AGENDA
ITEM
23 AGENDA
CALEXICO California ITEM
WHERE CALIFORNIA AND MEXICO MEET
23 CITY COUNCIL
AGENDA STAFF REPORT
DATE: September 16, 2026
TO: City Council
APPROVED BY: Benjamin Martinez, City Manager Bra
PREPARED BY: Laura Estrada, City Attorney LE
SUBJECT: Consideration of Pursuing Enforcement on Municipal Code Violations Recommendation:
Staff recommends that the City Council:
1. Review and provide direction regarding the available options for addressing violations of the Calexico Municipal Code, including administrative, civil, and criminal enforcement mechanisms.
2. Designate priority municipal code violations for potential City Attorney Prosecution, with an emphasis on serious, repeat, or chronic violations affecting public health, safety, and welfare, including graffiti-related offenses, public nuisance, and other designated misdemeanor offenses.
3. Direct the City Attorney to review Municipal Code and applicable state law concerning the identified priority violations and provide recommendations regarding the City Attorney's Authority and appropriate prosecutorial remedies, including whether additional ordinances, resolutions, agreements, or other legislative actions are necessary or advisable.
4. Direct staff to establish a coordinated referral and enforcement process among Code Enforcement, the Police Department, the City Manager's Office, and the City Attorney's Office to identify, document, prioritize, and refer qualifying municipal code violations for appropriate enforcement or prosecution.
5. Direct City Attorney to return to the City Council, if necessary, with any ordinance, resolution, interagency agreement, policy or other action necessary to clarify or implement prosecutorial authority over designated municipal code violations.
Background:
The City of Calexico has an established municipal-code enforcement program designed to address violations that affect public health, safety, welfare, property conditions, and quality of 1 life. The Calexico Municipal Code provides the City with a range of enforcement tools, including voluntary compliance, administrative citations, criminal prosecution, nuisance abatement, recovery of enforcement costs, civil remedies, and other remedies authorized by law.
The City Council has recently identified the need to consider a more clearly defined role for the City Attorney in prosecuting designated municipal-code violations. The June 3, 2026, Council Agenda included an item entitled "Authorize the City Attorney to Prosecute Designated Municipal Code Violations." The Council item request identified the proposed focus as code-enforcement matters and misdemeanor oftenses involving unlawful camping, public intoxication, graffiti abatement, and collection of fines associated with enforcement activities.
The purpose of this report is to provide the City Council with an overview of the enforcement mechanisms currently available under the Municipal Code and applicable state law, and to obtain Council direction regarding whether certain violations should be designated as priorities for referral to the City Attorney for review and potential prosecution.
Depending on the nature, severity, frequency, and circumstances of a violation, the City may utilize one or more of the following enforcement approaches:
A. Voluntary Compliance:
As an initial enforcement measure, the City may seek voluntary compliance through education, warnings, notices of violation, compliance deadlines, corrective action requirements, and communication with property owners or other responsible parties.
Voluntary compliance allows the City to resolve violations efficiently while reserving more formal enforcement measures for circumstances in which compliance is not achieved.
B. Administrative Citations
Calexico Municipal Code Chapter 1.27 establishes an administrative citation program as an alternative method of enforcing municipal ordinances. Administrative citations provide the City with a civil enforcement mechanism that may be used when appropriate in lieu of, or in addition to, other available remedies. This approach may be particularly appropriate for routine, non-criminal, or first-time violations where a monetary penalty or corrective action is sufficient to obtain compliance.
C. Criminal Prosecution:
The Municipal Code also provides for criminal enforcement of certain violations.
Calexico Municipal Code 1.24.010(A) provides that a person who violates a provision of the Municipal Code is generally guilty of a misdemeanor unless otherwise provided by the Code. Section 1.24.010(D) further recognizes the role of the "prosecuting attorney" in determining whether a charge should be treated as an infraction. In addition, California Government Code Section 41803.5(a) provides that with the consent of the county district 2 attorney, the City Attorney may prosecute misdemeanors committed within the city arising from violations with state law.
The following matters have been identified as potential priorities for City Attorney review and prosecution:
1. Public Intoxication:
Public Intoxication requires a different analysis because California Penal Code Section 647(f) establishes public intoxication as a state-law offense. Accordingly, prosecution of public intoxication should be distinguished from prosecution of a violation created by the Calexico Municipal Code. If the City Council wishes to designate public intoxication as a priority enforcement matter for City Attorney review, staff recommends that any authorization be expressly conditioned upon confirmation that the City Attorney possesses the requisite authority under California law and that any required consent or agreement with the Imperial County District Attorney has been obtained.
2. Unlawful Camping:
Calexico Municipal Code Section 9.14.060 establishes graduated penalties for violations of the City's unlawful camping regulations. The section provides for an infraction and a fine of up to $100 for a first violation and a misdemeanor, punishable by a fine of up to $500 and/or imprisonment of up to three months, for a second or subsequent violation.
The Code also provides for public nuisance enforcement and other applicable civil and administrative remedies. The graduated penalty structure allows the City to distinguish between • first-time violations and repeated or chronic violations and provides an opportunity to escalate enforcement when voluntary compliance or lesser enforcement measures are unsuccessful.
3. Graffiti:
The Municipal Code provides specific criminal and civil enforcement mechanisms for graffiti.
Section 9.33.20 declares graffiti to be a public nuisance subject to punishment and abatement under the Municipal Code.
Section 9.33.160 provides that a violation of the graffiti chapter is generally a misdemeanor; however, a violation constituting a misdemeanor may, in the discretion of the prosecuting attorney be charged and prosecuted as an infraction.
Discussion and Analysis:
We have researched options in pursuing Municipal Code violations. This staff report focuses on three common methods to address Municipal Code Violations: (1) administrative citations; (2) criminal prosecution; and (3) civil relief. This Staff Report does not contain an exhaustive list of all potential remedies but includes descriptions and comparisons of three common methods.
Other potential methods include receiverships, permit revocations and other actions that depending on the specific facts of the case may be warranted.
The Staff Report describes these three methods and their respective advantages and disadvantages. Please bear in mind that the City is not limited to use of only one of these options, and it may be appropriate in some cases to apply a combination of these code enforcement methods or other methods not discussed in this memorandum to remedy code violations.
1. Administrative Citations
Many cities enable some form of administrative approach to address Municipal Code violations, either exclusively or in addition to other avenues. An administrative approach is a common method by which cities start the enforcement process, and it is especially effective in non-severe, "run of the mill" cases against property owners.
Under the administrative citation process, city inspectors or other authorized staff may issue administrative citations with fines or penalties to offenders for code violations so long as the maximum fine or penalty amount does not exceed the limits specified under State law. For example, under Government Code Section 36900, infractions are punishable by a fine not to exceed $100 for the first offense, $200 for the second offense in the same year, and $500 for the third and any subsequent offenses in the same year.
A typical administrative citation process would proceed as follows: the City's code enforcement officer will first issue either a verbal or written warning to the offender, informing him or her of the municipal code violation(s) being committed. The warning typically gives the offender a specific period of time for compliance. Depending on the nature of the violation, the time for compliance can vary. Following the initial warning, and the expiration of the allowable time period for compliance, the officer will follow up to determine whether compliance has been achieved. If compliance has not been achieved, the officer would then issue an administrative citation in the field to the property owner, tenant, or manager for the violation. The property owner, tenant or manager is usually afforded some right of appeal to the City or its hearing officer regarding the issuance of the citation or the amount of costs recovered.
Most of the time, after receiving one or more administrative citations, a property owner or business operator will comply with the City's requests because fine amounts increase over time.
In some instances, the City may adopt a provision that allows officers or designated individuals 4 to abate an illegal condition and recover costs if the condition persists and the property owner is notified. However, abatement may involve going to court first to obtain an abatement warrant.
Also, abatement by the City is typically for code violations which are extreme in nature (i.e., dilapidated housing, structural integrity concerns, "collectors," etc.) and is not recommended for the less serious violations more common to the City.
A. Advantages
Administrative enforcement can be a very efficient, cost-effective way to pursue less serious Municipal Code violations because legal costs are limited. The biggest advantage to the administrative enforcement process is that authorized City staff can issue monetary citations in the field, and the City does not have to go to court to enforce the citations it issues. Furthermore, administrative hearings do not require formal rules of evidence and the entire gambit of a regular trial. Finally, in the event that the administrative citations fail to bring the offender into compliance, the existing processes (i.e., criminal and/or civil penalties in Superior Court) are still available to the City.
B. Disadvantages
Depending on the nature of the violation, an administration citation and fine(s) may not elicit code compliance, especially for more serious violations.
Furthermore, administrative citations and fines may not be effective for violations that are not correctable and are more characteristic of and appropriate for criminal prosecution. Take, for example, a violation of Calexico Municipal Code Section 9.36.010 which prohibits a person from firing a gun without a permit. An administrative citation and fine for such an illegal act may not deter or punish an offender of this nature because the violation has already occurred and is not a correctable condition.
Il. Criminal Prosecution
Although some cities begin the enforcement process by pursuing compliance via the criminal approach, many cities will resort to the criminal process only when their administrative efforts have failed.
The process of criminal prosecution for a violation of the Municipal Code typically involves the following: After all administrative processes (if applicable) have been exhausted, the file is forwarded to the City Attorney who reviews the file and decides whether sufficient evidence exists to file a criminal complaint in court alleging particular violations of the City's Municipal Code. The authority for prosecuting a violation of the Municipal Code comes from Government Code section 36900, which states that a violation of any city ordinance constitutes a misdemeanor, unless specifically made an infraction by city ordinance.
A. Advantages
5 The criminal approach seems to be an effective tool once administrative efforts have failed or when illegal conduct has already occurred and is not correctable.
The success of the criminal approach is likely due to the serious threat of punishment, conviction and the stigma associated with and a criminal record.
B. Disadvantages
Some city councils struggle with the issue of whether "criminalizing" citizens for minor Municipal Code violations is an acceptable or suitable avenue for achieving compliance. Second, a disadvantage to the criminal approach is that it is difficult to obtain any sort of recovery for attorneys' fees or other costs. Imposed fines usually go to another entity as opposed to the City under administrative fines.
Finally, on occasion, a criminal defendant may be difficult to track down and requires a court appearance at some point.
An alternative option here is to attempt to have the District Attorney prosecute these cases but given the fact that Municipal Code violations are minor criminal offenses, the District Attorney may not take up these cases in the manner the City desires, if at all. However, this still may be worth having a discussion with the District Attorney.
III. Civil Relief
Like criminal prosecution, civil relief also requires the use of courts. The process involves the City Attorney filing a civil action in court typically seeking an injunction and other types of civil relief. An injunction is essentially a court order compelling the property owner to fix the Municipal Code violations and/or prohibiting the property owner from maintaining the property in a condition that violates the Municipal Code.
The civil action will usually allege one or more of five legal theories, depending on the circumstances surrounding: (1) violation of a City ordinance; (2) existence of a general public nuisance; (3) violation of State housing laws; (4) unfair business practices; and/or (5) drug and red light abatement. Once a suit is filed and if it proceeds without a settlement agreement, discovery and/or oral arguments may follow. Civil penalties may also be sought depending on the facts of the case.
A. Advantages
Injunctions are particularly effective when a city's main goal it to prevent certain actions, as opposed to punishment or attainment of compliance. Injunctions are also a very effective method for preventing or addressing continuing zoning violations. Cost recovery is also available.
B. Disadvantages
The major drawback with the civil approach is that this process is timely and costly.
The discovery process, oral argument and seeking court dates usually make this process more time consuming than criminal prosecution. Furthermore, even if a court order is issued, it may be difficult and costly to get that order enforced. If the property owner does not remedy the violation, the City may still have to go to court before it can enter property and abate the condition itself.
IV. Proposed Coordinated Enforcement and Referral Process To improve consistency and coordination, staff recommends establishing a formal referral process among Code Enforcement, the Police Department, the City Manager's Office, and the City Attorney's Office.
The proposed process would generally consist of the following steps:
1. Investigation and Documentation:
Code Enforcement or the Police Department identifies and documents the alleged violation, including photographs, reports, notices, witness statements, inspection records, and other relevant evidence.
2. Notice and Voluntary Compliance:
Where appropriate, the responsible party is notified of the violation and provided an opportunity to correct the conditions within the applicable compliance period.
3. Administrative Enforcement:
If the violation continues, Code Enforcement may utilize available administrative remedies, including administrative citations, compliance orders, civil penalties, nuisance abatement, liens, cost recovery, and other remedies authorized by the Municipal Code.
4. City Attorney Review:
Cases may be referred to the City Attorney for legal review when they involve:
• repeated or chronic violations;
• misdemeanor-level offenses;
• significant public nuisances;
• graffiti offenses;
• violations presenting significant public health or safety concerns; • substantial or continuing City enforcement costs;
• cases in which administrative remedies have been unsuccessful; or • other circumstances in which criminal or civil enforcement is determined to be in the City's interest.
5. Legal Enforcement:
7 Following review, the City Attorney may determine the appropriate legal remedy within the scope of authority provided by the Municipal Code and applicable State law.
Depending upon the circumstances, the appropriate remedy may include criminal prosecution, civil enforcement, injunctive relief, nuisance abatement, or another legally available remedy.
6. Case Tracking and Reporting
Staff should establish a system for tracking referrals, enforcement actions, outcomes, fines and penalties assessed and collected, abatement costs, and other relevant performance measures.
V. Conclusion
Depending on various concerns, the City may wish to proceed with one or more of the various approaches discussed herein in order to deal with situations common to the community. It appears that the administrative citation process may be the most cost-effective and efficient method to pursue many of the City's common problems. Regarding other more serious or recurring violations, the criminal or civil approach may be necessary and appropriate.
Depending on which approaches the City wishes to adopt, if any, the City may need to adopt enabling ordinances which provide the authority needed to pursue those selected approaches.
Fiscal Impact:
Implementation of a designated City Attorney prosecution program may result in additional costs to the City, depending on the number, complexity, and type of cases referred for legal action.
Potential costs may include additional City Attorney and legal staff time, court appearances, case preparation and litigation, investigative and evidentiary support, Code Enforcement staff time, Police Department investigative and support services, records management and case tracking, service of notices and legal documents, and nuisance abatement or other enforcement- ana eleed The volume of cades reared or protection be determie at three selected, and the extent to which existing City resources can absorb the additional workload.
Coordinated With:
Police Department
City Manager
Finance Department
Attachment(s):
None.
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