It is hereby determined and declared necessary to levy and collect the charges or rentals hereinafter provided for upon all lots, lands and premises, served by the sewerage system and sewage treatment or disposal works of the City for the purpose of paying the cost and expense of management, operation, maintenance, repair, replacement and construction of such public improvements and to pay, when due, the principal of and interest on the bonds and notes authorized by ordinance. The rates of such charges or rentals hereinafter established are deemed and are hereby found and determined to be just and equitable. Charges shall be for the use of the system of sanitary sewers, sewage treatment or disposal works by every person, firm, corporation or other entity whose premises are served directly or indirectly by a connection with such system. The assessed rate or rental charge shall be in addition to the revenues received from general fees for sewer/wastewater treatment plant maintenance as follows:
(a) Every person, firm, corporation or legal entity whose premises in the City is served by a connection with the City’s present system of sanitary sewers whereby sewage or industrial wastes are disposed of by the City, shall pay a sewer rental charge or rate based upon the quantity of water used in or upon such premises, per 100 cubic feet of metered or measured water so used. The sewer rental charge or rate shall apply whether the water is derived from the City water supply or from a source other than the City water supply, or whether all or any part of the water is furnished to the premises without charge. If it is shown to the satisfaction of the Superintendent of Wastewater Treatment that all or any part of the water used upon any premises does not enter the sanitary sewer system of the City, then the charges shall be based upon the actual quantity of water discharged into the sanitary sewage system of the City as shown by a measuring device installed by the consumer and approved by the City’s Superintendent of Wastewater Treatment.
(b) In no case shall the monthly sewer rental/rate be less than the minimum amount set by ordinance.
(c) For water or sewage directly or indirectly entering the City sewers from the premises of any person, firm, corporation or other legal entity outside the City, from which no general taxes are received by the City for sewer/wastewater treatment plant maintenance, a rate of rental shall be charged per 100 cubic feet of measured or metered water, with a minimum monthly rental, except that in the case of sewers serving not more than twenty-five (25) dwellings and in other isolated cases, a flat rate per month per dwelling may be charged or assessed.
(d) Minimum Charge.
(1) A minimum charge shall be levied on each user regardless of water usage and calculated by totaling the yearly costs for administration, billing, revenue bonds and other costs/charges, fixed or otherwise, and, in addition, the following:
A. For users whose premises are located within the Corporate Boundaries of the City of Ashtabula, Ohio - the cost of local sewer maintenance.
B. For users whose premises are extraterritorial or located outside the Corporate Boundaries of the City of Ashtabula, Ohio - the costs of a proportionate share of secondary treatment plant bonds and/or similar capital improvement projects.
(2) The charge for the fixed costs described in subsection (d)(1) hereof shall be $3.45 per month on and after June 1, 2017.
(e) Commodity Charge. The commodity charge shall be the yearly operational and maintenance (including replacement of equipment) cost per 100 cubic feet for the wastewater treatment works and bond repayment.
(1) Base Rate: (usage up to and including 20 HCF for customers billed monthly and up to and including 40 HCF for customers billed bimonthly or every two months) as of and after June 1, 2017, shall be $2.78 per HCF; as of and after June 1, 2018, $2.83 per HCF; and as of and after June 1, 2019, $2.88 per HCF.
(2) High Volume Users: (usage exceeding 20 HCF for customers billed monthly and usage exceeding 40 HCF for customers billed bimonthly or every two months) as of and after June 1, 2017, shall be $3.18 per HCF; as of and after June 1, 2018, $3.23 per HCF; and as of and after June 1, 2019, $3.28 per HCF.
(f) Capital Improvement Account; Capital Improvement Charge. On and after June 1, 2017, an additional $0.70 per 100 cubic feet shall be charged each user and shall be deposited in a Sewer Capital Improvement Account. Funds from the Capital Improvement Account shall only be used to purchase Ashtabula, Ohio Regional Sewer System items with a useful life of five years or more, or to pay for repairs or improvements with a useful life of five years or more or which may be reasonably expected to extend the useful life of existing capital items for an additional five years or more.
(g) Long Term Capital Debt Surcharge. Effective October 1, 2016, a surcharge of $2.95 per month, to be paid by any and all units/users of the City of Ashtabula, Ohio’s Waste Water Treatment Plant, is hereby imposed for a period of twenty (20) years, until September 30, 2036. The revenues raised by said surcharge shall be collected as and with other sewer charges, and shall be deposited in the Sewer Capital Improvements Fund. Said revenues shall be utilized to pay the long-term debt service on loans incurred for purposes of capital improvements to the City’s Waste Water Treatment Plant. In the event the long-term debt referenced in this paragraph is satisfied earlier, this surcharge shall thereupon terminate.
(h) Industrial Surcharge Rates. Industrial surcharge rates shall be assessed to any high volume users if the six-month average concentrations of the following pollutants exceed the following values:
BOD | 220 mg/l |
COD | 2000 mg/l |
SS | 220 mg/l |
Phosphorus | 15 mg/l |
Oils & greases | 100 mg/l |
In the event Industrial Surcharge Rates are assessed for the aforesaid constituents, the assessed rates shall be as follows:
BOD | $0.21/lb |
COD | $0.21/lb |
SS | $0.21/lb |
Phosphorus | $4.29/lb |
Oils & greases | $4.29/lb |
(i) Total Sewage Service Charge. The total sewage service charge shall consist of the minimum charge (subsection (d) hereof) plus the commodity charge (subsection (e) hereof) plus the Capital Improvement Account charge and Equalization Basin charge (subsection (f) and (g) hereof), and, if applicable, the industrial surcharge rates (subsection (h) hereof) and penalty/certification assessments (subsection (k) hereof).
(j) The sewage service charges shall be reviewed at least every three years and adjusted to reflect current usage and costs as described herein.
(Ord. 2017-24. Passed 5-15-17.)
(k) Payment of all amounts due hereunder shall be paid by the due date designated on any statement of account, with a late charge of ten percent (10%) being assessed as to any portion of any statement which is not paid in full. Late charges may not be charged more than once upon a past- due amount, but each amount billed for service in successive billing periods which is past due may be subject of a separate late charge. Late charges may not be assessed upon late charges. Failure to pay any account in full within sixty (60) days may result in same being certified to the Ashtabula County, Ohio Auditor. Said assessment shall include the Total Sewage Service Charge due plus an additional ten percent (10%) certification fee. The total assessment shall be assessed to the relevant property via property taxes and collected as other taxes are collected.
(1) The penalties and/or late charges imposed by this Section may be reduced or waived by the Director of Finance upon submission of proof acceptable to the Director that the late payment or non-payment was the result of significant exigent circumstances, or that the imposition of penalties or late fees would result in extreme hardship. The decision of the Director of Finance shall be final. The Director of Finance may also grant a one-time-only "courtesy" waiver of late fees or penalties to a customer who has a record of timely payments for a period of two or more years.
(Ord. 2018-111. Passed 12-3-18.)