(A) (1) It is the policy of the Town 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 Town's 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:
(a) That all bills are due and payable on or before the date set forth on the bill; and
(b) That if any bill is not paid by the twenty-fifth of the month, service will be discontinued for nonpayment; and
(c) 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 Town 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. Requests for 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, above; and
(2) The Town official in charge of utility billing shall be authorized to establish a payment plan for excessively large bills due to water lost to known or unknown causes. The term of the repayment shall not exceed 6 months and the monthly repayment amount shall not be less than the customer's normal bill.
(3) When it becomes necessary for the Town 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 as listed in Appendix A of this chapter. All provisions of this division, including the turn-on charge, shall apply to any past due bill not paid by 5:00 p.m. of the last business day before the cut-off day.
(B) The Town will make special meter readings at the request of the consumer for a fee as specified in the appendix; provided, however, that if the special reading discloses that the meter was over-read or if the meter has been malfunctioning the charge will be refunded. The Town official in charge of utility billing may authorize special meter readings for which no charge will be made.
(C) If the seal of a meter is broken by other than the Town's representative or if the meter fails to register correctly or is stopped for any cause, the consumer shall pay an amount estimated from the record of his or her previous bills and/or from other proper data.
(D) The Town official in charge of utility billing, when the bill is either unpaid or was paid under protest and not resolved, may reduce the amount of a bill for water lost to known or unknown causes as follows:
(1) Water charge adjustment.
(a) The base usage shall be determined by the average of the gallon usages in the same billing period in the previous year and the billing periods immediately before and after that billing period. If adequate history is not available to determine the customer's base usage as indicated, the best available information shall be used. To qualify for an adjustment the usage in question must be at least 50% higher than this base usage. Multiply this base usage by the applicable current water rate.
(b) Subtract the gallons obtained in division (D)(1)(a) of this section from the actual usage of the period in question. Multiply the difference by the volume charge rate as determined in the bulk water rate calculations in the Appendix for Rates, Fees and Charges set forth at the end of this chapter.
(c) Add the amount obtained in division (D)(1)(a) and (b) of this section to the applicable minimum charge. This is the amount of the adjusted bill for water.
(2) Sewer charge adjustment.
(a) The base usage and the usage amount to qualify for an adjustment for sewer shall be the same as that determined as the base usage and the usage amount to qualify for an adjustment for water in (D)(1)(a) above. Multiply this base usage by the applicable current sewer rate.
(b) If the water was lost to a known cause and did not enter the sewer system, add the amount obtained in division (D)(2)(a) of this section to the applicable minimum charge. This is the amount of the adjusted bill for sewer.
(c) If the water was lost to a known cause and did enter the sewer system, or the water was lost to an unknown cause, subtract the gallons obtained from division (D)(2)(a) of this section from the actual usage of the period in question. Multiply the difference by the volume rate charged to the Town by Moore County for wastewater treatment. Add this amount and the amount obtained in division (D)(2)(a) of this section to the applicable minimum charge. This is the amount of the adjusted bill for sewer.
(3) The timing of the water loss discovery may cover 2 billing periods, therefore, an adjustment may be made for 2 consecutive billing periods.
(4) Only 1 adjustment for an account shall be made during any fiscal year, however, if a second water loss occurs during the same fiscal year for an account that has received an adjustment, and the amount of water lost is greater than the loss which has already been adjusted, the customer may repay the previously adjusted bill in full and receive an adjustment for the larger water loss.
(5) The Town official in charge of utility billing may adjust sewer use charges for residential swimming pools when a pool is initially constructed and filled for the first time. In cases when a liner is replaced and the water from the drainage does not enter the Town sewer system, an adjustment may be allowed. Proof must be provided to receive adjustment for either situation.
(1989 Code, § 50.13) (Ord. passed 3-13-1984; Am. Ord. passed 2-9-1993; Am. Ord. passed 4-13-1993; Am. Ord. passed 10-12-1993; Am. Ord. 575, passed 10-10-1995; Am. Ord. 714, passed 11-11-1997; Am. Ord. 1359, passed 1-12-2010; Am. Ord. 1586, passed 10-13-2015; Am. Ord. 1942, passed 7-13-2021)