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374 <br /> <br />DRAFT <br /> <br /> approved Plan, is subject to a civil penalty. A Person may <br /> be immediately assessed a maximum civil penalty of up to <br /> $5,000 on the date any violation is first assessed by the <br /> County. An additional maximum civil penalty of up to $5,000 <br /> per day may be assessed by the County from the day <br /> following the date of initial assessment of a violation, if <br /> the cure period provided in the Notice of Violation is not <br /> met. If a civil penalty is not assessed immediately on the <br /> date of assessment of a violation, the County is not <br /> precluded from later assessing a penalty for that date in <br /> addition to other penalties (if any). Penalties are due <br /> and payable immediately upon assessment unless a cure <br /> period has been provided, in which case the penalties <br /> attributed to any uncured actions (or failures to act) <br /> covered by the cure period are due and payable immediately <br /> following failure to cure and lapse of the cure period. <br /> Penalties continue to accrue until the applicable <br /> violations are corrected. <br /> 2. The County staff that administers an Erosion and Sediment <br /> Control program approved under G.S. 113A-60 shall determine <br /> the amount of the civil penalty and shall notify the Person <br /> who is assessed the civil penalty of the amount of the <br /> penalty and the reason for assessing the penalty. The <br /> notice of assessment shall be served by any means <br /> authorized under G.S. 1A-l, Rule 4, and shall direct the <br /> violator to either pay the assessment or contest the <br /> assessment as provided in this Ordinance. If a violator <br /> does not pay a civil penalty assessed by the County within <br /> 30 days after it is due, the County may institute a civil <br /> action to recover the amount of the assessment. The civil <br /> action may be brought in the Superior Court of any county <br /> where the violation occurred or the violator's residence or <br /> principal place of business is located. A civil action <br /> must be filed within three years of the date the assessment <br /> was due. An assessment that is not contested is due <br /> immediately when the violator is serued with a notice of <br /> assessment. An assessment that is contested by the <br /> recipient continues to accrue pending review and is due in <br /> full in such amount as determined by the review panel, the <br /> day following the administrative or judicial review. Any <br /> assessment not paid when due shall continue to accrue as <br /> assessed by the County, until paid in full or until such <br /> time as an administrative or judicial review panel <br /> determines the penalty (or a portion thereof) is not owed. <br />3. The maximum civil penalty for a violation is Five Thousand <br /> Dollars ($5,000.00) per day. The notice of violation shall <br /> describe the violation with reasonable particularity, <br /> specify a permitted cure period within which the violation <br /> is to be corrected, and warn that failure to correct the <br /> violation within the prescribed cure period may result in <br /> the assessment of a civil penalty(ies) (or assessment of <br /> additional civil penalties, as the case may be) and other <br /> available enforcement action(s). Permitted cure periods <br /> for violations begin the day following the initial date <br /> such violation is first assessed. If, after the cure period <br /> has expired, the violator has not completed the prescribed <br /> corrective action, a civil penalty(les} may be <br /> retroactively assessed on a daily basis, from and including <br /> the date the violation was assessed. Each day of <br /> continuing violation shall constitute a separate violation. <br /> No cure period for compliance need be given for any <br /> violation (including without limitation, a failure to <br /> submit a Plan for approval or for obstructing, hampering or <br /> interfering with an authorized representative while in the <br /> process of carrying out his official duties) prior to <br /> assessment of an initial civil penalty for the day the <br /> violation is detected, up to the maximum amount permitted <br /> per day. <br />4. In determining the amount of the penalty, items which may <br /> be considered are the degree and extent of harm caused by <br /> the violation, the cost of rectifying the damage, the <br /> amount of money the violator saved by non-compliance, <br /> whether the violation was committed willfully and the prior <br /> record of the violator in complying with or failing to <br /> comply with this Ordinance. <br /> <br /> <br />