(a) Council hereby finds that the street maintenance and improvement services to City streets afforded and provided the people of this City are essential municipal services and that the general revenues of the City are not sufficient for the purpose of providing adequate City street maintenance and improvements. Therefore, in order to provide for the continuance and furtherance of such maintenance and improvements to and for the people of this City, there is hereby imposed upon, and shall be collected from, the users of such service a service charge at the rate of two dollars ($2.00) per month beginning March 1, 1986. Finding that general revenues of the City are adequate for the purpose of providing adequate street maintenance and improvement, the rate of zero dollars ($0.00) shall be charged per month beginning July 1, 2020. “Users” within the meaning of this section include users of City utilities residing within the City limits, owners of real or personal property which is subject to taxation by the City and persons having a place of business within the City limits. (10-1-19)
(b) The special service charge imposed by this section shall be in addition to all other taxes and license fees imposed by the City or by the State.
(c) The collection of the special service charges imposed by subsection (a) hereof, shall be done by monthly billing, by placing such charges upon the face of the monthly utility bills issued by the City Water Department, and by such other means as are necessary and appropriate. In the case of any person acting as a landlord, owning, controlling or managing a rental property consisting of a single residence or multiple residences, singly or grouped within a single building, located within the City limits, the tenants of which do not receive individual separate water bills, such landlord shall report and keep current such report on a monthly basis of the number of users occupying rental residence unit households to the City administrative office and such landlord shall be billed for the special charge for street maintenance and improvement, assessed for each such user. Such landlord shall collect such special charge for street maintenance and improvement and remit the charges to the City in payment of such billing. The penalty for failure to report such number of users and/or failure to collect and remit such charges shall be a fine not in excess of thirty-five dollars ($35.00) per rental unit per month for each month of noncompliance.
(d) The Mayor shall collect the special service charges imposed by this section and all such special service charges are hereby declared to be debts owning to the City for which the debtor shall be personally liable. The Mayor may enforce this liability by appropriate civil action in any court of competent jurisdiction and is hereby vested with the same rights to distrain therefor as are vested in the County Sheriff for the collection of taxes.
(1960 Code 5-400)
(e) The moneys collected pursuant to this section shall be segregated from the general fund and shall be placed in a special fund account entitled "Street Maintenance and Improvement Fund", and such moneys shall be expended solely and exclusively for the construction, maintenance or repair of City streets, which may include curbs and sidewalks.
(8-16-94)