THIS PRINT COVERS CALENDAR ITEM NO.  11

 

SAN FRANCISCO

MUNICIPAL TRANSPORTATION AGENCY

 

DIVISION:     Finance & Information Technology    

BRIEF DESCRIPTION: Adopt the proposed fines and penalties for various disabled parking violations and amend Transportation Code, Division II, Section 303 to reflect the revised fine and penalty amounts.

 

SUMMARY:

·       Governor Schwarzenegger signed AB 144 into law which amends the California Vehicle Code to address the problem of disabled parking placard abuse.  The effective date of the legislation is January 1, 2010.

·       AB 144 authorizes the SFMTA to adopt increased fines and penalties for various disabled parking violations.

·       Abusers of disabled placards cause hardship for disabled persons with valid placards by preventing them from finding accessible parking. 

·       AB 144 allows SFMTA parking enforcement officers to cite disabled parking violations through issuing a parking citation.

·       AB 144 authorizes a civil penalty of not less than $250 and not more than $1,000 for parking in a blue zone without a valid license plate or placard, the misuse of a special license plate or placard, the use of a counterfeit, forged, altered or mutilated placard or special license plate, and the use of a valid license plate or placard when it is displayed on a vehicle that is not being used to transport, and is not in the reasonable proximity of, the person to whom the special license plate or placard was issued. 

·       Charter Section 16.112 requires published notice and a public hearing before the SFMTA may institute or change any fee, schedule of rates, charges or fares which affects the public.  Section 10 of the SFMTA Board’s Rules of Order requires that the published notice run for at least five days and not less than fifteen days prior to the public hearing.  In compliance with these requirements, an advertisement ran in the San Francisco Chronicle for a five-day period beginning on December 14, 2009.

 

ENCLOSURES

1.  SFMTAB Resolution to Amend Fees

2.  Amendments to the San Francisco Transportation Code

3.  Attachment A – Legislative Fact Sheet

 

APPROVALS:                                                                                                           DATE

DEPUTY OF DIVISION

PREPARING ITEM                                                                                                               

FINANCE                                                                                                                              

EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR/CEO                                                                                            

SECRETARY                                                                                                                        

ADOPTED RESOLUTION BE RETURNED TO      Sonali Bose

ASSIGNED SFMTAB CALENDAR DATE:                         

 

 

 

Purpose

Requesting that the San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency (SFMTA) Board of Directors approve the proposed fines and penalties for various disabled parking violations and amend Transportation Code, Division II, Section 303.

 

Goal

Approval of the proposed resolution will support:  Strategic Plan Goals

§       Goal 3: External Affairs/Community Relations-to improve the customer experience, community value and enhance the image of the SFMTA and

§       Goal 4: Financial Capacity-to ensure financial stability and effective resource allocation.

 

Description

 

The SFMTA Board of Directors included increases to various fees, fares, charges, rates and fines in the adoption of the two-year budget for fiscal years 2008-2009 and 2009-2010 .

 

On April 30, 2009, the SFMTA Board of Directors approved the fiscal year 2009-2010 Amended Operating budget that included additional increases or adjustments to various fees, fares, charges, rates and fines; however, there were no adjustments to the fines and penalties for disabled parking violations.  Since that approval, state law has been changed to permit increased fines and penalties for such violations.

 

On October 11, 2009, Governor Schwarzenegger signed into law AB 144. The overall goal of AB 144  is to improve access, mobility, and quality of life for drivers with disabilities by authorizing increased fines and penalties for disabled parking violations.  AB 144 authorizes cities to determine whether disabled parking violations are subject to either a criminal or civil penalty or increases the possible fine amounts for such violations if subject to a civil penalty.

 

As a result, SFMTA staff is proposing that a civil penalty of $750 be imposed for violations of California Vehicle Code sections 22511.57, and an additional assessment of 10% be imposed for violations of Sections 22507.8, 22511.57 and 22522 as mandated by California Vehicle Code 40203.6. (Please refer to chart below to see the new fee total including the 10% penalty when applicable.)

 

CODE	DESCRIPTION	BASE FINE   plus 10%
VC22507.8A	Parking in blue zone without placard/plate	$333.00
VC22507.8B	Blocking access to blue zone	$333.00
VC22507.8C	Parking in the crosshatch area adjacent to a blue zone	$333.00
VC22511.57A	Lost, stolen or expired placard/plate	$825.00
VC22511.57B	Misuse of placard/plate	$825.00
VC22511.57C	Counterfeit, Forged or Altered placard/plate	$825.00
VC22522	W/3 ft Wheelchair Ramp	$278.00

 

Alternatives Considered

Alternatives were not considered since these fine and penalty increases are authorized by state law.

 

Funding Impact

We anticipate that the increased fines will result in a modest increase to the revenues in the 2009-2010 Amended Operating Budget.

 

Published Notice and Public Hearing

Charter Section 16.112 requires published notice and a public hearing before the SFMTA may institute or change any fee, schedule of rates, charge or fare which affects the public.  Section 10 of the SFMTA Board’s Rules of Order requires that the published notice run for at least five days and not less than fifteen days prior to the public hearing.  In compliance with this requirement, an advertisement ran in the San Francisco Chronicle for a five-day period beginning on December 14, 2009.

 

Environmental Clearance

Increases to fares, fees, rates, fines, and charges are subject to environmental review under the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA).  City Planning has determined that the increases to the fines and penalties for disabled parking violations are statutorily exempt from environmental review under California Public Resources Code section 21080(b) (8) and CEQA implementing guidelines, Title 14 of the California Code of Regulations section 15273. 

 

The City Attorney’s Office has reviewed the item.

 

Recommendation

Staff recommends that the SFMTA Board approve the proposed increase to fines and penalties for various disabled parking violations and amend Transportation Code, Division II, Section 303 to reflect the revised fine and penalty amounts.

SAN FRANCISCO MUNICIPAL TRANSPORTATION AGENCY

BOARD OF DIRECTORS

RESOLUTION No. ____________

 

           WHEREAS, On April 15, 2008, the SFMTA Board of Directors approved a two year budget which included increases to various fees, fares, rates and charges; and,

                  WHEREAS, The SFMTA is proposing to increase fines and penalties for various disabled parking violations as permitted by the recently enacted AB 144; and,

                  WHEREAS, The SFMTA Board of Directors has authority to amend Division II of the Transportation Code, and,

                   WHEREAS, Amendment to Division II, Section 303 is necessary to update the applicable fines and penalties for various disabled parking violations, and,

WHEREAS, San Francisco City Charter Section 16.112 and Section 10 of the SFMTA Rules of Order require that published notice be given and a public hearing be held before any fine or penalty is instituted or changed; and,

WHEREAS, Pursuant to Charter Section 16.112 and Section 10 of the SFMTA Rules of Order, published notice was provided in advance and a public hearing was held on January 5, 2010; and,

WHEREAS, The Planning Department has determined that increases to  fines and penalties for various disabled parking violations are statutorily exempt from environmental review under California Public Resources Code section 21080(b)(8) and CEQA implementing guidelines, Title 14 of the California Code of Regulations section 15273; and,

WHEREAS, Said CEQA determination is on file with the Secretary to the SFMTA Board of Directors and is incorporated herein by this reference; and,

RESOLVED, That the SFMTA Board of Directors approves the proposed increase to fines and penalties for various disabled parking violations and amends Transportation Code, Division II, Section 303 to reflect the increased fines and penalties which will take immediate effect.

I certify that the foregoing resolution was adopted by the Municipal Transportation Agency Board of Directors at their meeting of _______________________.

 

 

_______________________________________

Secretary to the Board of Directors

San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency