City solicitor details staffing, records work and short‑term rental enforcement in FY2027 request

City Solicitor James Wellock presented the legal department’s FY2027 budget to the Committee on Administration and Finance on May 19, outlining staffing, modest personnel adjustments and policy priorities.

Wellock said the solicitor’s office employs five full‑time and two part‑time positions and that the main differences between last year and this year are a stipend increase for the records access officer (who handles non‑police and non‑school public records requests), a higher allocation for the municipal hearing officer (a program that began mid‑last fiscal year), and a new part‑time special‑project attorney role. He said the office will continue routine duties including drafting ordinances, advising department heads and representing the city in court.

On short‑term rentals, Wellock described how the city can support enforcement by issuing subpoenas to booking agents when complaints identify properties believed to be operating as short‑term rentals. He said subpoenaed records from platforms can provide evidence for ordinance enforcement and fines when complaints arise.

Council members asked for clarification on the short‑term rental fee revenue and on public records workload. A councilor noted increases in the community impact fee for short‑term rentals; staff clarified that the 3% assessment is collected by the booking platform and remitted to the city and that recent revenue growth largely reflects more rentals in the market rather than a change in enforcement policy.

Following the presentation and a replacement personnel page correcting earlier spreadsheet errors, the committee voted to recommend the solicitor personnel and expenditures line items to the council.