Title
Amending Chapter 34.24 of the Legislative Code pertaining to Excessive Consumption of City Services.
Body
SECTION 1
WHEREAS, in support of Mayor Carter’s 2023 budget, the Department of Safety and Inspections (DSI) seeks to increase excessive consumption of city services fees, as detailed in Chapter 34.24 of the Saint Paul Legislative Code, by 8%; and
WHEREAS, the fee increases proposed more accurately reflect the cost of providing services; and
WHEREAS, DSI continues to experience substantial growth in personnel costs such as health care and wages; and
WHEREAS, General Fund pressures create the need to decrease the gap between fee revenue and program expenses.
NOW, THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED, that the Council of the City of Saint Paul does hereby ordain:
SECTION 2
Section 34.24 of the Saint Paul Legislative Code is hereby amended to read as follows:
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(4) Excessive consumption of inspection services, fee, and liability.
a. The city shall be entitled to collect its costs of enforcement from a property owner who consumes either reinspection services or excessive initial inspection services. An excessive consumption of either reinspections or excessive initial inspection services occurs after:
1. Written notice of a violation is served under section 34.24.(3) following an initial inspection; and
2. One additional initial inspection is performed at the same location within a consecutive twelve-month period after the first initial inspection for which a notice of violation was served; and
3. During each of the two initial inspections under subparagraph (3), the enforcement officer finds violations of the Saint Paul Legislative Code under the jurisdiction of the department of safety and inspections which are new violations; or
4. Written notice of a violation is served under section 34.24.(3) following an initial inspection; and
5. The enforcement officer conducts an inspection after the due date for compliance on the notice and determines that the violation still exists.
b. A flat fee of one hundred twenty-four dollars ($124.00) one hundred thirty-four dollars ($134.00) may be charged for each inspection under the circumstances described under section 34.24(4).
c. No fee under section 34.24.(4)(a) shall be charged where the city has issued a written notice pursuant to section 34.24.(3) but has abated the violation under section 45.10 or 45.11 of the Saint Paul Legislative Code and assessed the costs of such abatement under section 45.11.1 of the Saint Paul Legislative Code.
d. The amount of the excessive consumption of inspection services fee shall be a debt owed to the city and shall be collected by special assessment under the authority in Minnesota Statutes, Section 429.101 and the Charter by the procedure outlined in Chapter 60 of the Saint Paul Administrative Code.
e. Action under this section does not preclude any other civil or criminal enforcement procedure.
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SECTION 3
This Ordinance shall take effect and be in force thirty (30) days following its passage, approval and publication.