07.01.03 – Requesting Special Event Safety & Security Services
Section: Public Safety
Area: General Police Services
I. PURPOSE AND SCOPE
This document is applicable to all departments, organizations and individuals in order to have University of Houston Police Department (UHPD) or Campus Safety (Fire Marshal's Office or Emergency Management) personnel provide police, fire and life safety, emergency management and/or security functions for special events held on property owned, rented, leased or otherwise controlled by the University of Houston. It provides guidelines that govern the scheduling and billing of UHPD for police and security special event services and the UH Fire Marshal's Office (FMO) for fire and life safety and Office of Emergency Management (OEM) for emergency management special event services.
II. POLICY STATEMENT
The University of Houston is committed to making its facilities available for events that are beneficial to the public it serves. These events shall be requested in accordance with
MAPP 09.03.01 – Event Reservation and Rental of University Facilities . This includes, but is not limited to, athletic, business, community, cultural, fraternity, sorority, political, and professional events.
The decision to require special event-related UHPD, FMO and OEM services is determined in part by the nature and size of the event, the extent the event will impact normal university operations, the intended audience, the group's event history, whether alcohol will be served or available, whether concessions will be sold, and whether there will be money collected on site for parking and/or event admission. The final decision to require/waive UHPD services related to special events rests with the Chief of Police or his designee.
III. DEFINITIONS
A. Facilities: Refers to any property owned, leased, rented or otherwise controlled by the University of Houston.
B. Incident Action Plan: Written plan that sets forth the incident objectives and reflects the tactics necessary to manage an incident during an operational period or special event, including; response structure, work assignments, resources, and safety measures
C. UHPD Personnel: Any UHPD personnel including commissioned police officers, security officers, dispatchers and other support staff.
D. Special Event: Refers to any event held at a university facility, which is open to all or part of the university community and/or to the public in general. Typically, additional logistical support including security and/or parking arrangements are required to ensure a successful special event.
E. Requesting Department: Campus unit with responsibility and/or authority to assign a particular university facility or space for use by a university or non-university individual or group. Also responsible for collecting and handling all related forms and fees. (See MAPP 09.03.01 .)
F. Venue: Indoor or outdoor space where special events are conducted including, but not limited to a concert, sporting event or walk/run.
IV. GENERAL PROVISIONS
A. The university may require the presence of UHPD, FMO or OEM personnel as a condition of holding certain events on campus. The decision to require the presence of officers and the determination of the number of officers necessary will be made on a case-by-case basis by the Chief of Police or his designee. Similarly, decisions regarding the presence and number of FMO or OEM personnel will be determined by the AVP of Campus Safety or their designee. The requesting department will be responsible for paying for and/or coordinating payment of the special event expenses incurred.
B. UHPD police officers are required to provide security at events where alcohol is served unless this requirement is waived. If students are involved, waivers must be requested using a Registration of Alcoholic Beverage Distribution https://uh.edu/dos/_files/alcohol.pdf , available in the Dean of Students' Office. Other waivers may be requested, in writing, to the Chief of Police or his designee. Refer to MAPP 09.03.01 for information on alcohol sales/consumption at special events on campus.
C. FMO personnel are required to approve permits for, review plans for, provide safety inspections of and be present at all venues and events where pyrotechnics are being used.
D. Requests for UHPD services must be received from an authorized representative of a requesting reservation office or department (https://uh.edu/af/universityservices/SurvivalGuide/R/Reservation%20Offices.pdf) .The authorized representative will submit a completed Special Event Personnel Request form (https://uh.edu/police/community-services/special-events/) no later than two calendar weeks before the date of the scheduled event. Requests received less than two calendar weeks before the event will be subject to an expedite fee or may be denied due to short notice and scheduling availability. UHPD, FMO and OEM personnel will not be assigned to an event without written confirmation of the special event request.
E. Upon receipt of each special event request, the UHPD Special Event Coordinator will check to see if therequesting university department is on the UHPD Outstanding Payment Report, which represents all current invoices that are past due. The Chief of Police or his designee has the option to deny any special event request if the requesting entity is on the UHPD Outstanding Payment Report.
F. All requests for UHPD services shall be coordinated with the UHPD Special Event Coordinator.
G. The UHPD Special Event Coordinator will coordinate the arrangements for FMO and OEM services needed in order to have fire and life safety and emergency management personnel work events as necessary.
H. UHPD will be the primary provider of police services for events held at university facilities. The UHPD Special Event Coordinator will make arrangements for officers from other police agencies to supplement UHPD personnel working these events as necessary.
I. A representative from the appropriate office referenced above will forward the "Request for Police Services" to the UHPD Special Event Coordinator. Requestors can e-mail the UHPD Special Event Coordinator at uhdpsspe@central.uh.edu or call the billing agent (3-0584) to coordinate the transmission of the form.
J. The Office of Emergency Management, Fire and Life Safety in conjunction with the Police Department, requires all event organizers review and complete the Special Event Safety Checklist to assist with the general safety protocols when planning and preparing for a special event on campus. The completed Special Event Checklist shall accompany the UHPD Special Event Personnel Request Form(https://uh.edu/emergency-management/planning-and-response/special-event-emergency-planning/).
K. All buildings on campus also serving as a special event venue, are required to complete a Venue Emergency Response Plan (https://uh.edu/emergency-management/planning-and-response/special-event-emergency-planning/). The Venue Emergency Response Plan is an all-hazard plan that details the emergency procedures specific to the venue. The purpose of the plan is to ensure the safety of the students, faculty, staff and visitors of the venue in the event of an emergency. The plan helps to improve the efficiency of the venue response to an incident in order to promote safety. These plans should be reviewed at least annually.
L. An Incident Action Plan may be required for certain special events on campus. A number of factors and considerations are assessed when determining the need for an Incident Action Plan. The Incident Action Plan is coordinated through the OEM and the requirement for this plan will be determined by the Director of Emergency Management or designee.
V. COMPENSATION AND BILLING
A. All UHPD, FMO and OEM employees assigned to work a special event will be compensated for a minimum of four hours for each event, except:
1. When an event is worked immediately prior to or following the assigned officer's shift.
2. When a group shows but cancels the event due to unforeseen circumstances, the officer will be compensated for two hours.
Note: There is a special cancellation provision for baseball/softball games canceled due to weather.
B. University departments requesting special event services will be required to initiate and make cost center information available in advance for the UHPD, FMO and or OEM services requested. A 10% surcharge will be added to the bill for UHPD services for all events when the cost center information is not issued prior to the event time, unless an exception has been made in advance.
C. Requesting entities who cancel a request for police services less than 48 hours prior to the start of the event will be financially responsible for two hours for each police employee scheduled to work the event. This provision may be waived by the Chief of Police on case-by-case basis.
D. The billing rates for UHPD, FMO and OEM personnel are posted on the UHPD web site:
1. The billing rates are available under the Rate Schedule at http://www.uh.edu/police/SE_rates.html
2. An expedite fee will be added to the bill for UHPD, FMO or OEM services for all events when the request registration form is received less than two calendar weeks before the date of the event. Expedite fees will be added to the total cost of the event as follows:
a. 14+ Days Prior: No Charge
b. 8-13 Days Prior: 25% Charge
c. 3-7 Days Prior: 50% Charge
d. 2 Days or Less Prior: 100% Charge
There will also be an administrative fee added to all events for police services with the University of Houston Police Department. A 3% administrative charge will be added to the total of all invoices.
E. Payment will be collected from the requesting entity after the event has occurred. An invoice will be prepared by A&F Business Services and submitted to the requesting entity documenting the amount.
If the event extends past the scheduled time, the additional extra charges will be billed to the requesting entity. The extra charge will be noted on the invoice on the amount due line entitled "Invoice Total." The requesting entity is required to provide the extra payment upon receipt of the invoice.
If actual expenses were less than initially anticipated, after the minimum charges are assessed, the UHPD will provide a refund to the requesting department upon preparation of the invoice.
F. A 10% surcharge will be added to the invoice after 30 days past due.
G. The UHPD Special Event Coordinator will arrange for extra officers to supplement UHPD officers working special events as necessary for large events. Non-UHPD officers working events at university facilities are contract employees.
1. The UHPD will process the contracts for contracted officers assigned to all special events other than Athletics events, unless stipulated in advance.
2. Contracts will be processed prior to the event start time for contracted employees.
3. Departments initiating the contracts for the contracted officers will process the payment for the contracted officer.
REFERENCES
Manual of Administrative Policies and Procedures (MAPP) 09.03.01 – Event Reservation and Rental of University Facilities
Registration of Alcoholic Beverage Distribution Form
UHPD Special Event Personnel Request Form
Event Reservation Offices Information
Special Event Emergency Planning Tools
Issued: 10/25/2004
Last Reviewed/Revised: 09/28/2023
Responsible Office(s): Campus Safety; UHPD