(a) Assessment of Municipal Fees. There is hereby assessed and shall be collected a charge against residential users of municipal services and non-residential/business establishments which use municipal services situate within the City for essential municipal services, including police protection, fire protection and street maintenance. The charge for such services shall be $13.00 per month for each single family unit residence, per unit, and for each multiple-family dwelling or apartment house per each unit or apartment, whether or not occupied, and $25.00 per month for each nonresidential/business establishment whether or not occupied. $5.00 per month of the municipal fee collected shall be set aside in a special account to offset the cost of monthly mailing of municipal bills and funding of the unfunded liability of the Fireman's Pension Fund.
(Ord. 779. Passed 6-17-19.)
(b) Statement. The City Clerk shall be charged with the duty of mailing a statement on a monthly or quarterly basis to each person or business establishment to be charged with the municipal fee hereby imposed for the fee due for the preceding month or quarter, as the case may be, but failure to mail any statement for monthly or quarterly charges shall not be grounds for avoiding payment. A statement shall be mailed by the Clerk at least as frequently as once each quarter but, at the discretion of the Clerk a statement may be consolidated by the Clerk with statements for other municipal fees or services due from such person or business establishment. If a monthly statement is mailed by the Clerk, it may be mailed each month on a date selected by the Clerk, but the Clerk shall render the monthly billing to such person or business establishment in a uniform manner so that each monthly bill is mailed at intervals of approximately thirty (30) days after the end of the quarter.
(c) Liability. The record owner of the property upon which a single family residence is situate shall be presumed to be the user of the municipal service rendered for the benefit of said property and the record owner shall be liable to the City for said charges. The owners of record of a multi-family dwelling or apartment house shall be presumed to be the users of such municipal services for each and every individual dwelling unit located thereon and shall be liable to the City for said charges for each and every unit. Persons doing business as partners in a business establishment within the City shall be jointly and severally liable for said charges.
(Ord. 667. Passed 1-3-12.)
(d) Notice. The City Clerk, when directed by the City Council, shall provide notice to the record owner of the residence or business establishment which is delinquent in the payment of the municipal service fees, or any portion thereof. The notice provided shall be addressed to the record owner; and sent by certified mail, return receipt requested, to the address of the record owner at the address of the same maintained by the Assesor of Kanawha County, West Virginia. The statement of notice shall state that:
(1) Delinquent municipal service fees were assessed by ordinance and are delinquent;
(2) Payment of such municipal service fees are to be paid by the specified date provided, which is to be no less than ninety (90) days from the date the statement of notice is mailed;
(3) The City may file a lien against the record owner’s real property if payment is not received by such specified date; and
(4) The record owner has the right to appeal in the Circuit Court of Kanawha County.
(e) Filing of a Lien. Once notice has been given under subsection (d) of this section the City may file a lien against real property of the record owner of the property for delinquent municipal service fees, or any portion thereof, attributable to fire, police and/or street fees for the time in which the municipal service fees are delinquent pursuant to West Virginia Code §8-13- 13(d) or any successor provisions.
(f) Right to Appeal. The record owner of the property shall have the right to appeal to the Circuit Court of Kanawha County. If appealed, the Circuit Court shall consider such appeal under its general authority, including, but not limited to such authority under West Virginia Code.
(Ord. 735. Passed 5-2-16.)