SECTIONS 42850-42855 - California Statutes

PUBLIC RESOURCES CODE

SECTION 42850-42855

42850. (a) Any person who negligently violates any provision of
this chapter, or any permit, rule, regulation, standard, or
requirement issued or adopted pursuant to this chapter, is liable for
a civil penalty of not less than five hundred dollars ($500) or more
than five thousand dollars ($5,000), for each violation of a
separate provision or, for continuing violations, for each day that
the violation continues.
(b) Liability under this section may be imposed in a civil action
or liability may be imposed administratively pursuant to this
article.
(c) Upon request of a city, county, or city and county, that city,
county, or city and county may be designated, in writing, by the
board, to exercise the enforcement authority granted to the board
under this chapter. Any city, county, or city and county so
designated shall follow the same procedures set forth for the board
under this article. This designation shall not limit the authority of
the board to take action it deems necessary or proper to ensure to
enforcement of this chapter.

42850.1. (a) Any person who intentionally violates any provision of
this chapter, or any permit, rule, regulation, standard, or
requirement issued or adopted pursuant to this chapter, shall, upon
conviction, be punished by a fine not to exceed ten thousand dollars
($10,000) for each day of violation, by imprisonment in the county
jail for not more than one year, or by both that fine and
imprisonment.
(b) (1) Any person who intentionally violates any provision of
this chapter, or any permit, rule, regulation, standard, or
requirement issued or adopted pursuant to this chapter, is liable for
a civil penalty not to exceed ten thousand dollars ($10,000), for
each violation of a separate provision or, for continuing violations,
for each day that the violation continues.
(2) Liability under this subdivision may be imposed in a civil
action or may be imposed administratively pursuant to this article.

42851. (a) The board may issue a complaint to any person on whom
civil liability may be imposed pursuant to this article. The
complaint shall allege the acts or failures to act that constitute a
basis for liability and the amount of the proposed civil liability.
The complaint shall be served by personal service or certified mail
and shall inform the party so served that a hearing shall be
conducted within 60 days after the party has been served, unless the
party waives the right to a hearing.
(b) If the party waives the right to a hearing, the board shall
issue an order setting liability in the amount proposed in the
complaint unless the board and the party have entered into a
settlement agreement, in which case the board shall issue an order
setting liability in the amount specified in the settlement
agreement. If the party has waived the right to a hearing or if the
board and the party have entered into a settlement agreement, the
order shall not be subject to review by any court or agency.

42852. (a) Any hearing required under this section shall be
conducted by an independent hearing officer according to the
procedures specified in Sections 11507 to 11517, inclusive, of the
Government Code, except as otherwise specified in this section. In
making a determination, the hearing officer shall take into
consideration the nature, circumstances, extent, and gravity of the
violation, the violator's past and present efforts to prevent, abate,
or clean up conditions posing a threat to the public health or
safety or the environment, the violator's ability to pay the proposed
civil penalty, and the prophylactic effect that imposition of the
proposed penalty will have on both the violator and on the regulated
community as a whole.
(b) After conducting any hearing required under this section, the
hearing officer shall, within 30 days after the case is submitted,
issue a decision, including an order setting the amount of civil
penalty to be imposed, if any.

42853. Orders setting civil liability issued under this section
shall become effective and final upon issuance thereof, and payment
shall be made within 30 days of issuance. Copies of these orders
shall be served by personal service or by certified mail upon the
party served with the complaint and upon other persons who appeared
at the hearing and requested a copy.

42854. (a) Within 30 days after service of a copy of a decision
issued by the hearing officer, any person so served may file with the
superior court a petition for writ of mandate for review of the
decision. Any person who fails to file the petition within the 30-day
period may not challenge the reasonableness or validity of a
decision or order of the hearing officer in any judicial proceedings
brought to enforce the decision or order or for other remedies.
(b) Except as otherwise provided in this section, Section 1094.5
of the Code of Civil Procedure governs any proceedings conducted
pursuant to this subdivision. In all proceedings pursuant to this
subdivision, the court shall uphold the decision of the hearing
officer if the decision is based upon substantial evidence in the
whole record.
(c) The filing of a petition for writ of mandate does not stay any
corrective action required pursuant to this chapter or the accrual
of any penalties assessed pursuant to this chapter.
(d) This section does not prohibit the court from granting any
appropriate relief within its jurisdiction.

42855. All penalties collected under Section 42850 shall be
deposited in the California Tire Recycling Management Fund created
pursuant to Section 42885 if the attorney who brought the action
represented the board, or shall be retained by a city, county, or
city and county designated pursuant to subdivision (c) of Section
42850, if the attorney who brought the action represents the city,
county, or city and county. The moneys retained by the city, county,
or city and county shall be expended on enforcement and cleanup
required under this chapter, including, but not limited to, the
prosecution of enforcement actions.