A. Employee Actions: All licensees shall be responsible for the actions of their employees in regard to the sale of fireworks on the licensed premises, and for purposes of this chapter the sale of such an item by an employee shall be considered a sale by the license holder.
B. Violations And Penalties: For purposes of determining the number of occurrences of violations, the council shall consider a violation as a second occurrence if it occurred within eighteen (18) months of the first violation; and shall consider a violation as a third occurrence if it occurred within thirty (30) months of the second violation; and shall consider a violation a fourth occurrence if it occurred within thirty (30) months of the third violation. If there is a change of ownership (meaning at least 50 percent of the ownership is transferred to an unrelated party) of the licensed establishment, previous violation will not apply.
1. First violation: The licensee shall pay a civil fine of five hundred dollars ($500.00).
2. Second violation: The licensee shall pay a civil fine of one thousand dollars ($1,000.00).
3. Third violation: The licensee shall pay a civil fine of two thousand dollars ($2,000.00), have its license suspended for five (5) days as determined by the chief of police.
4. Fourth violation: The licensee's license shall be revoked.
All administrative fees imposed by this chapter are deemed payable within sixty (60) days of the date of citation or no later than thirty (30) days after the date of any written decision determining that a violation has occurred for all appeals. Failure to pay any administrative fee imposed within the time limits set herein will result in a license suspension until the date of payment.
C. Citation Process And Right To A Hearing: Upon discovery of a violation of this chapter or pursuant to a compliance check, the licensee shall be issued a citation by city police. Each violation, and every day in which a violation occurs or continues, shall constitute a separate offense. All fees imposed by this chapter will be payable to the city administrator of the city of Baxter. No administrative fee may be imposed until the licensee has received written notice of the violation by personal service or by certified mail sent to the location of the alleged violation and the cited parties have been afforded an opportunity for a hearing. Any cited party that requests a hearing in writing within twenty (20) days of the date of mailing of the written notice of violation will be afforded an opportunity for a hearing before a person authorized by the licensing authority to conduct the hearing. A decision that a violation has occurred must be in writing and will be completed within ten (10) days of the hearing.
D. Right To Obtain A Transcript: If a hearing is requested, the hearing will not be recorded and will only be transcribed if all financial arrangements are made in advance with a certified court reporter by the person requesting the hearing. Furthermore, any person requesting that the hearing be transcribed agrees to provide the city with a copy of the transcript at no cost to the city. (Ord. 79, 6-17-2002)