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Violations of ordinances that are enforced by the City Code Enforcement Board shall be subject to the following schedule of civil fines:
(A) If a citation for a violation of an ordinance is not contested by the offender, the penalties set forth in this division shall apply; however, the Board may waive all or any portion of penalty for a contested violation, if in its discretion, the Board determines that such waiver will promote compliance with the ordinance in issue.
Violation | 1st Offense | 2nd Offense | Each Additional Offense |
Animal Control | $50 | $150 | $250 |
Property Maintenance Code | $100 | $150 | $250 |
Noise Control | $100 | $150 | $250 |
Zoning Ordinance | $100 | $150 | $250 |
The acceptance of these fines for uncontested offenses shall be contingent upon the abatement of these offenses and/or approval of the Code Enforcement Board. | |||
(B) If the citation is contested and a hearing before the Code Enforcement Board is required, the following maximum penalties may be imposed at the discretion of the Code Enforcement Board:
Violation | Fine |
Animal Control | $50 to $500 |
Property Maintenance Code | $100 to $500 |
Noise Control | $100 to $500 |
Zoning Ordinance | $100 to $500 |
(C) The Code Enforcement Board is authorized to impose penalties as set forth in the Fire Code, Property Maintenance Code, Animal Control Ordinance and any other ordinance or code that designates enforcement by the Code Enforcement Board.
(Ord. 2004-1361, passed 10-28-04; Am. Ord. 2005-1369, passed 2-10-05; Am. Ord. 2005-1377, passed 5-26-05; Am. Ord. 2006-1421, passed 9-14-06; Am. Ord. 2011-1556, passed 1-12-12; Am. Ord. 2012-1590, passed 9-27-12; Am. Ord. 2016-1688, passed 2-25-16; Am. Ord. 2016-1715, passed 11-10-16)
(A) The city shall possess a lien on property owned by the person found by a non-appealable final order of the Code Enforcement Board, or by a final judgment to the court, to have committed a violation of a city ordinance. The lien shall be for all civil fines assessed for the violation and all charges and fees incurred by the city in connection with the enforcement of the ordinance, including abatement costs. An affidavit of the Code Enforcement Officer shall constitute prima facie evidence of the amount of the lien and the regularity of the proceedings conducted pursuant to this chapter.
(B) The lien shall be recorded in the office of the Calloway County Clerk; shall be notice to all persons from the time of its recording and shall bear interest until paid; subject to § 40.50, shall take precedence over all other subsequent liens, except state, county, school board, and city taxes; shall continue for ten years following the date of the non-appealable final order, or final judgment of the court, and may be enforced by judicial proceedings, including an action to foreclose.
(C) In addition to the remedy prescribed in division (A), the offender found to have committed the violation shall be personally responsible for the amount of the lien, including all civil fines assessed for the violation and for all charges, fees and abatement costs incurred by the city in connection with the enforcement of the ordinance. The city may bring a civil action against the person and shall have the same remedies as provided for the recovery of a debt.
(D) Nothing in this section shall otherwise affect the rights or obligations between the owner of the premises and those who claim a security interest in the premises.
(Ord. 2004-1361, passed 10-28-04; Am. Ord. 2016-1715, passed 11-10-16)
(A) The city shall implement a system for notification to lienholders that meets the minimum requirements of division (B) of this section and shall comply with the procedures to permit remedial action by lienholders as provided in division (C) of this section in order to obtain and maintain the lien priority over previously filed liens granted pursuant to applicable law.
(B) The city shall create a notification system that provides lienholders and others that elect to do so with electronic notifications of all Final Orders entered pursuant to Chapter 40 of the Code of Ordinances of the City of Murray, Kentucky. This system shall meet the following minimum requirements:
(1) An individual or entity (hereafter, individually, registrant; collectively, party) may register with the city to receive information on each final order issued by the Code Enforcement Board by providing a name, mailing address, phone number, and an electronic mailing address to the city. The city shall accept this information in any form submitted by a registrant. It shall be the responsibility of the registrant to maintain and update its contact information with the city, except that the city shall inform a registrant of any evidence the city receives that the electronic mailing address is invalid or not functional in order to provide the registrant an opportunity to submit an updated electronic mailing address.
(2) No less than once a month, the city shall send electronic mail notification of all final orders issued pursuant to the provisions of Chapter 40 of the Code of Ordinances of the City of Murray since the last date of notification to each registrant or party registered pursuant to division (A) of this section. The notification shall, at a minimum, include or provide an electronic link to a document or database meeting the requirements of this division that includes:
(a) The name of the person charged with a violation;
(b) The physical address of the premises where the violation occurred;
(c) The last known mailing address for the owner of the premises where the violation occurred;
(d) A specific description of the citation leading to the final order, including the citation detail required by § 40.35(D)(l) through (10) and which may be satisfied by including a copy of the full citation;
(e) The findings of the final order, including the penalty or penalties imposed by the final order, which may be satisfied by providing a copy of the full final order; and
(f) The status of the final order in regard to its ability to be appealed, except that the city shall provide an update to registrants if an appeal is filed on a final order.
(3) The city shall post the notification required under division (B)(2) of this section or provide a summary of the information regarding each final order in a conspicuous place on the city's public website, within ten days of the issuance of the final order. If the city posts using summary form, the summary shall be calculated to reasonably allow identification of the specific properties which may be impacted by the lien. Upon written request, the city shall provide the complete record of a final order without charge.
(4) City shall maintain the records created under this section for a period of ten years following their issuance.
(C) A registrant who is a lien holder of record may, within 45 days from the date of issuance of notification under division (B)(2) of this section, correct the violation if it has not already been abated, or elect to pay all civil fines assessed for the violation and all charges and fees incurred by the city in connection with the enforcement of the chapter, including abatement costs. This section shall not prohibit the city from taking immediate action if necessitated under § 40.31 of this chapter.
(D) The lien provided by § 40.40 of this chapter shall not take precedence over previously recorded liens if:
(1) The city failed to comply with the requirements of division (B)(2) of this section for notification of the final order; or
(2) A prior lienholder corrected the violation or paid all civil fines assessed for the violation and all charges and fees incurred by the city in connection with the enforcement of the ordinance, including abatement costs within 45 days as provided in division (C) of this section.
(E) A lien that does not take precedence over previously recorded liens under the circumstances outlined in division (D) of this section, shall, if the final order remains partially unsatisfied, take precedence over all other subsequent liens except liens for state, county, school board and city taxes.
(F) Nothing contained in this section shall prohibit the city from recording a lien before the 45 day period established in division (C) of this section expires. If the lien is fully satisfied prior to the expiration of the 45 day period established in division (C) of this section, the city shall release the lien in the Office of the Calloway County Clerk within fifteen (15) days of satisfaction.
(G) The failure of city to comply with this section or the failure of a lien to take precedence over previously filed liens as provided in this section, shall not limit or restrict any other remedies that the city has against the property or the offender.
(H) The requirements of this section shall not be mandatory for city's compliance with or enforcement of KRS 65.8840 or the former KRS 381.770.
(Ord. 2016-1715, passed 11-10-16)
Nothing in this chapter shall prohibit the city from taking immediate action to remedy a violation of an ordinance when there is reason to believe that the existence of the violation presents imminent danger, a serious threat to the public health, safety, and welfare, or if in the absence of immediate action, the effects of the violation will be irreparable or irreversible.
(Ord. 2016-1715, passed 11-10-16)