CITY OF DEERFIELD BEACH Request for City Commission Agenda

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1 Item: CITY OF DEERFIELD BEACH Request for City Commission Agenda Agenda Date Requested: October 18, 2011 Contact Person: Andrew Maurodis, City Attorney Description: An ordi ance establishing a Special Master Review Process for parking tickets, amending the code relating to disabled parking permits in order to conform with state law, and prohibiting parking outside of the lines of designated spaces Fiscal Impact: It is anticipated that the creation of a special master process for parking tickets will result in substantial savings for the City. Budget Line Item Number and Title: Required Attachment: A Cover Memo from the Department Head to the City Manager further describing the request and providing back-up information and documents. THIS SECTION RESERVED FOR PROCESSING OF THE REQUEST Ordinance Resolution Consent Agenda Agenda Item Type Presentation Written Request Public Hearing Public Hearing Second Reading Quasi-Judicial Public Hearing General Item Comments: ITEM APPROVED FOR THE AGENDA: Signature Date

2 LAW OFFICES OF ANDREW S. MAURODIS, P.L. 710 East Hillsboro Boulevard, Suite 200 Deerfield Beach, FL Telephone (954) Facsimile (954) M E M O R A N D U M TO: FROM: City Commission Sharon L. Cruz, Assistant City Attorney DATE: October 24, 2011 RE: Disabled Parking Permit Ordinance The current Handicapped Parking ordinance was made a part of the Code in There have been many revisions to Florida Statutes regarding disabled parking permits since The purpose of the proposed ordinance is to bring it into conformance with current state law. Florida law provides that any vehicle which displays a disabled parking permit may park for free in any metered parking space on a public street or in any other metered parking space if the vehicle is transporting the person who has a disability and to whom the disabled parking permit or license plate was issued. The driver may not be penalized for parking, except in clearly defined bus loading zones, fire zones, or access aisles adjacent to the parking spaces for persons who have disabilities, or in areas posted as No Parking zones or emergency vehicle zones. When an on-street parking meter restricts the duration of time that a vehicle may be parked, a vehicle properly displaying a disabled parking permit is allowed a maximum of four (4) hours at no charge. Sec (8) F.S. allows local governments to require vehicles with disabled parking permits to pay the required fee in metered parking lots. The proposed ordinance requires vehicles with disabled parking permits to pay the fee charged for parking in the Pier parking lot and also requires vehicles with disabled parking permits to pay the fee charged for parking vehicles and watercraft trailers in the designated boat trailer parking areas of the Pioneer Park parking lot. However, in accordance with Sec (8) F.S. any vehicle displaying a disabled parking permit which has specialized equipment such as ramps, lifts, or foot or hand controls and which

3 City Commission October 24, 2011 Page 2 is transporting the person who has a disability or any vehicle displaying the Florida Toll Exemption permit which is transporting the person who has a disability, is exempt from any parking fees. The proposed ordinance clarifies that unpaid parking citations will be turned over to a collection agency after 30 days if not paid or appealed to a special master. Currently this Office attempts to collect such parking citations in County Court with a very poor success rate. In addition, the proposed ordinance provides for an appeal procedure to a special master. The proposed ordinance provides that the special master shall issue an order imposing a civil penalty of $ for violations of disabled parking ordinances and a civil penalty not to exceed $ for violations of all other City parking ordinances, and hearing costs as set by resolution of the City Commission. The Special Master may grant additional time to pay the civil penalty amount. All orders shall be in writing signed and dated by the Special Master and shall contain findings of fact supporting the order and conclusions of law. If the person contesting the citation does not pay the civil penalty within the time frame set by the Special Master, the City Manager may provide for the collection of the civil penalty. cc: Burgess Hanson, City Manager SLC/wp

4 ORDINANCE NO. 2011/ AN ORDINANCE OF THE CITY COMMISSION OF THE CITY OF DEERFIELD BEACH, CREATING A NEW SECTION PROVIDING FOR A DEFINITION OF DISABLED PARKING PERMIT; AMENDING SECTION CLARIFYING THE ADMINISTRATIVE REVIEW PROCESS; CREATING NEW SECTIONS 66-44, 66-45, AND PROVIDING FOR HEARINGS BEFORE A SPECIAL MASTER, HEARING PROCEDURES, CONTEST BY MAIL AND ORDERS OF THE SPECIAL MASTER; AMENDING SECTION TO ADD PROHIBITION OF PARKING OUTSIDE DESIGNATED SPACES; AMENDING SECTION RELATING TO DISABLED PARKING PERMITS TO CONFORM WITH STATE LAW; CONTAINING A PROVISION FOR INCLUSION IN THE CITY CODE; CONTAINING A SEVERABILITY CLAUSE; CONTAINING AN EFFECTIVE DATE WHEREAS, the City Commission wishes to provide a mechanism outside the Court system for a person to appeal a parking citation; and WHEREAS, the City Commission wishes to establish a Special Master hearing process for appeals of parking citations; and WHEREAS, the City Commission also wishes to bring its parking regulations into conformance with State law as they relate to disabled parking permits; NOW THEREFORE, BE IT ORDAINED BY THE CITY COMMISSION OF THE CITY OF DEERFIELD BEACH, FLORIDA, AS FOLLOWS: SECTION 1. Section 66-31, Definitions, is hereby created to read as follows: Section Definitions Definitions. The following words, terms and phrases, when used in this article, shall have the meanings ascribed to them in this section, except where the context clearly indicates a different meaning: Disabled Parking Permit or license plate means any disabled parking permit or licensee plated issued under Sec F.S. or Sec , F.S. or a license plate issued under Sec , F.S., Sec , F.S., Sec , F.S. or Sec F.S. SECTION 2. Section 66-41, Administrative Review Process is hereby amended to read as follows: Sec Administrative appeal review process and collection proceedings for parking citations. 1

5 (a) Administrative appeal review process. For all parking citations issued by city parking enforcement officers or a county deputy sheriff for violation of any city parking ordinance, there is hereby provided an opportunity for an administrative appeal review requested by the alleged violator. (1) Claims of defective meters. a. Any person who receives a parking citation for overtime parking and who believes the meter for the parking space is defective or malfunctioning may report the alleged meter defect or malfunction to the parking enforcement office of the finance department by telephone or in person. Such report must be made either during normal business hours of the day the citation was issued or within normal business hours (8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.) of the next business day. If the report is made in person it must be made during normal business hours (8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.). The report may be made by phone 24 hours a day, seven (7) days a week by calling the phone number on the citation envelope for the parking enforcement office. b. Upon receipt of a report of an alleged defective or malfunctioning meter, city personnel shall be dispatched to check the operation of such meter as soon as possible. If the meter is found to be defective or malfunctioning, the person who received the citation shall be notified by telephone or regular mail of such fact. The person cited shall then deliver such citation, by mail or in person, to the parking enforcement office with a brief statement on the reverse side of the citation indicating the date on which the parking enforcement office was contacted regarding the meter and that the meter was found to be defective or malfunctioning. c. When the citation is received by the parking enforcement office in compliance with this section, the citation will be voided. If the meter is found to be functioning properly, the violator will be notified by telephone or regular mail that the meter functions properly and the citation must be paid according to its terms. (2) Parking citations. Any person who receives a parking citation and who believes the citation itself is incorrect for any reason (except defective or malfunctioning meter as provided for in subsection (a)(1)) may at any time within ten days of the receipt of such citation file with the parking enforcement office of the city a written plea of dispute on forms furnished by such office. The director of management and budget or his designee parking enforcement supervisor shall review the plea and at the request of the person who received the citation may meet with the person filing such plea at the time of the filing of the plea or at an appointed time within three days of the filing of the plea. The director supervisor will make his/her decision as to the validity of the citation as soon as possible within ten (10) working days of receiving the written plea of dispute. If the decision is that the citation was improperly issued, then the citation will be voided and the person shall be so notified by mail to the address shown on the plea. If the decision is that the citation was properly issued, then the person shall be so notified by mail to the address on the plea and advised that the fine must be paid 2

6 within ten days of the date of mailing of the notice or that the city will either turn the collection citation over to a collection agency or set the matter for a court hearing, with notice of the hearing date to be given by mail to the address on the plea of dispute in accordance with subsection (b) below. (b) Collection proceedings. The city manager is hereby authorized to employ the services of a commercial collection agency for the purpose of the collection of parking violation fines which have not been appealed pursuant to Sections or and which are unpaid after a reasonable time 30 days after the date of issuance of the parking citation. SECTION 3. Sections Request for Hearing, Hearing Procedures, Contest by Mail and Orders of Special Master are hereby created to read as follows: Sec Request for hearing; notice of hearing. (a) Any person who has received a denial of his/her written plea of dispute from the parking enforcement supervisor may file a written request for a hearing before the Special Master to establish whether the parking citation was wrongfully issued. The request for a hearing shall be filed with the City Manager or designee within 10 days of receipt of the denial of the plea of dispute. The Special Master shall be a member in good standing of the Florida Bar and shall be a resident of Broward County. (b) The City Manager or designee shall set the hearing for a date which would be within 30 days of the date the request for hearing was received. The City Manager or designee shall give the person issued the citation at least 10 days advance written notice, excluding Saturdays, Sundays and legal holidays, of the scheduled date, time and place for the hearing. (c) The notice shall be sent by mail to the address of the registered owner of the vehicle, as per the issued citation. Sec Hearing procedures. (a) The person issued the citation may: (1) Be represented by counsel; (2) Call and examine witnesses; (3) Introduce exhibits; (4) Examine opposing witnesses on any relevant matter, even though the matter was not covered under direct examination; and (5) Impeach any witness regardless of which party first called the witness to testify. (b) All hearings shall be conducted insofar as practical, in accordance with the Florida Rules of Civil Procedure and the Florida Evidence Code. However, the general nature of the hearing shall be conducted in an informal manner. 3

7 (c) All irrelevant, immaterial, or unduly repetitious evidence shall be excluded, but all other evidence of a type commonly relied upon by reasonable and prudent persons in the conduct of their affairs shall be admissible whether or not such evidence would be admissible in a trial before the courts of the State of Florida. Evidence may be received in written form. Notwithstanding, all testimony of parties and witnesses shall be made under oath. Hearsay evidence may be used for the purpose of supplementing or explaining other evidence but it shall not be sufficient in and of itself to support a finding unless it would be admissible over objection under the Florida Rules of Civil procedure and/or under the Common Law of the State of Florida. (d) Any interested party or person may make application and, upon good cause shown, may be allowed by the Special Master in his/her discretion to intervene and appear in a proceeding pending before the Special Master. (e) The information contained in the parking citation shall be presumed correct in the absence of contrary evidence and no testimony shall be necessary to support the presumption of correctness. Sec Contest by mail. (a) Those persons who receive a parking citation but who do not reside in Palm Beach, Broward or Dade County, Florida may contest the citation and the denial of the plea of dispute in writing, thus avoiding the necessity of appearing for a hearing by filing a request for hearing as set forth in Section (b) Notwithstanding that the violator has requested to contest the issuance of the citation by mail, such violator will nevertheless be notified (written notice) by the Clerk of the scheduled date, time and place of the hearing. (c) The evidence presented to the Special Master must include a sworn statement by the person cited. The statement must identify the citation at issue by its number and date of issuance. It must set forth the name and current address of the person cited. The statement may contain argument in opposition to the citation. The Special Master will not consider unsworn statements. (d) The evidence submitted may include sworn statements of witnesses. Such statements must include the name and address of the witness, as well as the basis of the witness' knowledge about the facts asserted in the statement. (e) The evidence submitted may also include such documents as are relevant and material to the disposition of the citation. (f) All evidence submitted is subject to the evidentiary rules set forth above. Sec Orders and judgments of Special Master. 4

8 (a) After a hearing, or following consideration of any mailed-in admissible evidence, as applicable, the Special Master shall make a determination based on the greater weight of the evidence as to whether a parking violation has been committed and shall issue an order imposing (1) a civil penalty of $ for violations of disabled parking ordinances and a civil penalty not to exceed $ for violations of all other City parking ordinances, and (2) hearing costs as set by resolution of the City Commission. The Special Master may, in his/her discretion, grant additional time to pay the civil penalty amount. All orders shall be in writing signed and dated by the Special Master and shall contain findings of fact supporting the order and conclusions of law. If the person contesting the citation does not pay the civil penalty within the time frame set by the Special Master, the order of the Special Master shall be reduced to a judgment and shall be recorded in the public records. The City Manager may provide for the collection of the civil penalty in the manner set forth within Section 66-41(c). (b) If, at the conclusion of a hearing, or following consideration of mailed-in, admissible evidence, the Special Master orders a dismissal of the citation and finds no violation, the Special Master shall so state and issue his/her order of dismissal in writing signed and dated by the Special Master and shall set forth findings of fact supporting the order of dismissal. SECTION 4. Section Prohibitions is hereby amended to read as follows: Sec places. Prohibitions relative to stopping, standing or parking in specific (a) Except when necessary to avoid conflict with other traffic, or in compliance with law or the directions of a police officer or other traffic control device, no person shall: (1) Stop, stand or park a vehicle: a. On the roadway side of any vehicle stopped or parked at the edge or curb of a street. b. Within an intersection. c. On a crosswalk. d. Between a safety zone and the adjacent curb or within 30 feet of points on the curb immediately opposite the ends of a safety zone, unless the department of transportation indicates a different length by signs or markings. e. Alongside or opposite any street excavation or obstruction when stopping, standing or parking would obstruct traffic. f. Upon any bridge or other elevated structure upon a highway. g. On any bicycle tracks. h. On any bicycle path. i. On the roadway or shoulder of a limited access facility or on the paved portion of a connecting ramp; except that a vehicle which is disabled or in a condition improper to be driven as a result of mechanical failure or accident may be parked on such shoulder for a period not to exceed six hours. This subsection is not applicable to a person stopping a vehicle to render aid to an injured person or assistance to a disabled vehicle in obedience to the directions of a law 5

9 enforcement officer or to a person stopping a vehicle in compliance with applicable traffic laws. j. For the purpose of loading or unloading a passenger on the paved roadway or shoulder of a limited access facility or on the paved portion of any connecting ramp. This provision is not applicable to a person stopping a vehicle to render aid to an injured person or assistance to a disabled vehicle. k. Park outside the lines or markings painted or placed upon the curb and/or upon the street or in parking lots or to park a vehicle in such a position that the vehicle shall not be entirely within the area so designated by such lines or markings. SECTION 5. Section , Disabled Parking Permits is hereby amended as follows: Sec Handicapped persons motor vehicles Disabled parking permits. The regulations contained in this division shall not apply to any vehicle bearing a handicapped sticker approved or certified by the state to indicate that the vehicle is operated by or used in any way by a person who is handicapped under the definitions as provided by the state for the issuance of such handicapped stickers. In accordance with Section , F.S. the following shall apply to any vehicle displaying a disabled parking permit: (a) Except as otherwise provided in this Code, any vehicle which displays a disabled parking permit may park for free in any metered parking space on a public street or in any other metered parking space if the vehicle is transporting the person who has a disability and to whom the disabled parking permit or license plate was issued. (b) The driver of any vehicle displaying a disabled parking permit if the vehicle is transporting the person who has a disability and to whom the disabled parking permit or license plate was issued may not be penalized for parking, except in clearly defined bus loading zones, fire zones, or access aisles adjacent to the parking spaces for persons who have disabilities, or in areas posted as No Parking zones or emergency vehicle zones, or for parking in excess of the posted time limits. (c) When an on-street parking meter restricts the duration of time that a vehicle may be parked, a vehicle properly displaying a disabled parking permit is allowed a maximum of four (4) hours at no charge. (d) In accordance with Sec (8) F.S. the City Commission has determined that any vehicle with a disabled parking permit shall be required to pay the fee charged for parking vehicles and watercraft trailers in the designated boat trailer parking areas of the Pioneer Park parking lot. In accordance with Sec (8), F.S. any vehicle displaying a disabled parking permit which has specialized equipment such as ramps, lifts, or foot or hand controls and which is transporting the person who has a disability or any vehicle displaying the Florida Toll Exemption permit which is transporting the person who has a disability, is exempt from any parking fees. (e) In accordance with Sec (8) F.S. the City Commission has determined that any vehicle with a disabled parking permit shall be required to pay the fee charged for parking in the Pier parking lot except for parking in designated disabled parking permit spaces. In accordance with Sec (8), F.S. any vehicle displaying a 6

10 disabled parking permit which has specialized equipment such as ramps, lifts, or foot or hand controls and which is transporting the person who has a disability or any vehicle displaying the Florida Toll Exemption permit which is transporting the person who has a disability, is exempt from any parking fees. SECTION 6. It is the intention of the City Commission and it is hereby ordained that the provisions of this ordinance shall become and be made a part of the City Code of the City of Deerfield Beach, and that the sections of this ordinance may be renumbered to accomplish such intent. SECTION 7. Should any section or provision of this ordinance or any portion thereof, any paragraph, sentence or word be declared by a court of competent jurisdiction to be invalid, such decision shall not affect the validity of the remainder hereof as a whole or part thereof other than the part declared to be invalid. SECTION 8. This ordinance shall be in full force and effect immediately upon its passage and adoption. PASSED 1ST READING ON THIS DAY OF, 2011 PASSED 2ND READING ON THIS DAY OF, 2011 ATTEST: PEGGY NOLAND, MAYOR ADA GRAHAM-JOHNSON, MMC, CITY CLERK Deerfield/Ordinances/Parking 9/29/2011 7