(A) The city establishes a Sewer Service Charge System whereby all revenues collected from users will be used to offset all expenditures incurred for operations and maintenance, equipment replacement, administrative, extra-strength treatment and the annual debt service payment of the wastewater treatment works, its facilities and equipment, and related sewage systems.
(B) The city establishes a Sewer Fund into which revenue collected from users, as established in § 53.40, will be deposited for the purpose of funding all expenditures of operating, maintaining, and administering the wastewater treatment works, plant and facilities. This includes extra-strength treatment of wastewater above the normal domestic strength wastewater and repairs and maintenance to the sewage system to maintain operations.
(C) The city establishes a Capital Facilities and Equipment Replacement Fund for the purposes of providing funds to purchase capital equipment and replacements in a timely and orderly fashion.
(D) The city establishes a Debt Service Retirement Fund for the purpose of providing funds to be used solely for the retirement of outstanding debts of the city’s wastewater treatment works. Annually the city shall transfer the amount of funds required by the debt service retirement schedule for that year.
(E) There will be 4 classes of users:
(1) Residential;
(2) Commercial;
(3) Institutional/governmental;
(4) Industrial.
(F) (1) There will be an extra-strength charge for users who discharge extra-strength waste. Extra-strength waste is defined as waste having either a BOD5 concentration greater than 260 mg/l or a TSS concentration greater than 280 mg/l or both BOD5 and TSS concentrations greater than specified. The following formula will be used to compute the extra-strength charge. This charge will be computed for each user based on the B and S factors as established. Residential, commercial and institutional/governmental users will be exempt from this extra-strength charge.
CET($) = [VS (1,000 gal.) x .001 x 8.34] [(B) (CBOD5) + (S) (CTSS)]
Where:
CET = Extra-strength treatment charge for BOD5 strength 260 mg/l and/or TSS strength 280 mg/l base rate.
VS = Billable water flow to an individual connection.
B = Measured discharge BOD5 – 260 mg/l.
CBOD5 = Unit cost of operation, maintenance, and replacement which is BOD5 related.
S = Measured discharge TSS – 280 mg/l.
CTSS = Unit cost of operation, maintenance, and replacement which is TSS related.
(2) Negative values will not be credited against the billing. Establishments not providing automatic waste monitoring equipment will be assessed on the basis of BOD5 and TSS, as determined by analysis of a 24-hour composite sample collected annually by the Superintendent. The waste producer may be required to provide a suitable point for metering and sample collection and shall cooperate in every way with the Superintendent. Where it is not feasible to obtain a single representative sample, the Superintendent may compute a theoretical waste strength based upon similar establishments. Where it is evident that a constituent of the waste significantly inhibits the standard analysis for BOD5, the charges may be assessed on the basis of the TOC analysis. For the purposes of computation, the BOD5 shall be assumed to be equivalent to 1.8 times the TOC.
(G) If any lot, parcel of land, or premises which discharges sewage into the sanitary sewer system, either directly or indirectly, obtains part or all of the water used thereon from sources other than the Public Utility Department, and the water so obtained is not measured by a meter in a manner which is acceptable to the Superintendent, then in such case the city shall permit the discharge of sewage into its sanitary sewer system only when the owner of such a lot, parcel of land or premises, or some other interested party shall at their expense install and maintain a water meter which shall be satisfactory to the Superintendent. Such water meter shall be installed so as to measure all water received on such lot, parcel of land, or premises and the current charges and rates shall be applied to the quantity of water received as measured by such meter. However, if it shall be deemed impractical by the Superintendent to measure the water used on any lot, parcel of land, or premises, a flat charge may be made in accordance with the estimated use of water on such lot, parcel of land, or premises.
(H) If:
(1) A lot, parcel of land, or premises discharges sewage into the sanitary sewer system either directly or indirectly; and
(2) The Superintendent is satisfied that a portion of the water measured by the meter or meters does not and cannot enter the sanitary sewer system, the Superintendent or his or her designee is authorized to determine, in such manner and by such method as he or she may deem practicable, the percentage of the water measured by the meter which enters the sanitary sewer system. In such a case, the charges and rates shall be based upon the percentage of the metered water as determined by the Superintendent. In the alternative in any such case, the Superintendent is authorized to require or to permit the installation of other or additional meters in such a manner that the quantity of water which actually enters the sanitary sewer system may be determined. In such a case, the charges or rates shall be based upon the volume of water so shown to actually enter the sanitary sewer system.
(I) The charges and rates for the use and services of the sanitary sewer system to be made against any lot, parcel of land, or premises situated outside the corporate limits of the city, which shall have any active connection with the sanitary sewer system or which shall otherwise discharge sewage either directly or indirectly into the sewer system shall be determined as provided in this section, and the charge or rate shall be those established by resolution of the City Council, pursuant to division (D) of this section.
(J) (1) The utility services and charges shall be the primary responsibility of the owner of the premises served and shall be billed to him or her unless otherwise authorized in writing. The city may collect the same in a civil action, or in the alternative and at the option of the city, as otherwise provided in this section.
(2) Each such charge is hereby made a lien upon the premises served. All such charges, which are 30 days past due or more, may be certified by the City Clerk to the County Auditor, and the City Clerk in so certifying such charges to the County Auditor shall specify the amount thereof, description of the premises served, and the name of the owner thereof. The amount so certified shall be extended by the Auditor on the tax rolls against such premises in the same manner as other taxes, collected by the County Treasurer, and paid to the city along with other taxes.
(K) Each meter shall be considered a separate billing unit in applying all charges and rates, except that any contribution into the sanitary sewer system, whose water supply at a particular location is received through more than 1 meter, may be billed on the basis of the combined readings of the several meters.
(L) Bills for the charges for the use and service of the sanitary sewer system shall be made out by the Public Utility Department, in accordance with its usual and customary practices. The time of making such bills and the period covered thereby shall be in accordance with the meter reading practices of the Public Utility Department. All bills shall be payable to the City of North Mankato Public Utilities.
(M) The revenues derived from the rates and charges shall be deposited by the City Treasurer in the Sewer Fund.
(N) The city will review annually and not less than biannually the wastewater contribution applicable to each user and user class, the total operation and maintenance costs of the wastewater treatment system and works, and the current approved sewer service charge system, and the charges in effect pursuant to § 53.43. The intent of such review is to:
(1) Maintain a proportionate distribution of the O & M costs among all users and user classes;
(2) To generate sufficient revenues to fund all O & M/R costs of the wastewater treatment system and works; and
(3) Apply excess revenues collected through the user rate schedule of charges, attributable to the operations and maintenance portion of the charges, and adjust that portion of the charges the following year for all classes of users, applying any excess revenues to the user class or classes generating such surplus.
(O) In accordance with 40 C.F.R. § 35.929(2)(f), each user will be notified annually at the beginning of each calendar year, either by mail or with their regular bill, of the user charge rates per user class, the extra-strength charge and other charges attributable to the wastewater treatment services.
(P) In accordance with 40 C.F.R. § 929-3, the City Clerk will be responsible to maintain all records necessary to document compliance with the sewer service system adopted.
(Ord. 73, passed 3-3-1986)