1 STAFF REPORT
COMMUNITY
DEVELOPMENT
DATE: May 20, 2025
TO: Justin Hess, City Manager
FROM: Patrick Prescott, Community Development Director BY: Mario Osuna, Assistant Community Development Director
SUBJECT: A pproval of a Contract Between the City of Burbank and Los Angeles County, Department of Public Health for the County to Serve as the City’s Health Officer and Environmental Health Department
RECOMMENDATION
Approve a contract between the City of Burbank (City) and Los Angeles County, Department of Public Health (DPH) for the County to serve as the City’s Health Officer and Environmental Health Department, and designate the City Manager, or designee, to execute the contract and any necessary amendments to effectuate the agreement (Attachment 1).
BACKGROUND
On July 1, 1963, t he City entered into a Health Services Agreement (Agreement) with DPH authorizing the County to render public health services pursuant to California Health and Safety Code §§ 480 and 482 ( subsequently amended to §§ 101400 and 101405) , within the City limits (Attachment 2). In conjunction with the Agreement, the City established Burbank Municipal Code §§ 4-1-101 through 4-1-104 which adopted Title 8 and Title 11 of the Los Angeles County Public Health Code, with certain exclusions. These adopted codes, along with California State Law, authorize the County to act as the Public Health Officer and as the Environmental Health Department for the City.
The original Agreement from 1963 has never been modified. DPH now seeks to update its health services contracts with all Los Angeles County cities that utilize DPH services.
2 DISCUSSION
Up until recently, the City was not charged for the services provided as DPH collected all licensing, investigative, and permit fees associated with their scope of work directly from applicants and businesses.
Enacted in 2023, California Health and Safety Code § 101045 authorizes DPH to collect a fee for investigations of health and sanitary conditions in detention facilities operated by the City. State law requires an annual investigation be conducted by the Public Health Officer. This will result in a fee to the City for annual investigations of health and sanitary conditions at the Burbank Jail. This fee is stated in the contract.
The new contract would also authorize the City to request additional services, above and beyond what is normally provided by DPH, for a fee. This may include additional enforcement or investigations related to businesses regulated by the Public Health Officer. The City must request this service from DPH.
Aside from the above-mentioned changes, there are no new fees associated with this contract. DPH will continue to perform public health services pursuant to Title 8 and Title 11 of the Los Angeles County Code on behalf of the City, at no cost.
Should the City choose not to enter into a new Agreement with DPH, the City would be required to establish a Local Public Health Officer to perform all services currently conducted by DPH . The City would need to develop municipal health standards and permitting/compliance programs for enforcement. There will be a need for additional staffing and funding to support the program.
ENVIRONMENTAL REVIEW
This contract has no potential for resulting in either a direct physical change in the environment, or a reasonably foreseeable indirect physical change in the environment, and as such, is not a “project” subject to the requirements of the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) 14 Cal. Code Regs § 15378.
FISCAL IMPACT
The annual detention facility inspection is expected to cost $1,200, based upon DPH’s current rate per hour for an investigator. The current rate for an investigator is $200 and three investigators are present for each investigation. Furthermore, DPH has estimated that it would take roughly two hours to conduct an investigation at the Burbank Jail. There are sufficient funds in the Burbank Police Department annual budget to cover this expenditure.
3 In addition, should the City seek additional enforcement from DPH, the fee will be calculated based upon the number of staff and the amount of hours. The current rate is $200 per hour per staff member.
CONCLUSION
Staff seeks to maintain the current services provided by DPH as it has proven to be reliable, efficient, and cost effective. By entering this new contract, staff seeks to solidify DPH’s services to operate as the Public Health Officer and Environmental Health Department for the City.
ATTACHMENTS
Attachment 1 – 2025 LA DPH Contract
Attachment 2 – 1963 Agreement with LA DPH