All unpaid water service and water usage charges shall be charged to and collected from the owner of the premises, and the charges shall be a lien on the premises and real estate where used, and may be collected by the city at any time after the charges become due, by civil action in the courts. It shall be the duty of the Department of Utilities, in its quarterly report, to report the names of all parties delinquent in payment of their water charges, showing the amount due from each delinquent, together with a description of the property upon or for which the water or service has been used or supplied, and thereupon the Council shall, by resolution, direct the City Clerk to file with the County Clerk a certified copy of the report and resolution directing that the amount assessed against the different premises, as shown by the report, be placed upon the assessment rolls and tax books of the county for collection as other taxes. Water will not be turned on in any house or private service pipe, except upon the order of the city or its duly authorized agent, nor until the consumer shall have paid the charges due, and plumbers are strictly prohibited from turning the water into any service pipe except on the order or permission of the city or its duly authorized agent. This section shall not be construed to prevent any plumber from admitting water to test pipes, for that purpose only.
(Prior Code, § 52-83)