TO:
Honorable Mayor and Members of the City Council
THROUGH:
Bruce Moe, City Manager
FROM:
Steve S. Charelian, Finance Director
SUBJECT:Title
Consideration of Granting Hardship Exemptions to Tobacco Retailers Requesting Additional Time to Comply with Ordinance No. 20-0007 Which Prohibits the Retail Sale of Tobacco Products (Finance Director Charelian).
CONSIDER HARDSHIP EXEMPTION REQUESTS
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Recommended Action
RECOMMENDATION:
Staff recommends that after considering the requests, City Council direct staff to prepare a resolution to extend the compliance period with Ordinance No. 20-0007 for an additional six months (up to and including June 30, 2021), to four businesses that are seeking hardship extensions to continue selling tobacco products after December 31, 2020.
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FISCAL IMPLICATIONS:
The fiscal implications of the requested extensions are difficult to calculate because City revenues derived from such sales are from business license taxes and sales taxes. Neither tax is reported at the product level; rather, businesses report their total sales, which also includes sales of other products that are not the subject of Ordinance No. 20-0007. Thus, the financial implications of a decision to grant or deny an extension request to four applicants, albeit difficult to quantify, is minimal.
BACKGROUND:
The City of Manhattan Beach has a long history of recognizing and addressing the dangers to public health arising from the use of tobacco products. The City Council has adopted measures as early as 2004 to prohibit smoking on the City's beach, the Strand, the greenbelt, all other public places, places of employment, and multi-unit residences. These decisions were based upon testimony and evidence provided by numerous experts, including representatives from the Los Angeles County Department of Health Services and the Beach Cities Health District. Beginning in 2016, at duly noticed public meetings,...
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