City Council
Report
City Council Meeting: December 17, 2024
Agenda Item: 5.D
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To: Mayor and City Council
From: Anuj Gupta, Director of Transportation, Parking Operations (DOT) Subject: Award Contract to Nastich Law for Parking Citations Hearing Examiner Services
Recommended Action
Staff recommends that the City Council:
1. Adopt a finding that the contract is not a project subject to the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA);
2. Award RFP# 426 to Nastich Law, a Professional Corporation (“Nastich Law”) for parking citation hearing examiner services for the Department of Transportation;
3. Authorize the City Manager to negotiate and execute an agreement with Nastich Law, in an amount not to exceed $240,000 for three years with two one-year renewal options in the amount of $176,000 on the same terms and conditions for a total amount not to exceed $416,000 over a five-year period, with future year funding contingent on Council budget approval.
Summary
The State of California requires municipalities to follow the provisions of the California Vehicle Code (CVC), which mandates that issuing agencies provide an impartial review process for contested parking citations. The Department of Transportation’s Parking Operations Division maintains a contract with a parking citation hearing examiner for this purpose. The current service provider is contracted through December 2024 and has agreed to provide services through February 2025 on an interim basis. A contract modification to extend this contract through the end of February will be processed. In preparation for a new contract, the Parking Operations Division conducted a competitive procurement process and issued RFP #426. Upon evaluation of the proposals received, staff recommends awarding a contract to Nastich Law for parking citation hearing examiner services, in an amount not to exceed $240,000 for three years with two one- 2 of 4
year renewal options in the amount of $176,000, on the same terms and conditions for a total amount not to exceed $416,000 over a five-year period Discussion
Parking Citation Contesting Procedures in Santa Monica
CVC § 40215 sets forth procedures for contesting parking citations, which all issuing agencies must follow in accordance with state law. The process for contesting a parking citation begins with an initial administrative review conducted by the Traffic Services Division of the Santa Monica Police Department. An administrative hearing may be requested if the contestant is not satisfied with the results of the initial review. The administrative hearing is conducted by an independent adjudicator hired by the Parking Operations Division to review and resolve parking citation disputes. If the contestant is not satisfied with the decision rendered during the administrative hearing, they may file an appeal with the Superior Court, provided the request is filed within 30 days of the mailing date of the hearing decision.
The CVC also requires that the issuing agency appoint or contract with administrative hearing examiners possessing the qualifications, training, and objectivity necessary to conduct a fair and impartial review, requiring that the examiners cannot be employees of the City.
Parking Citation Activity in Santa Monica
The volumes of requested/concluded City of Santa Monica citation hearings per fiscal year (FY) are as follows:
Activity
FY
20/21
FY
21/22
FY
22/23
FY
23/24
Yearly Issuance 129,403 235,063 216,908 193,017
Hearing Requests Received 531 521 515 826
Citations Processed Hearing Liable 391 379 363 376
Citations Processed Hearing Not Liable 1 38 64 47
Citations Processed Hearings No Show 34 5 7 133
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Between FY 20-21 and FY 23-24, less than 1% of all parking citations were contested and entered the adjudication process per year. In general, there has been a fluctuating trend in the number of contested citations compared to the number of citations issued.
Staff anticipates FY 24-25 hearings to meet or exceed the FY 23-24 level.
Vendor Selection
Bidder Recommendation
Best Qualified Person/Firm Nastich Law
Evaluation Criteria Training, credentials, and experience; demonstrated competence, ability, capacity, and skill; capacity to
provide services promptly, within the time specified;
price.
Municipal Code SMMC 2.24.190
Proposals Received
Nastich Law, a Professional Corporation
Serviam by Wright, LLC
RFP Data
Date Posted Location
Posted
Advertised (per City
Charter & SMMC)
Vendors
Downloaded
Date
Publicly
Opened
10/10/2024 City’s Online
Bidding Site
(OpenGov)
Santa Monica Daily
Press
4 11/1/2024
Justification to Award
Staff recommends Nastich Law as the best bidder for the parking citation hearing examiner services. The recommendation is based on the firm’s previous experience working with agencies similar to Santa Monica, cost proposal, and technical skill.
Nastich Law has done similar work for the City of Santa Clara, the County of San Luis Obispo, and Placer County Code Compliance. A team of City staff from Parking Operations evaluated the two proposals, conducted interviews with the proposers, and has recommended an award to Nastich Law. Nastich Law received the highest score based on the evaluation criteria set forth in SMMC 2.24.190, including experience and technical competence, quality of work, project team, cost, knowledge of and adherence to requirements, references, and project understanding.
Environmental Review
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The contract for parking citation services is not a “project” subject to CEQA. The contract is administrative in nature and establishes the terms and conditions between the City and the Coalition. Pursuant to CEQA Section 21065, the contracted parking citation services does not meet the definition of a “project” subject to CEQA as it will not “cause either a direct physical change in the environment, or a reasonably foreseeable indirect physical change in the environment.” Additionally, per Section 15378(b) of the CEQA Guidelines, a “project” does not include organizational or administrative activities of governments that will not result in direct or indirect physical changes in the environment. Therefore, the contract is not subject to CEQA.
Financial Impacts and Budget Actions
Staff seeks authority to approve available funding from the Department of Transportation’s Parking Operations budget within the General Fund to award a contract with Nastich Law for parking citation hearing examiner services.
Agreement Request
FY 2024-25
Request
Amount
Amount for Future Years Account # Total Contract
Amount
$80,000 $336,000 01600004.550010 $416,000
Future year funding is contingent on Council budget approval.
Prepared By: Zach Pollard, Parking Manager
Approved Forwarded to Council
Attachments:
A. Levine Act Disclosure 10.29.24
B. Oaks Initiative 10.29.24