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SEC. 71.02. OPERATION OF VEHICLES – PERMITS REQUIRED.
   (Title and Section Amended by Ord. No. 187,416, Eff. 3/2/22.)
 
   (a)   No person, corporation, cooperative, association, firm, partnership, membership organization, or other entity shall drive, operate or use, whether as owner, lessor, lessee or otherwise, any of the vehicles defined in Section 71.00 to pick-up or attempt to pick-up passengers within the limits of the City of Los Angeles, or allow or permit to be operated, driven, or used, whether as owner, lessor, lessee, or otherwise, any of the vehicles defined in Section 71.00 to pick-up or attempt to pick-up a passenger within the limits of the City of Los Angeles unless a written vehicle permit for the operation of such specifically defined vehicles has been obtained from the Board.
 
   (b)   No Taxicab Operator shall dispatch a taxicab or respond to a request for a taxicab for pick-up within the City of Los Angeles unless the responding vehicle is operated pursuant to a permit granted by the Department.
 
   (c)   Notwithstanding Subsections (a) and (b) above, a taxicab company permitted by the County of Los Angeles, or by a city located within the County of Los Angeles, may provide prearranged trips within the City.
 
   (d)   No taxicab shall continue in service if the taxicab vehicle permit is expired, suspended, canceled, or revoked.
 
   (e)   Every Taxicab Operator shall include the number of its certificate, license, or permit in every written or oral advertisement of the services it offers. For purposes of this subsection, “advertisement” includes, but is not limited to: (1) the issuance of any card, sign, or device to any person; and (2) the causing, permitting, or allowing the placement of any sign or marking on or in any building or structure, or in any media form, including newspaper, magazine, internet site, application (app), radio wave, satellite signal, or any other electronic transmission, or in any directory soliciting taxicab transportation services. Whenever the Board, after a hearing, finds that any Taxicab Operator is operating as a taxicab transportation service without a valid certificate, license or permit, or fails to include in any written or oral advertisement its certificate, license, or permit, the Board may:
 
   (1)   Impose a fine of not more than $5,000 for each violation;
 
   (2)   Assess the Taxicab Operator an amount sufficient to cover the reasonable expense of investigation incurred by the Department; and
 
   (3)   Assess interest on any fine or assessment imposed to commence on the day the payment of the fine or assessment becomes delinquent.
 
   (f)   Any fee or assessment by the Board shall be deposited on a monthly basis into the Transportation Regulation and Enforcement Fund as set forth in Section 71.26 of this Code.
 
 
SEC. 71.02.1. SUSPENSION OF TAXICAB PERMIT.
   (Title and Section Amended by Ord. No. 187,416, Eff. 3/2/22.)
 
   (a)   The General Manager or the General Manager’s designee may, after due notice and an opportunity to be heard, suspend a Taxicab Operator’s permit, or any portion thereof for one or more days, upon any of the following grounds:
 
   (1)   Noncompliance with permit terms and conditions as specified therein; Board rules and orders as specified therein; Department directives; City ordinances; state law, including, but not limited to, the California Vehicle Code, the California Government Code, the California Labor Code, and the California Penal Code.
 
   (2)   Illegally conducting any type of public transportation operation licensed by the City or any other governmental agency. Such suspension may be of one or more vehicles issued permits to operate throughout the City and/or suspension of the right to pick-up at certain taxicab stands and at Los Angeles International Airport.
 
 
SEC. 71.02.2. MONETARY PENALTIES FOR TAXICAB OPERATORS.
   (Amended by Ord. No. 187,416, Eff. 3/2/22.)
 
   (a)   The Board may levy monetary penalties in addition to or in lieu of suspension of an operating permit pursuant to Section 71.02 above. Monetary penalties may be levied on a per violation basis, or a per day basis, and may escalate on a first, second, or third or subsequent violation basis. Deficiencies in operations that endanger the public health, welfare, and/or safety shall receive the maximum penalties.
 
   (b)   The Board shall adopt by resolution a schedule of monetary penalties, a procedure for assessing monetary penalties for specific driver and/or Taxicab Operator violations, and an appeal procedure.
 
   (c)   Payment of a monetary penalty or the serving of a suspension shall constitute a waiver of the right to further appeal of any monetary penalty or suspension to the Board or Superior Court.
 
   (d)   Judicial review of an action by the Board levying such monetary penalty or of an action of the Board in denying an appeal, as provided for herein, shall be available only if a petition for a writ of mandate is filed in the Superior Court not later than the 90th day following the date upon which the decision of the Board becomes final, which shall be the expiration of the period during which reconsideration can be sought, provided that if reconsideration is sought, the decision is final for the purposes of this section on the date that reconsideration is rejected.
 
   (e)   The total monetary penalty payment is due by the date established by the Board as set forth in the Board Rules.
 
   (f)   A penalty of 10 percent of the amount of the payment shall be assessed on any payment assessed against a Taxicab Operator which has become delinquent. Failure to pay any delinquent payment on or before the last day of the fourth month following the date on which the payment first became delinquent will result in the assessment of a second penalty of 10 percent of the amount of the payment in addition to the amount of the payment and the 10 percent penalty first imposed.
 
   (g)   In addition to the penalties imposed above, failure to pay any payment required by ordinance or operating permit will result in the assessment of interest charges at the rate of 1-1/2 percent per month, or fraction thereof, on the amount of the payment, exclusive of penalties, from the date on which the payment first became delinquent until it is paid.
 
 
SEC. 71.02.3. USE OF PUBLIC RIGHTS-OF-WAY.
   (Added by Ord. No. 170,068, Eff. 11/18/94.)
 
   (a)   It shall be unlawful for any person, corporation, association or cooperative to operate, maintain, drive or park any vehicle, as defined in Section 71.00, on any street, roadway, thoroughfare, highway or public right-of-way within the boundaries of the City of Los Angeles without a permit or business license granted or issued for the operation of the specified vehicle by an authorized governmental entity in the State of California.
 
   (b)   Violation of this section will subject the violator to impoundment of the unlawful vehicle by the City of Los Angeles and is deemed a misdemeanor.
 
   (c)   Whenever any peace officer, public officer or employee of the City of Los Angeles arrests any person for violation of this section, the officer or employee shall impound and retain possession of any vehicle used in violation of this section until a court of competent jurisdiction or an officer or employee of the City of Los Angeles shall release said vehicle.
 
 
SEC. 71.02.4. OPERATION OF TAXI APPS – PERMITS REQUIRED.
   (Added by Ord. No. 187,416, Eff. 3/2/22.)
 
   A Taxi App Operator shall obtain a permit from the Department to provide its services to a City permitted Taxicab Operator. For purposes of this section, a Taxi App Operator means a person, company or other entity that provides and/or operates a software based taxicab hail and/or dispatch system, which allows a taxicab user to electronically order a taxicab on demand using a smart phone, or other mobile or electronic device. A Taxi App Operator shall comply with all terms and conditions set forth in the Department issued permit and the Board Rules. The Department shall have the authority to suspend or revoke a permit for a violation of either a permit term or condition, or for a violation of a Board rule. A Taxi App Operator whose permit has been suspended or revoked by the Department may appeal the suspension or revocation of its permit to the Board subject to the appeals process set forth in the Board Rules. A City permitted Taxicab Operator who conducts its own in-house taxi app operation shall comply with all permit terms and conditions and Board Rules governing the use of a taxi app, and be subject to the same penalties as listed above for a violation of permit terms or Board Rules.
 
 
SEC. 71.03. DRIVING OF VEHICLES – PERMITS REQUIRED.
   (Amended by Ord. No. 173,901, Eff. 5/31/01.)
 
   (a)   No person shall drive a private ambulance as defined in Section 71.00 without first having obtained an ambulance driver permit from the Board.
 
   (b)   No person shall drive a non-ambulatory passenger vehicle as defined in Section 71.00 without first having obtained a non-ambulatory passenger vehicle driver permit from the Board.
 
   (c)   No person shall drive or operate a taxicab as defined in Section 71.00 without first having obtained a taxicab driver permit from the Board.
 
   (d)   No person shall drive or operate any other type of vehicle defined in Section 71.00 without first having obtained a driver permit from the Board.
 
 
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