A. Any responsible party or interested party to whom an invoice has been issued may, within 15 calendar days from the date of the invoice, request a hearing to protest the cost of abatement by filing a written request for a hearing on the abatement costs with the City Clerk. The request for hearing must contain the following information:
(1) The requestor's full legal name;
(2) The requestor's mailing address and telephone number;
(3) The amount of nuisance abatement costs disputed;
(4) The specific legal and factual grounds for all disputes of the invoice and nuisance abatement costs.
B. The failure of any party to properly and timely request a hearing is a waiver of the right to contest the invoice, a waiver of the right to a hearing, a failure to exhaust administrative remedies, and a bar to any further challenge to the City's invoice and nuisance abatement costs.
C. If a hearing is timely and properly requested, the City Clerk shall cause a Hearing to be set before the Hearing Officer. The City shall provide notice of the date, time, and location of the hearing to all parties at least 10 calendar days before the hearing. At the time fixed for the hearing, the Hearing Officer shall hold an informal hearing to consider the invoice and protests or objections raised by the requestor.
D. At the conclusion of the hearing, or within 5 days thereafter, the Hearing Officer shall issue a decision approving, denying, or modifying the amount of the nuisance abatement costs that the City is entitled to recover.
E. The decision of the Hearing Officer shall be in writing and shall be served by mail. The decision of the Hearing Officer on the abatement costs shall be final. If any cost recovery is upheld, even in part, the City shall be the prevailing party. If cost recovery is entirely denied, the requesting parties shall be the prevailing parties.
F. Any appeal of the Hearing Officer's decision shall be governed by California Code of Civil Procedure Section 1094. 6 or such section as may be amended from time to time
(Ord. MC-1521, 9-18-19; Ord. MC-1418, 10-05-15)