the City Council wishes to ensure the efficient issuance of licenses
and permits and compliance with requirements for taxicab operation; and
WHEREAS, many visitors to Santa Monica utilize taxicabs to travel to the Los
Angeles and Burbank Airports; and
WHEREAS, in order to protect the public welfare the City Council wishes to
ensure clear advance disclosure of the cost of airport transportation and to otherwise
protect the rights of those using taxi services,
NOW, THEREFORE, THE CITY COUNCil OF THE CITY OF SANTA MONICA
DOES HEREBY ORDAIN AS FOllOWS:
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SECTION 1. Santa Monica Municipal Code Section 6.04.110 is hereby amended
to read as follows:
Section 6.04.110 Term of license.
(a) Every daily license shall expire at midnight on
the day during which it was issued.
(b) Every monthly license shall expire at midnight of
the last day of the month during which it was issued.
(c) Every annual license, whether based on gross
receipts or a flat rate, shall expire at midnight on the June
30th next succeeding its issuance unless specified otherwise
in this Code.
(d) The annual license for taxicab owners shall
expire at midnight on the September 30th next succeeding its
Issuance.
SECTION 2.Santa Monica Municipal Code Section 6.04.160 is hereby amended
to read as follows:
Section 6.04.160 Penalties for late payment and
nonpayment.
A penalty of twenty percent of the license fee due, in
addition to the amount of such license fee, shall be levied on
all licensees who fail to pay their yearly license renewal prior
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to September 1 st ("delinquent date") and on all new
businesses operating in the City who fail to secure a
business license within thirty days after opening for
business. In the case of taxicab owners, a penalty of twenty
percent of the license fee due, in addition to the amount of
such license fee, shall be levied on all licensees who fail to
pay their yearly license renewal prior to November 1 st
("delinquent date"). An additional penalty of ten percent of
the original license fee due shall be added for each month or
portion thereof that said license fee remains unpaid after the
delinquent date. In no case, however, shall the penalty
exceed one hundred percent of the original license fee due.
SECTION 3.Santa Monica Municipal Code Section 6.04.170 is hereby amended
to read as follows:
Section 6.04.170 Waiver or refund of penalty.
(a) No penalty assessed pursuant to Section
6.04.160 shall be waived or refunded except as provided for
in this Section.
(b) The City Manager or his or her designee may
waive or refund a penalty assessed pursuant to this Section
upon receiving satisfactory proof that the licensee mailed the
business license payment prior to September 1 st of the year
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in which it was due and that the failure of the payment to be
postmarked prior to September 1 st of the year in which it
was due or delivered was based upon operational problems
caused by the United States Postal Service. In the case of
taxicab owner licensees, the City Manager or his or her
designee may waive or refund a penalty assessed pursuant
to this Section upon receiving satisfactory proof that the
licensee mailed the business license payment prior to
November 1st of the year in which it was due and that the
failure of the payment to be postmarked prior to November
1st of the year in which it was due or delivered was based
upon operational problems caused by the United States
Postal Service.
(c) Satisfactory proof must include documentation
from the United States Postal Service that unusual
operational problems or natural disasters occurred that
created the possibility that the postmark was delayed or the
mail lost. In addition, the City Manager may require such
other documentation as is necessary to verify the claim,
such as bank, checking, and other accounting records that
might corroborate the claim that payment was timely
deposited in the mail.
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(d) No interest shall be paid on any money refunded
pursuant to this Section.
(e) The decision of the City Manager shall be final
and not subject to additional hearing or review.
SECTION 4.Santa Monica Municipal Code Section 6.04.220 is hereby amended
to read as follows:
Section 6.04.220 Annual statement of licensee.
(a) Filing of Statement. Except as provided in
subsection (b) below, in all cases where the amount of
license to be paid by any person is based upon the amount
of gross receipts, or upon the number of vehicles used, such
person or entity, before obtaining a license for such business
and within sixty days after the beginning of each license
period, shall file with the Director of Finance a written
statement in the form required by the Director of Finance,
supported by such documentation requested by the Director
of Finance, showing the total amount of gross receipts
during the preceding calendar year, or the number of
vehicles used at the date of such statement.
(b) Taxicab Business License. A person or
entity seeking a taxicab business license shall file the
Statement described in subsection (a) above before
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obtaining a license and within thirty days after the beginning
of the taxicab license period.
(c) Contents of Statement. Any statement filed
pursuant to this Section shall be signed and shall contain the
following:
"I declare, under penalty of making a false
declaration, that I am authorized to make this statement and
to the best of my knowledge and belief it is a true, correct
and complete statement, made in good faith for the period
stated. "
For making a false statement or declaration the
person signing the statement shall be guilty of a
misdemeanor.
(d) Confidentiality as to Gross Receipts.
Information filed pursuant to this Section as to the gross
receipts of a particular person or entity shall be confidential
in character and shall not be subject to public inspection. It
shall be the duty of the Director of Finance to preserve and
keep such gross receipts information so that it may not
become known except to the persons charged by law with
the administration of this Code.99
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(e) Statement Not Conclusive. No statement filed
pursuant to this Section shall be conclusive upon the City or
upon any officer thereof as to the matters therein set forth,
and the same shall not prejudice the right of the City to
recover any amount that may be ascertained to be due from
such person in addition to the amount shown by such
statement should it be found to be incorrect.
(f) Newly Established Business License
Renewal. In any case where an original license is to be
issued for a newly established business, the minimum tax
applicable for that type of business shall be paid for the
original license. At the date of renewal, if such business is
subject to a business license tax based upon gross receipts,
an additional fee shall be charged, based upon the gross
receipts of such business during the prior year, at the tax
rate applicable for such business, after deducting from the
amount so found to be due the amount paid at the time such
original license was issued.
(g) Accuracy of Statement Subject to Audit. The
correctness of any statement filed pursuant to this Section
shall be subject to audit and verification by the Director of
Finance, who is hereby authorized and empowered to
inspect and audit the books and records of any and all
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persons licensed to carry on any business specified in this
Code. No person licensed to carry on any business specified
in this Code shall refuse or fail to allow the Director of
Finance to inspect and audit such books and records or shall
refuse or fail to provide such additional information as
requested by the Director of Finance.
(h) Failure to File Statement. If any person or
entity required to file any statement pursuant to this Section
shall fail to do so such person shall be guilty of a violation of
this Code.
SECTION 5.Santa Monica Municipal Code Section 6.48.010 is hereby amended
to read as follows:
Section 6.48.010 Definitions.
For the purposes of this Chapter certain words and
phrases are defined and certain provisions shall be
construed as herein set forth, unless it is apparent from the
context that a different meaning is intended.
(a) Driver. "Driver" includes every person in charge
of driving or operating any motor-propelled vehicle for hire
mentioned in this Section, either as agent, employee, or
otherwise. This does not include a person renting or leasing
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a vehicle for a period of time to be driven by himself or
herself or his or her designee.
(b) Vehicle for Hire. "Vehicle for hire" includes
every automobile or motor-propelled vehicle, other than
taxicabs, not equipped with a taximeter, used for
transportation of passengers within and without the
boundaries of the City not over a defined route, at rates per
mile, per trip, per hour, per day, per week or per month.
"Vehicle for hire" includes both taxicabs and limousines for
hire as defined in this Section. This does not include
vehicles leased or rented for a period of time to be driven by
the lessee or his or her designee.
(c) Stand. "Stand" is a place designated by the
Parking and Traffic Engineer of the City for use by any
taxicab or vehicle for hire licensed hereunder while awaiting
employment.
(d) Taxicab. "Taxicab" includes automobile and
motor-propelled vehicles equipped with a taximeter used for
the transportation of passengers for hire within and without
the boundaries of the City not over a defined route. The
route traveled by such vehicle is determined by the
passenger hiring the vehicle.
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SECTION 6.Santa Monica Municipal Code Section 6.48.040 is hereby amended
to read as follows:
Section 6.48.040 Police permit required.
(a) Application. No person shall drive a vehicle for
hire to pick up or attempt to pick up passengers, and no
person who owns or controls any such vehicle for hire shall
allow any vehicle for hire to be so used, unless the driver
has a valid Police permit issued under the provisions of this
Section for each taxicab company for which he or she is
driving. In order to obtain a Police permit, each person shall
file with the City's License Office, upon forms supplied by the
City, a verified application containing the following
information:
(1 ) Name and address of applicant;
(2) Convictions, if any, in any court of law;
(3) Certification of the owner by whom he or she is
to be employed as a driver in the City;
(4) Proof of a valid California Driver's License;
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(5) A signed agreement to submit to a background
investigation and fingerprinting by the Police Department;
(6) Original test results from a certified laboratory or
testing agency, submitted simultaneously with the applicant's
verified application, proving that the applicant has tested
negative for drugs and alcohol as provided by Section
53075.5(b)(3) of the California Government Code; and
(7) Such further information as the City may require.
Self-employed independent drivers shall be
responsible for compliance with, and shall pay all costs of,
the drug and alcohol tests described above with regard to
themselves. Employers shall be responsible for compliance
with, and shall pay all costs of, the drug and alcohol tests
with respect to their employees and potential employees,
except that an employer may require employees who test
positive to pay the costs of rehabilitation and of return-to-
duty and follow-up testing.
(b) Permit Applicant Investigation. The Police
Department shall conduct an investigation of each applicant
for a Police permit and shall indicate its approval on the
application or, if disapproved, the reason therefor. The
Police Department may disapprove any applicant who has a
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record of criminal conduct or other behavior involving any of
the following:
(1 ) Moral turpitude;
(2) Violence toward persons or property;
(3) Physical or mental disease which could make
the applicant a danger to the safety of others;
(4) Illegal sexual conduct involving another
nonconsenting person;
(5) Negligent or reckless driving;
(6) Operating a motor vehicle while under the
influence of alcohol or drugs; or
(7) Acts showing the applicant to be otherwise
, incompetent or not fit to drive a vehicle for hire.
(c) Permit Issuance. The Police Department shall,
upon consideration of the application and investigation,
approve or deny the Police permit. No permit shall be issued
to any person under the age of eighteen years, where any
false statement appears in the application, or if the
application is otherwise incomplete.
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Upon approval of an application and receipt of the
applicable fees, the Police Department shall issue a Police
permit to the applicant. The permit shall bear the name and
photograph of the applicant, date of expiration of the permit,
and the name of the taxicab company for which the driver is
authorized to drive a vehicle for hire.
(d) Permit Expiration. A Police permit shall expire
on September 30th of each year, unless revoked,
suspended, or terminated prior to that date. A Police permit
which has not been revoked, suspended, or terminated may
be renewed annually by paying the appropriate fee and by
filing with the City, on forms supplied by the City, a
verification that the driver is in compliance with the
provisions of this Section, and test results from a certified
laboratory or testing agency proving that the applicant has
tested negative for drugs and alcohol as provided by Section
53075.5(b)(3) of the California Government Code.
(e) Effect of Termination of Employment. The
Police permit shall become void upon termination of
employment. Upon termination of a driver's employment, the
owner by whom such driver has been employed, shall
immediately give the City written notice of the termination,
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and the terminated driver shall immediately return the Police
permit to the City.
(f) Grounds for Suspension and Revocation.
Any Police permit issued under the provisions of this
Section, and any business license issued under Section
6.48.030, may be suspended or revoked for any of the
following reasons:
(1 ) Violation of any provision of this Section by a
I' holder or employer of the holder of such permit; and
(2) The existence of any facts, which would have
been good reason to deny such permit when applied for,
regardless of when such facts arose.
SECTION 7.Santa Monica Municipal Code Section 6.48.050 is hereby amended
to read as follows:
Section 6.48.050 Rules and regulations.
The City Manager shall have the authority to adopt
such rules and regulations as in his or her judgment are
necessary for the service and safety of the operators, the
public and the owners of the vehicles used herein. Any rules
and regulations so promulgated shall be filed in the office of
the City Clerk where they shall be kept on file and made
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available for inspection by the public. For purposes of
enforcement, violations of any such rules and regulations
issued under this Section shall have the same force and
effect as violations of provisions of the this Chapter, and
subject to the penalties set forth in Section 6.48.140.
Licenses and permits under this Section are subject to all the
provisions of this Code regarding licenses and permits in
Chapters 6.04, 6.08, 6.12, 6.14 and 6.16 of this Code.
SECTION 8.Santa Monica Municipal Code Section 6.48.060 is hereby amended
to read as follows:
Section 6.48.060 Compulsory insurance coverage.
Before any license is issued or renewed, the owner of
the vehicle for hire shall be required to file with the License
Office and, thereafter, keep in full force and effect a policy of
insurance in the form and in the amount specified in the
rules and regulations adopted by the City Manager pursuant
to Section 6.48.050 of this Chapter. This policy must be
executed by an insurance company, acceptable to the City,
insuring the public against any loss or damage that may
result to any person or property from the operation of such
vehicle. No person shall operate any such vehicle without
having a policy as described in this Section in full force and
effect at all times during the operation of such vehicle.
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SECTION 9.Santa Monica Municipal Code Section 6.48.090 is hereby amended
to read as follows:
Section 6.48.090 Taxicab signs.
Vehicle owners and drivers shall ensure compliance
with the following signage requirements:
(a) In every taxicab there shall be displayed in the
rear of the driver's seat and in the passenger's compartment
and in full view of the passenger two cards not less than
two by four inches nor more than two and one-half by five
inches which state the following in the format required by
the City Manager:
(1) on the first card: the licensee's name under which
he operates and the business address and telephone
number of the licensee, together with the rates to be
charged by the vehicle; and
(2) on the second card: "COMPLAINTS? Call the
City Of Santa Monica's Hotline, " followed by the City-
provided telephone number. This card shall contain the
hotline telephone number provided by the City.
(b) Every taxicab shall have printed upon the door of
such cab the name of the licensee under which the cab is
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operated, together with the telephone number and the cab
number. The number of the cab and the telephone number
shall also be printed upon the rear of such vehicle. All of the
lettering mentioned in this Section shall not be less than two
and one-fourth inches in height and not less than five-
sixteenths of an inch.
(c) Every taxicab may have an electrically lighted
vacant sign attached to the top of such cab. Every such sign
shall be not more than two and one-half inches high by nine
inches in length.
SECTION 10.Santa Monica Municipal Code Section 6.48.100 is hereby amended
to read as follows:
Section 6.48.100 Taximeters and Flat Rates.
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(a) All taxicabs shall have a taximeter placed so that
the reading dial displaying the amount to be charged is well
lighted and readily discernible by the passenger riding in
such taxicab. Except as provided in subsection (b), no
taxicab charge shall exceed the amount displayed on the
taximeter.
(b) If the taxicab service is to the Los Angeles Airport
or the Bob Hope Airport (Burbank), the charge must be a flat
rate registered with the City pursuant to Section 6.48.031 of
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this Chapter. The flat rate for service to these airports must
be posted in each taxicab, along with the other rates to be
charged, pursuant to Section 6.48.090 (a)(1) of this
Chapter.
(c) No driver of any taxicab upon receiving payment
of a fare thereon shall refuse to give a receipt upon the
request of any passenger making said payment.
SECTION 11.Santa Monica Municipal Code Section 6.48.130 is hereby amended
to read as follows:
Section 6.48.130 License decals required on taxis
and vehicles for hire.
(a) In all instances in which a business license is a
prerequisite for the use of any taxi or vehicle for hire, upon
receipt of the appropriate fees, including a decal fee~ a decal
shall be issued by the City. Such decal shall be affixed by
the Police Department on the assigned vehicle to the driver's
side upper lefthand corner of the rear windshield or, if there
is no rear window, it shall be affixed to the driver's side in the
lower lefthand corner of the front windshield.
(b) No decal issued pursuant to this Section shall be .
in any manner transferred or assigned. If a person or entity
that has been issued a decal transfers, assigns, or otherwise
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allows such decal to be used by another person or entity,
such decal shall be automatically revoked.
(c) No decal required pursuant to this Section shall
be issued to any applicant until that applicant has paid all of
his or her outstanding parking citations, including all civil
penalties and related fees.
SECTION 12.Pro-Rated Taxicab Business License Tax for July 1, 2004 through
September 30,2004.
(a) All persons subject to the taxicab business license requirement established
by Santa Monica Municipal Code Section 6.48.030 for the 2003-2004 fiscal year must
pay a one-time fee in the amount of $62.50. This prorated business license tax is for
the three-month interim period from July 1, 2004 to September 30, 2004, and it must be
paid at the time of renewal for the 2004-2005 taxicab business license.
(b) Upon payment of the prorated business license tax:
(1) Business licenses issued pursuant to Santa Monica Municipal Code Section
6.48.030 and due to expire June 30, 2004, will be extended until September 30,2004.
(2) Vehicle decals issued pursuant to Santa Monica Municipal Code Section
6.48.130 and due to expire June 30, 2004, will be extended until September 30, 2004.
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(3) Police permits for vehicles issued pursuant to Santa Monica Municipal Code
Section 6.14.080 and due to expire June 30, 2004, will be extended until September 30,
2004.
(4) Taxicab drivers' Police Permits issued pursuant to Santa Monica Municipal
Code Section 6.48.040 and due to expire June 30, 2004, will be extended until
September 30,2004.
SECTION 13. 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 14. 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.
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SECTION 15. 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 thirty days after its adoption.
APPROVED AS TO FORM:
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Approved and adopted this 15th day of June, 2004.
R~ Mayor
State of California )
County of Los Angeles) ss.
City of Santa Monica )
I, Maria M. Stewart, City Clerk of the City of Santa Monica, do hereby certify that the
foregoing Ordinance No. 2126 (eeS) had its introduction on June 8,2004, and was
adopted at the Santa Monica City Council meeting held on June 15, 2004, by the
following vote:
Ayes: Council members: Mayor Bloom, Mayor Pro T em McKeown, Genser,
Feinstein, Katz, Holbrook, O'Connor
Noes: Council members: None
Abstain: Council members: None
Absent: Council members: None
ATTEST:
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Maria M. Stewart, City
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