(A) Collections. Any account that carries a late fee charge for greater than 20 days from the billing date may be assigned to a bona fide collection agency and assessed a delinquent collection charge, all as designated and determined by the Town Manager.
(B) Termination of service.
(1) It is the policy of the town to discontinue utility service to customers by reason of nonpayment of bills only after notice and a meaningful opportunity to be heard on disputed bills. The town'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 provisions to the effect:
(a) That all bills are due and payable on or before the date set forth on the bill; and
(b) That if any bill is not paid by or before that date, a second bill will be mailed containing a cutoff notice that if the bill is not paid within ten days of the mailing of the second bill, service will be discontinued for nonpayment; and
(c) That any customer disputing the correctness of his or her bill shall have a right to a hearing at which time he or she may be represented in person and by counsel or any other person of his or her choosing and may present orally or in writing his or her complaint and contentions to the town official in charge of utility billing. This official shall be authorized to order that the customer's service not be discontinued and shall have the authority to make a final determination of the customer's complaint.
(2) 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, but in no event until the charges have been due and unpaid for at least 30 days.
(3) When it becomes necessary for the town to discontinue utility service to a customer for nonpayment of bills, service will be reinstated only after all bills for service then due have been paid, along with a turn-on charge in an amount set by resolution of the Town Council and amended from time to time.
(C) Civil action. The town reserves the right to enforce the collection of any unpaid and delinquent accounts by civil action.
(D) Liens.
(1) The town may file a lien on the user’s property for the nonpayment of charges due on the user’s account for services provided to the property if the payment of the charges is delinquent for more than 90 days.
(2) Before filing the lien, the town shall provide written notice to the owner of the property. The notice shall be given at least 30 days before filing the lien and shall include an opportunity for a hearing with the Town Manager. The notice shall be either personally served or mailed to the property owner at the last known address by certified mail, or to the address to which the tax bill for the property was last mailed. If the owner does not reside on the property, the notice shall be sent to the last known address.
(3) The unpaid user fees, from the date of recording in the office of the County Recorder, are a lien on the property until the fees are paid. The lien is subject and inferior to the lien for general taxes and to all prior recorded mortgages and encumbrances of record. A sale of the property to satisfy a lien obtained under this section shall be made on judgment of foreclosure and order of sale. The town may bring an action to enforce the lien in the County Superior Court at any time after the recording, but failure to enforce the lien by this action does not affect its validity. The recorded unpaid user fees are prima facie evidence of the truth of all matters recited in the recording and of the regularity of all proceedings before the recording.
(4) Unpaid user fees pursuant to this subchapter accrue interest at the rate prescribed by A.R.S. § 44-1201.
(5) A prior assessment of unpaid user fees for the purposes provided in this subchapter does not bar a subsequent assessment for these purposes and any number of liens on the same lot or tract of land may be enforced in the same action.
(6) The lien provisions of this section do not apply to residential property occupied by a lessee where the lessee is responsible for payment of the user fees. The town shall determine the status of leased residential property prior to filing the lien.
(Ord. 02-2004, passed 4-8-2004; Ord. 01-2013, passed 7-11-2013; Ord. 05-2017, passed 8-10-2017)