[Ord. No. 5-1999]
The rates, rentals and other charges, including connection fees, shall be fixed, by ordinance of the Governing Body, in accordance with the Municipal and County Sewerage Act, N.J.S.A. 40A:26A-1, et seq.
A. 
Operation, maintenance and replacement fund. The revenues collected as a result of the user charges levied shall be deposited in a separate nonlapsing fund known as the "Operation, Maintenance and Replacement Fund" and will be kept in two primary accounts as follows:
(1) 
An account designated for the specific purpose of defraying operation and maintenance costs, excluding replacement of the treatment works (operation and maintenance account).
(2) 
An account designated for the specific purpose of ensuring replacement needs are adequate to maintain the capacity and performance over the useful life of the treatment works (replacement account). Deposits in the replacement account shall be made from the operation, maintenance and replacement revenue in an amount set by administrative directive annually.
B. 
Use of moneys. Fiscal year-end balances in the Operation, Maintenance and Replacement Fund shall be used for no other purposes than those designated herein. Moneys 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 moneys will be returned to their respective accounts within six months of the fiscal year in which the moneys were borrowed.
[Ord. No. 24-1998; Ord. No. 5-1999; New; Ord. No. 6-1999; Ord. No. 9-2000; Ord. No. 26-2002; Ord. No. 27-2002; Ord. No. 21-2007; Ord. No. 16-2019;Ord. No. 19-2019]
A. 
Basis of user charge.
(1) 
Each class A user shall pay for the services provided by the South Amboy Sanitary Sewerage System based on a fixed charge set by ordinance of the Governing Body and their use of the system as determined by the city from the Middlesex Water Company. The city may impose a surcharge on any Class A user with a prohibited connection and/or discharge as described in Article II, Section 127-5A. The amount of this surcharge shall be based upon the impact of the connection on the sewerage system and shall be set by ordinance of the Governing Body and may be punitive in nature.
(2) 
Each Class B user shall pay for the services provided by the South Amboy sanitary sewerage system based on a fixed charge set by ordinance of the Governing Body and his use of the system as determined by actual sewage flows and/or water meter readings obtained by the city from the Middlesex Water Company. Actual sewage flows of all Class B users shall be used to determine charges, wherever possible. In the absence of actual sewage flows for Class B users, actual water meter readings will be used as the basis for computing the charges. Where industries have a private water supply, all or part of which is discharged to the city sewerage system, said industrial discharges shall be metered. In the event that evidence is presented indicating that all of the total annual volume of water used for all purposes does not reach the sewer, an estimate will be made of the water actually discharged to the sewer or a separate meter shall be installed in accordance with Subsection D below. Each Class B user shall, in addition, pay a surcharge fee or receive credit based on the product of the unit surcharge cost determined by the city (reference Exhibit A) and his excessive or below-strength loadings, as determined in Subsection F below, of BOD, SS and CD.
B. 
Water consumption readings. All water consumption readings shall be those obtained by the city from the Middlesex Water Company. If a user obtains its water supply from a private well or an unmetered public water supply or utilizes a process that would yield wastewater in amounts greater than the metered water use, then the user shall install a meter at his own cost, the type and location of which is to be approved by the city. In the event that the user fails to install such a meter within 30 days after receiving notice from the city, then the user shall pay a charge based upon the city's estimate of water consumption, which estimate shall be conclusive and binding upon the user.
C. 
Inaccurate water consumption readings. In the event that estimated water consumption readings should prove to be inaccurate, the city shall recalculate prior quarterly service charges with the difference charged to or credited to the customer.
D. 
Separate water meters. Any customer who uses substantial quantities of water not discharged into the City of South Amboy sewer system shall have the option of installing, at his own cost, a separate meter to measure water usage not discharged into the sewer system.
E. 
Normal domestic sewage dischargers (Class A users). All users of the City of South Amboy sanitary sewerage system discharging normal domestic sewage, as herein described in the sewer use regulations, shall pay a user charge rate for operation, maintenance and replacement according to Exhibit A.[1]
[1]
(Editor's Note: Exhibit A is on file in the office of the City Clerk.
F. 
Nondomestic waste dischargers (Class B users).
(1) 
For all users whose waste strength is more than 10% greater or less than 200 milligrams per liter of BOD, or 220 milligrams per liter of SS and 15 milligrams per liter of CD, a surcharge or credit in addition to the normal user charge will be collected. This surcharge shall be in addition to the Class B fixed and user charges described in Exhibit A.
(2) 
All Class B users shall provide means at each plant to allow periodic determination of the concentration of the wastes as a basis for city verification of charges for suspended solids, biochemical oxygen demand and chlorine demand. The determination will be made at least twice per year or, if deemed necessary, quarterly, monthly, weekly or daily. Determination of the character of the waste will be made by a laboratory certified in the State of New Jersey. Should this determination provide results which are substantially different from the data submitted quarterly by the user, the user charge for that Class B user shall be revised for the next billing period. The surcharge for operation and maintenance, including replacement, shall be determined as shown in Exhibit A.
G. 
Toxic discharges. Any user who discharges any toxic pollutants, as defined in Article I, Section 127-2, which cause an increase in the cost of managing the effluent or the sludge from the Middlesex County Utilities Authority Treatment Plant, or any user who 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. These costs shall include, but not be limited to, penalties, cost of defense or protection, etc. The charge to each such user shall be as determined by administrative directive of the City of South Amboy.
H. 
Extraneous flows. The rates in Exhibit A are deemed to be sufficient to fairly apportion the cost of treatment of any extraneous flows coming into the City of South Amboy sewerage system.
I. 
Rate application. The user charge rates established in this Article apply to all users of the South Amboy sanitary sewerage system.
J. 
Sewer user rates and facility charges.
The following sewer user rates and facility charges shall apply within the City of South Amboy, pursuant to N.J.S.A. 40A:26A-10.
(1) 
Class A Users shall be separated into the following categories and charged the following sewer user rates for each 1000 cubic feet of water usage unless otherwise set forth:
(a) 
Class "A" Users (domestic flow).
[1] 
Residential (up to two dwelling units) —
For the period September 1, 2019 through August 30, 2020, the sewer user charge shall be $33.34, per unit, per 1,000 cubic feet of water usage;
For the period September 1, 2020 through August 30, 2021, the sewer user charge shall be $38.79, per unit, per 1,000 cubic feet of water usage;
For the period September 1, 2021 and thereafter, the sewer user charge shall be $44.24, per unit, per 1,000 cubic feet of water usage;
[2] 
Multifamily (over two dwelling units) and Hotels - $74.96 per 1,000 cubic feet of water usage.
[3] 
Commercial - $82.84 per 1,000 cubic feet of water usage.
(2) 
Class "B" Users.
(a) 
Class "B" Users (non-domestic flow) $88.58 per 1,000 cubic feet of water usage.
(3) 
For all users, the minimum quarterly charge shall be the charge for 1000 cubic feet of water usage based on the classification of "unit".
(4) 
All users shall pay a quarterly facility charge of $5.00 per unit per dwelling and $10.00 per unit for commercial and multiple family dwelling units.
(5) 
A 5% discount on sewer user rates shall be afforded to persons residing in single-family, owner-occupied premises, where the owner is either a person of the age of 65 or more years or is under 65 years of age and permanently and totally disabled as defined in N.J.S.A. 40A:26A-10.1.
K. 
Sanitary sewer connection fees.
(1) 
Residential.
(a) 
All new users or increased flows from improved premises shall be charged a fee upon each and every direct or indirect connection to the sewer system. The connection fee of each and every user shall be based on the total number of equivalent service units served by the connection. An equivalent service unit (ESU) is the average daily flow of sewage for the average single-family residence in the City. The fee shall be collected upon issuance of a builder's or redeveloper's agreement or a Certificate of Occupancy in the event that a builder's or redeveloper's agreement is not required.
(b) 
An ESU is presumed to be 242 gallons per day of sewage.
(c) 
The connection fee shall be calculated as follows:
The connection fee is based on a total charge of $2,164 per ESU. Each connection fee will be assessed based on the combination of sanitary sewage flow generation as per NJDEP NJAC 7:14A-23.3 to develop its ESU times the fee of $2,164 per ESU. [Thus, for example, a two-bedroom residential dwelling will be charged based on a flow generation of 225 gallons per day (NJDEP NJAC 7:14-23.3) for a ESU of 225/242 = 0.929, times the connection fee of $2,164 per ESU, or $2,010.36.]
(2) 
Commercial-Industrial. The connection fee to the sewerage system is $2,500.00 for each commercial or industrial unit.
A. 
Normal domestic sewage dischargers (Class A users). The following are the payment criteria for Class A users:
(1) 
All Class A users shall be billed based upon a fixed charge set by ordinance of the Governing Body and actual water consumption in accordance with Section 127-10J.
(2) 
In the event that any bill is not paid within 30 days of its due date, then interest shall accrue thereafter and be due to the city on the unpaid balance at a rate equal to that placed on city taxes.
(3) 
New Class A users assuming existing connected dwelling units shall be billed at actual meter readings, which may be requested at any time.
(4) 
Sewer bills shall be payable at a designated location prescribed by the city for payment of city obligations.
B. 
Nondomestic industrial sewage dischargers (Class B users). All Class B users shall be billed as follows:
(1) 
All Class B users shall be billed based upon a fixed charge set by ordinance of the Governing Body and actual water consumption in accordance with Section 127-10J.
(2) 
On the first day of January, April, July and October of each year, each industry shall submit to the Division of Public Works of the city the results of the measurements, samplings and tests as required by this chapter, giving specific figures as to each pertinent component of their sewage discharges, i.e., flow, suspended solids, chlorine demand and biochemical oxygen demand for the preceding three months.
(3) 
On the first day of January, April, July and October, the City of South Amboy receives from the Middlesex County Utilities Authority their bill for the handling of sewage from the city for the preceding quarter.
(4) 
Each Class B user shall pay their respective pro rata share of the total charges assessed to the city by the Middlesex County Utilities Authority. A mathematical formula to determine the surcharge rate shall be applied by the Division of Public Works to each pertinent component, i.e., flow, suspended solids, chlorine demand and biochemical oxygen demand as shown in Exhibit A. The computation of the Division of Public Works shall, therefore, reflect the relationship between the volume and quality of the discharge of each respective Class B user to the gross volume and overall quality of the effluent discharged by the entire city.
(5) 
In the event that any bill is not paid within 30 days of its due date, then interest shall accrue thereafter and be due to the city on the unpaid balance at a rate equal to that placed on city taxes.
C. 
Miscellaneous, applicable to all user classes. The following consideration shall be applicable to all user classifications:
(1) 
Where any building or structure is used for purposes comprising more than one classification, the service fee in such case shall be the total of the fees for each such classification.
(2) 
Notwithstanding any of the schedules contained herein to the contrary, a minimum annual charge for any property connected to the city sanitary sewer system shall be set by ordinance of the Governing Body and reviewed annually.
Any user objecting to any estimate of flow or strength made hereunder shall have the option, at his own cost and expense, of installing metering equipment on his discharge lines to record actual flow and strength readings. The metering equipment used, its installation and the location of the installation shall all be subject to review and approval by the city or its designated representatives. The user may then make written application to the city requesting a review of his user charge. Said written request shall, where necessary, show the actual or estimated average flow and/or strength of his wastewater in comparison with the values upon which the charge is based, including how the measurements or estimates were made. Review of the request shall be made by the city and if substantiated, the user charge for that user shall be recomputed based on the revised flow and/or strength data and the new charges shall be applicable to the next billing period.
[Ord. No. 5-1999]
A. 
Rate review. The City of South Amboy shall review the user charges at least annually and revise the rates as necessary to ensure that adequate revenues are generated to pay the costs of operation and maintenance, including replacement, and that the South Amboy sewer system continues to provide for the proportional distribution of operation and maintenance including replacement costs among users and user classes. All rate adjustments shall be fixed by ordinance of the Governing Body.
B. 
Rate notification. The City of South Amboy will notify each user at least annually of the rate being charged for operation, maintenance and replacement of the treatment works.
C. 
Rates, rentals and other charges, including connection fees, shall be fixed and determined, in accordance with the Municipal and County Sewerage Act, N.J.S.A. 40A:26A-1. et seq.
[Ord. No. 5-1999]
A. 
Any payment dishonored by the payor's bank or other commercial institution shall result in an additional fee of $20.00 by the payor to the City.
B. 
For the change of the name for any account, a fee of $5.00 shall be due and paid to the City.
C. 
If any part of the amount due and payable in rates, rentals, connection fees or other charges remain unpaid for 30 days following the date for the payment thereof, interest upon the amount unpaid shall accrue at the rate of one and one-half percent (1-1/2%) per month, until paid in full.