REPORT TO COUNCIL
SUBJECT
Title
Introduction of an Ordinance to Amend Chapter 1.04 of the Sunnyvale Municipal Code Relating to Attorney's Fees and Costs for Abatement of Public Nuisances
Report
DISCUSSION
Any violation of the Sunnyvale Municipal Code (SMC) has been deemed a public nuisance pursuant to SMC Section 1.04.040 (see Attachment 1) and the City has various options available to remedy violations of the SMC. Often, violations are addressed with education, outreach, and warning letters issued by the Department of Public Safety, Neighborhood Preservation Division. However, in instances where the violation is more significant, or where voluntary compliance is not achieving the desired remediation, the City may consider litigation in order to gain compliance.
The City has filed for health and safety receiverships under California Health and Safety Code Section 17980 to address substandard residential properties. This state law provides that the prevailing party may be entitled to attorneys' fees and costs associated with bringing the legal action to court. The legislative purpose behind the attorneys' fees provision is to ensure that taxpayers are not subsidizing the attorney's costs for code violators, and to ensure that the public entity will be made whole for bringing receivership actions. State law also provides that a city may by ordinance provide for recovery of attorneys' fees where it is not entitled to fees by statute (California Government Code Section 38773.5, Attachment 2). This law also provides that any attorneys' fees provision adopted by a city must be reciprocal, which means the prevailing party is entitled to attorneys' fees, and it cannot be limited to just the city. Currently, the SMC is silent as to recovery of attorneys' fees in cases involving public nuisances. The Office of the City Attorney (OCA) anticipates that a reciprocal attorneys' fees provision may be a helpful tool to ensure that OCA can pursue such legal action in the fut...
Click here for full text