(A) The municipality shall have the right to discontinue utility services and remove its properties if the charges for the services are not paid within seven days after the date that the charges become delinquent. Before any termination, the municipality shall first give notice by first-class mail or in person to any domestic subscriber whose service is proposed to be terminated. If notice is given by first-class mail, the mail shall be conspicuously marked as to its importance. Service shall not be discontinued for at least seven days, weekends and holidays excluded, after notice is sent or given. As to any subscriber who has previously been identified as a welfare recipient to the municipality by the Department of Health and Human Services, the notice shall be by certified mail, and notice of the proposed termination shall be given to the Department of Health and Human Services.
(B) Prior to the discontinuance of service to any domestic subscriber by the municipality, the domestic subscriber, upon request, shall be provided a conference with the City Council. The City Council has established procedures to resolve utility bills when a conference is requested by a domestic subscriber. These procedures, three copies of which are on file in the office of the City Clerk/Treasurer, are hereby incorporated by reference in addition to any amendments thereto and are made a part of this section as though set out in full. A copy of the procedures shall be furnished upon the request of any domestic subscriber. The City Clerk shall notify the domestic subscriber of the time, place, and date scheduled for such conference.
(C) This section shall not apply to any disconnections or interruptions of services made necessary by the municipality for reasons of repair or maintenance or to protect the health or safety of the domestic subscriber or of the general public.
(Prior Code, § 50.03) (Ord. 1997-8.14, passed 8-11-1997)
Statutory reference:
Utility discontinuance regulated, see Neb. Rev. Stat. 70-1602 et seq.