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Ordinance No. 4191 1
IAN ORDINANCE OF THE COUNTY OF BUTTE ESTABLISHING REGULATIONS FOR
THE CULTIVATION OF INDUSTRIAL HEMP IN THE UNINCORPORATED AREAS
OF BUTTE COUNTY
The Board of Supervisors of the County of Butte ordains as
follows:
Section 1. Chapter 34D is added to the Butte County Code as
follows:
CHAPTER 34D - INDUSTRIAL HEMP CULTIVATION
34D-1 Authority and Purpose. Pursuant to Article XI,
section 7, of the California Constitution, the County of Butte
("County") may adopt and enforce ordinances and regulations not inl
conflict with general laws to protect and promote the public
health, safety, and welfare of its citizens. It is the purpose and
intent of this Ordinance to establish standards, requirements, and
regulations governing industrial hemp cultivation, including
commercial and research activities.
Further, it is the purpose and intent of this Chapter to
:impose reasonable land use regulations to protect the County's
residents, neighborhoods, businesses, and the environment from
disproportionately negative impacts potentially caused by
industrial hemp cultivation, and to enforce rules and regulations
consistent with state and federal law. Any standards, requirements
and regulations established by the State of California, or any of
its departments or divisions, regarding industrial hemp
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cultivation for commercial and/or research purposes shall be the
minimum standards applicable within the unincorporated areas of
the County.
The provisions of this Chapter are in addition to any other
permits, licenses and approvals which may be required to conduct
business in the County, and are in addition to any permits,
licenses, registrations, and approval required under federal,
state, County, or other law.
34D-2 Definitions.
For the purposes of this Chapter, the following definitions
shall apply, unless the context clearly indicates otherwise. If a''
word is not defined in this Chapter, the common and ordinary
meaning of the word shall apply. All citations to federal or state
law shall refer to the act, statute, or regulations as may be
amended from time to time.
(a) "Child Care Center" means any licensed child care
center, daycare center, or childcare home, or any preschool.
(b) "Church" means a structure or leased portion of a
structure, which is used primarily for religious worship and
related religious activities.
(c) "Cultivation" means any activity involving the
propagation, planting, growing, harvesting, drying, curing,
grading, or trimming of hemp.
(d) `Established Agricultural Research Institution" means an
institution of higher education, as defined in Section 101 of the
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federal Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.0 Sec. 1001), that
grows, cultivates, or manufactures industrial hemp for purposes of
agricultural or academic research.
(e) "Hemp" shall have the same meaning as "industrial hemp"
set forth below.
(f) "Indoors" means within one (1) fully enclosed and secure
detached structure that complies with the California Building
Standards Code (Title 24 California Code of Regulations), as
adopted by the County of Butte. The detached structure must be
secure against unauthorized entry, accessible only through one (1)
or more lockable doors and may be constructed of any approved
building materials, including glass.
(g) "Industrial hemp" has the same meaning as that term is
defined in section 81000(a)(6) of the California Food and
Agricultural Code, which defines industrial hemp as "an
agricultural product, whether growing or not, that is limited to
types of the plant Cannabis sativa L. and any part of that plant,
including the seeds of the plant and all derivatives, extracts,
the resin extracted from any part of the plant, cannabinoids,
isomers, acids, salts, and salts of isomers, with a delta -9
tetrahydrocannabinol concentration of no more than 0.3 percent on
a dry weight basis."
(h) "Nursery stock" shall have the same meaning as is set
:forth in California Food and Agricultural Code section 5005.
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(i) "Outdoors" means any location that is not "indoors"
1within a fully enclosed and secure structure as defined herein.
(j) "Person" includes any individual, firm, partnership,
joint venture, association, corporation, limited liability
company, estate, trust, business, business trust, receiver,
syndicate, collective, cooperative, institution, including an
established agricultural research institution, or any other group
or entity, or combination acting as a unit. Except where otherwise
indicated by context, the singular shall include the plural, and
vice versa.
(k) `Residential Treatment Facility" means a facility
providing for treatment of drug and/or alcohol dependency,
including any "sober living facility" run by treatment providers
:for the benefit of transitional living.
(1) "School" means an institution of learning for minors,
whether public or private, offering a regular course of instruction
required by the California Education Code, or any child or day
care facility. This definition includes a nursery school,
kindergarten, elementary school, middle or junior high school,
senior high school, or any special institution of education, but
it does not include a vocational or professional institution of
higher education, including a community or junior college, college
Jor university.
(m) "School Bus Stop" means any location designated in
accordance with California Code of Regulations, Title 13, section
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11238, to receive school buses, as defined in California Vehicle
JCode section 233, or school pupil activity buses, as defined in
(Vehicle Code section 546.
(n) "THC" means delta -9 tetrahydrocannabinol.
(o) "Transplant" means a cultivated hemp plant grown from
seed or cutting in soil or individual containers for less than
eight (8) weeks.
(p) "Youth -oriented facility" means an elementary school,
middle school, junior high school, high school, public park, and
any establishment that advertises in a manner that identifies the
establishment as catering to or providing services primarily
intended for minors, or the individuals who regularly patronize,
congregate or assemble at the establishment are predominantly
minors. This shall not include a day care or preschool facility.
134D-3 Administration.
It is unlawful and shall constitute a public nuisance for
anyone to engage in any industrial hemp cultivation within the
County for commercial, research, and/or any other purpose without
complying with all applicable federal, state, and local laws and
regulations pertaining to such cultivation, including the duty to
register with the state and obtain a separate license from the
County Agricultural Commissioner. Any unregistered or unlicensed
hemp cultivation shall be subject to the provisions in Chapters
34A and 34C of the Butte County Code.
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The Agricultural Commissioner, or his or her designee, is
charged with the responsibility of administering, and exercising
the authority conferred under, this Chapter.
I34D-4
License.
No Person shall cultivate industrial hemp in the
unincorporated areas of Butte County without first obtaining al
license to cultivate, issued by the Agricultural Commissioner as
provided in this Chapter, including cultivation for research
purposes. A license for cultivation may be issued to an Established
Agricultural Research Institution only if it meets the definition
of an Established Agricultural Research Institution as defined in
34D-2 of this Chapter.
A license issued under this Chapter by the Agricultural
Commissioner does not grant any entitlement, interest in real
property, or create any interest of value, and does not run with
the land. The license is non -transferable and automatically
terminates upon transfer of ownership. A Person that has obtained
a license from the Agricultural Commissioner shall not transfer
ownership or control of the license to another Person. Any attempt
to do so shall cause the license to be automatically revoked.
Receiving a license from the Agricultural Commissioner has no
lbearing on whether a Person will be registered by the California
Department of Food and Agriculture for the cultivation of
industrial hemp. Similarly, registration with the California
Department of Food and Agriculture and/or with the United States
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Department of Agriculture has no bearing on whether a Person)
receives a license from the Agricultural Commissioner.
134D-5
License Requirements.
(a) In addition to satisfying the other requirements set
forth in this Chapter, a license for the cultivation of industrial
hemp for commercial and/or research purposes may only be issued if
each of the following requirements are met:
(1) An applicant shall submit an application in accordance
with the application process established by the
Agricultural Commissioner. A single license may be issued
for multiple parcels.
(2) An applicant shall be the deed holder of the land upon
which the hemp is to be cultivated, or the applicant shall
provide written consent from the deed holder(s), in a form
acceptable to the Agricultural Commissioner, granting
permission for the cultivation of industrial hemp on the
specified parcel(s).
(3) Each parcel for which a license is submitted must be
readily accessible for inspection by a two -wheel drive
vehicle.
(4) An applicant shall fully satisfy the registration
requirements stated in Food and Agricultural Code sections
81003, 81004, and 81004.5.
(5) Each applicant shall declare the intended type of
industrial hemp cultivation to occur on the parcel:
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seed/fiber, oil, or nursery production.
(6) An applicant for the cultivation of Transplants shall
have a license to sell nursery stock as required under
California Food and Agricultural Code section 6721 et seq.
(7) Before a license is issued under this Chapter, the
applicant shall submit a bond or other form of security
acceptable to the Agricultural Commissioner in the amount
of one hundred (1000) percent of the estimated cost to
fully abate a crop of industrial hemp that does not meet
requirements for legal harvest under applicable laws andl
regulations. The financial security provided shall be
released to the applicant after the Agricultural
Commissioner determines that the security is no longer
needed to secure abatement of a non-compliant hemp crop.
(8) Before a license is issued under this Chapter, all fees,
including any outstanding fees, costs and/or penalties,
must be paid in full.
(b) The applicant agrees to allow the Agricultural
Commissioner, or his or her designee, with access to the location
on the parcel where the industrial hemp is being cultivated during
normal working hours, and upon request, agrees to promptly provide
any records related to the cultivation, including test results.
Each license issued under this Chapter shall expire at the end of
the calendar year in which it was issued.
(c) An initial or renewal license application shall be
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submitted in accordance with the application process established
by the Agricultural Commissioner, which may include deadlines for
submittal or issuance. An application for a renewal license may
be denied if the Person applying for the renewed license has
previously committed a violation of this Chapter, or owes any
joutstanding fees, costs or penalties.
34D-6 Setback Requirements
(a) Outdoor industrial hemp cultivation shall meet the
following setback requirements:
(1) 300 feet from the nearest boundary line of any parcel
containing a youth -oriented facility, school, park,
church, residential treatment facility, or school bus stop.
(2) 100 feet from any occupied residential structure located
on a separate legal parcel.
(b) The indoor cultivation of industrial hemp shall comply
with applicable building codes and be permitted by the Department
of Development Services. Structures used for indoor cultivation of
industrial hemp shall meet the following setback requirements:
(1) 300 feet from the nearest boundary line of any parcel
containing a youth -oriented facility, school, park, church,
residential treatment facility, or school bus stop.
(2) 100 feet from any occupied residential structure located
on a separate legal parcel.
(c) The setback required in Section (a)(1) shall be measured
in a straight line from the nearest point of the outdoor industrial
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hemp cultivation to the boundary line of the parcel containing the
use described in that section, and the setback required in Section
(a)(2) shall be measured from the nearest point of the outdoor
industrial hemp cultivation to an exterior wall of the occupied
residence described in that section. The setback required in
Section (b)(1) shall be measured in a straight line from the
nearest exterior wall of the structure maintaining the indoor'
industrial hemp cultivation to the boundary line of the parcel
containing the use described in that section, and the setback
required in Section (b)(2) shall be measured in a straight line
from the nearest exterior wall of the structure maintaining the
indoor industrial hemp cultivation to the exterior wall of the
occupied residence described in that section.
(d) Notwithstanding Article III, Division 10 - Signs of
Chapter 24 of the Butte County Code, a Person cultivating
industrial hemp shall comply with all provisions of federal and
state law, and any regulations associated therewith, as applicable
to the cultivation of industrial hemp, including, but not limited
to, requirements for registration, cultivation, sampling,
laboratory testing, harvesting, crop destruction, and signage.
34D-7 Cultivation of industrial Hemp for Research
The cultivation of industrial hemp by an Established
Agricultural Research Institution for research or educational
purposes shall be subject to the State registration requirements
imposed by the California Department of Food and Agriculture, as
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well as the local licensing requirements identified above under
34D-5.
34D-8 Fees
Pursuant to section 81005 of the California Food and
Agricultural Code, the Board of Supervisors may, by resolution,
establish a fee for a license to be issued under this Chapter.
The amount of the fees shall not exceed the amount reasonably
required to inspect, administer or process the required permits,
certificates, licenses, or other forms or documents, or to defray
the costs of enforcement required to be carried out by the County.
In accordance with such authority, the Agricultural
Commissioner will establish fees for its implementation,
administration, and enforcement of federal, state, and local Jaws.
Such fees shall cover the actual costs associated with services
that may include, but are not limited to, processing of licenses,
inspections, sampling and testing, and abatement/destruction.
Failure to pay all fees attributable to County costs incurred
due to a Person's activities in the licensing or cultivation of
industrial hemp shall be cause for revocation or non -renewal of a
Person's license until all outstanding fees are paid in full. No
new licenses or renewals shall be issued without payment of fees
for services rendered for the previous season.
34D-9 Destruction of non-compliant industrial hemp crops
(a) The Butte County Board of Supervisors ("Board") adopts
this Chapter pursuant to its police power for the purpose of
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preserving the health, safety and public welfare of the residents
of the County. The Board finds that agriculture is extremely
important to the County's economy and the health and well-being of
County residents. The Board determines that the enforcement of
this Chapter is essential.
(b) It shall be the responsibility of the Persons'
cultivating industrial hemp to ensure that they are, at all times,
operating in a manner that is in full compliance with all
applicable federal, state, and local laws, and/or regulatory,
licensing, or certification requirements, and any specific,
additional operating procedures or requirements which may be
imposed by the County. Nothing in this Chapter shall be construed
as authorizing any actions that violate federal, state, or local
law regarding the cultivation of industrial hemp.
(c) An industrial hemp crop that does not comply with the
provisions of this Chapter and all applicable provisions of federal
and state law, and associated rules and regulations, shall be
destroyed. Crop destruction shall proceed as provided for in all
applicable laws and regulations, which includes Food and
Agricultural Code section 81006 and California Code of
Regulations, Title 3, sections 4950 and 4950.1.
(d) The remedies provided herein are not to be construed as
exclusive remedies. The County is authorized to pursue any
proceedings or remedies provided by law or the Butte County Code,
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including the abatement and enforcement provisions set forth
below.
34D-10 Public Nuisance; Violation
(a) It is hereby declared to be a public nuisance, subject
to the enforcement and abatement provisions set forth below, to do
any of the following:
(1) Cultivate industrial hemp without first obtaining a
license;
(2) Cultivate industrial hemp in violation of the term or
terms of a license;
(3) Cultivate industrial hemp in violation of any federal,
state or local law or regulation;
(4) Cultivate industrial hemp in violation of any setback
provision provided herein; or
(5) Failing or refusing to destroy non-compliant crops in a
timely manner.
(b) Each and every day a violation of this Chapter exists
constitutes a separate and distinct violation. Each and every
violation of this Chapter shall constitute a separate violation.
(c) Violations of County Code, federal and state laws or
regulations, and failure to pay fees or penalties assessed as a
result of cultivating industrial hemp in the County shall be cause
to revoke a license. Failure to pay fees or penalties shall also
be cause for non -renewal of a license until such time as said fees
or penalties have been paid in full.
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134D-11 Enforcement
(a) The County may, in its discretion, abate a violation of
this Chapter by the prosecution of a civil action, including an
action for injunctive relief, without first going through the
administrative procedures set forth herein. The remedy of
injunctive relief may take the form of a court order, enforceable
through civil contempt proceedings, prohibiting the maintenance of
the violation of this Chapter or requiring compliance with other
terms.
(b) The County may also abate a violation of this Chapter
through the abatement process established by Government Code
Section 25845.
34D--12 Abatement procedures.
(a) Whenever the Agricultural Commissioner, or his or her
designee, determines that a public nuisance (as defined in this
Chapter) exists, he or she shall post a 72 -Hour Notice to Abate on
the property where the public nuisance exists, and mail a copy of
the same to those persons shown on the latest County tax roll to
be the owners of the property. The 72 -Hour Notice to Abate shall
inform the owner and/or tenants of the basis for the violation,
land that an Administrative Penalty of $500 per day will accrue for
each day that the violation continues to exist; explain that if
the violation is not corrected, the matter will be set for a
Nuisance Abatement Hearing, at which time the Administrative
Penalty will increase to $1,000 per day; and explain that to
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1prevent the accrual of additional penalties and costs, the owner
or tenant must contact the Agricultural Commissioner's Office and
arrange a time for a representative of that office to inspect the
property, and confirm that the violation(s) have been corrected.
(b) If the nuisance continues to exist after the expiration
of the seventy-two (72) hour period, the Agricultural
Commissioner, or his or her designee, may set the matter for
hearing by issuing a Notice of Nuisance Abatement Hearing. If the
matter is set for hearing, the Agricultural Commissioner, or his
or her designee, shall post the property upon which the public
nuisance exists and shall mail, with a proof of service, notices
to those persons known to be in possession of the property, if
any, and to persons shown on the latest County tax roll to be the
owners of the property at least ten (10) days prior to the hearing.
The Administrative Penalty shall increase to $1,000 per day from
the date the Notice of Nuisance Abatement Hearing is posted on the
property, and shall continue to accrue at that rate for each day
that the violation continues to exist. Both the mailed and posted
notice shall be in substantially the following form:
NOTICE OF NUISANCE ABATEMENT HEARING
The owner(s) and occupant(s) of real property
described on the latest equalized Butte
County tax roll as A.P. No.
having a street address of
and
is
(are) hereby notified to appear before a
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Hearing Officer of the County of Butte at
on 20 ,
at the hour of o'clock
m., to show cause, if any there
be, why the use of said real property should
not be found to be a public nuisance and abated
pursuant to Butte County Code Chapter 34D. The
Agricultural Commissioner has determined that
conditions exist on the above property
constitute a public nuisance and violate Butte
County Code section(s) as
follows: After hearing, if a
violation is found to have existed at the time
the Notice of Nuisance Abatement Hearing was
posted on the property, the Administrative
Costs incurred in prosecuting the violation,
including, but not limited to, the cost of the
Hearing Officer, the cost of prior time and
expenses associated with bringing the matter
to hearing, attorneys' fees, the cost
associated with any appeals from the decision
of the Hearing Officer, the cost of judicially
abating the violation, the cost of labor and
material necessary to physically abate the
violation, the cost of securing expert and
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other witnesses, and the accrual of any
Administrative Penalties, may become a lien
against the subject property, and the costs
may also be specially assessed against the
property in the same manner as taxes. If a
lien is recorded, it will have the same force
and effect as an abstract of judgment which is
recorded as a money judgment obtained in a
court of law. If you fail to appear at the
hearing or if you fail to raise any defense or
assert any relevant point at the time of
hearing, the County will assert, in later
judicial proceedings to enforce an order of
abatement, that you have waived all rights to
assert such defenses or such points.
In preparing for such hearing, you should be
aware that if an initial showing is made by
the Agricultural Commissioner, or his or her
designee, sufficient to persuade the Hearing
Officer that a public nuisance existed on your
property at the time the Notice of Nuisance
Abatement Hearing was posted, you will then
have the burden of proving that no public
nuisance existed on your property. Therefore,
you should be prepared to introduce oral and
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documentary evidence proving why, in your
opinion, your use of the property is not a
public nuisance as defined in this Chapter. A
copy of the Butte County Code Chapter 34D
relating to Industrial Hemp Cultivation
nuisance abatement hearings is available
online at www.buttecounty.net.
If an initial showing sufficient to persuade
the Hearing Officer that a public nuisance
existed on your property is made by the
Agricultural Commissioner, or his or her
designee, your failure to sustain the burden
of showing that no public nuisance existed on
the property may result in a decision by the
Hearing Officer that a public nuisance did
exist, and that the County is entitled to
recover its Administrative Costs, and all
Administrative Penalties that accrued up to
the time that the nuisance was abated.
Further, if the Hearing Officer finds that a
public nuisance continues to exist on your
property, and you fail to abate the nuisance
promptly, the County may abate the nuisance.
If the County abates the nuisance, in addition
to being able to recover its Administrative
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Costs and Penalties, you may be responsible
for the actual costs of the abatement. In
either circumstance, all Administrative and
Abatement Costs may be specially assessed
against your parcel by the Auditor -
Controller's Office and added to your tax bill
as a special assessment, and all
Administrative Penalties may be recorded
against your property as a judgment lien. Such
special assessments have the same priority,
for collection purposes, as other county taxes
and, if not paid, may result in a forced sale
of your property. You are also hereby notified
that the County will seek recovery of
attorneys' fees incurred in any hearing and
that attorneys' fees may be recovered by the
prevailing party.
Finally, if the Hearing Officer finds that a
public nuisance exists on your property, in
violation of Butte County Code Chapter 34D,
the County will contend that you are bound by
such finding at any subsequent judicial action
to enforce the Hearing Officer's order.
IMPORTANT: READ THIS NOTICE CAREFULLY.
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IN ADDITION TO ANY ADMINISTRATIVE CIVIL
PENALTIES THAT HAVE ALREADY ACCRUED, AN
ADMINISTRATIVE CIVIL PENALTY OF $1,000 PER DAY
IS HEREBY IMPOSED FROM THE DATE THIS NOTICE
WAS POSTED ON YOUR PROPERTY, AND WILL CONTINUE
TO ACCRUE AT THAT RATE UNTIL THE NUISANCE IS
ABATED. IN ORDER TO PREVENT THE ACCRUAL OF
ONGOING PENALTIES AND COSTS, YOU MUST CONTACT
THE AGRICULTURAL COMMISSIONER'S OFFICE, AND
ARRANGE A TIME FOR A REPRESENTATIVE OF THAT
OFFICE TO INSPECT YOUR PROPERTY, AND CONFIRM
THAT THE VIOLATIONS) HAVE BEEN CORRECTED.
FAILURE TO APPEAR AND RESPOND AT THE TIME SET
FORTH IN THIS NOTICE WILL LIKELY RESULT IN
ADMINISTRATIVE AND/OR JUDICIAL ABATEMENT AND
TERMINATION OF USES OF OR CONDITIONS ON YOUR
PROPERTY WHICH THE AGRICULTURAL COMMISSIONER
CONTENDS ARE IN VIOLATION OF THE BUTTE COUNTY
CODE.
Dated:
BUTTE COUNTY AGRICULTURAL COMMISSIONER
By:
(c) All hearings conducted under this Chapter shall be held
before a Hearing Officer designated pursuant to the protocol set
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forth in that document entitled the "Butte County Administrative
Hearing Officer Program." The Program is based upon an alphabetical
rotation through attorneys currently under contract through the
jProgram.
(d) At the time and place set for the hearing, the Hearing
Officer shall hear testimony and receive written and/or
documentary evidence relating to the alleged violation. Additional
procedural rules may be adopted by resolution of the Board of
Supervisors. The Agricultural Commissioner, or his or her
designee, shall record the audio of the hearing, and provide a
copy of the
recording to
the Hearing Officer following
the
conclusion of
the hearing.
The Hearing Officer shall preserve
the
record of the hearing, and all photographs and demonstrative and
documentary evidence introduced at the time of the hearing, for a
period of three (3) years.
(e) Within five (5) days after the hearing is closed, the
Hearing Officer shall render his or her written decision relating
to the existence or nonexistence of the alleged public nuisance.
If a violation is found to have existed at the time the Notice of
Nuisance Abatement Hearing was posted, the decision shall include
a statement that the County is entitled to recover its
Administrative Costs and Administrative Penalties. If the Hearing
Officer determines that the violation continues to exist, the
decision shall also order that the owner of the property, or
persons known to be in possession of the property, abate the
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(violation within a reasonable time, not to exceed ten (10) days
from the date the decision is placed in the mail. The decision
shall contain findings of fact and conclusions of law. A copy of
the decision shall be mailed by certified mail, return receipt
requested, to the person or persons shown on the last County tax
roll to be the owners of the property which is the subject of the
hearing and the occupant of such parcel, if any. All other persons
noticed pursuant to this section shall be mailed a copy of the
decision by first class mail, postage prepaid.
(f) The decision of the Hearing Officer shall be final and
conclusive on the date the certified mail set forth in subsection
(e) above, is deposited in the mail.
(g)(1) Notwithstanding any other provisions of this Code, if
a final decision of the Hearing Officer finds that a violation
exists and the public nuisance is not voluntarily abated within
ten (10) days of said decision being placed in the mail by the
Hearing Officer, the Agricultural Commissioner or his or her
designee may abate the public nuisance by cutting and/or removing
all unlawful hemp or cannabis plants from the property, pursuant
to a warrant issued by a court of competent jurisdiction. The owner
of the property shall be responsible for paying all of the County's
Abatement Costs and Administrative Costs, including but not
limited to, those cost items set forth in the notice required by
subsection (a) above, and Administrative Penalties. The
JAgricultural Commissioner or his or her designee shall keep an
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accounting of the Abatement and Administrative Costs for each case.
Upon completion of the abatement of the nuisance, whether by the
Agricultural Commissioner or his or her designee, or the owner ori
tenant, the Agricultural Commissioner or his or her designee shall(
post the property and send a bill to the owner, and any persons
known to be in possession of the property, requesting payment of
the County's Abatement and Administrative Costs, as well as all
Administrative Penalties. The bill shall also state that failure)
to pay the Costs and Penalties within fifteen (15) days from
service of the bill may result in the recording of a lien and the
placement of a special assessment against the property.
(2) If the County's Costs and Penalties are not paid within
fifteen (15) days from service of the bill, the Agricultural
(Commissioner shall render an itemized report to the Clerk of the
(Board of Supervisors for submittal to the Board of Supervisors for
(hearing and consideration regarding the proposed lien and special
assessment. The report shall include the names and addresses of
the owner of record and any persons known to be in possession of
Ithe property, and an itemized account of the County's Abatement
Costs, Administrative Costs, and Administrative Penalties. At
least fifteen (15) days prior to said hearing, the Clerk of the
(Board of Supervisors shall give notice, with an affidavit of
service, of said hearing to all persons named in the Hearing
JOfficer's decision and the Agricultural Commissioner or his or her
designee shall post the property with a copy of the notice. The
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notice shall describe the property by Assessor's parcel number and
street number or other description sufficient to enable
identification of the property and contain a statement of the
amount of the proposed lien and special assessment. The notice
shall also contain a statement that the Board will hear and
consider objections and protests to the proposed lien and special
assessment at the designated time and place.
(h) At the time and place fixed in the notice, the Board of
Supervisors shall hear and consider the proposed lien and special
assessment together with objections and protests thereto. At the
conclusion of the hearing, the Board of Supervisors may make such;
modifications and revisions to the proposed lien and special
assessment as it deems just and may order that the proposed lien
and special assessment be recorded by the Agricultural
Commissioner and specially assessed against the property by the
Auditor -Controller's Office. The lien shall have the same force,
priority and effect as a judgment lien and the special assessment
shall have the same priority as other County taxes.
(i) The notice of lien shall, at a minimum, identify the
record owner or possessor of the property, set forth the date upon
which the decision of the Hearing Officer was issued, describe the
real property subject to the lien, set forth the amount of the
Costs and Penalties incurred to date and, if applicable, the date
upon which the abatement was completed. If the abatement has not
yet been completed, the notice shall so state and shall also
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indicate that the lien is a partial lien and that additional
Abatement Costs will be incurred in the future.
It is the intent of the Board of Supervisors that Abatements
Costs, Administrative Costs, and Administrative Penalties incurred)
after the filing of the notice of abatement lien relate back to
the date upon which the lien was recorded for purposes of priority;
however, in order to preserve its rights, after all Abatement
Costs, Administrative Costs, and Administrative Penalties have
been incurred and the abatement is complete, the Agricultural
Commissioner shall cause a supplemental notice of abatement lien
to be recorded. The supplemental notice shall contain all of the
information required for the original notice and shall also refer
to the recordation date and the recorder's document number of the
original notice.
(j) The decision of the Hearing Officer or Board of
Supervisors may be recorded by the Agricultural Commissioner. In
the event of such recordation, and in the further event that the
violation is corrected and all Costs and Penalties are paid, a
notice of such correction shall be recorded. The Agricultural
Commissioner is authorized to prepare and record a notice of
correction. Correction of the violation shall not excuse the
property owner's liability for costs incurred during the
administrative abatement process (Abatement Costs, Administrative
Costs, and
Administrative Penalties
as defined
in sections
34D-13
and 34D-15
of this Chapter). In any
action to
foreclose on
a lien
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issued pursuant to this Chapter, the County shall be entitled to
an award of attorney's fees.
134D-13 Abatement costs; Administrative costs.
(a) The term "Abatement Costs" means any costs or expenses
reasonably related to the abatement of conditions which violate
the Butte County Code, and shall include, but not be limited to,
enforcement, investigation, attorneys' fees, collection and
administrative costs, and the costs associated with the removal or
correction of the violation.
(b) The term "Administrative Costs" shall include the cost of
County staff time reasonably related to enforcement, for items
including, but not limited to, site inspections, travel time,
investigations, telephone contacts and time spent preparing
summaries, reports, notices, correspondence, warrants and hearing
packets. The time expended by staff at the office of the
Agricultural Commissioner and Auditor -Controller, to calculate the
above costs and prepare itemized invoices, may also be recovered.
(c) In any action, administrative proceeding, or special
proceeding to abate a nuisance, attorneys' fees may be recovered
by the prevailing party. In no action, administrative proceeding,
or special proceeding shall an award of attorneys' fees to a
prevailing party exceed the amount of reasonable attorneys' fees
incurred by the County in the action or proceeding.
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134D-14 Nan --exclusive remedy.
IThis Chapter is cumulative to all other remedies now or hereafter)
available to abate or otherwise regulate or prevent public
Inuisances.
134D-15 Administrative Civil Penalties.
In addition to any other remedies provided by County Code or
State Law, and in accordance with Government Code section 53069.4,
there is hereby imposed the following civil penalty for each
violation of this Chapter:
(a) Five hundred dollars ($500.00) per day from the day the
72 -Hour Notice is posted on the property, and continuing for each
day that the violation continues to exist; however, if a Notice of
Nuisance Abatement Hearing is issued, the penalty shall increase
to one thousand dollars ($1,000.00) per day from the date the
Notice of Nuisance Abatement Hearing is posted on the property,
and shall continue to accrue at that rate for each day that the
violation continues to exist, until the violation is abated by
whatever means.
(b) At the Nuisance Abatement Hearing, the Hearing Officer
shall determine the total amount of Administrative Penalties that
have accrued at the time of the hearing, and that amount shall be
reflected in the decision and awarded to the County. If at the
time of the hearing the nuisance has yet to be abated, the decision
shall state that Administrative Penalties shall continue to accrue
at $1,000 per day until the nuisance is abated. The decision of
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Ithe Hearing Officer shall be final and conclusive on the date the
decision is deposited in the mail.
(c) Administrative Penalties shall not be awarded if the
property owner establishes all of the following: (i) that, at the
time he or she acquired the property, a violation of this code
already existed on the property; (ii) the property owner did not
have actual or constructive notice of the existence of that
violation; and (iii) within thirty (30) days after the mailing of
notice of the existence of that violation, the property owner
initiates and pursues, with due diligence, good faith efforts, to
meet the requirements of this code.
(d) In the event a tenant or property owner contacts the
Agricultural Commissioner's Office and demonstrates that all
violations have been corrected in a timely manner prior to a
hearing being conducted pursuant to this Chapter, the Agricultural
Commissioner, or his or her designee, has the authority to waive
or reduce the amount of penalties owed, and cancel the scheduled
hearing, if in his or her opinion such a reduction and hearing
cancellation is warranted.
(e) Following the issuance of a Hearing Officer's decision,
the Agricultural Commissioner, or his or her designee, may
compromise the amount of any administrative penalty imposed by the
Hearing Officer. When determining whether to compromise any
penalty amount, the Agricultural Commissioner, or his or her
designee, may take into consideration the nature, circumstances,
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and gravity of the violation(s), any prior history of violations,
the degree of culpability, the financial burden to the person(s)
upon whom the penalty has been imposed, the degree to which the
proposed compromise will facilitate collection of the penalties
without the need for further legal action, and any other matters
justice may require. The compromise shall be subject to any terms
and conditions prescribed by the Agricultural Commissioner, or his l'
or her designee, which may include, without limitation, a condition
requiring that the subject legal property and all responsible
parties .remain free of any additional violations for a specified
period of time. Any person accepting a compromise penalty
hereunder shall be required to execute a Compromise Agreement in
a form approved by County Counsel.
34D--16 Summary Abatement.
Notwithstanding any other provision of this Chapter, when any
unlawful hemp cultivation constitutes an immediate threat to the
public health or safety, and where the procedures set forth in
sections 34D-11 through 34D-15 would not result in abatement of
that nuisance within a short enough time period to avoid that
threat, the Agricultural Commissioner may direct any officer or
employee of the County to summarily abate the nuisance. The
enforcing officer shall make reasonable efforts to notify the
persons identified on the latest County tax roll to be the owners
of the property that the formal notice and hearing procedures set
forth in this Chapter shall not apply. No summary abatement shall
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occur prior to consultation with the Office of County Counsel. The
County may nevertheless recover its costs for abating that nuisance
lin the manner set forth in this Chapter.
34D-17 No Duty to Enforce.
Nothing in this Chapter shall be construed as imposing any
duty on an officer or employee of the County of Butte to issue a
Notice to Abate Unlawful Hemp Cultivation, nor to abate any
unlawful hemp cultivation, nor to take any other action with regard
to any unlawful hemp cultivation, and neither the Agricultural
Commissioner nor any other official or employee of the County shall
be held liable for failure to issue an order to abate any unlawful
hemp cultivation, nor for failure to abate any unlawful hemp
cultivation, nor for failure to take any other action with regard
to any unlawful hemp cultivation.
Section 2 CEQA
The Board hereby finds that this ordinance is exempt from the
California Environmental Quality Act ("CEQA") pursuant to Section
15061(b)(3) because it can be seen with certainty that there is no
possibility of a significant effect on the environment from the
adoption of these regulations for industrial hemp. Where it can be
seen with certainty that there is no possibility that the activity
in question may have a significant effect on the environment, the
activity is not subject to CEQA. Moreover, pursuant to CEQA
Guidelines Section 15308 Class 8: Actions by Regulatory Agencies
for Protection of the Environment consists of actions taken by
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regulatory agencies, as authorized by state or local ordinance, to
lassure the maintenance, restoration, enhancement, or protection of
the environment where the regulatory process involves procedures
for the protection of the environment.
Section 3. Severability
If any section, subsection, sentence, clause, word, or phrase
of this ordinance is held to be unconstitutional or otherwise'
invalid for any reason, such decision shall not affect the validity
of the remainder of this ordinance. The Board of Supervisors
hereby declare that they would have passed this ordinance, and
each section, subsection, sentence, clause, word or phrase
thereof, irrespective of the fact that one or more sections,
subsections, sentences, clauses, words, or phrases be declared
invalid or unconstitutional.
Section 4. Effective Date and Publication.
This Ordinance shall take effect thirty (30) days after the
date of its passage. The Clerk of the Board of supervisors is
authorized and directed to publish this Ordinance before the
expiration of fifteen (15) days after its passage. This Ordinance
shall be published once, with the names of the members of the Board
of Supervisors voting for and against it, in a newspaper of general
circulation published in the County of Butte, State of California.
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PASSED AND ADOPTED by the Board of Supervisors of the County of
Butte, State of California, on the loth day of November, 2020 by
the following vote:
AYES: Supervisors Connelly, Ritter, Teeter and Chair Lambert
NOESi: None
ASSEW: Nol'.
ABSTAIN: Supervisor Lucero
STEVELAM T, Chair
Butte Corty Board of Supervisors
ATTEST:
ANDY PICKETT, Chief Administrative Officer
and Clerk of the Board
By:
Deputy
M