The proportionality principle in enforcement in Zoetermeer
The proportionality principle, laid down in article 3:4 Awb, forms a crucial criterion in the choice and imposition of enforcement measures by the municipality of Zoetermeer. This principle requires that the measure be suitable, necessary and balanced in proportion to the objective and the violation. The municipality must weigh whether a milder intervention is possible before proceeding to administrative coercion or fines, taking into account the specific Zoetermeer context such as busy residential areas and the Technopark.
In the application, the severity of the violation plays a role, as do the circumstances of the violator, such as economic damage to local entrepreneurs in Zoetermeer or health effects on residents near Stadionplein. Case law of the Administrative Jurisdiction Division of the Council of State emphasizes that an excessively heavy measure may be null and void. Examples in Zoetermeer include the suspension of a penalty payment order upon voluntary remediation of illegal structures in the inner gardens.
Application in practice in Zoetermeer
Steps in the proportionality assessment: (1) purpose of the norm, (2) intensity of the infringement on the Zoetermeer living environment, (3) alternatives such as warnings by the Environmental Service, (4) proportionality. This prevents arbitrariness and safeguards legal certainty. In environmental violations in Zoetermeer, the environmental damage in the Balijbos is often weighed against business costs in the Industrial Area.