Port Hueneme Municipal Code Div. 11 Enforcement

(a) Violation of any provision of this Chapter shall constitute grounds for issuance of a notice of violation and assessment of a fine by the City Manager, Public Works Director, or their designee. Enforcement actions under this Chapter are issuance of an administrative citation and assessment of a fine. The City's procedures on imposition of administrative fines (Article 1, Chapters 4 and 6) are hereby incorporated in their entirety, as modified from time to time, and shall govern the imposition, enforcement, collection, and review of administrative citations issued to enforce this Chapter and any rule or regulation adopted pursuant to this Chapter, except as otherwise indicated in this Chapter.

(b) Other remedies allowed by law may be used, including civil action or prosecution as misdemeanor or infraction. City may pursue civil actions in the California courts to seek recovery of unpaid administrative citations. City may choose to delay court action until such time as a sufficiently large number of violations, or cumulative size of violations exist such that court action is a reasonable use of City staff and resources.

(Ord. No. 785, § 12, 6-20-22)

(a) City Manager, Public Works Director, or their designee, will monitor compliance with the ordinance randomly and through compliance reviews, route reviews, investigation of complaints, and an inspection program (that may include remote monitoring). Section 7270 establishes City's right to conduct inspections and investigations.

(b) City may issue an official notification to notify regulated entities of its obligations under the ordinance.

(c) City shall issue a notice of violation requiring compliance within sixty (60) days of issuance of the notice.

(d) Absent compliance by the respondent within the deadline set forth in the notice of violation, City shall commence an action to impose penalties, via an administrative citation and fine, pursuant to Article I, Chapters 4 and 6 of the Port Hueneme Municipal Code.

(e) Notices shall be sent to "owner" at the official address of the owner maintained by the tax collector for the City, or if no such address is available, to the owner at the address of the dwelling or commercial property, or to the party responsible for paying for the collection services, depending upon available information.

(Ord. No. 785, § 12, 6-20-22)

(a) The penalty levels are as follows:

(1) For a first violation, the amount of the base penalty shall be one hundred dollars ($100.00) per violation.

(2) For a second violation, the amount of the base penalty shall be two hundred dollars ($200.00) per violation.

(3) For a third or subsequent violation, the amount of the base penalty shall be five hundred dollars ($500.00) per violation.

(b) The City Attorney is hereby empowered to pursue any actions at law or equity to gain compliance with this Chapter, including, without limitation, enjoining violations, injunctive relief, criminal prosecution, or seeking all civil remedies authorized by law.

(Ord. No. 785, § 12, 6-20-22)

The City may extend the compliance deadlines set forth in a notice of violation issued in accordance with Section 7270(a) if it finds that there are extenuating circumstances beyond the control of the respondent that make compliance within the deadlines impracticable, including the following:

(1) Acts of God such as earthquakes, wildfires, flooding, and other emergencies or natural disasters;

(2) Reasonable delays in obtaining discretionary permits or other government agency approvals; or

(3) Deficiencies in organic waste recycling infrastructure or edible food recovery capacity and the City is under a corrective action plan with CalRecycle pursuant to 14 CCR Section 18996.2 due to those deficiencies.

(Ord. No. 785, § 12, 6-20-22)

Persons receiving an administrative citation containing a penalty for an uncorrected violation may request a hearing to appeal the citation. A hearing will be held only if it is requested within the time prescribed and consistent with City's procedures in Article I, Chapter 6, §§ 1511—1521 for appeals of administrative citations. Evidence may be presented at the hearing. The City will appoint a hearing officer designated by the City Manager who shall conduct the hearing and issue a final written order.

(Ord. No. 785, § 12, 6-20-22)

Beginning January 1, 2022 and through December 31, 2023, City will conduct inspections, route reviews or waste evaluations, and compliance reviews, depending upon the type of regulated entity, to determine compliance, and if City determines that organic waste generator, self-hauler, hauler, Tier One Commercial Edible Food Generator, food recovery organization, food recovery service, or other entity is not in compliance, it shall provide educational materials to the entity describing its obligations under this Chapter and a notice that compliance is required by January 1, 2022, and that violations may be subject to administrative civil penalties starting on January 1, 2024.

(Ord. No. 785, § 12, 6-20-22)

Beginning January 1, 2024, if the City determines that an organic waste generator, self-hauler, hauler, Tier One or Tier Two Commercial Edible Food Generator, food recovery organization, food recovery service, or other entity is not in compliance with this Chapter, it shall document the noncompliance or violation, issue a notice of violation, and take enforcement action pursuant to Division 11, as needed.

(Ord. No. 785, § 12, 6-20-22)