Santa Barbara County Municipal Code § 35-921 Re-application

(a) Requirements for noticing public hearings or decision for an oak tree removal permit. Notice of hearing or decision on an oak tree removal permit shall be given pursuant to sections 65090—65096 of the California Government Code. The minimum requirements for such notice shall be as follows:

(1) Notice shall be published in at least one newspaper of general circulation within the county, and circulated in the area affected by the project, at least ten calendar days prior to the hearing.

(2) Notice shall be mailed to any person who has filed a written request therefore and has supplied the planning and development with self-addressed stamped envelopes.

(3) Notice shall be mailed to the applicant(s).

(4) Notice shall be mailed to the owners of the affected property and the owners of property within one thousand feet of the exterior boundaries of the affected property, at least ten calendar days prior to the hearing or action. The names and addresses used for such notice shall be those appearing on the equalized county assessment roll, as updated from time to time.

(5) If the number of owners to whom notice would be mailed or delivered pursuant to this section is greater than one thousand, the county may instead provide notice by placing a display advertisement of at least one-eighth page in at least one newspaper of general circulation within the county at least ten calendar days prior to the hearing.

(b) Contents of Notice. The notice shall contain the following information:

(1) The name of the applicant.

(2) A description of the deciduous oak tree removal project and its location.

(3) The place, date, and general time of the hearing or of the action taken, and in the case of a notice of decision, the decision made by the planning commission.

(4) The procedures for the submission of public comments in writing before the hearing and for public comments at the hearing; or

(5) The procedures for filing an appeal as appropriate to the decision.

(c) Failure to Receive Notice. The failure of any person or entity to receive notice given pursuant to this section or pursuant to sections 65090—65096 of the California Government Code shall not invalidate the actions of the planning and development or the decision-maker.

(Ord. No. 4490, § 1)

(a) The final decisions of the planning commission on the approval, denial, or revocation of an oak tree removal permit may be appealed to the board of supervisors by the applicant or any interested person adversely affected by such a decision. The appeal, which shall be in writing, and accompanying fee must be filed with the clerk of the board of supervisors within the ten calendar days following the date of the planning commission's final decision. If the tenth day falls on a day that the county offices are closed, the appeal period shall extend to the next county business day.

(b) The appellant shall state specifically in the appeal how the decision of the planning commission is inconsistent with the purposes of this article or the error or abuse of discretion committed by the planning commission. The clerk of the board of supervisors shall reject the appeal if the grounds for appeal are not specified.

(c) Prior to the hearing on the appeal, the clerk of the board of supervisors shall notify the secretary of the planning commission that an appeal has been filed. The planning commission shall then transmit to the board of supervisors copies of the application including all maps and data and a statement of findings setting forth the reasons for the decision by the planning commission.

(d) The board of supervisors hearing shall be de novo and the board shall affirm, reverse, or modify the decision of the planning commission at a public hearing. Notice of the time and place of said hearing shall be given in accordance with section 35-918, noticing, and notice shall also be mailed to the appellant.

(Ord. No. 4490, § 1)

The director of planning and development or designees are hereby authorized to investigate all reported or apparent violations of any of the provisions of this article. If a violation is determined to exist, the director of planning and development or designee is hereby authorized to take such measures as he/she deems necessary or expedient to enforce and secure compliance with the provisions of this article.

(a) Planning and Development Defined. As used in this section, the term "planning and development" refers to the planning and development department and also to any person within planning and development who is designated by the director of planning and development to act on his or her behalf.

(b) Cooperation of Other Officials. The director of planning and development or his or her designees may request, and shall receive, the assistance and cooperation of other officials of the county to assist in the discharge of their duties.

(c) Appointing Authority. The director of planning and development may appoint such number of his/her staffs to act for planning and development as shall be authorized by the board of supervisors from time to time. The director of planning and development may deputize such employees as may be necessary to carry out the functions of planning and development.

(d) Right of Entry and Inspection. The director of planning and development or designee may enter any property in the County of Santa Barbara for the purpose of carrying out any act necessary to perform any duty imposed by this article. Upon request the director of planning and development or designee shall provide adequate identification. Except under exigent circumstances, an inspection warrant shall be obtained if entry is refused.

(Ord. No. 4490, § 1)

Whenever, in the judgment of planning and development, any person, firm, or corporation is engaged in or is about to engage in any act or practice which constitutes or will constitute a violation of any provision of this article, the director of planning and development or designee may order the work stopped by posting notice in writing at the site and serving such notice and order on any persons engaged in doing or causing such work to be done. Any such persons, their corporation, employees, or servants, shall forthwith stop such work until such time as re-commencement is authorized by planning and development.

(Ord. No. 4490, § 1)

If unable to otherwise enforce the terms of this article, planning and development shall refer the matter to the district attorney and/or county counsel of the County of Santa Barbara for appropriate legal action.

(Ord. No. 4490, § 1)

(a) Civil Actions.

(1) Public Nuisance. Any removal of protected deciduous oak trees contrary to the provisions of this article shall be and the same is hereby declared to be unlawful and a public nuisance.

(2) Injunctive Relief. Whenever, in the judgment of planning and development, any person, firm, or corporation is engaged in or is about to engage in any act or practice which constitutes or will constitute a violation of any provision of this article or any rule, regulation, order, or permit issued thereunder, and at the request of planning and development, the district attorney or county counsel of the county may make application to the superior court for an order enjoining such act or practice, or for an order directing compliance, and upon a showing by planning and development that such person, firm, or corporation has engaged in or is about to engage in any such act or practice, a temporary, preliminary, or permanent injunction, restraining order, or other order may be granted.

(3) Abatement. In the event that any person, firm, or corporation shall fail to abate a violation hereunder after notice of same and opportunity to correct or end the violation consistent with section 35-911, planning and development may request the county counsel or district attorney to apply to the superior court of this county for an order authorizing planning and development to undertake those actions necessary to abate the violation and requiring the violator to pay for the costs of such undertaking.

(b) Civil Remedies and Penalties.

(1) Civil Penalties. Any person, whether acting as principal, agent, employee, or otherwise, violating the provisions of this article or any rule, regulation, order, or permit issued thereunder, shall be liable for a civil penalty not to exceed twenty-five thousand dollars for each violation of any provision of this article or any rule, regulation, order, or permit issued hereunder.

(2) Costs and Damages. Any person, whether as principal, agent, employee, or otherwise, violating any provisions of this article or the rules, regulations, orders, or permits issued thereunder, shall be liable to the County of Santa Barbara for the costs incurred, including litigation support, and the damages suffered by the county, its agents, and agencies as a direct and proximate result of such violations.

(3) Procedure. In determining the amount of the civil penalty to impose, the court shall consider all relevant circumstances, including, but not limited to, the extent of the harm caused by the conduct constituting a violation, the nature and persistence of such conduct, the length of time over which the conduct occurred, the assets, liabilities, and net worth of the violator, whether corporate or individual, and any corrective action taken by defendant.

(c) Criminal Actions and Penalties.

(1) Infractions. Any person, firm, or corporation, whether as a principal, agent, employee, or otherwise, who shall remove protected deciduous oak trees contrary to the provisions of this article, or the rules, regulations, orders, or permits issued thereunder, is guilty of an infraction and upon conviction thereof, the crime shall be punishable by (1) a fine not exceeding one hundred dollars per protected deciduous oak tree for a first violation; (2) a fine not exceeding two hundred dollars per protected deciduous oak tree for a second violation of this article within one year; and (3) a fine not exceeding five hundred dollars per protected deciduous oak tree for each additional violation of this article within one year.

(2) Misdemeanors. Any infraction which would otherwise be an infraction may, at the discretion of the District Attorney, be filed as a misdemeanor, and upon conviction thereof, the punishment shall be a fine of not less than five hundred dollars nor more than twenty-five thousand dollars per violation of any of the provisions of this article, or imprisonment in the county jail for a period not exceeding six months, or by both such fine and imprisonment.

(3) Violations. Each and every day during any portion of which any violation of this article or the rules, regulations, orders, or permits issued hereunder, is committed or permitted, or permitted to exist without remedy, by such person, firm, or corporation shall be deemed a separate and distinct offense.

(Ord. No. 4490, § 1)

The remedies or penalties provided by this article are cumulative to each other and to the remedies or penalties available under all other laws of this state.

(Ord. No. 4490, § 1)

(a) Purpose and Intent. This section establishes procedures for the recovery of administrative costs, including staff time expended on the enforcement of the provisions of this article. The intent of this section is to recoup administrative costs reasonably related to enforcement.

(b) Definitions. For the purpose of this section, the following words and phrases shall have the meanings respectively ascribed to them herein.

Owner. The owner of record or any person having possession and control of the subject property.

Costs. Administrative costs, including staff time expended and reasonably related to enforcement for items including litigation support, site inspections, summaries, reports, telephone contacts, correspondence with the owner and any concerned citizens or officials, and related travel time.

(c) Records. Planning and development shall maintain records of all administrative costs, incurred by responsible county departments, associated with the processing of violations and enforcement of this article and shall recover such costs from the property owner as provided herein. Staff time shall be calculated at an hourly rate as established and revised from time to time by the board of supervisors.

(d) Notice of Violation. Upon investigation and a determination that a violation of any of the provisions of this article is found to exist, planning and development, or any person authorized by planning and development, shall notify the record owner or any person having possession or control of the subject property by mail of the existence of the violation, planning and development's intent to charge the property owner for all administrative costs associated with enforcement, and of the owner's right to a hearing on objections thereto. The notice shall be in substantially the following form:

NOTICE

Planning and Development has determined that conditions exist at the property at ___________ which violate Section ___________ of the County Code, to wit:

(description of violation)

Notice is hereby given that at the conclusion of this case you will receive a summary of administrative costs associated with the processing of this violation, at the hourly rate(s) as established and adjusted from time to time by the Board of Supervisors. The hourly rate(s) presently in effect per hour of staff time are attached.

You will have the right to object to these charges by filing a Request for Hearing with Planning and Development within ten (10) days of service of the summary of charges.

(e) Summary of Costs. At the conclusion of the case, planning and development shall send a summary of costs associated with enforcement to the owner and/or person having possession or control of the subject property by certified mail. Said summary shall include a notice in substantially the following form:

NOTICE

If you object to these charges you must file a Request for Hearing on the enclosed form within ten (10) days of the date of this notice.

IF YOU FAIL TO TIMELY REQUEST A HEARING, YOUR RIGHT TO OBJECT WILL BE WAIVED AND YOU WILL BE LIABLE TO THE COUNTY FOR THESE CHARGES, TO BE RECOVERED IN A CIVIL ACTION IN THE NAME OF THE COUNTY, IN ANY COURT OF COMPETENT JURISDICTION WITHIN THE COUNTY.

Dated:_______.

Planning and Development

In the event that (a) no request for hearing is filed in time or, (b) after a hearing planning and development affirms the validity of the costs, the property owner or person in control and possession shall be liable to the county in the amount stated in the summary or any lesser amount as determined by planning and development. These costs shall be recoverable in a civil action in the name of the county, in any court of competent jurisdiction within the county.

(f) Right to Hearing. Any property owner, or other person having possession and control thereof, who receives a summary of costs under this section shall have the right to a hearing before the director of planning and development on his/her objections to the proposed costs in accordance with the procedures set forth herein.

(1) A request for hearing shall be filed with the director of planning and development's office within ten days of the service by mail of the office's summary of costs, on a form provided by planning and development.

(2) Within thirty days of the filing of the request, and on ten days written notice to the owner, the director of planning and development shall hold a hearing on the owner's objections, and determine the validity thereof.

(3) In determining the validity of the costs, the director of planning and development shall consider whether total costs are reasonable in the circumstances of the case. Factors to be considered include, but are not limited to, the following: Whether the present owner created the violation; whether there is a present ability to correct the violation; whether the owner moved promptly to correct the violation; the degree of cooperation provided by the owner.

(4) The director of planning and development's decision shall be appealable to the board of supervisors pursuant to section 35-919 of this article.

(Ord. No. 4490, § 1)

Any person who removes any protected deciduous oak tree for which a permit is required by this article without first having obtained a permit, shall, if subsequently granted a permit for that action or activity on the property, also pay such additional permit processing fees as established from time to time by the board of supervisors.

(Ord. No. 4490, § 1)

If any portion of a privilege authorized by an oak tree removal permit approved under this article is utilized, the conditions of the oak tree removal permit approved under this article immediately become effective and must be strictly complied with. The failure to comply with any valid condition imposed by the planning commission or board of supervisors, in connection with the granting of any oak tree removal permit or other permit taken pursuant to the authority of this article, shall constitute a violation and shall be subject to the same penalties as defined in section 35-920.4.

(Ord. No. 4490, § 1)

No application shall be accepted nor acted upon if within the past one year, substantially the same application has been made and denied by the planning commission, or the board of supervisors, which covers substantially the same real property, unless either the planning commission or the board of supervisors permits such re-application because of an express finding that one or more of the following applies:

(a) That new evidence material to a revised decision will be presented which was unavailable or unknown to the applicant at the previous hearings and which could not have been discovered in the exercise of reasonable diligence by the applicant.

(b) That there has been a substantial and permanent change of circumstances since the previous hearings, which materially affects the applicant's real property.

(c) That a mistake was made in the consideration of the previous application, which was a material factor in the denial or denials of the previous application.

(Ord. No. 4490, § 1)

If any division, section, sentence, clause or phrase of this article is for any reason held to be unconstitutional or invalid such decision shall not affect the validity of the remaining portions of this article. The board of supervisors hereby declares that it would have passed this article and each section, sub-section, sentence, clause or phrase hereof irrespective of the fact that any one or more sections, sub-sections, sentences, clauses, or phrases be declared unconstitutional or invalid.

(Ord. No. 4490, § 1)