A. Basis for Wastewater Service Charges: The wastewater service charge for the use of and for service supplied by the wastewater facilities of the City shall consist of a basic user charge for operation and maintenance plus replacement, applicable surcharges and a debt service charge.
The debt service charge is computed as a charge per one thousand (1,000) gallons.
The basic user charge shall be based on water usage as recorded by water meters and/or sewage meters for users having water or sewage meters (or based on estimated water usage for users not having meters) for wastes having the following normal domestic concentrations:
1. A five (5) day, twenty degree centigrade (20o C) biochemical oxygen demand (BOD) of two hundred (200) mg/l.
2. A suspended solids (SS) content of two hundred fifty (250) mg/l.
It shall consist of operation and maintenance costs plus replacement and shall be computed as follows:
a. Estimated wastewater volume, pounds of SS and pounds of BOD to be treated.
b. Estimate the projected annual revenue required to operate and maintain the wastewater facilities including a replacement fund for the year, for all works categories.
c. Proportion the estimated OM&R costs to each user class by volume, suspended solids and BOD.
d. Proportion the estimated operation, maintenance and replacement (OM&R) costs to wastewater facility categories by volume, suspended solids, and BOD.
e. Compute costs per one thousand (1,000) gallons for normal sewage strength.
f. Compute surcharge costs per pound per one thousand (1,000) gallons in excess of normal sewage strength for BOD and SS.
A surcharge will be levied to all users whose waters exceed the normal domestic concentrations of BOD (200 mg/l) and SS (250 mg/l). The surcharge will be based on water usage as recorded by the water meters and/or sewage meters for all wastes which exceed the two hundred (200) mg/l and two hundred fifty (250 mg/l) concentration for BOD and SS respectively. Subsection F of this Section specifies the procedure to compute a surcharge. All such users shall be metered.
The adequacy of wastewater service charge shall be reviewed, not less often than annually, by certified public accountants for the City in their annual audit report. The wastewater service charge shall be revised periodically to reflect a change in local capital costs or a change in operation and maintenance costs including replacement costs.
The users of wastewater treatment services will be notified annually, in conjunction with a regular bill, of the rate and that portion of the user charges which are attributable to the wastewater treatment operation, maintenance and replacement.
B. Measurement of Flow: The volume of flow used for computing basic user charges and surcharges for metered users shall be the metered water consumption read to the lowest even increments of one hundred (100) gallons. The volume of flow used for computing basic user charges for unmetered users shall be water consumption based upon estimated usage. The estimated annual usage for each unmetered user shall be calculated by subtracting the total annual metered usage for all metered users from the total water annually supplied by the City Water Department and dividing by the number of unmetered users. (All unmetered users are assumed to discharge the same amounts of wastewater.)
1. If the person discharging wastes into the public sewers procures any part, or all, of his water from sources other than the public waterworks system, all or part of which is discharged into the public sewers, the person shall install and maintain, at his expense, water meters of a type approved by the Superintendent of Public Works for the purpose of determining the volume of water obtained from these other sources.
2. Devices for measuring the volume of waste discharged may be required by the Superintendent of Public Works if these volumes cannot otherwise be determined from metered water consumption records.
3. Metering devices for determining the volume of waste shall be installed, owned, and maintained by the person. Following approval and installation, such meters may not be removed, unless service is canceled, without the consent of the City. (Ord. 576, 1-17-1984)
C. Basic User Rate: Effective January 1, 2023, a basic user rate of forty seven dollars eighty cents ($47.80) per month for unmetered users located within the corporate limits of the City is hereby established. A basic user rate of forty four dollars thirty five cents ($44.35) per month for unmetered residential users age sixty five (65) or older located within the corporate limits of the City and who have provided sufficient proof of age to the City Clerk is hereby established. The rate for metered users shall be on a monthly basis and shall be as follows:
Up to one thousand (1,000) gallons used per month shall be twenty four dollars ($24.00). If a metered user uses between zero and one thousand (1,000) gallons, the rate shall be sixty nine dollars ($69.00).
The next five thousand (5,000) gallons shall be nine dollars ($9.00), so if a metered user uses above one thousand (1,000) gallons and six thousand (6,000) gallons or less, the rate shall be an additional nine dollars ($9.00).
The next fourteen thousand (14,000) gallons shall be four dollars ($4.00), so if a metered user uses from six thousand one (6,001) gallons to twenty thousand (20,000) gallons.
All metered users using above twenty thousand (20,000) gallons shall pay an additional one dollar ($1.00) per one thousand (1,000) gallons used or part of an additional one thousand (1,000) gallons.
All meters shall be read monthly. (Ord. 923, 5-17-2016; amd. Ord. 964, 7-16-2019; Ord. 977, 9-15-2020; Ord. 991, 8-16-2022)
D. Surcharge Rate: The rates of surcharges for BOD and SS shall be as follows:
Per pound of BOD | $0.238 |
Per pound of SS | 0.061 |
E. Computation Of Surcharge: The concentration of wastes used for computing surcharges shall be established by waste sampling. Waste sampling shall be performed as often as may be deemed necessary by the Superintendent of Public Works and shall be binding as a basis for surcharges. (Ord. 637, 7-7-1992)
F. Computation Of Wastewater Service Charge: The wastewater service charge shall be computed by the following formula:
CW = CU + CS
Where,
CW = Amount of waste service charge ($) per billing period.
CU = Basic user rate for operation, maintenance and replacement (subsection C of this section).
CS = Amount of surcharge (subsections D and E of this section).
Unmetered users with a property containing multiple users (such as a business and an apartment) shall pay the sum of the monthly charges for each use. (Ord. 779, 1-20-2004)
G. Provision For Adjusting User Charge: Any user having a water meter who can demonstrate that a substantial portion of the metered water is not discharged to a public sewer may apply to the City Council for an equitable adjustment of the basic user charge. In adjusting the sewer use charge, the City Council, at its discretion, may require any of the following:
1. Separate water meters for water entering and not entering the public sewers.
2. A sewage meter.
3. Satisfactory evidence of the actual proportion of the metered water that is discharged to the public sewer.
Any costs associated with meeting these requirements shall be borne by the user. (Ord. 637, 7-7-1992)
H. Effective Date Of Rates: The rates and service charges established for user charges in subsections D through F of this section shall be effective as of September 1, 1999, for metered and unmetered users. (Ord. 726, 7-20-1999; amd. Ord. 756, 1-15-2002)
I. Appeals: The method for computation of rates and service charges established for user charges in subsections C through F of this section shall be made available to a user within fifteen (15) days of receipt of a written request for such. Any disagreement over the method used or in the computations thereof shall be remedied by the City Clerk within thirty (30) days after notification of a formal written appeal filed outlining the discrepancies. (Ord. 637, 7-7-1992)
J. Multiple Service Uses: All other ordinances of the City of Lanark notwithstanding, in the event a resident of the City of Lanark occupies the same building both for their primary residence and for use as a beauty shop or beauty parlor, they shall be billed only a single billing for water and wastewater service to said residence and beauty shop or beauty parlor. In the event the water and/or wastewater charges are raised at any time in the future, the total charged for a residence and beauty shop or beauty parlor in a single building shall be the same as for a single residence. (Ord. 779, 1-20-2004)
K. Service Shut Off By Owner: All other ordinances of the City notwithstanding, in the event a resident of the City directs that their water service be shut off so that they are not drawing water through the City's system, their fee for water and sewer services shall be zero dollars zero cents ($0.00) for that period of time in which they are not receiving water service. Nothing in this subsection shall be construed to reduce or eliminate any water disconnect or water hookup charges to be charged by the City now or at any time in the future. (Ord. 650, 5-4-1993)
L. Vacant Homes: All vacant homes shall be billed for water, sewer, and garbage unless affirmative action is taken by the homeowners and water has been shut off. The resumption of water service shall continue to require a twenty five dollar ($25.00) reconnection fee. Any landowner failing to have the water shut off shall continue to be charged the normal sewer and garbage rates, together with the normal water rates. (Ord. 729, 8-17-1999)