CC SR 20200707 04 - LA Sheriffs Law Enforcement Services Agmt FY2020-21
CITY COUNCIL MEETING DATE: 07/07/2020
AGENDA REPORT AGENDA HEADING: Consent Calendar
AGENDA TITLE:
Consideration and possible action to approve the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s
Department Service Level Authorization for Fiscal Year 2020-21 and adjust the Public
Safety Special Programs budget for FY 2020-21.
RECOMMENDED COUNCIL ACTION:
(1) Authorize the City Manager to sign the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department
Service Level Authorization for Fiscal Year 2020-21 at an estimated total City
annual cost of $7,049,292.94.
(2) Authorize the City Manager to reduce the Public Safety Special Programs budget
of $130,500 by $25,500 as follows:
a. Traffic Control by $11,000
b. Coastal Area Patrol by $5,500
c. Western Avenue Patrol by $6,000
d. Summer Evening Patrol by $3,000
(3) Direct Staff to provide the City Council with quarterly reports on costs associated
with service levels and Public Safety Special Programs
FISCAL IMPACT: $7,222,400 is included in the FY 2020-21 budget for the Sheriff’s
general law enforcement services, including Community Resource
Team deputies serving throughout the City/Peninsula. Included in
this cost is $130,500 used for Public Safety - Special Programs in
directed patrols and traffic control.
Amount Budgeted: N/A
Additional Appropriation: N/A
Account Number(s): 101-400-6110-5101 (Prof/Technical Service)
101-400-6120-5111 (Traffic Control)
101-400-6120-5112 (Coastal Area Patrol)
101-400-6120-5113 (Western Ave Patrol)
101-400-6120-5114 (Summer Evening Patrol)
101-400-6120-5115 (Supplemental Patrol)
ORIGINATED BY: Shane Lee, Administrative Analyst
REVIEWED BY: Karina Bañales, Deputy City Manager
APPROVED BY: Ara Mihranian, AICP, City Manager
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ATTACHED SUPPORTING DOCUMENTS:
A. LASD Contract City Law Enforcement Service Agreement (page A-1)
BACKGROUND AND DISCUSSION:
The City of Rancho Palos Verdes contracts with the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s
Department (LASD) for law enforcement services and has a fixed percentage-only
formula cost-sharing model with the Peninsula cities of Rolling Hills Estates and Rolling
Hills. In 2014, the three contract cities agreed to migrate from a variable formula to
calculate annual cost-sharing of the Sheriff’s services to a fixed percentage-only
formula. The Sheriff’s general law enforcement services costs are portioned along with
the following formula: Rancho Palos Verdes (68%), Rolling Hills Estates (28%), and
Rolling Hills (4%).
The Service Level Authorization (Attachment A), also known as Form SH-AD 575 Form,
delineates the unit breakdown and associated costs. The City Council approved an
LASD contract in FY 2019-20 for a term of five years (until FY 2024-25). The City is now
entering the second year of the five-year term. At this time, the City Council is being
asked to consider the rate increase for the FY 2020-21 service levels, as described
below.
Above and beyond the agreed upon service levels for the three Peninsula cities, in FY
2016-17, the City Council created special programs for public safety to increase
community safety through directed supplemental patrols in response to community
concerns specific to Rancho Palos Verdes. These special programs included City-
directed supplemental patrols in areas such as the Switchbacks, traffic control at
Rancho Vista Elementary School, summer evening and coastal beach areas, and
Western Avenue.
This item was first brought before the City Council on June 16, 2020 as a Consent
Calendar item. Council elected to pull this item from the Agenda in order for the Public
Safety Sub-Committee (PSSC) to receive further information on the following items:
clarification of terms, contract compliance, costs, and detailed explanation of the special
program accounts. PSSC consists of Mayor Pro Tem Alegria and Councilmember
Bradley. The PSSC convened on June 10 and June 26 along with Staff and Captain
James C. Powers of the Lomita Sheriff’s Station to discuss further information as
requested by the Council.
Service Level Authorization Rate Increases
Each year, the City Council approves an annual Service Level Authorization specifying
service levels and types of law enforcement services provided to the City for the next
fiscal year.
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The City’s FY 2019-20 total expected contract cost was $6,990,976.58 for general law
enforcement services, including $307,847.40 for Preserve enforcement services from
July 2019 to January 2020. As of May 2020, the total cost for law enforcement services
was $5,574,180.17.
The City’s total expected FY 2020-21 contract cost is $7,049,292.94 for general law
enforcement services, including total liability costs. This contract differs from the
previous fiscal year in that it has removed the two Non-Relief Preserve Deputies and
includes a unit rate increase. The unit rate increase is approximately 5.5% for Deputy
Sheriff Units, Surveillance and Apprehension Team (SAT) detectives (Bonus Deputy
Sheriff Units), and the Motor Deputy, and 7.1% for the Grant Deputy Generalist. In
addition, the Liability Trust Fund surcharge remained at 11%, which was originally
intended to increase 0.5%, from 11% to 11.5%, for a total of $698,578.58 (up from
$691,877.86 in FY 19-20). The Liability Trust Fund is incorporated into the assessed
Sherriff’s staff costs. The unit rate increase is set by the Los Angeles County Auditor-
Controller’s Office. In addition, the Liability Trust Fund surcharge increases annu ally
based on lawsuits against the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department, payoffs for
legal charges, increased cost of insurance policies, and the difficulties of finding
insurers. These costs are estimated by the California Contract Cities Association’s
Liability Trust Fund Committee.
In April 2020, the City Manager sent a letter to the Los Angeles County Board of
Supervisors in coordination with the California Contract Cities Association (CCCA) to
consider freezing contract rate increases and the Liability Trust Fund surcharge
increase for FY 2020-21. The Board of Supervisors has denied the request to defer the
unit rate increase; however, the Liability Trust Fund surcharge increase has been
deferred. This deferment was gained in coordination with CCCA and LASD.
The general law enforcement service level remains the same as those in FY 2019-20,
except the decrease in the two Deputy Sheriff Service Units (Non-Relief Only) that were
used at the Preserve, which were replaced with City Staff Park Rangers in January
2020.
The table on the following page breaks down the Sheriff’s contract costs, with more
detail in the section below.
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FY 2020-21 Los Angeles Sheriff’s Department Contract Costs
Explanation of Units and Terms
Deputy Sheriff Service Unit positions with the relief factor label of “56-Hour Unit” are
positions that are always filled, providing complete coverage seven days a week. Each
day has three eight-hour shifts (AM, PM and Graveyard), and a deputy personnel is
always going to be working in this position classification. If a Deputy Sheriff personnel is
sick, injured, or on leave for any reason, there will be a different Deputy Sheriff
personnel who will cover the work serviced by the “56-hour Unit” position. This
classification’s minutes/hours are completed by several deputy sheriff personnel
throughout the week, as each individual personnel works 40 hours per week.
Deputy Sheriff Service Unit positions with the relief factor label of “Non-Relief” are
positions that are meant for 40-hour work weeks whose positions are not filled when the
deputy is off-duty. Deputy Sheriff Personnel in this position classification work five days
per week for 40 hours. If a Deputy Sheriff Personnel is sick, injured, or on leave for any
reason, there will not be a replacement to cover the work serviced by the “Non -Relief”
position and is factored in the overall cost per deputy.
The “Bonus Deputies” are the SAT detectives. These detectives focus on investigating
burglary cases on the Peninsula. Bonus level classifications are for those deputies who
have increased skill sets, training, and certification, which is the reason for their higher
rate. In FY 2015-16, the City Council authorized funding to contribute to this regionally-
shared detective team to address community concerns regarding burglaries.
Growth Deputies Generalists are deputies offered at a discounted rate as incentives to
grow the Sheriff’s contracts. These deputies would be offered for 12 months at the
discounted rate, and then would become regular Deputy Sheriff Units. The City does not
have any growth deputies for FY 2020-21.
Deputy Sheriff (56-Hour Unit)10.70 450,886.00$ 4,824,480.20$ 49,597.46$ 530,692.82$ 5,355,173.02$
Deputy Sheriff (Non-Relief)1.36 292,783.00$ 398,184.88$ 32,206.13$ 43,800.34$ 441,985.22$
Deputy Sheriff (Non-Relief)2.04 314,114.00$ 640,792.56$ 34,552.54$ 70,487.18$ 711,279.74$
Growth/Grant Deputy Unit
Grant Deputy Generalist (Non-Relief)1.36 201,220.00$ 273,659.20$ 22,134.20$ 30,102.51$ 303,761.71$
Supplemental Position
Motor Deputy (Non-Relief)0.68 314,114.00$ 213,597.52$ 34,552.54$ 23,495.73$ 237,093.25$
Total Service Units Cost 6,350,714.36$
Total Liability Cost 698,578.58$
$ 7,049,292.94
Deputy Sheriff Service Unit
(BONUS) - Surveillance and
Apprehension Team
Deputy Sheriff Service Unit Total Units Rate per Unit
Total Annual
Rate
Liability @11%
per Unit
Total Liability
@11%
Total Cost for Service Units (incl. Liability)
Total Annual Cost
w/ Liability
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Grant Deputies are funded by grants and are on the contract for the duration of the
grant funding. The City partners with the cities of Rolling Hills Estates and Rolling Hills
to fund 1.36 units of a Grant Deputy unit position. Each unit position works 1,789 hours,
and 1.36 units translate into 2,433 hours. The Peninsula’s Community Resource
(CORE) Team deputies are under this categorization. There are two dedicated CORE
Team deputies for three contract cities, with an additional CORE Team deputy and
Sergeant that service the City of Lomita but also provide support to the Peninsula at no
extra cost.
The Motor Deputy is part of a supplemental position that performs additional traffic
enforcement requested by the City. The 0.68 units refers to the amount of time Deputy
Sheriffs dedicate to this unit’s tasks in Rancho Palos Verdes, which is approximately
1,216 hours.
Distinction of Units and Minutes
“Unit,” as referred to on the SH-AD 575 does not equate to persons, or Deputy Sheriff
Personnel; a “Unit” is a position classification. The SH-AD 575 Form displays the total
minutes provided by each position classification that the City will receive. The City is
paying for these scheduled minutes per position classification and the Lomita Sheriff’s
Station fills those minutes with the necessary personnel. A Deputy Sheriff with the relief
factor of “56-Hour Unit” services 2,920 hours or 175,200 minutes in a fiscal year. A
Deputy Sheriff with the relief factor of “Non-Relief” services 1,789 hours or 107,340
minutes in a fiscal year.
This service agreement form delineates the number of minutes the City will be receiving
per position, and how those minutes translate into “Units.” For example, the City is
scheduled for 1,874,340 minutes of the position classification, Deputy Sheriff “56-Hour
Unit.” This translates into 10.7 Units, as indicated on the form. These Units are not
whole numbers and have decimal digits (e.g., 10.7 or 1.36) because the City pays for
and receives minutes of service, as well as the nature of our Peninsula’s shared
services. For example, although the Peninsula has two dedicated CORE Team
deputies, the City is paying for 1.36 units of this position. This is because between the
two deputies, the City pays for and will receive 145,982 minutes of their services. The
Cities of Rolling Hills Estates and Rolling Hills pay for 0.56 units and 0.8 units,
respectively, which totals two whole units for the Peninsula.
Deputies servicing our City and the Peninsula have specific a reas of patrol and report
minutes served dependent on the City they are patrolling for their shift. However, as a
regional station, deputy patrols can be called to another area or a different city to assist
and provide backup for situations. When these situations occur, the minutes are
attributed to the city in which the situation is occurring. In addition, there are also
instances where extra support services are utilized but the Peninsula cities may not be
billed or required to pay. An example of this is when a supplemental squad came from a
different station, through a mutual aid agreement, to provide extra security and support
during recent civil demonstrations. The use of this supplemental squad was provided by
the Sheriff’s Department and was not billed to the Peninsula cities.
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CORE Team
CORE Team costs have been divided among the cities of Rancho Palos Verdes, Rolling
Hills Estates, and Rolling Hills based on a fixed regional formula. The City partially
funds its share of the two-member CORE Team using state grant funds, the
Supplemental Law Enforcement Services Account (SLESA) grant funding, through the
Local Citizens’ Option for Public Safety (COPS) program.
SLESA funding flows from the state to the County of Los Angeles, and then periodically
into a specified City revenue account. The City will assume it will continue to receive
$100,000 in SLESA funding, as received last fiscal year, and Staff will inform the City
Council of any changes.
The Peninsula’s CORE Team consists of two dedicated deputies: Deputy Tami Bouse
and Deputy Reese Souza. These deputies are categorized under the Grant Deputy
Generalist position classification. They are both heavily involved with the schools in the
Palos Verdes Peninsula Unified School District (this is above and beyond the student
resource officers). Their list of responsibilities include teaching Student and the Law, a
course offered at Rancho Del Mar High School that meets twice a week for both
semesters, providing security for athletic events at Peninsula High School, addressing
community complaints, and working as liaisons for any criminal involvement. The status
of this course is unknown due to the COVID-19 school closures.
Public Safety Special Programs
In addition to the Sheriff’s contract, the City has the ability to fund directed patrols to
address specific community issues that are outside of the regional crime and traffic -
control services provided by the Sheriff’s Department. Funding for these areas are
budgeted under Public Safety - Special Programs, rather than the Sheriff’s Program,
which funds general law enforcement services. Sheriff’s services provided under these
special programs are in addition to the normally contracted general law enforcement
services. These extra services are therefore provided by the deputies as overtime
hours.
The FY 2020-21 Budget funds $130,500 in Public Safety Special Programs. In an effort
to identify cost-saving opportunities without compromising public safety, the following
reductions are proposed to the following special programs:
Traffic Control
This special program was created to fund the City’s share of additional traffic control at
Rancho Vista Elementary School. The budget included the cost of a Deputy Sheriff
Traffic Officer’s service and parking citation reimbursements. This account was
budgeted for $16,000 in FY 2019-20, which was not utilized. Therefore, Staff
recommends reducing this budget by $11,000 leaving $5,000 for potential funding in
FY2020-21.
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Coastal Area Patrol
This special program was created to fund supplemental patrol of the City’s beaches
during the weekends. The CORE Team deputies patrolled th ese coastal areas in FY
2016-17 and FY 2017-18. This account was budgeted for $15,500 in FY 2019-20, and
the budget amount was transferred to support Supplemental Patrols. Therefore, Staff
recommends reinstating the special program but reducing the budget by $5,500 leaving
$10,000 for potential funding in FY2020-21.
Western Avenue Bike Patrol
This special program was created to fund supplemental bicycle patrols along Western
Avenue. As of March 2019, this patrol was suspended until further notice. In FY 2019-
20, $8,000 was budgeted for this account. Therefore, Staff recommends reducing the
budget by $6,000 leaving $2,000 for potential funding in FY2020-21.
Summer Evening Patrol ($5,000)
Summer Evening Patrols were created for supplemental patrols to be used during the
summers to check the coast, beaches, and provide other summer public safety
programs. This account was funded to be used if needed. There was $5,000 budgeted
for this account in FY 2019-20. Therefore, Staff recommends reducing the budget by
$3,000 leaving $2,000 for potential funding in FY2020-21.
Supplemental Patrol
Supplemental patrols cover specific areas as requested by the City, such as the
Switchbacks and other areas, such as those special programs listed above . This is the
most utilized special programs account. In FY 2019-20, the amount budgeted was
$86,000. Therefore, Staff does not recommend reducing this special program, which
can absorb the cost reductions to the special programs listed above.
Quarterly Reports
In order to provide added oversight on the costs incurred for LASD’s Service Levels and
Public Safety Special Programs, it is recommended that the City Council direct Staff to
provide quarterly reports, as a consent calendar item, throughout the fiscal year.
ADDITIONAL INFORMATION:
The LASD Contract City Law Enforcement Service Agreement (Attachment A) is the
final form ready for signature, including the Liability Trust Fund surcharge of 11%. The
previous rendition of this staff report had a draft only version of the SH -AD 575 form that
had a Liability Trust Fund surcharge increase of 0.5%, to 11.5%, which was deferred by
the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors at the request of the California Contract
Cities Association.
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The fiscal impact of the service level for FY 2020-21 is budgeted for an estimated
$7,222,400 to cover for the $7,049,292.94 service level cost.
ALTERNATIVES:
In addition to the Staff recommendation, the following alternative action s are available
for City Council’s consideration:
1. Direct Staff to change the service levels by increasing or decreasing
dedicated units and/or special programs.
2. Direct Staff not to change the reduction amounts to the Special Programs
budget.
3. Direct Staff to change the reduction amounts to the Special Programs budget.
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A-1
LOS ANGELES COUNTY SHERIFF'S DEPARTMENT
CONTRACT CITY LAW ENFORCEMENT SERVICES
SERVICE LEVEL AUTHORIZATION (SH-AD 575)
FISCAL YEAR: ___ ----=.20::.:2:..:0:....-2=.;0:.:2:...;1 ___ _
ATTACHMENT A
Estimated Total Annual Cost: $ 7,049,292 .94
The terms of this Service Level Authorization {SH-AD 575} will remain in effect until a subsequent SH-AD 575 is signed and received by LASD.
Notwithstanding, annual rates shall be revised annually per Sections 8.2 and 11 .3 of the MLESA .
LASDApproval By : ~
Ji¥-\o 'Rcvez-~ . -6 /z s6~
UNIT COMMANDER NAME ___ _.,~""Q,.c...-S_IG-N-A-T-UR-E-------.:....<.--D+-A-T-E --
City Approval By:
"I certify that I am authorized to make thi s commitment on behalf of the City ."
CI TY OFFICIAL NAME -------5-IG-NA_T_U_R_E ---------D-AT_E __ < (;l'Vj
SH-AD 575 (REV . 04/18)
Mina Cho 6/18/2020
SERGEANT DATE
Processed at CLEB By:
Si~n} &Da e SERGEANT DATE
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