(A) Compliance with the provisions of this chapter shall be enforced by personnel of the Town Public Works Department, hereinafter referred to as “WPW”, independent contractors engaged by WPW for such purpose, and such other personnel as designated by the Town Manager.
(B) The use of water from the town water system by a customer in violation of any mandatory water conservation control imposed pursuant to this chapter is unlawful. For purposes of this chapter, the term CUSTOMER shall mean any person or entity in whose name the town maintains an account for water use. Further, the refusal or failure of a customer or other person acting on the customer’s behalf to cease immediately a violation of a water conservation control, after being directed to do so by a person authorized to enforce the provisions of this chapter, is unlawful. Each customer is responsible for any use of water that passes through the service connection associated with the customer’s account or otherwise passes through the customer’s private water system.
(C) Any customer who violates or permits the violation of any mandatory water conservation control imposed pursuant to this chapter shall be subject to civil penalties as follows:
(1) A warning for the first offense;
(2) A civil penalty in the amount of $1 for the second offense; and
(3) A civil penalty in the amount of $500 for the third and subsequent offenses. Each day that a violation of a mandatory water conservation control occurs shall be considered to be a separate and distinct offense.
(D) Violations shall be accumulated by customers so long as this chapter, in any of its stages, is continuously in effect and until no stage of this chapter has been in effect for a period of one calendar year. Violations of any mandatory water conservation control of any stage shall accumulate with violations of other stages. Should a customer move, or cease and renew service, during the period described herein, the customer’s violations shall continue to accumulate as if such move or cessation had not occurred.
(E) Each civil penalty assessed against a customer pursuant to this chapter shall be added to the customer’s water bill and shall be paid in the same manner as the payment of water bills. A customer’s partial payment of a water bill shall be applied first to satisfaction of the civil penalties. Failure to pay all or any portion of a water bill, including any civil penalty assessed pursuant to this chapter, in a timely manner may result in the termination of water service.
(F) The violation of any water conservation control or provision of this chapter may be enforced by all remedies authorized by law for noncompliance with town ordinances, including, without limitation, the assessment of a civil penalty and action for injunction, order of abatement or other equitable relief; provided, however, that no violation of any water conservation control or provision of this chapter shall be a basis for imposing any criminal remedy.
(Ord. passed 9-16-2008)