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. (a) (1) In addition to any other remedy provided by law,
including the current powers of charter cities, the legislative body
of a city, county, or city and county may collect any fee, cost, or
charge incurred in any of the following:
(A) The abatement of public nuisances.
(B) The correction of any violation of any law, regulation, or
local ordinance that would also be a violation of Section 1941.1 of
the Civil Code.
(C) The enforcement of zoning ordinances adopted pursuant to
Chapter 4 (commencing with Section 65800) of Division 1 of Title 7 or
any other constitutional or statutory authority.
(D) Inspections and abatement of violations of Article 1
(commencing with Section 13100) of Chapter 1 of Part 2 of Division 12
of the Health and Safety Code and regulations or ordinances adopted
pursuant to that article.
(E) Inspections and abatement of violations of the State Housing
Law (Part 1.5 (commencing with Section 17910) of Division 13 of the
Health and Safety Code) and regulations or ordinances adopted
pursuant to that part.
(F) Inspections and abatement of violations of the California
Building Standards Code (Title 24 of the California Code of
Regulations).
(G) Inspections and abatement related to local ordinances and
regulations that implement any of the foregoing.
If the fee, cost, or charge has not been paid within 45 days of
notice thereof, the city, county, or city and county may collect the
fee, cost, or charge by making the amount of the unpaid fee, cost, or
charge a proposed lien against the property that is the subject of
the enforcement activity.
Except as provided in subdivision (c), the amount of the proposed
lien may be collected at the same time and in the same manner as
property taxes are collected. All laws applicable to the levy,
collection, and enforcement of ad valorem taxes shall be applicable
to the proposed lien, except that if any real property to which the
lien would attach has been transferred or conveyed to a bona fide
purchaser for value, or if a lien of a bona fide encumbrancer for
value has been created and attaches thereon, prior to the date on
which the first installment of taxes would become delinquent, then
the lien that would otherwise be imposed by this section shall not
attach to real property and the costs of enforcement relating to the
property shall be transferred to the unsecured roll for collection.
(2) The amount of any fee, cost, or charge shall not exceed the
actual cost incurred performing the inspections and enforcement
activity, including permit fees, fines, late charges, and interest.
(3) This section shall not apply to owner-occupied residential
dwelling units.
(4) This section does not apply to any enforcement, abatement,
correction, or inspection activity regarding a violation in which the
violation was evident on the plans that received a building permit.
(b) (1) A city, county, or city and county shall provide the owner
of the property with written notice in plain language of the
proposed lien, a description of the basis for the amounts comprising
the lien, a minimum of 45 days after notice to pay the fee, cost, or
charge, and an opportunity to appear before the legislative body and
be heard regarding the amount of the proposed lien. The notice shall
be mailed by certified mail to the last known address of the owner of
the property.
(2) In any city, county, or city and county, the legislative body
may delegate the holding of the hearing required by paragraph (1) to
a hearing board designated by the legislative body. The hearing board
may be the housing appeals board established pursuant to Section
17920.5 of the Health and Safety Code or any other body designated by
the legislative body. The hearing board shall make a written
recommendation to the legislative body which shall include factual
findings based on evidence introduced at the hearing. The legislative
body may adopt the recommendation without further notice of hearing,
or may set the matter for a de novo hearing before the legislative
body. Notice in writing of the de novo hearing shall be provided to
the property owner at least 10 days in advance of the scheduled
hearing.
(c) If the legislative body determines that the proposed lien
authorized pursuant to subdivision (a) shall become a lien, the body
may also cause a notice of lien to be recorded. This lien shall
attach upon recordation in the office of the county recorder of the
county in which the property is situated and shall have the same
force, priority, and effect as a judgment lien, not a tax lien. The
notice shall, at a minimum, identify the record owner or possessor of
the property, set forth the last known address of the record owner
or possessor, set forth the date upon which the lien was created
against the property, and include a description of the real property
subject to the lien and the amount of the lien.