Item 3: Ordinance on Personal Property Sale Procedures

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ECC UGENE ITY OUNCIL AIS GENDA TEM UMMARY Public Hearing: An Ordinance Concerning Personal Property Sale Procedures and Amending Sections 2.835 and 2.855 of the Eugene Code, 1971 Meeting Date: January 23, 2012 Agenda Item Number: 3 Department: Eugene Police Department Staff Contact: Jason Petersen www.eugene-or.gov Contact Telephone Number: 541-682-2800 ISSUE STATEMENT The Police Department is requesting that E.C. 2.835 Personal Property Sale Procedures, be amended to reduce the length of time that personal property is required to be retained by the City. This request is due to significant shortages in storage space at the City's Property Control Unit. This change will also align Eugene's retention schedule with the state standard. BACKGROUND ORS 98.245(2)(b) establishes procedures for the sale of unclaimed property by law enforcement agencies. The statutes define “unclaimed property” as “personal property that was seized by a removing authority as evidence, abandoned property, found property or stolen property, and that has remained in the physical possession of that removing authority for a period of more than 60 days following conclusion of all criminal actions related to the seizure of the evidence, abandoned property, found property or stolen property or conclusion of the investigation if no criminal action is filed.” Chapter Two of the Eugene Code provides procedures, based on state statutes, which govern the Police Department’s responsibilities to attempt to return property to its rightful owner. This code section was amended by Ordinance 20464 in October 2010. The agenda item summary for that ordinance explained: “Approval by the City Council of this amendment to the Eugene Code would align Eugene’s property sale procedures to Oregon state law.” Because of the complexity of the property regulations, this proposed amendment completes the alignment intended in 2010. The state statutes require that property must be maintained a minimum of 60 days, while Eugene Code requires holding the property six months. This proposal amends the amount of time property is to be held to the State required minimum and to standardize the holding period to 60 days. As the six-month property retention requirement has been implemented, physical internal storage maximums have been surpassed, forcing more and more property to be stored outside in the weather, devaluing and damaging the property. In the last three months, outside storage has increased by 877 square-feet now totaling approximately 1,267 square-feet. With no internal space left, outdoor storage will continue to increase at approximately this same rate. Without passing this proposal, the City will have to consider adding additional space at the current location or renting additional space for these property items to avoid possible liability issues. Planning for future growth at the rate currently experienced, warehouse rental would cost approximately $5,000.00 to $7,000.00 a month. Currently no S:\CMO\2012 Council Agendas\M120123\S1201233.doc