§ 10.46.020. Police impound towing franchises—Purpose and declarations.

A.

It is declared and determined that the business of police towing affects the health, safety and public welfare of the residents of the city. The custody and control of vehicles owned by the public which are towed and/or stored at the order of the Pasadena police for purposes of impound or facilitation of traffic flow require a high degree of proficiency with the procedures established by the California Department of Motor Vehicles and a high level of trust and confidence by the public and the police department in the facilities used for storage and the personnel and equipment utilized for towing vehicles to impound, many of which may be of high value, may be or contain evidence of criminal activity, and which, if improperly towed or stored, may result in legal action against the city. The further responsibility of the police towing franchisee is to collect only the prescribed fee from owners of impounded vehicles and to release said vehicles promptly and efficiently, but only upon the evidence of proper documentation requires that only those towing contractors who have demonstrated that they possess the facilities, control systems and knowledgeable personnel to protect the interests of the city and vehicle owners. Therefore, it is a purpose of this chapter to regulate this service to the police department and to minimize any adverse effects upon the citizenry.

B.

It is recognized that the city is required to adopt and implement a mechanism to promote the safe and efficient towing to impound of vehicles and that city may impose fees to fund the cost of this effort and to augment the funds available for purposes of law enforcement.

C.

The city, by the adoption of Article XI of the City Charter, having elected to implement the home rule provisions of Article XI of the Constitution of the state of California as to municipal affairs and the granting of nonexclusive franchises of the nature referred to herein as being within the class of actions designated to "municipal affairs," declares that the provisions of the chapter, together with the provisions of the charter of the city, shall constitute the exclusive procedure for the grant of franchises for conducting police impound towing and storage services.

(Ord. 6718 § 2 (part), 1997)