Taxi Permit violation

[taxidriverbull]

CA state law on taxi permits... my apologies if this is the wrong section of the forum.

Is operating a taxicab without a county or state permit a criminal issue? It is and can be a civil issue, as well as a traffic issue, but can anyone point to a criminal charge that can be brought upon an otherwise lawful driver?
Please note: I realize that tax laws would apply, but I am speaking of actual penal codes.

 

[CdwJava]

CA state law on taxi permits... my apologies if this is the wrong section of the forum.

Is operating a taxicab without a county or state permit a criminal issue? It is and can be a civil issue, as well as a traffic issue, but can anyone point to a criminal charge that can be brought upon an otherwise lawful driver?
Please note: I realize that tax laws would apply, but I am speaking of actual penal codes.

Yes, it is the wrong section of the forum.

Laws for taxicab licensing can vary by jurisdiction. These can be administrative issues handled via a civil court in some instances, I suppose, but most would be created as criminal offenses. If one is required to obtain a permit pursuant to local ordinance and fails to do so, this is likely to be a criminal offense (usually a misdemeanor allowing up to 6 months in jail and a fine of at least $1,000).

CVC 21100(b) permits local jurisdictions to license and regulate taxis.

 

[taxidriverbull]

Yes, it is the wrong section of the forum.

Laws for taxicab licensing can vary by jurisdiction. These can be administrative issues handled via a civil court in some instances, I suppose, but most would be created as criminal offenses. If one is required to obtain a permit pursuant to local ordinance and fails to do so, this is likely to be a criminal offense (usually a misdemeanor allowing up to 6 months in jail and a fine of at least $1,000).

CVC 21100(b) permits local jurisdictions to license and regulate taxis.

Administrative issues would be both civil and criminal? What do you base this on? How is it that you suppose that it could possibly make its way to civil court, in lieu of criminal? What law is this administration going to prosecute by? Would a local ordinance create a misdemeanor offense? How would you guess that it is likely to be anything more than an infraction? Are not misdemeanors statutes? And don't most misdemeanors allow up 1 full year in jail?
Thanks for that code. It reinforces the fact that local ordinances may be passed to regulate taxis. My question is if operating a taxi, while obeying all laws other than business codes and tax codes, is a criminal offense in and of itself..? If so, where is the law. Anyone?

 

[CdwJava]

Administrative issues would be both civil and criminal? What do you base this on?

It depends on how the local ordinance is written. Muni codes can have provisions that are criminal, and provisions that are effectively taxes and have no criminal sanctions.

Would a local ordinance create a misdemeanor offense?

If written to be a public offense, yes.

How would you guess that it is likely to be anything more than an infraction?

Because most muni codes are written to be misdemeanors and not infractions. I have yet to work for a municipality that has any infractions built into their municipal code, but I know there are some that have them.

Are not misdemeanors statutes? And don't most misdemeanors allow up 1 full year in jail?

Yes, a local ordinance is a statute that can be a misdemeanor public offense.

And some misdemeanors can allow for up to one year in jail, but unless otherwise specified they default to the penalty provided in PC 19 which is up to 6 months in county jail and up to a fine of $1,000.

Thanks for that code. It reinforces the fact that local ordinances may be passed to regulate taxis. My question is if operating a taxi, while obeying all laws other than business codes and tax codes, is a criminal offense in and of itself..? If so, where is the law. Anyone?

If not properly licensed pursuant to local ordinances, yes, it is a crime.

You are essentially asking if it is a crime to disobey local ordinances. The answer depends on the locale and whether they have an ordinance that addresses the registration of taxis. If the local jurisdiction has no such ordinance regulating taxes, and no business permit is (for some odd reason) required, then you would probably not be violating any law. But, if you were required to register the service, provide insurance indemnity, obtain a business permit, etc., and these regulations were criminal offenses to disobey, then operating such a taxi business would be a crime.

Perhaps you could care to say what jurisdiction you plan to operate in so that someone might check the local regulations. Otherwise, all we can do is state that IF the law says you must properly register or license your cab business, and IF the law prescribes a penalty for the failure to do so, then it would be a criminal offense to operate such a cab service.

EDIT: For instance, if operating a taxi without a proper permit within the city limits of Stockton, you would be guilty of a misdemeanor pursuant to their municipal code. Said misdemeanor is punishable by up to 6 months in jail and up to $1,000 fine. Other cities may have different regulations - some smaller jurisdictions may have none at all.

 

[taxidriverbull]

LOS ANGELES COUNTY, Hollywood and surrounding areas.

 

[CdwJava]

71.02(b) ...

(b) No person or corporation or membership organization shall drive or operate a taxicab without a franchise granted by the City of Los Angeles. The Board may grant a taxicab vehicle permit to grantee or a member of grantee for each vehicle operated under a taxicab franchise. No taxicab shall be operated under a franchise unless the Board has issued such a permit for each specific vehicle. A taxicab operated under a franchise may not continue in service if the taxicab vehicle permit is expired, suspended, canceled or revoked. The Board may authorize the decaling of each individual taxicab by the Department as approval for a taxicab vehicle permit.​

And, section 11.00(m) states ...

(m) It shall be unlawful for any person to violate any provision or fail to comply with any of the requirements of this Code. Any person violating any of the provisions or failing to comply with any of the mandatory requirements of this Code, shall be guilty of a misdemeanor unless that violation or failure is declared in this Code to be an infraction. An infraction shall be tried and be punishable as provided in Section 19.6 of the Penal Code and the provisions of this section. Any violation of this Code that is designated as a misdemeanor, may be charged by the City Attorney as either a misdemeanor or an infraction.​

So, failing to operate a properly licensed cab in the city of Los Angeles would be a misdemeanor.

The Muni Code is available on line so you can check it for yourself.