The Council will consider two items of importance to airport customers:
ITEM 8D: Amends the Consulting Services Agreement with Casper Airport Solutions of Berwyn, PA. Extends the current contract with Casper Systems for another year at an annual amount of $70,212.
ITEM 10A: Amends Torrance Municipal Code (TMC) to
1) Extend the enforcement of the hearing process to include ALL “violations” of the TMC Division 5 (Airport).
Specifically, it adds violations of the recently-implemented restrictions on touch-and-goes, taxi-backs and
“low approaches” to the penalties that the City can impose against pilots, and
2) Replace the Hearing Board (composed of City employees) with a single Hearing Officer (appointed by the
City Manager).
While these changes correct a number of legal problems with the original TMC process, the proposed changes still
do not respond to several fatal errors in the process:
1) The restrictions on airport operations are unenforceable because of FAA’s EXCLUSIVE AUTHORITY to regulate
aviation activities in the US, and
2) as noted by attorney Christopher Harshman in 2023) the lack of any judicial review “violates the separation of
powers contemplated by the California Constitution, as well as the judicial powers clause.” In other words, the
City of Torrance acts as policeman, investigator, prosecutor, judge, jury and executioner.