SECTIONS 45000-45003 - California Statutes

PUBLIC RESOURCES CODE

SECTION 45000-45003

45000. (a) Except as provided in subdivision (b), the enforcement
agency or the board may issue an administrative order requiring the
owner or operator of a solid waste facility or disposal site or a
person in violation of Section 44000.5, to take corrective action as
necessary to abate a nuisance, or to protect human health and safety
or the environment. If both the board and the enforcement agency
issue an administrative order regarding the same facility, disposal
site, or person, the order issued by the board shall prevail if there
is a conflict between the orders.
(b) An administrative order shall not be issued for a minor
violation that is corrected immediately in the presence of the
inspector. Immediate compliance in that manner shall be noted in the
inspection report.
(c) The enforcement agency or the board may contract for
corrective action after an order issued pursuant to subdivision (a)
becomes final and the owner or operator fails to comply with the
order by the date specified in the order.
(d) If an enforcement agency or the board expends any funds
pursuant to subdivision (b), the owner or operator of the solid waste
facility or disposal site or a person in violation of Section
44000.5 shall reimburse the enforcement agency or the board for the
amount expended, including, but not limited to, a reasonable amount
for contract administration, and an amount equal to the interest that
would have been earned on the expended funds. The amount expended
shall be recoverable in a civil action by the Attorney General, upon
request of the local enforcement agency or the board.
(e) A contract for corrective action entered into by the board is
exempt from approval by the Department of General Services pursuant
to Section 10295 of the Public Contract Code.
(f) A corrective action shall incorporate by reference applicable
waste discharge requirements issued by the state water board or a
regional water board, and shall be consistent with all applicable
water quality control plans adopted pursuant to Section 13170 of, and
Article 3 (commencing with Section 13240) of Chapter 4 of Division 7
of, the Water Code, and state policies for water quality control
adopted pursuant to Article 3 (commencing with Section 13140) of
Chapter 3 of Division 7 of the Water Code, existing at the time of
the corrective action or proposed corrective action.

45001. Nothing in this division affects the authority of the state
water board or a regional water board to issue enforcement orders or
take corrective actions with regard to solid waste facilities.

45002. (a) Except as provided in subdivision (b), an order issued
pursuant to this part or Part 4 (commencing with Section 43000) shall
provide the person subject to that order with a notice of that
person's right to appeal pursuant to Part 4 (commencing with Section
43000) and Part 6 (commencing with Section 45030).
(b) The recipient of a notice to comply issued pursuant to Section
45003 may request that a hearing be conducted in accordance with
Section 44307, but only with respect to an action taken by an
enforcement agency of the board that arises from a minor violation
that the owner or operator fails to correct or fails to certify, in a
timely manner, as having been corrected.

45003. (a) (1) An authorized representative of the enforcement
agency or board who, in the course of conducting an inspection,
detects a minor violation, shall take an enforcement action as to the
minor violation only in accordance with this section.
(2) In a proceeding concerning an enforcement action taken
pursuant to this section, there shall be a rebuttable presumption
upholding the determination made by the enforcement agency or board
regarding whether the violation is a minor violation.
(b) A notice to comply shall be the only means by which an
enforcement agency or board may cite a minor violation, unless the
person cited fails to correct the violation or fails to submit the
certification of correction within the time period prescribed in the
notice, in which case the enforcement agency or board may take any
enforcement action, including imposing a penalty, as authorized by
this part.
(c) (1) The enforcement agency or the board shall commence an
enforcement action under this section by serving a notice to comply
on the owner or operator of the solid waste facility or disposal site
at which a violation has occurred, specifying the violation and the
manner in which the violation may be corrected.
(2) A person who receives a notice to comply detailing a minor
violation shall have not more than 30 days from the date of the
notice to comply in which to correct any violation cited in the
notice to comply. Within five working days of correcting the
violation, the person cited or an authorized representative shall
sign the notice to comply, certifying that any violation has been
corrected, and return the notice to the enforcement agency or board,
whichever issued the notice to comply.
(3) A false certification that a violation has been corrected is
punishable as a misdemeanor.
(4) The effective date of the certification that a violation has
been corrected shall be one of the following dates, whichever occurs
first:
(A) The date the certification is received by the enforcement
agency or the board, whichever issued the notice to comply, including
receipt of an electronic or facsimile version of the certification.
(B) The date the certification is postmarked by the United States
Postal Service.
(C) The date the certification is accepted for delivery by a
national express delivery service as evidenced by a receipt.
(d) If a notice to comply is issued, a single notice to comply
shall be issued for all minor violations noted during the inspection,
and the notice to comply shall list all of the minor violations and
the manner in which each of the minor violations may be brought into
compliance.
(e) If a person who receives a notice to comply pursuant to
subdivision (c) disagrees with one or more of the alleged violations
listed on the notice to comply, the person shall provide the
enforcement agency or board that issued the notice to comply a
written notice of disagreement specifying the allegations with which
the person disagrees along with the returned signed notice to comply,
certifying that all of the undisputed violations have been
corrected. If the person disagrees with all of the alleged
violations, the written notice of disagreement shall be returned in
lieu of the signed certification of correction within 30 days of the
date of issuance of the notice to comply. If the issuing agency takes
administrative enforcement action on the basis of the disputed
violation, that action may be appealed in the same manner as any
other alleged violation under Section 44307.
(f) This section does not do any of the following:
(1) Prevent a reinspection to ensure compliance with this division
or to ensure that minor violations cited in a notice to comply have
been corrected and that the solid waste facility or disposal site is
in compliance with this division.
(2) Prevent the enforcement agency or board from requiring a
person to submit necessary documentation needed to support the person'
s claim of compliance pursuant to subdivision (c).
(3) Restrict the power of a city attorney, district attorney,
county counsel, or the Attorney General to bring, in the name of the
people of California, any criminal proceeding otherwise authorized by
law.
(4) Prevent the enforcement agency or board from cooperating with,
or participating in, a proceeding specified in paragraph (3).