Corte Madera Municipal Code Ch. 21.38 Administrative Citations

(a) Administrative Fines. In addition to any other remedy allowed by Chapter 21.36 or any other chapter of Title 21 of this code or applicable law, any violation of Title 21 of this code shall be subject to an administrative fine and enforcement and collection proceedings, as set forth in this chapter and authorized by California Government Code Sections 36901, 38773.5, and 53069.4. Application of this chapter shall be at the sole discretion of the district.

(Ord. No. 47, § 4, 7-20-2021)

(a) Whenever a citation officer determines that a violation of Section 21.04.110, 21.08.020, or 21.08.030 of this title has occurred, or if any other violation of this title has occurred and not been remedied in the requisite time period, the citation officer may issue and serve a citation on any person responsible for that violation.

(b) Citation Contents. The citation shall include the following information:

(1) The name of the person to whom the citation is issued.

(2) The section of the code provision or provisions that have been violated. The citation officer may issue a single citation for multiple violations of a single code section or for violation of multiple provisions of the code.

(3) A description of the violation, including the address or location where the violation occurred and the date of the violation.

(4) The amount of the fine.

(5) The date by which the fine must be paid; to whom payment must be made, the acceptable forms of payment, and the consequences of the failure to pay.

(6) The right to seek administrative review of the citation by filing an appeal with the district clerk within thirty days of the date that the citation is served.

(7) Notice that the failure to appeal will make the citation a final action by the district for which there is no further administrative and judicial review.

(8) The date the citation is issued and the signature of the citation officer.

(Ord. No. 47, § 4, 7-20-2021)

(a) Amount of Fines. The amount of the fine for violations of the code shall be, per violation:

(1) A fine not exceeding one hundred thirty dollars for a first violation.

(2) A fine not exceeding seven hundred dollars for a second violation of the same ordinance within one year.

(3) A fine not exceeding one thousand three hundred for each additional violation of the same ordinance within one year of the first violation.

(4) A fine not exceeding two thousand five hundred dollars for each additional violation of the same ordinance within two years of the first violation if the property is a commercial property that has an existing building at the time of the violation and the violation is due to failure by the owner to remove visible refuse or failure to prohibit unauthorized use of the property.

(5) For purposes of this section, each day the violation occurs constitutes a separate violation.

(b) Payment of Fine. The citation shall set forth the date by which the fine is required to be paid, which shall be at least thirty days from the date that the citation is served. The fine shall be due and payable on or before the date set forth in the citation unless the person cited has filed a timely appeal in compliance with the requirements of Section 21.38.040.

(c) Late Fees. Fines that remain unpaid thirty days after the due date shall be subject to a late payment penalty of ten percent plus interest at the rate of one percent per month on the outstanding balance, which shall be added to the penalty amount from the date that payment is due.

(d) Notice of Late Fees. If the fine is unpaid by the date that it is due under this chapter, the district shall serve notice within thirty days of the delinquency that fines not paid by the due date are subject to a late payment penalty as provided in subsection (c).

(Ord. No. 47, § 4, 7-20-2021)

(a) Grounds for Hearing. A person who receives a citation may contest the citation on the basis there was no violation or that he or she is not the responsible person. A person may also request a reduction in the amount of the fine imposed for a repeated violation on the ground that bona fide efforts to comply were made after the first violation and payment of the fine would impose an undue financial burden.

(b) Hearing Request. To contest the citation, the person receiving the citation shall submit a request for hearing to the district clerk within thirty days following the date of the citation. The request form may be obtained from the district clerk. The completed request must be submitted together with either (1) an advance deposit of the fine or (2) a request for an advance deposit hardship waiver as described in Section 21.38.050.

(c) Dismissal of Citation. At any time before the hearing, if the district manager determines that there was no violation as charged in the citation, that the violation has been remedied, or that the citation should be dismissed in the interest of justice, the district manager shall dismiss the citation, cancel the hearing, and refund any citation fine deposited.

(d) Appointment of Hearing Officer. The district manager shall appoint a fair and impartial hearing officer to conduct the citation hearing.

(Ord. No. 47, § 4, 7-20-2021)

(a) Request for Waiver. Any person who seeks to contest the citation under this section and who is unable to make the required advance deposit of the fine may file a request for an advance deposit hardship waiver with the district clerk by completing a waiver form provided by the district. The application shall include an affidavit, together with any supporting materials, setting for the circumstances demonstrating the person's financial inability to deposit with the district the full amount of the fine.

(b) Standard for Waiver. The district manager may waive the requirement of an advance deposit only if the evidence submitted demonstrates to the satisfaction of the district manager the person's actual financial inability to deposit with the district the full amount of the fine in advance of the hearing.

(c) Written Determination. The district manager shall issue a written determination granting or denying the waiver.

(d) Deposit Required if Waiver Denied. If the district manager denies the advance deposit hardship waiver, the person must deposit the fine with the district clerk within ten days of the decision or thirty days following the date of the citation, whichever is later.

(Ord. No. 47, § 4, 7-20-2021)

(a) Setting the Hearing. The district manager shall set a hearing before the hearing officer on a date that is not less than fifteen days or more than sixty days following the date the request for hearing is submitted to the district clerk. The district clerk or designee shall serve notice of the time and place of the hearing as soon as it is set and not less than ten days before the hearing. If the citation officer submits a supplemental report concerning the citation to the hearing officer, the district clerk shall serve a copy of that supplemental report to the person requesting the hearing no less than five days before the hearing. No hearing shall be held unless the fine has been deposited in advance, under Section 21.38.040 of this code or an advance deposit hardship waiver has been issued under Section 21.38.050 of this code. If the person requesting the hearing so agrees, the hearing may occur via videoconferencing or solely on written documentation.

(b) Failure to Appear. The failure of the person requesting the hearing to appear at the hearing shall constitute a forfeiture of the fine and a failure to exhaust administrative remedies.

(c) Hearing. The citation and any supplemental report submitted by the citation officer shall constitute prima facie evidence of the respective facts contained in those documents. At the hearing, the party contesting the administrative citation shall be given the opportunity to testify and to present evidence concerning the citation. Formal rules of evidence shall not govern the proceedings before the hearing officer. The hearing officer may accept testimony by declaration relating to the citation from any party or hold the hearing by teleconference if agreed upon by the parties.

(d) Continuance. Before issuing the decision, the hearing officer may continue the date set for the hearing for good cause and may request additional information from the citation officer or the person requesting a hearing, provided that the hearing may not be continued for more than fifteen days.

(e) Decision.

(1) Written Decision. After considering the testimony and evidence presented at the hearing, the hearing officer shall issue a written decision to uphold, dismiss, or modify the citation and the fine. The hearing officer shall state the reasons for the decision and shall serve the decision on the person receiving the citation, the citation officer, and the district clerk. The decision of the hearing officer shall constitute the district's final administrative decision. Where a person has been cited for multiple violations of the same ordinance, the hearing officer shall have the discretion to reduce the amount of the fine upon a showing that the person made a bona fide effort to comply after the first violation and that payment of the full amount of the fine would impose an undue financial burden on the responsible party.

(2) Status of Fine. If the hearing officer upholds the citation and the fine, the district shall retain the amount of the fine deposited with the district. If the hearing officer upholds the citation but reduces or eliminates the fine imposed, the district shall promptly refund the excess amount of the fine deposited, including interest earned at the average rate earned on the district's portfolio for the period of time that the fine was held by the district. If the hearing officer upholds the fine and the fine has not been deposited, the hearing officer shall set forth a payment schedule for the fine and any additional charges, which shall not extend for more than one hundred and eighty days from the date of the decision. The person cited shall pay the fine by the date set forth in the hearing officer's schedule and any failure to do so shall result in the assessment of late penalty fees as set forth in Section 21.38.030(c).

(Ord. No. 47, § 4, 7-20-2021)

(a) Recovery of Fines. The amount of any past due fines, late payment charges, and interest imposed by this code shall constitute a debt to the district. The district may file a civil action or pursue any other legal remedy to collect such money. The district may recover its collection costs, including reasonable attorneys' fees, in any civil action brought to collect citation fines, late payment charges, and interest.

(b) Withholding of Entitlements. The district may withhold issuance of licenses, permits and other entitlements to a responsible party on any project, property, or application of any kind whenever an administrative fine owed by that party remains unpaid.

(Ord. No. 47, § 4, 7-20-2021)

Any person aggrieved by the decision of the hearing officer taken pursuant to this chapter may obtain review of the decision by filing a petition in Marin County Superior Court pursuant to the timelines and provisions set forth in California Government Code Section 53069.4.

(Ord. No. 47, § 4, 7-20-2021)