A. Any customer of the city's municipal and industrial water system found to be in violation of any mandatory water use restriction in effect from time to time under the water shortage contingency plan established under section 17.16.092 of this chapter, shall be subject to the following maximum civil fines:
First violation | $ 100.00 |
Second violation | 250.00 |
Third violation | 500.00 |
Fourth violation and thereafter | 1,000.00 |
The violation level shall be based on violation history for the preceding twelve (12) months. A civil fine for a customer's first violation shall be imposed only after the issuance of a written warning to such customer. Any civil fine based on a violation susceptible to corrective action shall be imposed only after failure by the customer to take such corrective action within a reasonable period of time, as determined by the director, taking into account the nature of the action needed and the anticipated cost. "Customer", for purposes of this section and section 17.16.092 of this chapter, shall mean and include any person responsible, whether by ordinance or by contract between the city and such person, to pay the water charges on any account for use of water from the city's municipal and industrial water treatment and distribution system, whether the location at which such water is used is situated within or outside of the corporate limits of the city. It is the intent of the city that compliance with the provisions of section 17.16.092 of this chapter, as enforced pursuant to this section, by customers situated outside of the corporate limits of the city, shall be a contractual condition of continued water service.
B. Any customer subject to a civil fine under this section shall be notified by the director, in writing, of the date, nature, and circumstances of the violation, which notification shall be delivered by posting such notice at a conspicuous location on the property, and by mailing notice, by certified mail, no more than fifteen (15) calendar days after the date of occurrence of the violation. The notice shall advise the customer of his/her right to protest the fine to a hearing officer, which shall be the director or his or her designee, within ten (10) business days after receipt of the notice. The hearing officer shall have the authority to adjust the fine to take into account any extenuating circumstances. Any determination by the hearing officer may be appealed to a three (3) member water shortage appeals panel. The city council shall designate three (3) members of the public utilities advisory committee to serve on the panel; provided, however, that the director may designate other members of the PUAC to serve as alternates as needed. All decisions of the water shortage appeals panel shall be final.
C. All fines collected pursuant to this section shall be set aside in a segregated fund within the public utilities enterprise fund, and used exclusively for paying all or a portion of the costs and expenses incurred by the city in connection with the implementation and administration of the plan and other elements of the city's water conservation program. (Ord. 50-03 § 2, 2003)