[HISTORY: Adopted by the Board of Aldermen
(now City Council) of the City of Chicopee as indicated in article
histories. Amendments noted where applicable.]
[Adopted 6-16-1998 by Ord. No. 98-37]
[Amended 3-21-2000 by Ord. No. 00-33]
The provisions of Chapters 109, 144, 160, 169, 172, 188, 200, 206, 223, 239, 243, 256, 262 and 269 of the Code of the City of Chicopee for the year 1991, as amended, shall be enforced under the procedures governed by MGL c. 40, § 21D as herein set forth below:
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§ 21D. Noncriminal disposition of
ordinance, by-law, rule or regulation violations.
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"Any city or town may by ordinance or by-law
not inconsistent with this section provide for non-criminal disposition
of violations of any ordinance or by-law or any rule or regulation
of any municipal officer, board or department the violation which
is subject to a specific penalty.
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"Any such ordinance or by-law shall provide
that any person taking cognizance of a violation of a specific ordinance,
by-law, rule or regulation which he is empowered to enforce, hereinafter
referred to as the enforcing person, as an alternative to initiating
criminal proceedings shall, or, if so provided in such ordinance or
by-law, may, give to the other offender a written notice to appear
before the clerk of the district court having jurisdiction thereof
at any time during office hours, not later than twenty-one days after
the date of such notice. Such notice shall be in triplicate and shall
contain the name and address, if known, of the offender, the specific
offense charged, and the time and place for his required appearance.
Such notice shall be signed by the enforcing person, and shall be
signed by the offender whenever practicable in acknowledgment that
such notice has been received.
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"The enforcing person shall, if possible, deliver
to the offender a copy of said notice at the time and place of the
violation. If it is not possible to deliver a copy of said notice
to the offender at the time and place of the violation, said copy
shall be mailed or delivered by the enforcing person, or by his commanding
officer or the head of his department or by any person authorized
by such commanding officer, department or head to the offender's last
known address, within fifteen days after said violation. Such notice
as so mailed shall be deemed a sufficient notice, and a certificate
of the person so mailing such notice that it has been mailed in accordance
with this section shall be prima facie evidence thereof.
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"At or before the completion of each tour of
duty, or at the beginning of the first subsequent tour of duty, the
enforcing person shall give to his commanding officer or department
head those copies of each notice of such a violation he has taken
cognizance of during such tour which have not already been delivered
or mailed by him as aforesaid. Said commanding officer or department
head shall retain and safely preserve one copy and shall, at a time
not later than the next court day after such delivery or mailing,
deliver the other copy to the clerk of the court before which the
offender has been notified to appear. The clerk of each district court
and of the Boston municipal court shall maintain a separate docket
of such notices to appear.
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"Any person notified to appear before the clerk
of a district court as hereinbefore provided may so appear and confess
the offense charged, either personally or through a duly authorized
agent or by mailing to the city or town clerk of the municipality
within which the violation occurred together with the notice such
specific sum of money not exceeding three hundred dollars as the town
shall fix a penalty for violation of the ordinance, by-law, rule or
regulation. Such payment shall if mailed be made only by postal note,
money order or check. Upon receipt of such notice, the city or town
clerk shall forthwith notify the district court clerk of such payment
and the receipt by the district court clerk of such notification shall
operate as a final disposition of the case. An appearance under this
paragraph shall not be deemed to be a criminal proceeding. No person
so notified to appear before the clerk of a district court shall be
required to report to any probation officer, and no record of the
case shall be entered in any probation records.
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"If any person so notified to appear desires
to contest the violation alleged in the notice to appear and also
to avail himself of the procedure established pursuant to this section,
he may, within twenty-one days after the date of the notice, request
a hearing in writing. Such hearing shall be held before a district
court judge, clerk, or assistant clerk, as the court shall direct,
and if the judge, clerk, or assistant clerk shall, after hearing,
find that the violation occurred and that it was committed by the
person so notified to appear, the person so notified shall be permitted
to dispose of the case by paying the specific sum of money fixed as
a penalty as aforesaid, or such lesser amount as the judge, clerk,
or assistant clerk, shall order, which payment shall operate as a
final disposition of the case. If the judge, clerk, or assistant clerk
shall, after hearing, find that violation alleged did not occur or
was committed by the person notified to appear, that finding shall
be entered in the docket, which shall operate as a final disposition
of the case. Proceedings held pursuant to this paragraph shall not
be deemed to be criminal proceedings. No person disposing of a case
by payment of such a penalty shall be required to report to any probation
office as a result of such violation, nor shall any record of the
case be entered in the probation records.
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"If any person so notified to appear before
the clerk of a district court fails to pay the fine provided hereunder
within the time specified or, having appeared, does not confess the
offense before the clerk or pay the sum of money fixed as a penalty
after a hearing and finding as provided in the proceeding paragraph,
the clerk shall notify the enforcing person who issued the original
notice, who shall determine whether to apply for the issuance of a
complaint for the violation of the appropriate ordinance, by-law,
rule or regulation.
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"As used in this section the term 'district
court' shall include, within the limits of their jurisdiction, the
municipal court of the City of Boston and the divisions of the housing
court department of the trial court.
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"The notice to appear provided for herein shall
be printed in such form as the chief justice of the municipal court
of the City of Boston shall prescribe for said court, and as the chief
justice of the district courts shall prescribe for the district courts.
Said notice may also include notice of violations pursuant to section
eleven C of chapter eighty-five, section eighteen A of chapter ninety,
section one hundred and seventy-three A of chapter one hundred and
forty and section sixteen A of chapter two hundred and seventy. Any
fines imposed under the provisions of this section shall enure to
the city or town for such use as said city or town may direct. This
procedure shall not be used for the enforcement of municipal traffic
rules and regulations. Chapter ninety C shall be the exclusive method
of enforcement of municipal traffic rules and regulations."
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[Adopted 8-2-2011 by Ord. No. 11-28; amended in its entirety 6-20-2017 by Ord. No. 17-29]
The purpose of this article is to provide a schedule and procedure within City government for the payment and appeal of municipal fines and the disposition of violations of any ordinance, rule, or regulation of any municipal officer, board or department, the violation of which is subject to a specific penalty. Chapter 40U authorizes the City to adopt this article. The provisions of Chapters 109, 144, 160, 169, 172, 188, 200, 206, 223, 239, 243, 256, 262, and 269 of the City Code and any violations of Section 21D of Chapter 40 of the Massachusetts General Laws enforceable by the City with a specific fine shall be enforced through the process and fine schedule set out below unless the City chooses to seek any other available remedy from the Housing Court or any court of similar jurisdiction of the commonwealth should such a remedy be determined more appropriate under the circumstances.
As used in this article, the following terms shall have the
meanings indicated:
Any employee or department authorized to make violation determinations
and issue tickets.
Police officers, inspectors, department heads or any employees
charged with reviewing violations of any City ordinance or relevant
state statute and issuing tickets for those violations.
A person appointed by the appointing authority of a municipality
to conduct hearings of alleged code violations pursuant to this article
of the City code.
An unpaid fine incurred as a result of a violation of a rule,
regulation, order, or ordinance regulating the housing, sanitary,
or municipal snow and ice removal requirements.
The Mayor will appoint the City's Hearing Officer every January
2 to hear all appeals of citations issued under this article. The
Hearing Officer will hear appeals of citations issued under this article.
A.
Any employee or inspector who is tasked by their department with identifying violations of the chapters listed in § 132-1 or Section 21D of Chapter 40 of the Massachusetts General Laws and enforcing those violations will be identified as the enforcing person for the purposes of this article. Every enforcing person who takes notice of a violation of a rule, regulation, order, or ordinance regulating the housing, sanitary or snow and ice removal requirements shall provide the offender with a notice forthwith, which shall be in tag or ticket form, to appear before the Hearing Officer or the Hearing Officer's designee during regular office hours, not later than 21 days after the date of such violation. All tickets or tags shall be prepared in triplicate.
B.
The tag or ticket shall be affixed securely to the building or, for
a building with an on-site professionally managed property office,
delivered to the office during normal business hours and shall contain,
but shall not be limited to: the date, time and place of the violation,
the specific violation charged, the name and identification or badge
number of the officer or enforcing person and his department, a schedule
of payment for established fines and instructions for return of the
tag.
C.
The City shall utilize an electronic form and system of issuing citations
that assimilates and interfaces with the existing software used by
the City to provide for the uniform and efficient processing of all
documentation from the issuance of electronic tickets, the adjudicatory
process, and ultimate disposition of the fines imposed by the electronic
ticketing process. The City shall be responsible for working with
the Hearing Officer to manage the public docket generated by the documentation
of violations, the recordkeeping process of adjudication, and the
imposition of fines and liens with the cooperation of the Collector's
office if needed or as required by this article or any state statute.
A.
Within three business days after completion of each shift, the officer
or enforcing person shall give to his department head or supervisor
those copies of each notice of a violation issued during such shift.
The department head or supervisor shall retain and preserve one copy
and shall, not later than the beginning of the next business day after
receipt of the notice, deliver another copy to the Hearing Officer
before whom the violator has been ordered to appear. The Hearing Officer
shall coordinate and maintain a docket of all such notices.
B.
Where a notice of violation is issued for Code violations, the alleged
violator, within 21 days, shall return the notice of violation, by
mail, personally or by an authorized person, to the hearing officer
and shall either: (1) pay in full the scheduled fine by check, postal
note, money order and send said payment to the Collector's office;
or (2) request a hearing before the Hearing Officer, in which case
the request for appeal shall be forwarded to the Hearing Officer for
scheduling. Each violation issued shall contain a statement explaining
the procedure to adjudicate the violation by mail. Any amounts paid
shall be payable to the City of Chicopee and forwarded to the Collector's
office for proper posting. If a fine remains unpaid for 21 days and
no hearing has been requested, a letter shall be sent by the Hearing
Officer to the property owner of record's mailing address and, if
appropriate, to the local individual or property management company
responsible for the maintenance of the property, with a processing
fee of $40, notifying him that the fine shall be paid within 30 days
after the receipt of that notice unless, within 14 days of receiving
that notice, the property owner requests a hearing before the Hearing
Officer and swears in writing, under the pains and penalties of perjury,
that the property owner did not receive the notice of violation. If
the fine remains unpaid after that thirty-day period, additional penalties
and interest may be attached. Thereafter, any fine and additional
penalties and interest that may be attached and which remain unpaid
shall become an additional assessment on the property owner's tax
bill. Such amount and cost relative thereto may also be a lien upon
such real estate as provided in Section 42B of Chapter 40 of the Massachusetts
General Laws. The City's determination of whether to place a lien
on the property may involve the number of and the dollar amount of
the violations on the property. The property owner of record shall
be notified by certified mail of the lien on the property. No lien
shall be removed without notice from the Tax Collector that all such
matters have been disposed of in accordance with the law. Additional
charges equal to the amount required to file the lien and the amount
required to release the lien shall be assessed against the owner of
record for the purpose of ensuring that all costs associated with
filing the release are recovered.
[Amended 10-18-2022 by Ord. No. 22-26]
C.
Any person notified to appear before the Hearing Officer, as provided herein, may, without waiving the right to a hearing provided by this article and without waiving judicial review as provided in Section 14 of Chapter 30A of the Massachusetts General Laws, challenge the validity of the violation notice and receive a review and disposition of the violation from the Hearing Officer by mail. The alleged violator may, upon receipt of the notice to appear, send a signed statement of objections to the violation notice as well as signed statements from witnesses, police officers, government officials and other relevant parties. Photographs, diagrams, maps and other documents may also be sent with the statements. Any statements or materials sent to the Hearing Officer for review shall have attached the person's name and complete address as well as the ticket number and the date of the violation. The Hearing Officer shall, within 21 days after receipt of such material, review the material and either dismiss or uphold the violation and notify the alleged violator by mail of the disposition of the hearing. If the outcome of the hearing is against the alleged violator, the Hearing Officer shall explain the reasons for the outcome on the notice. Such review and disposition conducted by mail shall be informal, the rules of evidence shall not apply, and the decision of the Hearing Officer shall be final, subject to any hearing provisions provided by this article or to judicial review as provided in said Section 14 of said Chapter 30A of the Massachusetts General Laws.
A.
Notwithstanding Section 21D of Chapter 40, a person who desires to
contest a violation of any City ordinance alleged in a notice to appear,
pursuant to violations issued by the City in accordance with said
Section 21D of said Chapter 40, shall request, in writing, a hearing
before the Hearing Officer. The notice to appear shall be in the format
specified in said Section 21D of said Chapter 40, except that the
third copy of the notice shall be submitted to the Municipal Hearing
Officer unless the ticket was produced by an automated ticketing device.
If the alleged violator requests a hearing before the Municipal Hearing
Officer in a timely manner, the Municipal Hearing Officer shall schedule
a hearing not later than 45 days after receiving the hearing request.
The Municipal Hearing Officer shall duly notify the alleged violator
of the date, time and location of the hearing. When a hearing notice
is sent, the alleged violator shall be given an opportunity to request
a rescheduled hearing date. The Municipal Hearing Officer so designated
shall not be an employee or officer of the department associated with
the issuance of the notice of violation. The Municipal Hearing Officer
shall receive training in the conduct of administrative hearings.
The hearing and disposition shall be informal and shall follow the
rules set forth in Chapter 30A of the Massachusetts General Laws.
Rules for judicial proceedings shall not apply. In conducting the
hearing, the Municipal Hearing Officer shall determine whether there
was a violation.
B.
Any person aggrieved by a decision of the Municipal Hearing Officer
may appeal to the district court, housing court or other court of
competent jurisdiction pursuant to Section 21D of Chapter 40 of the
Massachusetts General Laws, on a form provided by the City, and shall
be entitled to a de novo hearing before a clerk magistrate of the
court. The court shall consider such appeals under a civil standard.
The aggrieved person shall file the appeal within 10 days after receiving
notice of the decision from the Municipal Hearing Officer who conducted
the hearing.
A.
Any person who has received a notice of violation issued in accordance
with this article who, within the prescribed time, fails to pay the
same or fails to request a hearing before the Municipal Hearing Officer,
or who fails to appear at the time and place of the hearing, shall
be deemed responsible for the violation as stated in the notice of
violation. Such finding of responsibility shall be considered prima
facie evidence of the violation in a civil proceeding regarding that
violation and shall be admissible as evidence in a subsequent criminal
proceeding. If a person fails to appear at a scheduled hearing without
good cause, the appeal shall be dismissed and the violator shall waive
any further right of appeal.
B.
If the condition which caused the notice of violation to issue continues
to exist, the finding of responsibility may also be used by the City
as prima facie evidence of the existence of a violation in any proceeding
to suspend or revoke any license, permit or certificate issued by
the City relative to that building, structure or premises pending
the correction of the condition, and the City may pursue any remedy
at law through the pursuit of injunctive relief in the courts of the
commonwealth.
A.
There shall be a fine of $25 for each incident of improper removal
or failure to remove accumulated snow and ice $50 for the second consecutive
day and $100 for the third and subsequent days the condition is not
remediated.
[Amended 10-18-2022 by Ord. No. 22-27]
B.
Dogs. There shall be a fine of $50 for any incident resulting in a violation of Chapter 144 of the City Code regarding the keeping of and existence of dogs or other animals in the City. The owner of any dangerous or vicious dog, if said animal is found on property not owned or controlled by its owner or not restrained in a secure area per Subsection C of § 144-23, shall be subject to a fine of $250.
C.
Any person, firm or corporation committing fire prevention violations of any provisions of Chapter 160 of the City Code shall be fined $100 for each offense, and a separate offense shall be deemed committed on each day during or on which a violation occurs or on which a violation continues.
D.
Any misuse or unauthorized use of the Chicopee Municipal Golf Course as defined by Chapter 172 of the City Code shall be fined $250.
E.
Whoever commits a parks and recreation violation of a provision of Chapter 206 or any regulation established by the Parks Commission or the Cemetery Commission, whether included herein or hereafter enacted, shall, unless other provision is expressly made, be liable to a penalty of not more than $20 for each offense.
F.
Any person violating any provision of Chapter 223 regarding recycling regulations shall be fined $100 for each violation.
G.
Any person who violates any provision of Chapter 239 of the City Code regarding spray paint and indelible markers shall be fined $200 for the first offense and $300 for each subsequent offense within a year of the first offense.
H.
Whoever shall refuse or neglect to comply with the provisions of Article I of Chapter 243 of the City Code regarding street numbering within 30 days after a notice, in writing, delivered to the owner or occupant of such tenement or building, of the number or numbers so assigned by the City Engineer shall, for each and every offense, be liable to a penalty of $100.
I.
Any person, firm or corporation violating any of the provisions of Chapter 257 of the City Code by removing any wood, trees, bushes or other flora from any City property without the express written consent of the Tree Warden and Superintendent of Public Works shall be subject to a fine of $300. Each day's continuance of a violation and each tree removed shall be considered a separate offense.
J.
Any person who violates Chapter 262 of the City Code by illegally storing unregistered or abandoned vehicles or otherwise violates the State Sanitary Code in their possession of vehicles shall be fined $100 for the first offense or incident and $100 for each subsequent day the condition persists.
K.
Any person committing a violation of Chapter 111 of the Massachusetts
General Laws or regulations derived from the State Sanitary Code and
enforceable by the City Health Department shall be fined $50 per violation
and $50 per day of a persisting violation.
L.
Any person violating any provision of the State Building Code shall
be fined $100 per violation per day that the condition or illicit
activity persists.
M.
Any person who violates any other provision of the City Code not
enumerated above shall be fined $20 per incident per every day the
condition or illicit activity persists.
All fines, penalties or assessments in actions under this article
shall be paid to the general fund of the City.
This article shall supersede any local ordinances, rules or
regulations to the contrary, and any conflict in the City Code shall
be resolved in favor of this article.
