No ban on Chico needle programs

CHICO » The door has not closed on future licensed syringe access programs in Chico, as it has in other Butte County cities.

While the Chico City Council voted 5-2 against approving a ban on sterile needle distribution programs at a discussion Tuesday, no action was taken to define more effective operations for them either.

The contentious issue has inspired legal disputes across the state, as communities say programs increase needle litter, particularly in cities like Chico where the population of those living homeless has grown. Like in the case of the Orange County Needle Exchange Program (with its permit terminated December 2017 in Santa Ana) community members in Chico say the program enables transient individuals to continue using drugs in public and disposing of them on public land.

While councilors had many questions for the North Valley Harm Reduction Coalition program (which began in October 2019 with the stated goal to battle blood borne pathogens such as HIV), the general consensus was that a better-managed program could be needed in the city.

The organization currently cannot distribute sterile syringes due to a settlement out of court in a lawsuit executed by Rob Berry, who is also currently threatening litigation of the city in a separate lawsuit with allegations of violating city land maintenance ordinances.

The volunteers acknowledged the strong “emotional” response to their program and said they have been attacked. Volunteer Marin Hambley said when the program was protested in the park, “I was being screamed at and called derogatory names.”

“I’ve been misgendered over and over,” and, she claimed, some protestors threatened to return with guns or “fire.”

The program still offers other services during COVID-19, like overdose reversal training, sharps containers, syringe collections and referrals to medically assisted treatment, Hambley and Program Manager Angel Gomez said. It is not able to pay its staff members, who have performed needle collection on service days and set up a hotline for reporting syringe waste. To distribute syringes, volunteers must re-apply through the state.

City Attorney Andrew Jared let the council know it could ban a new program with a license, allow state permitted programs or create a new process for locallypermitted programs.

“It would be an open question of law of whether that would be allowed .. whether or not you have the authority to enact a ban similar to Oroville,” Jared said.

Schwab said her concern was for the need for programs to have a physical location and paid staff.

“It seems crazy they (the state) would approve a program and would not ask how it impacts the city,” she said.

When Berry addressed the council, he insisted the lawsuit which required the program to stop distributing syringes does not need to use the supremacy clause, which establishes federal law is superior to state and and local laws.

“It is not absolutely true when it comes to land use,” he argued, positing that the statute “defers to local ordinances.”

It was clear other members of the community either desire a complete ban and believe allowing distribution to be a public safety issue — Jeff Creed claimed the council “intentionally plan the destruction of Chico” — or desire awareness for why syringe access is essential.

“If littering is the only problem, let’s tackle littering as the problem, rather than banning an essential service,” Afag Poojca said.

“We cannot ban the addiction crisis out of our town by banning the needle program,” Jesica Giannola said. “When you take away free access to needles, you create a black market. They won’t stop just because they don’t have access to a clean one.”

Councilor Sean Morgan pushed for banning future licensed programs — “Their heart is in right place, but their way of going about it is probably wrong,” He added he doesn’t believe it possible for nonprofit organizations to work together in a partnership on a program with wraparound services, “because they’re all in competition for the same dollar.”

Schwab voted for Morgan’s motion to ban, but first asked Jared about creating an ordinance for a “well-run program.” She said although she believes the goals of what the organization “wants to do “are noble, “I don’t think operationally it’s working in our community.”

“The harm that’s being done to our community is worse,” Schwab added.

However, no motion for a new ordinance was proposed for a different operation of these programs.

Councilor Karl Ory said he had come prepared “to support the state’s environmental quality review process” saying in the Orange County case he believed “the state erred in not providing an environmental review.”

He asked to engage in comment with California Public Health Department’s environmental quality review process with a focus on pubic health, then have staff “look for any challenges in any cases to the state supremacy.”

Without a second, he voted against a ban.

Councilor Scott Huber said, “I see where there is a benefit to any community for there being an opportunity to have these interactions with people who are addicted to drugs.”

He suggested in the future supporting a program structured “with ingredients we want” such as needle exchanges and a “more robust” referral system to drug treatment programs.

“I’d like to think we can do this program correctly in the future, so I don’t want to write it off now by banning the possibility that one could happen in the future,” he said.

Councilor Randall Stone did call for a report from staff to find ways the city can clean up and dispose of syringe waste, calling it “a clear and present danger” in his motion, which unanimously passed.

However, because the council did not enact an ban of new programs, a threat of litigation from Berry alleging the city did not follow its ordinances in maintaining parks and waterways still looms. Another state-licensed program is allowed to exist in the city.

As “this the main thrust of the threatened lawsuit,” Berry said, “it appears that a lawsuit is inevitable.”

The city will not comment on threats of litigation, Schwab said Wednesday.

Contact reporter Natalie Hanson at 530-896-7763.