(A) Appointment. The City Manager, with advice and consent of the City Council, shall appoint an Administrative Hearing Officer to hear all matters under this chapter. The Administrative Hearing Officer must be an attorney licensed to practice law in the state for at least three years. In the event the Administrative Hearing Officer is unavailable for any regular or special court date, the City Manager shall appoint a temporary Administrative Hearing Officer. The temporary appointee must be an attorney licensed to practice law in the state for at least three years.
(B) Training. Prior to conducting proceedings under this chapter, Administrative Hearing Officers shall successfully complete a formal training program that includes the following:
(1) Instruction on the rules of procedure of the hearings that they will conduct;
(2) Orientation to each subject area of the code violations they will adjudicate;
(3) Observation of administrative hearings; and
(4) Participation in hypothetical cases, including ruling of evidence and issuing final orders.
(C) Powers and duties. The powers and duties of the Administrative Hearing Officer shall include:
(1) Hearing testimony and accepting evidence that is relevant to the existence of the code violation;
(2) Administering oaths and affirmations to witnesses;
(3) Issuing subpoenas, at the request of any party or on the Administrative Hearing Officer’s own motion, for the appearance of witnesses, or for the production of relevant books, records, or other information, subject to § 38.10;
(4) Ruling upon motions, objections, and the admissibility of evidence;
(5) Regulating the course of the hearing in accordance with this chapter, the rules and regulations adopted by the Unit or other applicable law;
(6) Preserving and authenticating the record of the hearing and all exhibits and evidence introduced at the hearing;
(7) Holding conferences for the settlement or simplifications of issues;
(8) Issuing a determination, based on the evidence presented at the hearing, of whether a code violation exists. The determination shall be a written final order and shall include findings and conclusions of law;
(9) Imposing penalties consistent with applicable code provisions and assessing costs upon finding a party liable for the charged violation. However, in no event shall the Administrative Hearing Officer have authority to (i) impose a penalty of incarceration, or (ii) impose a fine in excess of $50,000, or at the option of the city, such other amount not to exceed the maximum amount established by the mandatory arbitration system as prescribed by the rules of the Illinois Supreme Court from time to time for the 9th Judicial Circuit. The maximum monetary fine under this section shall be exclusive of costs of enforcement or costs imposed to secure compliance with the city’s ordinances and shall not be applicable to cases to enforce the collection of any tax imposed and collected by the city;
(10) Ordering a respondent to comply with the appropriate relevant code section(s) that the respondent has been found liable of violating during the course of the administrative hearing;
(11) Imposing, in addition to fines and costs assessed, costs related to the enforcement of this code’s provisions for which the respondent has been found liable;
(12) Ordering the respondent to perform a term of community service; and
(13) Granting equitable relief as otherwise authorized by law or local ordinance.
(Ord. 15-3507, passed 12-21-2015)