Code Enforcement Violation Penalty Fees

“Constructive Notice”. A property owner has constructive notice of the existence of a violation if the property owner has actual notice of circumstances sufficient to put a prudent person upon inquiry as to a particular fact and if by prosecuting that inquiry, the person might have learned that a violation existed on the property.

“Continuing Violation” means each day a violation continues is a separate and distinct offense.

"Responsible party" means any of the following:

1. A person that causes, maintains, allows, or is otherwise responsible for a violation;
2. A person with an ownership interest in real property upon which a violation is found; or
3. A person who exercises possession or control of real property upon which a violation is found, including a tenant, agent, employee, contractor, subcontractor, or other occupant.

"Violation" means:

1. An act, omission, or condition contrary to a provision of this code, or an ordinance, resolution, rule, proclamation, order, or regulation of the county.
2. An act, omission, or condition contrary to a term or condition of a license, permit, or approval, including associated plans, specifications, reports, and studies, granted or issued by the county.

Sonoma County Code Chapter 1 Section 1-7.1 provides for civil penalties for commercial, residential, cannabis, vacation rental, and other violations. The amount of civil penalties assessed may increase for repeated violations of the same code section.

1. Commercial violation (may include grading / drainage violations and vacation rentals) a responsible party must pay one of the following:
   1. Fair market rental value of the land or structure in violation beginning on the date a violation notice was mailed through violation abatement.
   2. Daily Penalty of $25 to $100 per day for the first violation.
   3. Permit multiplier of 3 to 10 times the amount of the standard fee for every required approval, review, and permit
2. Residential violation (may include grading / drainage violations): A responsible party must pay one of the following:
   1. Fair market rental value of the land or structure in violation beginning on the date a violation notice was mailed through violation abatement.
   2. Daily Penalty of $15 to $100 per day for the first violation.
   3. Permit multiplier of 1.5 to 10 times the amount of the standard fee for every required approval, review, and permit
3. Other Violations: Including but not limited to unlawful noncommercial junkyard conditions, truck terminals, non-operative motor vehicle storage yards, accessory structures, excess number of animals, or storage, disposal, or transportation of solid waste:
   1. Daily Penalty of $5 to $100 per day for the first violation. 
   2. Permit multiplier of 3 to 5 times the amount of the standard fee for every required approval, review, and permit.

Civil penalties for cannabis violations, septic system operational permit violations, and other violations may be found in Sonoma County Code Chapter 1.

The Sonoma County Code provides exclusions for the assessment of civil penalties:

1. “Innocent Purchaser.” This exclusion may be used if the property owner can demonstrate that the violation existed when the property was purchased and the property owner did not have actual or constructive notice of the violation. If, within (30) days of notification of a violation, the new property owner initiates and pursues abatement with due diligence, the property owner may be excluded from penalties.
2. Ceasing the unlawful use or demolishing the unpermitted construction: If the property owner discontinues the unlawful use of the property or obtains a demolition permit to remove unpermitted work within thirty (30) days of notification of a violation, the property owner may be excluded from civil penalties.
3. Self-disclosure. Civil penalties do not apply if the property owner establishes that at the time the property owner acquired the property a violation of this code existed on the property, there was no violation on record, and within six (6) months of acquiring an ownership, the owner initiated and pursued abatement with due diligence as determined solely by the enforcing officer.

The assessment of a civil penalty may be appealed to an administrative hearing officer if made in writing and submitted within ten (10) calendar days from the date of violation notification. Failure to timely appeal is a final determination and conclusive evidence of the responsible party’s liability for assessed civil penalties.