A. Hearing Officer. All appeals of an administrative enforcement order shall be heard by a hearing officer appointed by the city manager or his or her designee to hear administrative appeals. The hearing officer shall not be a city employee.
B. Setting Administrative Enforcement Order Appeal Hearing. The administrative enforcement order appeal hearing shall be set by the city clerk or designee, and notice of the appeal hearing shall be sent to the appellant by first class mail at the address provided with the written appeal request. The administrative penalty hearing shall be set for an appeal hearing no sooner than twenty (20) working days following a request for an appeal hearing. Notice of the appeal hearing shall be mailed at least fifteen (15) working days before the date set for the hearing.
C. Failure to Attend Hearing. Failure of the violator(s) and/or any responsible party having a legal interest in the property to attend the administrative enforcement order appeal hearing shall constitute a waiver of rights to an administrative hearing and adjudication of the notice and order or any portion thereof.
D. Rules Applicable to Conduct of the Administrative Enforcement Order Appeal Hearing. The following rules shall govern the conduct of the administrative enforcement order appeal hearing.
1. Testimony at the Hearing. At the time set for the administrative enforcement order appeal hearing the hearing officer shall proceed to hear testimony from the representative of the city, the appellant and any other competent persons with respect to imposition of an administrative penalty.
2. Record of Oral Evidence at Hearing. The proceedings at the hearing shall be reported by a tape recorder. Either party may provide a certified shorthand reporter to maintain a record of the proceedings at the requesting party's own expense.
3. Continuances. The hearing officer may, upon request of the responsible party against whom a penalty is to be imposed, or upon request of the city, grant continuances from time to time for good cause shown, or upon his/her own motion.
4. Oaths -- Certification. The hearing officer or certified shorthand reporter shall administer the oath or affirmation.
5. Evidence Rules. Government Code Section 11513, subsections (a), (b) and (c), as it exists on the effective date of the ordinance adopting these provisions, or as hereafter amended, shall apply to all administrative penalty hearings.
6. Rights of Parties. Parties may represent themselves, or be represented by an attorney licensed to practice in the State of California. A party may be represented by a non-attorney representative so long as the party executes a notarized consent to said representation, and submits same to the City prior to the administrative hearing. If a party does not proficiently speak or understand the English language, he/she may provide an interpreter, at that party's own cost, to translate for the party. An interpreter shall not have had any personal involvement in the issues of the case prior to the hearing. The City may be represented by the City Attorney.
7. Official Notice. In reaching a decision, official notice may be taken, either before or after submission of the case for decision, of any fact which may be judicially noticed by the courts of this state or which may appear in any of the official records of the city or county, or any of their departments.
8. Subpoenas. The hearing officer shall have the authority to issue subpoenas for orders to appear and produce testimony or subpoenas duces tecum for orders to produce documents, or shall issue a subpoena upon a showing of reasonable necessity by the requesting party, in accordance with the requirements and conditions of Article 11 of Chapter 4.5 of Part of Division 3 of the California Government Code. Failure to comply with any subpoena may be considered by the hearing officer in making his/her decision regarding the imposition of administrative penalties.
9. Inspection of Premises. In the case of a violation related to property in the city, the hearing officer may inspect the building and premises involved in the hearing prior to, during, or after the hearing, provided that:
(i) Notice of such inspection shall be given to the parties before the inspection is made; and
(ii) The parties consent, and are given an opportunity to be present during the inspection. Upon completion of an inspection, the hearing officer shall state for the record during the hearing, or file a written statement after the hearing for inclusion in the hearing record, the material facts observed and the conclusion drawn therefrom. Each party shall have a right to rebut or explain the matters so stated by the hearing officer either for the record during the hearing or by filing a written statement after the hearing for inclusion in the hearing record. Inspections may be made without notice to the responsible parties if the property can be inspected from areas to which the general public has access. (Ord. 2006-15 § 2 (part), 2006)