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LA City Council Approves Proposal To Ban Parking Spot Apps

LOS ANGELES (CBSLA.com) — The Los Angeles City Council Wednesday approved a proposal to ban apps, such as MonkeyParking, that allow users to auction off public parking spots.

Violators of the ban face fines of at least $250 and potential jail sentences of no more than six months.

It's designed to prevent app users from "pimping out a parking spot in the city of L.A. — taking something which is a public good, something that all of us own, and privatizing for a period of time," Councilman Mike Bonin said.

Bonin told KCAL9's Kaj Goldberg that the legislation being crafted by the council would apply to both the buyer and seller.

"If somebody seizes 10 parking spaces, that's 10 separate offenses, and not just one," Bonin said.

The ban has yet to be officially written and voted on by the City Council. Goldberg said the city has put MonkeyParking on notice not to set up shop in Los Angeles.

The cities of Santa Monica and San Francisco have already adopted a ban on such apps. West Hollywood and Beverly Hills are currently considering bans.

(©2015 CBS Local Media, a division of CBS Radio Inc. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. Wire services contributed to this report.)

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