A. The City of Visalia may enforce the provisions of this chapter through a civil action for civil penalties in the amounts established herein, and any other civil remedy, including prohibitory and mandatory injunctive relief, filed in the Superior Court for the County of Tulare to compel and enforce the provisions herein against any retailer within the City of Visalia who sells sharps in violation of this chapter. In addition to any relief available to enforce this chapter, the City of Visalia shall also be entitled to recover its reasonable attorneys' fees and costs incurred in enforcing this chapter.
B. For any violation of this chapter, the City of Visalia may sue to recover civil penalties in the amount of one thousand dollars ($1,000.00) per day for every day on which a violation exists. For purposes of calculating the civil penalties to be established hereunder, each day on which the retailer fails to comply with the requirements of this chapter, after having received a written notice of violation issued by the City of Visalia, shall constitute a separate offense.
C. In addition to the civil relief available to the City of Visalia set forth above, any violation of this chapter shall also constitute a criminal offense punishable under the laws of the State of California. The District Attorney, the County Counsel, or any City Attorney shall be authorized to enforce the provisions of this chapter within their respective jurisdictions and shall have the authority to determine whether to prosecute the matter as a misdemeanor, or to elect for good cause to reduce the charge to an infraction. In the event of such criminal enforcement, the following criminal penalties apply to violations of this chapter:
1. Penalty for Misdemeanor. Any retailer found to be in violation of any provision of this chapter, or who fails to comply with any of its requirements, shall upon conviction thereof be punished by imprisonment in the county jail for not more than six months, or be fined not more than one thousand dollars ($1,000.00), or by both. Each day such violation continues shall be considered a separate offense.
2. Penalty for an Infraction. Any retailer found to be in violation of any provision of this chapter, or who fails to comply with any of its requirements, shall upon conviction thereof be punished by a fine of not more than two hundred fifty dollars ($250.00). Each day such violation continues shall be considered a separate offense.
D. In addition to the enforcement provided in this section, this chapter shall be enforceable under the Administrative Code Enforcement provisions of this Municipal Code, including but not limited to Chapter 1.13. If enforced pursuant to the Administrative Code Enforcement provisions of this Municipal Code, the penalties established by Subparagraph C of this Section 8.30.040 are hereby established as an alternative administrative penalty which shall be assessed pursuant to Section 1.13.050 or violations of the provisions of this Chapter 8.30. (Ord. 2014-08 § 1 (part), 2014)