Chapter 7.26 WEED ABATEMENT

The purpose of this chapter is to provide for the removal of weeds from around the exterior of improvements situated in the unincorporated areas of the county so as to reduce the potential for fire, exposure to poisons and noxious substances, and to promote the public health, safety and welfare of the community.
The board of supervisors finds that in many subdivisions located in the unincorporated areas of the county, the growth and accumulation of weeds during the summer and fall months of the year poses a severe fire and safety hazard, both to persons and property; that the growth and accumulation of weeds presents difficult conditions for fire suppression efforts; that the growth and accumulation of weeds is allowed to occur by significant numbers of property owners, many of whom live out of the county and/or the state.
Based upon these findings, the board of supervisors hereby declares that the existence of weeds in the unincorporated areas of the county constitutes a nuisance of a seasonal and recurring nature and that the weeds in these areas shall be removed by the owners of the respective lots and, in the absence of such voluntary removal, that the weeds may be abated and removed by the county as set forth in this chapter. (Ord. 448 § l(part), 1980).

The following definitions apply to this chapter:
A. “Department” means the county fire department or its designee.
B. “Improvement” means commercial, retail and residential structures and any accessory structure used in conjunction with such commercial, retail or residential structure, including, but not limited to, storage sheds, detached garages, greenhouses, fences, living ornamental vegetation, mobile home, LPG and fuel storage tanks, driveways, animal shelters, and vehicle parking areas.
C. “Plow down date” shall be May 1st of each year, or at such other date as the fire department may declare by publication. The Madera County fire chief or his designee may permit exceptions to this rule in writing.
D. “Property owners” are those owners whose names appear on the most current assessor’s parcel list or county tax roll.
E. “Weeds” includes vegetation which bears or may bear seeds of a downy or wingy nature; grasses and other vegetation which may attain such large growth as to become, when dry, a fire menace; vegetation otherwise noxious or dangerous, including poison oak and poison ivy in a condition of growth constituting a menace to public health; and accumulations of refuse, cuttings, trash and other combustible rubbish. (Ord. 448-B § 1, 1987: Ord. 448-A §§ 1, 2, 1986; Ord. 448 § 1(part), 1980).

Every owner of any vacant lot or improved lot situated in the unincorporated areas of the county, or such areas as are designated by the Madera County fire department, shall, prior to May 1st of every year, remove all weeds from the following areas on their lots:
A. For improved lots, a strip of land thirty feet wide surrounding the entire exterior of any improvement shall be cleared of weeds, provided that if any portion of any improvement lies within thirty feet of the property line, then removal of weeds from that location need only take place up to the property line. If an improved lot is less than three acres in area, the owner may mow the entire lot to within one-half inch to one inch of the ground and maintain that height throughout the fire season. “Improvement” is defined as any commercial, retail, or residential structure and any accessory structure used in conjunction with such commercial, retail or residential structure, including but not limited to storage sheds, detached garages, fuel tanks (including LPG), car ports, animal shelters, greenhouses and fences.
B. For vacant lots, a strip of land thirty feet wide from each property line and street frontage shall be cleared of weeds. Abatement is not required on any actively grazed land, irrigated pasture, or cultivated lands if the weed growth does not exceed six inches in height.
Removal of the weeds and abatement of the hazard by discing, rototilling, plowing, or mowing as allowed in subsection A of this section is required. Burning is not permitted on any lot. The removal method employed must abate the hazard posed by the growth and presence of the weeds to the satisfaction of the fire department.
Upon determination by the department that a hazard of weeds exists on a parcel that has been previously disced, rototilled, plowed or mown, the department will mail a written notice of the existence of the hazard to the property owner of record within fifteen days of determination that a hazard exists. The notice shall, at a minimum, contain the owner’s name and mailing address and the assessor’s parcel number (APN) of each parcel on which a hazard continues to exist, and shall give notice of the right of the owner to protest to the department and to appeal to the board of supervisors as provided in Section 8.01.070 of this code. The notice shall also specify that the property owner of record shall have fifteen days from the date of the notice to either abate the hazard or to file a written protest. If affected owners file a written protest with the department within fifteen days of the notice of the hazard and the department then abates the weed hazard on the property over the objection of the owner to the reabatement, the owner may appeal to the board of supervisors as provided in Section 8.01.070 of this code.
The Madera County fire chief shall have discretion to extend the deadline for abatement beyond May 1, provided that notice of the new abatement deadline date shall be published at least once per week for three consecutive weeks in a newspaper of general circulation within the county, with the first publication to be no later than April 20th. Three publications in a newspaper regularly published at least once per week, with at least five days intervening between the respective publication dates, shall be sufficient. (Ord. 448-E § 1, 2006: Ord. 448D § 1, 2005: Ord. 448-B § 2, 1987: Ord. 448-A § 3, 1986; Ord. 448 § 1(part), 1980).

Madera County has declared that the growth and accumulation of weeds in the unincorporated areas of the County poses a fire, safety and public health risk and has therefore declared weeds a seasonal and recurring nuisance. Each property owner is responsible for abating the nuisance on the property. The nuisance must be abated on or before May 1st each and every year. If not abated pursuant to Madera County Code section 7.26.030, the fines and costs described herein, shall constitute a lien upon the property until paid. Commencing January 2005, THIS NOTICE APPLIES TO ALL LOTS AND PROPERTIES, whether vacant, undeveloped or improved lots. Improved lots less than 3 acres in size may abate the nuisance by mowing weeds to a height of 1/2 to 1 inch of the ground in accordance with Madera County Code section 7.26.030.

Questions regarding this Notice shall be directed to the Weed Abatement Compliance Officer at (559) 675-7799. Thank you in advance for your timely compliance with this notice.

The envelope containing the weed abatement notice must be marked on the outside with the words, “Official Notice Enclosed” or “Legal Notice Enclosed.”
B. Failure to complete removal by the annual May 1st plow down date shall constitute an infraction punishable by a maximum fine of two hundred fifty dollars, unless the fire chief has announced a later date for completion of removal of weeds, upon which date the weeds must be removed. The county shall proceed to remove the weeds and abate the hazard. Cost of removal by the county together with an administrative charge shall be apportioned to the property as a special assessment on such property, which will be added to the property tax bill as provided in Government Code Section 25845, and may also be recorded against the property as a lien. In addition, any lot that is not abated prior to the plow down date, and is determined to have contributed to the spread of any fire, may be subject to fire suppression recovery costs.
C. Upon completion of the weed abatement, the department shall compile a list of the violator’s assessor parcel numbers, names and addresses of the property owners, and the proportionate share of the cost of weed abatement for each parcel. The department shall also include a reasonable administration fee for the county’s costs of mailing, billing, inspection, bookkeeping and processing. Thereafter, the department shall mail a bill to the owner(s) of each parcel abated, which shall contain all information required for a Madera County administrative citation as provided in Section 8.01.040(A)(4) of this code.
Within thirty days of mailing of the bill (as shown by postmark), the property owner or the owner’s agent shall either pay the bill in full or request a hearing under the procedures of Section 8.01.040 of this code.
The issues for dispute shall be limited to:
1. Clerical error in the weed abatement cost apportionment, or property ownership; and
2. Preabatement conformance to the requirements of Section 7.26.030 of this chapter, including abatement of weeds prior to May 1st or any deadline established by the fire chief after May 1st.
Once the owner has exhausted all administrative procedures under Section 8.01.040(H)(2) of this code, the board of supervisors shall approve or disapprove the department’s costs of abatement. Approval shall constitute a levy of a special assessment for weed abatement costs.
D. The board of supervisors shall cause an abatement lien to be recorded against each parcel that did not pay the bill for weed abatement and have not successfully challenged the entire bill. The notice shall, at a minimum, identify the recorded owner or possessor of the property and that owner’s or possessor’s last known address, and the date of completion of the abatement, describe the real property subject to the lien, and specify the amount of the abatement cost. The abatement lien may be released or subordinated by order of the board of supervisors. (Ord. 448F § 1, 2008: Ord. 448-E § 2, 2006: Ord. 448D § 2, 2005: Ord. 448-C § 1, 2004: Ord. 448-B § 3, 1987: Ord. 448-A §§ (4)--(7), 1986; Ord. 448 § 1(part), 1980).