Isleton Municipal Code Ch. 1.10 Administrative Citations

A. Administrative citations may be pursued by the City of Isleton to address any violation of any of ordinances enacted by the city or the violation of the laws of the State of California.

B. The term "this Code" as used in herein shall mean all of the provisions in this Code of the city presently in effect and all future ordinances which may hereafter be enacted by the city council or by the electorate.

C. Use of this Code shall be at the sole discretion of the city subject to the applicable requirements of law.

(Ord. No. 343)

A. "Enforcement officer" shall mean any city employee or agent of the city with the authority to enforce any provision of this Code.

(Ord. No. 343)

A. Whenever an enforcement officer is charged with the enforcement of any provision of this Code determines that a violation of that provision has occurred, the enforcement officer shall have the authority to issue an administrative citation to any person responsible for the violation.

B. Each administrative citation shall contain the following information:

1. The date of the violation;

2. The address of a definite description of the location where the violation occurred;

3. The number and section of the ordinance violated and a description of the violation;

4. The amount of the fine for the Code violation;

5. A description of the fine payment process, including a description of the time within which and the place to which the fine shall be paid;

6. An order prohibiting the continuation or repeated occurrence of the ordinance violation described in the administrative citation;

7. A description of the administrative citation review process, including the time within which the administrative citation may be contested and the place from which a request for hearing form to contest the administrative citation may be obtained; and

8. The name and signature of the citing enforcement officer.

(Ord. No. 343)

The amount of fines for violations imposed pursuant to this Code shall be set forth in the schedule of fines established by the city council. The schedule of fines specifies increased fines for repeat violations of the same Code provision by the same person within 36 months from the date of an administrative citation. The schedule of fines shall specify the amount of any late payment of charges imposed for the payment of a fine after its due date.

(Ord. No. 343)

Fines shall be paid to the city within 30 days from the date of the administrative citation. Any fine paid 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.

(Ord. No. 343)

A. A recipient of an administrative citation may contest that there was a violation of the Code as stated in the citation or that he or she is the responsible party by completing request for hearing form and returning it to the city within 30 days from the date of the administrative citation, together with an advance deposit of the fine or notice that a request for an advanced deposit hardship waiver has been filed pursuant to section 1.10.070 of this Code.

B. A request for hearing form may be obtained from the city clerk.

C. The person requesting the hearing shall be notified by the city clerk of the time and place set for the hearing at least ten days prior to the date of the hearing.

D. If the enforcement officer submits an additional written report concerning the administrative citation to the hearing officer for consideration at the hearing, then a copy of this report also shall be served to the person requesting the hearing at leave five days prior to the date of the hearing.

(Ord. No. 343)

A. Any person who intends to request a hearing to contest that there was a violation of the Code or that he or she is the responsible party and who is financially unable to make the advance deposit of the fine as required in section 1.10.050 may file a request for an advance deposit hardship waiver.

B. The request shall be filed with the department of finance on an advance deposit hardship waiver application form, available from the city clerk on an advance deposit hardship waiver application form, available from the city clerk, within ten days of the date of the administrative citation.

C. The requirement of depositing of the full amount of the fine as described in section 1.10.050 shall be stayed unless or until the city clerk makes a determination not to issue the advance deposit hardship waiver.

D. The city clerk may waive the requirement of an advance deposit set forth in section 1.10.050 and issue the advance deposit hardship waiver only if the party submits to the city clerk a sworn affidavit, or declaration under penalty of perjury, together supporting documents or materials, demonstrating to the satisfaction of the city clerk the person's actual financial inability to deposit with the city the full amount of the fine in advance of the hearing.

E. If the city clerk determines not to issue an advance deposit hardship waiver, the person shall remit the deposit to the city within ten days of the date of that decision or 30 days from the date of the administrative citation whichever is later.

F. The city clerk shall issue a written determination listing the reasons for his or her determination to issue or not to issue the advance deposit hardship waiver. The written determination of the city clerk shall be final.

G. The written determination of the city clerk shall be served upon the person who applied for the advance deposit hardship waiver.

H. The city council may adopt a resolution designating an officer or employee of the city who is authorized to perform the duties off the city clerk under this Code at such time when the city clerk is absent from the city or is otherwise unable to perform those duties in a timely fashion, as is determined by the city clerk.

(Ord. No. 343)

The city council shall designate by resolution the hearing officer for the administrative citation hearings held pursuant to this chapter. The hearing officer may be an officer or employee of the city, or may be a member or the members of the city council sitting as a committee of said city council, or may be the city council sitting as a committee of the whole.

(Ord. No. 343)

A. No hearing to contest an administrative citation before a hearing officer shall be held unless the fine has been deposited in advance in accordance with section 1.10.050 or an advance deposit hardship waiver has been issued in accordance with section 1.10.090.

B. A hearing before the hearing officer shall be set for a date that is not less than 15 days and not more than 60 days from the date that the request for hearing is filed in accordance with the provisions of this Code.

C. At the hearing, the party contesting the administrative citation to appear at the administrative citation hearing shall constitute a forfeiture of the fine and a failure to exhaust their administrative remedies.

D. The failure of any recipient of an administrative citation to appear at the administrative citation hearing shall constitute a forfeiture of the fine and a failure to exhaust their administrative remedies.

E. The administrative citation and any additional report submitted by the enforcement officer shall constitute prima facie evidence of the respective facts contained on those documents.

F. The hearing officer may continue the hearing and request additional information from the enforcement officer or the recipient of the administrative citation prior to issuing a written decision.

(Ord. No. 343)

A. After considering all of the testimony and evidence submitted at the hearing, the hearing officer shall issue a written decision to uphold or cancel the administrative citation and shall list in the decision the reasons for that decision. The decision of the hearing officer shall be final.

B. If the hearing officer determines that the administrative citation should be upheld, then the fine amount on deposit with the city shall be retained by the city.

C. If the hearing officer determines that the administrative citation should be upheld and the fine has not been deposited pursuant to an advance deposit hardship waiver, the hearing officer shall set forth in the decision a payment schedule for the fine.

D. If the hearing officer determines that the administrative citation should be canceled and the fine was deposited with the city, then the city shall promptly refund the amount of the deposited fine together with interest at the average earned on the city's portfolio for the period of time that the fine amount was held by the city.

E. The recipient of the administrative citation shall be served with a copy of the hearing officer's written decision.

F. The employment, performance, evaluation, compensation and benefits of the hearing officer shall not be directly or indirectly conditioned upon the amount of administrative citation fines upheld by the hearing officer.

(Ord. No. 343)

Any person who fails to pay to the city any fine imposed pursuant to the provisions of this Code on or before the date that the fine is due also shall be liable for the payment of any applicable late payment charges set forth in the schedule of fines.

(Ord. No. 343)

The city may collect any past due administrative citation fine or late payment charge by use of all available legal means.

(Ord. No. 343)

Any person aggrieved by an administrative decision of the hearing officer on an administrative citation may obtain review of the administrative decision by filing a petition for review with the appropriate municipal court or justice court in Sacramento County in accordance with the time lines and provisions set forth in California Government Code Section 53069.4.

(Ord. No. 343)

A. The administrative citation and all notices required to be given by this Code shall be served on the responsible party as follows:

1. The citation and any notices may be served upon the responsible party in person by either the enforcement officer, the city clerk or any police officer of the city, or

2. The citation and notices may be served upon the responsible party by an enforcement officer or the city clerk by depositing same in the United States Postal Service Mail, first class mail, postage prepaid, at Isleton, California, and addressed to the party to be cited at the address of the party known to the enforcement officer or city clerk, or, if that address appears on the last equalized assessment roll of Sacramento County if the party to be served with the citation or notice is the owner of real property within the city and that real property is the situs of the Code violation charged in the citation.

B. Failure to receive any notice in this Code does not affect the validity of proceedings conducted hereunder.

(Ord. No. 343)