(A) The City Treasurer and Commissioner of Finance have the authority to order that a customer’s service not be discontinued, to delay service disconnections, to accept partial payments, to adjust or waive fees, penalties and charges, and to make billing adjustments. The Treasurer’s adjustment authority shall not exceed a value of $500. Account adjustments valued between $500.01 to $1,000.00 require signature approval by the Commissioner of Finance. Adjustments valued in excess of $1,000 require formal approval by the City Council.
(B) Upon discovery of a leak in service lines, fixtures, hydrants or valves on the customer’s side of a water meter, written notice will be given by the Finance Department to the customer to make necessary repairs.
(C) If a leak occurs on a service line, fixture, hydrant or valve on the customer’s side and if it can be reasonably determined that the customer could not have easily ascertained that such a leak existed, an adjustment may be made in the customer’s water and sewer bill. Such adjustments shall be made in accordance with the following procedures:
(1) The average monthly water bill during the preceding 12 months shall be computed and deducted from the bill accumulated during the period of the concealed leakage.
(2) From the remainder, the customer shall be credited an amount equal to 50% of the remainder.
(3) The City Treasurer may require written evidence that repairs were made to the customer’s service line or fixtures before approving an adjustment authorized by this section, if the Treasurer has reason to believe that the excess water consumption was not caused by estimated or erroneous meter readings.
(4) Billing adjustments are allowed only once per customer in a 12-month rolling period.
(D) No further billing adjustment shall be made to sewer charges for any reason, including the filling of a swimming pool.
(E) No billing adjustments shall apply to leakage from any service line that is constructed of unapproved plastic materials. All plastic material used in service lines must meet city and state plumbing codes.
(F) Customers who have received a billing adjustment due to a high bill may enter into a payment arrangement with the city whereby the adjusted bill is paid off over time. All subsequent bills must be paid in a timely manner in order for the payment arrangement to remain in effect.
(Ord. 2021-5442, passed 6-1-2021)