Measure RR | californiachoices.org

My vote

CITY OF OAKLAND—Would eliminate the $1,000 cap on fines the City may impose for violations of ordinances of the Oakland Municipal Code and instead require that the City Council establish a fine limit by ordinance adopted after a public hearing. Measure RR requires a simple majority (50% + 1) to pass.

Fiscal Impact: Would merely remove the $1,000 current cap on fines that the City may impose for violations of ordinances in the Oakland Municipal Code, therefore it is not possible to quantify the fiscal impact of this since the measure, by itself, does not establish new limits on fines.

Next Alameda County Measure: Measure S1

See Endorsements for Measure RR

Details

Pro/Con

Pro:

Proponents of Measure RR argue that the limit on fines in the Oakland City Charter hasn’t changed since 1968, and illegal dumpers and code violators regularly break the law with impunity knowing that the financial consequences of violating the law are limited; regular economic changes in inflation, value, and cost have minimized the effectiveness of the fine limit set over 50 years ago; and that the measure requires the City Council through an open public hearing process to set a new limit, which would be at a level that effectively enforces our laws and promotes future compliance to benefit all our neighborhoods.

A YES vote on this measure means: The $1,000 cap on fines would be eliminated and the City Council would establish a fine limit by ordinance after a public hearing.

Con:

Opponents of Measure RR argue that voters should never approve the government to impose unlimited fines on ourselves, and that there are no guarantees that the fines would only be used for offenses such as illegal dumping.

A NO vote on this measure means: The current $1,000 cap on fines would remain in effect.

In Depth

In Depth:

Currently, the Oakland City Charter places a $1,000 cap on fines the City may impose for violations of ordinances in the Oakland Municipal Code. This measure, if adopted by more than 50% of the votes cast, would amend the Charter to delete the $1,000 limit on fines and authorize the Oakland City Council to establish a new fine limit by ordinance adopted after a public hearing.

The fine structure for the City of Oakland has been fixed at a limit of $1,000 since 1968. Due to regular economic changes in inflation, value and cost, keeping a dollar fine limit in the City Charter may hinder the City's ability to effectively enforce blighted, substandard, and public nuisance conditions. The current limit has been deemed insufficient in certain circumstances to effectively enforce non-compliance, which in turn, negatively impacts the beautification of the community. The Oakland City Council placed Measure RR on the ballot.

It is important to note that the impetus for removing the $1,000 limit is not to increase fine revenue, but to strengthen the City's enforcement tools to obtain corrective action on code violations in a meaningful way that addresses and deters the underlying behavior.

Source: City Attorney's Impartial Analysis of Measure RR

Voter Resources

Official Resources

Alameda County Elections Office

Campaign Finance Information

Open Disclosure Oakland