R115801
City Council Meeting: April 9, 2024 Santa Monica, California
RESOLUTION NUMBER 11580 (CCS)
(City Council Series)
A RESOLUTION OF THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF SANTA MONICA
OBJECTING TO THE COUNTY OF LOS ANGELES’ IMPLEMENTATION OF THE
CLEAN NEEDLE DISTRIBUTION PROGRAM IN THE CITY OF SANTA MONICA
WHEREAS, at the March 19, 2024, meeting, Council directed the City Manager
and City Attorney to prepare and return for Council approval within 30 days a resolution
expressing the City’s disapproval of Los Angeles County’s implementation of the “Harm
Reduction Services” program, or clean needle distribution program, in the City of Santa
Monica; and
WHEREAS, the Council supports harm reduction services as an option to connect
individuals who are not readily accessing healthcare, behavioral health, and substance
abuse services; and
WHEREAS, according to the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Administration
harm reduction services can:
•Connect individuals to overdose education, counseling, and referral to
treatment for infectious diseases and substance use disorders.
•Distribute opioid overdose reversal medications (e.g., naloxone) to
individuals at risk of overdose, or to those who are likely to respond to an
overdose.
•Lessen harms associated with drug use and related behaviors that increase
the risk of infectious diseases, including HIV, viral hepatitis, and bacterial
and fungal infections.
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•Reduce infectious disease transmission among people who use drugs
(including those who inject drugs) by equipping them with sterile supplies,
accurate information and facilitating referrals to resources.
•Reduce overdose deaths, promote linkages to care, facilitate co-location of
services as part of a comprehensive, integrated approach.
•Reduce stigma associated with substance use and co -occurring disorders.
•Promote a philosophy of hope and healing ― by employing people with
living and lived experience in leadership and in the planning,
implementation, and evaluation of services. People with lived experience
can also model for their peers what meaningful chang e can look like in their
lives.
•Build community and increase protective factors ― for people who use
drugs and their families.
WHEREAS, the Council understands that under the auspices of Los Angeles
County, the Venice Family Clinic provides a range of harm reduction services in Santa
Monica; and
WHEREAS, the Council desires for Los Angeles County in implementing hard
reduction services in Santa Monica to consider the impacts of providing these services in
City parks and near schools and implement alternative approaches; and
WHEREAS, California Health and Safety Code Section 121349.2, states “[l]ocal
government, local health officials, and law enforcement shall be given the opportunity to
comment on clean needle and exchange programs on a biennial basis. The public shall
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be given the opportunity to provide input to local leaders to ensure that any potential
adverse impacts on the public welfare of clean needle and exchange programs are
addressed and mitigated” (emphasis added); and
WHEREAS, in Grant Park Neighborhood Association v. Department of Public
Health et al., the California State Court of Appeal for the Third Appellate District issued
an opinion holding that the Department of Public Health (DPH) failed to follow statutory
procedures to allow local officials and communities to provide input before the DPH
issued a permit to operate a privately run Clean Needle Program in Santa Cruz County.
The essence of the holding is that local communities must be consulted prior to
implementation of the program. However, that consultation is meaningless if the
Department then ignores the input from local officials and the community ; and
WHEREAS, the Council finds it necessary to clarify that it does not object to the
County providing harm reduction services in Santa Monica, but rather the Council objects
to one aspect of harm reduction services that is the provision of clean syringes in or near
City parks and schools; and
WHEREAS, the Council is affirming its request that the provision of clean syringes
must be indoors at more suitable locations; and
WHEREAS, the record should reflect that the City Council, not the City Manager,
City Attorney, nor any other City officials or staff determines official City policy on matters
such as this.
NOW, THEREFORE, THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF SANTA MONICA
DOES RESOLVE AS FOLLOWS:
SECTION 1. The City of Santa Monica supports harm reduction as an important
tool to connect individuals to healthcare, behavioral health, and substance abuse
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resources but objects to the County of Los Angeles Substance Abuse Prevention and
Control Bureau’s (County) distribution of clean needles and other drug paraphernalia in
parks or near schools.
SECTION 2. The City strongly demands that the County relocate the distribution
of clean needles and other drug paraphernalia indoors, away from City parks and schools
and that the program should require a one for one exchange of clean for used needles.
SECTION 3. This resolution shall be transmitted to County officials.
SECTION 4. The City Clerk shall certify to the adoption of this Resolution, and
thenceforth and thereafter the same shall be in full force and effect.
APPROVED AS TO FORM:
_________________________
Doug Sloan, City Attorney
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Adopted and approved this 9th day of April, 2024.
__________________________
Phil Brock, Mayor
I, Nikima S. Newsome, Interim City Clerk of the City of Santa Monica, do hereby
certify that Resolution No. 11580 (CCS) was duly adopted at a meeting of the Santa
Monica City Council held on the 9th day of April, 2024, by the following vote:
AYES: Councilmembers Parra, de la Torre
Mayor Pro Tem Negrete, Mayor Brock
NOES: Councilmembers Zwick, Davis, Torosis
ABSENT: None
ATTEST:
_____________________________________
Nikima S. Newsome, Interim City Clerk
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