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HomeMy WebLinkAboutFS 2009-09-22 Item 2D - Ordinance - Utility Leak Adjustment PolicyISSUE BACKGROUND DISCUSSION City of Tukwila INFORMATIONAL MEMORANDUM TO Mayor Haggerton Rhonda Berry Finance and Safety Committee FROM Shawn Hunstock, Finance Director DATE September 15, 2009 SUBJECT Leak Adjustment Policy Jim Haggerton, Mayor The City is in need of a policy providing customers with occasional relief on their water and /or sewer bill due to high consumption related to a water leak. Billings for water usage is based on monthly reads by Public Works staff for all residential and commercial customers Sewer charges are a flat fee for residential customers, currently $11 64 per month plus $31 90 from King County Wastewater Treatment Division for treatment. This rate is not related in any way to the water billing For commercial customers however, the monthly sewer charge is based on a flat fee of $20 37 from the City, $31 90 from King County Wastewater Treatment Division, for the first 750ccf of consumption and $52 27 per additional 750ccf For commercial customers, "consumption" is based on the customer's monthly water read The Utilities staff in Finance works with approximately a 10 -20 customers per year who are billed for abnormally high consumption due to a water leak. Leaks before the meter are the responsibility of the City to repair, and the City looses out on any revenue associated with the lost water Leaks after the meter are the responsibility of the customer to repair, and they are billed for consumption during the period of the leak. There is currently no authority in the Tukwila Municipal Code or Administrative Policies providing for an infrequent adjustment to water and sewer bills for excessive charges related to a leak. Customers that the Finance Department works with now frequently indicate that repair bills for Teaks could be several hundred dollars, and can be as high as several thousand of dollars, depending on the location of the leak and any structural damage that has occurred as a result of the water leak. These expenses are in addition to the abnormally high water and sewer bills the customers receive for up to several hundred dollars, and on rare occasions in the thousands of dollars INFORMATIONAL MEMO Page 2 As you are aware, the water the City sells is purchased from Cascade Water Alliance (CWA) The water rates our customers pay are essentially a pass- through of the fees assessed by CWA, plus City administration of the water utility Because the CWA costs are essentially a pass- through, the perception could be that other City utility customers would end up paying for any charges waived as a part of this policy However, the water and sewer funds accumulate thousands of dollars in interest income each year that in theory could be used to "pay for" the waived utility charges RECOMMENDATION The Council is being asked to approve the attached Utility Leak Adjustment Policy, and Ordinance adopting the Policy This item is scheduled to be discussed at the September 22, 2009 Finance and Safety Committee meeting, the September 28, 2009 Committee of the Whole meeting and subsequent October 5, 2009 Regular Meeting ATTACHMENTS Utility Leak Adjustment Policy 300 -14 Draft Ordinance C ltempl XPGrpWisellnfoMemoLeakAdjustmentPolicy .doc CITY OF TUKWILA ADMINISTRATIVE MANUAL TITLE UTILITY LEAK ADJUSTMENT POLICY 10 PURPOSE To provide a procedure for approval, calculatioan•'ustment of water and sewer charges (Single family Non single fam accou ssifications) where excessive water consumption can be attribt&c to-a water TM. 2 0 ORGANIZATION AFFECTED 30 REFERENCES 4 0 POLICY Page 1 of 3 Index 300 -14 EXHIBIT A 4 1 The property owner, or thfr� ust requ e adjustment in writing by completing a request fin loc 4 the I nance Department in City Hall or on the— City's website Rewires tion shall include a service a• ess wha leak occurred and account numb escriren of leak antAate repaired it bill or m -rials receipts Upon `t off g ompleted request form, a representative of the City Public W depal will confirm, through visual inspection, that the leak has beTArepaired 4 3 F wing cogfirmation of repair, Finance personnel will adjust no more that b ig cycles (2 months) Single- family account types will have water y adjusted Non single family account types, where the customer's sewer bill may be based on the water consumption, will be allowed an adjustment to the water, City sewer and Metro sewer charge, provided it can be confirmed to the satisfaction of the Finance Utilities Supervisor that the additional water volume was due to the leak and did not enter the sanitary sewer system 4 4 The consumption used to determine the leak adjustment amount will be the actual consumption from the same bill cycle of the previous year if the current resident /tenant also occupied the space during the same period in the prior year TITLE UTILITY LEAK ADJUSTMENT POLICY 4 5 For property owners who have been owners for less than one year, or in situations where the current tenant did not occupy the same space in the previous year, the consumption used to determine the leak adjustment amount will be one of the following 4 6 One leak adjustment per 12 —m. period =per account w thorized If an additional adjustment requesubmi for an acco sF in the next or following year(s), the Finance Ufa upervisor will ccfhsult with the Water Utility Engineer to determine if tti ity will require the customer to complete extensive rep'airs to the service znd /or fixtures i An average of the water conplimption in the three complete billing cycles imme. el" preceding the bill cycle in which the leak bega ii In the absence of threes prior billing cycles, water consumption after leak -ir is complete can be used to estimate`nsurr°ption du the leak period of the of cusWrner Index 300 -14 Page 2 of 3 4 7 Property owners will be -el ig a leak a�a` ment if the total dollar amount of the adjustment both Y. -nd spinier is greater than $50 00 (or $25 00 fo.a water only jcit), n 5( ceed a credit of $500 00 for water o n tments A affstments Nre limited to no more than $5,00010 for a ombinationf water and /or sewer charges, regardless 4 8 Leak adjust following required approvals $50I` or less =Mance Utilities Supervisor $500 00 and up to $5,000 00 Finance Director If the proper ownedisputes the decision made by the City in which the disputed arrant exceeds $500 00, he or she may submit a written y rest to th amity of Tukwila Finance Director for an administrative review o a,drustment by the City Council Utilities Committee Recot ati :�ddons for leak adjustments made by Utilities Committee will be sub ftted to the full City Council for final consideration and approval Such request should identify the property, describe the leak and repair, and state the basis for the request for an administrative review The Finance Director must receive the written request for administrative review within 15 days from the date the City posted the adjustment to the account Pending the decision on this review, the customer who requests such review must continue to pay the disputed charge as billed until the written decision of the Finance Director is provided A decision of such an administrative review will be provided within 30 days of receipt of the TITLE UTILITY LEAK ADJUSTMENT POLICY Index 300 -14 Page 3 of 3 written request for administrative review Upon the written decision of the Finance Director, if an account has been incorrectly charged, the account will be adjusted accordingly to cover all billings occurring during the administrative review and all billings that preceded the date of receipt of the written request for review, in accordance with City policy Title UTILITY LEAADJUSTMENT POLICY Effective Date 10/1/09 Supercedes N/A Initiating Department. Finance Department Mayor's Office Approval Signature 14.04.245 Water Bill Leak Adiustments 14.16.055 Sewer Bill Leak Adiustments W \Word Processing \Ordinances \Water Leaks.doc SH:ksn 09/15/2009 DRAFT AN ORDINANCE OF THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF TUKWILA, WASHINGTON, ESTABLISHING NEW REGULATIONS REGARDING WATER AND SEWER BILL LEAK ADJUSTMENTS TO BE CODIFIED AT TUKWILA MUNICIPAL CODE SECTIONS 14.04.245, "WATER BILL LEAK ADJUSTMENTS," AND 14.16.055, "SEWER BILL LEAK ADJUSTMENTS" PROVIDING FOR SEVERABILITY, AND ESTABLISHING AN EFFECTIVE DATE. WHEREAS, the City Council recognizes that Tukwila citizens and businesses occasionally incur excessive water and sewer charges related to water leaks; and WHEREAS, such excessive charges arise at the same time that significant expenses are incurred in the repair of such leaks; and WHEREAS, the City Council has determined that it is in the best interest of Tukwila citizens and businesses to provide relief for excessive water and sewer charges related to water leaks; NOW, THEREFORE, THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF TUKWILA, WASHINGTON, HEREBY ORDAINS AS FOLLOWS: Section 1. Regulations Established. Tukwila Municipal Code Section 14.04.245, "Water Bill Leak Adjustments, is hereby established to read as follows: City Administrative Policy No. 300 -14, "Utility Leak Adjustment Policy, is hereby adopted and incorporated into this chanter by reference as if fully set forth herein and is attached as Exhibit A. The Finance Director is required to maintain the administrative leak adjustment policy. Changes to the policy require approval of the City Council Finance and Safety Committee. Section 2. Regulations Established. Tukwila Municipal Code Section 14.16.055, "Sewer Bill Leak Adjustments, is hereby established to read as follows: City Administrative Policy No. 300 -14. "Utility Leak Adiustment Policy, is hereby adopted and incorporated into this chapter by reference as if fully set forth herein and is attached as Exhibit A. The Finance Director is required to maintain the administrative leak adjustment policy. Changes to the policy require approval of the City Council Finance and Safety Committee. Section 3. Severability If any section, subsection, paragraph, sentence, clause or phrase of this ordinance or its application to any person or situation should be held to be invalid or unconstitutional for any reason by a court of competent jurisdiction, such invalidity or unconstitutionality shall not affect the validity or constitutionality of the remaining portions of this ordinance or its application to any other person or situation. Page 1 of 2 Section 4. Effective Date. This ordinance or a summary thereof shall be published in the official newspaper of the City, and shall take effect and be in full force and effect five days after passage and publication as provided by law PASSED BY THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF TUKWILA, WASHINGTON, at a Regular Meeting thereof this day of 2009 ATTEST/ AUTHENTICATED Christy O'Flaherty CMC APPROVED AS TO FORM BY Office of the City Attorney Attachment: Exhibit A Administrative Policy 300 -14 W \Word Processing \Ordinances\ Water Leaks.doc SH:ksn 09/15/2009 Jim Haggerton, Mayor Filed with the City Clerk: Passed by the City Council. Published. Effective Date: Ordinance Number. Page 2 of 2