1. (a)

   1. (1) The failure of the owner of a vacant building to pay all required fees under § 42-3131.09 after notice of the designation of the owner's building as vacant, the determination of delinquency of registration or fee payment, the denial or revocation of registration, the filing by an owner of any false or misleading registration-related information, or the refusal of the owner of a vacant building to permit the Mayor to inspect the building shall be subject to a civil penalty of up to $1,000 for the first violation, $2,500 for the second violation, and $5,000 for the third and subsequent violations.
   2. (2) The Director of the Department of Buildings shall provide the Office of the Attorney General with a list of all owners who fail to pay the required fee after notice.

2. (b) If the owner of a vacant building fails to maintain the building in compliance with the requirements of § 42-3131.12 or, having obtained a vacant property registration, subsequently fails to comply with the other registration requirements under § 42-3131.06, the Mayor, in addition to issuing civil penalties pursuant to subsection (a) of this section, may:

   1. (1) Charge the owner with failure to comply and enforce all applicable penalties under this chapter; and
   2. (2) Take other action as required by the Construction Codes or Construction Codes Supplement of the District of Columbia to bring the building into compliance with those codes.
3. (c) Civil fines, penalties, and fees may be imposed as additional sanctions for any infraction of the provisions of §§ 42-3131.06, 42-3131.08, 42-3131.09, or 42-3131.12, pursuant to Chapter 18 of Title 2.
4. (d) Criminal prosecutions under §§ 42-3131.05 through 42-3131.21 shall be brought in the name of the District of Columbia by the Attorney General for the District of Columbia.

History

Apr. 14, 1906, 34 Stat. 115, ch. 1626, § 10

as added Apr. 27, 2001, D.C. Law 13-281, § 101, 48 DCR 1888

Oct. 18, 2005, D.C. Law 16-23, § 2(b), 52 DCR 8078

Oct. 18, 2005, D.C. Law 16-24, § 4(a), 52 DCR 8080

Mar. 8, 2007, D.C. Law 16-236, § 2, 54 DCR 391

Aug. 15, 2008, D.C. Law 17-216, § 3(f), 55 DCR 7500

Sept. 24, 2010, D.C. Law 18-223, § 2042(d), 57 DCR 6242

Feb. 18, 2017, D.C. Law 21-200, § 2(b)

Apr. 5, 2021, D.C. Law 23-269, § 501(x)(1)

Oct. 1, 2025, D.C. Law 26-41, § 202(h)

Emergency Legislation

For temporary (90 day) amendment of section, see § 2042(d) of Fiscal Year 2011 Budget Support Emergency Act of 2010 (D.C. Act 18-463, July 2, 2010, 57 DCR 6542).

For temporary (90 day) amendment of section, see § 3(f) of Nuisance Properties Abatement Reform and Real Property Classification Congressional Review Emergency Act of 2008 (D.C. Act 17-436, July 16, 2008, 55 DCR 8272).

For temporary (90 day) amendment of section, see § 3(f) of Nuisance Properties Abatement Reform and Real Property Classification Emergency Amendment Act of 2007 (D.C. Act 17-173, November 2, 2007, 54 DCR 11204).

For temporary (90 day) amendment of section, see § 3(f) of Nuisance Properties Abatement Reform and Real Property Classification Emergency Amendment Act of 2006 (D.C. Act 16-586, December 28, 2006, 54 DCR 353).

For temporary (90 day) amendment of section, see § 2 of Additional Sanctions for Nuisance Abatement and Office of the Tenant Advocate Duties Clarification Congressional Review Emergency Amendment Act of 2006 (D.C. Act 16-479, September 22, 2006, 53 DCR 7938).

For temporary (90 day) amendment of section, see § 2 of Additional Sanctions for Nuisance Abatement and Office of the Tenant Advocate Duties Clarification Emergency Amendment Act of 2006 (D.C. Act 16-408, June 26, 2006, 53 DCR 5428).

For temporary (90 day) amendment of section, see § 4(a) of Abatement of Nuisance Construction Projects Emergency Amendment Act of 2005 (D.C. Act 16-42, February 17, 2005, 52 DCR 3045).

Temporary Legislation

For temporary (225 day) amendment of section, see § 2 of Additional Sanctions for Nuisance Abatement and Office of the Tenant Advocate Duties Clarification Temporary Amendment Act of 2006 (D.C. Law 16-183, November 16, 2006, law notification 53 DCR

For temporary (225 day) amendment of section, see § 4(a) of Abatement of Nuisance Construction Projects Temporary Amendment Act of 2005 (D.C. Law 16-4, May 14, 2005, law notification 52 DCR 5427).

Effect of Amendments

D.C. Law 18-223 deleted “, imprisonment for not more than 90 days, or both” following “$1,000”.

D.C. Law 17-216, in subsec. (a), substituted “notice of the designation of the owner’s building as vacant, the determination of delinquency of registration or fee payment, the denial or revocation of registration, the filing by an owner of any false or misleading registration-related information, or” for “receipt of a mailing of a delinquency and determination notice under § 42-3131.11 or”.

D.C. Law 16-236 rewrote subsec. (c) which had read as follows: “(c) In addition to the penalties provided in subsection (a) of this section, and other available remedies, the failure of the owner of a vacant building to register and pay all the required fees under § 42-3131.06(a) or § 42-3131.09 within 10 days after receipt of the mailing of a delinquency and determination notice under § 42-3131.11 shall be punishable by a civil fine not to exceed $1,000 for each instance of inclusion of each property in the semiannual list under § 42-3131.11. The Mayor shall provide for such fines in accordance with Chapter 18 of Title 2.”

D.C. Law 16-24 added subsec. (d).

D.C. Law 16-23, in subsec. (a), added the second sentence; and added subsec. (c).

Section References

This section is referenced in § 42-3131.06 and § 42-3131.07.