(a) A municipality may establish by ordinance or resolution that any person who violates any ordinance or resolution regulating storm water discharges or facilities shall be subject to a civil penalty of not less than fifty dollars ($50.00) or more than five thousand dollars ($5,000) per day for each day of violations. Each day of violation may constitute a separate violation. A municipality shall give the violator reasonable notice of the assessment of any penalty. A municipality may also recover all damages proximately caused to the municipality by such violations.
Terms Used In Tennessee Code 68-221-1106
Appeal: A request made after a trial, asking another court (usually the court of appeals) to decide whether the trial was conducted properly. To make such a request is "to appeal" or "to take an appeal." One who appeals is called the appellant.
Damages: Money paid by defendants to successful plaintiffs in civil cases to compensate the plaintiffs for their injuries.
Municipality: means any incorporated city or town, county, metropolitan or consolidated government, or special district of this state empowered to provide storm water facilities. See Tennessee Code 68-221-1102
Person: means any and all persons, natural or artificial, including any individual, firm or association and any municipal or private corporation organized or existing under the laws of this or any other state or country. See Tennessee Code 68-221-1102
Storm water: means storm water runoff, snow melt runoff, surface runoff, street wash waters related to street cleaning or maintenance, infiltration (other than infiltration contaminated by seepage from sanitary sewers or by other discharges) and drainage. See Tennessee Code 68-221-1102
(b) In assessing a civil penalty, the following factors may be considered:
(1) The harm done to the public health or the environment;(2) Whether the civil penalty imposed will be substantial economic deterrent to the illegal activity;(3) The economic benefit gained by the violator;(4) The amount of effort put forth by the violator to remedy this violation;(5) Any unusual or extraordinary enforcement costs incurred by the municipality;(6) The amount of penalty established by ordinance or resolution for specific categories of violations; and(7) Any equities of the situation which outweigh the benefit of imposing any penalty or damage assessment.(c) The municipality may also assess damages proximately caused by the violator to the municipality which may include any reasonable expenses incurred in investigating and enforcing violations of this part, or any other actual damages caused by the violation.(d) The municipality shall establish a procedure for a review of the civil penalty or damage assessment by either the governing body of the municipality or by a board established to hear appeals by any person incurring a damage assessment or a civil penalty. If a petition for review of such damage assessment or civil penalty is not filed within thirty (30) days after the damage assessment or civil penalty is served in any manner authorized by law, the violator shall be deemed to have consented to the damage assessment or civil penalty and it shall become final. The alleged violator may appeal a decision of the governing body or board pursuant to title 27, chapter 8.(e) Whenever any damage assessment or civil penalty has become final because of a person’s failure to appeal the municipality’s damage assessment or civil penalty, the municipality may apply to the appropriate chancery court for a judgment and seek execution of such judgment. The court, in such proceedings, shall treat the failure to appeal such damage assessment or civil penalty as a confession of judgment.
