A. Violation of any provision of this chapter may constitute grounds for issuance of a Notice of Violation and assessment of a fine in the discretion of the Enforcement Official. Enforcement actions under this chapter are issuance of an administrative citation and assessment of a fine. The city's procedures for imposition of administrative fines are hereby incorporated by reference in their entirety, as modified from time to time, and shall govern the imposition, enforcement, collection, and review of administrative citations issued to enforce this chapter and any rule or regulation adopted pursuant to this chapter, except as otherwise indicated in this chapter.
B. Other remedies allowed by law may be used, including civil action or prosecution as misdemeanor or infraction. City may pursue civil actions in the California courts to seek recovery of unpaid administrative citations.
C. Except as otherwise specified herein, the procedures for issuance of the Notice of Violation and the assessment of fine shall be those procedures set forth in chapter 8.25.
D. Process for Enforcement.
1. The city, franchised hauler and/or its designee will monitor compliance with the ordinance randomly and through compliance reviews, route reviews, investigation of complaints, and an inspection program (that may include remote monitoring).
2. City and franchised hauler may issue an official notification to notify regulated entities of its obligations under this chapter.
3. City may issue a Notice of Violation requiring compliance within sixty (60) days of issuance of the notice.
5. Absent compliance by the respondent within the deadline set forth in the Notice of Violation, city is authorized to commence an action to impose penalties, via an administrative citation and fine, pursuant to the city's standard procedures.
E. Penalty Amounts for Types of Violations. The penalty levels are as follows:
1. For a first violation, the amount of the penalty shall be fifty dollars ($50) to one hundred dollars ($100) per violation.
2. For a second violation, the amount of the penalty shall be one hundred dollars ($100) to two hundred dollars ($200) per violation.
3. For a third or subsequent violation, the amount of the penalty shall be two hundred fifty dollars ($250) to five hundred dollars ($500) per violation.
F. Compliance Deadline Extension Considerations. The city may extend the compliance deadlines set forth in a Notice of Violation issued in accordance with this chapter if it finds that there are extenuating circumstances beyond the control of the respondent that make compliance within the deadlines impracticable, including the following:
1. Acts of God such as earthquakes, wildfires, flooding, and other emergencies or natural disasters;
2. Delays in obtaining discretionary permits or other government agency approvals; or
3. Deficiencies in organic waste recycling infrastructure or edible food recovery capacity and the jurisdiction is under a corrective action plan with CalRecycle pursuant to 14 CCR Section 18996.2 due to those deficiencies.
G. Appeals Process. Persons receiving an administrative citation containing a penalty for an uncorrected violation may request a hearing to appeal the citation. A hearing will be held only if it is requested within the time prescribed and consistent with city's procedures in the city's codes for appeals of administrative citations. Evidence may be presented at the hearing. The city will appoint a hearing officer who shall conduct the hearing and issue a final written order.
H. Education Period for Noncompliance. Beginning January 1, 2022 and through December 31, 2023, city will conduct inspections, remote monitoring, route reviews or waste evaluations, and compliance reviews, depending upon the type of regulated entity, to determine compliance, and if city determines that organic waste generator, self-hauler, hauler, tier one commercial edible food generator, food recovery organization, food recovery service, or other entity is not in compliance, it shall provide educational materials to the entity describing its obligations under this chapter and a notice that compliance is required starting on January 1, 2022, and that violations may be subject to administrative civil penalties starting on January 1, 2024.
I. Civil Penalties for Noncompliance. Beginning January 1, 2024, if the jurisdiction determines that an organic waste generator, self-hauler, hauler, tier one or tier two commercial edible food generator, food recovery organization, food recovery service, or other entity is not in compliance with this chapter, it shall document the noncompliance or violation, issue a Notice of Violation, and take enforcement action pursuant to this chapter, as needed.
J. Delegation. The City Council may, by resolution, authorize and designate other entities to carry out responsibilities under this chapter, to the extent allowed by applicable law, and no amendment of this chapter shall be required. (Ord. 2021-01 § 2 (part), 2021)