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View recently adopted ordinances as of January 13, 2009 NOT YET CODIFIED OR INTEGRATED IN THIS SITE. (pdf file)

Ordinances enacted through January 13, 2009

Copyrighted by SANTA CLARA COUNTY CODE & Municipal Code Corporation, 1998.

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CHAPTER XVI.
EMERGENCY RESPONSE AND DISASTER PREPAREDNESS

Sec. A14-92. Title/purpose.

(a) In order to ensure and improve the performance of the County's 911 Communications System, and to prepare for or minimize the effects of a hazard upon the civilian population, to deal with the immediate emergency conditions which would be created by the hazard, and to effectuate emergency repairs to, or the emergency restoration of, vital utilities and facilities destroyed or damaged by the hazard, the County must impose a fee. This chapter shall be known as "Emergency Response and Disaster Preparedness," and the fee imposed by this chapter shall be known as the "Santa Clara County Emergency Response and Disaster Preparedness Fee."

(b) The purpose of this ordinance is to require subscribers to telephone service in the incorporated and unincorporated areas of the County, who have direct or indirect access to County emergency response and disaster preparedness services through the County's 911 Communications System, to pay a fee which is directly related to the benefit subscribers derive from the improvements to, and operation of, the County's 911 Communications System; and from County activities and measures designed or undertaken to prepare for or minimize the effects of a hazard upon the civilian population, to deal with the immediate emergency conditions which would be created by the hazard, and to effectuate emergency repairs to, or the emergency restoration of, vital utilities and facilities destroyed or damaged by the hazard that will be financed by fee revenues.

(c) The Santa Clara County Emergency Response and Disaster Preparedness Fee is the most practical and equitable revenue mechanism to finance the acquisition of land, construction of facilities, purchase of materials, supplies, medicines, equipment, software, component parts and technical information and processes, personnel and services necessary to: (1) provide an adequate and reliable 911 Communications System; and (2) prepare for or minimize the effects of a hazard upon the civilian population, to deal with the immediate emergency conditions which would be created by the hazard, and to effectuate emergency repairs to, or the emergency restoration of, vital utilities and facilities destroyed or damaged by the hazard.

(d) The fee imposed by the provisions of this chapter is intended solely to provide revenue for eligible operating costs and eligible project costs as defined in this chapter. Fee revenues shall be deposited by the Finance Director in the Santa Clara County Emergency Response and Disaster Preparedness Fee Fund established pursuant to Section A14-101. The provisions of this chapter are not enacted for general revenue purposes.

(Ord. No. NS-300.788, § 1, 2-12-08)

Sec. A14-93. Definitions.

Except where the context or particular provisions require otherwise, the following definitions shall govern the construction of this chapter.

911 Communications System means an enhanced emergency telephone service which automatically connects a person dialing the digits 9-1-1 to an answering point established within the County, and incorporates all aspects of the call delivery system, the call processing system and the call dispatch system, including, but not limited to, selective routing, automatic number identification (ANI), automatic location identification (ALI), and wireless 911. "911 Communications System" includes the functions of the County's emergency communications center; however, it does not include the Office of the Sheriff, or any fire protection agency or ambulance company which responds to requests for assistance by traveling to a site to which they are dispatched as a result of an emergency call.

Access line means any connection from a subscriber location within the County to a provider of local telephone service offered to the public for compensation. Within the meaning of this chapter, and without limitation, access line includes connections providing residential basic exchange service, business basic exchange service, private branch exchange (PBX) service, foreign exchange service, and Centrex service. Access line also includes voice and data transmit/receive capability from an individual wireless device using a commercial mobile radio service as defined in Section 20.3 of Title 47 of the Code of Federal Regulations, as in effect on October 1, 2007, which has as its "place of primary use," as defined in the Federal Mobile Telecommunications Sourcing Act, 4 U.S.C. 124(8), a location within the County. Access line shall not include wireless access where the subscriber can demonstrate to the County's satisfaction that the subscriber does not use the wireless access to send or receive any telephone calls within the County; and access line shall not include any connection from a subscriber location within the County to a local telephone service supplier if the subscriber can demonstrate to the County's satisfaction that the subscriber for any reason cannot use that connection for purposes of two-way telephony to dial the digits 9-1-1 to reach a 911 communications system within the County.

Disaster preparedness means all those activities and measures designed or undertaken to prepare for or minimize the effects of a hazard upon the civilian population, to deal with the immediate emergency conditions which would be created by the hazard, and to effectuate emergency repairs to, or the emergency restoration of, vital utilities and facilities destroyed or damaged by the hazard. Disaster preparedness includes:

(1) Measures to be undertaken in preparation for anticipated hazards (including the establishment of appropriate organizations, operational plans, and supporting agreements, the recruitment and training of personnel, the conduct of research, the procurement and stockpiling of necessary materials and supplies, the provision of suitable public notification and warning systems, the distribution of mass prophylaxis medications, the construction or preparation of shelters, shelter areas, and control centers, and, when appropriate, the non-military evacuation of the civilian population).

(2) Measures to be undertaken during a hazard (including the enforcement of passive defense regulations prescribed by duly established military or civilian authorities, the evacuation of personnel to shelter areas, the control of traffic and panic, and the control and use of lighting and civil communications).

(3) Measures to be undertaken following a hazard (including activities for fire fighting, rescue, emergency medical, health and sanitation services, monitoring for specific dangers of special weapons, unexploded bomb reconnaissance, essential debris clearance, emergency welfare measures, and immediately essential emergency repair or restoration of damaged vital facilities).

(4) Materials (including raw materials, supplies, medicines, equipment, component parts and technical information and processes necessary for emergency preparedness).

(5) Facilities (including buildings, shelters, utilities and land).

Eligible operating costs means the portion of County Operating Costs reflecting the benefit estimated to be provided (1) by operation of the County's 911 Communications System, and (2) by preparing for or minimizing the effects of a hazard upon the civilian population, to deal with the immediate emergency conditions which would be created by the hazard, and to effectuate emergency repairs to, or the emergency restoration of, vital utilities and facilities destroyed or damaged by the hazard to telephone subscribers who are required to pay the fee imposed by the provisions of the chapter on access lines, trunk lines and high capacity trunk lines subject to the fee. Eligible operating costs shall not include exempt operating costs.

Eligible project costs means the portion of project costs reflecting the benefit estimated to be provided by the project to telephone subscribers who are required to pay the fee imposed by the provisions of this chapter on access lines, trunk lines and high capacity trunk lines subject to the fee. Eligible project costs shall not include exempt project costs.

Exempt operating costs means the portion of operating costs reflecting the benefit estimated to be provided by operation of the 911 Communications System to telephone subscribers who are exempted from the fee by Section A14-96 of this chapter or are otherwise not required to pay the fee imposed by the provisions of this chapter.

Exempt project costs means the portion of project costs reflecting the benefit estimated to be provided by the project to telephone subscribers who are exempted from the fee by Section A14-96 of this chapter or are otherwise not required to pay the fee imposed by the provisions of this chapter.

Fee means the Santa Clara County Emergency Response and Disaster Preparedness Fee imposed under the provisions of this chapter.

Hazard means an emergency or disaster resulting from (1) a natural disaster, or (2) an accidental or man-caused event. "Hazard" includes events declared to be a local emergency, state of emergency, state of war emergency, or federal emergency or major disaster.

High capacity trunk line means a trunk line with a capacity of at least 24 channels over a high capacity service, such as a 1.544 Mb, T-1 or integrated services digital network (ISDN) primary rate interface (PRI) line.

Lifeline service means discounted telephone service available to eligible low-income residential customers.

Local emergency means the duly proclaimed existence of conditions of disaster or of extreme peril to the safety of persons and property within the territorial limits of a county, city and county, or city, caused by such conditions as, environmental disasters, air pollution, fire, flood, storm, epidemic, riot, earthquake, drought, sudden and severe energy shortage, plant or animal infestation or disease, the Governor's warning of an earthquake or volcanic prediction, or other conditions, other than conditions resulting from a labor controversy, which are or are likely to be beyond the control of the services, personnel, equipment and facilities of the County and require the combined forces of other political subdivisions to combat, or with respect to regulated energy utilities, a sudden and severe energy shortage that requires extraordinary measures beyond the authority vested in the California Public Utilities Commission within the meaning of Government Code Section 8558(c) and Ordinance Code Section A8-3.

Local telephone service means access to a local telephone system, providing two-way telephonic quality communication with substantially all persons having telephone or radio telephone stations constituting a part of such local telephone system, whether or not such service uses transmission wires. "Local telephone service" shall also include service provided through any technology currently existing or that may exist in the future, allowing a person within the incorporated or unincorporated areas of the County direct or indirect access to the County's 911 Communications System using that technology. For purposes of the fee, a person shall be construed to subscribe to "local telephone service" within the County of Santa Clara if he or she has a "place of primary use" as such term is defined in the Mobile Telecommunications Sourcing Act, 4 U.S.C. Section 124(8), within the geographic boundaries of the County with direct or indirect access to the County's 911 Communications System. "Local Telephone Service" shall not include land mobile services or maritime mobile services as defined in Section 2.1 of Title 47 of the Code of Federal Regulations, as that Section existed on January 1, 1970. Local Telephone Service shall also include wireless and voice over internet protocol telephone service.

Major disaster means any natural catastrophe (including any hurricane, tornado, storm, high water, wind-driven water, tidal wave, tsunami, earthquake, volcanic eruption, landslide, mudslide, snowstorm, or drought), or, regardless of cause, any fire, flood, or explosion, in any part of the County of Santa Clara, which in the determination of the President of the United States causes damage of sufficient severity and magnitude to warrant major disaster assistance under the Stafford Act to supplement the efforts and available resources of local governments, and disaster relief organizations in alleviating the damage, loss, hardship, or suffering caused thereby within the meaning of 42 U.S.C. Section 5122(2).

Operating costs means any costs to operate, repair or maintain the 911 Communications System, including, but not limited to, costs for personnel, planning, training, software and hardware maintenance and upgrades, facility maintenance and repair, depreciation, equipment replacement, technical infrastructure, attorneys' fees and all other direct and indirect costs incurred by the County in providing 911 emergency communications services. Operating costs also means any costs to prepare for or minimize the effects of a hazard upon the civilian population, to deal with the immediate emergency conditions which would be created by the hazard, and to effectuate emergency repairs to, or the emergency restoration of, vital utilities and facilities destroyed or damaged by the hazard (including, but not limited to, personnel; planning; training; research; procurement and stockpiling of materials and supplies; distribution of mass prophylaxis medications; implementation of public notice and emergency warning systems; evacuation of the civilian population; control of traffic and panic; control and use of lighting and civil communications; construction or preparation of shelters, shelter areas, and control centers; fire fighting; search and rescue; emergency medical; health and sanitation services; monitoring for specific dangers of special weapons; unexploded bomb reconnaissance; essential demolition and debris clearance; emergency welfare measures; essential emergency repair or restoration of damaged vital facilities; materials; supplies; medicines; equipment; component parts and technical information; facilities; land; and utilities.)

Pandemic means a global outbreak of disease that occurs when an entirely new subtype of viral disease appears or emerges, to which the population has no immunity because the subtype has either never circulated among people or has not circulated for a long time. Pandemic virus causes serious illness and then spreads easily from person to person worldwide.

Project costs include, but are not limited to, any direct and indirect costs of acquiring, refinancing and installing computerized call delivery processing and dispatch equipment and software, a public notification and warning system, regional radio interoperability equipment, and costs associated with housing the County's 911 Communications System, equipment and staff in facilities appropriate for providing 911 emergency communications services, including any debt service payments. Project costs also include, but are not limited to, direct and indirect costs of measures to be undertaken in preparation for anticipated hazards such as establishment of organizations and operational plans, stockpiling of materials, supplies, medicines and equipment, and acquisition and financing of warning systems, shelters, control centers, storage facilities, utilities and land, including debt service payments.

Service location means the premises of a telephone subscriber at which a working service point or primary station set provides the subscriber with basic exchange service and to which extension services are charged. One or more parcels of real property, which are contiguous or separated only by public streets or rights-of way, and are under the common control of a single telephone subscriber, shall be considered a single service location for the purpose of implementing the annual fee cap established in Section A14-97 of this chapter. For wireless telephone service, "service location" is the "place of primary use," as such term is defined in the Mobile Telecommunications Sourcing Act, 4 U.S.C. Section 124(8) within the geographic boundaries of the County of Santa Clara served by the County's 911 Communications System.

Service supplier means any person supplying local telephone service to any telephone subscriber pursuant to authority granted by the California Public Utilities Commission or the Federal Communications Commission, at a location within the County of Santa Clara. Service suppliers may include, without limitation, local exchange carriers, inter-exchange carriers, competitive access providers, cable television providers offering telecommunications services, wireless telephone service providers, voice over internet protocol service suppliers and any other entity offering direct connections between their premises and the premises of telephone subscribers. Service supplier also includes any person supplying local telephone service who is exempt from California Public Utilities Commission or Federal Communications Commission regulation.

State of emergency means the duly proclaimed existence of conditions of disaster or of extreme peril to the safety of persons and property within the state caused by such conditions as air pollution, fire, flood, storm, epidemic, riot, drought, sudden and severe energy shortage, plant or animal infestation or disease, the Governor's warning of an earthquake or volcanic prediction, or an earthquake, or other conditions, other than conditions resulting from a labor controversy or conditions causing a "state of war emergency," which, by reason of their magnitude, are or are likely to be beyond the control of the services, personnel, equipment, and facilities of any single county, city and county, or city and require the combined forces of a mutual aid region or regions to combat, within the meaning of Government Code Sections 8558 and 8614 and Ordinance Code Section A8-3.

State of war emergency means the condition which exists immediately, with or without a proclamation thereof by the Governor, whenever this State or nation is attacked by an enemy of the United States, or upon receipt by the State of a warning from the federal government indicating that such an enemy attack is probable or imminent within the meaning of Government Code Sections 8558 and 8614 and Ordinance Code Section A8-3.

Telephone corporation shall have the same meaning as defined in Section 234 of the California Public Utilities Code or the most comparable successor definition. It also includes any person or corporation providing wireless telephone service to any telephone subscriber.

Telephone subscriber means any person who receives local telephone service or its function.

Trunk line means a line between a service supplier's switching device and a private branch exchange (PBX) or automatic call distributing (ACD) system, or other similar device, at a telephone subscriber location. Notwithstanding the foregoing, "trunk line" does not include any line between a service supplier's switching device and a private branch exchange (PBX), automatic call distributing (ACD) system, or other similar device, at a telephone subscriber location, if the telephone subscriber can demonstrate to the County's satisfaction that the subscriber cannot use the line to dial the digits 9-1-1 to access, directly or indirectly, the County's 911 Communications System.

Wireless telephone service means voice and data transmit/receive capability from an individual wireless device using a commercial mobile radio service as defined in Section 20.3 of Title 47 of the Code of Federal Regulations, as in effect on October 1, 2007, which has as its "place of primary use," as defined in the Federal Mobile Telecommunications Sourcing Act, 4 U.S.C. Section 124(8), a location within the County.

(Ord. No. NS-300.788, § 1, 2-12-08)

Sec. A14-94. Findings.

(a) The County's 911 Communications System provides direct and indirect access to emergency services and disaster preparedness services for telephone subscribers. The life-saving importance of an up-to-date and modernized emergency communications system was acknowledged by the Federal government's September 11 Commission, which found that existing deficiencies in the New York City emergency communications system resulted in an impaired response. Telephone subscribers in Santa Clara County derive significant benefit from ongoing operation of a modernized, integrated, emergency communications system; and will benefit from maintaining and upgrading the system so it operates at a state-of-the-art level. A portion of the costs associated with operating, maintaining and upgrading the County's 911 Communications System and facilities should be allocated among all telephone subscribers who reap this significant benefit.

(b) The importance of local government's disaster preparedness was acknowledged in the Federal government's report entitled The Federal Response to Hurricane Katrina: Lessons Learned, February 2006 ("Report"). The Report concluded that "today there is a national consensus that we must be better prepared to respond to events like Hurricane Katrina. While we have constructed a system that effectively handles the demands of routine, limited, natural and man-made disasters, our system clearly has structural flaws for addressing catastrophic incidents. But we as a Nation - Federal, State, and local governments; the private sector; as well as communities and individual citizens - have not developed a shared vision of or commitment to preparedness: what we must do to prevent (when possible), protect against, respond to, and recover from the next catastrophe. Without a shared vision that is acted upon by all levels of our Nation and encompasses the full range of our preparedness and response capabilities, we will not achieve a truly transformational national state of preparedness."

(c) The Report noted that disaster preparedness encompasses communications, logistics and evacuation, search and rescue, public safety and security, public health and medical support, human services, mass care and housing, public communications, critical infrastructure and impact assessment, environmental hazards and debris removal, training, exercises and citizen and community preparedness.

(d) The Report noted that the Federal government's "Interim National Preparedness Goal, March 2005" provides: "National preparedness involves a continuous cycle of activity to develop the elements (e.g., plans, procedures, policies, training, and equipment) necessary to maximize the capability to prevent, protect against, respond to, and recover from domestic incidents, especially major events that require coordination among an appropriate combination of Federal, State, local, tribal, private sector, and non-governmental entities, in order to minimize the impact on lives, property, and the economy."

(e) Every telephone access line can independently provide direct or indirect access to the County's 911 Communications System or disaster preparedness services. Apportioning Operating Costs and Project Costs on a per line basis fairly distributes these costs according to the benefit telephone subscribers derive from availability of, access to, and use of a modernized County 911 Communication System; as well as activities and measures taken to prepare for and minimize the effects of hazards upon the civilian population, to deal with the immediate emergency conditions which would be created by the hazard, and to effectuate emergency repairs to, or the emergency restoration of, vital utilities and facilities destroyed or damaged by the hazard.

(f) Subscribers who maintain trunk lines and high-capacity trunk lines derive more benefit, in terms of access to emergency communication service, from each telephone line than other subscribers and should pay a higher fee. Based on information from the California Public Utilities Commission, the Federal Communications Commission and accepted telecommunications industry line-to-trunk equivalency, the County Board of Supervisors finds that, on average, a trunk line can provide up to 7.5 times the benefit provided by a single access line, and a high-capacity trunk line can provide up to 180 or more times the benefit provided by a single access line; however, in the County's experience, high-capacity trunks generally are not in use at full capacity. The Board further finds that the rate charged to trunk lines should be set at 7.5 times the rate per single access line, and the rate charged to high-capacity trunk lines should be set at 24 times the rate per single access line. Monthly fees charged to high-capacity trunk lines shall not exceed $25.00. The Board of Supervisors shall from time to time adjust the amount and/or rate of any fees charged to reflect increases in Eligible Operating Costs and Eligible Project Costs.

(g) Eligible Operating Costs and Eligible Project Costs reflecting the benefit estimated to be provided by operation of the County's 911 Communications System to telephone subscribers who are subject to the fee may be financed from fee revenues. Eligible Operating Costs and Eligible Project Costs reflecting the benefit estimated to be provided by operation of the County's 911 Communication System to telephone subscribers who are exempted from the fee may not be financed from fee revenues. In addition, revenue shortfalls due to the $10,000.00 annual cap on fees for non-exempt subscribers must be financed from other revenues.

(h) Based on information from service suppliers, the California Public Utilities Commission and the Federal Communications Commission, the County estimates that 2,578,783 access lines, including trunk lines and high-capacity trunks equivalent to 232,269 lines, serve subscribers to local telephone service within the County, and 250,628 or approximately ten percent of the 2,578,783 lines providing local telephone service in the County will be exempt from the fee.

(Ord. No. NS-300.788, § 1, 2-12-08)

Sec. A14-95. Imposition of Santa Clara County Emergency Response and Disaster Preparedness Fee.

(a) There is hereby imposed a Santa Clara County Emergency Response and Disaster Preparedness Fee on every non-exempt subscriber to local telephone service, as defined in this chapter, which provides direct or indirect access to the County's 911 Communications System and its emergency response and disaster preparedness services.

(b) Only one payment of the fee herein imposed shall be required for any single access line, trunk line or high-capacity trunk line, notwithstanding that access lines of more than one telephone corporation are used in furnishing local telephone service to a telephone subscriber.

(c) Revenues generated by the Santa Clara County Emergency Response and Disaster Preparedness Fee shall be deposited in the Emergency Response and Disaster Preparedness Fee Fund authorized by Section A14-101 and shall be used exclusively to pay for Eligible Operating Costs and Eligible Project Costs, including those accruing before adoption of this ordinance.

(Ord. No. NS-300.788, § 1, 2-12-08)

Sec. A14-96. Exemptions.

Nothing in this chapter shall be construed as imposing a fee upon the access lines of:

(a) A lifeline services customer of a service supplier;

(b) Coin-operated telephones;

(c) A non-profit hospital which is exempt from federal income tax under Section 501(a) of the United States Code;

(d) A non-profit educational organization which is exempt from income tax under Section 501(a) of the United States Code;

(e) Any person, agency or organization, when imposition of such fee upon that person, agency or organization would violate the Constitution of the United States, the Constitution of the State of California, or preemptive federal or state law;

(f) A government entity; or

(g) A service supplier.

(Ord. No. NS-300.788, § 1, 2-12-08)

Sec. A14-97. Fee schedule.

(a) The emergency response portion of the fee shall be proportionate to eligible operating costs and eligible project costs reflecting the benefit estimated to be provided by operation of the County's 911 Communications System. The disaster preparedness portion of the fee shall be a flat fee reflecting the benefit estimated to be provided by preparing for or minimizing the effects of a hazard upon the civilian population, to deal with the immediate emergency conditions which would be created by the hazard, and to effectuate emergency repairs to, or the emergency restoration of, vital utilities and facilities destroyed or damaged by the hazard.

(b) The schedule of monthly fees per type of line imposed by the provisions of this chapter to cover all eligible operating costs and eligible project costs are:

Jurisdiction	Access Line	Trunk Line	High Capacity Trunk
Campbell	0.44	3.30	10.56
Cupertino	0.58	4.35	13.92
Gilroy	0.24	1.80	5.76
Los Altos	0.39	2.93	9.36
Los Altos Hills	0.60	4.50	14.40
Los Gatos	0.46	3.45	11.04
Milpitas	0.26	1.95	6.24
Monte Sereno	0.30	2.25	7.20
Morgan Hill	0.40	3.00	9.60
Mountain View	0.27	2.03	6.48
Palo Alto	0.20	1.50	4.80
San Jose	0.27	2.03	6.48
Santa Clara	0.28	2.10	6.72
Saratoga	0.56	4.20	13.44
Sunnyvale	0.26	1.95	6.24
Unincorporated	1.01	7.58	24.24

(c) No business telephone subscriber with one or more locations in Santa Clara County shall be required to pay aggregate fees in excess of $10,000.00 per calendar year. The cost of wireless telephone services shall not be considered for purposes of the fee cap established by this subsection. The amount of the cap established by this subsection shall be adjusted annually by the Consumer Price Index: All Urban Consumers in the San Francisco/Oakland/San Jose area for All Items as reported by the United States Bureau of Labor Statistics.

(Ord. No. NS-300.788, § 1, 2-12-08)

Sec. A14-98. Annual report.

(a) No later than October first of each year, the County Executive or designee shall estimate the percentage of direct and indirect access lines by type that were subject to payment of the fee during the immediately prior fiscal year. This percentage shall be identified as the percentage of operating costs and project costs that are eligible operating costs and eligible project costs for the following fiscal year. The County Executive or designee shall also estimate the percentage of lines exempt from the fee.

(b) No later than October first in each odd numbered year, the County Executive or designee will evaluate information from industry sources, regulatory bodies and County experience to determine whether the fee rates continue to reasonably reflect the estimated increased access to the County's 911 Communications System provided to trunk line and high-capacity trunk line subscribers relative to direct and indirect access line subscribers. If the County Executive, based on that information, determines that the fee rate for trunk lines or high-capacity trunk lines no longer reasonably reflects the estimated increased access to the County's 911 Communications System provided to those subscribers, he or she shall recommend to the Board of Supervisors an amendment to the fee rate for trunk lines or high-capacity trunk lines reflecting the new information.

(Ord. No. NS-300.788, § 1, 2-12-08)

Sec. A14-99. Fee billing and collection.

(a) The fee imposed by this chapter shall be billed to the telephone subscribers by the service supplier with its regular bill or as otherwise in accordance with the service supplier's normal billing procedures; and service suppliers shall collect such fees as are remitted from telephone subscribers so billed on behalf of the County.

(b) The fee required to be collected by service suppliers under this chapter shall be added to and stated separately as the "Santa Clara County Emergency Response and Disaster Preparedness Fee" on billings by service suppliers whose billing systems as presently configured are capable of such billing; and the Finance Director may enter into such administrative agreements as may be required to accommodate appropriate billing of the fee as provided in Section A14-110. Where authorized by federal or state law, the Finance Director may require reasonable modifications to a service supplier's billing system to accommodate requirements of this subsection, provided an administrative agreement for recovery of all one-time costs incurred by the service supplier to comply is executed as allowed by Section A14-110.

(c) The charge identified as the Santa Clara County Emergency Response and Disaster Preparedness Fee shall include only the amount authorized by this chapter, and shall not include any additional charges or fees which may be imposed by the service supplier to recover the cost of collecting the fee.

(d) The service supplier may assess a service charge of up to one-eighth of one percent of the fee actually collected by the service supplier and remitted to the County, or such amount as may be agreed upon by the County and the service supplier in an administrative agreement approved in accordance with Section A14-110. The service charge may be deducted from the fee revenues remitted to the County at the time of remission.

(e) The duty to collect the fee from a telephone subscriber shall commence with the effective date of this chapter. The Finance Director shall provide service suppliers with written notice of their responsibility to bill, collect and remit the fees. Service suppliers shall commence billing the fee upon the first billing date after receipt of written notice from the County, or within the time specified within the notice, whichever is longer.

(f) Nothing in the chapter is intended to regulate the ability of a service supplier to recover any costs of collecting the fee imposed under this chapter, to the extent that such recovery may be authorized by state or federal law.

(Ord. No. NS-300.788, § 1, 2-12-08)

Sec. A14-100. Fee payment.

(a) Fee revenues remitted to service suppliers by telephone subscribers shall be held in trust for the County, and service suppliers shall remit the revenues collected to the County Finance Agency on a monthly basis on or before the last day of the month following month in which they were collected.

(b) In the event a telephone subscriber makes partial payment of the total charges billed for service and the fees which have accrued for the billing period, absent express written direction by the telephone subscriber identifying those charges in dispute, such partial payment shall be applied to satisfy, in order: (1) charges due to the service supplier for services and products; (2) applicable federal, state, and local sales and use taxes; (3) authorized pass through expenses, costs and other charges for which the service supplier may be directly liable for payment to federal and state governments including, but not limited to, universal service fee (USF) charges; and (4) charges for which service providers are acting as mere conduits for collection and remittance including, the Santa Clara County Emergency Response and Disaster Preparedness Fee.

(c) Service suppliers shall pursue the normal course of collection efforts for deficiencies in payment of the fee by telephone subscribers; provided, however, that nothing in this section shall impose any duty on a service supplier to take any legal action to enforce the collection of the fee. The telephone subscriber shall not be relieved of the duty to pay the fee to the service supplier in any dispute of other items billed except in cases in which the dispute arises from claims of interruption or impairment of service on the access line on which the fee under this chapter is assessed.

(d) Nothing in this chapter is intended to regulate the ability of a service supplier to recover any costs of collecting the fee imposed under this chapter, to the extent such that recovery may be authorized by state or federal law.

(Ord. No. NS-300.788, § 1, 2-12-08)

Sec. A14-101. Emergency response and disaster preparedness fee fund.

(a) The emergency response and disaster preparedness fee fund is hereby established to receive all monies collected pursuant to this chapter, and any other monies transferred into the fund.

(b) Monies collected pursuant to this chapter shall be used solely for payment of eligible operating costs, and eligible project costs as defined in this chapter, and such other costs as the Board of Supervisors may from time to time approve.

(c) Expenditures from the fund shall be made upon the recommendation of the County Executive or designee. Expenditures and encumbrances from this fund shall be subject to the budget and fiscal provisions of the County.

(Ord. No. NS-300.788, § 1, 2-12-08)

Sec. A14-102. Liability for fee.

(a) Any fee required to be paid by a telephone subscriber under the provisions of this chapter shall be deemed a debt owed by the telephone subscriber to the County until it has been paid to the County, except that payment to a service supplier is sufficient to relieve the subscriber from further liability for the fee.

(b) Any fee required to be collected under the provisions of this chapter shall be deemed a debt owed to the County of Santa Clara by the person required to collect and remit such fee.

(c) So long as a service supplier charges the applicable fee to every non-exempt subscriber to local telephone service, makes a good faith effort to collect the fee, and remits all fees paid by such non-exempt subscribers to the County, nothing in this subsection shall impose any duty on a service supplier to take any legal action to enforce the collection of the fee. However, whenever a service supplier remits funds collected as a Santa Clara County Emergency Response and Disaster Preparedness Fee to the County, the service supplier shall also provide the County with the name and address of any telephone subscriber refusing or failing to pay the fee for a period of four or more billing periods and shall state the amount of such fee remaining unpaid. A service supplier, after providing the required information, shall be relieved of any further duty under this chapter for billing and attempts to collect uncollected fees from the telephone subscribers identified. The Finance Director shall assume any responsibility to collect the fees due for the stated periods and may demand payment of such fees from the telephone subscriber.

(d) A service supplier shall be obligated to bill and remit fees collected consistent with the provisions of Section A14-99. In the event a service supplier willfully refuses to bill the fees or remit the fees collected in due course, the service supplier shall be liable to the County in the amount of the fees that were to be collected, as determined by the controller/treasurer pursuant to Section A14-104.

(e) Any person owing money to the County under the provisions of this chapter shall be liable to an action brought in the name of the County for the recovery of such amount.

(f) In connection with any actions or claims relating to or arising from the alleged invalidity of the fee, in whole or in part, the service supplier shall not be liable to any customer as a consequence of collecting the fee.

(Ord. No. NS-300.788, § 1, 2-12-08)

Sec. A14-103. Registration, reporting and remitting.

(a) Each service supplier providing local telephone service to telephone subscribers within the County, who have direct or indirect access to the County's 911 Communications System emergency response and disaster preparedness services, shall register with the Finance Director upon a form prescribed by the Finance Director and shall set forth the name under which the service supplier transacts or intends to transact business, the service supplier's registered agent for process, or such other agent the service supplier designates, to whom notices pursuant to this chapter shall be directed, and such other information as the Finance Director may require.

(b) Each service supplier shall, on or before the last day of each month, make a return to the controller/treasurer, on forms provided by the Finance Director, stating the amount of fees collected by the service supplier during the preceding month. At the time the return is filed, the full amount of the fee collected shall be remitted to the Finance Director. The Finance Director may require additional readily attainable information in the return. Returns and remittances are due immediately upon cessation of business for any reason.

(c) Service suppliers shall maintain records of fees collected and remitted to the County for a period of at least three years after the date the fee is remitted.

(Ord. No. NS-300.788, § 1, 2-12-08)

Sec. A14-104. Interest and penalties.

(a) Fees required to be collected from a telephone subscriber which are not remitted to the Finance Director on or before the due date provided in this chapter are delinquent.

(b) Interest and penalties for delinquency in remittance of any fee not remitted shall be assessed as follows:

(1) Any service supplier who fails to remit any fee required to be collected by this chapter within ten days after receipt of written notice from the controller/treasurer of such failure shall pay a penalty of ten percent of the amount of the fee, except to the extent that a service supplier has billed a subscriber the applicable fee and made a good faith effort to collect the fee, and the subscriber has failed to pay the amount of the fee.

(2) If the Finance Director determines that the nonpayment of any fee required to be collected under this chapter is due to fraud, a penalty of 100 percent of the amount of the fee shall be added thereto in addition to the penalty stated in subparagraph (1) of this subsection.

(3) In addition to the penalties imposed in the subparagraph (2), any service supplier who fails to remit any fee required to be collected by this chapter, shall pay interest on the amount of the fee, exclusive of penalties, from the date on which the remittance first became delinquent until paid. Interest shall be paid at the rate of one percent per month, or fraction thereof.

(c) Failure by a telephone subscriber to pay any fee imposed by this chapter shall result in the following interest and penalties on the telephone subscriber:

(1) Any telephone subscriber who fails to pay any fee imposed by this chapter within 120 days of the date of receipt of notice of the amount of fee due from the service supplier shall pay a penalty of ten percent of the amount of the fee.

(2) Any telephone subscriber who fails to pay any delinquent remittance within 180 days after the date of the receipt of notice of the amount of fee due from the service supplier shall pay a second delinquency penalty of ten percent of the amount of the fee in addition to the ten percent penalty first imposed.

(3) In addition to the penalties imposed in this subsection (c), any telephone subscriber who fails to pay any fee imposed by this chapter shall pay interest on the amount of the fee, exclusive of penalties, from the date on which the fee first became delinquent until paid. Interest shall be paid at the rate of one percent per month, or fraction thereof.

(4) The penalties and interest imposed in this subsection (c) shall not be collected by the service supplier, but shall be determined and collected by the County as set forth below.

(5) Every penalty imposed and such interest as accrues under the provisions of this Section shall become a part of the fee required to be paid.

(Ord. No. NS-300.788, § 1, 2-12-08)

Sec. A14-105. Authority to perform compliance audits.

The Finance Director shall have the authority to conduct audits of service suppliers, including inspection, auditing and copying of relevant records and material, including but not limited to electronic records, during the service supplier's regular business hours, upon written request and not less than five business days notice in order to review compliance with this chapter.

(Ord. No. NS-300.788, § 1, 2-12-08)

Sec. A14-106. Failure to collect and report fee; determination of fee by Finance Director.

(a) If any service supplier willfully fails or refuses to bill, collect, remit or report fees as required by this chapter, the Finance Director may inspect, audit and copy records relevant and material to the service supplier's willful failure or refusal, during the service supplier's regular business hours, upon written request and not less than five business days notice.

(b) The Finance Director may, in any manner he or she deems appropriate, obtain facts and information upon which to base the assessment of any fee payable by a service provider who has failed or refused to bill, collect, remit or report as required by this chapter; and shall determine and assess against such service supplier the fee, interest and penalties provided by this chapter. The Finance Director shall give written notice of the amount so assessed by serving it personally or by depositing it in the United States mail, postage prepaid, addressed to the service supplier's last known address and agent designated as required by this chapter.

(c) The service supplier may, within ten days after the serving or mailing of such notice, make written application to the Finance Director for a hearing on the amount assessed. If application is not timely made, the fee, interest and any penalties shall become final, conclusive and immediately due and payable. If application is timely made, the Finance Director shall give at least five days written notice of the time and place of a hearing at which the service supplier shall show cause why the amount should not be assessed. Following the hearing, the Finance Director shall determine the proper amount to be remitted, and give written notice of the same to the service supplier in the manner indicated in subsection (b). The amount shall be due and payable within 15 days after serving or mailing of such notice, unless an appeal is taken by the service supplier as provided in Section A14-107.

(Ord. No. NS-300.788, § 1, 2-12-08)

Sec. A14-107. Appeals of decision of the Finance Director.

(a) Any person aggrieved by any decision of the Finance Director regarding the amount of fee or penalty owed, or the duty or obligation to collect, report or remit a fee as required by this chapter, may appeal the decision of the controller treasurer by filing a written notice of appeal with the Clerk of the Board of Supervisors of the County of Santa Clara within 15 days of the serving or mailing of such decision as described in Section A14-106. The notice of appeal shall be accompanied by an appeal fee in an amount established by resolution of the Board of Supervisors pursuant to this chapter, and shall state the grounds for the appeal.

(b) The Board of Supervisors may hear the appeal itself or designate the County Executive or designee to hear the appeal and provide the Board with his or her findings and recommendation. The Clerk of the Board shall schedule and give notice of the date, time and place for the hearing before the Board of Supervisors, County Executive or designee, and shall give the appellant not less than ten days written notice by serving it personally or by depositing it in the United States mail, postage prepaid, addressed to the service supplier's last known address and agent designated as required by this chapter.

(c) At the hearing, the Board of Supervisors, County Executive or designee shall consider the evidence presented by the appellant and the Finance Director prior to making a decision. The hearing may be continued for the convenience of either party.

(d) Findings of the Board of Supervisors, County Executive or designee shall be final and conclusive. They shall be served upon the appellant in the manner prescribed in subsection (b) by the Clerk of the Board.

(e) The amount of any fee finally determined as provided in this subsection shall be due and payable as of the date the original fee, together with any penalties that may be due; provided, however, that if the amount of such fee is fixed in accordance with the original statement of the appellant, no penalty shall attach by reason of any delinquency.

(Ord. No. NS-300.788, § 1, 2-12-08)

Sec. A14-108. Refunds.

(a) Whenever the amount of any fee has been overpaid or paid more than once or has been erroneously collected or received by the County under this chapter, it may be refunded as provided in subsections (b) and (c) of this section, provided a claim in writing, stating under penalty of perjury the specific grounds upon which the claim is founded, is filed with the Finance Director within one year of the date of payment. No refund may be made except upon a written claim verified by the person who paid the fee or by his or her guardian or conservator or the executor or administrator of his or her will or estate.

(b) A service supplier may claim a refund, or claim a credit against fees to be collected and remitted of the amount overpaid, paid more than once or erroneously or illegally collected or received when it is established by filing a claim in the manner provided in Section A14-106(c); provided, however, that neither a refund or a credit shall be allowed unless the amount of the fee so collected has either been refunded to the person entitled thereto or credited to the charges subsequently payable by such person to the service supplier.

(c) A telephone subscriber may obtain a refund of fees overpaid or paid more than once or erroneously or illegally collected or received by the County by filing a claim in the manner provided in Section A14-106(c), but only when the fee was paid by the telephone subscriber directly to the Finance Director, or when the telephone subscriber, having paid the fee to the service supplier, establishes to the satisfaction of the Finance Director that the telephone subscriber has been unable to obtain a refund from the service supplier who collected the fee.

(d) All claims shall be subject to the provisions of Section 945.4 of the Government Code relating to the prohibition of suits in the absence of the presentation of claims and action thereon by the County. No suit for money, damages or a refund may be brought against the County until a written claim therefore has been presented to the County and has been acted upon or has been deemed to be rejected by the County, in accordance with this section. Only the person who filed the claim may bring such a suit and if another person should do so, judgment shall not be rendered for the plaintiff.

(Ord. No. NS-300.788, § 1, 2-12-08)

Sec. A14-109. Failure to pay fee; administrative remedy.

Whenever the Finance Director determines that a telephone subscriber has deliberately withheld the amount of the fee owed by him or her from the amounts remitted to a service supplier, or that a telephone subscriber has failed to pay the amount of the fee for a period of four or more billing periods, or whenever the Finance Director deems it in the best interest of the County, he or she shall relieve the service supplier of the obligation to collect fees due under the chapter from certain named telephone subscribers for specified billing periods. The Finance Director shall notify the telephone subscriber that the Finance Director has assumed responsibility to collect the fees due for the stated periods and demand payment. The notice shall be served personally on the telephone subscriber or by depositing it in the United States mail, postage prepaid thereon, addressed to the telephone subscriber at the address to which billing was made by the Service Supplier, or to the subscriber's last known address. If a telephone subscriber fails to remit the fee to the Finance Director within 15 days from the date of personal service or deposit in the mail, a penalty of 100 percent of the amount of the fee set forth in the notice, but not less than $5.00, shall be imposed. The penalty shall become a part of the fee required to be paid. Such penalty shall be in addition to any other penalty imposed by the chapter.

(Ord. No. NS-300.788, § 1, 2-12-08)

Sec. A14-110. Administrative agreements.

The Finance Director may make administrative agreements with service suppliers to vary the strict requirements of this chapter so that collection of any fee imposed may be made in conformance with the billing procedures of a particular service supplier so long as any agreement is consistent with the general purpose and scope of this chapter. A copy of each such agreement shall be on file and available for public examination in the Finance Director's office.

(Ord. No. NS-300.788, § 1, 2-12-08)

Sec. A14-111. Administrative rules and regulations.

The Finance Director may promulgate regulations and issue rules, determinations and interpretations consistent with this chapter as may be necessary or appropriate for the purpose of carrying out and enforcing the payment, collection and remittance of the fee. The Finance Director shall hold a public hearing and allow public comment on any proposed rule or regulation prior to its adoption. The Finance Director shall provide not less than 10 days notice of such hearing. A copy of such rules or regulations shall be on file and available for public examination in the office of the Clerk of the Board.

(Ord. No. NS-300.788, § 1, 2-12-08)

Sec. A14-112. California Public Utilities Commission jurisdiction.

Nothing contained in this chapter is intended to conflict with applicable rules, regulations and tariffs of any service supplier subject to the jurisdiction of the California Public Utilities Commission. In the event of any conflict, the provisions of said rules, regulations and tariffs shall control.

(Ord. No. NS-300.788, § 1, 2-12-08)

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