Form revised: December 6, 2011

FISCAL NOTE FOR NON-CAPITAL PROJECTS

Department:	Contact Person/Phone:	CBO Analyst/Phone:
Legislative	Christa Valles/684-5336

Legislation Title:

AN ORDINANCE relating to the regulation of the tow industry; revising tow industry regulations; repealing Sections 6.214.010, 6.214.020, 6.214.030, 6.214.040, 6.214.050, 6.214.060, 6.214.070, 6.214.080, 6.214.090, 6.214.100, 6.214.110, 6.214.120, 6.214.130, 6.214.140, 6.214.150, 6.214.160, 6.214.170, and 6.214.180 of the Seattle Municipal Code; adding new sections to chapter 6.214; and amending the 2012 budget, Ordinance 123758, to appropriate funds and create a new position; all by a three-fourths vote of the City Council.

Summary of the Legislation:

This legislation establishes maximum fees that tow companies operating in the city of Seattle can charge. It also requires tow companies to obtain tow company licenses. It empowers FAS to enforce the maximum rates and creates a city impound fee to fund enforcement.

Background:  

_X___ This legislation has financial implications.

(If the legislation has direct fiscal impacts (e.g., appropriations, revenue, positions), fill out the relevant sections below.  If the financial implications are indirect or longer-term, describe them in narrative in the “Other Implications” Section. Please delete the instructions provided in parentheses at the end of each title and question.)

Appropriations:

(This table should reflect appropriations that are a direct result of this legislation.  In the event that the project/programs associated with this ordinance had, or will have, appropriations in other legislation please provide details in the Appropriation Notes section below. If the appropriation is not supported by revenue/reimbursements, please confirm that there is available fund balance to cover this appropriation in the note section.)

Fund Name and Number	Department	Budget Control Level*	2012 Appropriation	2013 Anticipated Appropriation
Finance and Administrative Services Fund (50300)	Department of Finance and Administrative Services	Revenue and consumer protection (A4530)	$37,120	$84,900
TOTAL			$37,120	$84,900

*See budget book to obtain the appropriate Budget Control Level for your department.

Appropriations Notes: 

These appropriations pay for 1.0 license inspector position at .75 FTE. It also includes appropriations to pay for miscellaneous costs associated with the position, such as

Anticipated Revenue/Reimbursement Resulting from this Legislation:

(This table should reflect revenues/reimbursements that are a direct result of this legislation.  In the event that the issues/projects associated with this ordinance/resolution have revenues or reimbursements that were, or will be, received because of previous or future legislation or budget actions, please provide details in the Notes section below the table.)

Fund Name and Number	Department	Revenue Source	2012 Revenue	2013 Revenue
Finance and Administrative Services Fund (50300)	Department of Finance and Administrative Services	License/fee revenue	-0-	11,500
Finance and Administrative Services Fund (50300)	Department of Finance and Administrative Services	City impound fee	-0-	$60,000
TOTAL

Revenue/Reimbursement Notes:

License fee revenue: Revenue from license fees assumes there are approximately 23 tow companies operating in Seattle that will be required to obtain a city tow company license, and while each tow company must acquire a separate license for each separate license location, the revenue estimate does not take this into account. The cost of a license is $500 annually.  

City impound fee revenue: The city impound fee is $15 per redemption. It is, however, difficult to know how many private impounds occur in the city as this information is not currently tracked. FAS had at one time estimated 8,000 annually, but the tow industry thought this number inaccurately included voluntary tows. This estimate here assumes 4000 private impounds per year, resulting in net revenue of $60,000.

Total Regular Positions Created, Modified, or Abrogated through this Legislation, Including FTE Impact:

(This table should only reflect the actual number of positions affected by this legislation.   In the event that positions have been, or will be, created as a result of other legislation, please provide details in the Notes section below the table.)

Position Title and Department	Position # for Existing Positions	Fund Name & #	PT/FT	2012 Positions	2012 FTE	2013 Positions*	2013 FTE*
License and Standards Inspector		General Fund (00100)	FT	1	.75	1	.75
TOTAL

* 2013 positions and FTE are total 2013 position changes resulting from this legislation, not incremental changes.  Therefore, under 2013, please be sure to include any continuing positions from 2012.

Position Notes:

Funding is assumed for .75 FTE. If revenues are greater than anticipated, FAS can fully fund the license inspector position.

Do positions sunset in the future?  No

Other Implications:

a) Does the legislation have indirect financial implications, or long-term implications?

Law department resources may be used to help enforce legislation (see c. below). The City impound fee may need to increase if revenues do not come in as anticipated.

b) What is the financial cost of not implementing the legislation?

The public would continue to be at risk of predatory pricing associated with private impounds.

c) Does this legislation affect any departments besides the originating department?  If FAS decides to pursue certain misdemeanors in court, the Law Department will need to become involved. The law department does not believe this legislation will create a unmanageable body of work for it.

d) What are the possible alternatives to the legislation that could achieve the same or similar objectives?  The State legislature could pass maximum private impound rates.

e) Is a public hearing required for this legislation?  no

f) Is publication of notice with The Daily Journal of Commerce and/or The Seattle Times required for this legislation? no

g) Does this legislation affect a piece of property? no

Other Issues: