New York Codes, Rules and Regulations › Title 21 - Miscellaneous › Chapter XXX - Niagara Falls Water Board › Part 1950 - Water Regulations › Section 1950.7 - Water meters

Current through Register Vol. 46, No. 28, July 10, 2024
(a) Water shall
				be furnished to all users through metered services only, except as otherwise
				provided in this Part.
(b) The
				supply of water through separate service must be recorded by one meter only. If
				additional meters are desired for recording the subdivision of such supply,
				they must be furnished and set by the owners or users at their own expense.
				Furthermore, the water board shall not be required to read such meters nor to
				subdivide water bills in view of the existence of such subdividing
				meters.
(c) All water meters
				installed after August 1, 1988, including remote reading devices, shall be
				purchased by the water board and shall remain the property of the water board.
				All costs of inspection, testing and installation, where applicable, shall be
				borne by the water board and shall be recovered through the establishment of
				equitable rates and charges for water service.
(d) Water meters shall not be removed from
				one service to another except by the water board. The water board reserves the
				right to remove and replace any meter at the director's determination. Meters
				shall be tested and repaired as necessary by the water board.
(e) Water meters less than two inches in size
				shall be placed inside the basement wall or indoors whenever possible. When it
				is necessary to install a water meter in any other location, a water control
				structure of such size and construction as is approved by the director must be
				provided and paid for by the owner of the property served thereby.
(f) Water meters less than two inches in size
				shall be installed by the water board only, and the cost of such installation
				shall be borne by the water board. A place must be provided by the owner where
				such meters and remote reading devices will be protected from frost and other
				damage and in readily accessible locations for reading, examination, repair and
				removal. A brass "stop and waste" type valve must be provided just ahead of,
				and on the supply side of the meter.
(g) Unless otherwise permitted by the
				director, meters of two-inch size or larger must be placed inside a building or
				in a water control structure of such design and dimensions, and at such a
				location, as is approved by the director. Meter assemblies must be protected
				from frost and other damage, and be readily accessible for reading,
				examination, testing, repair and removal. The property owner is responsible for
				the construction or modification of all required structures, piping, and
				appurtenances, including the provision of approved backflow prevention,
				required by the water board. The water meter shall be provided by the water
				board and shall remain the property of the water board.
(h) Installation or replacement of water
				meters two inches in size or larger shall be performed at the water board's
				option, either by the water board at real cost to the property owner, or by the
				property owner or his contractor subject to all requirements of the water
				board.
(i) All water meters two
				inches in size or larger must be provided with a suitable by-pass of such size
				as will provide a continuous supply of water during such time as the water
				meter is undergoing repairs, testing or replacement. The property owner shall
				be billed for meter testing with the first water bill rendered after the date
				of such test.
(j) A suitable check
				and relief valve may be required by the director in the service pipe after the
				meter, at the property owner's expense, when there is a possibility of hot
				water backing up into the water meter.
(k) Each application for a water or fire
				service which is two inches in size or larger must be accompanied by five
				copies of a detailed dimensional plan, drawn to scale, and acceptable to the
				director, which must show the exact manner of installation of the service,
				including an acceptable backflow prevention device, and the water meter, if
				applicable.
(l) The director is
				hereby authorized to make such determinations or interpretations of these
				regulations and specifications regarding the installation of water meters as
				are deemed necessary by the director. Prints of the standard type of water
				control structure installations and by-passes acceptable to the water board are
				available upon request.
(m)
				Whenever a service is to interconnect in any manner with any other supply of
				water, a separate detail of such interconnection must be clearly shown. Such
				interconnection must comply with requirements of the State Department of Health
				Sanitary Code. The application for any interconnected service as heretofore
				described shall not be granted nor any connection made to any water main until
				the plan of installation has been approved by the director, the Niagara County
				Health Department, and the State Department of Health.
(n) All water meters and by-pass valves shall
				be sealed by the water board when they are placed in service. Such seals shall
				not be removed except by the water board unless permission is first obtained in
				writing from the director. If a broken seal is discovered by the water board,
				for which permission was not obtained, a violation of this Part will be
				presumed, resulting in appropriate enforcement action by the water board in
				accordance with this Part.
(o) It
				shall be the duty of the property owner to report to the water board any broken
				or missing seals, including meter seals. If the director determines that the
				seal was broken accidentally, then the water board shall set a new seal,
				without charge or other enforcement action.
(p) The water board reserves the right to
				enter, at any reasonable time, and with reasonable notice, any premises where a
				water meter is installed, for the purpose of testing, examining, repairing,
				removing, replacing or modifying such meter and its appurtenances when, in the
				opinion of the director, such action is necessary.
(q) The water board shall repair, without
				cost to the property owner, any water board-owned water meter located on a
				water service within the city corporate limits, provided that such meter has
				not been damaged by freezing, hot water or other act or omission by the
				property owner. If the property owner or his agent, employees, or tenants are
				determined to be responsible for damages by the director, then the real cost of
				repairing or replacing the water meter and/or remote reading device shall be
				borne by said property owner.
(r)
				Water meters may be tested by the water board periodically. The costs of all
				such testing shall be borne by the water board.
(s) A meter may be tested at the request of a
				property owner without charge if the test reveals that the meter is not within
				the limits of accuracy as determined by the director. The director may rely
				upon the standards of the American Water Works Association or such other
				similar standards as he or she deems appropriate. For a water meter less than
				two inches in size, a small meter testing fee as identified in the board
				schedule of rates will be charged if the meter is found to be within the limits
				of accuracy. For meters two inches in size or larger, the real cost of
				requested testing shall be paid by the property owner.