Loading...
HomeMy WebLinkAbout2018-08ORDINANCE NO. 2018-08 ADOPTING BY REFERENCE CONTRA COSTA COUNTY ORDINANCES 2011-08, 2011-09,2014-14,2016-02 AND 2017-12 ADDING AND AMENDING SECTIONS OF THE COUNTY ANIMAL CONTROL ORDINANCE (DIVISION 416 OF THE CONTRA COSTA COUNTY CODE) AND INCORPORATING THE ORDINANCES INTO CHAPTER 6 OF THE DANVILLE MUNICIPAL CODE The Danville Town Council does ordain as follows: SECTION 1. FINDINGS. The Danville Town Council makes the following findings with regard to adoption of this ordinance: 1. The Town of Danville has previously entered into an agreement with Contra Costa County under which the County provides animal control services within the Town of Danville. Pursuant to that agreement, the Town is required to adopt the County's Animal Control Ordinance and all applicable amendments into the Town's Municipal Code to allow for enforcement. 2. Government Code Section 50022.1 et seq. provides a process allowing the Town to adopt the County's ordinances by reference. 3. The Town has previously adopted the County's Animal Control Ordinance by reference in Chapter 6 of the Danville Municipal Code, with the last amendments adopted in 2006. 4. The County has subsequently adopted the following ordinances, applicable to Danville, amending the Animal Control Ordinance: a. County Ordinance 2011-08, requiring the spaying or neutering of dogs after two impoundments before the dog is released to its owner. b. County Ordinance 2011-09, requiring the microchipping of all impounded dogs and cats. c. County Ordinance 2014-14, establishing administrative penalties for violation of dog and cat licensing requirements. d. County Ordinance 2016-02, revising the exemptions for dog or cat licensing fees. e. County Ordinance 2017-12, authorizing administrative penalties for barking dogs and noise animals. SECTION 2. ADOPTING BY REFERENCE AMENDMENTS TO THE CONTRA COSTA COUNTY ANIMAL CONTROL ORDINANCE IN SECTION 6- 1 OF THE DANVILLE MUNICIPAL CODE. Contra Costa County Ordinances 2011-08, 2011-09, 2014-14, 2016-02 and 2017-12, all amending Division 416 of the Contra Costa County Code, related to animal control, are hereby adopted by reference and incorporated into Section 6-1 of the Danville Municipal Code. SECTION 3. ADDING SECTION 6-3 TO THE DANVILLE MUNICIPAL CODE TO ESTABLISH ADMINISTRATIVE PENALTIES FOR VIOLATION OF THE ANIMAL CONTROL ORDINANCE. A new Section 6-3 is hereby added to the Danville Municipal Code to establish administrative penalties for violation of the County's Animal Control Ordinance, Division 416 of the Contra Costa County Code, to read as follows: 6-3 ADMINISTRATIVE PENALTIES. 6-3.1 Applicability and Authorization. (a) This article provides for administrative fines that the animal services department may impose, enforce, and collect to address any violation of this division. (b) Remedies under this article are in addition to any other remedy allowed by this code or applicable law. (c) This article is authorized by California Government Code Section 53069.4. 6-3.2 Definitions. For purposes of this article, the following words and phrases have the following meanings: (a) "Complainant" means a person who reports a violation of any section of Division 416 to the department. (b)"Department" means the animal services department. (c)"Effective date" means the date by which a violation must be corrected, as specified in a notice of violation. (d)"Hearing examiner" means the animal services director, or the animal services director's designee. (e)"Responsible Person" means any of the following: (1) A person who possesses, has title to, has an interest in, or has control, custody or possession of an animal or the property on which an animal is kept. (2) A person who allows, or whose agent, employee, or contractor allows, a barking dog or other noisy animal violation to exist, whether through action, failure to act, or failure to exercise control over a barking dog or other noisy animal. (3) For )purposes .of this article, there may be more than one responsible person for a barking dog or other noisy animal violation. (f) "Service date" means the date a notice or decision is served in accordance with Section 416-4.816. PAGE 2 OF ORDINANCE NO. 2018-08 6-3.3 Administrative Fines. (a) Notice of violation. If a violation is a continuing violation, such as the failure to obtain a dog or cat license, the department will first serve a notice of violation on the responsible person as specified in Section 416-4.816. The notice of violation will include all of the following information: (1) The date of the violation. (2) The name of the responsible person. (3) The address or location where the violation occurred. (4) The code section(s) violated and a description of the violation. (5) Whether the violation(s) were established by inspection or by complaint, if applicable. (6) A description of how the violation can be corrected. (7) A specified time period of at least ten calendar days, beginning on the service date, within which the violation must be corrected. (8) An advisement that the owner may be subject to an administrative fine under this article if the violation is not corrected by the effective date, and the amount of that fine. (b) The department may impose an administrative fine on a responsible person if any of the following occur: (1) The violation is not a continuing violation, such as a violation of the animal noise ordinance. (2) The continuing violation has not been corrected in the time period specified in the notice of violation. (3) The continuing violation was corrected as specified in the notice of violation, but a violation of the same section continues, exists, or occurs within one year after the effective date. (c) Notice of fine. An administrative fine will be assessed by means of a notice of fine. The responsible party will be served with the notice of fine as specified in Section 416- 4.816. The notice of fine will include all of the following information: (1) The date of the violation. (2) The code section(s) violated and a description of the violation. (3) The amount of the fine. (4) An advisement of the right to request a hearing before the hearing examiner, contesting the imposition of the fine. (d) For a continuing violation, the amount of the fine is one hundred dollars for the first notice of fine. If the owner fails to correct the violation after the first notice of fine, and a second notice of fine is issued in the same year, the amount of the fine in the second notice is two hundred dollars. If the owner still fails to correct the violation after the second notice of fine, the amount of the fine is five hundred dollars for each additional notice of fine that is sent within one year. (e) If the violation is not a continuing violation, the amount of the fine is one hundred dollars for a first violation, two hundred dollars for a second violation of the same PAGE 3 OF ORDINANCE NO. 2018-08 section within one year, and five hundred dollars for each additional violation of the same ordinance within one year. 6-3.4 Hearings. (a) Any person upon whom an administrative. fine is imposed by the department may request a hearing pursuant to the procedures set forth in this section. The appellant must file a written appeal with the department within fifteen calendar days after the service date of the notice of fine. The written appeal must contain: (1) A brief statement explaining who the appealing party is and what interest the appealing party has in challenging the imposition of the fine; and (2) A brief statement of the material facts that the appellant claims supports his or her contention that no administrative fine should be imposed or that an administrative fine of a different amount is warranted. (b) Notice of the hearing will be served on the appellant and the complainant, if any, as specified in Section 416-4.816. The department will set the hearing no sooner than twenty days and no later than forty-five days following the service date of the notice of hearing. (c) The hearing of an administrative fine imposed for violations of this division will be heard by the hearing examiner. (d) At the hearing, the appellant and complainant, if any, will be given the opportunity to testify, and present written and oral evidence. (e) An appellant's failure to appear at the hearing shall constitute an abandonment of any defense the appellant may have to the administrative fine. (f) Where applicable, a complainant's failure to appear at the hearing shall constitute an abandonment of the complaint and shall be grounds for a dismissal of the administrative fine. (g) After considering the testimony and evidence submitted at the hearing, or after the appellant or complainant has failed to appear at the hearing, the hearing examiner will issue a written decision to uphold, modify, or cancel the administrative fine and will list in the decision the reason or reasons for that decision. The decision will be served as specified in Section 416-4.816. 6-3.5 Final Administrative Order. The imposition of the administrative fine becomes a final administrative order at one of the following times: (a) On the date the notice of fine is served, if the responsible party fails to file a written appeal to the department within the time specified. I i (b) On the date the written decision by the hearing examiner is served, if the responsible party files a written appeal to the department within the time specified. PAGE 4 OF ORDINANCE NO. 2018-08 6-3.6 - Payment of the Fine. The fine must be paid to the county within thirty days after the imposition of the administrative fine becomes a final administrative order. Payment of a fine under this article does not excuse or discharge any continuation or repeated occurrence of the violation that is the subject of the notice of fine. The payment of a fine does not bar the county from taking any other enforcement action regarding a violation that is not corrected. 6-3.7 - Collection. If the fine is not paid within thirty days after the imposition of the fine becomes a final administrative order, the county may collect the fine, the county's collection costs, and interest. An administrative fine accrues interest at the same annual rate as any civil judgment, beginning on the twentieth day after the fine becomes a final administrative order. The county may collect by using any available legal means, including but not limited to the following: (a) The county may file a civil action. If a civil action is commenced, the county is entitled to recover all costs associated with the collection of the fine, including those costs set forth in Code of Civil Procedure Section 1033.5. (b) The county may take such other actions as are allowed for enforcement of a civil judgment as provided for pursuant to the Enforcement of Judgments Law, California Code of Civil Procedure Section 680.010 et seq. 6-3.8 - Service. All notices or decisions required to be served by this article will be served by any of the methods specified below: (a) First class mail. First class mail will be addressed to the responsible person at the address shown on the last equalized assessment roll, at the address where the violation occurred, or as otherwise known. Service is deemed completed upon the deposit of the notice or decision, postage pre -paid, in the United States mail. (b) Personal service. Personal service is deemed complete on the date the notice or decision is personally served on the responsible person. 6-3.9 - Judicial Review. A final administrative order may be appealed to the superior court of the county in accordance with the provisions set forth in Government Code Section 53069.4. PAGE 5 OF ORDINANCE NO. 2018-08 SECTION 4. CODIFICATION. Sections 2 and 3 of this ordinance shall be codified in the Danville Municipal Code. SECTION 5. PUBLICATION AND EFFECTIVE DATE. The City Clerk shall have a summary of this ordinance published twice in a newspaper of general circulation, once within five (5) days before its adoption and once within 15 (fifteen) days after adoption. This ordinance shall become effective 30 days after adoption. SECTION 6. SEVERABILITY. If any section, subsection, sentence, clause or phrase of this ordinance is for any reason held to be invalid, such decision shall not affect the validity of the remaining portions of the ordinance. The Danville Town Council hereby declares that they would have adopted the ordinance, and each section, subsection, sentence, clause, or phrase thereof, irrespective of the fact that one or more sections, subsections, sentences, clauses or phrases was declared invalid. The foregoing Ordinance was introduced on July 3, 2018 and approved and adopted by the Danville Town Council at a regular meeting held on July 17, 2018, by the following vote: AYES: Arnerich, NOES: None ABSTAIN: None ABSENT: None Blackwell, Morgan, Stepper, Storer APPROVED AS TO FORM: ATTEST• 9 7 VVWX CITY C RK CLERK'S CERTIFICATE I, Marie Sunseri, City Clerk of the Town of Danville, hereby certify that the foregoing is a true and accurate copy of Ordinance No. 2018-08 of said Town and that said ordinance was published according to law. Dated: PAGE 6 OF ORDINANCE NO. 2018-08