7.53.192 Criteria for determining amount of monetary penalty.
(1) The director shall evaluate the five criteria listed in this subsection in determining the appropriate amount of monetary penalty to impose for a particular violation:
(a) Public health risk from the violation;
(b) Environmental damage from the violation;
(c) Willful or knowing violation;
(d) Economic benefit accruing to responsible person(s) from noncompliance; and
(e) Responsiveness of responsible person(s) in correcting violation.
(2) For each penalty criterion described in subsection (1) of this section, the director shall assign a point score between 0 and 3 that reflects the severity of the violation in the context of the criterion. The director may use the following narrative descriptions as guidance in assigning point scores.
(a) Public health risk - Did/does the violation pose a health risk to humans or animals?
(i) 0 Points - There is little or no health risk resulting from the violation.
(ii) 1 Point - A possibility of sickness exists from exposure to the violation.
(iii) 2 Points - Serious illness is a concern resulting from the violation.
(iv) 3 Points - Very serious illness and possible long-term health concerns result from the violation.
(b) Environmental damage - Has the condition damaged the environment?
(i) 0 Points - Little or no environmental damage occurred as a result of the violation.
(ii) 1 Point - Minor environmental damage due to the violation can be inferred from the evidence.
(iii) 2 Points - The environmental damage resulting from the violation requires moderate restoration to be done.
(iv) 3 Points - The scope of the environmental damage resulting from the violation requires large scale restoration.
(c) Willful or knowing - Is there evidence to support a claim that the violation resulted from a willful or knowing act?
(i) 0 Points - The violation was not due to a willful or knowing act.
(ii) 1 Point - Evidence supports a claim that the violation could be the result of a willful or knowing act.
(iii) 2 Points - Highly probable that the violation resulted from a willful or knowing act.
(iv) 3 Points - No question that the violation definitely resulted from a willful or knowing act.
(d) Economic benefit from noncompliance - Did the violation result in an economic benefit to the responsible person(s)?
(i) 0 Points - Little or no economic benefit resulted from the violation.
(ii) 1 Point - There could have been an economic benefit from the violation, but it cannot be determined.
(iii) 2 Points - There was a direct economic benefit from the violation, but the amount of the benefit could not be determined.
(iv) 3 Points - A direct economic benefit resulted from the violation, the amount could be approximated and it was significant.
(e) Responsiveness - Is/was the responsible person responsive in correcting the violation?
(i) 0 Points - No advance notice of violation or no deadlines for compliance established.
(ii) 1 Point - Showed good effort to correct the violation when notified.
(iii) 2 Points - Made minor efforts but did nothing substantial to correct the violation.
(iv) 3 Points - No attempt made to cooperate or correct the violation.
(3) After assigning point values to each of the criteria set forth in subsection (1) of this section, the director shall sum the point values to obtain the total point value for the violation at issue. For noncommercial violations, the total point value shall be translated into the applicable base penalty amount by reference to SCC 7.53.195. For commercial violations, the total point value shall be translated into the applicable base penalty amount by reference to SCC 7.53.197. (Added by Amended Ord. 13-023, Apr. 17, 2013, Eff date Apr. 28, 2013).