[Adopted 7-30-2014 by Ord. No. 213]
This article shall be known as the "Fallowfield Township Dye Test Ordinance."
This article shall be applicable to the sale of properties in the Township that are served by either an on-lot individual sewage system or by the sanitary sewer system of the Township.
As used in this article, the following terms shall have the meanings indicated:
AUTHORITY
The Authority of the Borough of Charleroi.
CODE
Fallowfield Township ordinances, as the same may be from time to time amended.
DOCUMENT OF CERTIFICATION
An official statement from the Enforcement Officer stating that there is/are no illegal stormwater or surface water connection(s), nor improper sewage flow(s) on the property to be sold, which violate any section of the Code.
ENFORCEMENT OFFICER
The Township Zoning/Code Enforcement Officer or other agent of the Township as may be designated by the Board of Supervisors to administer and to enforce the instant article in conjunction with the use of any and all properly credentialed plumbers.
ILLEGAL SEWAGE FLOWS
The discharge of sewage into the soil and/or waters of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania by malfunctioning, on-lot individual sewage systems.
ILLEGAL STORMWATER OR SURFACE WATER CONNECTIONS
The discharge of basement seepage or groundwater or the connection of downspouts, roof drainage or surface or areaway drainage into the sanitary sewer system.
MUNICIPAL LIEN AND PROPERTY TAX VERIFICATION
A written letter from the Township concerning municipal liens and property taxes.
ON-LOT INDIVIDUAL SEWAGE SYSTEM
A system of piping, tanks or other facilities serving a single lot and collecting and disposing of sewage in whole or in part into the soil or into any waters of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania or by means of conveyance to another site for final disposal.
PERSON
Any person, syndicate, associate, partnership, firm, corporation, institution, agency, authority or other entity recognized by the laws of Fallowfield Township and the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania as the subject of rights and duties.
SANITARY SEWER SYSTEM
The public system that provides sewage for the Township.
TEMPORARY DOCUMENT OF CERTIFICATION
A temporary statement of certification from the Enforcement Officer issued pursuant to the terms of this article.
TOWNSHIP
Fallowfield Township.
WCSC
The Washington County Sewage Council.
The Board of Supervisors of Fallowfield Township hereby designates the Washington County Sewage Council (WCSC) as its Enforcement Officer for the purposes of the within article as said article relates to on-lot individual sewage systems unless and until a subsequent Enforcement Officer is appointed.
The Board of Supervisors of Fallowfield Township hereby designates the Authority of the Borough of Charleroi as its Enforcement Officer for the purposes of the within article as said article relates to the sanitary sewer system unless and until a subsequent Enforcement Officer is appointed.
After the effective date of this article, it shall be unlawful for any person to sell or to purchase real estate within the Township on which a building or improvement exists without first delivering to the purchaser(s) a document of certification or a temporary document of certification issued by the appropriate Enforcement Officer.
A. 
Any person selling real estate as defined in § 297-42 of this article that is located within the Township (hereinafter referred to as "applicant") shall make application on a form furnished by the appropriate Enforcement Officer at least 21 days before the date of closing on the sale. The applicant shall then cause to have performed a dye test on the property to be sold. All dye tests shall be performed by an inspector appointed by the Enforcement Officer (hereinafter referred to as "inspector").
B. 
The inspection fee and any application fee shall be an amount set by the Enforcement Officer. The inspection fee and any application fee shall be paid to the Enforcement Officer at the time of making the application referred to in this section.
C. 
The inspector shall complete the appropriate portions on the inspection form and certify that the property has been dye tested and certify the results of such test. In the event that there are no illegal stormwater or surface water connection(s) or illegal sewage flow(s), the Enforcement Officer shall issue a document of certification upon payment of such fee as set by the Enforcement Officer.
D. 
When an illegal stormwater or surface water connection(s) or sewage flow(s) is/are discovered by means of the above-referred dye test, no document of certification will be issued until the illegal connection(s) or flow(s) is/are removed and/or remedied and certification of such removal and/or remedy by an inspector is received. An additional inspection fee shall be paid by the applicant for each additional inspection subsequent to the first inspection referred to in Subsection A of this section.
A document of certification shall be valid for a period of one year from the date of issuance. Real estate may be sold during the one-year effective life of the document of certification without further dye testing or certification.
A document of certification shall not be required in the following instances:
A. 
When property is refinanced, but no conveyance takes place.
B. 
When an improvement to real estate has been recently constructed in accordance with a valid building permit and has been inspected by the Township and/or Enforcement Officer and has not been formerly occupied but is now occupied within one year of the issuance of the building permit. If such property is sold after one year of the date of the certificate of occupancy, or the inspections referred to in this subsection, compliance with this article is mandatory.
C. 
Individual apartment-type units within a single condominium building may be sold without individual certification, provided that the building in which the units are located has been certified no longer than one year previous to the date of the sale of the individual condominium unit.
D. 
When the real estate is such that an on-lot individual sewage system or a connection to the sanitary sewer system is not required by law or ordinance.
A temporary document of certification may be issued by the Enforcement Officer, at his/her sole discretion, when, either:
A. 
The applicant proves that dye testing cannot be performed because of weather conditions. When such is the case, the applicant shall provide the Township and/or the Enforcement Officer with security in such an amount as the Township and/or the Enforcement Officer shall establish to guarantee that the dye test will be performed. The applicant will cause to have the dye test performed within 14 days of written notification from the Enforcement Officer which shall be given at such time as weather conditions make the dye test possible. In addition, the applicant shall provide a signed, written acknowledgment from the purchaser agreeing to correct, at the purchaser's sole cost and expense, any violations that may be discovered as a result of subsequent dye tests. Nothing in this subsection shall prohibit any purchaser from requiring the applicant to reimburse the purchaser for any costs incurred; provided, however, that primary liability shall run with the land, and no such agreement shall affect the Township's and/or the Enforcement Officer's enforcement powers or excuse the current owner from compliance with this article; or
B. 
When an illegal stormwater or surface water connection or sewage flow is discovered and the necessary remedial activities to correct such would require a length of time such as to create a practical hardship for the applicant, the applicant may apply to the Enforcement Officer for a temporary document of certification which may only be issued when the applicant provides the Township and/or the Enforcement Officer with all of the following: i) a true and correct copy of an executed contract between the applicant and a contractor to complete the necessary remedial work with the Township and/or the Enforcement Officer listed therein as a third-party beneficiary; ii) cash security in the amount of said contract is posted with the Township and/or the Enforcement Officer, and iii) a written agreement by the purchaser to be responsible for all cost overruns and extras related to the remedial work together with a written license to enter upon the property to complete work in case of default of the contractor referred to above. The Enforcement Officer shall determine when such temporary document of certification shall expire. Upon expiration, the security shall be forfeited and the Township and/or the Enforcement Officer may use the security to have the necessary remedial work completed.
A. 
A request for a municipal lien and/or tax certification letter must be accompanied by a valid document of certification issued pursuant to this article and the payment of the required fees.
B. 
Where requested by a property owner or his agent and subject to time availability as determined solely by the Enforcement Officer, the Township may issue a municipal lien and tax certification letter on two days' notice upon the payment of an expedition fee in addition to the fees set forth above. The amount of the expedition fee shall be established by resolution of the Board of Supervisors.
The Township, by and through the Enforcement Officer, is hereby empowered to undertake the duties imposed by this article, including, but not limited to, the following:
A. 
Establishing acceptable forms of security or guarantee.
B. 
Establishing the form of:
(1) 
Applications;
(2) 
Purchaser acknowledgements; and
(3) 
Inspector certifications.
C. 
Limiting the times of year in which the temporary document of certification is available for reasons of weather.
The Township may, by resolution, change, from time to time, the municipal lien fees, tax certification letter fees, expedition of municipal lien and/or tax certification letter fees and any other applicable fees authorized in this article.
Nothing in this article shall limit in any fashion whatsoever the Township's right to enforce its ordinances or the laws of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. Nothing in this article shall be a defense to any citation issued by any municipal corporation or by the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania pursuant to any other law or ordinance.
A. 
Any person who violates or permits a violation of this article shall, upon conviction in a summary proceeding brought before a Magisterial District Judge under the Pennsylvania Rules of Criminal Procedure, be guilty of a summary offense and shall be punishable by a fine of not more than $1,000, plus costs of prosecution. In default of payment thereof, the defendant may be sentenced to imprisonment for a term not exceeding 90 days.[1]
[1]
Editor's Note: Amended at time of adoption of Code (see Ch. 1, General Provisions, Art. I).
B. 
Whenever any person or entity violating any of the provisions of this article is notified of such violation, in writing, by the Township and/or Enforcement Officer, each day, or portion thereof, a violation occurs or continues to occur shall constitute a separate violation.
C. 
In addition to and not in lieu of the foregoing, the Township and/or the Enforcement Officer may seek equitable and legal relief to compel compliance with this article. If a court of competent jurisdiction grants the Township's and/or the Enforcement Officer's request for equitable and/or legal relief, the person(s) against who such relief was granted, shall be responsible for any and all court costs, attorney's fees and/or expenses incurred by the Township and/or the Enforcement Officer in seeking said relief and/or compliance.
This article shall become effective the first day of September 2014.