Coachella Municipal Code Ch. 3.40 Abatement Cost Appeals Procedure

All appeals from any abatement cost report shall be in writing and shall contain the following information:

A. Name(s) of each appellant;

B. A brief statement setting forth the legal or equitable interest of each appellant;

C. A brief statement in ordinary and concise language of the specific cost items protested, together with any material facts claimed to support the contentions of the appellant;

D. A brief statement in ordinary and concise language of the relief sought and the reasons why the abatement costs should be modified or otherwise set aside;

E. The signatures of all parties named as appellants and their mailing addresses.

Any appeal filed that fails to provide all of the information required by this section shall be deemed incomplete.

(Prior code § 14½-239)

A complete and proper appeal of abatement cost report as described in Section 3.40.010 shall be filed with the code enforcement officer or other authorized enforcement agent who caused the summary abatement ("abatement officer") within ten (10) calendar days from the date service of the abatement cost report is completed. Any appeal not timely filed shall be rejected.

(Prior code § 14½-240)

A filing fee as established by city council resolution or any amendments thereto for an appeal of abatement cost report must be paid to the city at or prior to the time of the filing of such appeal. Any appeal of the abatement cost report filed without payment of the filing fee shall be deemed incomplete.

(Prior code § 14½-241)

Not later than five calendar days from the date the appeal is filed, the abatement officer or his or her designee shall determine whether the appeal is complete. If the appeal is determined to be incomplete, the abatement officer or his or her designee shall immediately mail to each appellant a notice of incomplete filing which shall provide a written explanation of each reason why the appeal has been determined to be incomplete. If service of the notice of incomplete filing is completed within five calendar days from the date the appeal is filed, the ten (10) calendar day time period within which to file a completed appeal of abatement cost report shall not be extended.

(Prior code § 14½-242)

Enforcement of the summary abatement report shall be stayed during the pendency of an appeal therefrom which is properly and timely filed pursuant to this chapter.

(Prior code § 14½-243)

Within three days after the city has determined that a timely and complete appeal of a cost report has been filed, the city shall appoint a neutral hearing officer who will schedule a date, time, and location for the hearing within the time periods required by this code or any other applicable law or regulation.

(Prior code § 14½-244)

(Ord. No. 1078, § 5, 9-9-15)

Editor's note— Ord. No. 1078, § 3, adopted Sept. 9, 2015, repealed § 3.40.070, which pertained to selection of hearing officer—notice to hearing officer and derived from prior code, § 14½-245.

As soon as practicable, but allowing sufficient time for providing notice of the hearing as provided by Section 3.28.070, the hearing officer shall fix a date, time and place for the hearing of the appeal and shall instruct the abatement officer of the same. The abatement officer shall prepare a notice of administrative appeals hearing ("hearing notice"), which shall be in substantially the same form as follows:

"You are hereby notified that a hearing will be held before the Administrative Hearing Officer at ________ on the _______ day of _______, _______, at the hour of _______ upon the Abatement Cost Report served upon you. You may be present at the hearing. You may be, but need not be, represented by an attorney. You may present any relevant evidence at the hearing and you will be given a full opportunity to cross-examine all witnesses testifying against you."

(Prior code § 14½-246)

The abatement officer shall cause a copy of the hearing notice to be provided to each appellant either by causing a copy of such notice to be delivered to each appellant personally or by causing a copy of such notice to be delivered by certified mail, postage prepaid, return receipt requested, and addressed to each appellant at the address shown on the appeal.

(Prior code § 14½-247)

Proof of service of the hearing notice shall be certified at the time of service by a written declaration under penalty of perjury executed by the persons effecting service, declaring the date and manner in which service was made. The declaration shall be affixed to a copy of the hearing notice and retained by the abatement officer.

(Prior code § 14½-248)

The administrative hearing officer ("hearing officer") shall conduct all administrative appeal hearings of any timely and properly filed appeal from any cost report pursuant to the administrative appeal procedures set forth in this chapter. The hearing officer shall review all evidence, documents, and written testimony and hear all oral testimony submitted by the parties at or before the scheduled administrative appeal hearing and render all decisions and findings in writing to the appellant with a duplicate copy to the abatement officer.

(Prior code § 14½-249)

The hearing officer's authority to hear and consider appeals shall be limited to the city's determination that the amount of the costs set forth in the abatement cost report are accurate and reasonable and/or the city's determination that the city took the minimal and most reasonable and feasible action necessary to immediately abate the activity or activities and/or condition or conditions causing the public nuisance. The hearing officer shall consider at the hearing on the appeal only those matters or issues which were specifically raised by the appellant in his or her appeal and which are relevant to the issues of the hearing. The hearing officer shall not have the authority to waive any requirements of this code and/or any applicable statutes, rules, codes or regulations, except as otherwise provided in this chapter.

(Prior code § 14½-250)

The procedures adopted in this chapter by the city for the selection of hearing officers shall not replace, substitute for, or in any way affect the administrative hearing board processes created by the uniform and national codes adopted by the city and the administrative hearings provided by the Uniform and National Codes shall be treated separate and apart from the administrative hearing procedures adopted in this chapter.

(Prior code § 14½-251)

The abatement officer shall prepare an administrative hearing packet for the hearing officer to review prior to the hearing. The packet shall include a copy of the cost report, the summary abatement report, a staff report and any evidence of the abatement costs. The staff report should include a summary of the code enforcement activities performed at the subject property.

(Prior code § 14½-252)

At the appeals hearing, the hearing officer shall hear any evidence offered either in support of appellant's claim or in support of the cost report, provided such evidence is relevant to the issues of the hearing. The hearing officer has the authority to determine the relevance of any evidence to the hearing. The hearing officer also has the authority to exclude unduly repetitious and cumulative evidence, regardless of its relevancy.

(Prior code § 14½-253)

Each party appealing the abatement cost report shall have the following rights at the hearing:

A. To call and examine witnesses;

B. To introduce documentary and physical evidence;

C. To cross-examine opposing witnesses;

D. To impeach any witness regardless of which party first called the witness to testify;

E. To rebut evidence; and

F. To be represented by anyone who is lawfully permitted to do so.

(Prior code § 14½-254)

If appellant fails to attend the scheduled appeals hearing, the hearing will proceed without appellant and he or she will be deemed to have waived his or her rights to be orally heard at the appeals hearing.

(Prior code § 14½-255)

At the conclusion of the hearing, the hearing officer shall render his or her decision, which may include a decision to ratify the abatement cost report in its entirety and/or modify the amount of the abatement costs to be recovered and/or modify the terms of payment of the abatement costs. The recipients of an abatement cost report shall be required to pay all abatement costs that are upheld by the hearing officer as being accurate and reasonable and resulting from the minimal and most reasonable and feasible action necessary to immediately abate the activity or activities and/or condition or conditions causing the public nuisance.

(Prior code § 14½-256)

The hearing officer shall prepare and serve a written notice of decision upon the appellant and the abatement officer following the appeals hearing. The decision of the hearing officer shall be final, except as otherwise provided by this chapter.

(Prior code § 14½-257)

The hearing officer shall serve the notice of decision to each appellant within thirty (30) calendar days from the date the hearing is deemed closed. The hearing officer shall also provide or cause to be provided a copy of the notice of decision to the abatement officer.

(Prior code § 14½-258)

The notice of decision shall contain a brief summary of the evidence considered, findings of fact, a determination of the issues presented, the effective date of the decision, and shall require the cost report recipient to pay the total sum due no later than ten (10) days from the date of issuance of the notice of decision. The amount of the cost report for which the recipient shall be responsible shall be as set forth in the cost report unless otherwise modified by the notice of decision. Payment of the cost report shall be ordered to be made to the issuing department or division unless otherwise directed by the city.

(Prior code § 14½-259)

The hearing officer shall cause a copy of the notice of decision to be provided to each appellant either by causing a copy of such notice to be delivered to each appellant personally or by causing a copy to be delivered by certified mail, postage prepaid, return receipt requested, and addressed to each appellant at the address shown on the appeal. A copy of the notice of decision shall also be provided to the abatement officer.

(Prior code § 14½-260)

The effective date of the hearing officer's notice of decision shall be as stated in this chapter.

(Prior code § 14½-261)

The owner of record of the subject property shall pay all costs of abatement no later than thirty (30) calendar days from the date the abatement cost report becomes final pursuant to Section 3.40.200. The amount of the abatement costs for which the owner of record shall be responsible shall be as set forth in the final abatement cost report.

(Prior code § 14½-262)

If the abatement costs are not paid within thirty (30) calendar days from the date the abatement cost report becomes due pursuant to Section 3.40.210, the abatement costs shall become a special assessment against that parcel, which shall be imposed pursuant to the procedures set forth in Chapter 3.52 and shall be subject to the penalties set forth in that chapter.

(Prior code § 14½-263)

The prevailing party in any proceeding conducted pursuant to Chapter 3.44 and associated with the abatement of a public nuisance shall be entitled to recovery of attorney's fees incurred in any such proceeding.

(Prior code § 14½-264)