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(a) Before any administrative adjudication proceeding may be conducted under this article, the parties shall be afforded notice in compliance with this section.
(b) A CDOT inspector shall notify potential respondents that he has begun an investigation, the subject matter of his investigation, and their responsibilities to preserve and produce evidence in relation to that investigation.
(c) The issuer of an Administrative Notice of Violation shall specify on the notice his name and badge number; where known, the name and address of the person charged with the violation; the date and place of the violation; and the section of the Code or rule which was allegedly violated; and shall certify the correctness of the specified information by signing his name to the notice. The notice shall indicate whether the matter may be prepaid. The notice shall inform the respondent of what may be submitted to CDOT prior to the review of the Administrative Notice of Violation by the Evaluation Panel.
(d) A respondent of the category delineated in subsection 10-21-290(b)(2)(B) who timely requests a review of a Director's determination shall be provided with a Notice of Hearing prior to the hearing before the Administrative Law Officer. A Notice of Hearing shall include the date, time, and location of the hearing and the penalties for failure to appear at the hearing before the Administrative Law Officer. A Notice of Hearing shall be served upon the alleged violator no less than seven calendar days prior to the date of the hearing.
(e) Service of an Administrative Notice of Hearing or a Notice of Hearing shall be:
(1) by first class or express mail or by overnight carrier at the address on record with 811 Chicago; or
(2) if the location of the alleged violation is within the scope of a permit, then the address on the permit issued for work at that location; or
(3) to the alleged violator's residence address or, if the alleged violator is a business entity, at any address identified for its registered agent or at its place of business; or
(4) by personal service, including personal service upon an employee or agent of the alleged violator at a place of business of the alleged violator or otherwise if such service is reasonably calculated to give the alleged violator actual notice; or
(5) by electronic mail to the address provided for that purpose to 811 Chicago by the respondent.
(f) In all non-emergency situations, if requested by the respondent, the respondent shall have at least 15 days after the date of mailing or other service of a Notice of Hearing to prepare for a hearing. For purposes of this section, "non-emergency situation" means any situation that does not reasonably constitute a threat to the public interest, safety or welfare.
(Added Coun. J. 11-16-16, p. 37901, Art. VI, § 3; Amend Coun. J. 9-14-21, p. 35804, § 1)
(a) The Evaluation Panel shall consider all Administrative Notices of Violation brought before it. It shall also consider any evidence in support of the Administrative Notice of Violation provided by the inspector including, but not limited to, reports, permits, photos, work sheets, affidavits, and statements in support of positions. When possible, all Administrative Notices of Violation which regard a worksite shall be considered together to avoid piecemeal adjudication. Any panel member whose company or department is cited shall remove himself from consideration of that citation. After consideration of the evidence, the Evaluation Panel shall decide whether liability should be assessed, and, if so, determine an appropriate sanction, all of which it shall recommend to the Director.
(b) Within 30 days of receipt of the Evaluation Panel's recommendation, the Director shall review the Evaluation Panel's recommendation and the record and determine whether to issue a finding of liability and, in the case of a finding of liability, what sanctions to impose. The Director shall issue a determination accepting, rejecting, or otherwise modifying the Evaluation Panel's findings and recommendations. The Director shall provide the respondent notice of the determination, as well as notice of the right to request review of the determination by filing with the Director a written request for review within 30 days of issuance of the notice.
(1) If no request for review is made within this time, any fine, other sanction or costs imposed by the Director's order that remain unpaid shall be a debt due and owing the City for purposes of Section 1-20-090 and, as such, may be collected in accordance with applicable law. Unless stayed by a court of competent jurisdiction, the findings, determination, and order of the Director may be enforced in the same manner as a judgment entered by a court of competent jurisdiction.
(2) If the respondent files a timely request for review, and
(A) the respondent is not the City, one of its departments, or an employee of the City, then the Director shall convene a review hearing.
(B) the respondent is the City, one of its departments, or an employee of the City, then the Director shall transmit to the head of the relevant City department a copy of the Administrative Notice of Violation and the determination of liability, and request disciplinary action. The appropriate commissioner shall provide a response describing any such action taken. This response shall be provided to the Director within 30 days after receipt of the disciplinary recommendation. The Director shall retain on file a copy of each notice transmitted pursuant to this subsection, as well as each corresponding response. Any appeal from a finding of liability to an employee shall in accordance with any applicable collective bargaining agreement. Review by the Administrative Law Officer is not available for represented employees.
(Added Coun. J. 11-16-16, p. 37901, Art. VI, § 3; Amend Coun. J. 11-21-17, p. 61913, § 12; Amend Coun. J. 9-14-21, p. 35804, § 1)
(a) The Administrative Law Officer may issue a subpoena only if it determines that the testimony of the witnesses or the documents or items sought by the subpoena are necessary to present evidence that is:
(1) relevant to the case; and
(2) relates to a contested issue in the case.
(b) A subpoena issued under this chapter shall identify:
(1) the person to whom it is directed;
(2) the documents or other items sought by the subpoena, if any;
(3) the date for the appearance of the witnesses and the production of the documents or other items described in the subpoena;
(4) the time for the appearance of the witnesses and the production of the documents or other items described in the subpoena; and
(5) the place for the appearance of the witnesses and the production of the documents or other items described in the subpoena.
(c) In no event shall the date identified for the appearance of the witnesses or the production of the documents or other items be less than seven days after service of the subpoena.
(Added Coun. J. 11-16-16, p. 37901, Art. VI, § 3)
(a) When a respondent timely requests a review of a determination by the Director, it shall receive a hearing consistent with this chapter.
(b) An attorney who appears on behalf of any person shall file with the Administrative Law Officer a written appearance on a form provided by the One-Call Adjudicatory Process for such purpose.
(c) The Administrative Law Officer may grant continuances only upon a finding of good cause.
(d) All testimony shall be given under oath or affirmation.
(e) No new documents may be introduced before the Administrative Law Officer which were available to the parties prior to review of the Evaluation Panel.
(f) The Administrative Law Officer may issue subpoenas to secure the attendance and testimony of relevant witnesses and the production of relevant documents. Issuance of subpoenas shall be subject to Section 10-21-300.
(g) Subject to subsection (i) of this section, the Administrative Law Officer may permit witnesses to submit their testimony by affidavit or by telephone.
(h) The formal and technical rules of evidence shall not apply in the conduct of the hearing. Evidence, including hearsay, may be admitted only if it is of a type commonly relied upon by reasonably prudent persons in the conduct of their affairs.
(i) The Administrative Law Officer shall give deference to the Evaluation Panel's findings of fact and the Director's determination. The Administrative Law Officer shall take de novo consideration as to the weight of the testimony and credibility of the witnesses. The party who seeks review of the Director's determination has the burden to establish that the decision was clear error, and thus must firmly convince the Administrative Law Officer that a mistake was made in the Director's determination.
(j) Upon the timely request of any party to the proceeding, any person, who the Administrative Law Officer determines may reasonably be expected to provide testimony which is material and which does not constitute a needless presentation of cumulative evidence, shall be made available for cross-examination prior to a final decision.
(k) Upon conclusion of a hearing, the Administrative Law Officer shall issue a final decision affirming or reversing, in whole or in part, the Director's determination. Upon issuing a final decision the Administrative Law Officer may modify the Director's determination accordingly, provided that the Administrative Law Officer's decision is consistent with this Chapter 10-21. It may also assess costs reasonably related to instituting the administrative adjudication proceeding; provided, however, that in no event shall the Administrative Law Officer have the authority to impose a fine in excess of $50,000.00 exclusive of costs of enforcement or costs imposed to secure compliance with this Code.
(l) The record of all hearings before the Administrative Law Officer shall include:
(1) a record of the testimony presented at the hearing, which may be made by tape recording or other appropriate means;
(2) all documents presented at the hearing;
(3) a copy of the administrative notice of violation;
(4) a copy of the Evaluation Panel's findings of fact and recommendation;
(5) a copy of the Director's determination;
(6) a copy of the notice of hearing; and
(7) a copy of the findings and decision of the Administrative Law Officer.
(Added Coun. J. 11-16-16, p. 37901, Art. VI, § 3; Amend Coun. J. 11-7-18, p. 88803, § 27; Amend Coun. J. 9-14-21, p. 35804, § 1)
(a) If at the time set for a hearing the respondent or his attorney of record fails to appear, the Administrative Law Officer shall find the respondent in default, terminate the proceedings, and revert to the determination of the Director, unless either (1) prior to the hearing, a respondent and the City have agreed to continue the matter and that continuance is met with the approval of the Administrative Law Officer, or (2) the Administrative Law Officer finds that the respondent was not provided with proper notice of the hearing. A copy of the order of default shall be served in any manner permitted by Section 10-21-280(c).
(b) A respondent who is found to be in default may petition the Administrative Law Officer to set aside the order of default and set a new hearing date in accordance with Section 10-21-330.
(Added Coun. J. 11-16-16, p. 37901, Art. VI, § 3; Amend Coun. J. 9-14-21, p. 35804, § 1)
The Administrative Law Officer may vacate any order entered by default and set a new hearing date upon a petition filed within 21 days after the issuance of the order of default if the Administrative Law Officer determines that the petitioner's failure to appear at the hearing was for good cause or, at any time if the petitioner establishes that the petitioner was not provided with proper service of process. If the petition is granted, the order shall be vacated and the Administrative Law Officer shall proceed with a new hearing on the underlying matter as soon as practical.
(Added Coun. J. 11-16-16, p. 37901, Art. VI, § 3)
(a) A person violates this section if he:
(1) is provided with notice and an opportunity to be heard under this Code; and
(2) knowingly fails to comply with an order issued by the Director or the Administrative Law Officer under this chapter, including any requirement of a subpoena.
Each day that the violation occurs shall be considered a separate and distinct offense.
(b) It is not a defense to this section that a person:
(1) came into compliance or attempted to come into compliance with the order after the date upon which the order, by its terms, required compliance; or
(2) sought judicial review of the order but failed to obtain a stay of the order prior to the date upon which the order, by its terms, required compliance.
(c) Sentence. A person convicted under this section shall be punished by:
(1) a fine of not less than $200.00 and not more than $500.00 for each offense;
(2) incarceration for not more than 180 days for each offense; and/or
(3) an order to perform community service for a period not to exceed 200 hours for each offense.
(d) The corporation counsel shall institute actions under this section in a court of competent jurisdiction.
(Added Coun. J. 11-16-16, p. 37901, Art. VI, § 3; Amend Coun. J. 9-14-21, p. 35804, § 1)
Any final decision by the Administrative Law Officer that a code violation does or does not exist shall constitute a final decision for purposes of judicial review and shall be subject to review under the Illinois Administrative Review Law.
(Added Coun. J. 11-16-16, p. 37901, Art. VI, § 3; Amend Coun. J. 9-14-21, p. 35804, § 1)
(a) Any fine, other sanction or costs imposed by order of the One-Call Adjudicatory Process that remains unpaid after the exhaustion of, or the failure to exhaust, judicial review procedures shall be a debt due and owing the City and, as such, may be collected in accordance with applicable law.
(b) After the expiration of the period in which judicial review may be sought, unless stayed by a court of competent jurisdiction, the findings, decision and order of the One-Call Adjudicatory Process may be enforced in the same manner as a judgment entered by a court of competent jurisdiction.
(c) In any case in which a respondent fails to comply with an order of the One-Call Adjudicatory Process imposing a fine or other sanction as a result of a code violation, any expenses incurred by the City to enforce the order of the One-Call Adjudicatory Process, including but not limited to, attorney's fees, court costs, and costs, after they are fixed by a court of competent jurisdiction or an Administrative Law Officer shall be a debt due and owing the city. The matter may be enforced in the Department of Administrative Hearings under Section 2-14-103.
(d) Nothing in this section shall prevent the City from enforcing or seeking to enforce any order of the One-Call Adjudicatory Process in any manner which is in accordance with applicable law.
(Added Coun. J. 11-16-16, p. 37901, Art. VI, § 3)
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