Irwindale Municipal Code Ch. 3.18 Mining Excavation, Processing, Reclamation, and Related Taxes

A. Mining is a pervasive use in the city with some seventeen pits ranging from fifty to four hundred fifty acres with permitted depths to two hundred seventy-five feet. Over eighty percent of the nonpublic land in the city is devoted to mining operations.

B. Mining impacts include, but are not limited to deterioration of streets and other public infrastructure facilities; degradation of air quality; public health and safety hazards; increased noise; slope stability and slope erosion problems; security and safety concerns; visual blight; water quality impacts; problems with sand and particulate matter; and loss of developable land for other uses.

C. The city charter in Article XIII provides that the city shall have the authority to level general and special mining, excavation and processing taxes as is authorized by general law. The charter further recites that mining imposes severe negative environmental impacts upon city residents, businesses, properties and visitors and provides that the city has authority to regulate the mitigation of negative environmental impacts imposed on the city by mining and processing operations.

D. The purpose of this chapter is to establish a comprehensive taxing scheme for mining operations, both to support the city's general governmental operations and to raise revenue for specified purposes to be placed in the Mining Impact Fund to study, analyze, monitor, regulate, administer, correct, remediate and mitigate mining impacts and to facilitate reclamation of mining pits.

E. The city is also occupied by a number of recycling operations whose effect on surrounding properties is similar to that of processing rock materials. Materials such as paper, plastic, rubber, metal, glass and concrete are imported to sites in the city where they are crushed, ground, shredded, separated, sorted, baled, packaged, reprocessed and recycled for sale. The city believes this activity should be taxed in a similar manner as the processing of rock materials.

F. Ultimately, it is the city's goal, as stated in the charter, that mining operations are so conducted as to be a good neighbor to persons residing or working in the city and that at such time as a mining use is discontinued, the property be restored to a usable condition which is readily adaptable to alternate land uses and will create no danger to public health or safety. It is the purpose of this chapter to facilitate these goals.

(Ord. 538 § 1(part), 1999).

As used in this chapter:

A. The term "processing," with respect to rock materials, means treating, crushing, recrushing, sorting, mixing, remixing or sluicing of rock materials which originated or were excavated either inside or outside of the corporate boundaries of the city.

B. The term "excavation" means the physical removal of rock materials from the earth for use in commercial purposes, whether or not the rock materials are thereafter processed.

C. The term "rock materials" means rock, sand, gravel, dirt, rock products or similar materials.

D. The term "materials reprocessing" or "recycling" means the processing of (1) reusable domestic containers and materials including bottles, jars, cans, boxes and other containers; (2) industrial products such as refrigerants, tires, automobiles, industrial scrap and similar objects; (3) other materials of metal, glass, paper, cardboard, plastic, rubber, wood, concrete, asphalt; and (4) the composting or other treatment of green waste and vegetative materials. Recycling includes reprocessing by collecting, gathering, cleaning, crushing, flattening, grinding, shredding, separating, filtering, sorting, compacting, baling, briquetting, packaging, remanufacturing or otherwise reconstituting the material to be recycled.

(Ord. 539 § 1, 1999; Ord. 538 § 1(part), 1999).

A. Business License Tax for Excavation. Notwithstanding any other provisions of this code relating to business license taxes and special taxes, there is imposed upon each person or entity engaged in the business of excavating rock materials from any real property located within the city, for the purpose of commercial use thereof other than on the property where so excavated, a business license tax of eighteen cents per ton of rock materials so excavated.

B. Business License Tax for Processing. Notwithstanding any other provisions of this code relating to business license taxes or special mining taxes, there is imposed upon each person or entity engaged in the business of processing rock materials at any location within the city a business license tax of nine cents per ton of rock materials so processed.

C. Excavation and Processing Taxes Cumulative. In the event any person or entity excavates and thereafter processes the same material, each of such operations within the city, the foregoing taxes in subsections A and B of this section shall be cumulative.

D. General Tax. The purpose of the taxes in this section are to raise revenue and are not regulatory. The revenue shall be placed in the city's general fund to finance the general operations of the city.

E. Cost of Living Adjustment. The taxes imposed in subsections A and B above shall be annually adjusted based upon the timing and criteria specified for business license taxes in Section 5.08.490.

(Ord. 538 § 1(part), 1999).

A. Special Tax Imposed for Excavation. There is imposed upon each person or entity engaged in the business of excavating rock materials from any real property located within the city, for the purpose of commercial use thereof other than on the property where so excavated, a special tax of twenty-two cents per ton of rock material excavated and subject to tax under Section 3.18.030.

B. Special Tax Imposed for Processing. There is imposed upon each person or entity engaged in the business of processing of rock materials at any location within the city a special tax of eleven cents per ton of rock materials so processed.

C. Excavation and Processing Taxes Cumulative. In the event any person or entity excavates and thereafter processes the same material, each of such operations within the city, the foregoing taxes in subsections A and B of this section shall be cumulative.

D. Special Tax is Additional to Existing Taxes, Assessments and Fees. The special taxes imposed by this section are in addition to any other taxes, assessments or fees which may be or are imposed by the Irwindale Municipal Code or other applicable law or city action. Without limiting the generality of the foregoing, any person or entity which engages in extracting and/or processing within the city would pay the general taxes under Section 3.18.030, as well as the special taxes under this section. However, these special taxes may only be expended pursuant to the provisions of Section 3.18.050 and are limited to the purposes set forth therein.

E. Cost of Living Adjustment. The special taxes imposed in subsections A and B above shall be annually adjusted based upon the timing and criteria specified for business license taxes in Section 5.08.490.

(Ord. 540 § 1(part), 1999).

A. The taxes imposed by this section are special taxes pursuant to California Constitution Article XIIIC, Section 1(d), and shall not be used for "general governmental purposes," as that term is used in California Constitution Article XIIIC, Section 1(a). For purposes of this section, the district subject to these taxes shall consist of all that territory within the corporate limits of the city.

B. The revenues collected from the special taxes imposed by this section shall be placed into a Mining Impact Fund, which fund shall be administered by the director of finance as a special fund of the city.

C. The purpose of the Mining Impact Fund is to provide a means of financing the costs of studying, quantifying, analyzing, monitoring, administering, correcting and mitigating negative environmental impacts from mining and processing activities, including but not limited to the following impacts:

1. Deterioration of streets and other public infrastructure facilities,

2. Degradation of air quality,

3. Public health and safety hazards caused by access routes, traffic volumes, and usage conflicts,

4. Increased noise,

5. Slope stability and slope erosion problems,

6. Security and safety concerns,

7. Visual blight,

8. Water quality impacts,

9. Sand, gravel and particulate matter on public rights-of-way and properties,

10. Remediation of toxic or contaminated property resulting from mining and processing activities,

11. Reclamation of property damaged by mining and processing activities, and

12. Any other impacts resulting from mining and processing which affect public health, safety and welfare or public property.

D. The special taxes collected under this section may be expended for the purpose reasonably related to studying, quantifying, analyzing, monitoring, administering, enforcing, correcting or mitigating negative impacts in the city from mining and processing activities, whether or not such impacts are specifically listed herein. This includes the costs of professional services related thereto such as engineering, auditing, monitoring, financial, planning, architectural and other consulting services; city administrative expenses; and legal expenses. Legal services may include defending any legal challenge to the validity of this chapter or any measure or action taken pursuant hereto, the cost of analyzing and preparing any implementation measure or strategy and the cost of any legal action related to the enforcement of any program.

E. This section is intended to create a funding source to be utilized by the city for the purposes set forth herein. Any expenditure shall be made in accordance with applicable law, whether set forth in the Charter, ordinance, rule, or regulation of city or other governmental agency of appropriate jurisdiction or state or federal law. All such expenditures shall have a public purpose and be authorized by valid and applicable law.

(Ord. 540 § 1(part), 1999).

Subject to the provisions of this code relating to the escalation of business license taxes due to increases in the cost of living as set forth in Section 5.08.490, there is imposed on each person engaged in the business of dumping of materials, including, but not limited to, Class I, Class II or Class III materials, or in the business of providing space for the dumping of such materials, whether as owner or operator and whether for rehabilitation or not, other than for grading of a particular site under the grading ordinance of the city, a business license tax of one thousand dollars per year.

(Ord. 538 § 1(part), 1999).

A. There is imposed on every person or entity engaged in the business of recycling within the city a tax of eight cents per ton of material reprocessed.

B. No person or entity may engage in the business of recycling within the city unless the person has entered into a franchise agreement with the city; has been issued a recycling permit pursuant to the zoning ordinance if required; or is exempt from this section pursuant to subsection E of this section.

C. The recycling tax shall be paid quarterly and in advance. Payment shall be made as provided in Chapter 5.08 for business license taxes.

D. The tax imposed in subsection A above shall be annually adjusted based upon the timing and criteria specified for business license taxes in Section 5.08.490.

E. The following persons and entities are exempted from the provisions of this section:

1. The city;

2. A nonprofit organization, if it collects recyclable materials such as, but not limited to, aluminum, newspaper, glass, plastic, metal cans or other paper and cardboard;

3. Commercial business owners, if they deliver for recycling source-separated recyclable materials;

4. Any person or entity engaged in the production of any industrial product where, as a part of the process of industrial production, they are recovering, recapturing or recycling any materials as a part of the production process;

5. A person who is delivering recyclable materials for recycling under the California Container Recycling Litter Reduction Act (Public Resources Code Section 14500 et seq.) or under any state or federal statute where they would be exempt herefrom.

(Ord. 539 § 2, 1999).