§ 6:671. Compliance.

(a)

Upon receipt of information that any colony situated within the city-parish is not being kept in compliance with this article, the director of mosquito abatement and rodent control or his designee shall cause an investigation to be conducted. If he finds that grounds exist to believe that one (1) or more violations have occurred he shall cause a written notice of hearing to be issued to the beekeeper.

(b)

The notice of hearing shall set forth:

(1)

The date, time and place at which the hearing will be conducted.

(2)

The violation(s) alleged.

(3)

That the beekeeper may appear in person or through counsel, present evidence, cross-examine witnesses.

(4)

That the bees may be ordered destroyed or removed from the parish if the hearing officer finds that they have been kept in violation of this article.

Notices shall be given by certified United States mail or personal delivery. However, if the health officer is unable to locate the beekeeper, then the notice may be given by publication one (1) time in a newspaper of general circulation at least five (5) days prior to the date of the hearing.

(c)

The hearing shall be conducted by the director of mosquito abatement and rodent control or his designee. The burden shall be on the parish to demonstrate by a preponderance of credible evidence that the colony or colonies have in fact been kept in violation of this article. If the hearing officer finds that the colony or colonies have been kept in violation of this article, then he may order that the beekeeper remove the bees from the parish within a certain period of time, not less than six (6) days from the order, with the provision that failure of the beekeeper to comply with the order shall cause the bees to be destroyed, or he may order that the bees be destroyed within a period of time not less than six (6) days from the order. In addition to any other order, the hearing officer may also order that bees not be kept upon the tract for a period of up to two (2) years. In instances where the hearing officer finds that the violations were not intentional and that the beekeeper has employed corrective actions that will probably be effective to cure the violations alleged, then he may issue a warning in lieu of ordering the bees destroyed or removed.

(d)

The decision of the hearing officer shall be final unless appealed to the district court within five (5) days of signing of the order to remove or destroy and an appropriate temporary restraining order has been issued.

(e)

The provisions of this section shall not be construed to require that a hearing be conducted for the destruction of (1) any bee colony not residing in a hive structure intended for beekeeping or (2) any swarm of bees or (3) any colony residing in a standard or manmade hive, which by virtue of its condition, has obviously been abandoned by the beekeeper.

(Ord. No. 9449, § 1, 6-24-92; Ord. No. 10500, § 1, 11-8-95)