[Ord. No. 97-35 Art. I, 11-25-1997]
It is determined and declared to be necessary and conducive
to the protection of the public health, safety, welfare, and convenience
of the City to collect charges from all users who contribute wastewater
to the City's treatment works. The proceeds of such charges so derived
will be used for the purpose of operating, maintaining, and retiring
the debt for such public wastewater treatment works.
[Ord. No. 97-35 Art. II, 11-25-1997]
Unless the context specifically indicates otherwise, the meanings
of terms used in this Article shall be as follows:
The quantity of oxygen utilized in the biochemical oxidation
of organic matter under standard laboratory procedure in five (5)
days at twenty degrees Celsius (20° C), expressed in milligrams
per liter (mg/l).
Wastewater that has a BOD concentration of not more than
three hundred thirty-four (334) milligrams per liter (mg/l) and a
suspended solids concentration of not more than two hundred seventy-eight
(278) milligrams per liter (mg/l).
All expenditures during the useful life of the treatment
works for materials, labor, utilities, and other items which are necessary
for managing and maintaining the sewage works to achieve the capacity
and performance for which such works were designed and constructed.
Expenditures for obtaining and installing equipment, accessories
or appurtenances which are necessary during the useful life of the
treatment works to maintain the capacity and performance for which
such works were designed and constructed. The term "operation and
maintenance" includes replacement.
Is mandatory; MAY is permissive.
The solids that either float on the surface of or are in
suspension in water, sewage or other liquids and which are removable
by laboratory filtering.
Any devices and systems for the storage, treatment, recycling,
and reclamation of municipal sewage, domestic sewage or liquid industrial
wastes. These include interceptor sewers, outfall sewers, sewage collection
systems, individual systems, pumping, power, and other equipment and
their appurtenances, extensions, improvements, remodeling, additions,
and alterations thereof; elements essential to provide a reliable
recycled supply such as standby treatment units and clear well facilities;
and any works, including site acquisition of land that will be an
integral part of the treatment process or is used for ultimate disposal
of residues resulting from such treatment (including land for composting
sludge, temporary storage of such compost, and land used for the storage
of treated wastewater in land treatment systems before land application);
or any other method or system for preventing, abating, reducing, storing,
treating, separating, or disposing of municipal waste or industrial
waste, including waste in combined stormwater and sanitary sewer systems.
The estimated period during which the treatment works will
be operated.
That portion of the total wastewater service charge which
is levied in a proportional and adequate manner for the cost of operation,
maintenance, and replacement of the wastewater treatment works.
A water volume measuring and recording device, furnished
and/or installed by the private water utility or furnished and/or
installed by a user and approved by the private water utility.
[Ord. No. 97-35 Art. III, 11-25-1997]
A.
The user charge system shall generate adequate annual revenues to
pay the costs of annual operation and maintenance including replacement
and cost associated with debt retirement of bonded capital associated
with financing the treatment works which the City may by ordinance
designate to be paid by the user charge system. That portion of the
total user charge which is designated for operation and maintenance
including replacement of the treatment works shall be established
by this Article.
B.
That portion of the total user charge collected which is designated for the operation and maintenance including replacement purposes as established in Section 28-139 shall be deposited in a separate non-lapsing fund known as the Operation, Maintenance and Replacement Fund and will be kept in two (2) primary accounts as follows:
1.
The operation and maintenance account shall be an account designated
for the specific purpose of defraying operation and maintenance costs
(excluding replacement) of the treatment works. Deposits in the operation
and maintenance account shall be made monthly from the operation and
maintenance revenue in the amount of two hundred seventy-one thousand
eight hundred sixty-seven dollars ($271,867.00) annually (four hundred
twenty-five thousand eight hundred seventy-two dollars ($425,872.00)
in estimated annual expenses less four thousand two hundred dollars
($4,200.00) annual required replacement deposit less one hundred forty-nine
thousand eight hundred five dollars ($149,805.00) estimated annual
debt service).
2.
The replacement account shall be an account designated for the purpose
of ensuring replacement needs over the useful life of the treatment
works. Deposits in the Replacement account shall be made monthly from
the replacement revenue in the amount of four thousand two hundred
dollars ($4,200.00) annually.
C.
Fiscal year end balances in the operation and maintenance account
and the replacement account shall be carried over to the same accounts
in each subsequent fiscal year, and shall be used for no other purposes
that those designated for these accounts. Monies which have been transferred
from other sources to meet temporary shortages in the Operation, Maintenance
and Replacement Fund shall be returned to their respective accounts
upon appropriate adjustment of the user charge rates for operation,
maintenance and replacement. The user charge rate(s) shall be adjusted
such that the transferred monies will be returned to their respective
accounts within the fiscal year following the fiscal year in which
the monies were borrowed.
[Ord. No. 97-35 Art. IV, 11-25-1997; Ord. No. 2000-20 § 1, 9-12-2000; Ord.
No. 2002-23 § 1, 6-11-2002; Ord. No. 2003-15 § 1, 5-13-2003; Ord.
No. 2004-23 § 1, 7-13-2004; Ord. No. 2005-16 § 1, 4-12-2005; Ord.
No. 2006-15 § 1, 4-11-2006; Ord. No. 2007-12 § 1, 4-10-2007; Ord.
No. 2008-17 § 1, 5-13-2008; Ord. No. 2009-11 § 1, 3-24-2009; Ord.
No. 2012-12 § 1, 3-27-2012]
A.
Sewer service shall be deemed to be furnished to both the owner and
occupant of the premises receiving such service based on the usage
of the treatment works as determined by the water meter(s) acceptable
to the City. The City shall have the power to sue the owner and/or
occupant of such real estate to recover any sums due for such services,
plus a reasonable attorney's fee to be fixed by the court.
B.
Monthly user charges will be based on average monthly water usage
during the months of January, February and March. (Water usage for
these months includes little use for such activities as lawn watering,
car washing and other seasonal consumptive uses.) If a contributor
has not established a January, February and March average, their monthly
bill shall be calculated by averaging any other three-month period
when the subject property is actively occupied. For appeal or exception
situations such period may be determined by the Utilities Board of
Review, while for policy rate matters the City Council or its appropriate
committee(s) will make the determinations.
[Ord. No. 2019-12, 3-26-2019]
C.
The minimum charge per month shall be twenty-two dollars and ninety
cents ($22.90) up to the first 700 gallons of water (or wastewater).
In addition each contributor shall pay a user charge for operation
and maintenance, including replacement, of point six two seven cents
($.627) per one hundred (100) gallons of water (or wastewater) after
the first 700 gallons up to 6,000 gallons and point six eight three
($.683) per one hundred (100) gallons of water (or wastewater) after
6,000 gallons as determined in the preceding Subsection.
[Ord. No. 2014-11 § 1, 5-13-2014; Ord. No. 2015-14 § 1, 4-28-2015; Ord. No. 2017-07 § 1, 2-28-2017; Ord. No. 2018-01 § 1, 1-9-2018[1]]
[1]
Editor’s Note: Section 2 of this ordinance provided
an effective date of 1-1-2018.
D.
Any user which discharges any toxic pollutants which cause an increase
in the cost of managing the effluent or the sludge from the City's
treatment works, or any user which discharges any substance which
singly or by interaction with other substances causes identifiable
increases in the cost of operation, maintenance or replacement of
the treatment works shall pay for such increased costs. The charge
to each such user shall be as determined by the responsible superintendent
of the wastewater plant and approved by the City Council.
E.
The user charge rates established in this Article apply to all users
of the City's treatment works, regardless of the user's location.
[Ord. No. 97-35 Art. V, 11-25-1997; Ord. No. 99-12 § 1, 3-9-1999; Ord.
No. 2000-20 § 1, 9-12-2000; Ord. No. 2001-59 § 1, 11-13-2001; Ord. No. 2005-17 § 1, 4-12-2005]
All property owners shall be billed monthly. Payments are due
and payable upon receipt. Any payment received after 3:00 P.M. on
the due date of the billing month shall be considered delinquent and
a penalty shall be applied. The penalty shall be at a rate of fifteen
percent (15%) per billing month on the actual sewer usage charges.
[Ord. No. 97-35 Art. VI, 11-25-1997; Ord. No. 2000-20 § 1, 9-12-2000]
A.
The City shall review the user charge system annually and revise
user charge rates as necessary to ensure that the system generates
adequate revenues to pay the costs of operation and maintenance including
replacement and that the system continues to provide for the proportional
distribution of operation and maintenance including replacement costs
among users and user classes.
B.
The City will notify each user at least annually, in conjunction
with a regular bill, of the rate being charged for operation and maintenance,
including replacement of the treatment works.
