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A lien for delinquent water service charges shall not be certified to the County Treasurer unless prior written notice of intent to certify a lien is given to the customer in whose name the delinquent charges were incurred. If the customer is a tenant and if the owner or landlord of the property has made a written request for notice, the notice shall also be given to the owner or landlord. The notice shall be sent to the appropriate persons by ordinary mail not less than thirty (30) days prior to certification of the lien to the County Treasurer.
(Code of Iowa, Sec. 384.84)
There shall be required from every customer not the owner of the premises served a one hundred dollar ($100.00) deposit intended to guarantee the payment of bills for service. The original amount of the deposit will be refunded to the customer or credited to the customer's account after twenty-four (24) months of continued service so long as during this twenty-four (24) month period there has been no notice of delinquency sent to the customer. This requirement shall not be enforced against prior owners of homes in Mount Vernon who move from their homes (in Mount Vernon) to an apartment or other residence that would normally require a deposit, as long as during the previous twenty-four (24) months of continuous service there had been no notice of delinquency sent.
(Code of Iowa, Sec. 384.84)
1. A reduction in the water and sewer portion of a customer's utility bill shall be granted only on the following terms and conditions:
A. Extraordinary water and sewer usage which results in a utility bill for which a reduction is sought must stem from mechanical failure which is not caused by the customer or an occupant of the affected property.
B. The mechanical failure must be repaired by the customer within fourteen (14) days of its discovery or receipt of notification by the City of the extraordinary usage, whichever is earlier.
For purposes of this ordinance, mechanical failures occur when a component no longer meets performance specifications. Mechanical failures can include deformation, yielding, crack initiation, excessive spalling, corrosion, extreme environmental conditions, etc. (i.e. water line breaks, internal component failures in toilets, water heater failures) Items that are not considered mechanical failures include leaving the faucet running, irrigating lawns, or any other operational failure caused by the owner and/or tenant.
C. No adjustment shall be made unless the water consumed in the month of extraordinary use exceeds 150% the customer's average monthly usage. Average monthly usage for the purposes of this section shall be calculated utilizing a one year rolling average of the volume of water used by the customer.
D. Any reduction shall be limited to the three monthly billing periods preceding the date that the repairs are made to the customer's plumbing system.
E. All requests for an adjustment must be made an a form provided by the City with required attachments and presented to the City Clerk within fourteen (14) days after the completion of repairs. The City Administrator shall grant or deny the application for reduction and notify the customer by ordinary mail of this decision and the amount owed. The customer may appeal the Administrator's decision to the City Council by written request mailed or delivered to the City Clerk within 10 days of the date of the Administrator's notice to the customer. The appeal will be placed on the City Council's agenda as soon as practical and the City Clerk shall notify the customer by ordinary mail of the date of hearing at least five (5) days prior to the date of the hearing.
2. In the event that the customer demonstrates qualification for a reduction in the customer's utility charges under the foregoing guidelines, and is granted a reduction by the City Administrator or the City Council on appeal, then water and sewer portion the monthly utility bill for which reduction is sought shall be reduced by 25% with such reduction being provided to the customer as a credit toward the customer's next monthly bill issued after City Administrator or City Council's decision.