BILL NUMBER: AB 683	AMENDED
	BILL TEXT

	AMENDED IN SENATE  AUGUST 12, 2013
	AMENDED IN SENATE  MAY 28, 2013
	AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY  MAY 6, 2013

INTRODUCED BY   Assembly Member Mullin

                        FEBRUARY 21, 2013

   An act to amend, repeal, and add Section 53069.4 of the Government
Code, relating to local government.


	LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST


   AB 683, as amended, Mullin. Local government: fines and penalties:
assessments.
   Existing law authorizes the legislative body of a local agency to
make any violation of any ordinance enacted by the local agency
subject to an administrative fine or penalty, as specified.
   This bill would, until January 1, 2020, authorize a city, county,
city and county, or special district to, after notice and public
hearing, specially assess any fines or penalties not paid after
demand by the city, county, city and county, or special district
against real property owned by the person owing those fines or
penalties, where the fines or penalties are related to ordinance
violations on the real property upon which the fines or penalties
would be specially assessed, and the ordinance violations constitute
a threat to public health and safety. This bill would require a city,
county, city and county, or special district to comply with certain
notice requirements. The bill would provide that the assessment may
be collected at the same time and in the same manner as ordinary
county taxes are collected, and shall be subject to the same
penalties and the same procedure and sale in case of delinquency as
are provided for ordinary county taxes, and would authorize the city,
county, city and county, or special district to record a lien
against the property. This bill would authorize a local agency to
appoint a hearing officer to hear and decide issues regarding
ordinance violations and the imposition of administrative fines and
penalties.
   This bill would, until January 1, 2020, provide that the powers
given to the legislative body of a city, county, city and county, or
special district under these provisions are in addition to any other
powers of a city, county, city and county, or special district under
its charter or any other legal authority.
   Vote: majority. Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee: no.
State-mandated local program: no.


THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:

  SECTION 1.  Section 53069.4 of the Government Code is amended to
read:
   53069.4.  (a) (1) The legislative body of a local agency, as the
term "local agency" is defined in Section 54951, may by ordinance
make any violation of any ordinance enacted by the local agency
subject to an administrative fine or penalty. The local agency shall
set forth by ordinance the administrative procedures that shall
govern the imposition, enforcement, collection, and administrative
review by the local agency of those administrative fines or
penalties. Where the violation would otherwise be an infraction, the
administrative fine or penalty shall not exceed the maximum fine or
penalty amounts for infractions set forth in subdivision (b) of
Section 25132 and subdivision (b) of Section 36900. The powers given
to the legislative body of a city, county, city and county, or
special district under this section are in addition to any other
powers of a city, county, city and county, or special district under
its charter or any other legal authority.
   (2) (A) The administrative procedures set forth by ordinance
adopted by the local agency pursuant to paragraph (1) shall provide
for a reasonable period of time, as specified in the ordinance, for a
person responsible for a continuing violation to correct or
otherwise remedy the violation prior to the imposition of
administrative fines or penalties, when the violation pertains to
building, plumbing, electrical, or other similar structural or zoning
issues, that do not create an immediate danger to health or safety.
   (B) Pursuant to Chapter 14 (commencing with Section 27720) of Part
3 of Division 1 of Title 3, or other applicable law, the
administrative procedures adopted by ordinance pursuant to paragraph
(1) may authorize the appointment of one or more hearing officers to
hear and decide issues regarding ordinance violations and the
imposition of administrative fines or penalties.
   (C) A city, county, city and county, or special district may, by
ordinance, combine the administrative procedures adopted pursuant to
paragraph (1) with nuisance abatement procedures adopted by ordinance
pursuant to Sections 25845, 38773.1, and 38773.5.
   (3) (A) If the owner of real property fails to pay fines or
penalties upon demand by a city, county, city and county, or special
district, the city, county, city and county, or special district may,
after notice and public hearing, order the fines or penalties to be
specially assessed against the parcel if the fines or penalties are
related to ordinance violations on the real property upon which the
fines or penalties would be specially assessed and the ordinance
violations constitute a threat to public health and safety. The city,
county, city and county, or special district shall mail or deliver
notice of the hearing at least 15 days prior to the hearing to the
owner of the parcel. For purposes of notice, ownership of the parcel
shall be determined by the latest assessment roll, the records of the
county assessor, or the records of the tax collector, whichever is
most recent. The assessment may be collected at the same time and in
the same manner as ordinary county taxes are collected, and shall be
subject to the same penalties and the same procedure and sale in case
of delinquency as are provided for ordinary county taxes. All laws
applicable to the levy, collection, and enforcement of county taxes
are applicable to the special assessment, except that the special
assessment is not subject to the priority for special assessment
liens provided for in Article 13 (commencing with Section 53930) of
Chapter 4 of Part 1 of Division 2. The assessment does not constitute
a lien on real property until a notice of lien is recorded pursuant
to this section.
   (B) If any administrative fine or penalty remains unpaid for 10
days following the conclusion of the public hearing described in
subparagraph (A), the  tax collector   county
 may send to the owner of the parcel, by certified mail, a
notice of enforcement that states that if payment has not been
received within 45 days following the date of the notice, a lien will
be recorded. If, after the 45-day period following the notice, the
fine or penalty has not been paid, the city, county, city and county,
or special district may specially assess the cost of the
administrative fines or penalties against the parcel and cause a
notice of lien to be recorded to perfect the lien. The notice of lien
shall, at a minimum, identify the assessor's parcel number and
record owner, set forth the last known address of the record owner,
set forth the date upon which assessment was ordered by the city,
county, city and county, or special district, and the amount of the
lien.
   (C) Recordation of a notice of lien pursuant to subparagraph (B)
has the same effect as recordation of an abstract of a money judgment
recorded pursuant to Article 2 (commencing with Section 697.310) of
Chapter 2 of Division 2 of Title 9 of Part 2 of the Code of Civil
Procedure. The lien created against the parcel has the same force,
effect, and priority as a judgment lien on real property. Upon order
of the city, county, city and county, or special district, or any
officer authorized by the city, county, or city and county to act on
its behalf, a lien created under this section may be released or
subordinated in the same manner as a judgment lien on real property
may be released or subordinated.
   (b) (1) Notwithstanding the provisions of Section 1094.5 or 1094.6
of the Code of Civil Procedure, within 20 days after service of the
final administrative order or decision of the local agency is made
pursuant to an ordinance enacted in accordance with this section
regarding the imposition, enforcement, or collection of the
administrative fines or penalties, a person contesting that final
administrative order or decision may seek review by filing an appeal
to be heard by the superior court, where the same shall be heard de
novo, except that the contents of the local agency's file in the case
shall be received in evidence. A proceeding under this subdivision
is a limited civil case. A copy of the document or instrument of the
local agency providing notice of the violation and imposition of the
administrative fine or penalty shall be admitted into evidence as
prima facie evidence of the facts stated therein. A copy of the
notice of appeal shall be served in person or by first-class mail
upon the local agency by the contestant.
   (2) The fee for filing the notice of appeal shall be as specified
in Section 70615. The court shall request that the local agency's
file on the case be forwarded to the court, to be received within 15
days of the request. The court shall retain the fee specified in
Section 70615 regardless of the outcome of the appeal. If the court
finds in favor of the contestant, the amount of the fee shall be
reimbursed to the contestant by the local agency. Any deposit of the
fine or penalty shall be refunded by the local agency in accordance
with the judgment of the court.
   (3) The conduct of the appeal under this section is a subordinate
judicial duty that may be performed by traffic trial commissioners
and other subordinate judicial officials at the direction of the
presiding judge of the court.
   (c) If no notice of appeal of the local agency's final
administrative order or decision is filed within the period set forth
in this section, the order or decision shall be deemed confirmed.
   (d) If the fine or penalty has not been deposited and the decision
of the court is against the contestant, the local agency may proceed
to collect the penalty pursuant to the procedures set forth in its
ordinance.
   (e) This section shall remain in effect only until January 1,
2020, and as of that date is repealed, unless a later enacted
statute, that is enacted before January 1, 2020, deletes or extends
that date.
  SEC. 2.  Section 53069.4 is added to the Government Code, to read:
   53069.4.  (a) (1) The legislative body of a local agency, as the
term "local agency" is defined in Section 54951, may by ordinance
make any violation of any ordinance enacted by the local agency
subject to an administrative fine or penalty. The local agency shall
set forth by ordinance the administrative procedures that shall
govern the imposition, enforcement, collection, and administrative
review by the local agency of those administrative fines or
penalties. Where the violation would otherwise be an infraction, the
administrative fine or penalty shall not exceed the maximum fine or
penalty amounts for infractions set forth in subdivision (b) of
Section 25132 and subdivision (b) of Section 36900.
   (2) The administrative procedures set forth by ordinance adopted
by the local agency pursuant to paragraph (1) shall provide for a
reasonable period of time, as specified in the ordinance, for a
person responsible for a continuing violation to correct or otherwise
remedy the violation prior to the imposition of administrative fines
or penalties, when the violation pertains to building, plumbing,
electrical, or other similar structural or zoning issues, that do not
create an immediate danger to health or safety.
   (b) (1) Notwithstanding the provisions of Section 1094.5 or 1094.6
of the Code of Civil Procedure, within 20 days after service of the
final administrative order or decision of the local agency is made
pursuant to an ordinance enacted in accordance with this section
regarding the imposition, enforcement or collection of the
administrative fines or penalties, a person contesting that final
administrative order or decision may seek review by filing an appeal
to be heard by the superior court, where the same shall be heard de
novo, except that the contents of the local agency's file in the case
shall be received in evidence. A proceeding under this subdivision
is a limited civil case. A copy of the document or instrument of the
local agency providing notice of the violation and imposition of the
administrative fine or penalty shall be admitted into evidence as
prima facie evidence of the facts stated therein. A copy of the
notice of appeal shall be served in person or by first-class mail
upon the local agency by the contestant.
   (2) The fee for filing the notice of appeal shall be as specified
in Section 70615. The court shall request that the local agency's
file on the case be forwarded to the court, to be received within 15
days of the request. The court shall retain the fee specified in
Section 70615 regardless of the outcome of the appeal. If the court
finds in favor of the contestant, the amount of the fee shall be
reimbursed to the contestant by the local agency. Any deposit of the
fine or penalty shall be refunded by the local agency in accordance
with the judgment of the court.
   (3) The conduct of the appeal under this section is a subordinate
judicial duty that may be performed by traffic trial commissioners
and other subordinate judicial officials at the direction of the
presiding judge of the court.
   (c) If no notice of appeal of the local agency's final
administrative order or decision is filed within the period set forth
in this section, the order or decision shall be deemed confirmed.
   (d) If the fine or penalty has not been deposited and the decision
of the court is against the contestant, the local agency may proceed
to collect the penalty pursuant to the procedures set forth in its
ordinance.
   (e) This section shall become operative on January 1, 2020.