San Jose Approves Hefty Fines For Illegal Dumping
SAN JOSE (KPIX 5) – Frustrated over the growing problem of illegal dumping, the City of San Jose approved hefty fines for anyone caught dumping furniture or other trash on the street.
In a unanimous vote, the council approved fines starting at $2,500 for the first violation and up to $10,000 for three or more violations. Originally, city staff proposed fines ranging from $1,000 to $3,000.
"I don't even know where people get all this junk from, but I'm just baffled by it," councilmember Magdalena Carrasco said at Tuesday night's City Council meeting.
Santa Ana Street in North San Jose has become a dumping ground. "Pretty much just piles of unwanted tires, trash, electronics," said Raul Aguilar.
According to Aguilar, the piles get so big on some mornings, there's no room for anything else. "We couldn't park on this whole street because of the trash. They would just pile mountains of trash all over the street," he recalled.
While his street is a hotspot, illegal dumping has plagued neighborhoods all over the city. In the last three years, San Jose said incidents of illegal dumping has risen by 50 percent, and the volume of dumped garbage has gone up 75 percent.
One reason why, San Jose has never had a specific ordinance against illegal dumping. No law, no fines and virtually no enforcement.
"I can't explain why an ordinance hasn't existed, but now that I am in my first year here as mayor, I think it's a good time to get one in place," Mayor Sam Liccardo told KPIX 5 before Tuesday night's vote.
"I just feel it's overdue because I see it happening more than once, in various neighborhoods all over the San Jose area," Aguilar said. "I don't know why they just let it pass by, they waited until it got really, really bad."
San Jose will also follow other large cities like Oakland and Sacramento, by offering rewards to people who report dumpers who get caught in the act.
