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ADMINISTRATION AND RATES
(A) No unauthorized person shall uncover, make any connections with or opening into, use, alter, or disturb any municipal sewer or appurtenance thereof without first obtaining written permit from the Superintendent.
(B) Any person desiring sewer service from the municipal sewer system for premises not theretofore connected with the system shall apply to the Sewer Superintendent for a permit. There shall be one class of building sewer permit for residential and commercial service. The owner or his or her agent shall make application on a special form furnished by the municipality. The permit application shall be supplemented by any plans, specifications, or other information considered pertinent in the judgment of the Superintendent. A permit and inspection fee of $5 for a residential or commercial building sewer permit shall be paid to the Municipal Finance Officer at the time the application is filed. Upon application for such permit, the applicant shall pay to the Municipal Finance Officer as and for an availability charge.
(1) Owners of commercial premises shall pay $150 for connection to the sewage system.
(2) Owners of residential premises shall pay $100 for connection to the sewage system.
(C) Out-of-city limit users shall pay $500 for connection to the sewage system. Out-of-city limit users shall be subject to unsubsidized fees.
(D) The above connections fees may be set by resolution.
(Prior Code, § 13.16.030) (Ord. 01-22, passed - -; Ord. 10-8, passed 9-9-2010) Penalty, see § 53.99
(A) The governing body of the municipality shall establish and collect just and equitable rates, charges, and rentals for all services and benefits furnished by the system, which shall be sufficient to pay all costs for the operation and maintenance of the complete wastewater system. The costs shall be distributed to all users of the system in proportion to each user’s contribution to the total loading of the treatment works. Factors (such as strength biochemical oxygen demand and total suspended solids (BOD and TSS), volume, and delivery flow rate characteristics) shall be considered and included as the basis for the user’s contribution to ensure a proportional distribution of operation and maintenance costs to each user (or user class).
(B) The city or its engineer shall determine the total annual costs of operation and maintenance of the wastewater system which are necessary to maintain the capacity and performance, during the service life of the treatment works, for which such works were designed and constructed. The total annual cost of operation and maintenance shall include, but need not be limited to: labor, repairs, equipment replacement, maintenance, necessary modifications, power, sampling, laboratory tests, and a reasonable contingency fund.
(C) The city or its engineer shall determine for each user or user class the average daily volume of wastewater discharged to the wastewater system which shall then be divided by the average daily volume of all wastewater discharged to the wastewater system to determine such user’s volume contribution percentage. The amount used as the total average daily volume of wastewater shall exclude infiltration and inflow. The city or its engineer shall determine for each user or user class the average daily poundage of five-day, 20°C biochemical oxygen demand (BOD) discharged to the wastewater system which shall then be divided by the average daily poundage of all five-day BOD discharged to the wastewater system to determine such user’s BOD contribution percentage. The city or its engineer shall determine for each user or user class the average daily total suspended solids (TSS) poundage discharged to the wastewater system which shall then be divided by the average daily poundage of all TSS discharged to the wastewater system to determine such user’s TSS contribution percentage. The volume contribution percentage, BOD contribution percentage, and TSS contribution percentage for each user or user class shall be multiplied by the annual operation and maintenance costs for wastewater treatment of the total volume flow; total five-day, 20°C BOD; and TSS, respectively.
(D) The city or its engineer will assess a surcharge rate for all nonresidential users discharging wastes with BOD and TSS strengths greater than the average residential user. Such users will be assessed a surcharge sufficient to cover the cost of treating their above-normal strength wastes. Normal strength wastes are considered to be 300 ppm BOD and 300 ppm TSS.
(E) A reserve fund called the Wastewater Facilities Replacement Fund is established within the Wastewater Utility Fund for the purpose of providing sufficient funds to be expended for obtaining and installing equipment, accessories, and appurtenances during the useful life (20 years) of the wastewater treatment facilities necessary to maintain the capacity and performance for which such facilities are designed and constructed (see § 53.22).
(F) Wastewater charges shall be included with the water payment and collected with the regular monthly water bill. In cases of nonpayment of the rates or the surcharge within 30 days, the city shall promptly discontinue water service to such premises. In the event of the discontinuance of any such water service, the same shall not be resumed until payment of all past due water and sewer charges, including penalties thereon, and a charge of $20 or the resumption of service. Any claim for any unpaid rates, charges, or rentals which have been properly billed may be collected in a civil action against such owner or occupant in any court of competent jurisdiction.
(G) The city shall review the total annual cost of operation and maintenance as well as each user’s wastewater contribution percentage not less often than every two years and will revise the system as necessary to assure equity of the service charge system established herein and to assure that sufficient funds are obtained to adequately operate and maintain the wastewater treatment works.
(1) The city shall apply excess revenues collected from a class of users to the costs of operation and maintenance attributable to that class for the next year and adjust the rate accordingly.
(2) If a significant user, such as an industry, has completed in-plant modifications which would change that user’s wastewater contribution percentage, the user can present, at a regularly scheduled meeting of the City Council, such factual information, and the city shall then determine if the user’s wastewater contribution percentage is to be changed. The city shall notify the user of its findings as soon as possible.
(H) Each user will be notified, at least annually, of the rate and that portion of the user charges which are attributable to wastewater treatment services.
(I) Sewer rates and unsubsidized fees will be set by resolution of the City Council.
(Prior Code, § 13.16.080) (Ord. 92-3, passed - -; Ord. 01-22, passed - -; Ord. 10-8, passed 9-9-2010)
The Wastewater Treatment Facilities Replacement Fund established within the Wastewater Utility Fund as an interest-bearing account shall be funded by a deposit of $10,000 per year, not to exceed $30,000 in the account, obtained from the Wastewater Utility Fund each year.
(Prior Code, § 13.16.090) (Ord. 90-2, passed - -)
(A) When required by the Public Works Director, the owner(s) of any property serviced by a sewer carrying industrial wastes shall install a suitable structure together with such necessary meters and other appurtenances in the building sewer to facilitate observation, sampling, and measurement of the wastes. Such structures, when required, shall be accessible and safely located and shall be constructed in accordance with plans approved by the Director of Public Works. The structure shall be installed by the owner at his or her expense and shall be maintained by the owner so as to be safe and accessible at all times.
(B) The Director may require a user of sewer services to provide information needed to determine compliance with this chapter. These requirements may include:
(1) Wastewaters discharge peak rate and volume over a specified time period;
(2) Chemical analyses of wastewaters;
(3) Information on raw materials, processes, and products affecting wastewater volume and quality; and
(4) Quality and disposition of specific liquid, sludge, oil, solvent, or other materials important to sewer use control.
(C) The Director of Public Works or other duly authorized employees are authorized to obtain information concerning industrial processes which have a direct bearing on the kind and source of discharge to the wastewater collection system. The industry may withhold information considered confidential. The industry must establish that the revelation to the public of the information in question might result in an advantage to competitors.
(D) While performing the necessary work on private properties referred to in this section, the Director of Public Works or duly authorized employees of the city shall observe all safety rules applicable to the premises established by the company, and the company shall be held harmless for injury or death to the city employees, and the city shall indemnify the company against loss or damage to its property by city employees and against liability claims and demands for personal injury or property damage asserted against the company growing out of the gauging and sampling operation except as such may be caused by negligence or failure of the company to maintain safe conditions as required in division (A) above.
(E) The Director of Public Works and other duly authorized employees of the city bearing proper credentials and identification shall be permitted to enter all private properties through which the city holds duly negotiated easement for the purposes of, but not limited to, inspection, observation, measurement, sampling, repair, and maintenance of any portion of the wastewater facilities lying within the easement. All entry and subsequent work, if any, on the easement shall be done in full accordance with the terms of the duly negotiated easement pertaining to the private property involved.
(Prior Code, § 13.16.070) (Ord. 90-2, passed - -)
A Hearing Board consisting of the City Council members shall meet as needed for arbitration of differences between the Director of Public Works and the sewer user on matters concerning interpretation and execution of the provisions of this chapter by the Director. The cost of the arbitration will be divided equally between the municipality and the sewer user.
(Prior Code, § 13.16.100)
(A) Any person found to be violating any provision of this chapter shall be served by the city with written notice stating the nature of the violation and providing a reasonable time limit for the satisfactory correction thereof. The offender shall, within the period of time stated in such notice, permanently cease all violations. The notice requirements of this section may be waived by the Director if, in the Director’s opinion, the violation constitutes an imminent threat to safety or the proper operation of the wastewater facilities.
(B) For any person who violates the provisions of this chapter who continues any violation beyond the time limit provided for in the notice of violation issued in accordance with division (A) above, such violation shall be punishable by a fine not to exceed $1,000. Each day in which such violation shall continue shall be deemed as a separate offense.
(C) Any person violating any of the provisions of this chapter shall become liable to the city for any expense, loss, or damage occasioned the city by reason of such violations. If a user violates the conditions of this chapter and continues to discharge wastewaters after receiving the notice under division (A) above, the Director may terminate the facility’s service by terminating water service and/or physically disconnecting the facility’s sewer service.
(Prior Code, § 13.16.110) (Ord. 06-10, passed - -)