HomeMy WebLinkAboutAGENDA REPORT 1988 1219 CC ADJ ITEM 08IJOHN PATRICK LANE
Mayor
ELOISE BROWN
Mayor Pro Tern
JOHN GALLOWAY
Councilmember
CLINT HARPER, Ph.D.
Councilmember
BERNARDO M. PEREZ
Councilmember
MAUREEN W. WALL
City Clerk
TO:
FROM:
DATE:
MOORPARK
M E M O R A N D U M
The Honorable City Council
ITEM g. Z.
STEVEN KUENY
City Manager
CHERYL J. KANE
City Attorney
PATRICK RICHARDS, A.I.C.P.
Director of
Community Development
R. DENNIS DELZEIT
City Engineer
JOHN V. GILLESPIE
Chief of Police
Susan Cauldwell, Administrative Assistano
December 14, 1.988
SUBJECT: FORMATION OF JPA WI'T'H OTHER VENTURA COUNTY
CITIES TO PURSUE, LITIGATION AGAINST THE
COUNTY OF VENTURA RELATIVE TO DRUNK DRIVING
FINES
Background
In August 1987, the Municipal Court began sentencing all convicted
drunk drivers to formal (as compared to summary) probation. By
doing so, Ventura County is able to retain 100 percent of all fines
collected (according to Penal Code Section 1203) . Prior to this action
(under Penal Code 1463) cities received 84 percent of drunk driving
fines and the county received 16 percent. Thus, we are currently not
receiving any revenue to support our enforcement of drunk driving
laws.
Ventura County's Position
The County contends that the cities' shares of drunk driving fines are
needed to support its "get tough" formal probation approach with drunk
drivers. While no city is opposed to a "get tough" approach, the
information supplied by the County does not support its contention of
formal probation. For example, although the county stated that 11
probation officers and 4 support personnel would be needed to staff the
unit, only 7 probation officers were actually hired. Current
statistics indicate that 1491 first time offenders are assigned to a
single probation officer. For non -drunk driving caseloads, the ratio
is 800 to 1 probation officer. Additionally, "formal" probation for
first time offenders consists of one group meeting upon conviction and
periodic reporting by mail to the probation officer.
799 Moorpark Avenue Moorpark, California 93021 (805) 529 -6864
The Honorable City Council
December 14, 1988
Page 2
A Ventura County Association of Governments (VCAG) subcommittee
(including Mayor Brown) met with County representatives to discuss
this issue. The county declined to return any of the fine revenues
contending that their "formal." probation program justified the
retention of these fines.
Fiscal Impact
Our Police Department estimates that we have approximately 12 drunk
driving convictions per month. The city's portion of this revenue
(assuming it is all collected) was estimated to be $110,000 annually.
JPA Formation
Because the revenue loss is substantial and because negotiations with
the county have reached an impasse, the cities feel litigation is in
order. The cities have been in contact with an attorney who has
pursued similar litigation for other cities and feels Ventura County
cities have a "good chance of prevailing if they were to bring suit
against the county." A similar strategy was recently used successfully
by the cities in Contra Costa County.
The attached JPA is supported by the elected city officials serving on
the Association of Ventura Country Cities (AVCC) . Moreover, at the
November 15, 1988 AVCC meeting, all cities agreed to obtain council
approval of the attached JPA by December 15, 1988.
The JPA authorizes the filing of a. claim against Ventura County for the
purpose of "insuring the proper distribution of fines and forfeitures
under Penal Code Section 1463" and names all 10 cities in the county as
party to the suit. The JPA also authorizes the formation of an
administrative committee comprised of
1 Mayor
1 City Manager
1 Finance Director, and
1 City Attorney
which will all be selected by members of AVCC whose cities are parties
to the agreement. The committee is authorized to perform all acts
necessary to execute and administer the JPA except for any settlement
agreement which requires the unanimous consent of all parties to the
agreement.
The JPA also establishes the method of payment incurred expenses.
Each city will pay a percentage of the expenses based on its population
relative to all participating cities. Moorpark's percentage is
estimated to be 4.1 percent. First year expenses are estimated to be
$25,000; Moorpark's share would be $1,025.
The Honorable City Council
December 14, 1988
Page 3
Staff Recommendations
1. That the City Council authorize the Mayor to sign a Joint Exercise
of Powers Agreement for the purpose of pursuing litigation against
the County of Ventura relative to the distribution of drunk
driving fines, and
2. That the City Council appropriate $1,200 ($1025 plus $175
contingency) from the general fund reserve to pay for the City of
Moorpark's estimated first year share of the litigation expense.
"A `c-N- CIA
C:'y 3
Attachment
AC; ON:
SC/Is By
DCM . 8811301
JOINT EXERCISE OF POWERS AGREEMENT
BY AND AMONG THE CITIES OF THE COUNTY OF VENTURA
1_ Parties. This Joint Exercise of oo!,,,ers Agreement, dated December 1,
1988 for the purpose of reference only, is entered into pursuant to Government
Code §6502 by and among the following public agencies:
City
of
Oxnard
City
of
Santa Paula
City
of
Thousand Oaks
City
of
Moorpark
City
of
Simi Valley
City
of
Port Hueneme
City
of
Ventura
City
of
Fillmore
City
of
Camarillo
City
of
Ojai
2. Recitals. Each Party to this agreement is a municipal
corporation, duly authorized and existing under the laws of the State of
California, and situated within the boundaries of the County of Ventura. As
such, Government Code §34501 grants to each Party the power to sue and be sued
in its own name.
A dispute has arisen between the Parties 'and the County of
Ventura regarding the collection and distribution of fines and forfeitures
collected by the County of Ventura. The Parties believe that since 1987 or
before, the County of Ventura has improperly withheld the proceeds of certain
fines and forfeitures which should have been distributed to the Parties
pursuant to Penal Code §1463. Negotiations with a member of the Board of
Supervisors and the staff of Ventura County, urging the County to cease this
practice and to return monies improperly withheld, have been unsuccessful. The
Parties therefore desire to pursue their common goal by filing suit against the
County of Ventura.
3. Purpose. The purpose of this agreement is to provide for the
efficient resolution of the Parties' common legal claim. Although each Party
has the right to bring similar litigation separately in its own name, the
resulting litigation by all 10 cities would be duplicative and, in some cases,
prohibitively costly. Through this agreement, the Parties desire to set forth
the term and conditions under which one action may be maintained on behalf of
all Parties; to provide for the management and direction of such litigation; to
provide for the allocation of litigation expenses; and to set forth various
other matters relating to the prosecution of the cities' claims against the
County of Ventura. The Parties do not intend to create a separate public
agency through this agreement and no provision of this agreement should be so
constructed.
4. Authorization to File Suit. By execution of this agreement, each
Party authorizes and directs that a claim be filed and thereafter suit be filed
and diligently pursued, in the names of the Parties, against the County of
Ventura, its Board of Supervisors and such administrative officers as may be
appropriate, for the general purpose of insuring the proper distribution of
fines and forfeitures under Penal Code §1463 and securing repayment to the
Parties, with such interest and penalties as may be appropriate, all such fines
and forfeitures which have been improperly withheld by the County of Ventura.
5. Administration of Agreement. The administration of the
activities called for in this agreement is delegated to and vested in an
Administrative Committee. The Administrative Committee shall be comprised of:
One mayor of one of the Parties to this agreement to be
selected by those members of the Association of Ventura
County Cities ! -:hose cities are Parties to this agreement,
who shall also serve as chairperson of the committee.
One city manager of one of the Parties to this
agreement, to be selected by those members of the
Association of Ventura County Cities whose cities are
Parties to this agreement.
One finance director of one of the Parties to this
agreement, to be selected by those members of the
Association of Ventura County Cities whose cities are
Parties to this agreement.
One city attorney of one of the Parties of this
agreement, to be selected by those members of the
Association of Ventura County Cities whose cities are
Parties to this agreement. "
Each member of the Administrative Committee shall be, at all
times, an officer or employee of a Party to this agreement. If any member
ceases to be an officer or employee of a Party, or if the member's agency
ceases to be a Party to this agreement, a new member shall be promptly selected
in the same manner as the original member. The Administrative Committee shall
keep all Parties informed of the composition of the committee.
The Administrative Committee is authorized and directed, on
behalf of all Parties, to perform all acts necessary or desirable to execute
and administer this Agreement including, but not limited to: selecting and
retaining legal counsel; providing day -to -day management and direction of the
litigation, including the right to determine all matters of tactics and
strategy on which legal counsel requests direction; authorizing, evaluating and
monitoring legal expenses; and conducting settlement negotiations, if any,
provided that any proposed settlement agreement shall require the unanimous
consent of all agencies then Party to the Agreement.
6. Accounting Services. The finance director selected to serve on
the Administrative Committee shall provide accounting services for all payments
and receipts required by the terms of this agreement, and shall be responsible
for the safekeeping of all funds paid by or to the Parties to this Agreement.
7. Obligations of the Parties. Each Party to this agreement shall:
a. Pay, upon demand, its "appropriate share" of all expenses
incurred in the performance of activities called for by this agreement. The
"appropriate share" of each Party shall be calculated as follows: 1000 of all
expenses shall be apportioned among the Parties with each Party bearing the
same percentage of those expenses which that Party's population bears to the
population of all Parties to the agreement. For the purpose of apportioning
all expenses incurred under this agreement, the Parties agree that the
following table accurately reflects the parties to this agreement, the
population of each Party, the population of all Parties, and the percent of
each Party's population with respect to the population of all parties:
Population
(State Dept.
of Finance) Percent
Jan. 1, 1988 of Total
City
of
Oxnard
126,100
23.2%
City
of
Thousand Oaks
101,600
18.6%
City
of
Simi Valley
97,600
17.8%
City
of
Ventura
88,700
16.2%
City
of
Camarillo
47,000
8.6%
City
of
Santa Paula
23,750
4.3%
City
of
Moorpark
22,550
4.1%
City
of
Port Hueneme
20,600
3.8%
City
of
Fillmore
11,050
2.0%
City
of
Ojai
7,850
1.4%
Totals
546,800
100.0%
In the event of termination by any Party'to this agreement, the
finance director serving on the Administrative Committee shall recalculate the
appropriate share of each Party to the agreement based upon the figures set
forth above and shall notify each Party of the results of that recalculation.
b. Upon execution of this agreement, pay to the finance director
serving on the Administrative Committee the sum listed after the name of each
Party, which sum represents each Party's appropriate share of the first year's
estimated legal expenses:
City Amount
City
of
Oxnard
$5,800
City
of
Thousand Oaks
4,650
City
of
Simi Valley
4,450
City
of
Ventura
4,050
City
of
Camarillo
2,150
City
of
Santa Paula
1,075
City
of
Moorpark
1,025
City
of
Port Hueneme
950
City
of
Fillmore
500
City
of
Ojai
350
$25,000
c. Pay, upon demand, its appropriate share of litigation expenses
which exceed the first year's estimated expenses set forth under subparagraph
b, above, or which are incurred after December 1, 1989.
All bills and invoices for expenses incurred pursuant to this
agreement shall be directed to the finance director serving on the
Administrative Committee, who shall calculate the amount owed by each Party
under the formula set forth in subsection a, above, and bill each Party
accordingly. Bills shall be prepared for each calendar quarter in which
activity occurs and shall be payable immediately upon demand to the City
employing the finance director serving on the Administrative Committee.
8. Termination of Agreement. This agreement shall terminate as to
any Party upon occurrence of any of the following conditions:
a. 15 days prior written notice of termination by any Party
given to the then chairperson of the ;administrative Committee; provided,
however, that the terminating Party shall be liable for its appropriate share
of any expenses incurred up to the date notice of termination is received which
exceed the terminating Party's contribution under paragraph 7.b.; and provided
further, that in no event shall a terminating Party be entitled to a refund of
all or any part of its contribution made under paragraph 1.b.
b. Automatically, upon the failure of any Party to pay its
appropriate share of litigation expenses within 60 days of date of invoice.
9. Amendment. This agreement may be amended at any time upon the
approval of all Parties to the agreement.
10. Notices. Except where this Agreement specifically provides
otherwise, any notices to be sent to any Party shall be directed to the office
of the city manager of the Party, with copies to the city managers of ail
Parties.
Executed on , 1988 at
CITY OF OXNARD
By:
Mayor
APPROVED AS TO FORM:
City Attorney
Executed on
CITY OF THOUSAND OAKS
as
Mayor
APPROVED AS TO FORM:
ity Attorney
1988 at
, California by:
ATTEST:
By:
City Clerk
, California by:
ATTEST:
By:
City Clerk
Executed on , 1988 at , California by:
CITY OF SIMI VALLEY ATTEST:
By: _ By:
Mayor City Cler
APPROVED AS TO FORM:
City Attorney
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
Executed on 1988 at California by:
CITY OF VENTURA ATTEST:
By: By:
Mayor City Clerk
APPROVED AS TO FORM:
City Attorney
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
Executed on , 1988 at , California by:
CITY OF CAMARILLO ATTEST:
as
Mayor
APPROVED AS TO FORM:
City Attorney
By:
City Clerk
Executed on , 1988 at , California by:
CITY OF SANTA PAULA
By:
Mayor
APPROVED AS TO FORM:
ATTEST:
By:
City Clerk
City Attorney
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
Executed on , 1988 at , California by:
CITY OF MOORPARK
Mayor
APPROVED AS TO FORM:
r
ATTEST:
By:
City Clerk
City Attorney
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
Executed on , 1988 at , California by:
CITY OF PORT HUENEME
By:
Mayor
APPROVED AS TO FORM:
City Attorney
ATTEST:
By:
City Clerk
Executed on , 1988 at , California by:
CITY OF FILLMORE
Us
Mayor
APPROVED AS TO FORM:
ity Attorney
Executed on
CITY OF OJAI
By:
Mayor
APPROVED AS TO FORM:
City Attorney
1988 at
ATTEST:
By:
City Clerk
ATTEST:
am
, California by:
ity Cler