§ 52.02  SEWER RATES AND CHARGES.
   There shall be levied and charged upon each lot, parcel of land or premises having a connection with the municipal system, or otherwise discharging sewage, industrial wastes, water or other liquids, either directly or indirectly into the municipal system, sewer charges payable as hereinafter provided and in amounts to be determined as follows:
   (A)   (1)   Except as otherwise hereinafter provided, sewer charges at the rates provided in this section with respect to any premises shall be based upon the quantity of water consumed upon said premises during the applicable sewer charge billing period as measured by the city water meter there in use, or other meter installed or approved by the City Manager, and such charges for each month shall be determined as follows:
 
Gallons per month
Effective the first full billing period following 7/1/2015
First 3,000 (minimum)
$2.47
Over 3,000
$1.86
Minimum charge
$7.41
 
      (2)   The above rates apply to dual or multiple establishments whether residential or commercial or combination of both provided that each block of rates are multiplied by the number of businesses and/or residential units whether occupied or not.
   (B)   Effective with the August 2008 billing, unless covered by a separate specific agreement specifying rates, terms and conditions of usage measured on a bulk or large quantity basis for any lot, parcel of land, building, or premises situated outside the corporate limits and having connection with the municipal sewerage system or otherwise discharging sanitary sewage, industrial wastes, water, or other liquids, either directly or indirectly, into the municipal sanitary sewerage system the charge shall be based upon the quantities of water used as measured by water meter in accordance with divisions (A), (C), (D) and (E), plus 50% of the city base charge and 50% of the TCA charge for billing purposes.
   (C)   On premises using water supplied either in whole or in part from  sources  other  than  the  waterworks  system  of  the  city, the Municipal Manager may require the owner or other interested party to install water meters satisfactory to the city, to the extent necessary to measure all such supplies of water and the quantity of water consumed on said premises shall be deemed to be the aggregate amount disclosed by said meters. It will be assumed that water usage equals sewer usage for billing purposes unless summer sewer rates apply or noted otherwise in a separate agreement.  If a water meter is not required by the City Manager then the terms of billing will be set forth in a separate agreement.
   (D)   In the event that any premises discharge industrial wastes, either directly or indirectly, into the system and the City Manager finds that it is impractical to measure such wastes by meter, such wastes shall be measured in such manner and by such method as the City Manager shall find practicable in order to determine the sewer service charge based upon the rate provided in divisions (A) and (C) of this section.
   (E)   The Tri Cities North Regional Wastewater Authority charge as outlined herein may be subject to change by the Tri Cities North Regional Wastewater Authority.  In the event of said charge, either in the form of increased or decreased rates, the City Manager is hereby authorized to incorporate those changes into the municipal sewage billing rate structure to reflect the increase or decrease in rates.  This shall not be construed to grant the City Manager the authority to alter in any way the city base sewer service charge without formal approval of Council.
   (F)   Discount on sewer bills (residential customers); use of second water meter (residential and commercial customers).
      (1)   During the monthly billing dates of June 1, July 1, August 1, September 1, October 1, and November 1, a maximum residential sewer bill shall be based on 17,000 gallons per month.  Any residential customer who uses water in excess of 17,000 gallons per month shall not be billed a sewer charge for this excess use.
      (2)   The summer discount listed in division (F)(1) above shall also be applied to dual or multiple residential dwelling units provided that the maximum use of 17,000 gallons per month shall be multiplied by the number of individual dwelling units.
      (3)   (a)   Any existing residential, commercial, or industrial customer within the city has the option of installing a separate, secondary water meter for flow that does not terminate in the sanitary sewer system.  Any new single family residential, commercial, or industrial building erected after January 1, 2015 shall have the plumbing installed that will allow for the installation of a second meter and backflow preventer.  The cost of the secondary water meter and any inspections of the same shall be established by City Council in the Schedule of Fees ordinance.  All costs for the installation of the secondary meter shall be the sole responsibility of the customer including the cost of the additional meter and any fees associated with the same.  Billings to this secondary meter will not reflect sewer or wastewater treatment charges.
            1.   Only city personnel may access the secondary meter to perform disconnection and/or reconnection of service.  The property owner and/or his subcontractors are not authorized to perform this function.
            2.   A backflow prevention device is required to be installed in conformance with the Ohio Plumbing Code as amended for such devices on the secondary water meter system to prevent outside water from siphoning back into the potable water system.
               a.   The property owner is required to obtain a permit for the installation of, and an annual certification of the backflow preventer, which said certificate shall be submitted to the Miami County Health District Office.
               b.    Failure to obtain and remit the annual certification will result in disconnection of the secondary water meter, subject to applicable fees to be paid by the property owner.
         (b)   The secondary water meter shall be located inside the primary structure of the premises in a reasonably accessible location. City personnel shall be permitted access to the meter for the purpose of taking readings, meter replacement or repair. The failure of the customer to permit such access will result in sewer and wastewater charges being billed to the secondary water meter for the period during which access is denied.
      (4)   In lieu of installing a secondary water meter or other than as stated in divisions (F)(1) and (2) of this section, a residential customer may submit an application for relief, for those months including the billing dates of July 1, August 1, September 1, October 1, and November 1 (approximately May 15 through October 15 consumption) all single-family residential housing units will have their sewer and wastewater charges capped at a maximum consumption based upon the average water consumption for the preceding seven months (the "winter average") at that residential unit. Billing in these instances will be the lesser of actual water consumption or the "winter average" consumption.
         (a)   An occupant shall have lived at such unit's location throughout said preceding seven month period to qualify for such summer average.
         (b)   An occupant who has utility services disconnected for a period in excess of four consecutive weeks during the seven month "winter average" period will not be eligible for such summer average.
(Ord. 23-73, passed 5-7-1973; Am. Ord. 64-77, passed 12-5-1977; Am. Ord. 2-83, passed 2-7-1983; Am. Ord. 23-85, passed 7-l-1985; Am. Ord. 25-87, passed 7-6-1987; Am. Ord. 30-87, passed 8-17-1987; Am. Ord. 1-88, passed 2-1-1988; Am. Ord. 45-90, passed 9-17-1990; Am. Ord. 08-06, passed 3-6-2006; Am. Ord. 15-07, passed 4-2-2007; Am. Ord. 15-08, passed 6-2-2008; Am. Ord. 31-08, passed 8-18-2008; Am. Ord. 9-12, passed 5-7-2012; Am. Ord. 17-14, passed 8-18-2014; Am. Ord. 7-15, passed 3-16-2015)  Penalty, see § 52.99