TITLE
Recommendation to declare ordinance amending the Long Beach Municipal Code by adding section 5.90.290 related to local enforcement and penalties for illegal marijuana businesses, read and adopted as read. (Citywide)
DISCUSSION
Pursuant to your request on May 2, 2017, this ordinance amending Chapter 590 of the Long Beach Municipal Code ("LBMC") by adding Section 5.90.0290, Local Enforcement and Penalties for Illegal Marijuana Businesses, has been prepared and is submitted for your consideration.
Several cities in California have enacted ordinances authorizing enforcement actions for illegal marijuana operations, such as civil lawsuits for injunctive relief and civil penalties, disconnection of utilities, and criminal penalties. Per your direction, we have included similar provisions in the proposed ordinance, as well as additional enforcement tools, not only to penalize and gain compliance from illegal marijuana establishments and property owners, but also to deter such operations in the first place.
Requests for Injunctive Relief and Civil Penalties
The City, by and through the City Attorney, may file a civil lawsuit to abate a nuisance, or violations of the LBMC. Chapter 5.90 of the LBMC declares a non-licensed marijuana business to be a public nuisance, as well as deems it to be a nuisance per se when property owners allow said public nuisances upon their property.
The proposed ordinance permits the City Attorney to file such lawsuits seeking injunctive relief without requiring further authorization from the City Council. The ordinance would permit a court, in its discretion, to issue a maximum civil penalty of $5,000 per violation for each day a non-licensed marijuana business is in operation. The objective is to ultimately shut down an illegal marijuana operation via court order so that any re-establishment of said operation would potentially be deemed civil contempt.
Disconnection of Utilities
Most cities allow disconnection of utilities where emergency conditions exist. For instance, even Long Beach currently authorizes its Building Official to disconnect or order the disconnection of utilities for defective electrical installations; to disconnect or order the disconnection of fuel-gas utility service or energy supplies for defective mechanical installations that may pose an immediate hazard to life or property; and to order utilities to be disconnected when necessary to protect life or property from an acutely dangerous condition.
Some cities have additional ordinances permitting disconnection of utilities. The City of Santa Ana authorizes disconnection of utilities in instances where a building, structure, or business does not have the requisite Certificate of Occupancy. The City of Anaheim's municipal code allows disconnection of water or electric service to any premises being used in violation of any City ordinance, or state or federal law. The City of Los Angeles has in place an ordinance authorizing its Department of Water and Power to disconnect utilities specifically to properties upon which non-licensed medical or nonmedical marijuana establishments operate.
The proposed Long Beach ordinance would authorize the disconnection of utilities, upon notice, for any property upon which a non-licensed marijuana business is operating. As the City only provides gas and water services to its utility customers and does not control electric utilities, in most cases, City staff will have to coordinate with Southern California Edison regarding electricity shut-off.
Criminal Penalties
Any person that violates the provisions or fails to comply with requirements of the LBMC is guilty of a misdemeanor, unless otherwise stated as an infraction, by a fine of not more than $1.000, or by imprisonment not exceeding 6 months, or by both such fine and imprisonment. Chapter 5.90 specifically deems certain violations as misdemeanors in addition to mandating heightened maximum periods of imprisonment for such violations. Violations of the LBMC, including those within Chapter 5.90, may' be prosecuted as misdemeanors, or as infractions, at the sole discretion of the City Prosecutor. Because this enforcement tool already exists in the LBMC, the proposed ordinance does not specifically refer to new and distinct criminal violations.
Additional Enforcement Tools
We have added additional tools to potentially deter property owners from permitting non-licensed marijuana operations at their properties and/or turning a blind eye to such operations.
The proposed ordinance provides for the potential prohibition of marijuana-related businesses at a subject property where it has been established that a non-licensed marijuana business has been operating (one-year ban), as well as where a commercial/industrial rental business license for a subject property has been revoked due to a non-licensed marijuana business operating at the property (five-year ban).
The ordinance would require the City to provide notice and an opportunity to be heard via the hearing process prior to instituting such bans. Any business license application received for a medical or nonmedical marijuana business within the time period of a ban will be denied based solely on said ban.
The ordinance would maintain the City's ability to pursue any additional civil or criminal remedies available at law. The proposed ordinance will assist the City's efforts, in conjunction with enforcement remedies already available to the City, to ensure compliance with Chapter 5.90 and other applicable provisions of the LBMC,
SUGGESTED ACTION
Approve recommendation.
BODY
AN ORDINANCE OF THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF LONG BEACH AMENDING THE LONG BEACH MUNICIPAL CODE BY ADDING SECTION 5.90.290 RELATED TO LOCAL ENFORCEMENT AND PENALTIES FOR ILLEGAL MARIJUANA BUSINESSES
Respectfully Submitted,
CHARLES PAKIN
CITY ATTORNEY
BY:
GARY ANDERSON
PRINCIPAL DEPUTY CITY ATTORNEY