Sec. 2-5. - Abatement of collection suits and actions; release of liens; determination of uncollectibility; authority of Finance Director and City Manager; recovery of collection costs.
(a) As used in this section, "finance director" shall mean the director of the Finance Department or any successor City department with responsibility for Finance, or his/her authorized designee.
(b) Upon a determination that the estimated costs to collect any amounts owed on a delinquent account for fees and/or taxes imposed under the Glendale City Code would exceed the amount the City could reasonably expect to collect for such unpaid fees and/or taxes, the City Manager or Finance Director or their respective designees, in consultation with the City Attorney, is authorized to negotiate and/or enter into an agreement with any person or entity responsible, in whole or in part, for payment of any such delinquent fees and/or taxes. Such authority may only be exercised in accordance with subsection (d) below and includes the authority to:
(1) Release, in whole or in part, any or all liens filed in connection with such delinquent fees and/or taxes; and
(2) Dismiss, and/or refrain from initiating, filing, refiling or renewing, in whole or in part, any lawsuit or judgment seeking such delinquent fees and/or taxes; and
(3) Abate, terminate or waive all collection efforts seeking to recover any such delinquent fees or taxes, in whole or in part; and
(4) Any combination of the actions authorized in subsections (1)—(3) herein.
(c) The Finance Director, or his/her designee, in consultation with the City Attorney, shall have the authority and discretion to determine the amount of consideration to be paid to the City pursuant to such agreement. In making such a determination, the Finance Director or his/her designee may consider the reasonable maximum amount that the City could expect to receive as the result of its collection efforts or those of an independent collection agency.
(d) Limitations of Authority.
(1) The finance director, or his/her designee, in consultation with the city attorney, may exercise his/her authority to resolve any delinquent account as provided in subsections (b) and (c) above where the cumulative amount of delinquent fees and/or taxes, exclusive of interest or penalties, does not exceed nine thousand nine hundred ninety-nine dollars and ninety-nine cents ($9,999.99).
(2) The City Manager or his/her designee, in consultation with the City Attorney, may exercise his/her authority to resolve any delinquent account as provided in subsections (b) and (c) above where the cumulative amount of delinquent fees and/or taxes, exclusive of interest or penalties, is ten thousand dollars ($10,000.00) or more but is less than fifty thousand dollars ($50,000.00).
(3) Resolution of any delinquent account as provided in subsections (b) and (c) above where the cumulative amount of delinquent fees and/or taxes, exclusive of interest or penalties, is fifty thousand dollars ($50,000.00) or more may only be entered into by the city with the approval of the City Council.
(e) Any resolution of a delinquent account for fees and/or taxes as provided in this Section shall be memorialized in a written agreement signed by the City and a party authorized to represent the delinquent account holder. The written signed agreement shall be maintained by the City as a public record.
(f) The benefit of any agreement to resolve a delinquent account for fees or taxes according to this Section shall inure only to the specific party or parties who are responsible for the delinquent account and not to any third party beneficiary unless the agreement so states otherwise.
(g) No agreement, release, dismissal, or abatement shall be construed as an admission by the City that any such fee, tax, interest or penalty amount or any portion thereof was not lawfully due and owing to the City, and the obligation for such amount may be carried as a separate nonrevenue item in the books and records of the City.
(Ord. No. 3004, § 1, 9-27-16)
