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(b) The Director shall base the amount of the fee upon the actual costs to the Department of processing the application and of administering and enforcing this Article 39, but shall not set the amount at greater than two hundred and fifty dollars ($250).
(c) Beginning with Fiscal Year 2016-2017, and every fifth year after that, the Controller shall adjust the cap on the permit fee set in subsection (b) without further action by the Board of Supervisors, to reflect intervening changes in the relevant Consumer Price Index, as determined by the Controller. No later than May 15th of each such year, the Controller shall file a report with the Board of Supervisors reporting the new fee cap and certifying that the amount of the cap does not exceed the costs of providing the services for which the fee is assessed.
(a) The Director may issue a permit within 21 days following the filing of a complete application as provided in Section 3903 if he or she finds, based upon the contents of the application and his or her own investigation:
(1) That the operation, as proposed by the applicant, if permitted, would comply with all applicable laws, including but not limited to, the City's Municipal Code.
(2) That the applicant and any other person who will be directly engaged in the management and operation of a Commercial Dog Walking business has not been convicted in a court of competent jurisdiction, by final judgment of:
(A) An offense involving the mistreatment of animals that amounts to a felony, or if committed outside the State of California would amount to a felony if committed within the State of California, provided that the conviction occurred within the past ten years;
(B) An offense involving the mistreatment of animals that amounts to a misdemeanor or infraction, or if committed outside of the State of California would amount to a misdemeanor or infraction if committed within the State of California, provided that such person committed three separate offenses within the past five years.
(3) That the applicant has not knowingly made any false, misleading, or fraudulent statement of facts in the permit application or any other document required by the Director in connection with the application.
(b) Only one Commercial Dog Walking permit shall be issued to any one person.
(c) No Commercial Dog Walking permit shall be assignable or otherwise transferable.
(d) The permit shall be delivered to the applicant by the Tax Collector upon the payment to the Tax Collector of the license fee required under Section 3910.
(a) All applicants for a new permit must first satisfy one of the following two training requirements:
(1) The applicant shall complete a training course approved by the Director consisting of at least 20 hours of classroom and hands-on training. The training course must cover each of the following subject areas: canine behavior, pack management, dog park etiquette, safety and fight protocols, local laws and regulations, canine first aid, and any other subject or subjects that the Director may determine is or are relevant to the health and safety of animals and the public in the conduct of a Commercial Dog Walking business; or,
(2) The applicant shall complete an apprenticeship program approved by the Director consisting of at least 40 hours of practical experience working under the direct supervision of another dog walker who (A) is doing business as a permittee under this Article 39, and (B) has operated a dog walking business, with a valid City business registration certificate under Business and Tax Regulations Code Section 853 (or equivalent license or certification from another jurisdiction, as accepted by the Director), for at least three years. The person or organization providing the apprenticeship program may, but is not required to, charge the applicant for the program. The apprenticeship program shall cover each of the subject areas identified for training in subsection (a)(1), and the person or organization providing the apprenticeship program shall provide the participant who successfully completes the program with written certification stating that those subjects have been covered as part of the apprenticeship. The permit applicant shall provide the Director with a copy of such certification along with his or her permit application.
(b) The Director shall adopt regulations setting forth the required content of a course under subsection (a)(1) or the criteria for an approved apprenticeship program under subsection (a)(2). After adoption of such regulations, the Director shall approve or disapprove, within 30 days of submission, any entity's proposal to offer the required Commercial Dog Walking training under subsection (a)(1) or (2).
(c) Notwithstanding the provisions of subsection (a), any person who, on March 1, 2013, has held for at least the past three consecutive years a valid City business registration certificate under Business and Tax Regulations Code Section 853 for a dog walking business (or equivalent license or certification from another jurisdiction, as accepted by the Director), or any person who as of that date has worked as a dog walker for such a business for at least the past three consecutive years, shall be deemed to have satisfied the training requirement of this Section. The Director may by regulation adopted under Section 3909 determine which other equivalent occupational experience, if any, provides similar training and may be substituted for dog walking under this subsection (c).
The following restrictions shall apply to a permittee while walking four or more dogs at any one time for consideration on Park Property:
(a) The permittee may not walk at one time more than 8 dogs.
(b) Once a year, the permittee must distribute to all his or her current clients written informational materials to be prepared by the Department regarding how the clients may license their dogs under Health Code Section 41.15 and the importance of doing so. The permittee may distribute the informational materials in printed form, or by facsimile, email or other electronic transmission. The Department shall maintain a current copy of the materials on its website. At the same time the permittee distributes the informational materials on licensing, the permittee must ask all of her or his clients for the license numbers for any of their dogs that have been licensed under Health Code Section 41.15, and the permittee shall keep a record of those numbers, provided, however, that the permittee shall not be liable or penalized for failing to record any license number if the client refuses to provide such information to the permittee or if the client has not licensed his or her dogs.
(c) The permittee must carry a leash not more than 8 feet in length for each dog, and follow all applicable on-leash rules.
(d) The permittee must clean up after any dogs he or she is walking and properly dispose of any canine waste, as required by Health Code Section 40 and all applicable Recreation and Park Department rules and regulations.
(e) The permittee must have appropriate dog walking safety equipment, either upon his or her person or at a nearby location, including in a vehicle, that is readily accessible. The Director shall adopt regulations addressing what constitutes appropriate dog walking safety equipment.
(f) The permittee must have sufficient drinking water as necessary for the proper health and well-being of the dogs. The permittee must have the drinking water either upon his or her person or at a nearby location, including in a vehicle, that is readily accessible.
(g) If the permittee transports dogs to or from Park Property, the permittee must do so in a safe and appropriate manner, including properly restraining the dogs while in open and moving vehicles in accordance with California Vehicle Code Section 23117. The Director shall adopt regulations addressing what constitutes safe and appropriate transportation of dogs.
(a) Every permittee shall, while walking four or more dogs at any one time for consideration on Park Property, carry his or her permit upon his or her person and produce the permit for inspection upon request by any Enforcement Officer.
(b) If an Enforcement Officer has an objectively reasonable basis for suspecting that a permittee is transporting dogs by car in connection with a Commercial Dog Walking business in an unsafe or inappropriate manner, the Enforcement Officer may request the permittee to allow the officer to inspect the permittee's vehicle and the permittee shall comply with the Officer's request.
(c) If an Enforcement Officer has an objectively reasonable basis for suspecting that a permittee does not have ready access to dog walking safety equipment while walking four or more dogs at any one time for consideration on Park Property, the Enforcement Officer may request the permittee to produce the equipment for inspection and the permittee shall comply with the Officer's request.
The Director may, after a noticed public hearing, adopt administrative regulations supplemental to this Article 39 and not in conflict therewith. Except in cases of emergency, the regulations shall become effective no sooner than 10 days after adoption by the Director.
(a) Every person who has received a permit to operate a Commercial Dog Walking Business shall, on March 31 of each year, pay to the Tax Collector an annual license fee payable in advance. The license fee for new licenses issued during the calendar year shall be prorated with regard to the calendar year on a monthly basis.
(b) The Tax Collector shall issue the license upon payment of the license fee required under subsection (a) and submission by the permittee of a verified statement, in a form provided by the Department, that the permittee is in compliance with all provisions of this Article 39 and any administrative regulations adopted under this Article.
(c) The Director shall set the amount of the annual license fee by regulation adopted under Section 3909. The Director shall base the amount of the fee upon the actual costs to the Department of administering and enforcing this Article 39, but shall not set the amount at greater than one hundred dollars ($100).
(d) Beginning with Fiscal Year 2016-2017, and every fifth year after that, the Controller shall adjust the cap on the license fee set in subsection (c) without further action by the Board of Supervisors, to reflect intervening changes in the relevant Consumer Price Index, as determined by the Controller. No later than May 15th of each such year, the Controller shall file a report with the Board of Supervisors reporting the new fee cap and certifying that the amount of the cap does not exceed the costs of providing the services for which the fee is assessed.
(a) The Director may suspend or revoke any permit issued under this Article 39 if he or she finds, after a noticed administrative hearing, that any of the following conditions exist:
(1) Fraud, misrepresentation, or false statement contained in the application or permit, or any documents required in connection with them;
(3) Serious physical mistreatment or neglect by the permittee of any animals under his or her control or custody, under circumstances that cause or are likely to cause death or serious physical harm or illness to the animals, whether the permittee's act or omission is intentional and malicious, or shows reckless indifference to the foreseeable consequences of that conduct; or,
(4) For any other good cause shown, including non-compliance with permit conditions or violation of applicable rules and regulations governing the permittee's use of Park Property in connection with the operation of a Commercial Dog Walking Business.
(b) On revocation of the permit no part of the annual license fee shall be returned and the said license fee shall be forfeited to the City.
(a) Any person who violates any provision of this Article 39 (other than Section 3907(b)) or of an administrative regulation adopted under this Article shall be deemed guilty of an infraction and upon conviction thereof such person shall be punished by a fine not to exceed one hundred dollars ($100) for a first violation, and not to exceed two hundred dollars ($200) for a second violation of the same provision or regulation within a twelve-month period. Upon the third or subsequent conviction within a twelve-month period, such person shall be deemed guilty of a misdemeanor and shall be punished by a fine not to exceed $1,000 or by imprisonment in the County Jail for a period not to exceed one year or by both such fine and imprisonment.
(b) Any person who violates any provision of this Article 39 (other than Section 3907(b)) or of an administrative regulation adopted under this Article may be punished by administrative fines imposed by the Director in the amount of:
(1) Up to $50 for the first violation;
(2) Up to $100 for a second violation within a twelve-month period; and,
(3) Up to $500 for a third and subsequent violations within a twelve-month period.
(c) Except as provided in subsection (b), setting forth the amount of administrative fines, Administrative Code Chapter 100, "Procedures Governing the Imposition of Administrative Fines," as may be amended from time to time, is hereby incorporated in its entirety and shall govern the imposition, enforcement, collection, and review of administrative citations issued by the Director to enforce this Article or any administrative regulation adopted under this Article.
(d) The Department shall maintain on its website a list of all persons who have violated any provision of this Article or of any regulation adopted under this Article three or more times in the past 12 months.
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