§ 29-26. Penalties.
Except where the act constituting a violation of this chapter constitutes a violation of any state or federal law which is designed to achieve the same purposes as this chapter, or where a penalty under this chapter is otherwise prohibited by law, violations of this chapter shall be punishable as follows:
(a)
Any owner, operator or handler or handler of a hazardous materials facility subject to this chapter shall be liable for a civil penalty of not less than five hundred dollars ($500.00) or more than five thousand dollars ($5,000.00) per day for any of the following:
(1)
Operation without an appropriate permit.
(2)
Failure to monitor the hazardous materials facility as required by the permit.
(3)
Failure to report an actual or threatened release as required by Section 29-16.
(4)
Failure to properly close an underground storage tank as required by Section 29-10.
(b)
Any owner of a hazardous materials facility shall be liable for a civil penalty of not less than five hundred dollars ($500.00) or more than five thousand dollars ($5,000.00) per day for any of the following:
(1)
Failure to obtain a permit as specified by this chapter.
(2)
Failure to repair a hazardous materials facility in accordance with the provisions of this chapter.
(3)
Abandonment or improper closure of any hazardous materials facility subject to the provisions of this chapter.
(4)
Knowing failure to take reasonable and necessary steps to assure compliance with this chapter by the owner, operator or handler or handler of a hazardous materials facility.
(c)
Any person who falsifies any monitoring records required by this chapter, or knowingly fails to report an actual or threatened release shall, upon conviction, be punished by a fine of not less than five thousand dollars ($5,000.00) or more than ten thousand dollars ($10,000.00) or by imprisonment in the county jail for a period not to exceed one (1) year or by both that fine and imprisonment.
(d)
Any person or business who violates Section 29-16 of this chapter or Section 25507 of the Health and Safety Code shall, upon conviction, be punished by a fine of not more than twenty-five thousand dollars ($25,000.00) for each day of violation, or by imprisonment in the county jail for not more than one (1) year or by both the fine and imprisonment. If the conviction is for a violation committed after a first conviction under this section, the person or business shall be punished by a fine of not less than two thousand dollars ($2,000.00) or more than fifty thousand dollars ($50,000.00) per day of violation, or by imprisonment in the state prison for sixteen (16), twenty (20), or twenty-four (24) months or in the county jail for not more than one (1) year or by both the fine and imprisonment. Furthermore, if the violation results in, or significantly contributes to an emergency, including a fire to which a public agency is required to respond, the person or business shall also be assessed the full cost of the emergency response as well as the cost of cleaning up and disposing of the hazardous materials and any costs associated with collecting moneys owed under this section.
(e)
In determining both the civil and criminal penalties imposed pursuant to this section, the court shall consider all relevant circumstances including, but not limited to, the extent of harm or potential harm caused by the violation, the nature of the violation and the period of time over which it occurred, and the frequency of past violations and the regulatory action, if any, taken by the person who holds the permit.
(f)
Except where prohibited by law, penalties under this section are in addition to, and do not supersede or limit, any and all other legal remedies and penalties.
(g)
Persons providing information with respect to certain hazardous material law violations may be eligible for a reward under Sections 25517 of the Health and Safety Code.
(h)
Other penalties or remedies may apply under state law. This article is not intended to be all-encompassing.
(Ord. No. 6050, § I, 11-5-2013)