1. This Chapter shall be known as “The Del Norte County Administrative Citation Ordinance.”

2. The Board of Supervisors hereby finds that there is a need for alternative methods of enforcement for violations of the Del Norte County Code and that one appropriate method of enforcement for violations is an administrative citation program as authorized by Government Code Section 53069.4.

3. The procedures established in this chapter shall be in addition to criminal, civil or any other legal or equitable remedy established by law which may be pursued to address violations of the Del Norte County Code.

4. The Board of Supervisors hereby finds and determines that enforcement of the Del Norte County Ordinance Code and other ordinances adopted by the County, are matters of local concern and serve important public purposes. Pursuant to Government Code Section 53069.4, the County of Del Norte adopts this administrative citation program in order to achieve the following goals:

   1. To protect the public health, safety and welfare of the residents of the County of Del Norte.

   2. To gain compliance with the Del Norte County Code in a timely and efficient manner.

   3. To provide for an administrative process to appeal the imposition of administrative citations and fines.

   4. To provide a method to hold parties responsible when they fail or refuse to comply with the provisions of the Del Norte County Code.

   5. To minimize the expense and delay where the alternative remedies are to pursue responsible parties in the costly and time-consuming civil or criminal justice system.

1. “Appellant” shall mean the recipient of a citation who is contesting the citation pursuant to Section 1.60.100.

2. “Board” shall mean the Del Norte County Board of Supervisors.

3. “The Code” shall mean the Del Norte County Code.

4. “Correction period” shall mean the period of time designated in the notice of violation within which a responsible person may correct or abate the violation as described in subsection 1.60.50 below.

5. “Date of service” shall mean the date upon which the notice of violation or the administrative citation (whichever is applicable) was issued.

6. “Department” shall mean the county department which issues the administrative citation.

7. “Enforcement Official” shall mean any officer or department head of the County or other public agency charged with the duty of enforcing county ordinances or laws of the state of California, including, but not limited to, a Code Enforcement Officer, Environmental Health Specialist, Animal Control Officer, Building Official, or authorized employee of the Parks Department.

8. “Responsible person” shall mean any individual, owner, or occupant of real property, or owner or authorized agent of any business, company, or entity, or the parent or legal guardian of any person under the age of 18 years, who causes or maintains or allows to continue, by his or her action or failure to act, a violation of the Del Norte County Code.

1. Unless otherwise specified, every violation of the County Code is an infraction, which may be punished according to the fines contained in this section. A violation of this Code includes, but is not limited to, a violation of the Code, including any public nuisance, a violation of any of the Uniform Codes adopted by the Board of Supervisors, or failure to comply with any condition imposed by any entitlement, permit, license or environmental document issued or approved under the provisions of this Code.

2. Each and every day a violation of the Code exists constitutes a separate and distinct offense.

3. A civil fine shall be assessed by means of an administrative citation issued by the Enforcement Official and shall be payable directly to the department which issued the administrative citation.

4. The fines imposed under this chapter shall be the maximum allowed by Government Code §25132. If that section is amended in the future to increase the maximum allowable fines, those amounts shall supersede the fines listed in this chapter and shall be applicable within the County without requiring an amendment to this code.

5. Every violation of a county ordinance shall be punished by the following:

   1. A fine not exceeding $100.00 for a first violation.

   2. A fine not exceeding $200.00 for a second violation of the same Code provision or permit or entitlement provision within one year from the date of the first violation

   3. A fine not exceeding $500.00 for each additional violation of the same Code provision or permit or entitlement provision within one year from the date of the second violation.

6. Notwithstanding Paragraph E, each violation of a building or safety code shall be punishable by the following:

   1. A fine not exceeding $130 dollars for the first violation.

   2. A fine not exceeding seven hundred dollars ($700) for a second violation of the same ordinance within one year of the first violation.

   3. A fine not exceeding one thousand three hundred dollars ($1,300) for each additional violation of the same ordinance within one year of the first violation.

7. A fine not exceeding two thousand five hundred dollars ($2,500) 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.

Except as provided in section 1.60.50 the Enforcement Official shall issue an administrative citation immediately upon discovery of a violation of the Code. Upon receipt of an administrative citation, the responsible person shall pay the amount of the fine to the County within 15 days of the date of service of the citation. All fines shall be payable to the department that issued the citation. Payment of the fine shall not excuse or discharge the failure to correct the violation nor shall it bar further enforcement action by the County. If the responsible person fails to correct the violation, subsequent administrative citations may be issued for maintaining, continuing or repeating the same violation.

The general citation provisions in this section shall apply to violations pertaining to building, plumbing, electrical or other similar structural or zoning issue, and in the judgment of the Enforcement Official the violation does create an immediate danger to health or safety.

1. If a violation of the Code pertains to building, plumbing, electrical or other similar structural or zoning issue, and in the judgment of the Enforcement Official the violation does not create an immediate danger to health or safety and does not exist as a result of, or to facilitate, the illegal cultivation of cannabis, the Enforcement Official shall serve a Notice of Violation upon one or more of the responsible persons prior to issuing an administrative citation.

   2. Service shall be completed utilizing one of the methods of service identified in subsection (B) of section 1.6.70.

   3. The Notice of Violation shall include:

      1. The date, approximate time and location of the violation;

      2. The conditions constituting the violation;

      3. The specific code and section violated;

      4. A statement that in the event the violation is not corrected or abated within 15 days, the responsible person shall be subject to an administrative fine under this chapter;

      5. A statement of the fine that will be levied if the violation is not corrected; and

      6. A statement that the responsible person may submit in writing to the Enforcement Official any information relating to a determination of the existence of a violation. The Notice of Violation shall provide a period of 15 days from its date of service to correct the violation.

   4. When the Enforcement Official determines that the violation has been corrected or satisfactorily abated, the Enforcement Official shall provide the responsible person with a letter acknowledging that the correction has occurred. If the violation is corrected or satisfactorily abated within the correction period, no administrative citation shall be issued.

   5. Only one Notice of Violation shall issue for a continuing violation. Second and subsequent citations may be issued and served based on the original Notice of Violation.

• 1.60.60 Illegal Cannabis Cultivation Requiring A Notice Of Violation

1. If a violation of the Code pertains to building, plumbing, electrical or other similar structural or zoning issue, and in the judgment of the Enforcement Official the violation does not create an immediate danger to health or safety but does exist as a result of, or to facilitate, the illegal cultivation of cannabis, an immediate citation may issue in accordance with section 1.60.40. However, a Notice of Violation and the procedures as stated in section 1.60.50 shall apply if all of the following are true:

   1. A tenant is in possession of the property that is the subject of the administrative action.

   2. The rental property owner or agent can provide evidence that the rental or lease agreement prohibits the cultivation of cannabis.

   3. The rental property owner or agent did not know the tenant was illegally cultivating cannabis and no complaint, property inspection, or other information caused the rental property owner or agent to have actual notice of the illegal cannabis cultivation.

2. This section shall not apply to cannabis cultivation that is lawfully undertaken pursuant to section 11362.1 of the Health and Safety Code and Chapter 90 of Title 7 of the Del Norte County Code.

1. If a Notice of Violation has been served upon a responsible person and the violation has not been corrected or abated within 15 days, an administrative citation may be issued to that responsible person by an Enforcement Official.

2. An administrative citation shall be served on the responsible person in one of the following ways:

   1. Personal Service. The Enforcement Official may personally serve the responsible person and obtain the signature of the responsible person on the administrative citation. If personal service is affected, but the responsible person served refuses or fails to sign the administrative citation, the failure or refusal to sign shall not affect the validity of the service of the administrative citation or of any of the subsequent proceedings. The Enforcement Official shall note on the administrative citation the failure or refusal of the responsible person to sign the citation. The date of service under this subsection shall be the date of actual service.

   2. Service of Citation by Mail. As an alternative to personal service, the Enforcement Official may serve the administrative citation by mail as hereinafter set forth. The administrative citation shall be mailed to the responsible person by first class mail.

   3. Service of Citation by Posting Notice. In addition to serving the person by first class mail, the Enforcement Official shall post the administrative citation in a conspicuous place on the real property which is the subject of the violation.

Each administrative citation shall contain the following information:

1. Date, approximate time, and address or definite description of the location where the violation was observed;

2. The Code sections or provisions violated and a description of the violation;

3. Where applicable, the date the notice of violation was served on the responsible person and the time specified thereon to correct the violation;

4. When applicable, a statement that the violation has not been corrected within the correction period;

5. The amount of the fine;

6. An explanation of how and where the fine may be paid and the time period within which it must be paid;

7. Identification of rights of appeal, including the time within which the citation may be contested and the place to obtain a notice of appeal form to contest the administrative citation; and

8. The name and signature of the Enforcement Official and, if possible, the signature of the responsible person.

Upon receipt of an administrative citation, the responsible person shall pay the amount of the fine to the County within 15 days of the date of service of the citation. All fines shall be payable to the department that issued the citation. Payment of the fine shall not excuse or discharge the failure to correct the violation nor shall it bar further enforcement action by the County. If the responsible person fails to correct the violation, subsequent administrative citations may be issued for maintaining, continuing or repeating the same violation.

Any recipient of an administrative citation may contest that there was a violation of the code or that he or she is the responsible person by completing a Notice of Appeal form and returning it to the County within 10 days from the date of service of the administrative citation, together with an advance deposit of the fine and the amount equivalent to one (1) hour of the Hearing Officer’s time, unless there is a hardship waiver on file in accordance with this chapter. Any administrative citation fine amount which has been deposited shall be refunded if it is determined, after a hearing, that the person charged in the administrative citation was not responsible for the violation or that there was no violation as charged in the administrative citation.

The Hearing Officer shall be an impartial individual such as an individual who meets the definition of Government Code section 27724; an administrative law judge provided by the Office of Administrative Hearings of the State of California pursuant to Government Code section 27727; or an independent contractor from an organization that provides hearing officers.

1. When the Notice of Appeal form has been completed and submitted and the fine has been deposited or a waiver of the deposit is granted, the Enforcement Official shall set the matter for hearing with the Hearing Officer.

2. A hearing before the Hearing Officer shall be set for a date that is not less than 15 and not more than 60 days from the date that the Notice of Appeal is filed in accordance with the provisions of this chapter. The person requesting the hearing (appellant) shall be notified of the time and place set for the hearing at least ten days prior to the date of the hearing.

3. The Hearing Officer shall only consider evidence that is relevant to whether the violation occurred and whether the appellant has caused or maintained the violation of the Code occurred on the date specified in the administrative citation, whether the violation continues to exist, and/or whether the amount of the fine is correctly applied under this Chapter. Formal rules of evidence shall not apply. The Hearing Officer may exclude evidence the probative value of which is outweighed the probability that its admission will necessitate undue time. Both the Enforcement Official and the appellant may be represented by counsel at the hearing.

4. Both parties shall be given the opportunity to testify and present witnesses and evidence concerning the administrative citation, and to cross-examine witnesses and dispute evidence. Oral evidence shall be taken under oath or affirmation.

5. The Notice of Violation, the administrative citation and any additional documents submitted by the Enforcement Officer shall constitute prima facie evidence of the respective facts contained in those documents.

6. At least ten days prior to the hearing, the appellant shall be provided with copies of the citations, reports and other documents submitted or relied upon by the Enforcement Official. If the Enforcement Official submits any additional written report or other documentary evidence concerning the administrative citation to the Hearing Officer for consideration at the hearing, other than for the purposes of rebuttal or impeachment, then a copy of each such report or document shall also be served by mail on the person requesting the hearing at least five days prior to the date of the hearing. The appellant shall not be entitled to discovery other than as stated in this section.

7. The Hearing Officer may continue the hearing and may request additional information from the Enforcement Official or the appellant prior to issuing a written decision.

8. The failure of any appellant of an administrative citation to appear at the scheduled hearing shall constitute a forfeiture of the fine and the amount deposited for the Hearing Officer’s time. Failure to appear shall also constitute a failure to exhaust administrative remedies.

1. After considering all of the testimony and evidence submitted at the hearing, the Hearing Officer shall issue a written decision within 30 days of the hearing to uphold or deny the administrative citation and shall state in the decision the reasons for that decision.

2. If the final decision of the Hearing Officer confirms the violation, the amounts on deposit with the County shall be retained by the County and the appellant shall be responsible for paying the County's costs, including, but not limited to, the actual costs of administration.

3. If the Hearing Officer finds in favor of the appellant, the County shall refund the amounts deposited for the fine and for the Hearing Officer’s time.

4. The appellant shall be served with a copy of the Hearing Officer's written decision by the department by depositing a copy thereof in the United States Mail with postage prepaid.

1. The failure of any person to pay the administrative fines within the time specified on the citation may result in the filing of a claim with the small claims court. Alternatively, the County may pursue any other remedy authorized by law to collect the civil fines. The County may also recover its collection costs according to proof.

2. Any fine not paid within 45 days of notice thereof shall be made a lien against the property in compliance with Government Code §54988.

3. No department, commission or employee of the County of Del Norte vested with the duty or authority to issue or approve permits, licenses or other entitlements shall do so when there is an outstanding violation for which a citation has been issued pursuant to this chapter involving the premises to which the pending application pertains. The authority to deny such entitlement shall apply whether the applicant was the occupant or owner of record at the time of such violation or whether the applicant is either the current occupant or owner of record or a vendor of the current owner of record pursuant to a contract of sale of the real property, with or without actual or constructive knowledge of the violation at the time he or she acquired his or her interest in such real property.

4. Upon notification by an Enforcement Official that such a violation exists, all departments, commissions, and employees shall refuse to issue permits or licenses or entitlements involving the premises except those necessary to abate such violation.

5. The refusal to issue shall be rescinded when the department, commission, or employee has been notified that all required work to abate the violation has been completed and has been approved by the affected department and any outstanding citations have been paid. The director of the affected department may waive the provisions of this section regarding refusal to issue if he or she determines such waiver to be required to allow necessary or desirable remedial, protective or preventative work.

1. A recipient of an administrative citation for a subsequent violation pursuant Section 1.60.30(E)(2-3) or Section 1.60.30(F)(2-4), may apply to the director of the department that issued the fine for a reduction of amount of the fine, and any recipient of a fine my apply for a waiver of the deposit requirement for hearing based on financial hardship. The director shall grant the reduction or waiver of the fine where:

   1. The recipient can demonstrate that he or she has made a good faith effort to comply after the first violation;

   2. Payment of the full amount of the fine would impose an undue financial burden on the recipient. Proof of hardship shall be shown by sworn statement, together with supporting documentation, demonstrating that the person’s financial inability to pay the full amount.

2. The director shall grant the waiver of the deposit requirement for hearing where payment of the full amount of the fine would impose an undue financial burden on the recipient. Proof of hardship shall be shown by sworn statement, together with supporting documentation, demonstrating that the person’s financial inability to deposit the full amount.

3. An application for a waiver or reduction of a fine or hearing deposit shall be made to the director within 10 days of issuance of the citation.

Any person aggrieved by an administrative decision of the Hearing Officer may obtain further review by filing a petition for review with the Del Norte County Superior Court in accordance with the timelines and provisions as set forth in California Government Code Section 53069.4.

1. The Notice of Violation, the administrative citation, and all notices to be given by this chapter shall be served on the responsible person in accordance with the provisions of this chapter and of the Del Norte County Code, where applicable.

2. Failure to receive any notice specified in this chapter does not affect the validity of proceedings conducted hereunder.

1. When a property-based violation for which a correction period was provided remains uncorrected after the expiration of the period to appeal an administrative citation, or after a Hearing Officer's decision upholding the finding of a violation, a copy of the administrative citation may be recorded in the official records of the County of Del Norte if the following prerequisites are met:

   1. A violation has remained uncorrected on the property for at least thirty (30) days after the imposition of an administrative fine becomes a final order.

   2. The owner, if not the responsible party, has been notified of the prospective recordation and been offered the opportunity to correct the violation. Notice to the owner(s) shall be sent to the address listed in the County assessor's roll.

   3. The recorded citation shall include the name of the property owner(s), assessor's parcel number, the parcel's legal description, and a copy of the latest citation.

2. When the Enforcement Official determines that all violations have been corrected or removed and all fines and any costs or interest have been paid, the property owner and any other responsible parties shall be issued a notice of compliance, which can be recorded.

2 Administration And Personnel

2 Administration And Personnel

2.04 Board Of Supervisors

2.08 Auditor-Controller

2.10 County Administrative Officer

2.11 Human Resources And Risk Management Director

2.12 Law Library

2.14 Clerk Of The Board Of Supervisors

2.16 Public Guardian

2.18 County Counsel 2.20 Public Defender

2.21 Chief Probation Officer

2.24 Sheriff-Coroner

2.26 County Hearing Officer

2.28 Peace Officer Training

2.32 Community Development Department

2.33 Purchasing Agent

2.35 Office Of County Agricultural Commissioner And County Sealer Of Weights And Measures

2.36 Department Of Weights And Measures

2.37 Department Of Child Support Services

2.38 In-Home Support Services Public Authority

2.40 Department Of Health And Human Services

2.42 Fish And Game Advisory Commission

2.48 Planning Commission

2.49 Del Norte County Appeals Board

2.50 Del Norte Children And Families Commission

2.56 Delinquency Prevention Commission

2.60 Emergency Organization And Function

2.63 Industrial Development Authority

2.64 Personal Policies

2.70 County Holidays

2.72 Employees Retirement System Contract

2.80 Travel Expenses

2.84 Collection Of Additional Fees By Officers

2.88 Clerk-Recorder And Public Administrator

2.92 District Attorney

2.96 Criminal Conduct; Ineligibility For Employment

2.98 Inconsistent, Incompatible Or Conflicting Employment

2.100 Cable Franchise

2.04 Board Of Supervisors 2.04.10 Regular Meetings 2.04.30 Biweekly Compensation 2.04.40 Activation Clause