[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:
The Authority of the Borough of Charleroi.
Fallowfield Township ordinances, as the same may be from
time to time amended.
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.
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.
The discharge of sewage into the soil and/or waters of the
Commonwealth of Pennsylvania by malfunctioning, on-lot individual
sewage systems.
The discharge of basement seepage or groundwater or the connection
of downspouts, roof drainage or surface or areaway drainage into the
sanitary sewer system.
A written letter from the Township concerning municipal liens
and property taxes.
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.
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.
The public system that provides sewage for the Township.
A temporary statement of certification from the Enforcement
Officer issued pursuant to the terms of this article.
Fallowfield Township.
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:
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]
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.
