§1281.22. Sewage discharges; prohibitions; penalties

A. No person shall cause or allow to be discharged untreated or improperly treated sewage into Lake Pontchartrain, Toledo Bend Reservoir, the Sabine River, or their drainage basins, and into all estuaries, streams, and water courses within the state which empty or drain into Lake Pontchartrain, Toledo Bend Reservoir, the Sabine River, or their drainage basins, in contravention of any of the rules or regulations authorized and adopted pursuant to R.S. 40:1281.21.

B.(1) When an inspection discloses a violation of this Section, the state health officer or his duly authorized representative shall notify the responsible party of the violation and give them an opportunity to correct the noted deficiencies. If upon reinspection, the violation is noted to still exist, the state health officer is hereby authorized, in accordance with the Administrative Procedure Act, to issue a civil compliance order directing the responsible party to correct the violations noted and/or impose a fine of one hundred dollars per day for each day the violation has not been corrected, not to exceed ten thousand dollars. If a fine is imposed, the fine shall commence on the day following the date specified for compliance in the civil compliance order issued by the state health officer.

(2) All fines imposed under this Section shall be payable to the office of public health of the Louisiana Department of Health.

(3) In accordance with the Administrative Procedure Act, the aggrieved party, following a hearing and orders issued pursuant thereto, may petition a district court for judicial review of the administrative proceeding.

(4) If a civil action is necessary to recover fines imposed in this Section, the offender shall be liable for the amount of the fine, legal interest from the date of assessment, and all costs of recovery, including reasonable attorney fees and court costs. It shall be the duty of the Bureau of Legal Services of the Louisiana Department of Health to initiate all civil action in recovering said fines.

Acts 1991, No. 300, §1; Acts 1993, No. 681, §1; Acts 1999, No. 289, §2; Redesignated from R.S. 40:1153 by HCR 84 of 2015 R.S.