Source: https://www.codepublishing.com/WA/PierceCounty/html/PierceCounty13/PierceCounty1313.html
Timestamp: 2019-05-23 01:14:57
Document Index: 336446055

Matched Legal Cases: ['§ 1', '§ 2', '§ 2', '§ 2', '§ 2', '§ 2', '§ 2', '§ 1', '§ 2', '§ 1', '§ 1', '§ 2', '§ 3', '§ 1', '§ 1', '§ 2', '§ 2', '§ 2']

Chapter 13.13 SERVICE CHARGES
SERVICE CHARGES Revised 1/17 Revised 2/18 Revised 3/18 Revised 2/19 Amended Ord. 2018-74
13.13.010 Definitions and Acronyms. Revised 2/19
13.13.015 Commencement of Charges. Revised 2/19
13.13.020 Duration of Charges.
13.13.025 Billings – To Whom Sent; Payment Responsibility.
13.13.030 Frequency of Billing.
13.13.035 Forms of Payment; Returned Check Charge. Revised 2/18 Revised 3/18
13.13.040 Payment Provisions and Delinquencies.
13.13.045 Lien Provisions. Revised 2/19
13.13.050 Adjustment of Billings. Revised 2/19
13.13.055 Meters – Commercial Units. Revised 2/19
13.13.060 Uncontaminated Wastewater Adjustments. Revised 2/19
13.13.065 Taxes, Fees, or Surcharges on Services. Revised 2/19
13.13.070 Customer Classes. Revised 2/19
13.13.075 Classification of Commercial Units.
13.13.080 Commercial Class 5 Requirements.
13.13.085 Rates and Charges. Revised 1/17 Revised 2/18 Revised 2/19 Amended Ord. 2018-74
13.13.095 Construction.
13.13.100 Severability.
The following definitions and acronyms shall apply to terms used in this Chapter:
"Accessory Dwelling Unit (ADU)" means an additional dwelling unit on the same parcel of property as, and added to, created within, or detached from a single-family detached dwelling for use as a completely independent or semi-independent unit with provisions for cooking, eating, sanitation, and sleeping.
"Basic Service Charge" means the portion of the service charges on commercial customers representing the Department-determined cost of providing service to a commercial unit. This amount is the minimum monthly service charge applicable to a commercial unit regardless of the consumption of the unit.
"CCF" means Hundred Cubic Feet.
"Commercial Class 1" means a customer class consisting of those commercial units whose wastewater discharge contains BOD or Total Suspended Solids (TSS) levels less than 300 milligrams per liter (mg/l).
"Commercial Class 2" means a customer class consisting of those commercial units whose wastewater discharge contains BOD or TSS levels equal to or greater than 300 and less than 500 mg/l.
"Commercial Class 3" means a customer class consisting of those commercial units whose wastewater discharge contains BOD or TSS levels equal to or greater than 500 and less than 700 mg/l.
"Commercial Class 4" means a customer class consisting of those commercial units whose wastewater discharge contains BOD or TSS levels equal to or greater than 700 and less than 900 mg/l.
"Commercial Class 5" means a customer class consisting of those commercial units whose wastewater discharge contains BOD or TSS levels which are equal to or exceed 900 mg/l. Also, it means any commercial unit whose wastewater discharge exceeds 150,000 gallons per day as an average during any seven days in a year, consecutive or not.
"Commercial Service Charge" means the total monthly service charge applicable to a commercial unit. It is the total of the Basic Service Charge plus the Volume Service Charge.
"Commercial Unit" means any structure or portion of a structure not classified as a residential unit. It may be a commercial, industrial, or other non-residential use.
"Contract Sewer Service Area" means the geographical area served by the public sewer system pursuant to a contract between Pierce County and a municipal corporation.
"Mixed Use Unit" means a single structure where both residential and commercial units are present.
"Mobile Home Park" means where the parcel of property on which four or more mobile homes are situated is owned by another party unrelated to the owners of the mobile homes and the property on which the mobile home rests is rented or leased to the mobile home owner on a periodic basis for less than five year intervals.
"Multi-Family Residential Class" means a customer class consisting of those residential units not in the single-family residential class including, but not limited to, accessory dwelling units, duplexes, triplexes, fourplexes, apartment buildings, and mobile home parks.
"Owner of Record" shall mean the property owner identified in the indexed records of the Pierce County Assessor-Treasurer's Office and, if those records are found not to reflect the current ownership, the indexed records of the Pierce County Auditor's Office.
"Residential Unit" means a structure or portion of a structure capable of human habitation including, but not limited to, private houses; accessory dwelling units, each unit of a duplex, triplex, fourplex, apartment building, condominium, or townhouse; or a mobile home.
"Residential Service Charge" means the service charge applicable to a residential unit. It is a flat monthly charge and is only applicable to single-family residential and multi-family residential customer classes.
"Service Charges" means the charges required by the County for the furnishing of sewer service, or for having such service available to customers in order to cover the cost to maintain, operate, preserve, improve, and administer the public sewer system. In addition, customers are required to pay any taxes, fees, and surcharges imposed on any regular service charges. Any fee, time and material charge, administrative fine, or adjudicated civil penalty owed by any customer to the Department shall, if past due, become a service charge upon a customer if that fee, charge, fine, or penalty (or part thereof) is approximately related to providing sewer service (or its availability) to that customer. Any extraordinary service charge is additional to any regular service charges. Such a charge may be apportioned among several accounts if appropriate.
"Single-Family Residential Class" means a customer class consisting of the following residential units: (1) where there is but one residential unit on a parcel of property; (2) held under Chapters 64.32 RCW (condominiums) and 64.36 RCW (time-share); (3) held under a cooperative apartment agreement; (4) where the mobile home is under the same ownership as the underlying parcel; or (5) where the Department finds this to be the most reasonable classification.
"Standard Industrial Classification (SIC)" means classification pursuant to the "Standard Industrial Classification Manual" issued by the United States Office of Management and Budget.
"Volume Service Charge" means the portion of the commercial service charge representing the volume and strength related costs of treating a commercial unit's wastewater discharge. The charge is calculated by determining the quantity and characteristics of the wastewater discharged by the commercial unit and applying the appropriate rate.
"Wastewater Discharge" means the quantity of wastewater or other liquid released into the public sewer system by a person as determined by: (1) water use at a specific property as determined by metering of the water supply from all sources; (2) clause (1) above, as adjusted for water use determined not to contribute wastewater loading to the public sewer system as measured by standard, recognized methods approved by the Department; or (3) if water meter records are not available or inaccurate, an estimate of water use at a specific property using standard, recognized means approved by the Department.
"Wastewater Loading" means the volume of wastewater flow and its constituent pollutants including: BOD and TSS.
(Ord. 2018-99s § 1 (part), 2018; Ord. 2013-25s § 2 (part), 2013)
A. Service charges shall be levied upon all properties or structures to which service is furnished by the public sewer system as determined by the Department.
B. Service charges shall commence the month in which an occupancy permit is issued, or no more than 120 days from the date of final inspection or approval of the side sewer permit, whichever occurs first, and shall be payable at a rate determined by the County rate ordinance.
C. Service charges for properties or structures to which service is available within the boundaries of a ULID shall commence 60 days after such service becomes available and written notice of such availability is sent to the owner of record of the property, or upon connection to the public sewer system, whichever event occurs first.
Service charges once imposed on any property or structure shall continue until that property or structure is demolished, removed, or no longer in existence. The property owner shall obtain a sewer service capping permit prior to demolition or removal of any building or structure connected to the sewer system. A property owner may also elect to obtain a sewer service capping permit and disconnect a vacant building or structure from the sewer system in order to suspend service charges. The property owner shall continue to be responsible for the payment of service charges for any building or structure until the building sewer has been disconnected and capped, and the sewer service capping permit has received final inspection approval. (Ord. 2013-25s § 2 (part), 2013
A. Billings shall be sent to the owner of record of the properties or structures for which service is furnished or made available so far as the Department can reasonably ascertain. "Reasonably ascertain" shall mean resorting first to the indexed records of the Pierce County Assessor-Treasurer's Office, and second, if those records are found not to reflect the current ownership, the indexed records of the Pierce County Auditor's Office. It shall not mean resorting to certified or registered mail, or messengers, on a regular basis for any one account.
B. Failure to receive such billings shall not relieve the property owner from paying any service charges owed or from paying any penalty, interest, foreclosure costs, or all lien recording and release fees that are accrued upon failure to pay such billings when due. In addition, failure to receive such billings shall not prevent the Department from attaching a lien to the property as provided in RCW 36.94.150 and as prescribed in PCC 13.13.045.
C. At the property owner's option, a sworn affidavit designating to whom billing shall be sent may be filed with the Department. Such affidavit shall be in a form prescribed by the Department. Such affidavit shall not relieve the property owner from the responsibility for payment of all service charges, penalties, interest, foreclosure costs, and all lien recording and release fees.
D. The owner of record of the property shall be responsible for the payment of all service charges, penalties, interest, foreclosure costs, and all lien recording and release fees.
(Ord. 2013-25s § 2 (part), 2013)
Billings for service charges shall, at a minimum, be made every two months for single-family and multi-family residential customer classes, and monthly for commercial customer classes. Any customer requests to change the frequency of billings are subject to the Department's approval. (Ord. 2013-25s § 2 (part), 2013)
A. Payments may be made with U.S. currency, personal check, money order, cashier's check, and other forms of payment approved by the Department. Some forms of payments will only be accepted using the Department's online system and will be subject to a convenience fee. The Department reserves the right to accept or decline any form of payment (except U.S. currency and cashier's check) for administrative convenience.
B. In instances where a lien for non-payment of service charges has been attached to the property, the lien will only be released when the account is paid to a zero balance. If paid by U.S. currency or cashier's check, the lien will be released immediately. If paid by other forms of payment, the lien will be released 30 days from the payment date. The Department reserves the right to accept payments only with U.S. currency or cashier's check.
C. A returned check charge shall be assessed against an account in cases where the Department receives a returned check for payment of service charges. Said charge shall be the same charge assessed by the Finance Department in accordance with its policy for returned checks as adopted and hereafter amended.
(Ord. 2017-12s § 2 (part), 2017; Ord. 2013-25s § 2 (part), 2013)
A. Service charges for properties or structures for which service is furnished or made available are due 25 days after the billing date. Such charges become delinquent if not paid when due.
B. If such charges are not paid in full when due, then a penalty shall be added to the service charges equal to ten percent (10%) of the latest billed amount as a one-time late penalty, and interest shall accrue on the unpaid balance from the billing due date at a rate of eight percent (8%) per year. The interest shall be applied monthly on the entire unpaid balance, excluding any accrued interest, foreclosure costs, and all lien recording and release fees.
C. A partial payment of any past due charges shall be applied to the below costs as they are applicable in the following order of priority:
1. Foreclosure costs;
2. All lien recording and release fees;
3. Taxes and fees;
4. Accrued interest;
5. Penalty payments; and
6. Surcharges and delinquent service charges – oldest first.
A. The Department shall have a lien for all delinquent connection and service charges and associated penalties, interest, and fees which shall attach to the property for which the services were available. The lien shall be superior to all other liens and encumbrances, except general taxes and local and special assessments.
B. The Department shall certify periodically the delinquent charges, penalties, interest, and fees to the auditor of the county where the property is located. The Department may later amend these certifications when appropriate to recover other costs incurred by the County.
C. Upon the expiration of sixty days after certification, the Department may bring suit in foreclosure by civil action in the superior court where the property is located. Costs associated with the foreclosure of the lien, including but not limited to advertising, title report, and personnel costs, shall be added to the lien upon filing of the foreclosure action. In addition, the court may allow a reasonable attorney's fee.
D. The lien shall be foreclosed in the same manner as the foreclosure of real property tax liens.
E. In lieu of the procedure provided in PCC 13.13.045 B. above, the County sewerage lien shall be effective for one year's delinquent charges without the necessity of any writing or recording of the lien with the County Auditor pursuant to RCW 36.94.150(3); RCW 35.67.215; RCW 35.67.210. A sewage lien for more than one year's delinquent charges shall be valid if properly recorded in the office of the County Auditor.
A. Billing errors are adjusted subject to the Department's approval. Adjustments are made by way of credit or debit to the customer's account unless another adjustment method, such as a refund, is approved by the Department.
B. Any error or overcharge on a bill must be reported to the Department within 90 days of the billing date. When the overcharge is made because of erroneous information provided by the property owner or tenant, or the Department has not been notified of the error within 90 days of the billing date, the Department may deny the billing adjustment.
C. The maximum adjustment amount is limited to the overcharge accrued in the immediate past 36 months prior to notice to the Department, as reflected in the Department's records. In addition, the Department reserves all defenses, offsets, and claims allowable by contract or in law.
D. The maximum backbill for under-billing a property is limited to the charges accrued in the immediate past 36 months prior to discovery of the under-billing, as reflected in the Department's records. In addition, the Department reserves all defenses, offsets, and claims allowable by contract or in law, including interest.
A. The volume service charge for commercial units is based upon the quantity of wastewater discharging into the public sewer system. This discharge measurement is determined by the average monthly water use at a property from the previous months as shown in water meter records, as adjusted for water use determined not to contribute wastewater loading to the public sewer system. The commercial customer shall provide the Department with all information on water use at a property necessary to determine the consumptive water use for the commercial unit. This shall include furnishing records kept by the water purveyor for the commercial unit.
B. Measurement of water use determined not to contribute wastewater loading to the public sewer system shall be by means approved by the Department.
C. All new commercial units will be allowed adjustments for water use determined not to contribute wastewater loading to the public sewer system only when a separate approved water meter is provided, at the owner's expense, to quantify the actual volume not discharging to the public sewer system.
D. The Department shall have access to the premises for meter reading so as to confirm that the water use is as claimed by the customer.
E. If water meter records are not reliable or available for any reason, an estimate of water use at the property shall be used to determine water consumption there. Estimates of water use at a property shall be by means approved by the Department.
F. Commercial units which derive all or part of the wastewater discharge from product concentration, moisture condensation, or other non-metered sources, shall install approved wastewater flow monitoring equipment upon written notice given by the Department.
G. If the measurement of water use results in a fractional part of a CCF, the number used for calculating rates and charges shall be the next highest whole number.
H. In the case of a leak in the water service pipe, the property owner may be entitled to an adjustment of their sewer bill. To apply for a billing adjustment due to a water leak, a customer shall submit a written request to the Department. The request shall include the date the leak was repaired and copies of the repair bills or materials receipt. The burden of proof shall be on the applicant to show that the billing adjustment sought should be granted. Upon receipt of the request, the Department shall review it and determine whether, and to what extent, to grant the request. The Department shall notify the applicant of its decision in writing.
A. A commercial customer may use water for purposes which produce uncontaminated wastewater satisfactory for direct discharge into means other than the public sewer system. These purposes may include irrigation, cooling, heating, or processing. In such cases, the customer may submeter the uncontaminated water flow not discharged into the public sewer system and have adjusted the metered water usage to the property so that he/she may be charged only for water flow actually discharged into the public sewer system.
B. All submetering shall be subject to the written approval of the Department and installed at the customer's sole expense.
C. The Department shall have the authority to regulate all submetering activities including, but not limited to, the approval of plans and specifications for the installation and operation of the submetering system; approval of successful inspection of the system; procedures for continued operation and adjustment of the system; and the calibration and testing of the submeters on a regular basis at the sole expense of the customer.
D. All customers who enter into a sewer service sub-metering agreement shall provide monthly sub-metered readings from the 15th to the 15th of each month. Failure to provide sub-meter readings by the 25th of the month during three of any twelve-month period will be cause for automatic cancellation of the Agreement and the sewer service account to revert back to charges for the water and/or sewage flows based on the master utility water meter(s) serving the property.
13.13.065 Taxes, Fees, and Surcharges on Services. Revised 2/19
Taxes, fees, and surcharges imposed on Departmental sewer services or billings by the State of Washington or any municipality shall be passed on to the customers of the public sewer system as additional levies above and beyond the Department's established rates and charges for service. These taxes, fees, and surcharges will appear as a separate line item on the customer's billing statement. These taxes, fees, and surcharges will not require additional action or approval by the Council. (Ord. 2018-99s § 1 (part), 2018; Ord. 2013-25s § 2 (part), 2013)
A. All properties served by the public sewer system, or having such service available, shall be classified for billing purposes into the following customer classes:
1. Single-Family Residential Class;
2. Multi-Family Residential Class;
3. Commercial Class 1;
4. Commercial Class 2;
5. Commercial Class 3;
6. Commercial Class 4; and
7. Commercial Class 5.
B. For mixed use units, each customer class shall be treated separately for billing purposes as may be practical. If required, a separate account shall be set up and billed according to the rates and charges currently in effect.
C. For billing purposes, the Department shall classify any business activity carried on within a residence or permitted accessory building as a commercial unit. If the property owner provides evidence that this activity has been permitted as a home occupation by the relevant municipality, then the residence or permitted accessory building shall be classified as a residential unit.
A. All commercial units shall be classified into one of the five available SIC Group Classifications for billing purposes. Placement into a SIC Group Classification will be determined by levels of BOD and TSS contained in the commercial unit's wastewater discharge into the public sewer system. The levels of BOD and TSS contained in a commercial unit's wastewater shall be termed to be a measure of the "strength" of the wastewater. The determination of BOD and TSS levels shall be obtained through one of two alternative methods. Those methods are an actual monitoring of the commercial unit's wastewater strength or an estimation of the BOD and TSS levels for the commercial unit based on the best information available.
B. Initial classification of all commercial units into SIC Groups shall be based on an estimation of the levels of BOD and TSS (or strength) contained in the commercial unit's wastewater discharge. All estimates of BOD and TSS levels shall be by means approved by the Department and may be later adjusted.
C. As an alternative, at the customer or property owner's sole expense, the commercial customer may submit a plan for monitoring its wastewater discharge on a regular basis for purposes of determining the strength of its wastewater discharge. All monitoring plans shall be reviewed and approved by the Department prior to implementation. The results of such a monitoring plan shall be taken into account, along with all other available information, when determining a commercial unit's SIC group placement.
D. The Department may monitor the wastewater from any commercial customer to determine the flow, wastewater strength and suitability for treatment at a frequency to be determined by the Department. The results of this monitoring may be used to assess representative wastewater charges or to assure that no wastewater loading changes have occurred at the commercial unit.
A. Customers classified within Commercial Class 5 shall install approved wastewater flow metering, recording, and totalizing equipment, and refrigerated, flow-proportioned sampling equipment.
B. If Commercial Class 5 customers do not supply approved monitoring equipment, they shall provide to the Department every three months a wastewater loading report for periods of normal operations based upon a minimum seven days of flow proportioned sampling. The report shall be prepared by an independent licensed professional engineer or independent laboratory approved in advance by the Department. The form and manner of such a report shall be prescribed and approved in advance by the Department.
C. Designs and plans of wastewater flow measurement and sampling installations must be submitted to the Department for approval prior to installation.
1. Flow or level sensor equipment must be insensitive to, or protected from, solids accumulation, temperature variations, and surface foaming. The equipment must be capable of being readily calibrated and holding said calibration for at least three months after calibration.
2. Wastewater sampling equipment must obtain flow proportioned samples without distorting the concentration of any waste constituent.
3. Flow instrumentation must include a means for determining daily peak flow rate and a digital flow totalizer reporting in thousands of gallons. The totalizer must not turn over more than once per year during the first year of installation.
4. The Department shall be permitted access to the monitoring equipment at all times.
5. The Commercial Class 5 customer shall maintain the monitoring equipment's accuracy and good working order at all times at his/her sole expense.
6. If the equipment becomes inoperable, or for any reason is not capable of providing monitoring information, the customer shall provide a wastewater report as described in subsection B of this Section.
D. Each Commercial Class 5 customer shall provide an approved wastewater monitoring access point to its wastewater discharge entering the public sewer system. The Department shall be permitted access to all wastewater monitoring points.
E. The Department shall be empowered to require installation and maintenance, at the Commercial Class 5 customer's expense, of wastewater flow monitoring equipment and proportional flow sampling equipment where wastewater loadings cannot be reasonably determined. The Department shall be given complete access to all such equipment and access points.
F. Any Commercial Class 5 customers, after being notified to install flow monitoring and sampling equipment, shall have 180 days to install the equipment. Otherwise, the Department shall have the equipment installed and will invoice the commercial unit for the installation cost.
G. Any Commercial Class 5 customer initiating a discharge, or increasing the rate of discharge of wastewater or pollutants, shall need approval prior to initiation of, or increase of, such discharge.
A. Regular rates and charges for the furnishing of service, or for having such service available, except for the Cascadia (Tehaleh) Sewer Service Area, shall be as follows:
Single-Family Residential Class:
Multi-Family Residential Class:
Plus: Volume Service Charge
per CCF of water consumption
Commercial Class 3:
Commercial Class 4:
Commercial Class 5:
Plus: BOD Surcharge
per pound of BOD
Plus: TSS Surcharge
per pound of TSS
For each year after 2015, any annual adjustments to these rates and charges shall be brought forth by ordinance for consideration by the Council concurrent with the annual adoption of the Pierce County budget. The 2015 Single-Family Residential Class service charge includes $0.37 cost recovery for the low-income senior and disabled discount calculated based upon a 20 percent discount on a five year service charge average projected from year 2015 to year 2019.
B. Regular rates and charges for the furnishing of sewer service for the Cascadia Sewer Service Area shall be as follows:
Customer Class Rates and Charges
$55.00 per unit per month
$48.44 per unit per month
$ 7.40 per account per month
$ 5.69 per CCF of water consumption
For each year after 2013, any annual adjustments to these rates and charges shall be brought forth by ordinance for consideration by the Council concurrent with the annual adoption of the Pierce County budget.
C. Municipalities discharging wastewater into the public sewer system under contract with the Department shall be charged according to the provisions of the respective contracts.
D. The following surcharge shall be charged to customers in the listed Contract Sewer Service Area until all debt incurred by the County as a consequence of said transfer has been satisfied:
City of DuPont Historic Village Area
$24.00 per unit per month
E. A Franchise Agreement Fee in an amount equal to 6 percent of the regular rates and charges for the furnishing of service, or for having such service available, shall be charged to all customers in the City of Lakewood.
F. A Franchise Agreement Fee in an amount equal to 6 percent of the regular rates and charges for the furnishing of service, or for having such service available, shall be charged to all customers in the City of University Place.
G. Reduced rates are available to customers who meet the eligibility requirements for low-income senior citizens and low-income disabled persons. Homeowners who reside at the service address and who qualify for the low-income senior citizen or low-income disability real estate property tax exemption under state law and have active property tax filed at the Pierce County Assessor's Office (RCW 84.36.381) shall be eligible for a 20 percent reduction of the base residential class service rate.
(Ord. 2018-99s § 1 (part), 2018; Ord. 2017-77 § 1, 2017; Ord. 2016-73 § 2, 2016; Ord. 2016-54 § 3, 2016; Ord. 2015-41 § 1, 2015; Ord. 2013-68s § 1, 2013; Ord. 2013-25s § 2 (part), 2013)
This Chapter shall be construed liberally to make it purposeful and effective in achieving its objectives and the objectives of Chapter 36.94 RCW. (Ord. 2013-25s § 2 (part), 2013)
If any provision of this Chapter or its application is held invalid or unenforceable, the remainder of the Chapter or the application of the provision to other persons and circumstances shall not be affected. (Ord. 2013-25s § 2 (part), 2013)