[Adopted 1-5-09 by Ord. No. O-1-2009-003; amended 5-2-11 by Ord. No. 0-5-2011-014]
[Amended5-2-11 by Ord. No. 0-5-2011-014]
The Monroe Township Utility Department (the "Department") is hereby created in and for the Township, which Department shall be under the control and supervision of the Township. The Mayor shall appoint a Director of the Monroe Township Utility Department (the "Director").
The Director shall perform all duties and functions, as set forth in the general ordinances of the Township, which pertain generally to the administrative procedures of the Township.
It is the purpose of this chapter to empower the Township of Monroe, through the Department, to perform all such reasonable and necessary functions in connection with providing water service and sewage collection, disposal and treatment as afforded to the Township by the provisions of N.J.S.A. 40A:26A-1 et seq., without limitation, and to cooperate and do all things necessary to assist the Township in the collection of fees therefor. The provisions of this chapter are subject to the ability of the Township to provide water and sewage service to the extent permitted by law, and in accordance with the terms and conditions of any existing contracts that are legally binding upon the Township.
As used in this chapter:
A. 
MONROE TOWNSHIP UTILITY DEPARTMENT (M.T.U.D.) — The water services and sanitary sewer utility of the Township operated by the Department acting pursuant to the direction of the Township through its elected and appointed officials, and performing all functions pertaining to the provision of water and the collection of sewage heretofore performed by MTMUA and as may hereafter be necessary in connection with any additional facilities hereafter constituting part of the Township's sewage system.
[Amended 5-2-11 by Ord. No. 0-5-2011-014]
B. 
DIRECTOR — The duly appointed Director of the Monroe Township Utility Department or in the absence of such Director, the Director of the Department of Public Works of the Township.
[Amended 5-2-11 by Ord. No. 0-5-2011-014]
C. 
LICENSED OPERATOR — The duly appointed operational administrator(s) of Monroe Township Utility Department and in particular shall be understood to be the Township agent(s), servant(s) or employee(s) in charge of the day to day operation, installation and maintenance of the sanitary sewer facilities and water facilities heretofore operated by the MTMUA and as may hereafter be necessary in connection with any additional facilities hereafter constituting part of the Township's water and sewer systems. Such operator shall be properly licensed and qualified by the State of New Jersey to perform the necessary functions attendant to this position.
[Amended 5-2-11 by Ord. No. 0-5-2011-014]
D. 
CUSTOMER — The party contracting for water and or sewer service to a property as hereinafter classified.
(1) 
Residential classes.
(a) 
Single-family residential dwellings, comprised of a building under one roof owned by one or more parties, and occupied by a single-family residential unit.
(b) 
Multifamily residential dwellings, being:
[1] 
A "duplex" or "double house" having a solid vertical partition wall, making it capable of divided ownership;
[2] 
A building owned by one party or more than one party consisting of more than one apartment and using in common one hall and one entrance;
[3] 
A building owned by one party or more than one party having a number of apartments and one or more means of entrance.
(2) 
Commercial, industrial and institutional uses.
(3) 
Combination residential and commercial, industrial, and institutional uses.
E. 
PHYSICAL CONNECTION — Any connection, cross-connection, bypass, valve, pipeline, or any like device which permits or may permit any flow of wastes from any source into the water system or sewage system operated by this Utility.
F. 
SEWAGE SYSTEM — The plants, structures and other real and personal property acquired, constructed or operated, or to be acquired, constructed or operated by the Sewer Facility, including sewers, conduits, pipelines, mains, pumping and ventilating stations, plants and works, connections, outfalls, compensating reservoirs, and any and all other plants, structures, conveyances, and other real and personal property, and rights therein, and appurtenances necessary or useful and convenient for the collection, or disposal in a sanitary manner of any sewage, liquor or solid wastes, night soil or industrial wastes.
G. 
SEWAGE — The water-carried wastes created in and carried, or to be carried, away from residences, hotels, apartments, schools, hospitals, commercial establishments, office complexes, industrial establishments, or any other public or private building, together with such surface or groundwater and industrial wastes as may be present.
H. 
WATER SERVICE (ALSO CALLED A SERVICE, WATER SERVICE CONNECTION OR SERVICE CONNECTION) — The pipe and appurtenances used to provide potable water to an individual building or irrigation system, including the water service line (the pipe extending from the water main to the meter setter), meter setter, meter box, meter and miscellaneous fittings.
I. 
WATER SYSTEM — The entire water system within the utility service area comprised of the public water system and the private system.
J. 
PRIVATE WATER SYSTEM — Any part of the water system that is not part of the public water system.
K. 
PUBLIC WATER SYSTEM — All pipes, pump stations, reservoirs, treatment plants, storage tanks, valves and appurtenances that are owned by the utility for the delivery of potable water. The public water system does not include those facilities located on the customer side of meters, or the customer side of backflow prevention assemblies on meterless fire services and serving individual properties.
[Amended 5-2-11 by Ord. No. 0-5-2011-014]
Township Council of the Township of Monroe is hereby empowered to adopt, by resolution, such portions of the current rules regulating the Monroe Township Utility Department as it deems proper and necessary in order to enable the Department to perform the purposes enumerated herein and any additional rules. In addition, the Township is hereby empowered to retain the professional services of such sanitarian, engineer, or other expert as the Township shall determine to be necessary for the purpose of establishing appropriate rules and regulations affecting the installation, maintenance, repair and control of plumbing and drainage of buildings and the connection thereof to the facilities of the Monroe Township Utility Department. These rules and regulations may be adopted by the Township by resolution and may by reference incorporate other codes, statutes and/or regulations as appropriate.
[Amended 5-2-11 by Ord. No. 0-5-2011-014]
There is hereby established a transition period of 120 days duration, during which time the Director of the Department shall assume the operation of the Monroe Township Utility Department functions heretofore carried out by the MTMUA. During such transition time, which may be extended by resolution of the Township for such reasonable time as it deems proper and just, the Director of such Department shall utilize the rules and procedures as established by the MTMUA which, pursuant to the provisions of N.J.S.A. 40:49-5.1, are annexed to this article and three copies of which have been placed on file upon the introduction of this article and are now filed in the Office of the Clerk of the Township of Monroe, and which will remain on file there for the use and examination of the public, except where such rules and procedures are inconsistent with the provisions of this article.
[Amended 5-2-11 by Ord. 0-5-2011-014]
To the extent not specifically set forth herein, the Township Council of the Township of Monroe specifically reserves unto itself all those certain powers, rights and responsibilities as set forth at length in N.J.S.A. 40A:26A-1 et seq.; which provisions may be deemed by the Township necessary for the operation of the Monroe Township Utility Department.
The Township, through the Department or otherwise, shall have a right of access to any customer's premises and to all equipment and property of the Township at reasonable times for the purpose of reading meters, inspecting, repairing or replacing equipment used in connection with the supplying of sewer services, or for the removal of equipment or property. The customer shall obtain for the Township all necessary permission from tenants or others for access to equipment or property. Customers shall not permit access to meters or other Township property except by authorized employees of the Township or other authorized state or local inspectors.
Any person, firm or corporation violating the provisions of this article or any succeeding ordinances or resolutions pertaining to the subject matter of this article which might be enacted or adopted shall be punished by a fine not exceeding $1,250, or by imprisonment for a period not to exceed 90 days or both. Each and every day that any violation continues shall be deemed to be and shall be a separate offense, separately punishable as aforesaid.
All connection, user, and other fees and charges set forth in this article shall draw the same interest from the time that they became due as taxes upon real estate in the Township and shall be a lien upon the premises connected until paid. The Township shall have the same remedies for the collection of taxes upon real property.
Each contractor or other person performing work on Township public property for the purpose of installing water or sanitary sewer connections shall post a bond acceptable to the Township. All work shall be adequately guarded with barricades, lights and other measures for protection to the public from hazard. Streets, sidewalks, curbs and other public property disturbed in the course of the work shall be restored in a manner satisfactory to the Township.
A. 
Water and sewer service connections shall be made upon written application to the Director on forms furnished by the Director and signed by the owner of the property or by a duly authorized agent.
B. 
No application for service will be accepted for installation between December 15 and April 15, unless the property owner agrees to pay the additional cost that may be incurred because of adverse weather conditions during this period.
C. 
All inspection fees for the connection into the water and sewer system shall be paid by the applicant pursuant to the rate schedule in place at the time of the application.
Approval of an application for a water and/or sewer connection can only be made if it has been determined that a sewer main approved by the Township exists in front of the applicant's property or in the public right-of-way. The main shall extend the length of the applicant's property and if it does not so extend it shall be extended at the applicant's expense in accordance with Township specifications.
No person or persons shall in any manner, without permission, connect or disconnect or tamper or interfere with any property of the Township such as pipes or conduits, meters, valves, instruments or other accessories or property.
A. 
The Department may refuse to connect to any customer's piping system or to supply sewer services to a system if said system has not been designed or installed in accordance with the applicable regulations or if any parts of the piping system have not been installed at sufficient depth to prevent freezing.
B. 
The Township shall not be responsible for any inadequacy of water and sewer service should the customer make alterations, changes or additions to an existing system without notifying the Director in advance of any proposed alterations, changes or additions. In case of defective service, the customer shall not interfere with meters or other property of the Township, but shall immediately notify the office of the Director.
Complaints concerning the character of the service furnished or the reading of meters or bills rendered shall be made at the Department office to the Director, in writing. A record of such complaints will be maintained by the Department to show the names and addresses of the complainants, dates and nature of the complaints and the action taken thereon.
[Amended 5-2-11 by Ord. No. 0-5-2011-014]
The existing publicly owned and operated water and sanitary sewer system of the Township, previously operated by the MTMUA, shall be operated by the Township as dedicated utility of the Township of Monroe. Such water and sewer utility shall hereafter be referred to as the Monroe Township Utility Department (M.T.U.D.), which shall be operated by the Department, under the control of the Director.
[Amended 5-2-11 by Ord. No. 0-5-2011-014
All future revenue and the accounting therefor from said Monroe Township Utility Department shall be on a dedicated utility basis in conformance with the provisions of N.J.S.A. 40A:4-33, 34 and 35. All monies derived from the operation of said Monroe Township Utility Department and any other monies applicable to its support shall be segregated and kept in a separate fund which shall be known as the "Monroe Township Utility Department Fund," and all disbursements for the operation and maintenance of said Monroe Township Utility Department shall be taken from said Sewer Utilities Fund.
[Amended 5-2-11 by Ord. No. 0-5-2011-014]
The dedicated budget of the Monroe Township Utility Department shall include appropriations for operating expenses, capital improvements, debt service, and for the portion of all other deferred charges and statutory expenses as may be required.
The owners of all houses, buildings and properties constructed after the enactment of this article, situated within Monroe Township, and abutting on any street, alley, easement or right-of-way in which there is now located or may in the future be located water services and/or public sanitary sewer of the Township, are hereby required at their expense to connect all sanitary and other plumbing facilities directly with the proper public sewer, in accordance with all the pertinent ordinances of the Township, prior to the issuance of a Certificate of Occupancy.
The owners of all houses, buildings and properties existing at the time of the enactment of this article, and having approved private sanitary sewer facilities, will be required at their expense to connect all available sanitary and other plumbing facilities directly with the proper public sewer where such connections are considered necessary in accordance with the rules, regulations and ordinances of the Township and of the County Board of Health. Such connectors shall be made in accordance with all of the pertinent ordinances of the Township within 180 days of the date of the official notice to do so.
A. 
Sump pumps. It is a violation for any person or user of this system to connect or discharge, by any means, into the system, any materials, chemicals or drainage other than sanitary sewage. The Director shall serve notice to such persons or users to remove such discharge immediately.
B. 
Broken lines. The Director shall also serve notice to a user of the Sewer Utility having broken service lines that cause infiltration into the system to repair same no later than 30 days from the said service of notice pertaining to such violation.
[Amended 5-2-11 by Ord. No. 0-5-2011-014; 6-30-2025 by Ord. No. O-6-2025-017]
The Township Council is hereby authorized to establish, from time to time, the charges and fees for sewer and incidental services to be provided by the Monroe Township Utility Department. The schedule of charges shall be, and the same are, hereby fixed and established for the collection, disposal and treatment of sanitary sewage material collected in public sanitary sewers located within the Township and provision of potable and nonpotable water, to be charged to all customers of the Monroe Township Utility Department and properties served by the public sewage collection system located within the Township of Monroe. The fees for water and sewer user charges shall be in accordance with Chapter 39 entitled "Fees" of the Code of the Township of Monroe.
[Amended 5-2-11 by Ord. No. 0-5-2011-014]
All job titles and salaries existing in the MTMUA, as well as all rules and regulations of the MTMUA, shall be adopted by the Monroe Township Utility Department to the extent that said job titles, rules and regulations do not conflict with the provisions of this article. In the event of an inconsistency, the terms of this article shall prevail.