01/23/2006: "New Codes, Permit Fees & Penalties Proposed"

Criminal & Civil Penalties for Violations of Codes

he CC (County Council) will hold a public hearing on a proposal to adopt the International Building Codes and to also increase across the board the cost of obtaining building and land use permits, so that the fees will "better reflect the cost of services". And while there at it, they also propose to allow local Fire District 3 to "impose fees sufficient to pay the cost of inspections, administration, and enforcement…and. permits local fire districts to assume responsibility for administering Fire Codes".

In short, the proposal increases all fees associated with land and building development, and the grants of new authority to the Fire District to collect fees to perform inspections and follow-up inspections, and includes a new section that proposes fines (up to $1,000.00 a day) and jail time (up to 90 days) for violating any provision of the codes.

The hearing will begin at 1:30 p.m., Tuesday February 7, at the Council Hearing Room, in the Court House, with the Council receiving Staff and public input on the ordinance that will adopt the new Codes, which include: the 2003 International Building, Residential, Mechanical, Fuel Gas, Fire, Plumbing, Wa Energy, Wa Ventilation and Indoor Air Quality, Wa Manufactured Home Installation Requirements; Wa Factory Built Housing and Commercial Structures Installation Requirements; Wa Historic Building Code; Uniform Code for the Abatement of Dangerous Buildings, and also adopt State required amendments and additions to these codes, along with administration procedures and violation penalties.

The new Fee Schedules hearing will begin at 2:30 to take comment on and adopt a the new increased fee schedule for services provided by the Community Development and Planning Dept. (CD&P) and Fire District 3.

The Proposed new Schedule of the increase in fees can be viewed by clicking on this link, NEW_FEES.doc (104k file), but a few examples will quickly give the reader a sense of the changes being proposed:

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Building Permits: New policy: 1.1% of value of the building. (Old fees were from a fixed schedule using a 1% value)

Land Use Fees: A few examples of increases: Plat Alteration: from $525.00 to $1,250.00; Simple Land Divison: from $255.00 to $600.00; Time Extension: from$140.00 to $400.00; Grading Permit: $145.00 to $300.00

New Fire Code Fees: Some examples: "Construction Permit": 1.1% of the value of the project; Permit Renewal $50.00 yr.; Reactivation of expired permit after construction started: ½ original total permit fee plus $50.00 for each year following expiration. Code Interpretation: $250.00; Appeal of code interpretation: $500.00.

Code Violation Penalties: Both Criminal and Civil are proposed.

A. Violation a misdemeanor. In accordance with RCW 36.32.120(7) and 36.43.040, any person, firm or corporation found to have violated any provision of the international and uniform codes, as amended and adopted by the County Council, or who continues to work after a "stop work order" has been issued, shall be guilty of a misdemeanor, and unless otherwise prescribed by law, shall be punished by a fine not to exceed $1,000, or by imprisonment not to exceed 90 days, or both such fine and imprisonment. Each day of violation shall constitute a separate offense.
B. Civil penalty. In addition to any other sanction or remedial procedure which may be available, the Director may impose a civil penalty on any person, firm, or corporation who fails to conform to the terms of a permit, builds, or does other work without obtaining a permit required by the international and uniform codes as amended and adopted by the County Council. This penalty shall be up to $1,000 per day for each violation . Each day of continued work in violation shall constitute a separate offense.

This does not mean that the proposed penalties are automatic: They appear to be there as an incentive to take corrective action; to wit, if one is cited for a violation, and does not either correct it or appeal it (There is a $500.00 fee for an appeal, $250.00 for a Code Interpretation) , the County can bring legal action to enforce, and/or punish, in an attempt to force compliance:

The proposed code states that "
Prior to imposing a civil penalty, the Director must take reasonable action to notify the property owner and the person(s) responsible for the violation, in accordance with the following procedure:

1. Provide a written Notice of Violation to the person, firm or corporation responsible for the violation, and the owner of the property on which the violation is located, stating:
a. The facts and circumstances of the violation;
b. The chapter or code sections that are being violated;
c. The actions that must be taken to correct the violations;
d. A specific, reasonable time frame for correcting the violations; and
e. That a response is required within 21 days.

For additional information from the department, one may contact Shireene Hale at (360) 370-7629 or shireeneh@co.san-juan.wa.us.

Written comments on proposed fees and the Building Codes Ordinance may be mailed in advance of the hearing to the: Clerk of the County Council at 350 Court Street #1, Friday Harbor, WA 98245 (360) 378-2898, (and they ask that four copies are included).