(A) Dispute.
(1) It is the policy of the city to discontinue utility service to customers by reason of non-payment of the bills only after notice and a meaningful opportunity to be heard on disputed bills. The city’s form for application for utility service and all bills shall contain, in addition to the title, address, room number and telephone number of the official in charge of billing, clearly visible and easily readable.
(2) Any customer disputing the correctness of his or her bill shall have a right to a hearing, at which time the customer must appear in person and may be represented by an attorney, and at which the customer or the attorney may present orally or in writing the customer’s complaint to the city official in charge of utility billing. This city official shall be authorized to order that the customer’s service not be discontinued and shall have the authority to make a final determination regarding the customer’s complaint.
(3) Requests for delays or waiver of payment will not be entertained; only questions of proper and correct billing will be considered. In the absence of payment of the bill rendered or resort to the hearing procedure provided herein, service will be discontinued at the time specified.
(B) Lien notice of delinquency.
(1) Whenever a bill for such utility services remains unpaid for 60 days after it has been issued, the Public Works Director shall file with the county’s Recorder of Deeds a statement of lien claim. This statement shall contain the legal description of the premises served, the amount of the unpaid bill and a notice that the city claims a lien for this amount, as well as for all unpaid utility service charges incurred subsequent to the period covered by the bill, and for recording fees and all other disconnection and reconnection fees.
(2) If the user whose bill is unpaid is not the owner of the premises and the Public Works Director has notice of this, notice of the delinquency and the possible lien filing as provided in division (B)(1) above shall also be mailed to the owner of the premises if the owner’s address is known to the Public Works Director, whenever such bill remains unpaid for the period of 30 days after it has been issued.
(3) The failure of the Public Works Director to record such lien or to mail such delinquency notice or the failure of the owner to receive such delinquency notice shall not affect the right of the city to foreclose the lien for unpaid bills as provided in division (C) below.
(C) Foreclosure of lien. Property subject to a lien for unpaid charges may be sold for non- payment of the same at the discretion of the city, and the proceeds of the sale shall be applied to pay the charges, after deducting all costs incurred by the city, as in the case of foreclosure of statutory liens. The City Attorney is hereby authorized to institute such proceedings in the name of the city in any court having jurisdiction over such matters against any property for which the bill for utility services has remained unpaid for 60 days.
(Ord. 18-624, passed 4-12-2018)