[R.O. 2017 § 700.460; Ord. No. 04-40 § 6-1, 10-19-2004]
The City shall collect wastewater service charges for the use of, and the services rendered by, the POTW from the owners or occupants of every lot, parcel of real estate or building that has availability to the POTW or which discharges, either directly or indirectly, wastes to the POTW.
[R.O. 2017 § 700.470; Ord. No. 04-40 § 6-2, 10-19-2004]
Except as otherwise provided in this Article, wastewater service charges shall be based on the quantity of water used on or in the property or premises subject to such charges and shall be computed by applying the rates established by this Article and shall be payable as provided in this Chapter.
[R.O. 2017 § 700.480; Ord. No. 04-40 § 6-3, 10-19-2004]
A. 
Except as otherwise provided in this Chapter, wastewater service charges shall be based on one (1) of the following:
1. 
On the quantity of water used from any source of supply as measured by water meters acceptable to the Director.
2. 
On the quantity of wastewater entering the POTW and measured by a wastewater meter acceptable to the Director.
3. 
On the quantity of water used as determined by the Director.
4. 
On the quantity of wastewater entering the POTW, as determined by the Director.
5. 
On the percentage of the metered water used entering the POTW, as determined by the Director.
B. 
Installation of water and wastewater meters shall conform to the following:
1. 
Any water utility shall install and maintain in continuous efficient operation a water meter at each lot, parcel of real estate or building served by a water utility.
2. 
Each owner of a private well or other private water supply shall, at his/her own expense, install and maintain in continuous efficient operation a water meter acceptable to the Director. In lieu of installing a water meter, the owner of a residence may elect to be billed on the basis of three (3) ccf/month of wastewater discharged per bedroom in the residence.
3. 
The Director may require users of the POTW to provide other methods of determination as may be required.
C. 
Maintenance of meters, either water or wastewater, shall be in accordance with manufacturer's specifications. The readings of any such meter which has not been maintained in a continuous and efficient manner may be disregarded and the Director may determine the wastewater volume delivered to the POTW during the time covered by discredited meter readings.
D. 
Water meters, other than those of a water utility, and wastewater meters shall be read by the user in accordance with the meter reading practices of the Director. These readings shall be furnished to the Director upon request.
E. 
Water meter readings obtained by a water utility and other records pertaining to the billing and collection of wastewater service charges shall be made available to the City during business hours within four (4) days of the time readings are taken.
[R.O. 2017 § 700.490; Ord. No. 04-40 § 6-4, 10-19-2004; Ord. No. 08-23 § 1 — 2, 10-7-2008]
A. 
Residential billing for wastewater charges shall be determined as follows:
1. 
The rates and charges established by this Chapter shall be applied to the water consumption billed after this Chapter shall have been placed in effect, except as otherwise provided by this Chapter. In order that there will be the least wastewater service charge to residential water consumers for water used to maintain lawns, gardens, flowers, shrubs, trees, etc., water usage shall be derived from water consumption recorded in periods when such activities are reduced.
2. 
If wastewater service bills are rendered monthly, the basis for the bill for wastewater service for residences shall be computed from the average of the monthly water consumptions recorded during the period beginning November 15 and extending through the following February 14 immediately preceding the establishment of the basis for the charge or from the average of the consumptions for any such months during which water was used, except as otherwise provided.
a. 
In cases where a residence first becomes subject, after the meter reading date for February, to the wastewater service charges established in this Article and no water meter readings were taken before such date, the owner or occupant of such residence shall be billed the customer charge plus a volume charge, as determined by the Director, until a basis can be established as provided in this Section.
b. 
Averages resulting in fractions of one hundred (100) cubic feet shall be raised to the next whole number of one hundred (100) cubic feet in computing average monthly water consumption or averages of monthly water consumptions.
3. 
If the basis of wastewater service charges for a residence is established by agreement between the City and the user, the agreement shall be reviewed annually by the City and may be so reviewed at such other times as the City, in its discretion, may require or permit.
4. 
(Reserved)
[R.O. 2017 § 700.500; Ord. No. 04-40 § 6-5, 10-19-2004; Ord. No. 08-24 § 1, 10-7-2008; Ord. No. 11-15 § 1, 8-16-2011; Ord. No. 20-05, 2-18-2020; Ord. No. 20-14, 6-16-2020]
A. 
The schedule of wastewater service rates shall be as follows:
1. 
There shall be assessed for each residential and non-residential user of the POTW a basic customer charge of:
a. 
Twenty-six dollars fifty-five cents ($26.55) per month for the fiscal year 2019;
b. 
Twenty-seven dollars sixty-seven cents ($27.67) per month for the fiscal year 2020;
c. 
Twenty-eight dollars seventy-nine cents ($28.79) per month for the fiscal year 2021;
d. 
Twenty-nine dollars ninety-one cents ($29.91) per month for the fiscal year 2022;
e. 
Thirty-one dollars three cents ($31.03) per month for the fiscal year 2023;
f. 
Thirty-one dollars three cents ($31.03) per month for the fiscal year 2024;
g. 
Thirty-one dollars three cents ($31.03) per month for the fiscal year 2025;
h. 
Thirty-one dollars three cents ($31.03) per month for the fiscal year 2026;
2. 
(Reserved)
3. 
In addition to the basic customer service charge, there shall be an additional monthly volume charge for each customer as follows:
a. 
For residential customers the additional monthly volume charge shall be calculated by first determining the average monthly water consumption for the period January 1 through March 31 in accordance with Section 700.490, and then charging the sum of:
(1) 
Five dollars fifty-nine cents ($5.59) for each one thousand (1,000) gallons of water usage per month, or any fraction thereof, during the fiscal year 2019 through 2026.
b. 
For non-residential users the additional monthly volume charge shall equal:
(1) 
Three dollars twenty-four cents ($3.24) for each one thousand (1,000) gallons of water usage per month, or any fraction thereof, during the fiscal year 2019;
(2) 
Three dollars eighty-nine cents ($3.89) for each one thousand (1,000) gallons of water usage per month, or any fraction thereof, during the fiscal year 2020;
(3) 
Five dollars fifty-nine cents ($5.59) for each one thousand (1,000) gallons of water usage per month, or any fraction thereof, during the fiscal year 2021 through 2026.
B. 
The wastewater service rates and additional monthly volume charges established hereby are subject to change based upon future charges for the same imposed by the City of Springfield upon the City of Battlefield for the treatment of sewage generated in the City of Battlefield. These rates will change effective July 15 of each fiscal year.
[R.O. 2017 § 700.510; Ord. No. 04-40 § 6-6, 10-19-2004; Ord. No. 26-15, 2-17-2026]
A. 
Schedule Established. Notwithstanding any other provision of this Code to the contrary, there is hereby established a charge to every new or expanded user of the POTW of the City, which is in addition to the other fees and charges under this Article. An expanded user of the POTW is a user which increases the size or number of water meters serving its property or premises. The connection fee will be in accordance with the following connection fee schedule and shall be based on the water meter size serving the property or premises.
Connection Fee Schedule
Meter Size
(inches)
Connection Fee
3/4
$2,000.00
1
$2,806.00
1 1/2
$4,824.00
2
$6,136.00
3
$12,826.00
4
$20,840.00
6
$40,880.00
8
$64,930.00
B. 
New Users. New users of the POTW will not be assessed an initial connection fee in the following instances, but any increase in the size or number of water meters will be assessed for expanded use:
1. 
If the user's property or premises was served by the POTW, or if the new user occupied a structure in and had previously been assessed for a joint sanitary sewer district, on the effective date of the ordinance from which this Section derives.
2. 
If there was a break in sewer service to the user's property or premises for less than two (2) years.
3. 
If the metered water usage on the user's property or premises is solely for the purpose of fire protection or landscape irrigation.
C. 
Rules And Regulations. The Board of Aldermen shall have authority to establish rules and regulations pertaining to connection fees set forth in this Section in order to carry out the intent of the Section. Such rules and regulations must be placed on file with the City Clerk ten (10) days before they become effective. A permit to connect to the POTW shall not be issued by the City or any other agency acting on behalf of the City with respect to the issuance of permits to connect to the sewer system, unless the connection fee set forth in this Section has been paid.
D. 
Increase In Size Or Number Of Water Meters. Any user who increases the size or number of water meters serving its property or premises shall pay a fee equal to the difference between the connection fee for the meter which existed prior to the increase and the connection fee for the newly installed meter, as calculated using the multiplier specified in Subsection (A).
E. 
Allocation Of Fees. All connection fees collected under this Section shall be deposited into a Depreciation Fund or Replacement Reserve Fund to be used for sanitary sewer capital.
F. 
Permit Condition. A permit to connect to the POTW shall not be issued by the City, or any other agency acting on behalf of the City, unless the applicable connection fee required by this Section has been paid in full.
[R.O. 2017 § 700.520; Ord. No. 04-40 § 6-7, 10-19-2004]
A. 
In order that rates and charges will be equitably related to the service rendered, the City shall, in addition to the charges set forth in Section 700.500, assess extra charges for biochemical oxygen demand and suspended solids in excess of the amounts thereinafter set forth. The extra charges for biochemical oxygen demand and suspended solids shall be as follows:
1. 
The extra charges for biochemical oxygen demand and suspended solids shall be as follows effective July 1, 2003:
a. 
For five-day biochemical oxygen demand in excess of twenty-one hundredths (0.21) pound for each one hundred (100) gallons (250 milligrams per liter) of wastewater, an additional charge of fifteen cents ($0.15) shall be made for each such excess pound or fraction thereof.
b. 
For suspended solids in excess of twenty-five hundredths (0.25) pound for each one hundred (100) gallons [three hundred (300) milligrams per liter] of wastewater, an additional charge of ten cents ($0.10) shall be made for each such excess pound or fraction thereof.
[R.O. 2017 § 700.530; Ord. No. 04-40 § 6-8, 10-19-2004]
A. 
Wastewater service charges established by this Article shall be prepared and billed by the City and shall be collected in the manner provided by law and ordinance.
B. 
Any billing may be for a period of more or less than one (1) full month in order to make the collection period correspond with the water meter reading schedules of any water utility.
C. 
The first and final bill for each user shall be computed on a pro rata basis.
D. 
Wastewater service billing schedules shall conform to the meter reading schedules of the water utility; provided that whenever a private water utility company changes its water meter reading practices, the City may continue to render bills in accordance with wastewater service billing schedules, bases and procedures in effect at the time the changes were made in water meter reading practices.
E. 
The rates and charges may be billed to the tenants occupying the property served, unless otherwise requested in writing by the owners, but such billings shall in no way relieve the owner from liability if payment is not made as required in this Section.
F. 
The owners of tenant-occupied property shall have the right to examine the collection records of the City for the purpose of determining whether such rates and charges have been paid by such tenants; provided that such examination shall be made at the office at which such records are kept and during the hours that such office is open for business.
[R.O. 2017 § 700.540; Ord. No. 04-40 § 6-9, 10-19-2004; Ord. No. 20-34, 12-15-2020]
A. 
No person shall connect to the POTW any property located outside of the City of Battlefield without first having obtained the approval thereof from the Board of Aldermen of the City and having provided and obtained an irrevocable consent to annex application into the City.
B. 
Upon such approval by the Board of Aldermen and after application for permit for connection therefor has been received by the City and the payment of all such assessments and fees for such connection as provided by ordinance has been paid, then, and not before, property located outside the City limits may be connected to the POTW.
[R.O. 2017 § 700.550; Ord. No. 04-40 § 6-10, 10-19-2004]
Any premises connected to the POTW under the provisions of Section 700.540 shall be deemed so connected as a privilege extended by the City and not as a matter of right and shall in no way relieve any such premises from its lawful share of any special assessment heretofore or hereafter made for the payment in whole or in part of the cost of construction of sanitary sewers.
[R.O. 2017 § 700.560; Ord. No. 04-40 § 6-11, 10-19-2004]
The Director is hereby authorized to require, as a condition of issuing special connect permits under the provisions set forth in Section 700.540, that the owner of the property being served by the special connect permit grant to the City a sewer easement in the areas where the Director determines sewers will be needed. The Director is authorized to accept such easements for and on behalf of the City.
[R.O. 2017 § 700.570; Ord. No. 04-40 § 6-12, 10-19-2004]
When a water utility has adjusted water meter readings or when it appears that an inequity has occurred, the Director may make adjustments of wastewater service charges. Any user aggrieved by the decision of the Director shall have the right to appeal to the Director of Public Works whose decision shall be final for purposes of appeal pursuant to Chapter 536, RSMo.
[R.O. 2017 § 700.580; Ord. No. 04-40 § 6-13, 10-19-2004; Ord. No. 08-13 §§ 1 — 2, 7-1-2008]
A. 
If any user shall fail to pay his/her bill within twenty (20) days after the date of rendition thereof, an additional charge of ten percent (10%) thereof shall be added thereto. If any such bill shall remain unpaid for a period of thirty (30) days after date of rendition thereof, the property shall not be entitled to receive sewage services from the City. Wastewater service to such premises may be disconnected and shall not be reconnected until all past due bills for wastewater services are paid in full, together with a cut-off charge of thirty dollars ($30.00) if such reconnection is requested between the hours of 8:00 A.M. and 4:00 P.M. Any requests for reconnection required outside of the normal business hours of 8:00 A.M. and 4:00 P.M. shall be charged an additional twenty dollars ($20.00) or a total of fifty dollars ($50.00). All such charges shall bear interest at the statutory rate. If the water meter has been removed, an additional charge of fifty dollars ($50.00) may be made for reinstallation of the water meter. All such fees, penalties and charges may be waived by the Board of Aldermen for good cause shown.
B. 
It shall be the duty of City utilities or other representatives of the City charged with the responsibility of receiving payments for wastewater services to notify the Director of those premises which because of delinquency in the payment of bills are no longer entitled to wastewater service, and the Director may take the necessary steps to have the building sewer disconnected from the POTW.
C. 
The occupant or user of the premises receiving wastewater services and the owner of such premises shall be jointly and severally liable to pay for such services rendered on such premises. The City shall have the power to sue the occupant or the owner, or both, of such real estate in a civil action and receive any sums due for such services plus a reasonable attorney's fee to be fixed by the court.
D. 
All owners of real property within or without the City of Battlefield, State of Missouri, to which sewage services are supplied are liable to the City for the charges for providing such sewerage service. The property owner's liability is concurrent with any person or persons residing upon said property and who may be deemed to be the actual users of the service. In addition to or in the alternative to the remedies of Subsection (C) above, in the event the service charge or charges for use of sewerage services are not paid within the time or in the manner provided by ordinances of this City, the City may assess the delinquent charges and fees as a special assessment against lot or parcel of land to which services were provided. In such event, the City Clerk shall certify the unpaid delinquent charges and fees to the County Clerk, along with a legal description of the real property benefitting from the water and/or sewerage service, and the same shall be placed on the tax rolls for collection, subject to the same penalties and collected in like manner as other taxes are by law collectible and shall become a lien upon the real property so served.
E. 
From and after the effective date hereof, new users of the City's POTW shall be required to pay a deposit of seventy-five dollars ($75.00) before wastewater service is established or permitted. The City shall permit new users to utilize the City's POTW forty-eight (48) hours after such new user's request to do so. The deposit of any user who voluntarily terminates such user's utilization of the City's POTW shall be returned to such user, less any amounts due and owing the City for wastewater service. The deposits of users, who are the owners of the premises to which wastewater service has been established, shall be refunded to such users as a billing credit thirty-six (36) months after the date service was established; provided, however, that refunds shall not be made under the following circumstances:
[Ord. No. 15-04 §§ 1 — 2, 4-21-2015]
1. 
Where the City has disconnected wastewater service to such premises, or has threatened to disconnect wastewater service to such premises, because of the non-payment for a period of two (2) months of any charge incurred by such user for wastewater service, or for any other use of the City's POTW, at any time during the preceding thirty-six (36) months; and/or
2. 
Where any such user has been delinquent in the payment of any charge incurred for wastewater service, or any other use of the City's POTW, within twelve (12) months immediately preceding any date a refund credit is requested.
[R.O. 2017 § 700.590; Ord. No. 04-40 § 6-14, 10-19-2004]
A. 
Any water utility shall cease to furnish water to any user who is delinquent in the payment of wastewater service charges.
B. 
The funds of the water utility shall not be used to defend against or to pay any claim arising from the action of the Water Utility Department in complying with the terms of this Article. Such claims shall be defended by or discharged by the City.