A. In the event that any property owner shall fail to pay any billing within seventy-five (75) days from the beginning of the calendar month which the billing covers, a late charge as set by resolution of the city council for each such billing month shall be added to the bill, and the city shall have no authority to accept any payment thereafter without collecting the late charge. This charge shall be collected to defray the cost of billing and bookkeeping involved in late payments.
B. In addition or in the alternative, and at the option of the city, the city may file a civil action for the collection of any amounts due and unpaid. This remedy shall be cumulative and in addition to the remedy of means of enforcing payment of the sum required to be paid by this chapter stated in subsection (A) of this section.
C. As an alternate means of collection of amounts due and unpaid:
1. Once a year the city council shall cause to be prepared a report of delinquent fees and late charges. The council shall fix a time, date and place for hearing the report and any objections or protests thereto;
2. The council shall cause notice of the hearing to be mailed to the landowners listed on the report not less than ten days prior to the date of the hearing;
3. At the hearing the council shall hear any objections or protests of landowners liable to be charged for delinquent fees. The council may make such revisions or corrections to the report as it deems just, after which, by resolution, the report shall be confirmed;
4. The delinquent fees set forth in the report as confirmed shall constitute special charges against the respective parcels of land and are a lien on the property for the amount of such delinquent fees. A certified copy of the confirmed report shall be filed with the county auditor for the amounts of the respective charges against the respective parcels of land as they appear on the current assessment roll. The lien created attaches, upon recordation, in the office of the county recorder a certified copy of the resolution of confirmation. The assessment may be collected at the same time and in the same manner as ordinary county ad valorem property taxes are collected and shall be subject to the same penalties and the same procedure and sale in case of delinquency as provided for such taxes. All laws applicable to the service charge, collection and enforcement of county ad valorem property taxes shall be applicable to such assessment, except that if any real property to which such lien would attach has been transferred or conveyed to a bona fide purchaser for value, or if a lien of a bona fide encumbrancer for value has been created and attaches thereon, prior to the date on which the first installment of such taxes would become delinquent, then the lien which would otherwise be imposed by this section shall not attach to such real property and the delinquent fees, as confirmed, relating to such property shall be transferred to the unsecured roll for collection;
5. The city may, at its discretion, issue separate bills for such special fees and separate receipts for collection on account of such fees. (Prior code § 7073.16)