(A) Water bills shall be due and payable monthly at the office of the Village Clerk. The Utilities Superintendent shall read or cause to be read water meters monthly by the twentieth day of the month during which service is used. The Utilities Superintendent shall direct the Village Clerk to charge and collect from each customer for the amount of water consumed since the last examination, together with any other charges, properly itemized, due to the Water Department. Bills shall be paid by the tenth day of the month following the end of the month. Bills not paid by the tenth day of the month shall be deemed to be delinquent. If the bill is not paid by the sixtieth day following the end of the month, the Village Clerk shall give a written notice to the customer of such delinquency and shall demand payment immediately.
(B) In the event the bill is not paid within ten days after the sending of said notice, it shall be discretionary with the Superintendent to cut off service at any time; provided, if the delinquent customer is a known welfare recipient, it shall be the duty of the Village Clerk to notify the customer and Social Services by certified mail of the proposed termination.
(C) The Utilities Superintendent shall assess an additional fee set by resolution of the Village Board and on file at the office of the Village Clerk in the event that water is shut off for nonpayment of any water bill, to compensate the village for the additional hookup necessary to again provide water service to the delinquent customer.
(D) It is the policy of the village to discontinue utility service to customers by reason of nonpayment of bills only after notice and a meaningful opportunity to be heard on disputed bills. The village’s form for application for utility service and all bills shall contain, in addition to the title, address, room number, and telephone number of the official in charge of billing, clearly visible and easily readable provisions to the effect:
(1) That all bills are due and payable on or before the date set forth on the bill;
(2) That if any bill is not paid by or before that date, a second bill will be mailed containing a cutoff notice that if the bill is not paid within ten days of the mailing of the second bill, service will be discontinued for nonpayment; and
(3) That any customer disputing the correctness of his or her bill shall have a right to a hearing at which time he or she may be represented in person and by counsel or any other person of his or her choosing and may present orally or in writing his or her complaint and contentions to the village official in charge of utility billing. This official shall be authorized to order that the customer’s service not be discontinued and shall have the authority to make a final determination of the customer’s complaint.
(E) Requests for delays or waiver of payment will not be entertained; only questions of proper and correct billing will be considered. In the absence of payment of the bill rendered or resort to the hearing procedure provided herein, service will be discontinued at the time specified, but in no event until the charges have been due and unpaid for at least 30 days.
(F) When it becomes necessary for the village to discontinue utility service to a customer for nonpayment of bills, service will be reinstated only after all bills for service then due have been paid, along with a turn-on charge in the sum of $20.
(Ord. 2022-10, passed 4-19-2022)