Sec. 380.604. - General authority and power to grant franchises.

(a) To protect and promote the health, safety and general welfare of the citizens of the County and to preserve and enhance the environment of the City by providing a comprehensive nonresidential solid waste collection and transportation system, on and after the date 120 days after the effective date of this Part, no person shall use the public streets, roads, alleys, ways or places of the City for the purpose of collecting, transporting or providing container service for nonresidential solid waste generated in Duval County without a valid and existing franchise therefor, unless exempted by subsection (b) of this Section. The Council is authorized and empowered to grant a franchise to any person, and to prescribe substantially uniform terms and conditions of such grants, in accordance with the procedures set forth in this Part. Every franchise granted is conditioned upon the franchisee's obligation to pay the franchise fee, in full, when due. The City Department may suspend, and the Council may revoke, a franchise for the franchisee failure to pay the fee prescribed. (b) Section 380.604 (a) shall not apply to: (1) Any self-hauler; (2) Any person who is a contract hauler and who does not transport nonresidential solid waste except as authorized under Section 382.402 , Ordinance Code; (3) The City Department's collection service; (4) Collection within Urban Services Districts 2, 3, 4 and 5; (5) Collecting, transporting and providing container service for exempt waste; or (6) Collecting, transporting, and providing container service for solid waste from military installations where such solid waste is not co-mingled with solid waste collected from other sources. Any materials separated from or otherwise derived from nonresidential solid waste which are held in storage and asserted by the possessor thereof to constitute recovered materials awaiting sale or distribution to the secondary materials markets shall constitute nonresidential solid waste if, when and to the extent (i) the City Department determines that the storage or diversion thereof constitutes an attempt to evade the requirements of this Part; or (ii) the storage or diversion thereof does not comply with generally recognized, accepted and prevailing practice in the Florida materials recovery and recycling industry conducted in accordance with federal, State and local laws. (c) Any franchise granted by the City shall be nonexclusive and shall authorize the operation of the franchisee throughout the General Services District except Urban Service Districts 2, 3, 4 and 5 where nonresidential solid waste collection and transportation is regulated by the beaches communities and the Town of Baldwin. All franchises shall be issued upon substantially uniform conditions and limitations, all at the sole discretion of the Council as it finds in the interests of the public convenience, welfare and necessity in fulfilling its traditional and statutory duty to provide for the safe and sanitary collection and transportation of solid waste in the County. (d) No vehicle shall be used in the collection of nonresidential solid waste within the County by or on behalf of any person required to have a valid and existing franchise under this Part unless it carries a valid and unrevoked tag or decal issued by the City Department. (e) The City Department and City Auditors shall have the right, during normal business hours, to enter a franchisee's business property, upon reasonable prior notice, to inspect the operations and facilities of a franchisee to determine compliance with the franchise, this Part and any rules adopted by the City Department pursuant hereto. Refusal to permit inspection shall be cause for suspension or revocation of the franchise. The franchise shall State the franchisee's designated place of business. (f) The grant and acceptance of a franchise shall not relieve, limit or alter a franchisee's obligations to obtain and maintain any license or permit required by the Ordinance Code or other applicable law to transact and carry on a business or to provide nonresidential solid waste collection, transportation, container or disposal services within the County. (Ord. 93-1774-1411, § 1; Ord. 2008-295-E, § 1)