Agenda

Return

SD. 3

To:	Board of Supervisors
From:	Warren Rupf, Sheriff-Coroner
Date:	April 28, 2009

Contra

Costa

County

Subject:

INCREASE CORONER'S FEES FOR DECEASED PERSONS

APPROVE	OTHER
RECOMMENDATION OF CNTY ADMINISTRATOR	RECOMMENDATION OF BOARD COMMITTEE

Action of Board On: 04/28/2009

APPROVED AS RECOMMENDED

OTHER

Clerks Notes:

VOTE OF SUPERVISORS

AYE:

John Gioia, District I Supervisor
Gayle B. Uilkema, District II Supervisor
Mary N. Piepho, District III Supervisor
Susan A. Bonilla, District IV Supervisor
Federal D. Glover, District V Supervisor

Contact:	Eileen Devlin, 925-335-1557
cc:	E.Devlin B.Kilian K. Todd J. Cox E. Milbury

I hereby certify that this is a true and correct copy of an action taken and entered on the minutes of the Board of Supervisors on the date shown.
ATTESTED: April 28, 2009
David Twa,

BY:	, Deputy

RECOMMENDATION(S):

A. OPEN the public hearing, receive testimony, and CLOSE the hearing.


B. ADOPT Ordinance No. 2009-10, which increases an existing fee charged by the Office of the Sheriff-Coroner for the removal and keeping of a body from the place of death, from $100 to $267.

FISCAL IMPACT:

An increase in the fee charged for the removal and keeping of a body from the place of death from $100 to $267 is expected to result in an estimated $90,000 in additional revenue to off-set the costs of providing this service.

BACKGROUND:

Under Government Code section 27472, the Office of the Sheriff-Coroner currently charges a fee for the removal and storage of a dead body by the coroner. This fee is not assessed for persons who are indigent or when the decedent is 14 years of age or younger or was the victim of a crime. The current fee for this service is $100. The average time spent by a deputy sheriff to remove and take custody of a body is three hours and the current hourly rate for a deputy sheriff is approximately $89, resulting in a total cost of $267 to provide this service. Last fiscal year, the Office of the Sheriff-Coroner handled 668 body removal cases, and in 543 of those cases fees were assessed. Pursuant to Government Code sections 27472 and 54985(a), the Board of Supervisors has the statutory authority to adopt a fee in an amount reasonably necessary to recover the cost of removing and storing dead bodies. Adoption of this fee increase will allow the Office of the Sheriff-Coroner to recover the personnel costs for providing this service, thereby reducing financial impacts to other operational areas of the department.

CONSEQUENCE OF NEGATIVE ACTION:

Failure to increase the fee charged for the removal and keeping of a body from the place of death will require continued general fund subvention and a deficit in the Office of the Sheriff-Coroner's budget.