[HISTORY: Adopted by the Commissioners of
the Town of Princess Anne as indicated in article histories. Amendments
noted where applicable.]
[Adopted 12-4-1991 as Ch. X of the 1991 Code]
As used in this article, the following terms
shall have the meanings indicated:
The individual designated as the Code Compliance Director
by the Town Manager and assigned the responsibility of enforcing the
provisions of the Code of Princess Anne, Maryland.
[Added 5-14-2007 by Ord. No. 2007-01]
The violation of any ordinance, code or state statute provision
which has been deemed to be a criminal offense not amounting to a
felony and which has not been specifically declared to be a municipal
infraction.
A civil offense which results in the violation of any ordinance
or code provision specifically declared to be punishable as a municipal
infraction and not otherwise deemed to be a criminal offense under
state or county law.
[Amended 3-6-2000 by Ord. No. 2000-03]
A.
The violation of any Town of Princess Anne Code provision
not specifically declared to be punishable as a municipal infraction
may be evidenced by the issuance of a notice of violation as an alternative
to arrest or the obtaining of a warrant for such violation. An authorized
agent of the Town witnessing a violation shall be authorized to issue
such notice of violation to any person when that alternative would
best meet the needs of justice and expediency under the circumstances,
provided that the person consents voluntarily, in writing, to accept
such notice and to appear in court as provided herein.
B.
The notice of violation shall contain and specify:
(1)
The violation with which such person is charged;
(2)
The hour, date and location of the court for the county
in which such person will be summoned to appear; and
(3)
A place in which the person may endorse the notice
by signing his or her name and address, indicating receipt thereof
and willingness to appear.
C.
If a person does not willingly consent to the issuance
of the notice of violation, the Town or its agent may proceed to request
an arrest warrant in the manner provided by law.
D.
The person serving the notice of violation shall make
proof of his or her service to the court promptly and, in any event,
within the time during which the person served must respond to the
notice. Failure to make proof of service to the court, however, shall
not affect the validity of the notice.
[Amended 9-10-2001 by Ord. No. 2001-4; 10-1-2012 by Ord. No. 2013-03]
A.
If
any person shall fail to abate any illegal condition or violation
after receipt of the Town's notice to abate and within a reasonable
time as may be specified in such notice, the condition or violation
may be abated by the Town at the expense of the person named in such
notice. Abatement by the Town shall not bar the prosecution of the
person responsible for the condition or violation abated.
B.
Where
the full amount due the Town of Princess Anne plus additional reasonable
administrative and legal costs incurred by the Town is not paid by
such owner within 30 days, or less if specified within the particular
section of the Code, after the Town acted to remedy the violation,
then the Finance Office shall cause to be recorded in the Finance
Department for the Town a sworn statement showing the cost and expense
incurred for the work, the administrative and legal fees, the date
the work was done and the location of the property on which such work
was performed and the location on which such work was performed. For
the purposes of this Code, administrative costs and legal fees shall
include, but are not limited to, the actual costs of Town or other
administrative personnel and Town Attorneys' fees. Said amount
shall be assessed as a lien against the owner of the responsible property,
and interest shall be due from and after 30 days at the same rate
that applies to real estate taxes and shall be collected in the same
manner as real estate taxes.
C.
Subsections A and B shall apply, where applicable, to sections of the Code of Princess Anne, Maryland, specifically including, but not limited to, Chapter 49, Brush, Grass and Weeds; Chapter 52, Building Construction; Chapter 73, Erosion and Sediment Control; Chapter 91, Housing Standards; Chapter 115, Property Maintenance; Chapter 131, Solid Waste; Chapter 133, Stormwater Management; Chapter 135, Streets and Sidewalks; Chapter 138, Subdivision of Land; Chapter 149, Trees; Chapter 154, Vehicles and Traffic; and Chapter 163, Zoning.
A.
Declaration of municipal infractions. The President
and Commissioners shall declare the Code or ordinance provisions which
shall be municipal infractions if violated.
B.
Issuance of citation for municipal infractions.
(1)
Those representatives authorized by the President
and Commissioners to enforce Town ordinances may deliver a citation
to any person alleged to be committing a municipal infraction. The
issuing representative shall file copies of any such citation in the
office of the Town Manager.
(2)
Citations issued under this section shall contain
the following information:
(a)
The name and address of the person charged.
(b)
The nature of the infraction.
(c)
The location and time that the infraction occurred.
(d)
The amount of the infraction fine assessed and the
amount which shall be due upon failure to make timely payment.
(e)
The manner, location and time in which the fine may
be paid to the municipality.
(f)
The right of the accused to elect to stand trial for
the municipal infraction.
(h)
The effect of failing to pay the assessed fine or
demand a trial within the prescribed time.
[Added 9-10-2001 by Ord. No. 2001-4]
(3)
The enforcing officer shall retain a copy of the citation.
[Added 9-10-2001 by Ord. No. 2001-4]
C.
Payment of fine. The fine is payable by the recipient
of the citation to the Town Manager within 20 calendar days of receipt
of the citation.
D.
No formal hearing. The Town shall not conduct any
formal hearing for those persons in receipt of a citation for a municipal
infraction. Any offender so cited may pay the fine as indicated in
the citation or elect to stand trial for the offense. This provision
shall not prevent an offender from requesting, either personally or
through an attorney, additional information concerning the municipal
infraction.
E.
Election to stand trial. A person who receives a citation
for a municipal infraction may elect to stand trial for the offense
by giving notice to the Town Manager, in writing, at least five days
prior to the date by which payment shall be required under the citation.
Upon receipt of such notice the Town Manager shall forward to the
District Court of Maryland for Somerset County a copy of the citation
indicating the recipient's intention to stand trial.
[Amended 9-10-2001 by Ord. No. 2001-4]
F.
Failure to pay fine. Upon failure of an individual
to pay the fine noted on the citation when required and failure to
deliver to the municipality the written notice of intent to stand
trial, the person is liable for the assessed fine. The Town Manager
shall give written notice of the infraction to the recipient and the
recipient's failure to pay the required fine on time. Failure to pay
the fine or give notice of intent to stand trial may result in an
additional fine or adjudication by the court.
[Amended 9-10-2001 by Ord. No. 2001-4]
(1)
If the defendant fails to pay the fine by the date
of payment set forth on the citation, the fine may be doubled in an
amount not to exceed $1,000, and the Town Manager may request adjudication
of the case through the District Court, including the filing of a
demand for judgment on the affidavit.
(2)
If the defendant fails to pay the fine as provided
in the citation and fails to appear in District Court as provided
in the summons, the fine may be doubled to an amount not to exceed
$1,000. The Court may also enter judgment against the defendant in
the amount then due if the proper demand for judgment on the affidavit
has been made.
G.
Delivery. The citation shall be served on any person
whom the Town Manager or enforcement officer believes is committing
or has committed a municipal infraction:
[Added 9-10-2001 by Ord. No. 2001-4]
(1)
In accordance with Rule 3-121 of the Maryland Rules;
or
(2)
For real-property-related violations, if proof is
made by affidavit that good faith efforts to serve the defendant under
Rule 3-121(a) of the Maryland Rules have not succeeded, by:
(a)
Regular mail to the defendant's last known address;
and
(b)
Posting of the citation at the property where the
infraction has occurred or is occurring, and, if different and if
located within the municipality in which the infraction has occurred
or is occurring, at the residence or place of business of the violator.
H.
Summons. A summons may also be served with a citation
that requires the person to appear in District Court on a specified
date and time. The summons shall specify that the person is not required
to appear in District Court if the fine is paid as provided in the
citation. If approved by the Chief Judge of the Maryland District
Court, the citation form may contain the summons.
[Added 9-10-2001 by Ord. No. 2001-4]
[Amended 3-6-2000 by Ord. No. 2000-03]
Unless otherwise specifically enumerated in this Code, any person found guilty of violating any provision of this Code for which violation is a misdemeanor, as defined in § 1-1, shall be subject to a fine not to exceed $1,000 or six months in jail, or both, in the discretion of the court.
[Amended 3-6-2000 by Ord. No. 2000-03]
The general penalty for commission of a municipal
infraction shall be $1,000, unless another fine has been enumerated.
In no event shall the fine actually imposed for conviction of a general
municipal infraction exceed $1,000.
Unless otherwise provided, a separate or repeat
offense may be charged or cited for each day a violation of this Code
or any Town ordinance continues.
The sections of the Code of Princess Anne, Maryland,
enumerated in this section shall be enforced as municipal infractions.
The following fines shall be set for each municipal infraction:
[Added 9-10-2001 by Ord. No. 2001-4]
A.
In case of any unlawful acts, the enforcing officer
shall institute an appropriate action or proceeding at law to exact
the penalties provided in this Code.
B.
Also, the enforcing officer shall ask the Town Attorney
to proceed at law or in equity against the person responsible for
violation for the purpose of ordering that person:
(1)
To restrain, correct or remove the violation or refrain
from any further execution of work;
(2)
To restrain or correct the erection, installation,
maintenance, repair or alteration of such structure;
(3)
To require the removal of work in violation; or
(4)
To prevent the occupancy of the structure that is
not in compliance with the provisions of this Code.
[Adopted 3-6-2000 by Ord. No. 2000-03]
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WHEREAS, the Town Commissioners of the Town
of Princess Anne have decided to adopt a recodification of the ordinances
of the Town of Princess Anne, entitled "Code of the Town of Princess
Anne";
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NOW THEREFORE, BE IT ENACTED AND ORDAINED BY
THE TOWN COMMISSIONERS OF THE TOWN OF PRINCESS ANNE, MARYLAND, IN
LEGISLATIVE SESSION, that a codification and revision of the ordinances
of the Town of Princess Anne, Maryland be adopted as follows:
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The various chapters and articles of the 1991 Code of Ordinances of the Town of Princess Anne, and subsequent ordinances of the Town of Princess Anne of a general and permanent nature adopted by the Town Commissioners of the Town of Princess Anne, as revised, codified and consolidated into chapters and sections by General Code Publishers Corp., and consisting of Chapters 1 through 163, together with an Appendix, are hereby approved, adopted, ordained and enacted as the "Code of the Town of Princess Anne," hereinafter known and referred to as the "Code."
This ordinance and the Code shall supersede
the 1991 Code of Ordinances of the Town of Princess Anne and all other
general and permanent ordinances enacted prior to the enactment of
this Code, except such ordinances as are hereinafter expressly saved
from repeal or continued in force.
A.
All provisions of this ordinance and the Code shall
be in full force and effect 20 days after the passage of this ordinance.
B.
The provisions of the Code, insofar as they are substantively
the same as those of the legislation in force immediately prior to
the enactment of the Code by this ordinance, are intended as a continuation
of such legislation and not as new enactments, and the effectiveness
of such provisions shall date from the date of adoption of the prior
legislation.
A copy of the Code in loose-leaf or post binder
form has been filed in the office of the Town Manager and shall remain
there for use and examination by the public until final action is
taken on this ordinance, and if this ordinance shall be adopted, such
copy shall be certified to by the Town Manager by impressing thereon
the Seal of the Town of Princess Anne, and such certified copy shall
remain on file in the office of the Town Manager of the Town, to be
made available to persons desiring to examine the same during all
times while the Code is in effect.
Any and all additions, amendments or supplements
to the Code, when passed and adopted in such form as to indicate the
intent of the Town Commissioners to make them a part thereof, shall
be deemed to be incorporated into such Code so that reference to the
"Code of the Town of Princess Anne" shall be understood and intended
to include such additions and amendments. Whenever such additions,
amendments or supplements to the Code shall be adopted, they shall
thereafter be printed and, as provided hereunder, inserted in the
loose-leaf or post binder book containing said Code as amendments
and supplements thereto.
The Town Manager of Town of Princess Anne, pursuant
to law, shall cause to be published, in the manner required, a notice
of the passage of this ordinance in a newspaper of general circulation
in the Town. Sufficient copies of the Code shall be maintained in
the office of the Town Manager for inspection by the public at all
times during regular office hours. Publication of such notice, coupled
with availability of copies of the Code for inspection by the public,
shall be deemed, held and considered to be due and legal publication
of all provisions of the Code for all purposes.
It shall be the duty of the Town Manager, or
someone authorized and directed by the Town Manager, to keep up-to-date
the certified copy of the book containing the Code required to be
filed in the Town Manager's office for the use of the public. All
changes in said Code and all ordinances adopted subsequent to the
effective date of this codification which shall be adopted specifically
as part of the Code shall, when finally adopted, be included therein
by reference until such changes or new ordinances are printed as supplements
to said Code books, at which time such supplements shall be inserted
therein.
Copies of the Code, or any chapter or portion
of it, may be purchased from the Town Manager or an authorized agent
of the Town Manager upon the payment of a fee to be set by resolution
of the Town Commissioners. The Town Manager may also arrange for procedures
for the periodic supplementation of the Code.
It shall be unlawful for anyone to improperly
change or amend, by additions or deletions, any part or portion of
the Code or to alter or tamper with such Code in any manner whatsoever
which will cause the law of the Town of Princess Anne to be misrepresented
thereby. Any violation of this section shall be punishable as a misdemeanor,
the penalty for which shall be a fine not to exceed $1,000 or imprisonment
for a term not to exceed six months, or both such fine and imprisonment.
A.
Titles of sections. The titles of the several sections
of the Code are intended as mere catchwords to indicate the contents
of the sections and shall not be taken to be a part of such sections.
B.
Notes. Notes appearing at the end of some sections
are advisory only and are not included within the designation of the
Code. Notes have the function of indicating conflicts with or cross
references to related laws which appear in the Maryland Constitution
or Annotated Code, Somerset County Code or the Town of Princess Anne
Charter.
C.
CHARTER
CODE
COMMISSION
COUNTY
JOINT AUTHORITY
MONTH
OATH
PERSON
PRESIDENT
SIGNATURE OR SUBSCRIPTION
STATE
TOWN
WRITING
YEAR
Definitions. As used in the Code, the following terms
shall have the meanings indicated:
The Charter of the Town of Princess Anne.
The Code of the Town of Princess Anne.
The Commission of the Town of Princess Anne.
Somerset County, Maryland.
Includes all words giving a joint authority to three or more
persons or officers and shall be construed as giving such authority
to a majority of such persons or officers.
A calendar month.
An affirmation or declaration in all cases in which, by law,
an affirmation may be substituted for an oath, and in such cases the
words "swear" and "sworn" shall be equivalent to the words "affirm"
and "affirmed."
Includes a corporation, company, partnership, association
or society as well as a natural person.
The President of the Commissioners of the Town of Princess
Anne.
Includes a mark when the person cannot write, his/her name
being written near it and witnessed by a person who writes his/her
own name as witness.
The State of Maryland.
The Town of Princess Anne, Maryland.
Includes printing.
The Town fiscal year.
D.
Word usage. The word "may" is permissive; the word
"shall" is mandatory.
E.
References to the laws of other jurisdictions. Whenever
a provision of the Code refers to any portion of a state or county
law, the reference includes any subsequent amendment to that law,
unless the referring provision expressly provides otherwise.
F.
Computation of time. In computing any period of time
prescribed or allowed by any applicable provision of the Code, the
day of the act, event or default after which the designated period
of time begins to run is not to be included. The last day of the period
so computed is to be included unless it is a Saturday, Sunday or legal
holiday. When the period of time allowed includes intermediate Saturdays,
Sundays and legal holidays, such days shall be counted in computing
the period of time.
A.
Severability of Code provisions. Each section of the
Code and every part of each section is an independent section or part
of a section, and the holding of any section or a part thereof to
be unconstitutional, void or ineffective for any cause shall not be
deemed to affect the validity or constitutionality of any other sections
or parts thereof.
B.
Severability of ordinance provisions. Each section
of this ordinance is an independent section, and the holding of any
section or part thereof to be unconstitutional, void or ineffective
for any cause shall not be deemed to affect the validity or constitutionality
of any other sections or parts thereof.
All ordinances or parts of ordinances of a general
and permanent nature adopted and in force on the date of the adoption
of this ordinance and not contained in the Code are hereby repealed
as of the effective date of this adopting ordinance, except as hereinafter
provided.
The adoption of this Code and repeal of ordinances provided for in § 1-12 of this ordinance shall not affect the following ordinances, rights and obligations, which are hereby expressly saved from repeal:
A.
Any ordinance adopted subsequent to December 1, 1999.
B.
Any right or liability established, accrued or incurred
under any legislative provision prior to the effective date of this
ordinance or any action or proceeding brought for the enforcement
of such right or liability.
C.
Any offense or act committed or done before the effective
date of this ordinance in violation of any legislative provisions
or any penalty, punishment or forfeiture which may result therefrom.
D.
Any prosecution, indictment, action, suit or other
proceeding pending or any judgment rendered prior to the effective
date of this ordinance brought pursuant to any legislative provision.
E.
Any agreement entered into or any franchise, license,
right, easement or privilege heretofore granted or conferred.
F.
Any ordinance providing for the laying out, opening,
altering, widening, relocating, straightening, establishing of grade,
changing of name, improvement, acceptance or vacation of any right-of-way,
easement, street, road, highway, park or other public place or any
portion thereof.
G.
Any ordinance or resolution appropriating money or
transferring funds, promising or guaranteeing the payment of money
or authorizing the issuance and delivery of any bond or other instruments
or evidence of the Town's indebtedness.
H.
Ordinances authorizing the purchase, sale, lease or
transfer of property or any lawful contract or obligation.
I.
The levy or imposition of taxes, assessments or charges.
J.
The dedication of property or approval of preliminary
or final subdivision plats.
K.
Ordinances establishing the amount and manner of payment
of salaries or compensation of officers and employees, establishing
workdays and working hours of certain employees and providing for
holidays and vacations for employees and keeping of employment records.
L.
Any legislation relating to or establishing a pension
plan or pension fund for municipal employees.
A.
In compiling and preparing the ordinances for adoption
and revision as part of the Code, certain grammatical changes and
other minor changes were made in one or more of said ordinances. It
is the intention of the Town Commissioners that all such changes be
adopted as part of the Code as if the ordinances so changed had been
previously formally amended to read as such.
B.
The following changes are made throughout the Code:
(1)
References to the "Planning Commission" are amended
to "Planning and Zoning Commission."
(2)
References to the "Building Inspector," "Housing Inspector,"
"Town Inspector," "Zoning Inspector," "Planning and Zoning Inspector,"
"Planning Officer" and "Zoning Enforcement Officer" are amended to
"Code Enforcement Officer."
C.
In addition, the following changes, amendments or
revisions are made herewith, to become effective upon the effective
date of this ordinance as set forth in Schedule A attached hereto
and made a part hereof (chapter and section number references are
to the ordinances as they have been renumbered and appear in the Code).[1]
[1]
Editor's Note: In accordance with § 1-22C, the chapters, parts and sections which were added, amended, adopted or deleted by this ordinance are indicated throughout the Code by a footnote referring to Chapter 1, General Provisions, Article II. During routine supplementation, footnotes indicating amendments or additions will be replaced with the following wording: "amended (added) 3-6-2000 by Ord. No. 2000-03." A complete description of all changes is on file in the Town offices.
Pursuant to § 9A of Article 23A of
the Maryland Code, a copy of the Code of the Town of Princess Anne
containing the Charter shall be deposited with the Maryland Department
of Legislative Reference.
