Subtitle 28. Civil Monetary Fines or Penalties

Terms used in this Division are defined as follows:

Any person who uses property in violation of the Zoning Ordinance, or who knowingly permits another person to do so, shall, upon citation pursuant to Subdivision 3, be deemed to have committed a civil violation and shall pay to the County a civil monetary fine in the amount prescribed by Section 28-111.

The civil monetary fine for each civil violation of the Zoning Ordinance shall be Two Hundred Fifty Dollars ($250.00), except as provided in Subsections (b), (c) and (d), below.

For a repeated civil violation by the same violator, the following fines shall apply:

For violations of Subtitle 27 of this Code concerning illegal signs, the following civil monetary fines shall apply:

For violations of Transportation Uses in the Zoning Ordinance under Section 27-5 Table 27-5101(c) regarding Parking of Commercial Vehicles the following civil monetary fines shall apply:

The citation shall be on a form adopted by the Department and shall include:

The County Attorney shall prosecute all civil zoning violations before the District Court.

Upon a finding of a violation the civil fine imposed by the Court shall be in an amount deemed appropriate by the Court but shall not be less than half the amount in the schedule contained in Section 28-111 of this Division. The Court may suspend or defer the payment of the civil fine upon such reasonable grounds as the Court determines.

Terms used in this Division are defined as follows:

Any person who violates any provision of the Housing Code shall, upon citation issued pursuant to Subdivision 3, be deemed to have committed a civil violation and shall pay to the County a civil monetary fine in the amount prescribed by Section 28-221.

The civil monetary fine for each civil violation of the Housing Code shall be One Hundred Dollars ($100.00), except as provided in Subsection (b).

For a repeated civil violation, at the same location, within a thirty-six month period, the following fines shall apply:

The citation shall be on a form adopted by the Department and shall include:

The County Attorney shall prosecute all civil violations before the District Court.

Upon finding of a violation the civil fine imposed by the Court shall be in an amount deemed appropriate by the Court but shall not be less than half the amount in the schedule contained in Section 28-221(a) and (b). The Court may suspend or defer the payment of the civil fine upon such reasonable grounds as the Court determines.

In enacting this Division the Council has considered the following:

This Division pertains to civil violations of the Prince George's County Code which are subject to civil fines and penalties, but this Division shall not be applicable where a specific procedure for levy and adjudication of a civil fine or penalty for a violation has been enacted in other Divisions of this Subtitle, or where a criminal penalty has been established.

The purpose of this Division is to promulgate procedures for the imposition of civil fines and penalties and for the adjudication thereof by the District Court of the State of Maryland.

Terms used in this Division are defined as follows:

Any person who violates any provision of the Prince George's County Code subject to civil fine or penalty shall, upon citation issued pursuant to Section 28-255, be deemed to have committed a civil violation and shall pay to the County a civil fine in the amount prescribed.

Each separate day of violation that remains uncorrected is a distinct civil violation subject to an additional citation and fine in the amount prescribed.

The penalty provided in Section 1-123 of the County Code shall not apply to a violation which carries a civil fine as a penalty.

The citation shall be on a form adopted by the County government and shall include:

The County Attorney shall prosecute all civil violations before the District Court.

With the exception of violations pursuant to Sections 13-246, 13-271, 13-1105.03, or 23-150 of the Code, and the tax lien placed on the property per Section 13-246.02 or Section 13-269 of the Prince George's County Code, which shall be paid in full to Prince George's County through the Office of Finance before transfer or sale of the property, upon a finding of a violation the civil fine imposed by the Court shall be in an amount deemed appropriate by the Court but shall not be less than the total amount in the schedule contained in Section 28-111 of this Division. With the exception of violations pursuant to Sections 13-246, 13-271, 13-1105.03, or 23-150 of the Code, the Court may suspend or defer the payment of the civil fine upon such reasonable grounds as the Court determines. Upon a finding of a violation pursuant to Sections 13-246, 13-271, or 23-150 of the Code, the civil fine imposed by the Court shall be strictly in accordance with the fines prescribed in Sections 13-246, 13-271, 13-1105.03, and 23-150 of the Code.

Any person who violates any provision of the County Code concerning grading, pollution, drainage, floodplain, and erosion control shall, upon citation issued pursuant to Subdivision 1, be deemed to have committed a civil violation and shall pay to the County a civil monetary fine in the amount prescribed by Subsection (b) of this Section.

The civil monetary fine, excluding those arising from a violation of the Zoning Ordinance, for each civil violation of the County Code concerning grading, pollution, drainage, floodplain, and erosion control shall be One Thousand Dollars ($1000.00), except as provided in Subsection (c).

For a repeated civil violation, at the same location, the following fine shall apply:

Any person who violates any of the following provisions of the County Code shall, upon citation issued pursuant to Subdivision 1, be deemed to have committed a civil violation and shall pay to the County a civil monetary fine in the amount prescribed by Subsection (b) of this Section:

The civil monetary fine for each civil violation of the provisions enumerated in Subsection (a), except Section 11-292.01, shall be Two Hundred Fifty Dollars ($250.00), except as provided in Subsection (c) of this Section and as provided in Section 11-277(c). The civil monetary fine for each civil violation of Section 11-292.01 shall be Ten Thousand Dollars ($10,000.00).

For a repeated civil violation, the following fines shall apply:

Any person who violates Section 4-180(a)(9) of this Code concerning unobstructed accessible routes to buildings shall, upon citation issued pursuant to Subdivision 1, be deemed to have committed a civil violation and shall pay to the County a civil monetary fine in the amount prescribed by Subsection (b) of this Section.

The civil monetary fine for each civil violation of the County Code concerning unobstructed accessible routes for disabled persons to buildings shall be Two Hundred Fifty Dollars ($250.00), except as provided in Subsection (c).

For a repeated civil violation, at the same location, within a thirty-six (36) month period, the following fines shall apply:

Any person who violates any of the following provisions of the County Code shall, upon citation issued pursuant to Subdivision 1, be deemed to have committed a civil violation and shall pay to the County a civil monetary fine in the amount prescribed by Subsection (b) of this Section: Sections 2-162.01, 29-124, and 29-125.

The civil monetary fine for each civil violation of the provisions enumerated in Subsection (a) shall be One Thousand Dollars ($1,000.00).

Any person who violates Sections 5-234, 5-236, 5-237, 5-238, 5-238.01, and 5-239 of this Code concerning secondhand and pawn dealers shall, upon citation issued pursuant to Subdivision 1, be deemed to have committed a civil violation and shall pay to the County a civil monetary fine in the amount prescribed by Subsections (b) through (d) of this Section.

The civil monetary fine for each civil violation of Sections 5-234, 5-238, and 5-238.01 of the County Code shall be Two Hundred and Fifty Dollars ($250.00) for the first violation, Five Hundred Dollars ($500.00) for the second violation, and One Thousand Dollars ($1,000) for the third and each subsequent violation in excess of three (3) violations at the same location within a twelve (12) month period.

The civil monetary fine assessed against the employee of the Secondhand or Pawn Dealer for each civil violation of Sections 5-236, 5-237, and 5-239 of the County Code shall be One Hundred Dollars ($100.00).

The civil monetary fine assessed against the Secondhand or Pawn Dealer for each civil violation of Sections 5-236, 5-237, and 5-239 of the County Code shall be Two Hundred and Fifty Dollars ($250.00) for the first violation, Five Hundred Dollars ($500.00) for the second violation, and One Thousand Dollars ($1,000) for the third and each subsequent violation in excess of three (3) violations at the same location within a twelve (12) month period.

Any person who violates any of the following provisions of the County Code shall, upon citation issued pursuant to Subdivision 1, be deemed to have committed a civil violation and shall pay to the County a civil monetary fine in the amount prescribed by Subsection (b) of this Section:

The civil monetary fine for each civil violation of the provisions enumerated in Subsection (a) shall be Five Hundred Dollars ($500.00), except as provided in Subsection (c) of this Section and as provided in Section 11-277(c).

For a repeated civil violation, the following fines shall apply:

Any person who violates the provisions of Section 12-206 of the County Code shall, upon citation issued pursuant to Subdivision 1, be deemed to have committed a civil violation and shall pay to the County a civil monetary fine in the amount prescribed by Subsection (b) of this Section.

The civil monetary fine for each civil violation of the provisions enumerated in Subsection (a) shall be Two Hundred Fifty Dollars ($250.00), except as provided in Subsection (c) of this Section.

For a repeated civil violation, the following fines shall apply:

A tanning facility with more than three violations of this section in a three year period shall have their use and occupancy permit revoked.

Any person who violates any of the provisions of Subtitle 4 of the County Code shall, upon citation issued pursuant to Subdivision 1, be deemed to have committed a civil violation and shall pay to the County a civil monetary fine in the amount prescribed by Subsection (b) of this Section. Each separate day of violation that remains uncorrected is a distinct civil violation subject to an additional citation and fine in the amount prescribed by Subsection (b) of this Section.

The civil monetary fine for each civil violation of this Subtitle shall be Two Hundred Fifty Dollars ($250.00). For a repeated civil violation, the following fines shall apply: