(a) 
Construction.
Words in the present tense include the future tense. The singular includes the plural, and the plural includes the singular. Words of one gender include the other gender.
(b) 
Definitions.
Delinquent charges.
Past due charges for utility service and any late fees or other fees which are authorized by this article and owing by a utility customer.
Person.
Any individual, corporation or association and includes the agent of any person.
Utility service.
Water service provided by the city; and in the case of persons whose structures are located within the city limits it shall include sewer service provided by the city.
Utility system.
The city’s water and sewer system.
(Ordinance 10-3, sec. 12, adopted 4/20/10)
Any violation of sections 13.02.003, 13.02.004 or 13.02.005 of this article within the territorial limits of the city shall constitute an offense and each day any such violation continues shall constitute a separate offense. A person adjudged guilty of an offense under this section may be fined a sum not to exceed five hundred dollars ($500.00) for each separate violation.
(Ordinance 10-3, sec. 11, adopted 4/20/10)
(a) 
All persons owning or occupying homes, buildings, or real property situated within the city, or the extraterritorial jurisdiction (the “ETJ”) of the city that either currently or in the future, use water service are required to use and connect their water system with the water system of the city. All persons owning or occupying homes, buildings, or real property within the city that either currently or in the future use sewer service are required to use and connect their sewer system with the sewer system of the city.
(b) 
This section shall not be construed to require the owner or occupant of a home, building, or real property to use water or sewer service if the home, building or real property does not have water or sewer service available to it and is not being used as a temporary or permanent residence. It shall be construed to establish the city as the exclusive provider of water and sewer services within the city and water service in the ETJ of the city.
(c) 
Excluded from this requirement are those homes, buildings, or real property that are located within the ETJ of the city, and are currently receiving water service from the Archer County Municipal Utility District.
(Ordinance 10-3, sec. 1, adopted 4/20/10)
(a) 
No new water customers will be added outside the city limits without prior written permission of the city council.
(b) 
No waterline extensions will be made outside the city limits without written permission of the city council.
(c) 
Owners of homes, buildings or real property will submit a written request to the city council detailing location of service.
(d) 
No service will be provided to a real property site until application for a residential building permit has been applied for and approved. Water service will be provided for residential consumption and use. Use of water for commercial or agricultural use will not be approved unless expressly authorized by the city council.
(e) 
The city council may promulgate reasonable rules and regulations controlling and regulating the usage and extension of water service outside the city without the necessity of amending this article.
(Ordinance 10-3, sec. 2, adopted 4/20/10)
(a) 
All persons owning or occupying homes, buildings or real property within the city or within the ETJ of the city, either currently or in the future, who use water services shall first make application to the city for said service before connecting to or using the city’s utility system or before reinstatement of utility service. The city may require such application to be on forms promulgated by the city. These forms may be modified or amended, by the city, from time to time.
(b) 
When an application for a building permit has been issued it is understood that this approval gives permission for commencement of water service.
(c) 
If reinstatement of service is requested, a written request for service will be submitted to the city. When the provisions of section 13.02.036(c) of this article are met, water service will be provided.
(d) 
It shall be the responsibility of the owner of, or any lienholder who acquires title to, a home, building, or real property to notify the city of any change in ownership, occupancy or use of said home, building, or real property within 30 days of the date of such change.
(Ordinance 10-3, sec. 3, adopted 4/20/10)
(a) 
All persons owning or occupying homes, buildings, or real property or agents of said owners or occupants connected to the water system of the city shall be required to pay the minimum monthly charge for water/sewer and refuse removal regardless of whether the water meter serving said home, building, or real property is open, closed, or dry or whether said home, building, or real property is occupied or being used.
(b) 
In the event an account for a home, building, or real property, where minimum monthly charges are being assessed will be vacant for a continuous period of thirty days and is being offered for sale or is undergoing major rehabilitation, then the owner of said home, building, or real property may make application for a standby rate of twenty-five dollars ($25.00) per month for water/sewer services. The standby rate assumes no services are provided. This assumption is that no water is being consumed, thus the sewer system is not processing wastewater from the home, building, or real property. Trash removal is a contracted service and the fee will be assessed at current rate should the service be provided. While in standby mode, customer will use no water or sewer service. If consumption of water is determined to have occurred (through monthly water meter readings conducted by the city or by any other means) then an additional fee will be assessed which will be equal to the charges owing for utility services based on current water and sewer rates. This additional fee will be in addition to the standby rate of $25.00. If consumption of water continues to be in excess of three thousand (3,000) gallons per billing period, for two consecutive billing periods, then the standby rate will be terminated.
(Ordinance 10-3, sec. 5, adopted 4/20/10)
(a) 
Water.
(1) 
Water tapping fee and installation charge.
(A) 
There shall be a tapping fee or charge of $500.00 for the commencement or reinstatement of utility service within the city limits.
(B) 
The minimum charge for any installation (inclusive of meter, labor, and other necessary materials) is hereby set in the amount of one thousand dollars ($1,000.00). This charge shall be in addition to the tapping fee in subsection (a) above and subsection (c) below.
(C) 
For commencement or reinstatement of service to any residence, building, or real property located within the extraterritorial jurisdiction (ETJ) of the city, a tapping fee of one thousand dollars ($1,000.00) and an installation fee of one thousand dollars ($1,000.00) will be charged for service.
(2) 
Water service usage rates.
(A) 
As used in this subsection (2), the quantity of water delivered to a customer, which is expressed in gallons, shall refer to the number of gallons delivered to a customer within a particular monthly billing period. Water delivered to a customer shall mean the quantity of water reflected on the customer’s water meter as having been received by the customer during a particular monthly billing period.
(B) 
The charge for the first three thousand (3,000) gallons of water delivered to a customer shall be $48.16 if the customer receives utility service within the corporate limits of the city and $69.31 if the customer receives water service outside of the corporate limits of the city.
(C) 
The charge for the water delivered to a customer in excess of three thousand (3,000) gallons but does not exceed ten thousand (10,000) gallons, shall be calculated at the rate of $7.23 per one thousand (1,000) gallons of water delivered, regardless of whether the water service is provided within or outside the corporate limits of the city.
(D) 
The charge for the water delivered to a customer in an amount in excess of ten thousand (10,000) gallons but that does not exceed twenty thousand (20,000) gallons shall be calculated at the rate of $12.15 per one thousand (1,000) gallons, regardless of whether the water service is provided within or outside the corporate limits of the city.
(E) 
The charge for water delivered to a customer in an amount in excess of twenty thousand (20,000) gallons but that does not exceed forty thousand (40,000) gallons shall be calculated at the rate of $14.53 per one thousand (1,000) gallons, regardless of whether the water service is provided within or outside the corporate limits of the city.
(F) 
The charge for water delivered to a customer in an amount in excess of forty thousand (40,000) gallons shall be calculated at the rate of $18.58 per one thousand (1,000) gallons of water delivered, regardless of whether the water service is provided within or outside the corporate limits of the city..
(b) 
Sewer.
(1) 
Sewer tapping and installation fees.
(A) 
Gravity flow system.
For any sewer connection to the city’s sewer system which does not require the installation of green tank system equipment where sewage is transmitted from the tract or lot served by a sewer connection to the city’s sewage treatment system solely by gravity, there shall be a tapping fee or charge of $500.00 for the commencement or reinstatement of sewer service.
(B) 
Other connections.
For any connection to the city’s sewer system which does not operate using gravity flow or which requires the installation of a green tank system, the city shall provide, and install, the equipment necessary to transmit sewage from the edge of the lot or tract being served to the city’s sewer system. The following tapping and installation fees shall apply to these connections:
(i) 
There shall be a tapping fee or charge of $300.00 for the commencement or reinstatement of sewer service; and
(ii) 
There shall be an installation charge of $1,600.00 (inclusive of meter, labor, and other necessary materials) for the commencement or reinstatement of service.
(C) 
The property owner shall be responsible and liable for the payment of the applicable tapping and installation fees established by this subsection (b)(1). These fees shall be paid prior to any connection to the city’s sewer system and prior to the commencement of work by the city installing any required equipment such as meters, green tanks or related equipment.
(2) 
Sewer service usage rates.
Monthly flat rate sewer fee: $30.00.
(3) 
Service calls.
(A) 
The property owner may be liable for repetitive service calls to a home, building or real property where solids are found to be the source of the problem. They shall incur a twenty-five dollar ($25.00) charge.
(B) 
If damage occurs to a pump because of solids in the system the property owner may be liable for the cost of pump repair or, if necessary, a new pump.
(Ordinance 89-2, sec. 3, adopted 8/15/89; Ordinance 10-3, sec. 4, adopted 4/20/10; Ordinance 13-07 adopted 9/17/13; Ordinance 15-01 adopted 1/20/15; Ordinance 15-07 adopted 9/15/15; Ordinance 17-02 adopted 8/15/17; Ordinance 20-04 adopted 8/18/2020; Ordinance 18-06 adopted 6/18/2024)
(a) 
Charges incurred by a water customer for water and sewer service may be adjusted according to the procedures set forth in this section if a determination is made that the water meter serving the property for which the water service charges were incurred is inaccurate using the procedures set forth in this section.
(b) 
A customer who believes that a charge or charges for water service (herein, the "contested charges") should be adjusted under this section shall file with the City a written request for a data log meter testing of such customer's water meter and a non-refundable fee of $100 which must be paid at the time of the request, and the City will issue a meter data log report to be run on the current meter. Once this report is run, the findings will be analyzed and gone over in detail with the customer. If the customer still chooses to request that the existing meter be removed and sent off for testing, then the written request may be issued. The request shall specify each charge which is contested by reference to the bill or statement for such charge or charges and shall be signed by each customer responsible for payment of the contested charges. This request may be on a form prepared by the City and may contain any other information which the City Administrator determines will be useful in determining whether the contested charges should be adjusted. In no event may the charges for which an adjustment is requested exceed those incurred more than six (6) months prior to the date a request for adjustment is received by the City. All charges for water and sewer service incurred shall be presumed to be accurate if no request for an adjustment of such charges is received by the City in accordance with this section within six (6) months of the date such charges are billed by the City.
(c) 
In addition to the written request for an adjustment described in subsection (b) above, the customer requesting an adjustment in charges shall also deposit the sum of $750.00 with the City at the time the written request for an adjustment is delivered to the City. No action will be taken by the City to test a customer's water meter until both the written request for an adjustment, properly executed and with all information required, is submitted to the City and the City has collected funds in its possession equal to the $750.00 deposit required by this section.
(d) 
Upon receipt of the written request and the required deposit, the City will remove the water meter to be tested at a date and time agreed upon with the customer and will replace the water meter with another water meter. The water meter removed will be tested by an outside testing firm selected by the City and the results of the test will be provided to the City and the City will, in turn, provide the results of such test to the customer.
(e) 
If the test results indicate that the meter is inaccurate in a manner that resulted in charges in excess of the amount that should have been due for the water actually supplied, then the contested water charges will be reduced proportionately with the inaccuracy determined by the testing of the meter. Any overpayment by the customer as a result of the reduction in the contested charges and the $750.00 deposit will be applied as a credit to the customer's water account against future charges and the City will not charge the resulting overpayment or deposit made by the customer with the cost of testing or the removal and replacement of the meter.
(f) 
If the test results indicate that the meter is inaccurate in a manner that resulted in charges less than the amount that should have been due for the water actually supplied, the additional charges owed by the customer to the City will be determined by increasing the contested charges incurred proportionately to the inaccuracy determined by the testing of the meter. In such case the $750.00 deposit will be forfeited by the customer to cover the cost of the outside testing and the removal and replacement of the meter, and the customer will owe the additional sums determined to be owing on the contested charges, which charges will be included in the next billing cycle on the customer's account.
(g) 
Any change in water usage determined by the procedures in this section shall be applied to adjust charges for sewer usage.
(h) 
The determination of an adjustment in accordance with this section shall be final or may be appealed by the customer to the City Council and the determination of the matter by the City Council shall be final.
(Ordinance 11-01 adopted 1/18/11; Ordinance 24-10 adopted 11/19/2024)
(a) 
All fees and charges for services shall be due and payable on the fifteenth day of the month following the month in which said charges were incurred.
(b) 
All fees and charges for services not paid on the due date herein set forth shall incur a late fee equal to ten percent (10%) of the unpaid balance of the bill each month until balance is paid. Such late fee shall not be less than one dollar ($1.00) or more than 25% of the amount of the bill.
(c) 
The city hereby imposes a lien against any real property to which utility services have been provided in an amount equal to the delinquent charges to such property. This lien will not attach to property which is a homestead protected by the state constitution and is also subject to those limitations provided by section 552.0025 of the Texas Local Government Code. The lien shall be perfected in the manner provided by such statute.
(Ordinance 10-3, sec. 8, adopted 4/20/10)
A water security deposit shall be required by each owner and/or lessor of a home, building, or real property upon commencement or reinstitution of utility service. The security deposit shall be in the amount of two hundred dollars ($200.00). Such deposit shall draw no interest and will be refunded in full upon transfer of the property and when the property occupant’s final bill is paid or will be applied to the balance owed after services have been terminated. The deposit made by the owner will not be used to satisfy the amount owed unless the owner sells the property and fails to pay outstanding balance.
(Ordinance 12-01, sec. 1, adopted 5/15/12)
(a) 
Charges for water service are payable not later than the 15th day of the month following the month to which the charges relate. Water service may be suspended if all delinquent charges (including any applicable late charges) are not paid within five (5) days following the date notice of delinquency and intent to suspend service is provided to the customer. The notice of delinquency and intent to suspend service shall:
(1) 
Identify the account which is delinquent and state the amount of the delinquent charges; and
(2) 
Inform the customer that the customer may contact the city to discuss any errors with respect to the charges prior to the suspension date.
The city administrator shall have the authority to rescind the notice and the proposed termination of service if the city administrator determines that the notice of delinquency and intent to suspend service was issued in error or if the city administrator and the customer reach an agreement for the payment of the delinquent charges. Any notice sent to a customer must be in writing.
(b) 
Following a suspension of utility services pursuant to subsection (a), utility services will be restored upon full payment of all delinquent charges in addition to the advance payment of a reconnect fee as set forth in the city’s master fee schedule as maintained on file in the office of the city secretary.
(c) 
If the delinquent charges remain unpaid sixty (60) days after the suspension of service then the city may terminate utility service. Termination of service is final and reinstatement of service to said home, building, or real property for the delinquent utility customer shall require the payment of the tapping fee of five hundred dollars ($500.00) or, in the alternative, full payment of all delinquent charges, whichever is the lesser amount.
(Ordinance 10-3, sec. 10, adopted 4/20/10; Ordinance 17-10 adopted 11/21/17)