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Sunnyside council favors partial city funding for police at signature events; directs LTAC and staff to set rules
Summary
Council discussed who should pay for police overtime at major community events. Members and staff favored a model where the city covers part of staffing costs for designated signature events (parades excluded) and organizers cover the remainder; LTAC application and event-sponsorship language will be updated.
Sunnyside City Council on Oct. 6 discussed how police overtime for signature events should be funded and directed staff to pursue a partial-cost model for major events.
City staff and the police chief told the council that police security for large events can drain LTAC (lodging-tax) funds if the city pays the full overtime costs. The chief said one major event — Cinco de Mayo — incurred roughly $28,550 in officer costs last year; smaller events such as Sunshine Days required a fraction of that (staff estimated roughly $3,500 excluding the parade). The chief described the staffing pattern for large events as including sergeants, detectives and many patrol officers because the events are spread across multiple public areas.
Legal and policy constraints were a focal point. The deputy mayor said the central legal question is whether police overtime primarily benefits a single nonprofit organizer; if so, paying the overtime with public funds risks creating a gift of public funds. City legal guidance included in staff materials said lodging-tax (LTAC) funds can be used to reimburse patrol costs for an event if the city applies for the LTAC award and the committee and council approve it.
Council direction and staff proposal: councilors and staff coalesced around treating a small set of events as city-designated signature events and sharing security costs. Staff suggested a 50/50 split for police costs at those signature events: the city would pay half and the event organizer would apply to LTAC for the other half (or otherwise secure that share). Councilors also suggested the city continue to cover parade security (rolling roadblocks and intersection control) as a public function and not bill organizers for those parade operations.
Signature events and application process: staff identified the likely set of signature events as Cinco de Mayo, Sunshine Days (including the lighted parade) and the implemented lighted parade; the council asked staff to finalize designation for LTAC purposes, to include a clear line item for security in LTAC applications, and to require event promotional materials to list the city as a sponsor/partner when the city covers a portion of security costs.
Practical steps and timeline: staff said they will (1) update LTAC application language to require security-cost line items and sponsorship language, (2) meet with major event organizers in advance of the November LTAC cycle, and (3) provide council with an LTAC/operations plan and a recommended method to bill or allocate costs for signature events. The council’s direction was that the city should help under a shared-cost model rather than fully absorbing security overtime costs.
