Approval given to increase dumping fines by 25x in San Benito County by end of September

SAN BENITO COUNTY, Calif. (KION-TV)- The San Benito County Board of Supervisors approved increasing dumping fines for first and repeat offenders.

This is something people in the county say has been an issue for years. Piles of trash have made parts of San Benito County an eyesore.

"It's a big issue just because it looks ugly, it looks dirty, you know, and I think it is a big issue," says Sandy Nunez who lives in San Benito county

The San Benito County Board of Supervisors is trying to clean up the mess by increasing fines.

"The original fines for illegal dumping were quite low and they were over, I believe, 20 years old, and we had not increased them," says Bea Gonzales, a county supervisor.

The maximum fine increased from $500 to $10,000. The amendment increases the fines specific to illegal dumping violations and gives authority to the CAO to delegate lead enforcement to a county department and/or staff person.

First-time offender fines went from $100 to $2,500. A second offense went up from $200 to $5,000.

Third-time offenses went from $500 to $10,000.

These fines match the same as other major cities like San Jose and Palm Dale. The money used from the fines will be used to make a program to prevent illegal dumping.

"We're bringing together the sheriff's department, the police department, both cities to really make this a community kind of task force," says Gonzales.

Illegal dumping is a significant problem in many California communities. it is not unique to San Benito County, but we have seen an alarming accumulation over the years of illegal dumping along our rural roads and in our San Benito River.

We are in discussion with county code enforcement and sheriff department staff to determine best enforcement practices. We are also working to pilot cameras at various hot spot locations.

Celina Stroller with Integrated Waste Management

"If that's what it's going to take for people to, you know, get the hint and not dump anything, people you don't want to pay $2,000, so go to the dump," says Nunez.

Celina says they receive calls weekly, if not daily, of people leaving items like mattresses and couches.

There will be a combination of cameras for surveillance and increased signage to help enforce this new ordinance.

The ordinance will take effect thirty days after adoption on September 21.

There is free residential mattress recycling at the waste management's landfill and free bulky item recycling events that are offered four times a year at cosb.us/IWM