Blythe Municipal Code Ch. 9.98 Shopping Carts

This chapter shall be known as the Shopping Cart Ordinance.

(Ord. No. 931, § 2, 9-10-24)

The purpose of this chapter is to promote the public health, safety, and general welfare of the community by requiring owners to contain shopping carts on their premises and to make it unlawful for a person to remove a shopping cart from a premises.

(Ord. No. 931, § 2, 9-10-24)

The following words, terms and phrases when used in this chapter shall have the meanings ascribed to them in this section, except where the context clearly indicates a different meaning:

A. "Abandoned shopping cart" means any shopping cart that has been removed, without written consent of the owner, from the owner's premises and is left unattended or discarded on either public or private property other than the premises from which the shopping cart was removed.

B. "City" means the City of Blythe.

C. "City manager" means the city manager or designee.

D. "Marked shopping cart" means a shopping cart to which ownership and other required information has been affixed as required by this chapter.

E. "Notification" means and incudes verbal notice given to an owner and/or an owner's retrieval service and/or written notice delivered to the address of an owner or retrieval service.

F. "Owner(s)" means any person, entity, firm, business, corporation, partnership, company, or similar entity who, in connection with the conduct of a business, owns, leases, possesses, uses, or otherwise makes five or more shopping carts available for customer or public use within the boundaries of the business' premises. Owner also includes the owner's onsite or designated agent.

G. "Person" means any natural person, business, corporation, or event organizer or promoter; public, nonprofit, or private entity, agency, or institution; or partnership, association or other organization or group, however organized.

H. "Premises" means the entire area owned, maintained, used, or managed by the owner, including the building, parking lot, walkways, or other property for customer use or parking.

I. "Shopping cart" means a non-motorized basket mounted on wheels or a similar device generally used in a retail establishment by a customer for the purpose of transporting goods of any kind.

(Ord. No. 931, § 2, 9-10-24)

It is unlawful for any person, either temporarily or permanently, to remove a marked shopping cart from a premises or be in possession of a marked shopping cart that has been removed from a premises without the written consent of the owner. This section does not apply to shopping carts removed, as authorized by the owner, for purposes of repair, maintenance, or disposal.

(Ord. No. 931, § 2, 9-10-24)

It is unlawful and a public nuisance for any shopping cart owner to allow one or more of the owner's shopping carts to be abandoned or remain unattended on any private property (except the premises of the shopping cart owner), or any city street, right-of-way, alley, sidewalk, facility, park, open space or other public property for any period of time, and/or fail to recover, retrieve and/or remove a shopping cart or carts therefrom within two business days following notification by the city manager to the owner and/or their retrieval service of the location of the shopping cart.

(Ord. No. 931, § 2, 9-10-24)

A. Each owner must permanently affix to each shopping cart a sign that contains all of the following information:

1. Identity of the owner, or owner's business establishment, or both;

2. The address of the owner of the business establishment for shopping cart return and a phone number at which a person may contact the owner to retrieve the shopping cart; and

3. Notification to the public that the removal of the shopping cart from the premises is a violation of state and local law.

B. Any abandoned shopping cart that does not have the information required by this section may be removed and disposed of by the city in accordance with state law.

C. No owner shall provide any shopping cart for customer use that does not contain the signage required by this section.

(Ord. No. 931, § 2, 9-10-24)

Each owner shall place and maintain signs on the premises, at all customer store entrances and exits and in the parking lot area, warning customers that removal of shopping carts from the premises is prohibited by state and local law. Any and all posting of signs shall comply with the provisions of this code, except that the number and placement of such signs may be in excess of those limits found in Title 17 of this code.

(Ord. No. 931, § 2, 9-10-24)

All owners are required to implement physical shopping cart containment measures and/or enter into an agreement with a shopping cart retrieval service consistent with the following provisions.

A. Physical shopping cart containment measures must include at least one of the following:

1. Physical disabling devices on all shopping carts;

2. Deposit requirement for use of shopping carts;

3. Use of a security guard or security service to prevent removal of shopping carts from the premises;

4. Installation of bollards, chains, or other physical barriers to prevent removal of shopping carts from the premises; or

5. Any combination of the above measures as necessary to effectively prevent the removal of shopping carts from the premises.

B. Shopping cart retrieval service agreements must meet the following requirements:

1. Each owner that elects to secure a shopping cart retrieval service agreement must continuously maintain an agreement with a shopping cart retrieval service to search for, locate, and return shopping carts removed from the premises. Self-service cart retrieval is not an allowable option.

2. Shopping cart retrieval service agreements must require that shopping carts located off premises, regardless of distance, jurisdictional boundary, or reporting party, will be located and returned no later than two business days after the owner or retrieval service has been notified.

(Ord. No. 931, § 2, 9-10-24)

Any owner must lock or otherwise effectively secure all shopping carts during hours when the business establishment is not open for business.

(Ord. No. 931, § 2, 9-10-24)

A. Each owner shall prepare, submit, and implement a shopping cart containment plan, to the satisfaction of the city manager, in accordance with the timelines set forth in this section. The shopping cart containment plan shall include:

1. Identification of the owner, including the name, address, and phone number of the business establishment and the owner.

2. The total number of shopping carts maintained on the premises.

3. A description of required ownership identification and removal warning signs, including a description of the location of sign placement.

4. A description of the physical cart containment measure(s), consistent with Section 9.98.080 of this chapter, or shopping cart retrieval service agreement information including the name of the service provider and all direct contact information including contact name, address, phone number, and e-mail address. Provided that all required information is included, a copy of the current and fully executed service agreement may be submitted to fulfill this requirement.

5. Verification that shopping carts are locked or otherwise secured during hours when the business establishment is not open for business.

B. Owners shall submit their shopping cart containment plans in accordance with the following timelines:

1. Existing owners shall submit their shopping cart containment plans within sixty days of the effective date of this chapter.

2. If an owner begins conducting business within the city, the owner shall submit their shopping cart containment plan within sixty days of opening their business to the public.

3. If an existing business changes ownership, the new owner shall notify the city manager of such change and submit a shopping cart containment plan within sixty days of such change.

C. The city manager may waive the requirement that an owner submit a shopping cart containment plan if the owner establishes, to the satisfaction of the city manager, that the owner maintains an effective cart containment system. For purposes of this subsection, "effective cart containment system" means a system that results in no more than five shopping carts being removed without the owner's consent from the premises within any six-month period. There is a rebuttable presumption that a shopping cart found off the premises was removed from the premises without the owner's consent. The city manager may revoke any waiver if the owner fails to maintain an effective cart containment system as described herein. If the city manager revokes a waiver provided pursuant this subsection, the owner shall submit a shopping cart containment plan that meets the requirements of this section within thirty days of such revocation.

D. Each owner that has submitted a shopping cart containment plan as required by this section shall annually certify that all information provided in the shopping cart containment plan is accurate and true. Owners shall provide updated information to the city as needed to ensure their shopping cart containment plans contain accurate and current information.

(Ord. No. 931, § 2, 9-10-24)

A. The city may retrieve an abandoned shopping cart from public property, or private property with the consent of the owner thereof, in any of the following circumstances:

1. When a shopping cart is abandoned in a location or in such a manner that may impede the provision of emergency services.

2. When a shopping cart is abandoned in a location or in such a manner that creates a hazard to the public health, safety, and/or welfare.

3. When the city has notified the shopping cart owner and/or the owner's retrieval service of an abandoned shopping cart, and the cart has not been retrieved within two business days.

4. When permitted by law.

B. Shopping cart owners shall be responsible for all costs associated with retrieval by the city of an abandoned shopping cart recovered pursuant to the circumstances set forth in subsection A of this section.

C. The city shall comply with all requirements set forth in California Business and Professions Code Section 22435.7 relating to storage and disposition of shopping carts when it impounds any shopping cart.

(Ord. No. 931, § 2, 9-10-24)

A. Any violation of this chapter is a misdemeanor and may also be enforced by an administrative citation pursuant to Chapter 1.26 of this code.

B. Each violation of this chapter shall be considered a separate offense.

C. The remedies and penalties provided in this chapter are cumulative and not exclusive and nothing herein shall preclude the city from pursuing any other remedy at law or in equity, including, but not limited to, those set forth in Chapter 1.24 of this code and in California Business and Professions Code Sections 22435-22435.8.

(Ord. No. 931, § 2, 9-10-24)

Nothing in this chapter is intended or shall be interpreted as conflicting with any federal or state law or regulation.

(Ord. No. 931, § 2, 9-10-24)