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During the term of this franchise, the Company shall furnish natural gas in the quantity and quality consistent and in accordance with the applicable regulations of the Iowa Utilities Board, the Company's tariff made effective by the Iowa Utilities Board or its successors and Iowa law.
A franchise fee of 1% (one percent) is imposed upon, and shall be collected from, the natural gas customers of the Company receiving service and located within the corporate limits of the City. The franchise fee shall be imposed upon the gross receipts, minus uncollectible accounts, generated from sales of natural gas and distribution service:
1. The City agrees to modify the level of franchise fees imposed only once in any 24-month period.
2. The Company will commence collecting franchise fees on or before the first Company billing cycle of the first calendar month following ninety (90) days of receipt of information required of the City to implement the franchise fee, including the City's documentation of customer classes subject to or exempted from City-imposed franchise fee.
3. The City shall be solely responsible for identifying customer classes subject to or exempt from paying the City imposed franchise fee. The Company shall have no obligation to collect franchise fees from customers in annexed areas until and unless such ordinances have been provided to the Company by certified mail. The Company shall commence collecting franchise fees in the annexed areas no sooner than sixty (60) days after receiving annexation ordinances from the City.
4. The Company shall not, under any circumstances be required to return or refund any franchise fees that have been collected from customers and remitted to the City. In the event the Company is required to provide data or information in defense of the City's imposition of franchise fees or the Company is required to assist the City in identifying customers or calculating any franchise fee refunds for groups of or individual customers the City shall reimburse the Company for the expenses incurred by the Company to provide such data or information.
Upon implementation of a franchise fee, the City shall not, pursuant to Chapter 480A.6 of the Code of Iowa, impose or charge Company right of way management fees for permits for Company construction, maintenance, repairs, excavation, pavement cutting or inspections of Company work sites and projects or related matters.
Either City or Company ("party") may terminate this franchise if the other party shall be materially in breach of its provisions. Upon the occurrence of a material breach, the nonbreaching party shall provide the breaching party with notification by certified mail specifying the alleged breach. The breaching party shall have sixty (60) days to cure the breach, unless it notifies the non-breaching party, and the parties agree upon a shorter or longer period for cure. If the breach is not cured within the cure period, the non-breaching party may terminate this franchise. A party shall not be considered to be in breach of this franchise if it has operated in compliance with state or federal law. A party shall not be considered to have breached this franchise if the alleged breach is the result of the actions of a third party or the other party.