(a) Liability for and Manner of Payments. Rates or charges for wastewater service shall be payable monthly. The owner of the premises, the occupant thereof and the user of the service shall be jointly and severally liable to pay for the service to such premises. The service is furnished to the premises by the City only upon the condition that such owner, occupant and user are jointly and severally liable therefor to the City.
Bills for sewer service shall be sent out by the City Water Clerk on the first day of the month succeeding the period for which the service is billed.
All sewer bills are due and payable fifteen days after being sent out. A penalty of ten percent shall be added to all bills not paid by the fifteenth day after they have been rendered.
(b) Delinquent Bills. If the charges for such services are not paid within sixty days after the rendition of the bill for such services, such services shall be discontinued without further notice and shall not be reinstated until all claims are settled. A fee of twenty dollars ($20.00) shall be charged for disconnection of any sewer service because of delinquency. There shall be a fee of twenty dollars ($20.00) for reinstating such service.
(c) Notice of Delinquency. Whenever a bill for monthly sewer service remains unpaid for ninety days after it has been rendered, the City Attorney shall, at the direction of Council, file with the County 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 charges subsequent to the period covered by the bill.
If the user whose bill is unpaid is not the owner of the premises and the Supervisor has notice of this, notice shall be mailed to the owner of the premises, if his or her address is known to the Supervisor, whenever such monthly bill remains unpaid for forty-five days after it has been rendered.
The failure of the City Attorney to record such lien, the failure of the Supervisor to mail such notice or the failure of the owner to receive such notice shall not affect the right to foreclosure the lien for unpaid bills.
(d) Foreclosure of Lien. Property subject to a lien for unpaid charges shall be sold for nonpayment of the same, and the proceeds of the sale shall be applied to pay the charges, after deducting costs, as is the case in the foreclosure of statutory liens. Such foreclosure shall be in equity in the name of the City. The City Attorney is hereby authorized and directed to institute such proceedings in the name of the City in any court having jurisdiction over such matters against any property for which the monthly bill has remained unpaid for forty-five days.
(Ord. 569. Passed 9-21-88.)