Any premises having a connection with the Municipality's sewer facilities, or otherwise discharging sewage, industrial wastes, water or other liquids, either directly or indirectly, into such sewers, shall, at the owner's expense, install a meter or meters to accurately measure the quantity of all water which is consumed on the premises. Each premises shall have sewer usage computed using only one of the following methods:
(a) Any premises upon which all water consumed is provided by the Municipality's water system and which has no deduct meters or water service lines for which wastewater is not billed shall have the following option: For each 100 gallons which pass through the meter or meters, 100 gallons will be presumed to have entered the sanitary system and will be the basis for measuring the volume of sanitary flow. No further deduction from the amount of wastewater so measured shall be permitted due to inadvertent use or waste or for any other reason. Any customer who opts to change to any other method of wastewater measurement as described below shall not be eligible to apply for this measurement method for a period of one year.
(b) In the event that a customer has reason to believe that the amount of water consumed annually upon the premises which enters the sanitary system is less than 100 percent of the total water consumed, such customer shall submit drawings to the Superintendent of the Waste Water Treatment Facilities indicating the metering arrangement which is proposed to accurately measure all flows which can conceivably be discharged to the sanitary system. Upon approval of such drawings, the owner shall, at his or her expense, install the necessary meter(s) to accurately measure all flows which could conceivably enter the sanitary system. Such measurement shall be the basis for computing the sewage flow. Customers who take advantage of this option shall also agree that Water Department or Sewer Department employees may enter upon the premises at any reasonable time to ascertain that the metering arrangement still accurately measures all flows which can conceivably be placed into the sanitary system. In addition, within one year from the date of the adoption of this section, the City shall conduct an audit of all customers who are currently being billed under this option. This audit shall consist of, as a minimum:
(1) Mailing notice of the adoption of this section to all parties who are currently being billed in this manner;
(2) Requiring each customer to submit an up-to-date drawing of his or her metering facilities;
(3) Conducting an inspection to determine that the facilities are constructed in accordance with the drawing which has been submitted;
(4) Making a determination as to whether each customer is still eligible to have the volume of wastewater computed in accordance with this section;
(5) Transferring those customers who are not eligible for this wastewater computation method to the method provided in subsection (a) or (c) hereof, whichever would apply; and
(6) Providing a report to Council indicating why each customer who has not voluntarily or involuntarily been changed to the method provided in subsection (a) or (c) hereof is still utilizing this wastewater volume computation method.
(c) Any premises which are serviced in full or in part by any private water system or well shall, at the owner's expense, have the necessary meter(s) installed upon all water sources which service the premises. The total of such meter reading(s) shall serve as the basis for computing the volume of wastewater discharged.
(d) The volume of wastewater discharged to the wastewater treatment plant by the Portage County Collection System shall be determined in accordance with the City-County Agreement of April 6, 1972, including any revisions thereto.
(e) Since it is generally acknowledged that not all water which is consumed upon a premises will enter the sanitary sewer system, since it is neither in the Municipality's nor in the customer's best interest to encourage the installation of multiple meters and since it is necessary to establish an equitable basis upon which to measure sewage flows, it is hereby agreed to by both the Municipality and any customer who is metered in accordance with subsection (a) hereof that for each 100 gallons which pass through the meter or meters, eighty gallons will be presumed to have entered the sanitary system and will be the basis for measuring the volume of billable flow. Any user who or which is determined by the City Engineer to be a user as described in subsection (b), (c) or (d) hereof shall have his, her or its volume of water billed for sewage service measured as described in subsection (b), (c) or (d) hereof, whichever is appropriate.
(Ord. 1987-87. Passed 7-9-87; Ord. 1991-92. Passed 8-5-91.)