HomeMy WebLinkAbout052819_ca01JEFFERSON COUNTY
BOARD OF COUNTY COMMISSIONERS
AGENDA REQUEST
TO: Board of County Commissioners
Philip Morley, County Administrator
FROM: Philip C. Hunsucker, Chief Civil Deputy Prosecuting Attorney
Austin Watkins, Civil Deputy Prosecuting Attorney
DATE: May 28, 2019
SUBJECT: Request to Publish Notice of Public Hearing and Establish Public Comment
Period for the Proposed Public Nuisance Ordinance
STATEMENT OF ISSUE:
This request is to have the Board of County Commissioners (BoCC) approve a notice for a June 17, 2019
public hearing for the proposed draft public nuisance ordinance. The legal notice will be published in the
June 5, 2019 and June 12, 2019 editions of Port Townsend Leader.
ANALYSIS:
The Prosecuting Attorney's Office (PAO) was directed to draft a Public Nuisance Ordinance for
unincorporated Jefferson County, as the County does not have a nuisance ordinance. The draft ordinance
establishes uniform regulations providing necessary tools to combat serious public nuisance cases affecting
entire neighborhoods, while minimizing required County resources.
The draft ordinance should be differentiated from code enforcement, which in many instances, does not rise
to the level of a public nuisance. A minor land use code violation would be handled through efforts to obtain
code compliance, not a public nuisance enforcement.
The draft public nuisance ordinance requires legislative action by the BoCC. The proposed legislative action
requires public notice and public comment. The attached notice begins a public comment period from June
5, 2019 until the close of the BoCC public hearing on June 27, 2019.
On May 13, 2019, the PAO gave an initial brief of the draft ordinance. On May 20, 2019, the PAO gave an
informational brief on the process and procedures in the draft ordinance and obtained initial BoCC feedback.
On May 20, 2019, the BoCC directed the PAO to prepare a hearing notice for the draft ordinance.
Overview of the Proposed Uniform System of Public Nuisance Regulation
The draft ordinance accomplishes the following:
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• Uniform system of public nuisance regulation;
• Centrally declares nuisances;
• Establishes a preferred order of a precedent for compliance:
o First step — Voluntary correction, including voluntary compliance agreements;
o Second step — Civil violations, including civil penalties;
o Third step — Civil violations and order of abatement, including civil penalties and county
abatement of nuisances; and,
o Allows criminal misdemeanor charges, used with prosecutorial discretion;
• Establishes the Hearing Examiner as the administrative appeal or hearing path;
• Allows cost recovery for abatement costs, such as staff time, clean up costs, and incidental expenses;
• Permits a real property lien against the subject property for civil penalties and cost recovery; and,
• Authorizes department directors to settle costs and civil penalties when certain factors have been met
and the settlement is in the best interest of the County.
Next Steps:
1. Conduct a public hearing on the draft ordinance obtaining citizen input and revising the draft
ordinance based upon citizen input, if appropriate.
2. Consider taking action to adopt the draft ordinance.
FISCAL IMPACT:
While the draft ordinance develops a uniform system of public nuisance enforcement, the overall fiscal
impact is hard to quantify. First, the County devotes significant resources to prosecuting nuisance cases with
litigation spanning many years. This draft ordinance aims to reduce County resources needed to prosecute
public nuisance cases by adopting uniform regulations and transitioning administrative appeals and hearings
to the Hearing Examiner. However, certain costs will be incurred, such as fees associated with
administrative appeals or hearings before the Hearing Examiner, which will be paid out of the County's
general fund. Second, this draft ordinance permits cost recovery and civil penalties offsetting the costs to
administer this program. Finally, the draft ordinance authorizes collection efforts for monies due under the
civil penalty or cost recovery scheme, such as real property liens.
RECOMMENDATION:
Approve the hearing notice for a June 17, 2019 public hearing on the proposed draft public nuisance
ordinance.
REVIEWED BY:
E
ilip Morl L
C unty ator Date
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Please publish: June 5, 2019 and June 12, 2019
Bill: Jefferson County Board of County Commissioners
P.O. Box 1220
Port Townsend WA 98368
Account: 15830
NOTICE OF PUBLIC HEARING AND PUBLIC COMMENTS
ON A PROPOSED DRAFT PUBLIC NUISANCE ORDINANCE
Notice is hereby given that a public hearing will be held on Monday, June 17, 2019 at 11:00 a.m.
in the County Commissioners Chambers of the Jefferson County Courthouse, 1820 Jefferson
Street, Port Townsend, WA for the purpose of taking oral and written testimony regarding an
Ordinance which, if enacted, will establish a uniform system of public nuisance regulations,
centrally declare public nuisances, establish a compliance system including monetary penalties
and county abatement, and provide cost recovery for county related public nuisance
expenditures. The sections of the proposed ordinance are:
8.90.010 Purpose.
8.90.020 Liberal construction.
8.90.030 Declaration of nuisance.
8.90.040 Public rules.
8.90.050 Definitions.
8.90.060 Enforcement authority and administration.
8.90.070 Service of notices of voluntary compliance, notices of noncompliance, notices of
violation, stop work orders, and notices of violation and orders of abatement issued under
this chapter.
8.90.080 Voluntary correction.
8.90.090 Notice of violation.
8.90.100 Stop work order.
8.90.110 Notice of violation and order of abatement.
8.90.120 Vehicle nuisance.
8.90.130 Public right of way nuisance.
8.90.140 Administrative appeals.
8.90.150 Crimes designated.
8.90.160 Right of entry.
8.90.170 Conflicts.
8.90.180 Representation by attorney.
8.90.190 Monetary penalties.
8.90.200 Recovery of costs.
8.90.210 Settlement of monetary penalties and costs.
In addition to the June 17, 2019 Public Hearing, written testimony may be submitted from June
5, 2019 and until the close of the public hearing on June 17, 2019, addressed to the BoCC at P.O.
Box 1220, Port Townsend, WA 98368 or by email at jeffbocc@co.jefferson.wa.us unless
extended by the Board of County Commissioners.
The public may view the text the proposed draft public nuisance ordinance on-line at
http://test.co.Jefferson.wa.us/WebLinkExtemal/0/fol/2092626/Rowl.aspx or in-person at the
Jefferson County Board of County Commissioner's Office located at 1820 Jefferson Street, Port
Townsend, WA 98368.
Signed this 28th day of May 2019
Kate Dean, Chair
Jefferson County Board of Commissioners