1A, Community Enhancement Program

Home Browse Search

and issue a fine along with the first notice for a violation, which is the case in Coon Rapids where they have a much larger code enforcement load. Other cities that were contacted use administrative fines more sparingly or not at all, even when the option is available in their Code. According to the cities that were contacted that use administrative fines, few properties received the actual fine because the fine would often be waived if the property was brought into compliance within a set time period. Still other cities have chosen not to use administrative fines at all citing the additional staff time required to implement and operate the program did not justify the lack of effectiveness. An important aspect to note of any administrative fine program is that it is a voluntary fine. This means that should a property owner refuse to pay the fine, there is no way for the City to require payment. Instead, the administrative fines are seen as an alternative to the lengthy and costly legal citation process and meant to encourage conformance before a citation is issued. Most communities issue administrative fines on the second or third letter that goes out to a property for a violation. If the violation is corrected, the administrative fine is waived. If the violation is not corrected, the city could begin the citation process. In cases where compliance is unattained, a criminal or civil citation is often the only remaining tool. For certain public nuisance violations, a city can abate the property and assess the cost of the abatement and any administrative costs associated with it. A public nuisance includes such violations as excessive grass and weed growth, and garbage piles, removal of snow and ice from sidewalks. Parking and sign violations are not considered public nuisances and cannot be abated. Since the goal of administrative fines is to gain compliance, the program would not be a revenue generator for a city, and would not pay for itself in terms of staff time and resources. Until an administrative fine policy is created, it is difficult to estimate the number of fines that would be issued each year and the impact of ongoing costs; estimates gathered from other communities suggest that the range might be ten to 20 fines issued in a given year, of those even fewer are actually paid. Revenue is unlikely to meet or exceed the cost of the program but could vary depending on the fine (e.g. the City of Roseville charges $100 per fine). Since an administrative fine does not guarantee compliance, some fines would likely be converted to civil or criminal citations. There could be savings if an administrative fine prompts compliance before a citation is issued, though that savings is difficult to predict since the cost of a citation can vary and relatively few citations are issued in any given year. Special Charles for Excessive Use of City Services Program A special charge for the excessive use of city services is another method to encourage code conformance and recover the costs related to chronic public nuisance offenders. Some cities refer to these programs as "excessive consumption" programs. The basic idea behind the program is that properties that require an excessive amount of inspections due to violations of the code can be billed for the cost of those inspections. In the fee City of Arden Hills City Council Work Session for December 21, 2009 C: (Documents and Settings lbecky. brazys lLocal Settings l Temporary Internet Files DLK15F112-21-09 - Work Session - Admin Fines and Excessive Consumption.doc Page 4 of 6