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As used in this chapter:
(a) "Billing units" means a family dwelling unit, the number of living quarters with separate sanitary facilities contained in a multifamily structure, the number of bathrooms and/or toilet rooms contained in a multi-occupancy structure, the number of separate and distinct profit or nonprofit activities being conducted in a commercial structure, or an industrial structure.
(b) "City sewerage system" means the sewer mains, trunk lines, lateral sewers from the main to the point of sewer service line connections, sewer service treatment plants and all appurtenant facilities operated by the City in furnishing sewage service in whole or in part outside its boundaries.
(c) "Commercial structures" includes all structures or parts thereof that do not otherwise qualify as industrial structures, family dwelling units, multifamily structures or multi-occupancy structures, that are connected to the City sewerage system, without regard to whether or not the property is used for profit and without regard to the legal status of the owner or user thereof, but excluding City owned and used structures.
(d) "Customer" means every property owner, commercial, industrial or nonprofit establishment or other entity whose property is tapped into the City sewerage system or into the sewerage system of any municipality.
(e) (EDITOR'S NOTE: Subsection (e) was repealed by Ordinance 4543, passed September 26, 1990.)
(f) "Family" means:
(1) An individual or two or more individuals related by blood, marriage or adoption, living together in a dwelling unit; or
(2) A group of not more than three persons who need not be related by blood, marriage or adoption, living together as a single housekeeping unit in a dwelling unit and sharing common facilities that are considered reasonably appropriate for a family related by blood, marriage or adoption.
(g) "Family dwelling unit" means a building or structure or part thereof designed for and used exclusively for single-family residential occupancy. The term does not include motels, hotels, boarding houses, dormitories, fraternity or sorority houses, hospitals, housing for the elderly, nursing homes, institutional facilities, rooming houses and the like.
(h) "Industrial structures" includes structures owned by persons, firms, companies, businesses, associations or other entities, which structures are connected, directly or indirectly, to the City sewerage system, and which structures are used for basic manufacturing processes, such as iron, steel or other metal manufacturing or processing; foundry or fabrication plants; heavy weight casting, including galvanizing and other treatment; blast furnaces; rolling mills; machine shops; boiler works; brick, tile or terra cotta manufacturing plants; and the like.
(i) "Meter" means any device for measuring and recording fluid flows, which device is acceptable in the opinion of the City Engineer or the consulting engineer.
(j) "Multifamily structures" means structures or parts thereof designed and used for multifamily residential use, including apartment houses, duplexes, row houses, boarding houses, dormitories, fraternity or sorority houses, housing for the elderly, nursing homes and institutional facilities.
(k) "Multi-occupancy structures" means structures designed for occupancy primarily as the temporary abiding place of individuals who are lodged there, with or without meals, including, but not limited to, motels, hotels, hospitals, rooming houses and the like.
(l) "Municipality" means every borough, township, authority or other political body which owns a sewage collection system which is tapped into the City sewage collection system, directly or indirectly. As a condition for tapping into the City sewer system, and as a condition for the continuing tap into the City sewer systems, the Municipality shall abide by the terms and conditions of this chapter.
(m) "Owner" means any person owning any premises receiving or utilizing the services of the City sewerage system.
(n) "Sewage" means spent water, together with human and household wastes ordinarily removed by water carriage, and industrial wastes. Such definition expressly excludes the effluent from septic tanks or cesspools, as well as rain, storm and ground water which could in any way enter the City sewerage system or the sewerage system of any municipality, as well as roof or surface drainage and drainage of percolating or seeping waters or of accumulations thereof, whether underground or in cellars or basements.
(o) "User" means a person or entity, whether the owner or another person, occupying premises connected directly or indirectly to the City sewerage system.
(p) "Water utility" means all authorities and municipal and private corporations or companies engaged in the supplying of water or water services.
(Ord. 4543. Passed 9-26-90.)
Any Municipality or person, firm or corporation therein, and any person within the City, who or which contemplates land development projects and, by reason thereof, contemplates any extension of the existing system of sewers which is intended to connect with the City sewer system either directly or indirectly, shall do so in accordance with the provisions of these rules and regulations and the laws of the Commonwealth relating thereto. Before any such projects are begun, or connections or additions are made, two copies of the maps or drawings of such system or addition to the system must be furnished to the City Plumbing Inspector and to the Superintendent of the Bureau of Sewage, and must be approved by the Superintendent. All properties served by such system connected with the City sewer system shall become subject to the provisions contained in this chapter, and the furnishing of sewage service to such properties shall be at the rate and charges provided in tariffs of the City.
(Ord. 4543. Passed 9-26-90.)
(a) Every municipality must, as a condition for tapping and/or maintaining the tap of its sewer system into the City sewer system, construct and maintain its own sewage collection system up to the point where it is connected with the City sewer system. The City shall not in any way be responsible for the existence, maintenance or operation of the municipality's sewage collection system.
(b) The City shall maintain the City sewer system in a good state of repair so as to handle the sewage delivered to it by its customers or by any municipality.
(c) As a condition for tapping into the City sewer system, a municipality shall comply with all of the provisions of this chapter and comply with the terms and conditions imposed on all users.
(Ord. 4543. Passed 9-26-90.)
(a) All persons owning or using property directly or indirectly connected to the City sewer system, and served with metered water service by a water utility, shall pay a quarterly rental or charge for sanitary sewage collection services based on the quantity of water used, as evidenced by meter readings of water meters installed for the purpose of measuring water purchased from and furnished by a water utility, or of such other meters as may be installed pursuant to any provision of this chapter.
(Ord. 4567. Passed 2-27-91.)
(b) In the event any customer, discharging sewage or other liquids into the City sewer system, either directly or indirectly obtains part or all of the water used by him or her from sources other than a water utility, such user of other waters shall, at its own expense, install and maintain water meters satisfactory to the City for measuring all water usage other than that obtained from the public water system, and the quantity of water used to determine the volumetric usage charge under this chapter shall be the sum of the quantity measured by all such meters plus the quantity of water obtained from the public water systems. City personnel shall at all reasonable times have the authority to enter the customer's premises to gain access to meters owned by the customer for the purpose of reading the meters. Each meter, whenever installed by the customer, shall have been tested for accuracy at the customer's expense, and thereafter will be tested periodically, also at the customer's expense.
(c) Customers requesting consideration for a reduction in the sewage volumetric charges because of water not entering the City sewer system shall make written application to the City for such consideration, giving the name of the person, the person's address and account number and supporting data fully describing the sources of water as well as the disposition of water alleged not to be entering the City sewer system. The application shall be accompanied by a drawing to approximate scale showing the plan of the property, water source, sewer layout, existing meters and proposed meters to determine the quantity of flow entering or not entering the City sewer system. The cost of furnishing, installing and maintaining any meters other than those utilized shall be borne by the customer. The type, size, location, arrangement and maintenance of such meters shall be subject to the approval of the City.
(d) In the event that it is established to the satisfaction of the City that a portion of the water measured by the water meters servicing the customer's property does not and cannot enter the City sewer system, then the City may determine, in such manner and by such method as it may deem practical, the portion of the metered water actually entering the City sewer system, or the City may require or permit the installation of additional meters by the customer in such a manner as to determine the quantity of sewage actually entering the City sewer system. The sewage volumetric charges shall be based upon the quantity of sewage estimated, measured or computed by the City to be actually entering the City sewer system.
(Ord. 4543. Passed 9-26-90.)
(a) There is hereby imposed upon each property served by the City sewer system and having the use thereof, a quarterly sewer rent or charge payable as hereinafter provided, for the use, whether direct or indirect, of the City sewer system, based on the rates hereinafter set forth. All owners connected to the City sewer system shall be billed according to the following schedule of sewer rates and the billing practice of the City, by determining the total number of billing units for which such owners are responsible, and the following charges shall be imposed for each such billing unit:
Sewage Volume | Quarterly Rates |
0 - 6,000 gallons | $21.74 minimum |
6,001 - 40,000 gallons | 3.62 per 1,000 gallons |
40,001 - 100,000 gallons | 2.04 per 1,000 gallons |
100,001 - 200,000 gallons | 1.23 per 1,000 gallons |
200,001 - 300,000 gallons | 0.87 per 1,000 gallons |
All over 300,000 gallons | 0.76 per 1,000 gallons |
(Ord. 4735. Passed 12-13-95; Ord. 4881. Passed 9-25-02.)
(b) There shall be imposed the foregoing minimum rentals and charges on each billing unit, the same as if each billing unit were separate and apart from the others. Sewage collection charges in excess of the minimum charge on each such billing unit shall be determined by dividing the total water consumed by the number of billing units involved and applying the above rate schedule to the quantity so determined.
(c) Any municipality, if it wishes, may guarantee the payment of rates by customers living within its municipal boundaries or pay the rates otherwise owed to the City by such customers, but the ultimate responsibility for the payment of such rates shall remain with the customers until the amounts are so paid by the municipality.
(d) Any customer connected to a sewage collection system owned by a municipality which is not served by the Johnstown Water Authority or other water utility shall place a flow meter at the tap-in point to the sewer line before making a tap-in. As a condition for tapping into the City sewer system, the municipality shall advise the City of the existence of any such customers. Such customers shall pay the same quarterly sewer rates as set forth in division (a) of this section, the same as other customers.
(e) All customers or persons owning property connected directly or indirectly to the City sewer system shall give the City their correct address. Failure to receive bills shall not be considered an excuse for nonpayment, nor shall it permit an extension of the period during which bills are payable at face.
(f) All rentals for services under this chapter, together with all penalties thereon, not paid on or before the end of 30 days from the date of each bill, shall be deemed to be delinquent. To the extent permitted by law, all delinquent rentals and all penalties thereon shall be a lien on the property served and may be entered as a lien against such property in the office of the Prothonotary of Cambria County, and shall be collected in the manner provided by law for the filing and collection of such liens.
(g) Monthly bills for services under this chapter shall be subject to a 5% per month penalty for commercial and industrial customers and a 1.5% per month penalty for residential customers if not paid within 30 days after the date of the bill. In the event of an unpaid account, after the tenth of the month following the original billing due date, the water service shall be shut off. Service for water or sewage will not be restored until all delinquent bills against the same, and the costs of shutting off and restoring service have been paid.
(h) The City shall estimate each customer's sewer usage, and upon the basis thereof the customer shall be billed one-third of the customer's estimated quarterly sewer bill for each of the first two months of each quarter, and the bill for the third month of the quarter shall be such an amount as is necessary to reflect the customer's actual usage for the quarter.
(i) The City of Johnstown shall file, with the Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission, the regulations required by the Public Utility Commission Order of June 14, 1989, at Docket No. I-880083, upon approval thereof by a professional engineer for the system.
(j) The rates provided in division (a) of this section are designed to allow the City to operate the City sewer system on a self-sustaining basis, without the use of City tax revenues, with the revenues derived from the users being utilized solely for the complete operation of the City sewer system. In furtherance thereof, recognizing that any rate increase lawfully imposed on non-City residents shall be simultaneously imposed on all City residents who are users of the City sewer system:
(1) The Bureau of Sewage is hereby empowered to petition the Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission, from time to time, for such rate increases in the future as may be needed to assure that all of the following are timely paid by the users:
A. All annual operating expenses of the City sewer system, as reflected in the annual budget adopted by the City;
B. All costs for debt service on large scale improvements or renovations of the City sewer system incurred and mandated by State or Federal laws or regulations and/or approved by City Council;
C. All costs of small scale (less than one million dollars ($1,000,000) annually) improvements or renovations of the City sewer system incurred and mandated by State or Federal laws or regulations;
D. All incurred costs of small scale (less than one million dollars ($1,000,000) annually) improvements or renovations of the City sewer system as needed and evidenced by certification from the professional engineer for the system and approved by the Bureau of Sewage;
E. All costs for debt service on large scale improvements or renovations of the City sewer system as needed and evidenced by certification from the professional engineer for the system and as authorized by the administration and by resolution of Council; and
F. Such funds as are necessary to create and maintain an Annual Reserve Fund(s) for future expansion or improvements to the sewer system to the extent permitted by statutes or rules or regulations of the Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission.
However, no rate increase shall be collected from residents of the City of Johnstown prior to the time that the same rate increase is also collected from residents of outlying municipalities upon approval of the rates, tariffs, rules or regulations by the Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission.
(2) The Bureau of Sewage of the City of Johnstown may adopt such rules and regulations as are necessary and reasonable for the proper and efficient operation of the City sewer system as recommended or approved by the professional engineer for the system, which rules and regulations are not inconsistent with this chapter and which rules and regulations:
A. Are necessary to maintain compliance with any NPDES discharge permit;
B. Are necessary to maintain the physical integrity or the designed operational characteristics of the City sewer system; or
C. Are necessary for the health or safety of the users or for the employees or agents of the Bureau of Sewage.
However, no petition for a rate increase, nor any rule or regulation under this subsection, shall become effective without thirty days prior notice to Council of the City of Johnstown and the legislative body of any affected municipality, and upon approval of the rate, tariff, rule or regulation by the Public Utility Commission. Council for the City of Johnstown shall have the right to deny the City the right to file any petitions for a rate increase or the right to issue such rule or regulation within thirty days of receipt of such prior notice.
(Ord. 4543. Passed 9-26-90; Ord. 4567. Passed 2-27-91.)
The rates properly charged under this chapter shall be a lien on the properties served when properly filed in the office of the Prothonotary and may be collected in the manner and to the extent provided by law for the filing and collection of municipal claims, or by a civil action in assumpsit, at the option of the City.
(Ord. 4543. Passed 9-26-90.)
Every water utility is hereby authorized and required, at the request of the City, to supply to it, on or before the fifteenth day of the month following the month during which water bills are issued, a list of all water meter readings and flat-rate water bills issued during the preceding calendar month and the basis of such flat-rate customers' water charges so that such data may be used by the City in calculating and computing its rentals, rates or charges for furnishing sewerage and sewage treatment service to such water customers.
(Ord. 4543. Passed 9-26-90.)
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