CONTRA COSTA COUNTY, Calif. (KRON) – In Contra Costa County, the Board of Supervisors is considering increasing the fines businesses are penalized for violating health orders.
Education, repeated warnings, and eventually fines capped at $1,000 is a broken strategy to get some businesses to comply with health orders, says Contra Costa County Supervisor Karen Mitchoff.
“There are those who continue to defy us,” Mitchoff said.
Some of her colleagues on the board agree.
“We do need larger enforcement, and that may mean a higher fine,” Supervisor Federal Glover said.
The supervisors discussed potentially increasing commercial fines at its virtual board meeting Tuesday.
“At this point, it is important for us as consumers to hold businesses accountable and say, you know what, if you’re operating when you’re not supposed to that means you don’t care about what’s happening, and I’m not gonna spend my money there,” Supervisor Diane Burgis said.
Nevertheless, Supervisor Mitchoff wants to increase the current fines for businesses, which right now range from $250 for a first violation, $500-dollars for the second violation, and $1,000 for each violation that follows within a year.
“A thousand dollars to a business that’s operating while in these circumstances is still a penalty, I’d like to see 10,000. I’d like to see 15,000. I’d like to see 20,000. That will get their attention,” Mitchoff said.
The Board of Supervisors has listed the potential fine increase as an emergency item for its next meeting Tuesday and could possibly hold a vote at that time.
Since November 19th, the Contra Costa County District Attorney’s Office says it has issued notices of violation to at least seven separate businesses.
Most of them are gyms and three of them have been fined multiple times.
In Danville, some restaurants have ignored orders and chosen to continue serving customers outside.