Koniar, 082819 ALAGO, AGO 2019-46

• Case Date: August 28, 2019
• Court: Alabama

Honorable John Koniar AGO 2019-46 No. 2019-046 Alabama Attorney General Opinion State of Alabama Office of the Attorney General August 28, 2019          Honorable John Koniar          Mayor, City of Foley          Post Office Box 1750          Foley, Alabama 36536          Municipalities - Weed Abatement Procedures - Costs and Fees -Baldwin County          The cost of weed abatement incurred by a Class 8 municipality under section 11-67-27 of the Code of Alabama includes expenses for advertising, postage, material, equipment, and employee wages.          Dear Mayor Koniar:          This opinion of the Attorney General is issued in response to your request on behalf of the City of Foley.          QUESTION          Does the cost of weed abatement incurred by a Class 8 municipality under section 11-67-27 of the Code of Alabama include expenses for advertising, postage, material, equipment, and employee wages?          FACTS AND ANALYSIS          The City of Foley, a Class 8 municipality, may use the procedures to abate weeds for Class 5, 6, and 8 municipalities set out in sections 11-67-20 through 11-67-28 of the Code of Alabama. Ala. Code §§ 11-67-20 to 11-67-28 (2008). Under sections 11-67-21 and 11-67-22, the city may declare "noxious or dangerous" weeds on streets, sidewalks, or private property a public nuisance and order that they be abated. Ala. Code §§ 11-67-21, 11-67-22 (2008). After the city posts two signs on the property in substantial compliance with section 11 -67-23's "Notice to Destroy Weeds" and gives notice by publication for two consecutive weeks in a newspaper as prescribed under section 11-67-23, the owner of the property may file objections and a hearing on whether the weeds constitute a nuisance may be held according to section 11-67-24. Ala. Code §§ 11-67-23, 11-67-24 (2008). Section 11-67-25 authorizes employees or agents of the city to enter on property for which the municipality has declared a nuisance "for purposes of abating or removing the nuisance." Ala. Code § 11-67-25 (2008).          The...