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STAFF REPORT
REQUEST: ADOPTION OF AN ORDINANCE AMENDING SECTIONS
1.16.010, 1.16.020, and 1.16.030 OF THE PALM DESERT
MUNICIPAL COQE RELATED TQ USE QF THE OFFICIAL
CITY SEAL
DATE: OCTOBER 9, 2014
CONTENTS: Ordinance No. 12�5
Recommendation:
Waive further reading and pass Ordinance No. 12�5 to second reading, amending
Palm Desert Municipal Code Section Nos. 1.16.010, 1.16.20, and 1.16.030 related to use of
the official City seal.
Discussion:
Adopted by the City in 1975 two years after Palm Desert's incorporation, the Seal of the
City of Palm Desert is used on City letterhead, proclamations, and other official City
documents and publications. Longstanding policy at City Hall has been to confine the
use of Palm Desert's Seal to official City business.
Advancements in technology have made it easy for almost anyone to obtain a digital
image of the Seal and use it in ways that are often inappropriate.
A recent example is a website for a gardening service that prominently features the Seal
of the City of Palm Desert as well as the seals of the cities of Palm Springs and La
Quinta. This type of misuse of the City's Seal appears to an official City endorsement of
this business, something that is especially problematic in this case as the gardening
service in question is not licensed to do business in Palm Desert and has ignored
requests to remove the City's seal from its website.
The proposed ordinance would help staff and the City Attorney address similar
situations by amending the Municipal Code to make the inappropriate use of the City
Seal subject to a fine for each violation. In addition, the City would have the right to
initiate legal action against any person misusing the Seal to obtain a Court injunction
restraining the printing, distribution or publication of any material prepared in violation of
the Municipal Code.
, Ordinance No. 1275
Staff Report
Ordinance Regulating Use of City Seal Staff Report
October 9, 2014
Page 2 of 2
Strategic Plan Objective
While this ordinance does not directly relate to a specific goal outlined in the Envision
Palm Deserf strategic plan, the City Seal, with its iconic imagery of a date palm, golf,
tennis, the Santa Rosa Mountains, and a bighorn sheep, is part of the City of Palm
Desert's brand and reputation. The inappropriate use of the seal by private businesses
and individuals could mislead residents and visitors and damage a brand and reputation
that the City has spent many years and valuable resources developing and protecting.
Fiscal Analysis
It is anticipated that the proposed change to the Municipal Code would have no material
fiscal impact.
Prepared By:
� l _.
David Hermann, Management Analyst
Re ' ed and Concur:
aul S. Gibson, Director of Finance
Approval:
1 '"_ /'' � ���
. (
J hn M. Wohlmuth
(� ty Manager
.
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ORDINANCE NO. �2�5
AN ORDINANCE OF THE CtTY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF PALM DESERT,
CALIFORNIA, AMENDING SECTIONS 1.16.010, 1.16.020 and 1.16.030 OF THE
CODE OF THE CITY OF
PALM DESERT, CALIFORNIA
The City Council of the City of Palm Desert, California does hereby ordain as follows:
SECTIONS:
1.16.010 Definitions.
1.16.020 Unauthorized or improper use prohibited.
1.16.030 Violation — Penalty.
1.16.010 Definitions.
As used herein:
A. "Seal" means any seal, insignia, decal or other artistic rendering
which is substantially similar to, and is designed or intended to be a facsimile of,
the seal of the City of Palm Desert.
B. "Seal of the City of Palm Desert" means the official seal of the City
of Palm Desert. The seal may be described as follows: It contains the words
"Palm Desert" Incorporated 1973 November 26 and features a palm tree in the
foreground and, left to right, a tennis player, a golfer and a bighorn sheep on a
rocky slope in the background.
1.16.020 Unauthorized or improper use prohibited.
No person, group, corporation, nonprofit organization, association or
political committee shall cause to be prepared, distributed or published, or permit
the preparation, distribution or publication of, any letter, advertisement, bumper
sticker, flyer, pamphlet, handbill or other written, or digital or electronic document
or display containing the seal of the City of Palm Desert, or any other similar
seal, without the express authorization of the City Manager of the City of Palm
Desert
1.16.030 Violation — Penalty.
A. Any person violating or causing or permitting the violation of
Section 1.16.020 shall be punished by a fine not exceeding one hundred doltars;
provided, however, that any offense which would otherwise be an infraction shall
be a misdemeanor if a defendant has been convicted of two or more violations of
72500.0000119148135.1
Ordinance No. 1275
this chapter within the twelve-month period preceding the commission of the
offense in the accusatory pleading. For this purpose, a bail forfeiture shall be
deemed to be a conviction of the offense charged.
B. For purposes of this section and Chapter 1.16, a separate offense
shall be deemed to occur each time a written document is prepared, printed or
published each day in violation of Section 1.16.020. However, the printing or
duplicating of a number of such documents by mechanical means at one time, all
of which are identical, shall be deemed a single offense.
C. In addition to the penalties hereinabove set forth, the City of Palm
Desert shall have the right to initiate legal action against any person to restrain
by Court injunction the printing, distribution or publication of any material
prepared in violation of Section 1.16.020.
PASSED, APPROVED AND ADOPTED by the Palm Desert City Council this
day of , 2014, by the following vote, to wit:
AYES:
NOES:
ABSENT:
ABSTAIN:
Van Tanner, Mayor
ATTEST:
RACHELLE D. KLASSEN, City Clerk
City of Palm Desert, California
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