The rates shall meet state and federal requirements that user rates reflect the costs of services. Costs of services are allocated on the basis of effluent flow and strength.
(A) User Categories: Each user will be assigned to a category based upon state water resources control board published industrial characteristics for effluent strength. The user categories are as follows:
Residential users:
Apartment buildings
Single-family
Nonresidential users:
Bars
Car washes
Churches
Fairgrounds
Fast food service
Fire stations
Halls
Hospitals
Hotels/motels
Laundromats
Markets
Mortuaries
Movie theaters
Rest homes/housing facilities
Restaurants
Retail stores and offices
Schools
Service stations
(B) Consumption Based Rates: Each user will be charged based upon actual use or consumption. Consumption is determined by the cubic feet of water used as follows:
1. For residential users, the consumption will be determined by each user's wet weather flows during the billing period of December 16 of the preceding year through February 15 of the current year. The first seven hundred fifty (750) cubic feet will be included in the bimonthly base charge. For each cubic foot thereafter, the charge will be based on a per one hundred (100) cubic feet water consumption basis.
2. For nonresidential users, the consumption will be determined by each user's contemporaneous water consumption.
3. For newly established residential accounts, the citywide average residential wet weather water consumption shall be the basis for the first year rates.
4. For those residential users who are not city water customers and use well water, the consumption basis for calculating the rate will be the average residential wet weather flow for a single-family dwelling, or in the event the user is a multi- family dwelling, the average wet weather flows of a comparable dwelling. For those residential users who are not city water customers and purchase water from the El Dorado irrigation district, the consumption basis for calculating rate will be the wet weather flow of the preceding year as reported by the El Dorado irrigation district.
(C) Customer Dispute Of Bill: In the event any person is dissatisfied with the amount of their bill and believes that they discharge less than one hundred percent (100%) of their metered water through the sewer they may:
1. Install at their own expense and maintain a sewer and/or an irrigation meter in good working order. An irrigation meter will separately measure nonsewer related water consumption thereby reducing the customer's sewer bill. The person desiring to install an irrigation meter must submit an application with the public works department and comply with the provisions of the department's irrigation meter policy. The meters herein referred to shall be subject to inspection by the director.
2. Protest to the city clerk, and the director shall investigate the percentage of metered water actually discharged through the sewers owned by the person and report the percentage to the city council.
(D) Council To Adjust Rate: If the council is satisfied, under either of the provisions of subsection (C) of this section, that the percentage of metered water that goes through the user's sewer is less than one hundred percent (100%), it shall fix the percentage and shall adjust the rate of the user according to their actual use, subject to the minimum monthly rate in effect. (Ord. 1646, 5-8-2012)