Fresno County Municipal Code Ch. 1.04 General Provisions

The title of this code is "Ordinance Code of Fresno County."

(Prior code, § 1)

The following words and phrases, whenever used in the resolutions or ordinances of Fresno County, shall be construed as defined as in this section unless from the context a different meaning is intended or unless a different meaning is specifically defined and more particularly directed to the use of such words and phrases:

A. "Board" means the board of supervisors of Fresno County;

B. "County" mean the county of Fresno, California, or the area within the limits of Fresno County, and such territory outside of Fresno County over which the county has jurisdiction or control by virtue of any constitutional or statutory provision;

C. "Law" denotes applicable federal law, the constitution and statutes of the state of California, the ordinances and resolutions of Fresno County, and when appropriate, any and all rules and regulations which may be promulgated thereunder;

D. "May" is permissive and "shall" is mandatory; however, use of the word "shall" in this code and in the resolutions, ordinances, rules, or regulations of Fresno County is not intended to, nor shall it be deemed to, create a mandatory duty imposed by an enactment within the meaning of Government Code Section 815.6.

E. "Month" means a calendar month;

F. "Must" and "shall" are mandatory;

G. "Oath" shall be construed to include an affirmation or declaration in all cases in which, by law, an affirmation may be substituted for an oath, and in such cases the words "swear" and "sworn" shall be equivalent to the words "affirm" and "affirmed";

H. "Or" may be read "and" and "and" may be read "or" if the sense requires it;

I. "Owner," applied to a building or land, includes any part owner, joint owner, tenant in common, joint tenant or tenant by the entirety, of the whole or a part of such building or land;

J. "Person" means natural person, joint venture, joint stock company, partnership, association, club, company, corporation, business, trust, organization, or the manager, lessee, agent, servant, officer or employee of any of them;

K. "Personal property" includes money, goods, chattels, things in action and evidences of debt;

L. "Preceding" and "following" mean next before and next after respectively;

M

"Property" includes real and personal property;

N. "Real property" includes lands, tenements and hereditaments;

O. "Sidewalk" means hard surfaced construction such as concrete, asphalt or brick existing in that portion of a street between the curb line and the adjacent property line intended for the use of pedestrians;

P. "State" means the state of California;

Q. "Street" includes all streets, highways, avenues, lanes, alleys, courts, places, squares, curbs or other public ways in this county which have been or may hereafter be dedicated and open to public use, or such other public property so designated in any law of this state. This definition shall not include any streets, alleys or roads which are within the boundaries of any incorporated city or town of this county unless specifically included therein;

R. "Supervisors" or "all its members" means the total number of supervisors provided by the general laws of the state for the county of Fresno;

S. "Tenant" and "occupant," applied to a building or land, includes any person who occupies whole or a part of such building or land, whether alone or with others;

T. "Title of Office." Use of title of any officer, employee, board or commission means that officer, employee, department, board or commission of the county;

U. "Written" includes printed, typewritten, mimeographed or multigraphed;

V. "Year" means a calendar year;

W. All words and phrases shall be construed and understood according to the common and approved usage of the language; but technical words and phrases and such others as may have acquired a peculiar and appropriate meaning in such the law shall be construed and understood according to such peculiar and appropriate meaning;

X. When an act is required by an ordinance or resolution, the same being such that it may be done as well by an agent as by the principal, such requirement shall be construed as to include all such acts performed by an authorized agent.

(Ord. 0-86-012, § 1; Ord. 551, § 1 (part), 1973; prior code, § 9)

No ordinance provision is continued in force because it is consistent with this code, but in all subjects provided for by this code, all existing ordinances of this county, whether consistent or not with the provisions of this code, are repealed and abrogated unless expressly continued in force by it. This repeal or abrogation does not revive any former law heretofore repealed, nor does it affect any right already existing or accrued, or any action or proceeding already taken, except as in this code provided. This repeal does not affect ordinances excepted by Section 1.04.040.

(Ord. 561, § 6, 1974; prior code, § 5)

All existing ordinances of the county are codified herein except ordinances and their amendments calling an election, granting franchises, fixing the salaries of public officers, authorizing the issuance of bonds by joint power authorities, Division VI, Part VII of the prior ordinance code (zoning division of the county of Fresno) and all ordinances amendatory thereof, including use districts and zone maps, and the following chapters of Division IV, Part VII, of the prior ordinance code (uniform codes) 1 (General Provisions), 2 (Uniform Building Code), 3 (Uniform Electrical Code), 4 (Uniform Plumbing Code), 5 (Uniform Sign Code), 6 (Auto Court Resorts and Motels), 7 (Unsafe Structures), 8 (Fresno County Housing Code), 9 (Substandard Housing), 10 (Mandatory Sewer Connection Regulation), 12 (Domestic Well and Pump Standards), 13 (Underground Utilities Districts) and 14 (Grading and Excavation.)

All ordinances herein excepted shall continue in full force and effect until amended, repealed or codified by amending into this code. All ordinances hereafter adapted pertaining to the subject of this code shall be adopted in the manner and form provided by Section 25129 of the Government Code.

(Ord. 561, § 2, 1974; prior code, § 2)

The provisions of this code, so far as they are substantially the same as existing law, shall be considered as continuations thereof and not as new enactments.

(Ord. 561, § 4, 1974; prior code, § 3)

No action or proceedings commenced before this code takes effect, and no rights accrued shall be affected by the provisions codified herein.

(Ord. 561, § 5, 1974; prior code, § 4)

The following grammatical rules shall apply in, the ordinances and resolutions of Fresno County:

A. Gender. The masculine gender includes the feminine and neuter genders;

B. Singular and Plural. The singular number includes the plural and the plural includes the singular;

C. Tenses. Words used in the present tense include the past and the future tenses and vice versa unless manifestly inapplicable;

D. Use of Words and Phrases. Words and phrases not specifically defined shall be construed according to the context and approved usage of the language.

(Ord. 551, § 1 (part), 1973; prior code, § 8)

Whenever, in the ordinances or resolutions of Fresno County, any act or omission is made unlawful, it includes causing, allowing, permitting, aiding, abetting, suffering or concealing the fact of such act or omission.

(Ord. 551, § 1 (part), 1973)

The provisions of the ordinances and resolutions of Fresno County, and all proceedings under them are to be construed with a view to effect their objects and to promote justice.

(Ord. 551, § 1 (part), 1973)

The repeal of an ordinance shall not repeal the repealing clause of such ordinance or revive any ordinance which has been repealed thereby.

(Ord. 551, § 1 (part), 1973)

Chapter and section headings do not in any manner affect the scope, meaning, or intent of the provisions of this code.

(Prior code, § 10)

If any chapter, section, subsection, paragraph, sentence, clause or phrase of this code is for any reason held to be invalid or unconstitutional, such invalidity or unconstitutionality shall not affect the validity or constitutionality of the remaining portions of this code; it being expressly declared that this code and each chapter, section, subsection, paragraph, sentence, clause, and phrase thereof would have been adopted irrespective of the fact that any one or more other chapters, sections, subsections, paragraphs, sentences, clauses, or phrases be declared invalid or unconstitutional.

(Prior code, § 11)