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HomeMy WebLinkAboutAdministrativeReviewBoard_Proposed19-21MCGoals_AsApproved2019-21 Financial Plan Proposed Major City Goals Administrative Review Board Background The Administrative Review Board serves as the final decision maker for the City on administrative appeal hearings relating to administrative citations issued for certain contested San Luis Obispo Municipal Code enforcement matters that require a more detailed administrative record. Goals 1. Consistency in enforcement of existing municipal code by citing officers; consistent interpretation of existing municipal code by hearing officers when reviewing citations that are appealed; and raising fines for administrative citations. The goal of more consistent enforcement and adherence to the municipal code by citing officers and hearing officers would be to increase education of the public as to what the requirements of the municipal code are and to reinforce the City’s commitment to consistent enforcement and review when it comes to violations of the municipal code related to neighborhood wellness. With the ongoing, excellent efforts of Police Department, Office of Neighborhood Outreach, the suggestion is for citing officers and hearing officers to support that outreach through increased attention to consistency in enforcement and administrative appeals review. The ARB also suggests review of the level of administrative citation penalties. 2. Increase the cost to appeal to the Administrative Review Board and establish a fee to appeal to a Hearing Officer. Increasing the cost to appeal to the Administrative Review Board so the amount more closely covers the administrative cost of processing the appeal, with the goal of removing more of the financial burden on the City. In line with that increase, the ARB suggests requiring the fines for administrative citations appealed for Hearing Officer review be paid up front and held until the Hearing Officer issues a decision to prevent the filing of appeals solely for the purpose of delaying payment of penalties and resulting “no show” appellants and unnecessary burdens on volunteer Hearing Officer time. Review of an appeal by a Hearing Officer is currently free. If the appeal was granted, the fine would be returned to the appellant. Indigent appellants may submit a financial hardship waiver request through which an appellant could be heard by the Administrative Review Board or a Hearing Officer without having to pay a fee. 3. Enforce the requirement of individual rideshare operators (such as driver-contractors for Uber and Lyft) to have a business license issued by the City. It was confirmed with our Finance Department that other cities, such as San Francisco, have a process by which they receive a list of driver-contractors operating in their jurisdiction in order to enforce the cities’ requirement that each driver-contractor have a business license. The list is provided to the cities by the parent corporation and then utilized by the cities to enforce the code. The goal of this effort would be to increase safety of users by having, at minimum, a list of driver- 2019-21 Financial Plan Proposed Major City Goals contractors operating in the City and making the driver-contractors aware that they are on such a list and subject to business license requirements. 4. Expand education of homeowners regarding their obligation to have a business license if they are renting a room, Accessory Dwelling Unit or home, as a step towards stricter enforcement. It is the belief of the Administrative Review Board that a majority of homeowners within the City are unaware that they are required to have a business license in order to rent rooms in their home, or to rent Accessory Dwelling Units (“ADUs”) or homes that they own. There have been recent educational efforts around ADUs, but the global applicability of the business license may not be well understood. Also, enhance education regarding the differences in requirements between long-term and homestay (short-term) rentals. The goal of greater education would be greater compliance, with the follow-up being increased citations for non-compliance.