§ 55.04. Vehicle-for-Hire Appeal Board.

(1)

Board. There shall be a Board to be known and designated as the Vehicle-for-Hire Appeal Board. The Board shall consist of five (5) persons, serving without pay, who shall be appointed by the Mayor in accordance with Article XV of Chapter 2 of this Code, subject to confirmation by City Council.

(2)

Membership. The membership on the Vehicle-for-Hire Appeal Board shall, whenever possible, consist of one member from the Convention Visitor's Bureau, an attorney, downtown business person, financial services/accountant, and a person representing high user categories. The following persons shall not be members of the Board: City officials, officers, or employees; vehicle for hire or driver for hire permit holders, employees or agents; towing or immobilization service industry members, employees or agents.

(3)

Meeting Requirements. The Vehicle-for-Hire Appeal Board shall meet as business requires. The minutes of each meeting shall be filed with the City Council through the City Clerk. Quorum for a meeting in which business is conducted shall be a simple majority of the total membership designated in (1) above. A majority vote of the members present is required for any affirmative action.

(4)

Election of Officers. In accordance with the provisions of Chapter 2 of this Code, the Board shall elect a chairman and vice-chairman for the calendar year. The Chair shall preside over all meetings and Robert's Rules of Order shall govern.

(5)

Powers. The Vehicle-for-Hire Appeal Board shall have the powers and duties outlined in this Chapter. In addition, the Board shall:

a.

act as advisor to the Mayor and City Council on matters concerning the Vehicle-for- Hire industry and services; and shall also act upon directives of the administration or City Council;

b.

have the power to adopt rules and regulations to govern its operations and activities so long as such rules and regulations are consistent with this Chapter;

c.

have authority to hear appeals from an administrative decision or interpretation of the Towing Enforcement Administrator and Officer(s) established in Chapter 39, Article IX, of City Code within the time period in paragraph (6) below;

d.

hear appeals from an administrative decision or interpretation of the Vehicle-for-Hire Administrator and Officer(s) within the time period defined in paragraph (6) below;

e.

have the discretion to modify the limitations imposed by Section 55.29(4) of this Chapter only when extraordinary circumstances exist to show the applicant is not a danger to the riding public. Providing the applicant meets the burden imposed by Section 55.29(5) of this Chapter, the factors which the Board shall consider include, but are not limited to, the following:

1.

Whether or not the offense was a first offense;

2.

Whether the offense involved some type of violence or a tendency towards violence;

3.

Severity of the offense;

4.

Whether or not restitution was made;

5.

Length of time served, if any;

6.

Successful probation status;

7.

Length of time since commission of the offense;

8.

Whether or not it was an isolated criminal incident;

9.

The involvement, if any, of gangs or organized crime entities;

10.

Any other circumstances presented by the applicant which may be relevant.

(6)

Appeals. All decisions by the Board are final and binding unless appealed to City Council. The appeal shall be filed with the City Clerk within ten (10) days of the decision. The appeal shall then be scheduled for the next upcoming City Council meeting, which is at least ten (10) days from the date of filing of the appeal with the City Clerk. Failure to file the notice of appeal within the ten (10) day period shall operate as a bar for review. Such appeal as filed shall not act as supersedeas until such time as the City Council shall take final action on such appeal. The procedure described in this paragraph shall not apply to decisions of the Board in Part VI below in the enforcement of this Ordinance.

(Ord. of 4-20-1998, Doc. #31157; Ord. of 6-21-1999, § 2, Doc. #32161; Ord. of 8-23-1999, § 1, Doc. #32279; Ord. of 11-1-1999, § 2, Doc. #32438; Ord. of 1-11-2007, § 3, Doc. #0701111008; Ord. No. 2012-29, § 11, 10-1-2012, Doc. #1210011201; Ord. No. 2013-6, § 2, 2-4-2013, Doc. #1302041203)