LAGUNA BEACH : Day Laborer Rules Up for Debate Again

After first approving and then rejecting an ordinance to ban work solicitation on city streets except at a designated area, the City Council on Tuesday will once again consider such a law.

Up for a vote this time will be a version of the ordinance that would allow police to cite only the prospective employer. The workers themselves would be exempt from any penalty.

The treatment of day laborers has become a touchy subject in Laguna Beach. Some residents say job seekers should be restricted to the city-designated hiring lot on Laguna Canyon Road because they create problems when they gather near businesses and residential areas.

Others insist that the workers should be allowed to seek jobs without fear of penalty.

The council has also been divided on the subject. Last month, in a 3-2 vote, members gave preliminary approval to an ordinance that would have made both contractors and dayworkers vulnerable to citations and penalties of up to $1,000 and/or six months in jail. Council members Ann Christoph, Wayne L. Peterson and Kathleen Blackburn endorsed that ordinance.

But two weeks ago, Christoph changed her position, instead endorsing a law that would allow only prospective employers to be cited. Blackburn voted with Christoph on that measure, but they could not muster the third vote needed for approval.

Peterson, who said he has decided that a law citing only employers would be better than no law, has now asked that the ordinance be brought back to the council for another vote.

Still, Peterson questioned whether a law that singles out one group will be enforceable and whether it will be challenged in court.

“If the rest of them think it will work, lets try it for six months,” he said. “I would hope the council would be objective, (and) if it’s not working in six months, they would take steps to improve it.”

Police officials have said it would be more difficult to enforce a law that only holds employers liable.

City Atty. Philip Kohn said that if the latest version wins preliminary approval Tuesday, he will still have to research whether the city can legally cite only the prospective employer.

“I’m not aware of any city whose ordinance targets only the employer or the employee,” he said.

The city has compared its options for dealing with day laborers to an ordinance in Agoura Hills. According to a memo to Mayor Lida Lenney from City Manager Kenneth C. Frank, that law initially barred individuals from soliciting employment but has since been amended to include employers as well.

The memo also says that the American Civil Liberties Union sued Agoura Hills over the ordinance and that the still unresolved legal battle has cost the city about $100,000. Agoura Hills did not set aside a hiring area for day laborers as Laguna Beach has, the memo said.

Agoura Hills officials could not be reached for comment.