Cathedral City, CA Business Licensing & Operations: Towing Companies (2026)

Chapter 12.78 of the Cathedral City Municipal Code governs towing for the Cathedral City Police Department in emergencies and for vehicles that are abandoned, in an accident, or blocking traffic after a breakdown. Under § 12.78.030 the Police Chief, in cooperation with the City Manager, grants a nonexclusive franchise at their discretion, and § 12.78.040 says the chief need not grant one if it is not in the best interest of the city and the public. Openings are filled through a competitive request for qualifications posted on the city's website and a procurement site, with responses due no earlier than twenty days after posting.

The chief then has sixty days after receiving responses to send the council the operators judged most qualified, with a franchise agreement. Preference goes to operators with a place of business and primary storage yard inside Cathedral City, and to operators with a Class C and/or Class D tow truck. Under § 12.78.060 a franchisee needs three verifiable years of for-hire towing experience, a valid Motor Carrier Property permit, Employer Pull Notice enrollment for managers and drivers, a primary storage yard within approximately twenty minutes driving distance of the center point of the city, and Class A and Class B trucks or the ability to obtain them.

Business records must be kept for two years. Under § 12.78.080 a registered owner redeeming an impounded vehicle pays the police department a vehicle impound cost recovery fee first, and the department can waive it for stolen or embezzled vehicles recovered or for driver injury or incapacitation. Rates come from the franchise agreement's rate sheet or a council resolution, not from this chapter's text.