(A) Definitions. For the purpose of this section, the following definitions apply unless the context clearly indicates or requires a different meaning.
ADMINISTRATION. Those fixed costs attributable to administration of the wastewater treatment works (i.e., billing and associated bookkeeping and accounting costs).
BIOCHEMICAL OXYGEN DEMAND or BOD5. The quantity of oxygen utilized in the biochemical oxidation of organic matter under standard laboratory procedure in five days at 20°C, expressed in milligrams per liter.
COMMERCIAL USER. Any place of business which discharges sanitary waste as distinct from industrial wastewater.
COMMERCIAL WASTEWATERS. Domestic wastewater emanating from a place of business as distinct from industrial wastewater.
DEBT SERVICE CHARGE. A charge levied on users of wastewater treatment facilities for the cost of repaying money bonded to construct the facilities.
EXTRA STRENGTH WASTE. Wastewater having a BOD and/or TSS greater than domestic waste, as herein defined, and not otherwise classified as an incompatible waste.
GOVERNMENTAL USER. Users which are units, agencies or instrumentalities of federal, state or local government discharging normal domestic strength wastewater.
INCOMPATIBLE WASTE. Waste that either singly or by interaction with other wastes interferes with any waste treatment process, constitutes a hazard to humans or animals, creates a public nuisance or creates any hazard in the receiving waters of the wastewater treatment works.
INDUSTRIAL USERS or INDUSTRIES.
(a) Entities that discharge into a publicly owned wastewater treatment works, liquid wastes resulting from the processes employed in industrial or manufacturing processes, or from the development of any natural resources. These are identified in the Standard Industrial Classification Manual, 1972, Office of Management and Budget, as amended and supplemental under one of the following divisions:
1. Division A, Agriculture, Forestry and Fishing;
2. Division B, Mining;
3. Division D, Manufacturing;
4. Division E, Transportation, Communications, Electric, Gas and Sanitary Sewers; and
5. Division I, Services.
(b) For the purpose of this definition, “domestic waste” shall be considered to have the following characteristics:
BOD5 | Less than 270 mg/l |
Suspended solids | Less than 240 mg/l |
(c) Any non-governmental user of a publicly owned treatment works which discharges wastewater to the treatment works which contains toxic pollutants or poisonous solids, liquids or gases in sufficient quantity either singly or by interaction with other wastes, to contaminate the sludge of any municipal systems, or to injure or to interfere with any sewage treatment process, or which constitutes a hazard to humans or animals, creates a public nuisance or creates any hazard in or has an adverse effect on the waters receiving any discharge from the treatment works.
INDUSTRIAL WASTEWATER. The liquid processing wastes from an industrial manufacturing process, trade or business including, but not limited to, all Standard Industrial Classification Manual Divisions A, B, D, E and I manufacturers as distinct from domestic wastewater.
INSTITUTIONAL USER. Users other than commercial, governmental, industrial or residential users, discharging primarily normal domestic strength wastewater (e.g., non-profit organizations).
NORMAL DOMESTIC STRENGTH WASTEWATER. Wastewater that is primarily produced by residential users, with BOD5 concentrations not greater than 270 mg/l and suspended solids concentrations not greater than 240 mg/l.
OPERATION AND MAINTENANCE. Activities required to provide for the dependable and economical functioning of the treatment works, throughout the design or useful life, whichever is longer, of the treatment works, and at the level of performance for which the treatment works were constructed. OPERATION AND MAINTENANCE includes replacement.
OPERATION AND MAINTENANCE COSTS. Expenditures for operation and maintenance, including replacement.
PUBLIC WASTEWATER COLLECTION SYSTEM. A system of sanitary sewers owned, maintained, operated and controlled by the city.
REPLACEMENT. Obtaining and installing of equipment, accessories or appurtenances which are necessary during the design life or useful life, whichever is longer, of the treatment works to maintain the capacity and performance for which the works were designed and constructed.
REPLACEMENT COSTS. Expenditures for replacement.
RESIDENTIAL USER. A user of the treatment facilities whose premises or building is used primarily as a residence for one or more persons, including dwelling units such as detached and semi- detached housing, apartments and mobile homes; and which discharges primarily normal domestic strength sanitary wastes.
SANITARY SEWER. A sewer intended to carry only liquid and water-carried wastes from residences, commercial buildings, industrial plants and institutions, together with minor quantities of ground, storm and surface waters which are not admitted intentionally.
SEWER SERVICE CHARGE. The aggregate of all charges, including charges for operation, maintenance, replacement, debt service and other sewer related charges that are billed periodically to users of the city’s wastewater treatment facilities.
SEWER SERVICE FUND. A fund into which income from sewer service charges is deposited along with other income, including taxes intended to retire debt incurred through capital expenditure for wastewater treatment. Expenditure of the SEWER SERVICE FUND will be for operation, maintenance and replacement costs; and to retire debt incurred through capital expenditure for wastewater treatment.
SLUG. Any discharge of water or wastewater which in concentration of any given constituent or in quantity of flow exceeds for any period of duration longer than 15 minutes more than five times the average 24-hour concentration or flows during normal operation and shall adversely affect the collection system and/or performance of the wastewater treatment works.
STANDARD INDUSTRIAL CLASSIFICATION MANUAL. Office of Management and Budget, 1972.
SUSPENDED SOLIDS (SS) or TOTAL SUSPENDED SOLIDS (TSS). The total suspended matter that either floats on the surface or is in suspension in water, wastewater or other liquids, and is removable by laboratory filtering as prescribed in Standard Methods for the Examination of Water and Wastewater, latest edition, and referred to as non-filterable residue.
TOXIC POLLUTANT. The concentration of any pollutant or combination of pollutants as defined in standards issued pursuant to § 307(a) of the Act, being 33 U.S.C. § 1317(a), which upon exposure to or assimilation into any organism will cause adverse effects.
USER CHARGE. A charge levied on users of a treatment works for the user’s proportionate share of the cost of operation and maintenance, including replacement.
USERS. Those residential, commercial, governmental, institutional and industrial establishments winch are connected to the public sewer collection system.
WASTEWATER. The spent water of a community, also referred to as SEWAGE. From the standpoint of source, it may be a combination of the liquid and water-carried wastes from residences, commercial buildings, industrial plants and institutions together with any ground water, surface water and storm water that may be present.
WASTEWATER TREATMENT WORKS or TREATMENT WORKS. An arrangement of any devices, facilities, structures, equipment or processes owned or used by the city for the purpose of the transmission, storage, treatment, recycling and reclamation of municipal sewage, domestic sewage or industrial wastewater, or structures necessary to recycle or reuse water including interceptor sewers, outfall sewers, collection sewers, pumping, power and other equipment and their appurtenances; extensions, improvements, remodeling, additions and alterations thereof; elements essential to provide a reliable recycled water supply such as standby treatment units and clear well facilities; and any works including land which is an integral part of the treatment process or is used for ultimate disposal of residues resulting from the treatment.
(B) Establishment of a sewer service charge system.
(1) The city hereby establishes a sewer service charge system whereby all revenues collected from users of the wastewater treatment facilities will be used to affect all expenditures incurred for annual operation, maintenance and replacement and for debt service on capital expenditure incurred in constructing the wastewater treatment works.
(2) Each user shall pay its proportionate share of operation maintenance and replacement costs of the treatment works, based on the users proportionate contribution to the total wastewater loading from all users.
(3) Each user shall pay debt service charges to retire local capital costs as determined by the Council.
(4) Sewer service rates and charges to users of the wastewater treatment facility shall be determined and fixed in a “sewer service charge system” developed according to the provisions of this section. The sewer service charge system developed with the assistance of John Baker Engineering, Inc. 1986, shall be adopted by resolution upon enactment of this section, shall be published in the local newspaper, and shall be effective upon publication. Subsequent changes in sewer service rates and charges shall be adopted by Council resolution and shall be published in the local newspaper.
(5) Revenues collected for sewer service shall be deposited in a separate fund known as “The Sewer Service Fund”. Income from revenues collected will be expended to offset the cost of operation, maintenance and equipment replacement for the facility and to retire the debt for capital expenditure.
(6) Sewer service charges and the Sewer Service Fund will be administered in accordance with the provisions of this section.
(C) Determination of sewer service charges.
(1) Identification.
(a) Users of the city wastewater treatment works shall be identified as belonging to one of the following user classes:
1. Residential;
2. Commercial;
3. Industrial;
4. Institutional; and
5. Governmental.
(b) The allocation of users to these categories for the purpose of assessing user charges and debt service charges shall be the responsibility of the City Engineer. Allocation of users to user classes shall be based on the substantive intent of the definitions of these classes contained herein.
(2) Rates for concentrations. The user shall pay operation, maintenance and replacement costs in proportion to the user’s proportionate contribution of wastewater flows and loadings to the treatment plant, with the minimum rate for loadings of BOD and of TSS being the rate established for concentrations of 270 mg/l BOD and 240 TSS (i.e., normal domestic strength wastewater).
(3) Unit costs for treatment of flow, BOD and TSS.
(a) Unit costs for treatment of flow, BOD and TSS shall be determined and fixed annually in the sewer service charge system according to the following procedure:
1. Determine the annual OM&R budget;
2. Allocate total annual OM&R costs to flow, BOD and TSS proportionately; according to the costs of collection, and of the specific treatment processes required to affect or reduce flow, BOD and TSS; and
3. Divide the OM&R costs attributable to flow, BOD and TSS respectively, by the total annual billable volume and loadings of flow, BOD and TSS, to arrive at unit costs.
(b) For purposes of determining, the following definitions of unit costs shall apply:
UF = Unit cost for treatment of flow in $/Kgal.
UBOD = Unit cost for treatment of BOD in $/lb.
UTSS = Unit cost for treatment of TSS in $/lb.
(c) Unit costs for 1986 are provided in Table 6 of the sewer service charge system developed with the assistance of John Baker Engineering, Inc. Subsequent calculations of unit costs shall be according to the substantive intent of this SSCS.
(d) The calculation of unit cost for treatment of normal domestic strength wastewater shall be as follows:
UN = COMR
TBWV
TBWV
Where:
UN = Unit cost for operation, maintenance and replacement to treat domestic strength wastewater in S/K gal.
COMR = Total annual OM&R costs less costs associated with the treatment of concentrations greater than normal domestic strength.
TBWV = Total annual billable wastewater volume in k gallons.
(4) User charges for normal domestic strength users.
(a) Calculating billable flows and loadings.
1. General. The billable amount of flow will be calculated from the volume of metered water usage. For residential users, the per month billable flow shall be equal to monthly metered water usage as determined by the first quarter of the calendar year. For non-residential users discharging NDSW, billable flow shall be equal to monthly water usage measured throughout the year.
2. Determination of loadings from metered water usage. The billable amounts of BOD and TSS will be calculated from the volume of metered water usage, as determined above, where the billable quantities will be those attributable to a wastewater concentration of 270 mg/l BOD and 240 mg/l TSS (i.e., “normal domestic strength wastewater”).
(b) Calculating user charges.
UC (NDS) = (UNxF)
Where:
UC (NDS) = User charge for treatment of normal domestic strength wastewater.
UN = Unit cost for operation, maintenance and replacement to treat normal domestic strength wastewater.
F = Billable flow in Kgal.
(5) User charges for users contributing wastes greater than normal domestic strength.
(a) Calculating billable flows and loadings. The billable amount of flow will be calculated from the volume of metered water usage, or at the discretion of the city, from the measurement of effluent flow at user’s point of discharge. Measurements shall be according to a regular program prescribed by the city. The billable amounts of BOD and TSS will be calculated by the measurement of these wastes according to a program prescribed by the city in keeping with the latest edition of Standard Methods for the Examination of Water and Wastewater.
(b) Calculating user charges.
UC(GNDS) = (UF x F) + (UBOD) + (UTSS x QTSS)
Where:
UC(GNDS) = User charge for treatment of wastewater that is greater than normal domestic strength.
UF = Unit cost for treatment of flow in $/Kgal.
F = Billable flow in Kgal.
UBOD = Unit cost for treatment of BOD in $/lb.
QBOD = Quantity of BOD in lbs.
UTSS = Unit cost for treatment of TSS in $/lb.
QTSS = Quantity of TSS in lbs.
(6) Meter installation. The city may, at its discretion, require nonresidential users to install wastewater flow meters or such additional water meters as may be necessary to determine wastewater volume. The city may require residential connections to install water meters for the purpose of determining wastewater volume. When so required, the meters shall be of a type approved by the city equipped with remote registering recorders, and located at an accessible site on the owner’s property.
(7) Recovery of local construction costs. Local construction costs for the wastewater treatment facility will be recovered from users according to their contribution of wastewater flows and loadings into the treatment facility as follows:
Dc = Cd
F
F
Where:
DC = Annual debt service charge.
Cd = Annual debt service cost.
F = Billable flow in Kgal.
(8) Sewer service charge.
SSC = UC + DC
Where:
SSC = Annual sewer service charge.
UC = Annual user charge.
DC = Annual debt service charge.
(D) Sewer Service Fund.
(1) The city hereby establishes the Sewer Service Fund as an income fund to receive all revenues generated by the sewer service charge system, and all other income dedicated to the operation, maintenance, replacement and construction of the wastewater treatment works, including taxes, special charges, fees and assessments intended to retire construction debt. The city also establishes the following accounts as income and expenditure accounts within the Sewer Service Fund:
(a) Operation and Maintenance Account;
(b) Equipment Replacement Account; and
(c) Debt Retirement Account.
(2) All revenue generated by the sewer service charge system, and all other income pertinent to the treatment system, including taxes and special assessments dedicated to retire construction debt, shall be held by the treasurer separate and apart from all other funds of the city. Funds received by the Sewer Service Fund shall be transferred to the Operation and Maintenance Account, the Equipment Replacement Account and the Debt Retirement Account in accordance with state and federal regulations and the provisions of this section.
(3) Revenue generated by the sewer service charge system sufficient to insure adequate replacement throughout the design or useful life, whichever is longer, of the wastewater facility shall be held separate and apart in the Equipment Replacement Account and dedicated to affecting replacement costs. Interest income generated by the Equipment Replacement Account shall remain in the Equipment Replacement Account.
(4) Revenue generated by the sewer service charge system sufficient for operation and maintenance shall be held separate and apart in the Operation and Maintenance Account.
(E) Administration. The sewer service charge system and Sewer Service Fund shall be administrated according to the following provisions.
(1) The City Treasurer shall maintain a proper system of accounts suitable for determining the operation and maintenance, equipment replacement and debt retirement costs of the treatment works, and shall furnish the Council with a report of the costs annually. The Council shall annually determine whether or not sufficient revenue is being generated for the effective operation, maintenance, replacement and management of the treatment works, and whether sufficient revenue is being generated for debt retirement. The Council will also determine whether the user charges are distributed proportionately to each user in accordance with division (B) above and § 204(b)(2)(A) of the Federal Water Pollution Control Act, being 33 U.S.C. § 1284(b)(2)(A), as amended. The city shall, thereafter, but not later than the end of the year, reassess and as necessary revise the sewer service charge system then in use to ensure the proportionality of the user charges and to insure the sufficiency of funds to maintain the capacity and performance to which the facilities were constructed, and to retire the construction debt.
(2) In accordance with federal and state requirements each user will be notified annually in conjunction with a regular billing of that portion of the sewer service charge attributable to operation, maintenance and replacement.
(3) In accordance with federal and state requirements, the City Clerk shall be responsible for maintaining all records necessary to document compliance with the sewer service charge system adopted.
(4) Bills for sewer service charges shall be rendered on a quarterly basis succeeding the period for which the service was rendered and shall be due 30 days from the date of rendering. Any bill not paid in full 30 days after the due date will be considered delinquent. At that time, the city shall notify the delinquent owner/occupant in writing regarding the delinquent bill and subsequent penalty. The penalty shall be computed as 5% of the original bill and shall be increased the same 5% for every quarter the bill is outstanding.
(5) The owner of the premises, shall be liable to pay for the service to the premises, and the service is furnished to the premises by the city only upon the condition that the owner of the premises is liable therefor to the city.
(6) Any additional costs caused by discharges to the treatment works of toxics or other incompatible wastes, including the cost of restoring wastewater treatment services, clean up and restoration of the receiving waters and environs, and sludge disposal, shall be borne by the discharger(s) of the wastes, at no expense to the city.
(F) Service charges a lien.
(1) Each and every sewer service charge levied by and pursuant to this section is hereby made a lien upon the lot or premises served, and all charges which are on January 1 of each year past due and delinquent, shall be certified to the County Auditor as taxes or assessments on the real estate. Nothing in this section shall be held or construed as in any way stopping or interfering with the right of the city to levy as taxes or assessments against any premises affected any delinquent or past due sewer service charges.
(2) In addition to all penalties and costs attributable and chargeable to recording notices of the lien or filing a civil action, the owner or user of the real estate being serviced by the treatment works shall be liable for interest upon all unpaid balances at the rate of 8% per annum.
(G) System to take precedence. The sewer service charge system shall take precedence over any terms or conditions of agreements or contracts which are inconsistent with the requirements of § 204(b)(1)(A) of the Act, being 33 U.S.C. § 1284(b)(10(A) and 40 C.F.R. § 35.2140 of the Environmental Protection Agency’s grant regulations.