HomeMy WebLinkAboutR-1990-D5820 indemnification against personal liability for city personnel - repeals prior reso•
RESOLUTION NO.
D 5820
A RESOLUTION providing for both repeal of prior resolutions
for indemnification against personal liability
for City personnel and for provision of broader
coverage of City personnel.
WHEREAS, the City has been unable to obtain liability
insurance except for coverage that carries a $100,000.00 self-
insured retention feature; and the City has been unable to
obtain police professional insurance and errors and omission
insurance except for coverage that is subject to a $10,000.00
deductible feature; and it is unknown whether the City will
continue to retain that coverage, or any other, in the future;
and
WHEREAS, in the interest of attracting
elected City positions, and in the interest of
candidates for
recruiting and
retaining City officers, employees, police volunteers, and
members of City boards and commissions, without exposing
to personal liability under the retention or
deductible
tures of the City's existing insurance policies
or in
them
fea-
the
event no coverage may exist in the future, and in accordance
with Sections 35.21.205 and 36.16.138, and Chapter 48.62, all
of the Revised Code of Washington, the City Council deems it
to be in the best interests of the City that City elected and
appointed officers, employees, police volunteers, and members
of City boards and commissions, be indemnified from personal
liability in their conduct of City affairs; and
WHEREAs, Resolution Nos. D-5253 and D-5456 have not
provided indemnification coverage for police volunteers who
perform valuable service for the City of Yakima, now, there-
fore,
BE IT RESOLVED BY THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF YAKIMA:
Section 1. Resolution Nos. D-5232 and D-5456, enacted
respectively March 25, 1986 and May 17, 1988, by the City
Council of the City of Yakima and each and every section
thereof, are hereby repealed.
(res/repeal.sc)
Section 2. Simultaneous with the repeal of Resolution
Nos. D-5232 and D-5456 as effected by Section 1 of this reso-
lution, the following is hereby enacted:
"Section A. The City shall defend and indemnify
all person who hold positions in the below -listed catego-
ries against all actions, claims or other proceedings
threatened or instituted against them and which arise
from the performance, purported performance, or failure
of performance of their duties for or employment with the
City; and the City shall hold them harmless from all
expenses and liability connected with the defense or
settlement of such claims and from liability for any
monetary fine or judgment entered in an such action or
proceeding.
Covered categories:
City of Yakima elected or appointed officers,
City of Yakima employees,
Members of City of Yakima boards and
commissions,
City of Yakima Police Reserve Officers,
commissioned and non-commissioned,
Police Explorers,
On -Guard Crime Prevention volunteers.
Section B. The defense, indemnification, and
hold harmless provisions of this resolution shall be
afforded only to persons who are in the categories listed
in Section 2 hereof, at the time of occurrence of the
incident on which the action, claim or proceeding is
based. Further, the defense, indemnification or hold
harmless provisions of this resolution shall be afforded
only to those persons who exercised good faith in their
performance, purported performance, or failure of per-
formance of their duties for or employment with the City
on which the action, claim or proceeding is based, and
who were not acting clearly outside the scope of their
authority as City officers, employees, police volunteers,
or members of City boards or commissions; and no civil or
criminal fine shall be paid for any person who knew, or
should have known with the exercise of reasonable care,
that the conduct or failure to act, on which the fine is
based, was unlawful. The determination of whether an
employee or police volunteer was acting in good faith
within the scope of employment or duties, and without
knowledge or discoverable knowledge of the unlawfulness
of the person's conduct, shall be made by the City Mana-
ger; and that determination as to elected City officers
and all members of City boards and commissions shall be
made by the City Council.
2
(res/repeal.sc)
Section C. The monetary amount of indemnifica-
tion shall be the reasonable and necessary expenses
actually incurred and connected with the defense, settle-
ment, and monetary fine or judgment, including costs,
disbursements, and attorney's fees, arising from the
action, claim, or other proceeding, and shall include the
amount of both civil and criminal fines actually imposed
unless it is found by the City Manager or City Council,
as the case may be (as provided by Section B of this
resolution), that the person liable therefore knew, or
should have known with the exercise of reasonable care,
that the conduct or failure to act on which the fine is
based, was unlawful.
Section D. In order to be eligible for the
defense, indemnification, or hold harmless provisions of
this resolution, the person seeking that protection must
notify the City Manager immediately on learning that a
claim is threatened or made, or that an action or other
proceeding is filed or commenced, and provide the City
Manager with a copy of all claims, pleadings, reports or
other documents in that person's possession related to
the claim, action or proceeding; and further must agree
that the defense shall be conducted by investigators and
legal counsel designated by the City, unless the City
Council approves the hiring of other investigators or
defense counsel for any particular claim, action or
proceeding.
Section E. The agreed settlement of any claim,
action or other proceeding against a City officer, em-
ployee, police volunteer, or board or commission member
falling within the provisions of this resolution shall be
subject to the approval of the City Council.
Section F. The defense, indemnification, or
other hold harmless provisions of this resolution shall
not be afforded to any City officer, employee, police
volunteer, or board or commission member in any claim or
cross-claim, action, or proceeding of any nature threat-
ened, filed, or instituted by the City against that
officer, employee, police volunteer, or board or commis-
sion member.
Section G. The defense, indemnification, and
hold harmless provisions of this resolution shall apply
to any deductible or self-insurance retention provided
for or required by any insurance coverage held by the
City at the time of the adoption of this resolution or
acquired thereafter, regardless of the amount of the
deductible provision or self-insurance retention require-
ment; and, further, the inability or failure of the City
to apply for or acquire any insurance shall not limit the
protection afforded by this resolution to City employees,
3 -
(res/repeal.sc)
officer, police volunteers, and board or commission
members, in which event the defense, indemnification, and
hold harmless provisions of this resolution shall to the
full monetary amount of the expenses defined in Section C
of this resolution."
ADOPTED BY THE CITY COUNCIL this
1990.
ATTEST:
— 4
(res/repeal.sc)
day
Mayor