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HomeMy WebLinkAboutOrdinance 1939 (Social Host Amendments)CLERK'S CERTIFICATE I, ESTHER C. BEIRNE, Clerk of the City of San Rafael, and Ex -Officio Clerk of the Council of said City, do hereby certify that the foregoing: ORDINANCE NO. 1939 AN ORDINANCE OF THE CITY OF SAN RAFAEL AMENDING CHAPTER 8.19 OF THE SAN RAFAEL MUNICIPAL CODE ENTITLED "SOCIAL HOST ORDINANCE" BY EXTENDING IT TO APPLY TO LOUD AND UNRULY PARTIES WHERE CONTROLLED SUBSTANCES ARE SERVED TO, POSSESSED BY, OR INGESTED BY UNDERAGE PERSONS is a true and correct copy of an Ordinance of said City, and was introduced at a REGULAR meeting of the City Council of the City of San Rafael, held on the 18`h day of April, 2016; a SUMMARY of Ordinance No. 1939 was published as required by City Charter in the MARIN INDEPENDENT JOURNAL, a newspaper published in the City of San Rafael, and passed and adopted as an Ordinance of said City at a REGULAR meeting of the City Council of said City, held on the 2nd day of May, 2016, by the following vote, to wit: AYES: COUNCILMEMBERS: Bushey, Gamblin, McCullough & Vice -Mayor Colin NOES: COUNCILMEMBERS: None ABSENT: COUNCILMEMBERS: Mayor Phillips WITNESS my hand and the official Seal of the City of San Rafael this 4`h day of May, 2016 ESTHER C. BEIRNE City Clerk ORDINANCE NO. 1939 AN ORDINANCE OF THE CITY OF SAN RAFAEL AMENDING CHAPTER 8.19 OF THE SAN RAFAEL MUNICIPAL CODE ENTITLED "SOCIAL HOST ORDINANCE" BY EXTENDING IT TO APPLY TO LOUD AND UNRULY PARTIES WHERE CONTROLLED SUBSTANCES ARE SERVED TO, POSSESSED BY, OR INGESTED BY UNDERAGE PERSONS THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF SAN RAFAEL DOES ORDAIN AS FOLLOWS: DIVISION 1. WHEREAS. in 2007 the City Council added new Chapter 8.19 to the San Rafael Municipal Code entitled "Social Host Ordinance"; and WHEREAS, the Social Host Ordinance was adopted by the City Council to address problems associated with social gatherings where alcoholic beverages are served to or consumed by underage persons and become unruly, necessitating sometimes multiple City police responses and resulting in a disproportionate expenditure of public safety resources and delaying official responses to other calls in the rest of the City; and WHEREAS, the Social Host Ordinance imposes on property owners, and other persons responsible for gatherings that allow underage drinking, liability for the nuisances created by such gatherings and the costs associated with responding to them; and WHEREAS, the City Council finds that the purposes of the Social Host Ordinance are served by extending its provisions to apply to unruly social gatherings where controlled substances are served to, possessed by, or ingested by underage persons; NOW, THEREFORE, THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF SAN RAFAEL DOES ORDAIN AS FOLLOWS: DIVISION 2. Chapter 8.19 of the San Rafael Municipal Code, entitled "Social Host Ordinance," is hereby amended as follows: 1. Section 8.19.020 is hereby amended to read in its entirety as follows: 8.19.020 — Purposes. The occurrence of social gatherings on private property where alcoholic beverages and/or controlled substances are served to, consumed by, or in the possession of underage persons leads to increased occurrences of social problems such as excessive noise, vandalism, traffic obstructions, driving under the influence by underage persons, and consequent damage, injury and death, and therefore is harmful to the underage persons involved and a threat to public health and safety, quiet enjoyment of residential property and the general welfare, and a public nuisance as they affect at the same time the entire San Rafael community as well as the neighborhoods in which they occur. City police officers have in the past been required to respond to unruly gatherings on private property at which alcoholic beverages and/or controlled substances are served to or consumed by underage persons, and have also received multiple service calls in the same calendar year concerning unruly gatherings at the same property. Such calls for service result in a disproportionate expenditure of public safety resources and delay official responses to other calls in the rest of the City. An ordinance that imposes liability on property owners and other responsible persons for gatherings that allow underage drinking or ingestion of controlled substances is necessary to deter and prevent such gatherings. Persons who actively and passively aid, allow, or tolerate such gatherings should be held liable for permitting such gatherings, the nuisances created by them and the costs associated with responding to them. 2. Section 8.19.030 is hereby amended to read in its entirety as follows: 8.19.030 -- Definitions. For the purposes of this chapter, the following definitions shall apply: A. "Alcohol" means the definition of "alcohol" in Section 23003 of the California Business and Professions Code, as amended from time to time. As of the adoption of this chapter, Section 23003 defined "alcohol" to mean "ethyl alcohol, hydrated oxide of ethyl, or spirits of wine, from whatever source or by whatever process produced." N B. "Alcoholic beverage" means the definition of "alcoholic beverage" in Section 23004 of the California Business and Professions Code, as amended from time to time. As of the adoption of this chapter, Section 23004 defined "alcoholic beverage" to mean " alcohol, spirits, liquor, wine, beer, and every liquid or solid containing alcohol, spirits, wine, or beer, and which contains one-half of 1 percent or more of alcohol by volume and which is fit for beverage purposes either alone or when diluted, mixed, or combined with other substances." C. "City" means the City of San Rafael. D. "Controlled Substance" means a drug or substance whose possession and use are regulated under the California Controlled Substances Act (Health & Safety Code Section 11000 et seq.). Such term does not include any drug or substance for which the individual found to have consumed or possessed such substance has a valid prescription issued by a licensed medical practitioner authorized to issue such a prescription, or in the case of medical cannabis, a recommendation for medical marijuana from an approved provider, or a State of California medical ID card. E. "Juvenile" means any person under eighteen years of age. F. "Response costs" means the costs associated with responses by City police officers and other emergency services providers to unruly gatherings including but not limited to: 1. Salaries and benefits of such public safety personnel for the amount of time spent responding to, remaining at, or otherwise dealing with unruly gatherings, and the administrative costs attributable to such response(s); 2. The cost of any medical treatment or workers compensation benefits for any such public safety personnel injured responding to, remaining at or leaving the scene of an unruly gathering; 3. The cost of repairing any City equipment or property damage, and the cost of the use of any such equipment, in responding to, remaining at or leaving the scene of an unruly gathering; and 3 4. Any costs recoverable in accordance with California Civil Code Section 1714.9. G. "Responsible person" means a person or persons with a right of possession of the residence or other private property in the City at which an unruly gathering may occur, including, but not limited to, the following: 1. Any owner of the residence or other private property, meaning the record owner of the title to property as of the time of the unruly gathering, wheresoever that person or entity may currently reside; 2. A tenant or lessee of the residence or other private property; 3. The person(s) exercising control over the residence or other private property at the time of the unruly gathering; and 4. The person(s) who organizes, supervises, officiates, hosts, conducts or controls the unruly gathering or any other person(s) accepting responsibility for such gathering. A responsible person for the unruly gathering need not be present at such gathering. H. "Underage person" means any person under twenty-one years of age. I. "Unruly gathering" means a party or gathering of two or more persons at a residence or other private property in the City at which alcoholic beverages and/or controlled substances are being served to or consumed by any underage person, when that party or gathering is also being conducted in such a manner as to constitute a substantial disturbance of the quiet enjoyment of private or public property in the neighborhood due to the occurrence of such disturbances as excessive noise, excessive traffic, obstruction of public streets by crowds or vehicles, public intoxication or unlawful public consumption of alcohol or alcoholic beverages, or controlled substances, assaults, batteries, fights, domestic violence, vandalism, littering, and any other disturbances of the peace or conduct that constitutes a threat to public health, safety, quiet enjoyment of residential property or general welfare. 3. Section 8.19.040 is hereby amended to read as follows: 8.19.040 -- Duty of responsible persons. It is the duty of responsible persons to not knowingly host, permit, or allow an unruly gathering at a residence or other private property in the City concerning which the responsible person has a right of possession specified in Section 8.19.030(F) and to take all reasonable steps to prevent the consumption of alcoholic beverages and/or controlled substances by any underage person at gatherings at such residence or other private property. Reasonable steps required pursuant to this section include, but are not limited to: controlling access to alcoholic beverages and/or controlled substances at the gathering; controlling the quantity of alcoholic beverages and/or controlled substances present at the gathering; verifying the age of persons attending the gathering by inspecting drivers' licenses or other government -issued identification cards to ensure that underage persons do not consume alcoholic beverages and/or controlled substances while at the gathering; and supervising the activities of underage persons at the gathering. 4. Section 8.19.050 is hereby amended to read in its entirety as follows: 8.19.050 -- Unruly gatherings on private property unlawful. It is unlawful and a public nuisance for any responsible person to knowingly host, permit, or allow an unruly gathering to occur at private property in the City concerning which the responsible person has a right of possession specified in Section 8.19.030(F). For purposes of this chapter, a responsible person knowingly hosts, permits or allows an unruly gathering whenever the responsible person is aware an underage person has consumed an alcoholic beverage and/or controlled substances at an unruly gathering, or reasonably should have been aware an underage person has consumed an alcoholic beverage and/or controlled substances at such a gathering had the responsible person taken all reasonable steps to prevent consumption of alcoholic beverages and/or controlled substances by underage persons in accordance with Section 8.19.040. It shall be prima facie evidence that the responsible person knew or should have known of both the unruly gathering and the consumption of alcoholic beverages and/or controlled 5 substances by underage persons at the gathering if the responsible person is present on the property at any point during the gathering. To the full extent permitted by law, owners of properties as defined in Section 8.19.030(F)(1) shall remain responsible persons liable for violations of this chapter on such property regardless of any contract or agreement regarding the property that purports to provide otherwise. DIVISION 3: If any section, subsection, sentence, clause or phrase of this Ordinance is for any reason held to be invalid, such decision shall not affect the validity of the remaining portions of this Ordinance. The Council hereby declares that it would have adopted the Ordinance and each section, subsection, sentence, clause or phrase thereof, irrespective of the fact that any one or more sections, subsections, sentences, clauses or phrases be declared invalid. DIVISION 4: This Ordinance shall be published once, in full or in summary form, before its final passage, in a newspaper of general circulation, published, and circulated in the City of San Rafael, and shall be in full force and effect thirty (30) days after its final passage. If published in summary form, the summary shall also be published within fifteen (15) days after the adoption, together with the names of those Councilmembers voting for or against same, in a newspaper of general circulation published and circulated in the City of San Rafael, County of Marin, State of California ATTEST: ESTHER BEIRNE, City Clerk 2 GARY O. PtELIPS, Mayor The foregoing Ordinance No. 1939 was read and introduced at a Regular Meeting of the City Council of the City of San Rafael, held on the 18th day of April, 2016 and ordered passed to print by the following vote, to wit: AYES: Councilmembers: Bushey, Colin, Gamblin, McCullough & Mayor Phillips NOES: Councilmembers: None ABSENT: Councilmembers: None and will come up for adoption as an Ordinance of the City of San Rafael at a Regular Meeting of the Council to be held on the 2nd day of May, 2016. 7 2cn� 2"-R _ ESTHER BEIRNE, City Clerk