Note: Prior ordinance history: Ord. No. 967, March 12,
2014; Ord. No. 992, August 20, 2015.
The purpose of this Article shall be to preserve the public
peace and good order in the county and to promote the public health,
safety, and welfare of the residents of the county by regulating and
restricting the barking of dogs in a fair manner, balancing the rights
and privileges of dog owners with the rights and privileges of other
citizens of the county.
(Ord. No. 996, January
14, 2016)
means the duly incorporated humane society or organization
formed for the prevention of cruelty to animals which is contracted
by the County to perform animal control services.
means any dog that barks, whines, howls, cries or makes any other noise as described in Section 22-25.3 of this Article.
means a notice issued pursuant to this Article that there
has been a violation of this article.
means the County of Kaua'i.
as used in this Article shall mean calendar day or calendar
days, respectively, unless otherwise expressly provided. The time
in which any act provided by law is to be done is computed by excluding
the first day and including the last, unless the last day is a holiday,
and then it is also excluded.
means any person authorized and designated to enforce the
provisions of this Article or the laws of the County of Kaua'i.
means any person owning, harboring, or keeping a dog; provided
that if the owner is a minor under the age of 18 years, the parents,
guardian, or other person having the care, custody, or control of
the minor shall be rebuttably presumed to be the owner. The person
to whom a license was issued pursuant to HRS Section 143-2 shall be
rebuttably presumed to be the owner of the dog for purposes of this
section.
(Ord. No. 996, January
14, 2016)
No person shall keep any dog(s) which barks, bays, cries, or
howls intermittently for a period of thirty (30) minutes within a
forty-five (45) minute period of time, or continuously or incessantly
for a period of fifteen (15) minutes.
(Ord. No. 996, January
14, 2016)
A dog shall not be deemed a barking dog for purposes of this
section if, at the time the dog is barking or making any other noise,
a person is trespassing or threatening to trespass upon private property
in or upon which the dog is situated or for any other reasonable cause
that has been determined under the circumstances to have teased or
provoked the dog, including traveling past private property in or
upon which the dog is situated.
(Ord. No. 996, January
14, 2016)
Unsuccessful remediation of the nuisance barking following intervention
by the Enforcement Officer may result in the issuance of a citation.
(a)
There
shall be a fine of Thirty-Five Dollars ($35.00) for the first violation
of this Article. As used in this section, "first violation" shall
mean an offense that does not occur within ninety (90) days of the
conviction for a previous offense involving the same provision.
(b)
There
shall be a fine of Seventy-Five Dollars ($75.00) for the second violation
of this Article if the offense occurred within ninety (90) days of
the conviction for one (1) previous offense involving the same provision.
(c)
There
shall be a fine of not less than One Hundred Dollars ($100.00) nor
more than Three Hundred Dollars ($300.00) for the third and any subsequent
violation of this Article if the offense occurred within ninety (90)
days of the conviction for two or more previous offenses involving
the same provision.
(d)
The
Court may also require successful completion of a dog training class
in addition to or in lieu of a fine.
(e)
Payment
of a fine shall not excuse the violator from correcting the barking
dog violation. The issuance of a barking dog citation and/or payment
of a fine shall not bar the Court from imposing appropriate remedial
action to be undertaken by the responsible party, such as, but not
limited to, successful completion of a dog behavioral course or the
hiring of a dog trainer.
(f)
Failure
to comply with this Article shall be considered a violation, and not
a misdemeanor or petty misdemeanor.
(Ord. No. 996, January
14, 2016)
The provisions of this Article may be enforced by the Animal
Control Provider or a duly authorized Enforcement Officer. It shall
be a violation of this Article to interfere with the Animal Control
Provider's representative or the Enforcement Officer in the performance
of their duties.
(a)
Animal
Control Provider. The Kaua'i Humane Society is hereby granted authority
as the Animal Control Provider. It shall be the duty of the Animal
Control Provider to receive, log, and compile barking dog nuisance
claims.
(1)
Upon receipt of a barking dog nuisance claim, a written warning/notice
of nuisance claim and educational material shall be given to the responsible
party, with a copy to the complainant. The notice shall give the responsible
party no less than two hundred forty (240) hours (or 10 days), or
within the timeframe agreed to between the Animal Control Provider
and the responsible party, to abate the barking nuisance or to refute
the nuisance claim.
The educational material will consist of information on how
to control a dog's barking.
(b)
Alternative
Dispute Resolution (ADR). The complainant shall take steps necessary
to participate in alternative dispute resolution, such as mediation
and facilitation, prior to any citation being issued. However, if
the responsible party refuses to participate in the alternative dispute
resolution, then a citation may be issued.
(c)
No
citation shall be issued without the observation of a violation by
the Enforcement Officer.
(d)
Office
of the Prosecuting Attorney. Upon issuance, the citation will be forwarded
to the Office of the Prosecuting Attorney for prosecution.
(Ord. No. 996, January
14, 2016)
Nothing contained in this Article shall preclude any person
injured by a dog from bringing a civil action against the owner of
such dog pursuant to the applicable provisions of state law.
(Ord. No. 996, January
14, 2016)
If any provision of this Article or the application thereof
to any person or circumstance is held invalid, the invalidity shall
not affect other provisions or applications of the article which can
be given effect without the invalid provisions or applications, and
to this end the provisions of this Article are severable.
(Ord. No. 996, January
14, 2016)
