The purpose of this chapter is to:
(1) 
Provide the public and the city's police department with prompt, safe, reliable, and responsive vehicle towing and storage services by:
(A) 
Establishing official police tow services,
(B) 
Timely removal of vehicles which are apparently abandoned, or involved in an accident, or which constitute an obstruction to traffic,
(C) 
Contracting with private-sector tow companies, and
(D) 
Setting minimum performance standards to ensure quality service.
(2) 
Create a fair and impartial means of distributing requests for towing services among qualified firms;
(3) 
Ensure that towing services are prompt, reasonably priced, and in the best interest of the public as well as the interest of efficient policing operations for the removal of vehicles from public streets; and
(4) 
Establish a fee equal to the city's actual, reasonable administrative costs and expenses for administering the official police tow services providers' agreement and operating a towing program on the public's behalf.
(Ord. 1686 § 1, 2006)
The city council finds, determines, and declares that:
(1) 
The city needs the services of one or more privately owned tow companies to:
(A) 
Effectively enforce parking and traffic laws;
(B) 
Promptly tow vehicles that are inoperative or involved in a collision; and
(C) 
Expeditiously remove and safely store vehicles that the police department impounds or holds for investigation, examination or evidence.
(2) 
The city has enjoyed success in awarding city agreements by using competitive procedures, delivering high-quality, responsive, and dependable services to the community. It is now in the city's best interests to award one or more official police tow services agreements through a competitive process.
(3) 
Establishing a rotational program that allows the city through the city's communications system to dispatch one or more of the tow contractors on a rotational basis among tow service providers under tow service agreements with the city:
(A) 
Is sufficient to provide a high level of service at the present time;
(B) 
Contributes to the efficient administration of the city's towing program;
(C) 
Ensures safe and prompt towing service on an emergency basis; and
(D) 
Assures that an official police tow services provider receives ample income to adequately maintain equipment, personnel and service levels to the public.
(4) 
California Vehicle Code Section 12110(b) allows the city to charge a fee for awarding a private company the special privilege and exclusive right of towing vehicles on the city's behalf. Under that provision, the city may recover its actual and reasonable administrative costs related to its operating a towing program.
(5) 
As part of its review of the costs in using private contractors to provide vehicle towing, storage, and road-side assistance to the public, the city's police department has determined that in the administration of agreements with private tow companies to provide public assistance, the city incurs substantial labor costs and administrative expenses, including, but not limited to:
(A) 
Monitoring the tow company's compliance with the agreement's service requirements;
(B) 
Notifying the tow company of its noncompliance with an agreement provision;
(C) 
Enforcing the agreement's terms; and
(D) 
Reviewing and resolving customer service issues.
(6) 
The creation of a uniform and annual vehicle towing fee charged to each towing service provider is an appropriate means for recovering the city's costs and expenses for administering the agreements with the private towing firms, operating the vehicle towing program, and ensuring that the general public does not shoulder an excess or unfair burden of paying those costs.
(Ord. 1686 § 1, 2006)
For purposes of this chapter, the following words and phrases have the meanings ascribed to them unless the context otherwise requires:
"Administrative cost"
means all direct and indirect costs associated with the administration of the provisions of this chapter and any agreement entered into pursuant thereto.
"Attendant" or "provider"
means a trained and/or qualified individual responsible for the operation of a tow truck or vehicle storage facility.
"Hearing officer"
means the chief of police or a designee of the chief of police designated by the chief of police to hear any appeal or conduct a hearing pursuant to the provisions of this chapter.
"Nonconsensual vehicle towing"
means towing service:
(1) 
Ordered or requested by the city's police department or other city employees who are duly authorized by law to remove, impound, or store vehicles; or
(2) 
Done without the vehicle owner's or operator's knowledge, consent, or authorization, regardless of whether the vehicle is on public or private property. Examples include, but are not limited to, a vehicle for which registration is at least six months past due, or a vehicle driven by persons who are not licensed for that particular class of vehicle, or when an owner or an operator:
(a) 
Is arrested, detained, incapacitated, or physically unable to drive the vehicle, or
(b) 
Fails to either designate or express a preference for a particular towing company.
"Official police tow services provider"
means a towing company having a contractual relationship with the city of Palm Springs to provide towing services to the police department.
"Operator"
means a person who is lawfully entitled to possession of a vehicle. The term includes the operator's agent.
"Owner"
has the same meaning as that term is defined in Vehicle Code Section 460, or any successor legislation.
The term includes the owner's agent.
"Person"
means an individual, company, firm, association, trust, estate, partnership, corporation, limited liability company, or an entity, however organized.
"Police chief"
means the chief of police for the city of Palm Springs, or the designee of the chief of police.
"Tow truck"
is a motor vehicle which has been altered or designed and equipped for and exclusively used in the business of towing vehicles by means of a crane, tow bar, tow line, or dolly, or is otherwise exclusively used to render assistance to other vehicles.
"Towed"
means a vehicle hauled, pulled, or transported by a tow truck.
"Towing service"
means roadside assistance, towing, storing, lien-selling or related operation for a damaged, inoperative, abandoned, stolen, recovered, or illegally parked vehicle.
"Vehicle"
has the same meaning as that term is defined in California Vehicle Code Section 670, or any successor legislation. A "stored vehicle" or "impounded vehicle" is any vehicle removed from a site and taken to the tow yard at the direction of a police department employee and for which a Vehicle Report (currently, form CHP 180) is provided to the official police tow service provider.
(Ord. 1686 § 1, 2006)
(a) 
Each official police tow service provider shall be placed on a rotation list in an initial order to be determined by the police chief. The rotation list shall be used whenever a driver or owner of a disabled vehicle is unable to specify a particular garage or tow service, or whenever a police department employee stores or impounds a vehicle and the driver or owner is not present or is not consulted.
(b) 
Official police tow service providers shall be called, in turn, in response to a police department request. Whenever any official police tow service provider cannot, for any reason, respond any equipment needed to accomplish the requested service within the response time specified herein, the official police tow service provider shall be passed over and the next company on the rotation list will be called. The official police tow service provider shall become eligible to provide service again only in its next turn in rotation. Whenever a police department employee determines that an emergency exists because a official police tow service provider is unable, for any reason, to provide adequate tow service, the police department employee shall have the right to have such services performed by any other means available. In the event a police department employee cancels a rotation tow due to no fault on the part of a provider, such provider shall be placed on the top of the rotation list for the next requested tow.
(Ord. 1686 § 1, 2006)
(a) 
Using an open, competitive process, the city council shall select one or more persons to serve as an official police tow services provider. The chief of police shall prepare a request for proposals which, at a minimum, must include:
(1) 
Specifications, terms, conditions and minimum performance standards for towing service; and
(2) 
The procedures and standards for evaluating proposals and selecting an official police tow services provider.
(b) 
By resolution, the city council shall adopt the request for proposals and authorize the city clerk to advertise for proposals.
(c) 
In evaluating a proposal, the city council may consider all relevant facts or information, including any one or more of the following criteria:
(1) 
Demonstrated financial strength including, but not limited to, the proposer's:
(A) 
Current facilities, equipment, and personnel,
(B) 
Capability of securing financing for facilities, equipment, personnel, or other resources,
(C) 
Credit worthiness;
(2) 
Quality of the proposer's existing or proposed facilities, equipment, and personnel;
(3) 
Demonstrated and successful completion of services of similar scope and size, including, but not limited to:
(A) 
Years of experience that the proposer has an official police tow services provider or a municipal service provider,
(B) 
Timeliness of performance,
(C) 
Customer satisfaction or complaints;
(4) 
Other cities' and clients' evaluations of the proposer's prior or current services and any actions taken by such cities or clients regarding the proposer;
(5) 
Demonstrated safety record for the proposer's tow vehicles and employees; or
(6) 
Degree to which the proposer ascertained and addressed this city's needs and priorities.
(d) 
By resolution, the city council shall award an agreement to a person whom the city council determines is the most qualified to serve as an official police tow services provider.
(e) 
When it best serves the city's interests, the city council may do any one or more of the following:
(1) 
Reject all proposals;
(2) 
Amend, cancel or reissue a request for proposals;
(3) 
Extend the deadline for accepting proposals; or
(4) 
Establish and operate its own municipal towing service, or storage lot, or both.
(Ord. 1686 § 1, 2006)
(a) 
Each official police tow services provider shall enter into a written agreement with the city, which agreement shall contain eligibility requirements, operating regulations, fee schedules, and service requirements as adopted by the city council. The agreement, in a form that the city attorney approves, must include at least the following provisions:
(1) 
Minimum requirements and performance standards for equipment, facilities, personnel (including back-ground checks where appropriate), and services;
(2) 
Procedures for handling and protecting vehicles in the official police tow services provider's care, custody, or control;
(3) 
Conditions for releasing vehicles;
(4) 
Maximum allowable rates and charges;
(5) 
An indemnification provision satisfactory to the city attorney;
(6) 
Minimum insurance coverages and amounts, satisfactory to the city's risk manager or the city attorney;
(7) 
The term of the agreement and grounds for its suspension, termination, or cancellation.
(8) 
Terms and provisions for payment of the vehicle towing administrative cost recovery fee as required in this chapter.
(b) 
The city council shall set, and may amend from time to time, the tow fee schedule. The term of official police tow truck service agreements shall be three years, with two one-year options.
(c) 
Every official police tow service shall post an approved rate schedule in a form approved by the chief of police in a conspicuous place on the premises of the vehicle storage lot operated by such official police tow service and such other locations as the chief of police may require.
(d) 
The chief of police shall enforce each agreement's terms and conditions.
(Ord. 1686 § 1, 2006; Ord. 1991 § 2, 2019)
(a) 
Except as the official police tow services provider's agreement or the law provides, an official police tow services provider shall not receive any compensation from the city for providing or performing nonconsensual vehicle towing. An official police tow services provider will receive compensation for providing or performing towing service by its collecting from an owner or an operator any one or more of the fees and charges that are listed in the agreement's schedule of rates and charges for the city of Palm Springs's official police tow services.
(b) 
In place of the city's paying compensation and in exchange for the official police tow services provider's services, the city grants the official police tow services provider, during the agreement's term, the special privilege and exclusive right of:
(1) 
Identifying itself as one of the city's official police tow services;
(2) 
Operating within a designated district;
(3) 
Receiving the police department's calls for service; and
(4) 
Furnishing the public with nonconsensual vehicle towing.
(Ord. 1686 § 1, 2006)
The city establishes a vehicle towing administrative cost recovery fee for the city's administering the official police tow services providers' agreement and operating a vehicle towing program (VTACR fee) in an amount as adopted by the council by resolution.
(Ord. 1686 § 1, 2006)
(a) 
An official police tow services provider shall, prior to or at the time the agreement with the city is entered into, and on the annual anniversary of the date the agreement was entered into, pay the VTACR to the city. In lieu of an annual payment as required under this section, the annual fee may be divided into twelve installments with the first payment being due and payable prior to or at the time the agreement is entered into and with each successive installment being due and payable on the first day of each successive month thereafter.
(b) 
By resolution, the city council shall establish or modify the amount of the VTACR Fee, basing it on the actual and reasonable costs to the city, including administration and overhead, for administering the official police tow services providers' agreement and operating the vehicle towing program.
(c) 
To reflect cost-of-living changes and to ensure that changing economic conditions do not impair the real value of the fees and charges under this chapter, on July 1st of each year the chief of police shall:
(1) 
Review the VTACR fee; and
(2) 
Adjust the VTACR fee upward or downward by the same percentage increase or decrease, occurring during the previous twelve months, in the consumer price index for all urban consumers (CPI-U) for the San Bernardino-Palm Springs Metropolitan Area (published by the Bureau of Labor Statistics, U.S. Department of Labor), or applying a similar index if the CPI-U is not published or available, to the nearest one dollar.
(d) 
In addition to adjusting the fees and the charges for cost-of-living changes under subsection c of this section, the chief of police shall recommend, with the city manager's approval, that the city council revise the fees and the charges when a change in the cost of either administering the official police tow services providers' agreement or operating the vehicle towing program makes the revision appropriate.
(e) 
The chief of police may prepare, adopt, amend and enforce rules, regulations or procedures for calculating, collecting, paying and administering the fees and charges under this chapter.
(f) 
A copy of the resolution establishing the current fees and charges under this chapter will remain on file and will be available for inspection in the police department.
(Ord. 1686 § 1, 2006)
When a person fails, neglects or refuses to pay, collect or remit the VTACR fee under this chapter, or such person otherwise pays that fee but later cancels or stops payment on it and in either situation that fee's payment, collection or remittance is lawfully due or owing, the entire amount of the unpaid, uncollected or nonremitted VTACR fee constitutes a debt to the city by that person, from whom the city may recover in a civil action. The failure to timely pay the VTACR shall also be deemed a material breach of the tow service provider's agreement with the city and the city may suspend or terminate such agreement on such terms as may be provided in the agreement.
(Ord. 1686 § 1, 2006)
(a) 
Official police tow services shall provide towing equipment capable of providing for the following services:
(1) 
Recovery trucks with an adjustable boom with at least eight ton lifting capacity;
(2) 
Wheel lift towing;
(3) 
Roll back/flatbed towing;
(4) 
Towing in parking garages;
(5) 
Towing from off-road areas;
(6) 
Towing of large and oversized vehicles;
(7) 
Towing of motorcycles without causing additional damage.
(b) 
All tow trucks shall be equipped as provided in the California Vehicle Code.
(c) 
Official police tow services shall, at all times, have at least three fully equipped and operational tow trucks in service. All of the tow trucks in service must have a minimum capacity of fourteen thousand GVW. At least one of the tow trucks in service must be a flatbed tow truck. At least one of the three tow trucks in service must have a eight-ton lifting capacity.
(d) 
Every official police tow service shall be equipped for and have personnel proficient in unlocking locked vehicles where practicable when requested to do so by police department employees.
(Ord. 1686 § 1, 2006)
(a) 
All requests for nonconsensual vehicle towing service on city or public property, including public rights-of-way, and the removal of traffic hazards shall be made through the police department.
(b) 
Official police tow service provider's business office shall be located within the provider's storage yard and attended at all times for servicing the public and the city from eight a.m. to five p.m., Monday through Friday, except for the holidays of January 1st, known as New Years Day; third Monday in January, known as Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.'s Birthday; third Monday in February, known as Washington's Birthday/President's Day; last Monday in May, known as Memorial Day; July 4th, known as Independence Day; first Monday in September, known as Labor Day; the second Monday in October, known as Columbus Day; November 11th, known as Veteran's Day; fourth Thursday in November, known as Thanksgiving Day; and December 25th, known as Christmas Day. If January 1st, July 4th, November 11th or December 25th fall upon a Sunday, the Monday following is a holiday and if they fall upon Saturday, the preceding Friday is a holiday. Official police tow service providers may make an additional charge for after normal business hours release of vehicles consistent with the guidelines or provisions of the council resolution establishing fees and charges for tow services.
(c) 
General Rules of Operation.
(1) 
Official police tow service provider must be available to promptly respond twenty-four hours a day, seven days a week for all requests by the city for towing services.
(2) 
Official police tow service provider shall release vehicles stored or impounded by the police department, pursuant to authorization provided by appropriate employees of the police department. Such authorization shall be in writing on a form provided by the police department or may be given verbally by employees authorized by the department to provide verbal releases.
(3) 
All vehicles stored or impounded as a result of a tow ordered by the police department shall be made available during business hours to the owner of the vehicle or his representative, or any authorized insurance agent, insurance adjuster, or any body shop or car dealer, for the purpose of estimating or appraising damages, except vehicles with a police hold.
(d) 
Removing Hazards. After being dispatched by the police department to the scene, the official police tow service provider shall cooperate with the police officers in removing hazards and illegally parked vehicles as requested. It is the duty of the police officers to determine when such vehicle should be impounded or moved, and the tow truck attendant shall abide by their decisions.
(e) 
The owners of an official police tow service provider participating in towing assignments by the police department shall be responsible for the acts of their employees while on duty. Each official police tow service provider shall be responsible for damage to vehicles while in its possession caused by the active or passive negligence of the official police tow service provider.
(f) 
Access to Provider's Facilities.
(1) 
All official police tow service providers' records, equipment, and storage facilities will be subject to periodic checks by police department or other city investigators during normal business hours.
(2) 
Throughout the term of this agreement, every official police tow service provider shall maintain all offices, storage facilities and equipment in a neat, clean and organized manner.
(3) 
Every official police tow service provider shall provide access to employees of the city at any time during normal business hours, for the purpose of inspection or audit to determine that the objectives and conditions of this agreement are being fulfilled.
(g) 
Each official police towing service provider shall record its time out and its time in or the end of service on every tow truck assignment. Such records shall be available and open to city examination.
(h) 
All official police towing service providers shall submit a monthly report to the chief of police and finance director, which shall include the following:
(1) 
Total police impounds;
(2) 
Number of times dispatched by Palm Springs police department;
(3) 
Number of dispatch calls resulting in impounds;
(4) 
Number of vehicles sold on lien sale under authority of Civil Code Section 3072, as may be amended from time to time;
(5) 
Number of vehicles sold under authority of Civil Code Section 3073, as may be amended from time to time;
(6) 
Certification of (A) the availability of the names and addresses of buyers and description of vehicles when sold; and (B) that such names, addresses, and descriptions are available for inspection by the chief of police and the finance director.
(7) 
Number of calls answered in which time beyond one hour was required to handle.
(i) 
All official police towing service providers shall comply with the following communications requirements:
(1) 
Official police tow service provider shall maintain a twenty-four hour per day telephone service to receive calls from the public.
(2) 
Official police tow service provider shall require the answering service to retain data and records relating to the city's requests for towing services on premises for the term of the contract.
(3) 
Official police tow service provider shall require the answering service to promptly accept and relay requests for towing services made by the city. Failure or refusal to promptly relay the city's requests for towing services shall constitute failure to comply with the requirements, terms and conditions of this agreement and may result in suspension or termination of the agreement.
(4) 
Official police tow service provider shall install and maintain at all times during the length of this agreement, communications between their tow vehicle(s) and the official answering service. This communication may be either by two-way radio or cellular telephone.
(5) 
Official police tow service provider shall maintain a twenty-four hour per day communication contact with their tow vehicle(s).
(j) 
Official police tow service shall have a secure and environmentally safe vehicle storage facility with a minimum of 15,000 usable square feet.
(1) 
The vehicle storage facility must be located in or within 10 miles of the corporate city limits of the city of Palm Springs. For purposes of measuring the 10 miles, distance shall be measured in driving distance.
(2) 
The vehicle storage facility must be completely enclosed by a six-foot high wall or fence with no holes, gaps or other unsecured openings, and a gate. The wall or fence shall have two or more strands of barbed wire installed in such a manner as to discourage access over the top of the wall or fence, or the wall shall be a minimum of eight feet in height without barbed wire. All gates into the storage yard shall meet the same standards required of the wall or fence. Any damage to walls, fences or gates which allows unauthorized access must be repaired within twenty-four hours.
(3) 
The vehicle storage facility shall have adequate lighting, and comply with all applicable building codes, zoning regulations, environmental laws and regulations, and any and all the applicable laws, rules and regulations established by federal, state, county and/or city governments.
(4) 
No official police tow service provider shall perform any work in the vehicle storage facility upon any vehicle stored or impounded by the police department without first obtaining authorization from the police department and the registered owner of the vehicle.
(5) 
Official police tow service provider shall not dispose of any impounded vehicle, through any process whatsoever, without first obtaining authorization from the police department. Nothing herein shall be deemed to prevent or prohibit the official police tow service provider from commencing the lien sale process on any such impounded vehicle.
(k) 
Official police tow service providers shall abide by all federal, state, and local laws pertaining to the disposal of unclaimed vehicles and shall not use any vehicle stored or impounded as a result of tow ordered by the police department for any purpose except as expressly authorized under the agreement.
(l) 
All vehicles stored or impounded as a result of a tow ordered by the police department shall be towed directly to an official storage lot unless the police department or other person legally in charge of the vehicle requests that it be taken to some other location. Vehicle release fees shall be established by resolution of the city council.
(Ord. 1686 § 1, 2006; Ord. 2129, 4/8/2026)
(a) 
When it becomes evident that there will be a delay in responding to a request for towing service, the official police tow services provider shall advise the police department of this delay and the reason for the delay.
(b) 
Each official police tow services provider agrees that, for any thirty-day period, the average response time pursuant to requests for tow service by the police department, shall not exceed fifteen minutes. Each official police tow service provider also agrees that the maximum response time for any single request for tow service by the police department shall not exceed twenty minutes. Response time is defined as the elapsed time between the relaying of the tow service request to the tow service provider and arrival of the tow vehicle on the scene.
(Ord. 1686 § 1, 2006)
(a) 
The agreement shall be subject to cancellation, revocation or suspension by the chief of police either as a whole or as to any person or vehicle described therein. The procedure for such cancellation, revocation or suspension is set forth in this section. The contract holder shall be given five business days' notice to appear before the hearing officer to show cause why the contract should not be suspended, revoked or cancelled for any of the following reasons:
(1) 
Nonpayment of any city business license fees or other fees provided in the contract or by the Palm Springs Municipal Code;
(2) 
Breach of any rules, regulations, or conditions set forth in the contract or the Palm Springs Municipal Code;
(3) 
For the violation of any federal, state or local law by the contract holder, any person having any ownership interest in the official police tow service provider, or any employee of the official police tow service provider;
(4) 
For failure to maintain a satisfactory level of service to the police or public;
(5) 
For failure to keep any vehicle towed at the request of the police department in safe condition and good repair;
(6) 
For failure to use distinctive coloring, monogram or insignia;
(7) 
For any deviation from the schedule of rates set forth in the agreement without the prior approval of the chief of police;
(8) 
Passing on a tow assignment three or more times in any calendar month. "Passing" is defined as refusing, for any reason, any tow assignment from the Palm Springs police department;
(9) 
For any cause which the Palm Springs police department finds makes it contrary to the public interest, convenience, necessity, or general welfare for the contract to continue.
(b) 
For equipment violations or business omissions, where the police department desires to provide official police tow service the opportunity to correct such violations or omissions, the police chief may suspend official police tow service from providing service for a period of time, not to exceed five calendar days. Such suspension shall not be considered punitive and shall be for the specific purpose of providing official police tow service time to correct specified violations or omissions.
(c) 
For substantive violations of the agreement between the official police tow service and the city of Palm Springs, where the police department intends to take punitive action against official police tow service, the hearing officer may suspend official police tow service from providing service for a period of time, not to exceed ten days, in preparation for a hearing.
(d) 
The hearing officer shall conduct such hearing and may receive information from any source deemed relevant to the inquiry.
(e) 
The purpose of the hearing shall be to determine the factual basis of the allegation(s) against the official police tow service provider.
(1) 
The hearing shall be informal in nature.
(2) 
Formal rules of evidence (California Evidence Code and/or the Federal Rules of Evidence) shall not apply.
(3) 
Official police tow service provider shall have the opportunity to respond to the allegations and present information relevant to official police tow service's defense.
(4) 
At the conclusion of the hearing or within a reasonable time thereafter, the hearing officer shall make a finding as to whether the allegation(s) are founded or unfounded.
(5) 
Upon a finding the allegation(s) are founded the hearing officer shall determine the appropriate sanction to be taken against the official police tow service provider.
(A) 
The hearing officer may extend or impose a suspension of official police tow service provider for a period of time; or
(B) 
Permanently remove official police tow service provider from the rotation list for providing service in response to police department request.
(6) 
The hearing officer shall notify the official police tow service provider of the finding and/or sanction to be imposed in person, by registered mail, or by written notice hand-delivered to official police tow service provider's business office.
(7) 
Official police tow service provider may appeal the finding of, or the sanction imposed by, the hearing officer to the city manager.
(Ord. 1686 § 1, 2006)