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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2769.~ : -- . . . _: ~~ ~°~ AN ORDINANCE OF THE COUNTY OF BUTTE ADDING ARTICLE VII ENTTTLED "llANGEROU~u ANIMALS" TO CHAPTER 4 OF THE BUTTE COUNTY CODE TABLE OF CONTENTS Chapter 4, Articl~ VII Code Section Page Sec~ion 4-41 Public P~atection From Animals ~- Section 4-42 P~rmit Required for Dangerous Animals ~. Sect~.on 4-43 ~efinifions 2 Sec~.ion 4-44 Dangerous Animal Permit Required 3 Sec~ion 4-45 Application Pracedure ~ Section 4-~46 Dispu~ed Identificat~.an o~ Domestic 3 Animal as I7angerous Section ~-47 Permit Non-Transferable~ Void on Change of ~ Locati.on Section 4-4$ Issuance of Permit far Danqerous Animal 4 Sectian 4-49 Expirat~.on and Renewal o£ Pe~znit 5 Section 4--50 Denial of Permit 5 Section 4-51. Ru~es and Regulations ~ Section 4-52 ~nspect~on $ Section 4--53 Re~croca~ion of P~rmit 9 Sec~ion 4-54~ Grounds for Sumnzary Seizcxre and ~mpoundment 10 Section 4-55 No~ice of S~ary Seizure and Impo~ndment 10 Sect~.on 4-56 Post Sei.zure Request for Hearing Z1 Section 4-5'1 Hea~ing Following Impoundment ~1 Section 4-~8 Re~tric~ions After Permit ~-2 Denial or Revoca~ion 5ection 4-~5 9 Va.olations ~ 2 Severabilit 13 QRDINANCE 2769 1 2 AN ORDINANCE OF THE COUNTY OF BUTTE ADDING ARTICLE VII ENTITLED "DANGEROUS ANTMALS" 3 ~ TO CHAPTER 4 OF THE BUTTE COUNTY CODE . 4 THE BOARD OF SUPERVXSORS OF THE COUNTY OF BUTTE, STATE OF 5 CALIFORNIA, ORDAINS AS FOLLOWS: 6 Section 1: Article VII a.s hereby added to Chapter 4 of the Butte 7 County Code to read as follaws: $ ARTICLE VI~. DANGEROUS ANIMA.LS 9 SECTZON ~-41 PUBLIC PROTECTI4N FROM ANIMALS ~p A.) Pro~ection Required. Every owner of an anima~. shal~ at X~. all t~.mes: 12 1. Prevent such animal from biting or physically harassing 13 any parson engaged in a lawful act and f~om inter~ering wi.th the ~~ lawful use of publ.ic or pri.vate property. ~~ 2. Preven~. such animal ~~om aausing s~bstan~ial inju~y ta lg another domestic animal whi~.e such domestz.c anima~ is ~awfully upon 1'7 public ar private prope~ty. "Substantia3. injury" means any injury 18 to an animaZ wha.ch resul.~s ~n v~~.erinarian treatm~nt o~ dea~h. Yg 3. Desist from commanding or provoking suah animal to 2p attaek, sic or threaten a person when such per~on is peaceably and 2I law~ul~y upon public or private p~operty. ~~ B.) Exclusion. A trained dog assis~ing a peace af~icer 23 engaged in l.aw enforcement duties is excluded fra~n this section. 24 SECT~ON 4-42 PERMTT REQUIRED FOR DANGER4U5 ANIMAI~S 2~ The own.er of an animal identified as a dangerous animal shaZ1. 26 obtain and maintain a current, ~raZid Dange~ous Animal Permit issued ~7 pursuant to this Articl.e by ~he Director o~ Enviranumen~al Health. 28 / / / -1- 1 SECTION 4-43. DEFINITIONS 2 Unless the contrary is stated or clearly appears from the 3 context, the foilowing de~in~~ians shall govern the construction of 4 the words and phrases used in this Article; 5 A.) Dangerous Animal. The term a"dangerous animal" sha11 mean 6 any animal, excapt a f~ained dog ass~sting a peace o~ficer engaged 7 in ~aw enforcem~n~ duties or a food~producing animal being raised on 8 a commercial farm or ranch, which de~nonstrates one or more o~ the 9 following b~haviors ar characteris~ics: 10 1. An a~tack, without provocation, which requzres a defensive 11 ac~~on by any person to prevent bodily inju~y or property l~ damage or ~hat resu~ts in an injury ta a person or praperty. ~3 2. Any behavior, without provocation, that consfitutes a ~4 physical threat of bod~.ly harm to a person when s~xch attack, ~5 injuxy or behavior occurs in a place wher~ such person is ~6 conducting himself or herself peaceably and ~awfully. 17 3. An at~ack, without provocatio~, on anofher animal, which 1g attack occurs off the proper~y o~ the owner of the at~.acking ~g animal. 2(] 4. An an~.mal that creates or cans~itutes a menace to the 21 public's health and sa~ety due to its training or inherent ~2 nature. 23 ~. A dog wrhich has scars or wounds r~rhich are attributable to ~~ fights or altercations with another domestic animal. 25 / / / 26 / I I 27 / / / 28 / / / -2- 1 B.} Animal Control ~fficer. The terzn "Animal Control Ofticer" 2 shall mean any person, whether an empl.oyee o~ the County of Bu~f.e, 3 an independent contractar or an employee of an independent ~ contrac~or, designated as an aniznal control officer by the Director 5 0~ I~ublic Health. ~ C.) Owner. The term "owner" shall mean any persan who owns o~ 7 has any ownership or possessory interest in, possesses, keeps, has, g maintains o~ harbors an animal. g SECT~ON 4-44 DANGEROUS AN~MAL PERM~T REQiJIRED Ip The owner of any dangerous an.imal, as defined in Section 4-43A l~ shal]., within five (5) working days of receipt of written or aral 12 notifieation by an Animal Contro]. O#'ficer that said animal is ~3 dangerous, apply for a Dangerous Animal Pe~nit. 14 SECTION 4-45. APPLICATION PROCEDURE ir~ An applicat~.on for a Dangerous AnimaZ Permit shal~. be subinitted ~6 in writing ~o the Director of Environmental Health. The application 1~ shall. be accompanied by a f~e of $100.00 and sha11 can~ain the name 1g of the applicant, applicant's address, the appZicant's home and ~g business phone numbers, the address and descri.ption of the proposed 2p lacation where the anima~. will be k~pt and a coznple~.e descrip~ion 21 and a co1o~ photograph of the animal. ~2 SECTSON 4-46. DISPUTED IDENTIF~CATZON OF DOMESTIC ANTMAL AS 23 DANGEROUS. 24 A.} Heari~ Request. Zf the owner o~ ~he animal disputes ~he 25 Animal Con~ro~ 4ffic~r's i~den~ification of the animal as a dang~rous 2~ aniznal, he or she may, within ~ive (5) working days o~' receip~ of ~7 th~ nota.~ication, submi~ a written req~est for a hearing to the 2g Direc~or af Envz.ronmenta]. Health. Failur~ of ~he owner ta make a -3- 1 timely request far a hearing shall resu~t in the anima~ being 2 dec~ared dangeraus, and the owner shal~ be req~ired to CO~p~~ wi~h 3 the requ~rements of Sections 4-42 and 4-44 to app~y ~or a permit. 4 B.} Hearing. A hearing pursuant to this section shall be ~ conduc~ed in an in~orma~ manner by the Director o~ Environmental g Health. The heax~ng shou~d be held within ten (10) days af th~ 7 receipt af the hear~ng request. The hearing may be continu~d if the g Director of Environmental Health deems it necessary and praper or if g the own~r or Animal Co~fro~ O~fic~r shows good cause. Bo~h the lp owner of th~ animal and the Animal Con~rol Officer may prese~t X~ relevant evidence and call and cross-examine wi~nesses, but the 12 stric~ rules of evidence shall not be app~icable. The Director o~ ~3 Environmental Health or designated represe~tative shall render a ~4 brief wr~tten decision wi~hin ten (10) days of the conc~usion o~ the ~5 hearing. Said decision sha~~ be final. j6 SECTION 4-47 PERMIT NON-TRANSFERABLE; VOID ON CHANGE OF LOCAT~ON 1~ A permit obtained under this section is not transferable. If the ~g permittee's address ar the Zocation where th~ animal is kept 19 chang~s, o~ the animal is sold, assigned, donated, leased or 2q otherw~se ~ransferred or disposed of, the permit automatically 21 becomes void and a new app~ication must be ~ubmitted to the Dzrec~or 22 0~ Environmental H~a1~h pursuant ~o Section 4-45 above. ~3 SECTTON 4-48 ~SSUANCE OF PERMIT FOR DANGEROUS ANIMAL 2~ mhe issuance o~ a Dangerous Ana.mal Permit shal~ be conditioned ~5 upon the animaZ owner pro~nising in writ~.ng to comp~.y wi~h ~.he Rules 2~ and R~gulations specified in Section 4-51 below and to any 2~7 reasonabZe criteria related ~o the proper ca~e, control, maintenance 28 / / / -4- 1 2 3 4 5 s 7 8 9 10 1~ 12 13 I4 15 I6 17 18 19 and use of the animal which the D~xec~or of Environmental Health shall ~stablish. SECTION ~-49 EXPIRATION AND RENEWAL OF PERMIT. A permi~ issued pursuant to this Artic~e sha11 be valid for one year un~ess it becomes void pursuant to Section 4-47 or is revoked pursuant to Sectio~ 4-53. If the p~rmittee ~ai1s to f~1e an application for a new perm~t pursuant to Section 4-45 above prior ta the permit anniversary date, the permit shall automaticalZy become void. SECTION 4-50 DENTAL 0~' PERM~T A. ) Grounds. The Director of En.vi~rorut~ental Health may deny a Dangerous Animal Perznit in any o~ the follvwing situatzons: 1. When the applicant or p~rmit holder has will~ully withheld or fa~sified any informa~.ion req~ired for a perm~.t. 2. x£ the applican.t or perFn~t hol.der has been con.victed wa.thin the past five (5? years, by a court of law, for any violatian of this Article, or any other law(s} ~~lating to anima].s, pubZic nuisance caused by animals, o~ cruelty to animals, in this or any oth~r sta~.e. For purposes o~ this Section, a for~eiture of bail shall be deemed to be a convic~ion of the o£fense charged. 3. Whenever the aninnal awner fail.s to aZ1.ow the Animal Cantrol Officer ar oth~r designated represen~.ative to conduct an inspec~.ion of the owner's proper~y where the animal is kept or proposed ~o be kept. 4. Whenever the owner af the dangerous ani.mal fails to compl.y with any o~ the Rul~s and ReguZatioz~s of Section 4-51. 5. Whenever an at~ack aqai~st a hunnan being by the aninlal has resulted in substantial. injury or fatality. -5- 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 $ 9 10 11 X2 I3 14 15 16 17 18 19 B.} Surrender or Remova~ af Animal. Upon writt~n or oral notzfica~ion being given that a Dangerous Animal Permit has been den~ed, the awner o~ such animal shall, within three {3) caiendar days o~ s~ch notification, surre~der said animal to the Anima~ Control Of~ic~r or provide wri~ten proof to ~he Director of Environmental Health in the form a~ a declaration under penalty of perjury that such animal has been permanen~~.y removed from the County of Butte to an ~denti~ied location. SECTION ~-~1 RULES AND REGULAT~ONS The awner af a dangera~.s animaZ shall comply wi.th the ~ol.lowing rules and regula~.ions; a. Tn~hen the animal is of~~ iche praperty of i~s owner it mta.st be restrained with a leash no~ to exceed three feet in length and shall be under the direct control of a respons~.b7.e adult capable of restraining such animal. b. The animaZ must be inaintained so ~hat it is not a threat ta any mai~ carrier, sanitation worker, meter reader, or other person who has the lawfuZ ~ight, eith~r by expressed or impl~.ed consent, to enter the property where the animal. is kept. c. The animaJ. shall not be allowed upon any unenclosed pre~nise unless it is leashed and contro~led by a responsi.ble adult. The animal shall not be tethered, tied or staked on any unenc~osed pr~~nase. d. The anima~ sha1.1 be kep~ in a fenced yard, kenne~, run or enclasure approved by the Animal Contro3. Officer and maintained in such a manner ta ensure that it is always 2~ secure to keep the an~mal inside. .~. ~.. e. Each entrance to the property where the animal is kep~ sha~1 be pasted w~th a 1eg~ble sign, conspicuous to the pub~ic, warning persoms of ~he presence o~ said dangerous anima~ and containing an accurate description ar picture thereof, ~. The owner sha~1 notify a11 persons residing in the same househald or on th~ same premises that the ~angerous Anima~ Permit exists and of the conditions of said permit. g. AlI Zoca~ and s~ate laws regarding the care, use, controZ and main~enance o~ animals shall be strictly complied w~th, h. ~n addition to any registration tag required to be warn pursuant to this Chapter, the animal shall at aI~ tim~s wear a separate tag issued by the Director o~ Environmental Health designating i~ as a dangeraus anima~. i. ~he Dangerous Animal Permit Numb~r ass~gned ~o it shal~, at the expense o~ the anima~'s owne~ or possessor, and within twenty {20) days o~ ~ssuance o~ said per~mit, be tattooed upon the animal by a licensed veter~narian or pexson trained as a tattoois~ and authorized as such by any s~ate, county or ci~y law. 1.) The ta~too sha~l be placed inside the r~gh~ ear of the animal unless otherwise directed by the Directar of Environmenta~ Health. 2.) For the purposes o~ this Section "tattoo" sha11 be defined as any permanen~ numbering of a dangerous animal by means a~ indelible ar permanent ink with the permit numb~r or any o~her permanen~, acceptable method of ~attooing approved by the Director of Environmental Hea~th. -7- 1 j. ~rior to the issuance of the permit, the owner sha1l submit 2 to ~he Dir~ctor af Environment Health proof of his a~ her 3 ~inancial responsibili~y to pay, at a11 times during the 4 term of the permi~, damages ~or bodily injury to or death of 5 any person or persans which may resu~~ fram the owne~ship, 6 keeping or maintenance of such animal. S~ch praof shall be 7 in a form satis~actory to the Director of Env~ronm~ntaY 8 Hea~~h. Submission o~ a certifica~~ o~ insuranca duly 9 executed by an insurance company or companies authoriaed to ~p transact business in ~he State of Ca~ifvrnia and cert~fyinq lI that the owner has in ~u~~ ~orce and effec~ ~iahili~y 12 insurance in a minimum amount of One Hundred Thousand ~~ Dollars (~~OO,Q00.00} for bodily in~ury to ar death o~ any X~ person or persons which may result from ~he ownership, 1~ keeping or maint~nance of such animal shall be deem~d 16 satisfactory praof o~ ~inancia~ responsibili~y. Any such 17 cer~iFicate o£ insurance shall specify that the insure~ 18 shal~ advise the Director of Environmenta~ Health at ~east ~g ~hirty (30} days in advance of cancellation, material change 20 ar non-renewal of such policy of insurance. 21 SECTION 4M52 iNSPECTION 22 Permits issued puxsuant to ~his Articl~ sha11 pravide that, as a 23 condition ~or issuance, the premises upon which an animal is 24 maintained shaZ~, upon the request of the An.~mal Control Of~icer, be 25 opened at any r~asanable haur for inspection by the Anamal Control 26 O~~zcer, 27 / / / 28 / / / _g_ 1 SECT~ON 4-~3 REVOCATI4N OF PERMIT 2 A.} Grounds. Subject to the provisions o£ Subsect~on (B) below, 3 any Dangerous Animal Permi~ issued pursuant to this Artic~e may be 4 revoked by the Director of Environ~nenta~ Heal~h if he has reasonab~e 5 cause to believe any of the following is true: 6 {1) The permitt~~, or the person caring for or having 7 control or possession of the animal, has v3olated any ~ocal animaZ $ ordinance, zoning, health and safety or building ordinance or Penal 9 Cod~ seetion xelating to the keeping, care or use of any animals. 10 (2) The permittee or the person caring far or having 11 control or possession of ~he animal has violated or allowed ~o be 12 violated any rules, regulations or canditians of the Dangerous 13 Animal Permit. X4 B.) Notice. ~f, after investigation, the Director o~ 15 Environmental Heaith concl.udes that an~ ar more of the above grounds 16 for revocation has occurred, he shall cause written notice thereof 17 to be transmi~ted by mail to th~ address of '~he perinittee. Said i8 notice shall speci£y the grounds of passible revocat3on of the 19 permit and shall specify a date and ~ime for an informal hearing to 20 be held before the ~irector of Environmenta~ Health. Said hearing 21 date shall be not less than five (5} days subsequent to the date the 22 notice is mailed. Af~er the in~ormal hearing, the Director of 23 Environmen,tal Health may ~nodify the terms of the permit or revake 24 ~he permi~. 25 C. ) Surrender or Remova~. of Animal. Upon written or ora1. 2fi notif~ication of the revocation of a Dangerous Anima7. Permit, the 27 owner of such animal shall, within three {3) calendar days o~ such 28 notification, surrender said animal ~o the Animal Control Officer or -9- provide wr~tten proof to the Director of Environmental HeaZth in the ~orm of a dec~ara~ion under penalty af perjury that such animal has been permanently removed from th~ County o£ Butte. SECT~ON 4-5~ GROUNDS FOR SUMMARY SEIZURE AND IMPOUNDMENT Notwithstanding any other provision a~ this Art~cle, the Director of EnvironmentaZ Health, an Anima~ Control Officer or a Peace Officer may summarily seize and impound an animal pending any hearing pursuant to this Article where the~e are reasonable grounds to beZieve that the animal: a. ) Poses an immediate threat or danger to the public or to an animal.'s heal.th and safety; or b.} Has demonstrated one or more of ~he behaviars o~ charaateristics set out in Section 4-43 and does no~ have a val.id Dangexaus Ani.mal Per~na.'t; or c.) Is subj~ct to a valid Dangerous Animal Permit, and has no~ been kept or ~-aintained in accordance with the terms thereof . SECTIQN 4--~5 NOTICE OF SUMMARY SEIZURE AND iMPOUNDMENT A.) Tf the owner of ~.he animal is not present when ~he animal is seized and impounded, the Animal Con~ral Officer shall post a notice of~ such impaundment on the fron~ doar or other appropriate place a~ the residence of such persan, which n.otice sha.ll s'~ate: (1) That the animal has been impounded; ( 2} Where the animal is being he1.d; (3) The name, address, and te~.ephone number of the agency or person to be contacted regarding release of the animal; I / I / / / -I.D- 1 2 3 (~} The consequences as speeified in Section ~-56, of not requesting a hea~ing with~n seventy-two (72? hou~s of the animal`s seizure B.1 I~ the owne~ a~ the animal is present at the time of the seizure, that person sha~l be given a writ~en natice with the same infarmation as speci~ied in Subsection {A? abov~. SECTION 4~56 POST SEIZURE REQUEST FOR HEARING A.) If the ownex of the animal seeks to have the animal ~eleased ~rom impoundment, that person shall submit a req~est far hearing to the Director of Environmental Hea~th wi~hin seventy-two ho~rs of the seizure. B.) The said seven~ywtwo hour period does not inal~de the days fhe impounding agency is closed to the publie. C.) If no request for hearing is submitted as spec~fied in Subsection (a), a letter sha1l be sent by certified mail to the animal owner's Ias~ known address notifying him or her ~hat the animal may be destroyed or oth~rwise disposed a~ ~ollowing one- hundred-twenty hours ~rom the seizure. SECTION 4-~7 HEARING ~OLLOWTNG ~MPOUNDMENT A.) Hea~ing da~e. Except as oth~rwise provided, the owner of any animaZ impounded pursuan~ to this A~~icle is en~itled to a hearing conducted by the Director of Environmenta~ Health within ten {10) days of receipt o~ a requ~s~ for hearing. B.) Continuance. A hearing may be continued i~ the Director of Envi~onmental Health deems it necessary and proper or i~ the owner ar the Animal Con~ro~ Officer shows good caus~. / / / / / / -11- ~ C.) Evid~nce. The owner of the animal and ~he An~mal Control ~ Offic~r may present relevant evidence and call and cross exam~ne 3 witnesses, but the strict rul~s o~ evidence shall not be applicable. 4 D.} Dec~sion. The Director of Environmental Health ox 5 designated representativ~ shall render a brief w~~tten decision 6 within ten (10) days of the conclusion of the hearing. Said 7 decision shall be ~ina1 and may: $ (1) Order that the animal will be destroyed, i~ the animaZ 9 has bitten or injured a person or domestic animal; ~p {2) Dec~are the anima~ to be a Dangerous Animal as defined 11 in Section 4-43; o~ ~2 (3} Require the awner or possessor, be~ore the animal is 13 re~eased ~o his ar her custody, to obtain a Dangexous Animal 14 Permit pursuant ta this Article. 15 SECTION 4-58 RESTRICT~ONS AFTER PERMIT DEN~AL 4R REVOCATION I6 Any person who has had a Dangerous Animal Permit denied or 17 revoked purs~zant to this Article shall not own or hav~ any ownership i8 or possessory interest in, possessr keep, have, maintain, harbor or 19 b~ in charge of any dangerous animal for a period of three (3} years 20 from the date said animal was declared dangerous pursuant to this 2~ Article o~ ~rozn the denial oa~ revacation of the permit, whichev~r 22 date is later. The Director of Environmental Health shall. not issue 23 or renew any Dangerous Animal Permit to or for said person within 24 said three (3y year period. 25 SECT~ON 4-~9 VTOLAT~ONS 26 A.) M~.sdemeanor; ~ach D~ a Separate O~fense. Any anamal owner 27 violating any pravision of this Ar~icle or any of the tern~s or 28 condit~.ons of a Dangerous Animal Permit issued hereu.nder shaZl be -12- 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 : 16 17 18 deemed gui~ty of a misd~meanor. Each and every day or por~ion thereof that such person v~olates or continues ta violate any such provision, terms or conditions constit~tes a separate offense and may b~ charged and punished separately without awaiting conviction of any prior violation. B.) Nuisance. Any vio~ation of any p~ovision af this Artic~e or any ot th~ terms ar condi~ions of a Dangerous Animal Permit issued hereunder is hereby declared to be a p~blic nuisance and may be abated as provided by 1aw. C.) R~medi~s Cumulative. The remedies prov~ded in this Artic~e are c~u~-ulative and not exc~usive. Nothing in this Ar~icle bars any legal, equitah~e, admi~istrativ~ or 5ummary remedy to which any aggrieved public ag~ncy, person, firm, corporation ox partne~sh~p may otherwise be entitled. Sect~an 2: Seve~abi~ity. If any sec~ion, subs~ction or portion af this ordi,nance is ~or any r~ason held to be invalid or unconsta.tut~.ona1. by the decision of any court of competent ~~risdiction, such d~cision shall not affect ~he vaZidity of the remaining sections, subsections, or portions of this ox~dinance. The Board of Supe~visors hereby dec].a~es that it would have adopted this ordinance and each section, subsection or portian thereof, irrespective of ~h~ fact that any one or more section, subsec~ions ar portions be declared invalid o~ unconstitutional. Section 3. This Ordinance sha~7. be and it is he~eby declared to be in full. ~orc~ and ef~~ct ~rom and after thirty (30) days a~ter the date of its passage, and before the expiration of fifteen {I~) days after -13- 1 its passage, th~s Ordinance shal~ be published once w~th the names 2 of the members of the Soard of Supervisors votzng ~or and against it 3 in the ~r0vi17e _ Mercury , a n~wspaper published in the County of Butte, 4 State of Ca1.i~ornia. 5 PASSED AND ADOPTED by the Board o~ Supervisors of ~he Coun~y of 6 Butte, State of Cal.ifornia, on the 25~h day of JuTy , 1989, by 7 the ~ollowing vo~e: $ AYE S: Supervisors Mcln~urf, Dolan, Vercruse 9 NOES : Supervi sors AicLaugh7 i n and F~~ ton lp ABSENT : tVone 11 NOT VOTTNG: None x2 13 LE ULTON Chairman Bu e Caun~.y Board of Supervisors I4 X5 ATTEST: ~~ WILLIAM H. RANDOLPH ~ Chie~ Administrati.ve O~ficer 17 and Cl.erk of th Board 18 19 B ~ Y ~x.J 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 -I~- Msg/WS4/vicious5.ord 7/3/89