(A) Responsibility for payment; lien.
(1) Regardless of the occupancy of a premises, the owner thereof shall be responsible for payment of all electric, water, sewer and sanitation charges arising out of provision of such services to the owner’s premises, or arising out of any repair to or maintenance of the owner’s service connections. All service charges, delinquent electric, water, sewer and sanitation charges, together with penalties, interest and the cost of collection of the same, if any, shall be and remain a lien upon the property to which the services are delivered from the date such charges, penalties, service charges, together with interest and any cost of collection, become due until the same are paid. This lien against the property, or the liability against the owner, may be enforced by the town by an action at law or an action to enforce the lien.
(2) In the event that any person in possession of any premises pays the entire charges due and owing, the payment shall relieve the owner from such liability and the premises from the lien; however, the town shall in no event be required to look to any person other than the owner of the premises for the payment of the charges. No change in ownership or occupation shall affect the application of this section or any of its provisions and the failure of any owner to learn that he or she purchased any property against which a lien for electric, water, sewer or sanitation serves exists shall in no way affect his or her liability for such payment in full or be the basis for any claim of any kind whatsoever against the town for refusing to turn of electric, water, sewer or sanitation services until such charges have been paid in full.
(B) Delinquencies; remedies. If any charge for electric, water, sewer or sanitation service imposed pursuant to this public works title is not paid by the date due, the town may avail itself of any or all combination of the following remedies, in addition to any other available remedies.
(1) The town may foreclose the lien imposed by division (A) above in accordance with law.
(2) The town may maintain an action in any court of competent jurisdiction for the amount of the charges due and any interest, costs and attorney fees allowed by law.
(3) The town may certify the amount of the charge due to the County Clerk and Treasurer, together with the assessment fee provided by resolution, to become an assessment upon the property served and to be collected and paid over to the Town Clerk/Treasurer in the same manner as taxes.
(Ord. 2015-2, passed 4-6-2015)