2009-08 Code Enforcement Officers Designated, Citations, & Fees Appendix GRESOLUTION NO. 09 -08
A RESOLUTION OF THE CITY OF OKEECHOBEE,
FLORIDA, RESCINDING RESOLUTION NO. 01 -15 IN ITS
ENTIRETY; ESTABLISHING A STANDARD FORM OF
CITATION REGARDING CODE ENFORCEMENT
VIOLATIONS; ESTABLISHING DESIGNATION OF
ENFORCEMENT OFFICERS; DESIGNATING SPECIFIC
VIOLATIONS AND A SCHEDULE OF PENALTIES
REGARDING THE CITATION PROCEDURE; PROVIDING
FOR THE CITATION PROCEDURES AND FEE SCHEDULE
TO BE INCLUDED IN THE CODE OF ORDINANCES AS
APPENDIX G; PROVIDING AN EFFECTIVE DATE.
WHEREAS, the City of Okeechobee, Florida, adopted by Ordinance No. 782 an alternate
method for enforcement of code violations in the City by approving issuances of
citations pursuant to the authority of Florida Statutes Chapter 162 (21 through 23);
and
WHEREAS, the enforcement of the City Code of Ordinances serves a legitimate public
service; protects the rights and responsibilities of all citizens of the City of
Okeechobee, and enacting enforcement procedures is a valid municipal function;
and
WHEREAS, the appointed Code Enforcement Board for the City of Okeechobee, who are
charged with the regular and routine task of enforcement of City Codes, has
requested that the alternate method of enforcement through issuance of citations
be approved by the City Council; and
WHEREAS, designation of specific violations and a schedule of penalties will enhance the
ability of the City to enforce its code and ordinances; and
WHEREAS, in the interest of expediency and ease of amendment as necessary, it is in the
best interests of the City to adopt a list of violations with scheduled fines for use in
enforcement of codes via citations by resolution, and to include such schedule as
"Appendix G" to the City Code of Ordinances.
NOW, THEREFORE, be it resolved before the City Council of the City of Okeechobee,
Florida; presented at a duly advertised public meeting; and passed by a majority
vote of the City Council; and properly executed by the Mayor or designee, as Chief
Presiding Officer for the City:
SECTION 1. Authority and purpose, Standard Form of Citation.
As provided in F.S. 162.21 the City of Okeechobee hereby adopts the process for citation
violations and a standard form of citation for use in code and ordinance violations which
shall contain:
1. The date and time of issuance.
2. The name and address of the person to whom the citation is issued.
3. The date and time of the civil infraction was committed.
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4. The facts constituting reasonable cause.
5. The number or section of the code or ordinance violated.
6. The name and authority of the code enforcement officer.
7. The procedures for the person to follow in order to pay the civil penalty or to
contest the citation.
8. The applicable civil penalty if the person elects to contest the citation.
9. The applicable civil penalty if the person elects not to contest the citation.
10. A conspicuous statement that if the person fails to pay the civil penalty within
the time allowed, or fails to appear in court to contest the citation, the person
shall be deemed to have waived his or her right to contest the citation and
that, in such case, judgment may be entered against the person for an
amount up to the maximum civil penalty.
SECTION 2. Designation of enforcement officers.
For the purpose of this chapter, the City of Okeechobee hereby designates the Fire Chief,
Fire Inspectors, all full -time and part-time code enforcement officers and sworn law
enforcement officers as "Code Enforcement Officers" who shall have the powers and
authority to issue citations through the procedures set forth in this resolution and Florida
Statute Chapters 162 (21 through 23).
SECTION 3. Procedure for issuing citations.
It is the policy of the City of Okeechobee, through its Code Enforcement Board as
appointed pursuant to the provisions of Florida Statutes Chapter 162, to enforce code
violations through the procedures as set out in both Part I and Part II of said statute.
Warning notice prior to citation issuance; exception.
The City Code Enforcement Officer shall investigate, write violations, and enforce
code violations as necessary for all City Codes, including land use regulations under
adopted Land Development Regulations, and other codes or ordinances as
appropriate. Except in the case of a repeat violator or service threat to the public's
health, safety or welfare, or violation threatening imminent or irreparable harm to
persons or property, the Code Officer shall first, prior to issues a citation, provide
the violator with a courtesy letter outlining the nature of the violation, and the time
periods provided for correction of the problem(s), which shall be not less than 5
days nor more than 30 days, as deemed appropriate considering the nature of the
violation.
Service of warning notice or citation.
(1) Written warning notices, if applicable, and citations shall be hand
delivered to the alleged violator by the code enforcement officer. In the
absence of the alleged violator, issuance of a written warning notice or
citation may be accomplished by leaving a copy at the alleged violator's
residence with any person residing therein who is fifteen (15) years of age
or older and informing the person of the contents or by registered or certified
mail, return receipt requested.
(2) Issuance of a written warning notice or citation to a business may be
accomplished by leaving a copy at the business, during regular business
hours, with any employee and informing the employee of the contents or by
registered or certified mail, return receipt requested to the property owner.
Each employee of the business shall be deemed to be an agent of the
business for service of warning notices and citation.
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SECTION 4. Criminal penalties; Refusal to Sign Citation.
Any person who willfully refuses to sign and accept a citation issued by a code
enforcement officer shall be guilty of a misdemeanor of the second degree, punishable as
provided in F.S. 775.082 or 775.083.
If the person cited so refuses to sign the citation, the code enforcement officer shall write
the words "Refused" or "Refused to Sign" in the space provided for the personal signature
and shall then leave a copy of the citation with the person cited, if possible.
Following such refusal to sign, the code enforcement officer shall contact the City of
Okeechobee Police to report such refusal as a violation of Section 162.21(6), Florida
Statutes.
SECTION 5. Enforcement procedures.
1. In the implementation of enforcement action under this ordinance, the following
procedures shall apply:
(a) A violation of any municipal code or ordinance is a civil infraction, and the
maximum civil penalty shall not exceed $500.00 for each violation.
(b) In an instance where the alleged violator elects to not contest the violation
by either failing to appear in court or before the Code Board, or by admitting
such violation, the maximum penalty shall be less than the sum of $500.00,
taking into consideration the factors set forth in Section 6.
(c) The designated code officer(s) shall issue a notice to appear in County Court
upon reasonable cause to believe that a person has committed an act in
violation of a municipal code or ordinance, and file same with the Clerk of
Court together with a copy within five days of issuance.
(d) The Clerk of Court shall issue to the alleged violator a notice of date and
time to appear in County Court to address the violation. The Code Officer
issuing the notice to appear shall appear in Court on behalf of the City, and
the alleged violator may appear to consent to, or contest, the violation(s). As
the violations are civil in nature, the violator will not be appointed an attorney,
although any violator may retain counsel at their own expense to appear at
the hearing. All parties should be prepared at the hearing with any witness,
photographs, or documentary evidence as they may wish to present that is
pertinent to the issue. The Florida rules of evidence shall apply to all
proceedings in the County Court. Any party wishing to retain a record of the
proceedings should be prepared to retain a court reporter at their own
expense.
(e) Upon conclusion of the hearing, if the violator is determined to be guilty of
the violation, the Court may assess in addition to civil penalties certain court
costs as may be mandated by rules of court or by State Statute. Included in
a finding of guilt shall be a time period to come into compliance with the
applicable code or ordinance, not to exceed 30 days, although an extension
may be granted under extenuating circumstances agreed to by the City or
ordered by the court.
(f)
Payment of any civil penalty imposed by this Resolution shall be made to the
Clerk of the Court, who shall forward the monies collected to the City
Finance Department for deposit into the appropriate City fund for distribution
and use by the Code Enforcement Department. If a judgement has been
entered for the civil penalty, the Clerk of the Court shall notify the City when
the judgment has been paid, and the necessary satisfaction of judgement
shall be prepared and recorded in the official records of the County. The
Clerk of the Court may determine to add additional fees to the civil penalty
to be retained by the County Clerk as an administrative fee.
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DESCRIPTION AND SECTION NO.
MINIMUM
REDUCED
CIVIL PENALTY
PENALTY
MAXIMUM
REPEAT
OFFENSES
Abandoned vehicle §30 -32
$25.00
$100.00
$500.00
Accumulation of garbage, trash, junk and /or
debris §30 -32
$25.00
$100.00
$500.00
Advertising/illegal §14 -291 90 -563
$25.00
$100.00
$500.00
Advertising/on public property §90- 563(3)
$25.00
$100.00
$500.00
(g)
If any part of a fine or penalty, or court cost, assessed against the violator
should remain unpaid 30 days from date of order, the City shall file a lien in
the public records of the Circuit Court, Okeechobee County, Florida, for such
amount(s), which shall be a general lien against the real and personal
property of the violator, enforceable as provided in Chapter 162, Florida
Statutes.
2. These provisions shall not apply to enforcement pursuant to F.S. 553.79 and 553.80
of the Florida Building Code adopted under Section 553.73 as applied to
construction, provided that a building permit is either not required, or has been
issued by the City.
3. These provisions are additional and supplemental means of enforcing municipal
codes or ordinances, and may be used in the enforcement of any code or
ordinance, or for the enforcement of all codes and ordinances. Nothing contained
herein shall prohibit the City from enforcing its codes or ordinances by any other
means.
SECTION 6. Designation of specific violations and penalties.
To achieve uniformity of penalty and enforcement in the process of code enforcement, the
code enforcement officer for the City of Okeechobee should observe and follow the listed
penalties for the various code violations listed hereafter. Nothing shall prevent however,
the code enforcement officer from issuing a lower or higher fine, than that suggested by
this resolution, of up to $250.00 for a first violation and up to $500.00 for second and
subsequent violations, when considering the following factors:
1. The gravity of the violation and effect of neighboring properties.
2. Any actions taken by the violator to correct the problem(s) after their courtesy
letter.
3. Any previous findings of violations by such violator on the subject property
or against other properties owned by such violator.
4. The length of time the violation has existed.
5. The degree of co- operation offered by the violator in correcting the
problem(s).
The violations listed below by reference to section number and description of violation,
which is not all- inclusive, may be enforced by issuance of a civil citation conforming to the
requirements of F.S. 162.21. Any violation not specifically listed below may be enforced
and punishable by a fine of up to $250.00 for the first violation and up to $500.00 for
second and subsequent violations.
The citation shall contain a conspicuous statement that if the violator fails to pay the fine
within the time period prescribed on the citation, or fails to appear in county court upon
notice, that such person waives the right to contest the violation, and judgement may be
entered for up to the maximum penalty statutorily allowed.
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Barrier for a swimming pool not provided or
inadequate §90 -452
$50.00
$250.00
$500.00
Commercial vehicles stored in a residentially
zoned area §54 -51
$75.00
$150.00
$500.00
Construction in the right -of -way without permit
§46 -42
$50.00
$100.00
$500.00
Damage to City Street or Sidewalk §46 -3
$125.00
$250.00
$500.00
Excessive accumulations of trash for pick -up
§30 -32
$50.00
$100.00
$500.00
Garbage /container required but not provided
(residential) 30 -35(3)
$50.00
$100.00
$500.00
Garbage /commercial container required but not
provided (apartments of 4 units or more) §30 -35
$50.00
$100.00
$500.00
Garbage /Improper disposal (residential) §30 -37
§42 -31
$50.00
$100.00
$500.00
Illegal dumping §30 -32
$125.00
$250.00
$500.00
Illegal signs in right -of -way §90- 563(3)
$50.00
$100.00
$500.00
Illegal structure §70 -251
$50.00
$100.00
$500.00
Improper refuse receptacle and signs for
commercial establishments §30 -35
$50.00
$100.00
$500.00
Improperly disposing of industrial wastes F.S.
376
$125.00
$250.00
$500.00
Improperly maintained landscaping (traffic
hazard) §30 -46
$50.00
$100.00
$500.00
Landscaping damaging utilities or drainage §54-
121
$50.00
$100.00
$500.00
Litter (producing or failing to clean up) 30 -32
$50.00
$100.00
$500.00
Noise ordinance violation §30 -81, 82
$50.00
$100.00
$500.00
Obstructing the right -of -way §54 -41
$50.00
$100.00
$500.00
Obstructing traffic line of sight or control signs
§30 -465
$50.00
$100.00
$500.00
Business Tax Receipt violation §50 -32
$125.00
$250.00
$500.00
Open hole or excavation §46 -5
$50.00
$100.00
$500.00
Overgrown lots §30 -33
$50.00
$100.00
$500.00
Parades without permit §46 -1
$50.00
$100.00
$500.00
Peddling /hawking violation §14 -121
$50.00
$100.00
$500.00
Political signs not removed in allowed time §90-
564(3)(f)
$50.00
$100.00
$500.00
Political sign size violation §90- 564- (3)(f)
$50.00
$100.00
$500.00
Posting of sign or garage sale or other
advertisement on City trees located in the right
of way or on other city owned properties §90-
563(2)-(5)
$50.00
$100.00
$500.00
Public nuisance not abated §10 -8, §30 -43, §54-
121
$50.00
$100.00
$500.00
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Raw sewage spill uncorrected §58 -73
$125.00
$250.00
$500.00
Sale of alcoholic beverages near churches,
schools or day care centers §6 -2
$125.00
$250.00
$500.00
Sale of alcoholic beverages on Sundays §6 -1
$125.00
$250.00
$500.00
Signage §90 -565
$50.00
$100.00
$500.00
Signs without permits §90 -562
$50.00
$100.00
$500.00
Solicitation in violation of code requirements
§14 -121 to §14 -178
$50.00
$100.00
$500.00
Stagnant water §30 -32
$50.00
$100.00
$500.00
Unapproved carnival §90 -662 to §90 -666
$50.00
$100.00
$500.00
Unlicensed junkyard §30 -40
$125.00
$250.00
$500.00
Vacant dwelling unsecured §30 -43
$125.00
$250.00
$500.00
Vacant building unsecured §30 -43
$125.00
$250.00
$500.00
Visibility Triangle Violation §30 -46
$50.00
$100.00
$500.00
Yard Sale in a Commercial or Industrial zone
without a permit §90 -282 §90 -283
$50.00
$100.00
$500.00
All other Florida Building Code violations §66 -10
$50.00
$100.00
$500.00
Illegal sign structure §70 -273
$100.00
$200.00
$500.00
Demolition without a permit §70 -251
$100.00
$200,00
$500.00
Working without a building permit §70 -251
$100.00
$200.00
$500.00
Mobile home in location other than a licensed
mobile home park §70 -273
$100.00
$200.00
$500.00
Church without a certificate of use and
occupancy §70 -273
$100.00
$200.00
$500.00
Violation of fence height restriction in
commercial zones §70 -273
$100.00
$200.00
$500.00
Erecting fence without a permit (all zones) §70-
251
$100.00
$200.00
$500.00
Failure to maintain a building or structure in safe
condition §70 -273
$100.00
$200.00
$500.00
Failure to comply with lawful stop work order
§70 -273
$100.00
$200.00
$500.00
Failure to maintain devices or safeguards in
good working order §70 -273
$100.00
$200,00
$500.00
Failure to remove debris, equipment, material or
sheds §30 -43
$100.00
$200.00
$500.00
Failure to provide required handicapped
accessibility §38 -31
$100.00
$250.00
$500.00
Hindering or obstructing director or inspector
§70 -271
$100.00
$250.00
$500.00
Violations of fence restrictions of residential
zones §70 -273
$100.00
$250.00
$500.00
Violation of the South Florida Building Code
§66 -10
$100.00
$250.00
$500.00
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Violations in mobile home parks (includes tie
downs) §70 -273
$100.00
$250.00
$500.00
Violations regarding water connection violation, blocking meters, wastewater
connection violations, any and all violations dealing with the water and wastewater
service within the City are deferred to the Okeechobee Utility Authority as provided by
Interlocal Agreement.
Violations regards animals are referred to the Okeechobee County Animal Shelter as
provided by Interlocal Agreement
Section 7. Miscellaneous.
Any municipal code or ordinance not specifically listed in section 6 may be enforced as any
other code or ordinance, with a maximum penalty of $250.00 for first violation and $500.00
for second or subsequent violations.
SECTION 8. Effective Date.
This Resolution shall take effect immediately upon adoption.
INTRODUCED AND ADOPTED in regular session this 5 day of May. 2009.
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REVIEWED FOR LEGAL SUFFICIENCY:
John R. Cook, City Attorney
%owling R. Watford, Jr., 14 7or Pro Tempore
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