A.
Every enforcing officer who takes notice of a violation of a rule, regulation, order, ordinance or bylaw regulating the housing code, sanitary code or snow and ice removal requirement, including officers falling within Section 1.12.110 below, shall provide the person responsible with a citation forthwith.
B.
The
citation shall be in tag form. The citation shall be pre-numbered,
and contain: the date, time and place of the violation; the specific
violation charged; the name and badge number of the enforcing officer,
municipal officer, or inspector and his or her division; the information
related to timeframe and amount to be paid; and instructions for return
of the citation and the alternative options to resolve the citation.
C.
Service
of this citation shall be deemed effectuated as to the Person Responsible
when:
D.
For
properties subject to M.G.L. c. 144 §§ 95A-95C, delivery
of a violation notice shall be deemed effected when provided to the
office of the city clerk.
(C.O. 15-37, § VII, 3/16/2015)
Without intending to limit the generality of the foregoing,
it is the intention of this provision that the following titles and
sections of these Revised Ordinances are to be included within the
scope of this chapter on noncriminal disposition, and that, the municipal
personnel listed below for each title shall also be enforcing persons:
A.
Title
6—Animals.
Enforcing officers: Animal control officers or other duly authorized
officer and the DPW municipal building supervisor.
B.
Title
8—Health and Safety Code.
Enforcing officers: Health agent and code enforcement officers
or other duly authorized officer and the superintendent of public
works and the assistant superintendent of public works and city of
Revere firefighters and building inspectors and local inspectors.
C.
Title
9—Public Peace, Safety and Welfare.
Enforcing officers: Health agent and code enforcement officers
or other duly authorized officer.
D.
Title
12—Streets and Sidewalks.
Enforcing officers: Superintendent of public works or other
duly authorized officer.
E.
Title
13—Public Services.
Enforcing officers: Superintendent of public works or director
of municipal inspections or other duly authorized officer.
F.
Title
15—Buildings and Construction.
Enforcing officers: Building inspector and local inspectors
or other duly authorized officer and the city of Revere firefighters
limited to six firefighters.
G.
Title
16—Environment.
Enforcing officers: Building inspector, local inspectors and
chairperson of conservation commission or other duly authorized officer.
H.
Title
17—Zoning.
Enforcing officers: Building inspector and local inspectors
or other duly authorized officer.
(C.O. 15-37, § VII, 3/16/2015)
All fines may be paid in person at, or by mailing to, the City
of Revere Office of Inspectional Services during normal business hours,
by check or money order listing the address of the violation, and
the violation number.
(C.O. 15-37, § VII, 3/16/2015)
All fines, penalties, or assessments shall be deposited into
the general fund, unless otherwise duly authorized.
(C.O. 15-37, § VII, 3/16/2015)
Within twenty-one days of the issuance of a citation, the person
responsible may:
A.
Pay
in full the scheduled fine;
B.
Make
a written request to the Municipal Hearing Officer for an in-person
hearing; or
C.
Request
disposition by mail by sending a copy of the citation to the municipal
hearing officer along with a signed statement of objections to the
citation. The person responsible may also include any signed statements
from witnesses, police officers, government officials and other relevant
persons or parties, or any photographs, diagrams, maps and other documents,
all of which must contain the name of the person responsible, complete
address, the citation number and the date and address of the citation.
(C.O. 15-37, § VII, 3/16/2015)
Failure to respond to a violation as provided above or to appear for a scheduled hearing shall be prima facie evidence of the existence of the violation cited and may be used in any subsequent or related proceeding. Failing to appear at the scheduled hearing without good cause shall result in a dismissal of the matter and a waiver of any further right to a hearing or appeal. If the condition which caused the citation 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. Additional and monetary penalties will apply in accordance with Section 1.12.190 of this chapter.
(C.O. 15-37, § VII, 3/16/2015)
If a fine stemming from a violation remains unpaid for twenty-one
days from the date of the issuance of the violation, and no hearing
has been timely requested, a demand letter shall be sent to the mailing
address of the owner of record and, if appropriate to the local individual
or property management company responsible for the maintenance of
the property, notifying him or her that the fine shall be paid within
thirty days after receipt of the demand letter. Person responsible
noticed may request a hearing before the municipal hearing officer
within fourteen days of receiving the demand letter only if he or
she swears in writing under the pains and penalties of perjury that
he or she did not receive the original citation. In the event of such
a request, the municipal hearing officer may make a preliminary determination
whether to allow the request for hearing.
(C.O. 15-37, § VII, 3/16/2015)
If the fine remains unpaid for thirty days after the demand
letter and no hearing has been requested, additional penalties and
interest may be attached, and such amount shall become an additional
assessment on the property owner's tax bill, and shall also be a lien
upon such real estate as provided in M.G.L. Chapter 40, Section 42B.
This action, without more, will constitute a lien on the property.
(C.O. 15-37, § VII, 3/16/2015)
If a fine remains unpaid for twenty-one days after determination
of responsibility by the municipal hearing officer and no appeal has
been taken, additional penalties and interest may be attached, and
such amount shall become an additional assessment on the property
owner's tax bill, and shall also be a lien upon such real estate as
provided in M.G.L. Chapter 40, Section 42B. This action, without more,
will constitute a lien on the property.
(C.O. 15-37, § VII, 3/16/2015)
A.
Notwithstanding the language in Title 1, Chapter 1.16, Section 1.16.010, and unless otherwise provided by specific law or ordinance, the penalty to apply in the event of a violation of any ordinance enforced by the noncriminal disposition procedure in this chapter shall be as follows: not less than twenty-five dollars and not more than five hundred dollars per offense. A separate violation may be cited for each day the violation exists.
B.
Any person or entity who both fails to provide payment to the Offices of Inspectional Services as provided by Section 1.12.120 and fails to make written request for a hearing within twenty-one days to the municipal hearings officer shall be assessed a processing fee of ten dollars as a part of the demand letter pursuant to Section 1.12.160. The original penalty plus the processing fee shall be due and payable to the offices of inspectional services within thirty days of the date of the receipt of the demand letter.
C.
If the original penalty and the processing fee are not paid in full within thirty days from the demand letter described in subsection (B) above and in Section 1.12.160, or, in the event a hearing is held either by in-person hearing pursuant to Section 1.12.140 (B) or by written adjudication pursuant to Section 1.12.140 (C) and the violation is upheld and not paid in full within twenty-one days from the date of the decision of the municipal hearings officer, then the amount due to the city shall be five hundred dollars, unless the violation relates to snow and ice removal, in which case the maximum principal fine shall be two hundred dollars.
(C.O. 15-37, § VII, 3/16/2015)
A.
In General:
The municipal hearing officer shall have access to and maintain a
system relative to all violations issued and the disposition of each.
B.
In-Person
Hearings:
1.
Notice
and Scheduling: Upon receipt of a request for hearing, the Municipal
Hearing Officer or the officer's designee shall schedule a hearing
not later than forty-five days from the receipt of the request and
shall notify the alleged person responsible of the date, time and
location of the hearing. The alleged person responsible shall be given
an opportunity to request a rescheduled hearing date. Hearings shall
be held on at least two evenings each month. The hearings shall be
held at the discretion of the municipal hearing officer, with no requirement
that they be heard in any particular order. The municipal hearing
officer shall have the broad authority to schedule hearings, even
in the case of untimely requests, and may also deny such requests
on procedural grounds.
2.
Hearings
Process: The municipal hearing officer shall have broad discretion
in conducting the hearings. Hearings shall be conducted in a manner
fair to all parties. The rules of evidence shall not apply, however,
the municipal hearing officer, in his or her discretion, may take
any documents, evidence, and/or testimony that he or she deems reliable,
relevant, and/or trustworthy, and may draw any reasonable inferences
therefrom. The municipal hearing officer, in his or her discretion,
may reject any documents, evidence, and/or testimony that he or she
deems unreliable, irrelevant, and/or untrustworthy. The municipal
hearing officer shall determine by a preponderance of the evidence,
whether the violation occurred, and whether the person noticed was
the person responsible for the violation. The municipal hearing officer
shall notify the person responsible of the disposition within twenty-one
days of the hearing. If the violation is upheld, the person responsible
may file a judicial appeal within ten days of receiving the notice
of decision.
C.
Adjudication
by Mail: Upon receipt of request for adjudication by mail, the municipal
hearing officer shall review the submitted materials and dismiss or
uphold the violation. Within twenty-one days of receipt of said materials,
the municipal hearing officer shall notify the person responsible
by mail of the disposition and, if the violation is upheld, shall
provide an explanation of the reasons therefor. The person responsible
may file a judicial appeal within ten days of receiving the notice
of decision pursuant to M.G.L. Chapter 40U, Section 15, or to an appropriate
court within thirty days pursuant to M.G.L. Chapter 30A, Section 14.
D.
Decisions
and Appeals: Decisions of the municipal hearing officer shall be final,
subject only to judicial appeal as provided by statute. Every final
decision of the municipal hearing officer shall be accompanied by
a notice to the person responsible that he or she may, within ten
days of receipt of notice of decision, file a judicial appeal, and
shall provide a form for that purpose.
(C.O. 15-37, § VII, 3/16/2015)
In addition to all other Sections of Title 1, Chapter 1.12, Article III, the full scope of M.G.L. c. 40U §§ 1—18 shall apply. This article also confirms that the city has contemporaneously, pursuant to M.G.L. c. 40U § 2, voted to accept M.G.L. c. 40U in its entirety.
(C.O. 15-37, § , 3/16/2015)
Notwithstanding the provisions of Title 1, Chapter, 1.12, Article III, as an alternative, the city may lien any and all penalties, fines, assessments or other charges related to the heath and sanitary code as provided for in Chapter 497 of the Acts of 1991, that special act remaining unaffected by this article.
(C.O. 15-37, § , 3/16/2015)
