(a) Definitions.
(1) "BOD (denoting Biochemical Oxygen Demand)" means the quantity of oxygen utilized in the biochemical oxidation of organic matter under standard laboratory procedure in five days at twenty degrees Centigrade (20oC.), expressed in parts per million by weight.
(2) "Debt service charge" means a charge levied on users of the waste treatment works for the cost of capital improvements of such facilities.
(3) "Normal domestic sewage" means wastewater or sewage of a strength normally discharged by the average residential user which has been determined to be 250 milligrams per liter for BOD and 300 milligrams per liter of suspended solids.
(4) "Operation and maintenance costs" means all costs, direct and indirect, not including debt service but inclusive of expenditures attributable to administration, replacement of equipment and treatment and collection of wastewater necessary to insure adequate wastewater collection and treatment on a continuing basis which conforms to applicable regulations and assures optimal long-term facility management.
(5) "Replacement costs " means the expenditures for obtaining and installing equipment, accessories or appurtenances necessary during the service life of the treatment works to maintain the capacity and performance for which such works were designed and constructed.
(6) "Sewer service charges" means the total amount billed to users, including operation and maintenance costs (including replacement costs), surcharges for extra-strength wastewater and debt service charges.
(7) "Suspended solids (SS)" means solids that either float on the surface or are in suspension in water, sewage or other liquids; and which are removable by laboratory filtering.
(8) "Surcharge" means the charge levied to users of the System that discharge wastewater with waste characteristics higher than that of normal domestic strength wastewater.
(9) "User charge" means the charges levied on users for the cost of operation and maintenance, including replacement reserve requirements on new and old wastewater collection and treatment facilities.
(10) "User classes" means the following classes into which all users of the System have categorized:
A. "Residential user" means a user whose premises or buildings is used primarily as a domicile for one or more persons and whose wastes originate from the normal living activities of its inhabitants.
B. "Commercial user" means a user engaged in the purchase or sale of goods or in a transaction or business or who otherwise renders a service.
C. "Industrial user" means:
1. Any nongovernmental, nonresidential user of the treatment works which is identified in the Standard Industrial Classification Manual, 1972, Office of Management and Budget, as amended and supplemented under one of the following divisions:
Division A. Agriculture, Forestry and Fishing
Division B. Mining
Division D. Manufacturing
Division E. Transportation, Communications, Electric, Gas and Sanitary Services
Division I. Services
2. Any nongovernmental user of a publicly owned treatment works which discharges wastewater to the treatment works which contains toxic pollutants or poisonous solids, liquids or gasses in sufficient quantity either singly or by interaction with other wastes, or contaminate the sludge of any municipal system, 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.
D. "Governmental user" means any federal, state or local governmental user of the wastewater treatment system. This definition shall include County or Regional sewer districts.
E. "Institutional user" means any establishment listed in the Standard Industrial Classification Manual, 1972, as amended and supplemented, which is involved in a social, charitable, religious or educational function and which, based on a determination by the Board of Public Affairs, discharges primarily segregated domestic wastes or wastes from sanitary conveniences.
(b) User Charge System.
(1) That for the purposes provided herewith, the Village shall establish and maintain a user charge system that will apply to each lot, parcel of land or premises having a connection with the System, or otherwise discharging sewage, industrial wastes, water or other liquids, either directly or indirectly into the System. Each user will be classified as residential, commercial, industrial, governmental or institutional, in accordance with the definitions found in subsection (a) hereof. The user charge system shall be a part of this section.
(2) User charges shall be determined by the following methodology: The total annual operation, maintenance and replacement (OM&R) costs projects for the coming year, less any costs for extra strength wastes or other process costs not attributable to normal domestic sewage, as well as the administrative cost for bill preparation, shall be divided by the total water usage projected for the coming year, based on the previous year's usage (as recorded by water meter) and adjusted for increases or decreases due to changes in the number of users, etc., to determine the user charge per 1,000 gallons.
(3) Administrative service charges shall be determined by the following methodology: The total annual cost for preparing and administrating the sewer billing projected for the coming year divided by the number of bills generated within the previous year.
(4) Surcharges for extra strength wastewater . For each industrial, commercial, institutional or governmental user discharging extra strength wastewater (concentrations of wastes greater than normal domestic strength wastewater) shall have a surcharge levied for such wastes, in addition to any other charges. The means for determining those costs are as follows:
A. BOD - to determine the cost per pound of BOD, divide the total annual cost for BOD by the total pounds treated for the year.
B. Ss - to determine the cost per pound of SS, divided the total annual cost of SS by the total pounds treated for the year.
C. The following formula will be used to apply the surcharge to the extra-strength user when preparing sewer bills:
Cs - .834 [Bc(B-250) + Sc (S-300)] Vu
Where
Cs = Amount for extra strength wastes
Bc = Treatment costs per pound of BOD
B = Concentration of BOD (mg/l) from user Sc = Treatment cost per pound of SS
S = Concentration of SS (mg/l) from user
Vu = Volume contribution from user in 1,000 gallons
(c) Debt Service/ Capital Improvements. There shall not be any unit charges for debt service or capital improvements within the sewer charge for users inside the Village. All sewer system debt service and capital improvements costs shall be covered by income tax appropriations, as set forth in Chapter 181. The Village may charge non-residents of the Village a debt service charge.
(d) Sewerage System Revenue Fund.
(1) Funds received from the collection of the rates and charges hereinafter provided shall be deposited as received with the Village Treasurer, who shall keep the same in a separate fund designed "Sewerage System Revenue Fund". Under the requirements of the WPCLF, any monies in said Fund collected through user rates shall be used solely for the payment of the cost and expense of the operation, maintenance, replacement, repair and management of the System. Any surplus in said fund over and above the requirements hereinbefore mentioned, is to remain in the fund to be used only for the operation and maintenance of the System and replacement of worn out or malfunctioning equipment.
(2) An equipment replacement account will be established into which the Village will deposit, at least annually, that amount determined in the budget for replacement, less any expenditures for replacement within that year.
(e) Payment for Sewer Services.
(1) All users of the sanitary sewer system must pay for wastewater treatment and collection services, in accordance with this section. No user shall receive free service.
(2) A bill shall be produced and submitted to each user and shall be payable monthly. All bills shall be payable by the fifteenth day of the month following the month in which the bill is generated, and shall be paid at the office of the Fiscal Officer or her authorized agent.
(3) Non-receipt of any bill described in subsection (b) hereof shall not release the user of liability for any of these charges. In any case where the user is responsible for the non-receipt of the bill, the conditions herein described for late payment and penalties shall apply. In those instances where the Village is responsible for the non-receipt of the bill, the Village may, at its discretion, grant the user an extension of the payment period and late- payment conditions described herein.
(4) Calculation for all bills for sanitary sewer services shall be deemed equal to the total amount of water supplied to the premises based on the user's water usage as recorded by the user's water meter except such quantities of water to the premises as described in strict conformity with all applicable requirements of subsection (e)(5) hereof.
(5) Exempt quantities. Sewer charges shall not be assessed pursuant to subsection (e)(4) hereof on quantities of water that are supplied to a property for a specific purpose that does not produce sanitary wastewater or other waste requiring treatment and that does not, under normal circumstances, result in the discharge of pure or impure water to the municipal sewage collection system. To qualify for exemption from the quantities upon which charges would otherwise be based, waters must be delivered to the property by the distribution facility that limits access to the water in a manner that insures that it cannot be diverted from the intended purpose to any other use. Installations qualifying for exemption include, without limitation, those which utilize water purchased from the Municipal Water Division through separately metered lines with Village approved meter. The property owner shall, at his own expense, install such a separate water meter as is necessary and approved by the Village Administrator. That utilized water obtained is incorporated into a finished product exclusively for: concrete and agricultural chemical applications. In all such instances, applications for exemption must be submitted to the Village Administrator with documentation, if required, to prove qualification has been met and continues to be met on an as needed basis.
(f) Penalties for Non-Payment.
(1) The Village Administrator is empowered to make rules with respect to the billing procedures and is authorized to impose penalties in case of failure to pay any bill for sewer charges when due.
(2) Any bill not paid when due shall be declared delinquent and an additional charge of ten percent (10%) of the amount of the bill shall be added thereto and collected therewith for each month the bill remains delinquent. Should a bill still be delinquent by the 25th day of the second month following the date of billing, the bill will be handled in accordance with subsection (f)(3).
(3) Each sewer charge levied pursuant to this section is hereby made a lien upon the premises charged therewith, and if the same is not paid within ninety days after it shall be due and payable, it shall be certified to the Auditor of Williams County, who shall place the same on the real property tax list and duplicate against the property served by the connection with the interest and penalties allowed by law, and be collected as other municipal taxes are collected. The Village shall also have the right, in event of nonpayment as aforesaid, to discontinue service to such premises of water supplied by the Village's waterworks system until such unpaid sewer charges have been fully paid.
(4) Deferred payment plans. Deferred payments shall be in accordance with the then in effect version of the Village of West Unity's Municipal Utility Services Termination Manual.
(g) Annual Review of Charges and Notification to Users.
(1) The user charge system shall be reviewed annually by the Village to evaluate the OM&R costs and determine whether or not the rates are sufficient to defray the annual cost of operating and maintaining the System. If the total annual revenue derived from the user rate is not sufficient to pay the annual cost, the Village will adjust the rates as required. The purpose of the annual review is also to maintain a proportional user charge system. Therefore, any change to the user rates shall maintain proportionality among user classes.
(2) Each user will be notified at least annually, in conjunction with a regular bill, of the rate and that portion of the sewer service charge which is attributable to OM&R costs of wastewater treatment services.
(Ord. 2023-02. Passed 4-13-23.)