1. Any user who has been subject to an enforcement action by the city and who seeks to dispute a notice of violation, order, fine, or other action of the director may file an appeal. No other person may appeal an enforcement action.

2. The notice of appeal must be filed in writing and received by the director within ten calendar days of the receipt of the disputed action or proposed action. If the notice of appeal is not received by the director within the ten-day period, the right to an appeal is waived. The notice of appeal shall state with particularity the basis upon which the appellant is disputing the action taken or proposed to be taken.

3. Upon receipt of a timely notice of appeal, the director shall set a date and time for an appeal hearing, but in no case shall the hearing be set more than sixty days from the receipt of the timely notice of appeal. The appellant shall be notified in writing of the date, time, and place for the appeal hearing. The director or his/her designee shall serve as the hearing examiner and be the presiding officer at the hearing.

1. Content of Notice of Hearing. The notice of hearing shall include:

2. Procedures at Hearing. The hearing examiner/presiding officer, who may be the director or his or her designee, shall regulate the course of the hearing. The presiding officer shall afford to all parties the opportunity to respond, present evidence and argument, conduct cross-examination, and submit rebuttal evidence; provided, however, the presiding officer may control the manner and extent of cross-examinations and rebuttal. In the discretion of the presiding officer, all or part of the hearing may be conducted by telephone or other electronic means as long as each party in the hearing has an opportunity to effectively participate and hear.

3. Rules of Evidence. Evidence, including hearsay evidence, is admissible if, in the judgment of the presiding officer, it is the kind of evidence on which reasonably prudent persons are accustomed to rely in the conduct of their affairs. The presiding officer shall exclude evidence that is excludable on constitutional or statutory grounds or on the basis of evidentiary privilege recognized in the courts of this state. The presiding officer may exclude evidence that is irrelevant, immaterial, or unduly repetitious. All testimony of parties and witnesses shall be made under oath or affirmation. Documentary evidence may be received in the form of copies or excerpts or by incorporation by reference. Official notice may be taken of (a) any judicially cognizable facts, (b) technical or scientific facts within the city’s specialized knowledge, and (c) codes or standards that have been adopted by an agency of the United States, this state or another state, or by a nationally recognized organization or association. A party proposing that official notice be taken may be required to produce a copy of the material to be noticed.

4. Default. If a party fails to attend or participate in any stage of a hearing, the presiding officer may serve upon all parties a default or other dispositive order, which shall include a statement of grounds for the order. Within seven calendar days after service of a default order, the party against whom it was entered may file a written motion requesting that the order be vacated, stating the grounds for the motion. If the party against whom the default order is entered fails to timely file a motion to vacate or the motion to vacate is not granted, the default order will be the final decision of the city.

5. Burden of Proof. The appellant shall have the burden of proof by a preponderance of the evidence.

1. Any party, including the city, the Washington State Department of Ecology, the United States Environmental Protection Agency, or the user/appellant, is entitled to review of the final determination of the hearing examiner in the Snohomish County superior court; provided, that any petition for review shall be filed no later than thirty calendar days after date of the final determination.

2. Copies of the petition for review shall be served as in all civil actions.

3. The filing of the petition shall not stay enforcement of the final determination except by order of the superior court and on posting of a bond, to be determined by the court, naming the city as beneficiary.

4. The review shall be conducted by the court without a jury. The record shall be satisfied by a narrative report certified by the hearing examiner and no verbatim record of proceedings before the hearing examiner shall be required to be presented to the superior court.

5. The court may affirm the final determination or remand the matter for further proceedings before the hearing examiner; or the court may reverse the final determination if the substantial rights of the petitioners may have been prejudiced because the final determination was: