Prior to dissolution, the Public Safety Committee asked the Legal Department to brief them on the issue of off-site shopping carts and the City’s current response with regard to the issue.  In response to this request, the Legal Department prepared a memorandum outlining Yakima Municipal Code 6.27 “Shopping Cart Regulations.”  The memorandum was presented in committee.  After discussion amongst committee members, the committee directed staff to prepare an ordinance for the committee’s review that would amend YMC 6.27 by (1) increasing the collection fee assessed against the owners of impounded shopping carts from $50 to $500 per cart and (2) reduce the notice period before impound for shopping cart owners to retrieve an abandoned cart with proper identification from ninety-six hours to twenty-four hours.  These committee requested amendments were to be brought before the committee again to discuss alongside any other staff recommendations.  The attached ordinance incorporates the amendments the former committee requested for the review of the council as a whole.  

If council wishes to amend this ordinance, it would also be useful to amend section 6.27.050(A); this is the section which addresses the identification requirement of carts.  The identification requirements section appears to attempt to incorporate by reference an RCW which outlines, amongst other things, identification requirements for carts (in the context of prosecution of the criminal offense of  “shopping cart theft”).  However, the verbiage used has created debate as to whether the RCW is incorporated fully or not.  If the council were to amend the section to clearly adopt by reference RCW 6.27.050 this would eliminate the confusion.  The identification requirement component matters in that carts without the proper identification are subject to immediate impound (i.e. removal from the off-site location) rather than subject to the requirement that notice be given before they are impounded.