STAFF REPORT
Meeting Date:
October 28, 2025
CONSENT
20 SUBJECT: APPROVAL OF A SIDE LETTER AGREEMENT BETWEEN THE CITY OF LAGUNA BEACH AND THE LAGUNA BEACH POLICE EMPLOYEES’
ASSOCIATION REGARDING OVERTIME INCENTIVE PAY FOR PUBLIC
SAFETY DISPATCHERS
RECOMMENDATION: It is recommended that the City Council:
1. Adopt the attached Resolution titled, “A RESOLUTION OF THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY
OF LAGUNA BEACH, CALIFORNIA, APPROVING A SIDE LETTER AGREEMENT
BETWEEN THE CITY OF LAGUNA BEACH AND THE LAGUNA BEACH POLICE EMPLOYEES’ ASSOCIATION REGARDING OVERTIME INCENTIVE PAY FOR PUBLIC SAFETY DISPATCHERS”; and
2. Authorize the City Manager to sign the Side Letter of Agreement between the City of Laguna Beach and the Laguna Beach Police Employees’ Association.
SUMMARY OF THE MATTER
This report recommends that the City Council adopt a Resolution approving a Side Letter of Agreement between the City of Laguna Beach and the Laguna Beach Police Employees’ Association (LBPEA or the Association), reflecting a mutual agreement to provide an overtime incentive for Public Safety Dispatchers and Senior Dispatchers. Under the agreement, employees in these classifications will receive double-time pay for all hours worked in excess of 52 hours per workweek when the Dispatch Unit is staffed with fewer than ten mission-ready employees through March 31, 2027. The City and LBPEA have identified this incentive as a necessary step to maintain essential public safety staffing levels during periods of reduced availability.
The estimated cost of the incentive is approximately $8,000 per month and can be accommodated within the Police Department’s approved Fiscal Year 2025–26 operating budget. This action has been reviewed under the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) and determined not to be a project pursuant to CEQA Guidelines Section 15378.
DISCUSSION
The City and the LBPEA are parties to the current Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with a term of January 1, 2023, through December 31, 2025. Under this Agreement, Dispatchers and Senior Dispatchers are compensated at a rate of time and one-half for hours worked in excess of forty (40) hours in a workweek.
To maintain essential public safety services, the City and the Association have agreed to enter into a Side Letter of Agreement to offer an additional overtime incentive for employees in the Dispatcher classifications. This incentive will apply for the term of the Side Letter Agreement whenever the Dispatch Unit is staffed with fewer than ten (10) "mission ready" employees. For purposes of this agreement, “mission ready” refers to employees who are fully trained, certified, and available for assignment without requiring further qualification or preparation.
APPROVAL OF A SIDE LETTER AGREEMENT BETWEEN THE CITY OF LAGUNA BEACH AND THE LAGUNA BEACH POLICE EMPLOYEES’ ASSOCIATION REGARDING
OVERTIME INCENTIVE PAY FOR PUBLIC SAFETY DISPATCHERS
October 28, 2025
Under the proposed Side Letter of Agreement, Dispatchers and Senior Dispatchers will be compensated at a rate of double time (2x) for all hours worked in excess of fifty-two (52) hours in a workweek, provided the Dispatch Unit is operating with fewer than ten mission ready employees. Use of accrued leave time leave will not count toward the 52-hour threshold.
This temporary incentive is intended to:
• Ensure adequate staffing levels to support public safety operations; • Recognize the additional workload absorbed by existing personnel; and • Promote voluntary coverage of overtime shifts.
The Dispatch Unit is budgeted for eleven positions. Currently, there are eight mission ready employees and one employee in training. The Police Department expects to have ten mission ready employees by March 31, 2027.
If approved, the overtime incentive will take effect on the first day of the pay period following Council approval and will be applied whenever the number of mission ready employees in the Dispatch Unit is less than ten. The agreement will sunset on March 31, 2027, unless extended by mutual agreement of the parties.
FINANCIAL ANALYSIS
The estimated cost of this incentive is approximately $8,000 per month, or $96,000 annually, based on current staffing levels and average overtime hours. Sufficient funding is available within the Police Department’s adopted FY 2025–26 operating budget under existing salary and overtime appropriations. No additional appropriations are required at this time.
ENVIRONMENTAL ANALYSIS This action is not a “project” within the meaning of CEQA (Pub. Res.
Code § 21065; CEQA Guidelines § 15378(b)(2)) because it involves only a personnel-related action impacting compensation and will not result in a direct or reasonably foreseeable indirect physical change in the environment. No further environmental review is required.
ATTACHMENTS
1. Resolution (Pgs. 3-5)
a. Exhibit A: Side Letter of Agreement with LBPEA (Pgs. 6-7) Submitted By:
Aggie Nesh
Approved:
, for
Aggie Nesh, Director of Human
Resources & Risk Management
Dave Kiff, City Manager
Report Prepared By: Coordinated With:
Aggie Nesh, Director of Human Resources &
Risk Management
Jeff Calvert, Police Chief
Michelle Bannigan, Finance Director
APPROVAL OF A SIDE LETTER AGREEMENT BETWEEN THE CITY OF LAGUNA BEACH AND THE LAGUNA BEACH POLICE EMPLOYEES’ ASSOCIATION REGARDING
OVERTIME INCENTIVE PAY FOR PUBLIC SAFETY DISPATCHERS
October 28, 2025