The City Council finds that an adequate, sustainable source of revenue for stormwater management is necessary to protect the general health, safety, and welfare of the residents of the City. Further, the City Council finds that higher amounts of impervious area contribute greater amounts of stormwater and associated pollutants to the stormwater management system. Therefore, the City Council determines that it is in the best interest of the public to enact a stormwater utility fee that allocates stormwater management program costs to property owners based on impervious area.
[Adopted 12-6-2017 by Ord. No. 15417 (Article 393.15 of the 1962 Codified Ordinances)]
[Amended 6-20-2018 by Ord. No. 15449]
Unless a provision explicitly states otherwise, the following terms and phrases used in this article shall have the following meanings:
500 square feet of impervious area.
A parcel that contains impervious area equal to or greater than 250 square feet.
The Director of Public Works or the Director's authorized representative.
A structure or system that collects, conveys and manages the volume, rate, and/or quality of surface runoff. It must be designed to meet the requirements of the City of Allentown's Act 167 Stormwater Management Ordinance (April 19, 2007) (Chapter 538, Stormwater Management, of the Code of the City of Allentown), the Pennsylvania Stormwater Best Management Practices Manual, and the requirements published by the Director.
A surface that prevents the downward infiltration of water into the underlying soil. The use of stone and gravel will not be considered an impervious area for the purposes of this article unless there is an impervious barrier underneath the stone and gravel. The Director may develop specifications for the mapping of impervious area for the purpose of this article, including the establishment of a uniform threshold under which a contiguous unit of impervious area is considered de minimis and not subject to mapping.
Any person, firm, corporation, partnership, trust, company, association, government agency, society, or group owning real property in the City.
Drainage runoff from the surface of the land resulting from precipitation or snow or ice melt.
The activities of the City necessary to operate, maintain, enhance, and expand the stormwater management system and the activities necessary to carry out the City's municipal separate storm system (MS4) permit and the stormwater-related provisions of Chapter 350, Land Development and Subdivision, Chapter 355, Land Development Controls, Chapter 298, Flood Control, and Chapter 538, Stormwater Management.
The system of runoff avoidance, infiltration, collection, and conveyance, including storm sewers, pipes, conduits, mains, inlets, culverts, catch basins, gutters, ditches, channels, detention ponds, streets, drains, and all devices, appliances, and stormwater management practices and facilities used for collecting, conducting, pumping, conveying, detaining, infiltrating, reducing, managing, avoiding generation of, and treating stormwater.
[Amended 12-2-2020 by Ord. No. 15663; 11-4-2023 by Ord. No. 15961; 12-18-2024 by Ord. No. 16079]
A.
A stormwater utility fee is hereby imposed on every developed parcel in the City that appears in the Lehigh County parcel database as of December 31 of each year. All stormwater utility fees shall be deposited into the Stormwater Management Fund of the City described in § 270-72.
B.
The rate per billing unit to be used for calculating the stormwater utility fee shall be $20 per 500 square feet of impervious surface. All rates shall be established by the City Council through ordinance and reviewed annually.
The Stormwater Management Fund is established as a separate enterprise fund of the City, which shall be used solely to cover the cost of the City's stormwater management program. The fund shall consist of revenue generated by the stormwater utility fee and other deposits that may be made from time to time by the City Council, including but not limited to federal or state grants and revenue from the sale of bonds. All interest or other income derived from stormwater utility fees shall remain or otherwise be deposited into the fund.
A.
Unless otherwise specified in this article, the stormwater utility fee for each parcel shall be calculated in the following manner:
B.
The fees for impervious area held in common in ownership are calculated as follows:
[Amended 6-20-2018 by Ord. No. 15449]
(1)
Determine the total impervious area in square feet held in shared ownership and divide equally by the number of accounts. If an apportionment of ownership distribution is provided, either within the tax parcel data or provided by a resolution of all owners, then such distribution method shall be used to distribute the total impervious area among accounts.
(2)
Divide the impervious area for each account by the billing unit (500 square feet).
(3)
Round the resulting calculation using natural rounding to determine the number of billing units for each individual account.
(4)
Multiply the number of billing units by the rate established in § 270-70B to obtain the stormwater utility fee for each account.
[Amended 6-20-2018 by Ord. No. 15449]
A.
The City Council shall adopt by ordinance a system of credits that provides for reductions in the stormwater utility fee in recognition of practices that reduce the cost of stormwater management program. The types and amounts of credits is at the sole discretion of the City Council. The credit shall be applied after determination of the stormwater utility fee in accordance with § 270-72, Stormwater utility fee calculation.
(1)
An owner may apply for credit against the stormwater utility fee by installing a facility which stores or treats of stormwater. Credits are calculated based on the impervious area treated by the facility and the credit amounts indicated in the table below:
Credit Amount Table | |||
|---|---|---|---|
Facility Type and Sediment Reduction | Base Credit Amount | Voluntary Facility Bonus | Total Possible Credit |
Facilities achieving 10% or more sediment reduction from pre-facility conditions (assumes that these facilities also control quantity) | |||
10% to <25% | 20% | 20% | 40% |
25% to <75% | 25% | 20% | 45% |
75% + | 30% | 20% | 50% |
All other facilities built in accordance with Chapter 538, Stormwater Management, of the City Code, regardless of whether it is for quality, quantity, or both | |||
All | 10% | Not applicable | 10% |
(2)
An owner may apply for credit against the stormwater utility fee if the property is subject to and compliant with a current PAG-03 NPDES General Permit for Discharges of Stormwater Associated with Industrial Activity or Individual NPDES Permit for Industrial Stormwater; and, will receive a 10% credit on the stormwater utility fee associated with impervious area covered by the permit.
(3)
No credit shall be authorized without a written decision of Director as to the facility's eligibility.
(4)
All credits shall be prospective only. If an owner's application for a credit is approved, it will be applied to the owner's stormwater utility fee beginning the following year.
B.
The Director shall develop written policies and procedures necessary to implement the system of credits. These policies and procedures shall include, but not be limited to, provisions to reduce or eliminate the amount of credit if the Director determines that the practice is not functioning as intended.
(2)
The Director shall develop a written policy for how and when an owner may apply for a credit.
(3)
The Director is authorized to develop a Community Engagement Program to aid owners in funding the installation of facilities. The Director may limit any credit received through the installation of the facility by the portion of City funds used to finance the facility's construction or installation.
C.
Nothing shall prevent the City Council from modifying the adopted system of credits, and such modifications may apply to holders of existing credits.
A.
The stormwater utility fee shall be billed each year on or before February 1 to the record owner of each parcel subject to the fee in combination with bill for real estate taxes. If the property owner is making real estate tax payments on an installment basis as authorized in § 570-39B, then the stormwater utility fee will be collected on the same schedule. Any portion of a stormwater utility fee that is unpaid as of the subsequent July 16 shall be considered delinquent except if the unpaid stormwater utility fee is subject to an appeal in accordance with § 270-76, the appeal procedures below.
B.
A penalty of 10% shall be added to bills not paid within the period described above. In addition thereto, any costs or fees incurred in conjunction with the collection of any such delinquencies shall be the responsibility of, and paid by, the owner(s) or operator of the subject parcel.
C.
The delinquent fee, along with any and all penalties, collection costs, and reasonable attorney's fees, shall constitute a lien on the parcel by virtue of the provisions of the Municipal Claims and Tax Lien Act of May 16, 1923 P.L. 207 No. 153, 53 P.S. § 7101 et seq. (the "MCTLA"), and shall be collectible via the remedies provided for therein.
A.
Any owner of a parcel who believes the provisions of this article have been applied in error may appeal in accordance with this section, provided, however, that grounds for appeal are limited to the following:
B.
The parcel owner shall complete and submit to the Director a stormwater utility fee appeal form in a format approved by the Director within 30 days of the charge being mailed or otherwise issued to the owner ("appeal date"). A Hearing Officer, designated by the Director, shall review the appeal for completeness and make a determination within 15 calendar days. In the event that the Hearing Officer finds that the appeal is incomplete, the Hearing Officer shall offer the owner 30 calendar days from the determination that the appeal is incomplete to supply the missing information. If all information requested is not provided within the 30 calendar days, the petition will be deemed to have been withdrawn.
C.
Once the appeal has been determined to be complete, the Hearing Officer shall conduct a technical review of the alleged error and respond to the owner in writing within 30 calendar days. The Hearing Officer may deny the appeal or adjust the stormwater utility fee if it is found to be in error.
D.
A decision by the Hearing Officer that is adverse to the appellant may be further appealed to the Director within 30 days of the determination being mailed or otherwise issued to the owner. The Director shall review the determination of denial made by the Hearing Officer and either affirm, reject, or modify the determination. The Director's determination will be provided to the owner in writing by certified or registered mail within 30 calendar days of receiving the denial appeal request.
E.
Any person aggrieved by a decision of the Director may appeal to the Court of Common Pleas of Lehigh County within 30 days of the date the final decision is entered.
F.
If payment is not made within 15 calendar days after the expiration of the owner's right to appeal in accordance with this section or a decision that is adverse to the owner made by the Court of Common Pleas of Lehigh County, the unpaid fee shall be considered delinquent and subject to the provisions of § 270-75, Billing, interest and enforcement.
The Director may implement such administrative regulations and/or procedures necessary to implement the requirements set forth in this article.
Whoever fails, neglects, or refuses to make payment of the stormwater utility fee assessed under § 270-71, Imposition of stormwater utility fee, of this article shall, upon summary conviction by a Magisterial District Judge, be sentenced to pay a fine of not more than $1,000 and costs and restitution, and, in default of such fines and costs, be imprisoned not more than 90 days, or both.