Seaside outlines stepped-up fireworks enforcement, proposes FADE task force

Seaside City Attorney Sherry Damon told the City Council on Jan. 16 that the city has increased administrative enforcement of illegal fireworks and is ramping up collections, including preparation to submit past-due fines to the California Franchise Tax Board.

Damon said the city’s fireworks rules are in Seaside Municipal Code Chapter 8.32 and that the code bans fireworks year-round except a limited period from June 28 through July 5 when “safe and sane” fireworks may be sold, possessed and used. Damon also said the ordinance holds property owners ultimately responsible for illegal-fireworks activity on their property and that the city will send letters to both property owners and occupants where fireworks activity is observed.

The update summarized administrative citation activity from 2019 through 2024. Damon said the city issued 59 administrative citations in 2024: 12 had been paid as of the presentation, 29 were listed as past due, 19 were under appeal, and 14 had been voided or dismissed. She said the office’s collection rate for administrative fines in 2024 was roughly 24–25 percent and could rise to about 36–37 percent if pending appeals are decided in the city’s favor.

Damon said Seaside applied to the Franchise Tax Board revenue-intercept program in 2023 and was accepted in 2024; staff are preparing required documentation so the city can submit past-due fines for possible collection through state-administered offsets such as tax refunds. She cautioned that the Franchise Tax Board program is not a guaranteed 100 percent collection mechanism because it only recovers amounts when a debtor has state-returnable revenue.

To improve enforcement and reduce dismissals, Damon recommended forming a FADE team — a cross-departmental Fireworks Action Team for Deterrent & Enforcement — made up of the city attorney’s office, police and fire departments. The FADE team’s duties would include refining ticketing practices, coordinating evidence review (including drone footage and Flock camera data), improving training for contracted security officers, and increasing neighborhood education and outreach.

Police Chief Borges said the department has used drones, Flock camera alerts and a contracted security force to increase on-the-ground coverage, but acknowledged problems with the first-year use of private security: some security officers issued citations for incorrect locations and some failed to appear at administrative appeal hearings. Borges said the city will tighten contract terms and accuracy expectations if it continues to use contracted security staff.

Council members and public speakers offered a range of responses. Several residents urged a statewide ban on all fireworks and asked for better phone and reporting systems; others said voters in a recent election chose to keep safe-and-sane fireworks in Seaside and asked council to respect that result. Damon and the chief described differences between criminal and administrative citations: criminal charges go through the courts and require higher proof standards, while administrative citations use a preponderance-of-the-evidence standard and an administrative hearing process.

Council members asked whether progressive or escalating fines for repeat offenders would be legally workable; Damon said progressive fines are possible but enforcement could be difficult when property ownership and tenancy change over time. Council members also asked about the cost of appeal hearings and whether drone footage or Flock alerts could be shown in public meetings; staff said airing potential evidence before adjudication is legally sensitive and would require careful review.

Damon said staff would send additional public outreach notices in English and Spanish, continue to prepare documentation for Franchise Tax Board submittals, and convene the FADE team to refine enforcement procedures. The council asked staff to return with additional details and to resume coordinated planning on prevention and enforcement in March–May ahead of the 2025 July 4th period.