(A) Establishment of Joint Sewer Agency. In order to provide for the protection of the public health, safety, and welfare of its citizens, there is hereby created and established, under and pursuant to the provisions of KRS 76.231, a Joint Sewer Agency to own, manage, control, and operate regional comprehensive wastewater facilities within the county, excluding the facilities planning area boundary of the City of Whitesville.
(B) Board.
(1) The Joint Sewer Agency Board shall consist of seven persons, four of whom shall be appointed by the Mayor of the City of Owensboro and subject to approval of the City Commission; two of whom shall be appointed by the County Judge/Executive and subject to approval of the Fiscal Court; and one of whom shall be jointly appointed by both the Mayor and the County Judge/Executive, subject to the approval of the governing bodies. All appointees shall be qualified as required by state law. The joint appointment will cease at the end of the first four-year term, and thereafter shall become a County Judge/Executive appointment.
(2) Members of the Board shall be persons of outstanding reputations for ability and integrity, shall be at least 25 years of age, a current resident of the county for a period of no less than three years, and will serve for a term of four years.
(3) (a) Initial Board appointments shall be for staggered terms as follows:
1. One appointment from each governing agency shall serve a one-year term;
2. One appointment from each governing agency shall serve a two-year term;
3. Two appointments by the Mayor shall serve a three-year term; and
4. The joint appointment shall serve a four-year term.
(b) All appointments made at the conclusion of the initial staggered period shall thereafter be for a term of four years.
(4) In the event of a Board vacancy, and also at least 30 days preceding the expiration of the term of office of any appointed Board member, a successor shall be appointed by the appropriate governing official. However, the incumbent member shall serve until such time as the vacancy has been filled. All vacancies shall be filled for the unexpired term, and all other appointments shall be for a term of four years.
(5) Any Board member by appointment, upon expiration of his or her term, shall be eligible for reappointment.
(6) Any person who shall have held an elective office within the county shall not be eligible for appointment until at least one year after the expiration of the term for which the appointee was elected.
(7) Each appointed Board member shall be removable for cause as set forth by state statutes.
(8) Any appointed Board member failing to attend three regularly-scheduled successive meetings, or a minimum of 75% of all meetings within a one-year period, without cause acceptable and approved by the Joint Sewer Agency Board, shall automatically be removed from office, and the vacancy shall be filled as provided for in this section.
(9) Each Board member shall be bonded by the Joint Sewer Agency, and all bonds shall be payable to the Agency in the sums the Board may fix, with approved corporate surety, and premiums therefore shall be paid by the Agency.
(C) Meetings of Board; quorum.
(1) The Joint Sewer Agency Board shall meet no less than once per month, and may adopt rules and by-laws for the time and location of its meetings and conduct thereof.
(2) A majority of Board members present at any meeting shall constitute a quorum, and the affirmative majority vote or a minimum of three affirmative votes shall be required for the adoption of any motion, measure, or resolution.
(3) A permanent record of Board proceedings shall be maintained, and shall be available for inspection as a public record.
(D) Officers and employees.
(1) (a) The jointly-appointed Board members shall serve as Chairperson of the Joint Sewer Agency Board. Upon dissolution of the jointly-appointed position, the Chairperson shall be elected by the Board on an annual basis.
(b) At the first meeting of the Joint Sewer Agency Board, and annually thereafter, the Board shall elect a member to serve in the capacity of Vice-Chairperson.
(c) The Chairperson shall preside at all meetings when present, and shall call special meetings of the Chairperson’s own motion or when requested to do so by three other Board members.
(2) The Joint Sewer Agency Board shall have the power to employ, fix the compensation of, and discharge an Executive Director and/or Chief Engineer, and a Secretary-Treasurer. The Board, through the Executive Director, shall direct, employ, or fix the compensation of, and discharge any employee of the Agency. All employees of the Agency shall be subject, however, to civil service statutes and personnel regulations, as established by the Agency.
(3) The Board shall require the Executive Director and/or Chief Engineer and Secretary-Treasurer to execute a bond, and may exact from such of its other officers and employees bonds as it deems expedient. All bonds shall be payable to the Agency in the sums as the Board may fix with approved corporate surety, and premiums therefor shall be paid by the Agency.
(4) The Board may also employ, and remove at its pleasure, legal counsel, professional and technical advisors or services, experts, and other persons, skilled or unskilled, as it deems requisite for the performance of its duties. The Joint Sewer Agency shall adopt the Commonwealth Model Procurement Code, and these services shall be procured and reviewed according to said Code.
(5) The Joint Sewer Agency shall contract with the City of Owensboro for financial, engineering, and personnel services through June 30, 1996. Effective July 1, 1996, these services shall be performed by the Agency, or procured as outlined in division (D)(4) above. The Joint Sewer Agency shall give a 90-day notice to the City of Owensboro, prior to the discontinuance of any of the aforementioned services.
(E) Agency to take over existing facilities.
(1) All bond requirements of the Owensboro Sewer Commission must be fulfilled, prior to the formation of the Joint Sewer Agency.
(2) Upon establishment of the Joint Sewer Agency, all existing assets, liabilities, easements, personnel, control, management, and authority of the Owensboro Sewer Commission shall be transferred to, and become a part of, the Agency.
(3) Upon establishment of the Joint Sewer Agency, all personnel of the Owensboro Sewer Commission shall be transferred to the Agency, and shall retain all existing and accrued benefits, including, but not limited to, wages and/or salaries, vacations, sick leave, years of service, and pension investment.
(4) At such time as transfer of said existing assets, liabilities, personnel, and authority of the Owensboro Sewer Commission is complete, the Owensboro Sewer Commission shall no longer retain any power or authority, but shall continue to exist for the sole purpose of initiating any causes of action that it may have. Any monies received on such causes of action shall immediately be transferred to the Joint Sewer Agency.
(5) In the event that the legislative bodies of the City of Owensboro and the County Fiscal Court should decide to dissolve the Joint Sewer Agency, all existing assets, liabilities, personnel, and authority shall be distributed as stipulated in identical ordinances approved and adopted by both governing agencies.
(F) Appeals process.
(1) Any person or entity aggrieved by any final action of the Joint Sewer Agency Board, may appeal from said action to the legislative body (city or county) of appropriate jurisdiction. The Joint Agency shall be allowed to appear before the appropriate legislative body and defend its action or decision. The respective legislative body hearing the appeal may modify, sustain, or overrule the action taken by the Joint Sewer Agency Board.
(2) Appeals by the aggrieved party shall be made in writing by filing the appeal with the Clerk of the appropriate legislative body within 30 days after the decision of the Joint Sewer Agency Board. All decisions which have not been appealed within 30 days shall become final.
(G) General powers of the Agency. The Joint Sewer Agency created under this section is empowered:
(1) To have full and complete jurisdiction, control, possession, and supervision of said existing wastewater system, including the maintenance, operation, reconstruction, and improvements to the same as a regional comprehensive wastewater system; to make additions, betterments, and extensions thereto within the Agency area; and to have all the privilege and jurisdiction necessary or proper for carrying such powers into execution. No enumeration of powers shall operate to restrict the meaning of this general grant of power, or to exclude other powers comprehended within this general grant;
(2) To acquire by purchase, gift, lease, or by condemnation, real property or any interest, right, easement, or privilege therein, as the Board determines necessary, proper, and convenient for the purposes of the Agency, and to use the same so long as the Agency’s existence continues. Condemnation proceedings may be instituted in the name of the Agency pursuant to a resolution of the Board declaring the necessity for the taking, and the method of condemnation shall be the same as provided in the Eminent Domain Act of the commonwealth. When the Board, by resolution, declares that any real property which it has acquired, or any interest therein, is no longer necessary or useful to the Agency, the real property and interest therein may be disposed of;
(3) To make by-laws and agreements for the management and regulation of its affairs and for the regulation of the use of property under its control;
(4) To make contracts and execute all instruments necessary or convenient in the premises;
(5) To recommend and initiate all user charges adequate to meet the projected revenue requirement necessary to maintain and operate the complete wastewater collection system and treatment facilities in a manner that complies with federal and state guidelines. The existing user charges and rates as established by the Owensboro Sewer Commission shall be adopted by the Joint Sewer Agency. All user charges shall remain in effect until such time as a user charge change has been approved by the Rate Review Board;
(6) To borrow money and issue negotiable bonds, and to provide for the rights of the holders thereof, subject to the approval of the Rate Review Board;
(7) To establish service area boundaries, define service within those boundaries, and establish policies for the same;
(8) To enter any lands, waters, and premises for the purpose of making surveys, soundings, and examinations;
(9) To require payment for wastewater service, at such time as wastewater facilities become available;
(10) To discontinue service for nonpayment;
(11) To approve or revise the plans and designs of all wastewater facilities proposed to be constructed, altered, or reconstructed, including, but not limited to, sewer lines, pump stations, or wastewater treatment facilities, by any other person or corporation, public or private within the county, excluding the facilities planning area boundary of the City of Whitesville, in order to ensure that such proposed construction, alteration, or reconstruction shall conform to, and be a part of, a regional comprehensive wastewater plan for the county. The right to review and comment on all plans for construction, alteration, or reconstruction shall be extended to the City Engineer or County Engineer, as determined by the area of jurisdiction for which the project is proposed. These projects shall also be subject to the inspection and supervision of the Agency; and
(12) The Joint Agency Board shall prepare a budget annually for the wastewater activities and hold a public hearing on said budget prior to its adoption, effective beginning with fiscal year July 1, 1997.
(H) Payments to local governments. The Joint Sewer Agency shall pay no money, nor provide free services, to any local government except as payment for contracted services or purchases of land or equipment as required by law.
(I) Rate Review Board.
(1) A Rate Review Board shall be comprised of the members of the County Fiscal Court and the Owensboro City Commission sitting as a single body, solely for the purpose set out in this division (I).
(2) A simple majority of the members shall be a quorum to conduct business pursuant to written notice by the Joint Agency Board.
(3) The Rate Review Board shall approve or disapprove all rate changes recommended by the Joint Agency Board by majority vote. The Rate Review Board shall not have the authority to initiate rate changes.
(J) Uniform user charges. All residential user charges shall be uniform throughout the collection system, except that surcharges may be assessed for capital expansion of the system.
(K) Stormwater utilities. The County Fiscal Court and the City of Owensboro, within their respective jurisdictions, shall have the authority to establish with sufficient funding, a separate and independent stormwater utility by separate ordinance, under the management and control of the Joint Sewer Agency.
(L) Effective date. This section shall become effective immediately upon passage and publication.
(Ord. 610.2 (94), passed 10-5-1994; R.1 (96), passed 10-30-1996)