ORD 2000-23 - Utility Rate Increase 09-26-2000ORDINANCE NO. 2000-23
AN ORDINANCE AMENDING TITLES 14, GARBAGE, REFUSE AND RUBBISH,
AND 30, WATER AND SEWERS, OF THE CODE OF ORDINANCES OF THE
CITY OF HUNTSVILLE, TEXAS, INCREASING THE RATES FOR SANITATION
SERVICE, WATER SERVICE, AND SEWER SERVICE PROVIDED BYTHE CITY;
AND MAKING OTHER PROVISIONS AND FINDINGS RELATED THERETO.
BE IT ORDAINED BY THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF HUNTSVILLE, TEXAS, that:
SECTION 1: Title 14, Garbage, Refuse and Rubbish of the Code of Ordinances of the City
of Huntsville, Texas, Part 14.07, Rates is hereby amended:
Section 14.07.01 Residential collection charges.
The following monthly charges shall be assessed and collected from owners or occupants of each residential
unit for refuse and garbage collection service:
Single family residential pickup:
minimum charge
Multi-family residential pickup:
A. individually metered units
- collected without dumpster
- collected with dumpster
B. jointly metered units
- collected without dumpster
- collected with dumpster
(credit given for vacancies @ $10.40/each)
Business minimum (residential)
Section 14.07.02 Commercial collection charges.
$12.75/month
$12.75/occupied dwelling unit per month
$10.40/occupied dwelling unit per month
$12.75/dwelling unit per month
$10.40/dwelling unit per month
$16.75/month
Commercial establishments shall be charged for City collection of garbage, trash and rubbish as follows:
Businesses, minimum charge
2 yard container
3 yard container
4 yard container
6 yard container
8 yard container
6 yard - 3-1 compaction
20 yard rolloff
30 yard rolloff
Rolloff - extra dump (20 or 30 yard)
$ 16.75/month
$ 33.45/mo. weekly pickup
$ 44.35/mo. weekly pickup
55.20/mo. weekly pickup
77.80/mo. weekly pickup
$ 98.10 /mo. weekly pickup
$248.05/mo. weekly pickup
$273.05mo. weekly pickup
$375.10/mo. weekly pickup
$ 92.70/per dump
17 yard - 2.5 -1 compaction
30 yard - 3 -1 compaction
30 yard - 3.5 -1 compaction
35 yard - 4 -1 compaction"
40 yard - 3.5 -1 compaction
$149.60 /per dump
$288.05 /per dump
$331.75 /per dump
$523.90 /per dump
$446.70/per dump
40 yard - 4 -1 compaction $505.00 /per dump
20 yard temporary/construction $184.00 /per dump
($500.00 deposit, $75.00 setup, one dump per month minimum)
30 yard temporary/construction $227.80/per dump
($500.00 deposit, $75.00 setup, one dump per month minimum)
Section 14.07.03 Disposal fees.
Basic Fee
Minimum Fee
White Goods /Large Furniture (Refrigerator, Stove,
Couch, Mattress, etc.)
Tires, small
Tires, large
Large dead animal (cow, horse, etc.)
Small dead animal (dog, cat, etc.)
Compacting vehicles
Trees, stumps, Iimbs over 4" in diameter
Section 14.07.04 Rates for other out -of -town service.
$4.40 /loose cubic yard
$4.40
$6.60
$1.10
$13.20
$33.00
$3.30
$4.40 X manufacturer's capacity
of truck X manufacturer's
compaction ratio
$27.50 + $4.40 per cubic yard
There shall be assessed and collected from persons provided refuse and garbage collection services outside
the corporate limits of the City, the following rates:
(Outside City)
2 yard container
$53.70/mo, weekly pickup
4 yard container
$92.70/mo. weekly pickup
6 yard container
$132.80/mo. weekly pickup
8 yard container
$170.00 /mo. weekly pickup
20 yard rolloff
$452.80/mo. weekly pickup
30 yard rolloff
$646.40/mo. weekly pickup
Rolloff - extra dump (20 or 30 yard)
$156.90 /per dump
20 yard temporary/construction
$230.10 /per dump
($500.00 deposit, $75.00 setup, one dump per
month minimum)
30 yard temporary/construction
$284.75/per dump
($500.00 deposit, $75.00 setup, one dump per
month minimum)
SECTION 2: Title 30, Water and Sewers of the Code of Ordinances of the City of Huntsville,
Texas, Section 31.01.07 Monthly Charges for Water is hereby amended:
Section 30.01.07 Monthly charges for water.
A. Residential and Commercial rate schedule. Except for contractual customers, residential and commercial
users supplied with water service by the city shall be charged a monthly water service charge based upon
the size of the meter and the amount of water consumed by the user and applied to the following rate
schedule:
Gallons of Water Used per Month
First 3,000 minimum monthly charge
All over 3,000, per 1,000
Amount or Rate Charged
See Meter Size Table below
$2.45
Meter Size
Minimum Monthly Charge
.75
$12.00
1
16.80
1.5
21.60
2
34.80
3
132.00
4
168.00
6
252.00
8
348.00
B. Institutional users. Except as specifically provided otherwise by written agreement, institutional users,
or persons who use five (5) per cent or more of the total water sold by the city, shall be charged a monthly
water service charge based upon the size of the meter and the amount of water consumption attributed to
the user, as determined herein, and applied to the following rate:
Gallons of Water Used per Month
First 3,000 minimum monthly charge
All over 3,000, per 1,000
Amount or Rate Charged
See Meter Size Table above
$2.93
C. Temporary service. The City's Utility Billing Division may grant, at customer's request, a temporary
service connection to a service address with a vacant dwelling unit. The connection must be for the purpose
of general repairs, the laying of utility lines, repairs to plumbing, realtors selling a house and needing water
to show the house, or similar purposes. The customer shall be charged a fee of five dollars ($5.00) per day
during the temporary period. A deposit will not be required. If the customer's water usage exceeds 3,000
gallons during the temporary period, the customer shall pay a charge based on the city's current rate for
water usage in addition to the daily charge.
SECTION 3: Title 30, Water and Sewers of the Code of Ordinances of the City of Huntsville,
Texas, Section 30.03.05, Connection charges; deposits to secure payment of
utility service bills is hereby amended:
Section 30.03.05 Connection charges; deposits to secure payment of utility service bills.
A. A fifteen dollar ($15.00) connection fee shall be made for any new service application or changes in
existing service applications.
B. If a customer chooses to disconnect a sprinkler meter, while the main water meter is still active, a
disconnect fee of fifteen dollars ($15.00) will be charged and a fifteen dollar ($15.00) connect fee will be
charged to turn the meter back on.
C. The utility office supervisor shall require any applicant for water, sewer or sanitation service to post a
deposit to secure payment of utility service charges, as follows:
1. Any firm, corporation, commercial, or jointly metered residential customer, including apartments,
duplexes, mobile home parks, etc., applying for water service shall deposit with the city, as security for the
payment of future charges, a sum equal to two (2) times the average estimated monthly utility service charge
for the premises for which utility services are requested. Past accounts from previous customers at the same
location, or accounts of a comparable usage factor, may be used in arriving at the estimated monthly charge
for determining the amount of deposit.
2. Any person applying for a single residential water, water sprinkler, sewer and garbage service shall place
with the city a sum of twenty dollars ($20.00) per service.
3. Upon the sale or transfer of property, or change in customer or occupancy of any premises served by city
water service, no water, sewer or sanitation service shall be furnished to the new owner, customer or
occupant of such premises unless and until such deposit as required by this section is paid. Any person, firm
or corporation who fails to notify the city of a change in ownership, title or occupancy of premises resulting
in a different person or entity having responsibility for the payment of utility service charges, shall be subject
to immediate discontinuance of utility service, unless and until the previous customer's account is finalized
and the deposit called for herein is made.
4. A utility deposit shall not be required for the interim period (three (3) months maximum) that a rental
house is being prepared for occupancy, provided that the owner has current residential service.
5. A blanket deposit, equal to the cumulative average monthly utility service charge, shall be allowed in lieu
of separate deposits for a customer with multiple accounts. Any multiple dwelling unit with more than five
(5) units shall require a separate commercial deposit.
6. Any customer that is put on the "cut-of' list (a customer that has not paid his/her bill by the disconnect
date) more than twice within a 12-month period shall be required to increase his/her deposit to the average
amount due at "cut-off 'or disconnect date. A notice of the amount of the deposit increase will be sent to
the customer. The additional deposit must be paid by the customer if they appear on the cut-off list a third
time. Failure to pay the increased deposit shall result in discontinuance of all utility services, including water
and sewer service.
D. No person shall attempt to avoid any payment under this chapter by changing names on an account. The
city may transfer a delinquent payment from one customer to another account of that customer. Utility
service cannot be discontinued for delinquency in payment for utility service by a previous occupant,
E. Every applicant applying for new service who previously has been a city utility customer and whose
service was discontinued for nonpayment of bills or has terminated service without paying a bill shall be
required to pay all amounts due to the city as a condition of obtaining new service.
F. Utility deposits will be refunded upon termination of service, provided that the customer has fully
satisfied all charges due the city. Single residential customer deposits shall be refunded at the end of twelve
(12) months with a good payment record. Good payment record means that the customer has not paid a bill
more than once past the penalty date in the last twelve (12) months.
G. Security for payment of utility service charges may be made by cash deposit with the City, or by an
approved certificate of deposit in the name of the City of Huntsville at a banking or saving institution
authorized to do and doing business in the State of Texas or by an approved letter of credit at a banking or
savings institution authorized to do and doing business in the State of Texas.
H. A single residential customer with a currently active account may guarantee payment on one additional
single unit residential customer. Any unpaid balances will be transferred to the account of the guaranteeing
customer. The customer guaranteeing the account must have a twenty -four (24) month history with the city
and may not have been delinquent more than once in any twelve -month period.
I. A twenty -five ($25.00) after hours fee shall be assessed any customer requesting any service after regular
business hours.
J. A single residential customer may, as an alternative to cash, provide to the City a letter from another
utility company stating that the customer has previously held an account in their name at the utility company
for a period of at least twenty -four (24) months and has not been delinquent more than once in a twelve
month period.
SECTION 4: Title 30, Water and Sewers of the Code of Ordinances of the City of Huntsville,
Texas, Section 30.02.01 Monthly Charges for Sewer, is hereby amended:
Section 30.02.01 Monthly charges for sewer.
A. Commercial rate schedule.
Except as hereafter provided, each commercial use of sewer including churches, financial establishments,
hospitals, nursing homes, offices, retail and wholesale businesses supplied with sewer service by the City
shall be charged a monthly sewer service charge for each meter (regardless of the size of the meter) based
upon the amount of water consumed by the user and applied to the following rate schedule:
Gallons of Water
Used per Month
first 3,000 minimum monthly charge
all over 3,000, per 1,000
B. Residential rate schedule.
Amount or Rate Charged
$12.00
$ 3.68
1. Individually metered single residential units. Each individually metered residential dwelling unit
billed for consumption of water shall be charged for and owe each month a sewer service charge and a
volume charge based upon the amount of water consumed, as determined by the meter reading, applied
to the rate schedule; provided, however, that the maximum sewer bill for an individually metered single
family residential unit is thirty seven and 76/100 ($37.76).
Gallons of Water
Used per Month Amount or Rate Charged
first 3,000 minimum monthly charge $12.00
all over 3,000, per 1,000 $ 3.68
2. Jointly metered residential units. Each multi - family dwelling unit (including apartments, duplexes,
mobile home parks, etc.) supplied with sewer service by the City shall be charged for each meter
(regardless of meter size) a monthly sewer service charge and a volume charge based upon the amount of
water consumed by the user and applied to the above rate schedule.
E. Institutional users.
1. An institutional user is any person, corporation, agency of the State of Texas, or political subdivision
which uses five percent (5 %) or more of the total water sold by the City or which discharges five percent
(5 %) or more of the wastewater treated by the City.
2. Except as specifically provided otherwise by written agreement, an institutional user shall pay to the
City a monthly sewer service charge and a volume charge based upon the amount of wastewater
discharged by the user into the City's publicly owned treatment works, as applied to the following rate:
Gallons of Wastewater
Discharged per Month Amount or Rate Charged
First 3,00 minimum monthly charge $12.00
All over 3,000 per 1,000 $3.68
3. The amount of wastewater discharged by an institutional user shall be based upon and determined to
be the metered amounts of water delivered to the user through lines which are connected to plumbing
fixtures which then return wastewater to the City's publicly owned treatment works, or by wastewater
metered connections authorized by the City Manager.
F. Other charges not affected. Nothing herein shall effect or alter any other charge for sewer service
required by the Code or the city's industrial waste ordinances.
G. Users without city water. Residential customers not connected to the waterworks system of the city
shall be billed monthly by the city for sanitary sewer services at a rate equal to the sum of the minimum
residential sewer charge and the maximum residential sewer charge divided by two (2) (the average) or
at a rate based on the average usage of the November - February billings from a rural water district
records if applicable. Commercial customers shall be billed at a rate that is consistent with the regular
sewer charge of similar type businesses, premises or users receiving service from the city. The utility
office supervisor shall recommend for approval such service charge and conditions as deemed
appropriate to the Finance Committee of the City Council and the Finance Committee shall approve the
same.
SECTION 5: This Ordinance shall take effect immediately from and after the date of its
passage, but the increased fees adopted by this Ordinance shall become
effective on October 1, 2000, for bills mailed out after October 15, 2000.
APPROVED this 26th day of September 2000.
THE CITY OF HUNTSVILLE
William B. Green, Mayor
ATTEST:
Danna Welter, City Secretary
APP ED AS TO FORM:
Paul b. Isham, City Attorney