1 City Council Meeting: September 9, 2025 Santa Monica, California
ORDINANCE NUMBER (CCS)
(City Council Series)
AN ORDINANCE AMENDING SANTA MONICA MUNICIPAL CODE SECTION
3.16.120 TO CLARIFY CLEAN AIR VEHICLE PARKING METER PAYMENT
REQUIREMENTS
WHEREAS, environmental sustainability is a core value of the City of Santa Monica; and
WHEREAS, the City expresses this value through a broad range of policies, including policies supporting environmentally sustainable transportation alternatives, such as clean air vehicles; and
WHEREAS, for over fifteen years, the City has granted various exemptions from parking charges as a means of encouraging motorists to utilize clean air vehicles; and WHEREAS, in addition to these environmental goals and policies, the City has also adopted a policy of managing parking assets to maximize City revenues; and WHEREAS, the balance between these competing policies must be adjusted from time to time to promote the public’s welfare; and
WHEREAS, the California legislature adopted a Clean Air Vehicles (CAV) decal program, administered by the California Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV), in order to encourage the purchase and lease of low-emission vehicles, which expires on September 30, 2025; and
WHEREAS, Santa Monica Municipal Code Section 3.16.120 exempts all vehicles bearing CAV decals from parking meter payments through September 30, 2025, with purple decal holders unintentionally excluded from the expiration clause. This code amendment clarifies that the parking benefits expires for all CAV decal holders on September 30, 2025.
NOW, THEREFORE, THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF SANTA MONICA DOES 2 HEREBY ORDAIN AS FOLLOWS:
SECTION 1. Santa Monica Municipal Code Section 3.16.120 is hereby amended to read as follows:
3.16.120 Operation of Parking Meters.
(a) Unless exempt pursuant to subsection (b) or (c) of this Section, when any vehicle is parked in a metered parking space, the operator immediately shall deposit payment in the manner prescribed on the parking meter or at the parking space. Unless otherwise permitted by law, no person shall park a vehicle in a designated metered parking space in excess of the maximum parking time limit set by the City.
(b) Subsection (a) of this Section shall not require an operator of a vehicle to deposit payment in a parking meter when:
(1) The parking meter indicates an unexpired portion remains of the period for which payment had been previously made; or
(2) An officer of the Fire or Police Department has determined a period of emergency exists; or
(3) In compliance with the directions of a police officer or traffic control sign or signal; or
(4) A posted sign at the parking space indicates words similar to “Except Sunday” or “Except Sundays and Holidays” and the day is a Sunday or a holiday. (c) Subsection (a) of this Section shall not require an operator of a vehicle to deposit payment in a parking meter if the vehicle is lawfully displaying one of the following decals, placards or plates issued by the California Department of Motor Vehicles:
(1) A current and valid Clean Air Vehicle (CAV) decal; or (2) A Neighborhood Electric Vehicle (NEV) decal issued prior to 2011; or 3 (3) A Green CAV decal issued prior to 2019; or
(4) A White CAV decal issued prior to 2019; or
(5) A Red CAV decal issued prior to 2022; or
(6) A Purple CAV decal issued prior to 2023; or
(7) Any special recognition plate.
The exemptions for zero-emission vehicle decals set forth in subsections (c)(2), (c)(3), (c)(4), and (c)(5) (c)(1) through (c)(6) above shall automatically expire on September 30, 2025.
SECTION 2. Any provision of the Municipal Code or appendices thereto inconsistent with the provisions of this Ordinance, to the extent of such inconsistencies and no further, is hereby repealed or modified to that extent necessary to effectuate the provisions of this Ordinance.
SECTION 3. If any section, subsection, sentence, clause or phrase of this Ordinance is for any reason held to be invalid or unconstitutional by a decision of any court of competent jurisdiction, such decision shall not affect the validity of the remaining portions of this Ordinance. The City Council hereby declares that it would have passed this Ordinance and each and every section, subsection, sentence, clause, or phrase not declared invalid or unconstitutional without regard to whether any portion of the Ordinance would be subsequently declared invalid or unconstitutional.
SECTION 4. The Mayor shall sign and the City Clerk shall attest to the passage of this Ordinance. The City Clerk shall cause the same to be published once in the official newspaper within 15 days after its adoption. This Ordinance shall become effective 30 days from its adoption.
APPROVED AS TO FORM:
4 Heidi von Tongeln, Acting City Attorney