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Home My WebLink AboutOrdinance 11146ORDINANCE NO .~~~~CI ~~ AN ORDINANCE AMENDING SECTION 35-131 THROUGH SECTION 35- 135 OF ARTICLE V, "PRIVATE SEWAGE DISPOSAL", OF CHAPTER 35 OF THE CODE OF THE CITY OF FORT WORTH, TEXAS (1986), BY SUBSTITUTING THE TERM "ON-SITE SEWAGE DISPOSAL SYSTEM", AS DEFINED IN CHAPTER 366 OF THE STATE HEALTH AND SAFETY CODE, IN LIEU OF THE TERMS "SEPTIC TANK" and "DRY TOILET" ; AND BY PROVIDING THAT THE CITY MAY CONTRACT WITH ANOTHER LOCAL GOVERNMENTAL ENTITY TO AUTHORIZE SAID GOVERNMENTAL ENTITY TO PERFORM ON BEHALF OF THE CITY THE INSPECTION AND PERMITTING FUNCTIONS OF ON-SITE SEWAGE DISPOSAL SYSTEMS WITHIN THE CITY, EXCEPT FOR THE LAKE WORTH WATERSHED AREA; PROVIDING FURTHER THAT THE CITY SHALL RETAIN THE EXCLUSIVE RESPONSIBILITY FOR INSPECTION AND PERMITTING OF ON-SITE SEWAGE DISPOSAL SYSTEMS IN THE LAKE WORTH WATERSHED AREA; PROVIDING THAT THIS ORDINANCE IS CUMULATIVE OF ALL ORDINANCES; PROVIDING A SEVERABILITY CLAUSE; PROVIDING A SAVINGS CLAUSE; PROVIDING A PENALTY; PROVIDING FOR ENGROSSMENT AND ENROLLMENT; PROVIDING FOR PUBLICATION IN THE OFFICIAL NEWSPAPER; AND PROVIDING AN EFFECTIVE DATE. BE IT ORDAINED BY THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF FORT WORTH, TEXAS: SECTION 1. That Section 35-131 through Section 35-135 of Article V, "Private Sewage Disposal," of Chapter 35 of the Code of the City of Fort Worth, Texas (1986), be and the same are hereby amended, and after being so amended, shall hereafter read and be as follows: "ARTICLE V. PRIVATE SEWAGE DISPOSAL "~35-131 Approval prerequisite to issuance of a building permit. "No building permit shall be issued for the erection of any building upon real property within the City unless the applicant for the building permit gives the particu- lar agency or department to which application is being made sufficient proof of the type of approved excreta disposal system to be used for the structure. "§35-132 Permits for on-site sewage disposal systems other than sanitary sewers; delegation of authority to another governmental entity. "(a) No on-site sewage disposal system, as defined in Chapter 366 of the State Health and Safety Code, shall be constructed, covered or used until a permit shall have been issued by the director of the City Department of Public Health or other governmental entity authorized to do so by the City Council. The director or the authorized entity shall inspect all on-site sewage disposal systems for compliance with all local and state regulations. No on-site sewage disposal system shall be covered or used until it has been inspected and approved by the director of the City Department of Public Health or such other governmental entity authorized by the City Council. All inspection and permitting authority prescribed herein shall include the enforcement of all local and state regulations governing on-site sewage disposal systems. "(b) The City, upon approval and authorization by the City Council, may enter into an agreement with another local governmental entity authorizing said other govern- mental entity to perform all or a portion of the inspec- tion and permitting functions described in this section in place of the director of the City Department of Public Health. If the City Council does authorize another governmental entity to assume the said functions, such entity shall retain those functions exclusively until the City Council expressly terminates such authority and responsibility. Provided, however, that the City shall retain exclusive responsibility for inspection and per- mitting of on-site sewage disposal systems in the Lake Worth watershed area. "§35-133 Withholding permit upon determination of adverse health effect. "A permit for an on-site sewage disposal system may be withheld if the director or authorized entity determines that operation or location of the particular on-site sewage disposal system would adversely affect the public health. "§35-134 Cleaning by licensed persons only. "No person shall clean or empty, and no person shall have cleaned or emptied any chemical toilet, on-site sewage disposal system, or other excreta disposal system, unless such person doing the cleaning or emptying is licensed to perform such service in the city. 2 "§35-135 Required connections with sewers. "(a) All owners of real property situated within the City upon which improvements are situated, where the outside line of any part of the property abuts upon an alley or street or through which a sewer extends or is within a distance or radius of one hundred (100) feet of a public sanitary sewer, shall provide a water closet with water service on such premises and connect same with the public sanitary sewer, which connection shall be made by and at the expense of the owner of the improvements. "(b) Where a sanitary sewer is not available, but where water under pressure is available, such water closet shall be connected to an on-site sewage disposal system installed in accordance with all local and state regulations, including requirements found in this article. "(c) The requirements of this section shall apply to every lot or part of lot upon which a dwelling house or business house now exists or upon which same may be hereafter erected; a separate water closet, with its proper connections, being mandatory for each dwelling or business house." SECTION 2. This ordinance shall be cumulative of all provisions of ordinances and of the Code of the City of Fort Worth, Texas (1986), as amended, except where provisions of this ordinance are in direct conflict with the provisions of such ordinances and such Code, in which event conflicting provisions of such ordinances and such Code are hereby repealed. SECTION 3. It is hereby declared to be the intention of the City Council that the sections, paragraphs, sentences, clauses and phrases of this ordinance are severable, and if any phrase, clause, sentence, paragraph or section of this ordinance shall be declared unconsti- tutional by the valid judgment or decree of any court of competent 3 jurisdiction, such unconstitutionality shall not affect any of the remaining phrases, clauses, sentences, paragraphs, and sections of this ordinance, since the same would have been enacted by the City Council without the incorporation in this ordinance of any such unconstitutional phrase, clause, sentence, paragraph or section. SECTION 4. All rights and remedies of the City of Fort Worth, Texas, are expressly saved as to any and all violations of the provisions of Sections 35-131 through 3-135, as amended, or any other ordinances which have accrued at the time of the effective date of this ordinance; and, as to such accrued violations and all pending liti- gation, both civil and criminal, whether pending in court or not, under such ordinances, same shall not be affected by this ordinance but may be prosecuted until final disposition by the courts. SECTION 5. Any person, firm or corporation who violates, disobeys, omits, neglects or refuses to comply with or who resists the enforcement of any of the provisions of this ordinance shall be fined not more than Five Hundred Dollars ($500.00) for each offense. Each time that conduct occurs in violation hereof shall constitute a separate offense. SECTION 6. The City Secretary of the City of Fort Worth is hereby directed to engross and enroll this ordinance by copying the cap- tion and Sections 1, 5, and 8 in the minutes of the City Council and by filing the ordinance in the ordinance records of the City. 4 3 SECTION 7. The City Secretary of the City of Fort Worth, Texas, is hereby directed to publish the caption and Sections 1, 5, and 8 of this ordinance for two ( 2 ) days in the official newspaper of the City of Fort Worth, Texas, as authorized by Section 52.013, Texas Local Government Code. SECTION 8. This ordinance shall be in full force and effect from and after its passage and publication as required by law, and it is so ordained. APPROVED AS TO FORM AND LEGALITY: DEPury ~.ty Attorney , i Date : (~ - s' °l ~ ADOPTED: _ / v EFFECTIVE: 5 (~~~[ER fILE 1 ~~,I000NTINO 2 ~ ,, ~RAN5FORTATION~FUBLIC WORKS•66 V~eTER A6MIN1$TRA"TiON d LPi'/ 1 MUNICIPAL COURT AUMIN-1 POLICf_ AD MINISTRATION.l D-~, C~ty~~~ of For.-tk mar-th;~Texas.~ Mayora,ay~~y ~;oun~~il.~ nicac~ion B f 08/11/92 **6-976 12WASTE 1 of 1 SUBJECT ORDINANCE AMENDING SECT:IONS•35-131 THROIjGH 35-135 OF THE CITY CODE RELATING TO THE INSPECTION AND~`PERMITTING OF ON-SITE SEWAGE.DISPOSAL SYSTEMS RECOMMENDATION It is recommended that the City Council adopt the attached ordinance amending Sections 35-131 through 35-135 of the Code of the City of Fort Worth (1986), as amended DISCUSSION Sections 35-131 through 35-135 of the City Code presently provide for the inspection and permitting of "septic tanks" and "dry toilets" within the City of Fort Worth by the City's Director of Public Health However, the City receives few requests annually to inspect and permit these private sewage disposal facilities, and, as such, the continued training of City staff to respond to these few requests is not justified The Tarrant County Public Health Department routinely inspects and permits septic tanks and dry toilets outside the Fort Worth city limits and is authorized to do so by the Texas Water Commission Tarrant County has expressed its willingness, pursuant to the Interlocal Cooperation Act (Chapter 791 of the Texas Government Code), to contract with the City to perform on behalf of the City the necessary inspection and permitting of septic tanks and dry toilets within the City of Fort Worth It is proposed that the City Council adopt the attached ordinance amending Sections 35- 131 through 35-135 of the City Code to permit the City to contract with Tarrant County for the inspection and permitting of septic tanks and dry toilets within the City of Fort Worth, including the enforcement of all local and state regulations governing these facilities However, the proposed amendment would reserve exclusively in the City the responsibility for the inspection and permitting of those disposal systems located in the Lake Worth watershed areas The proposed amendment also would substitute the term "on-site sewage disposal system", as defined in Chapter 366 of the State Health and Safety Code, in lieu of the terms "septic tank" and "dry toilet" The actual agreement with Tarrant County will be presented for City Council consideration in the very near future WA a Su tte or C ty Manager's FUND ACCOUNT CENTER AMOUNT -CITY SECRETARY Office by: to ~'~~41~~D Mike Groomer 6140 ~~ ! ~jQ~~,L Or g nating Depart~ent Hea ~~ ~` ~ ~ Wade Adkins 7623 rom - ' ' ~~~ For A itional Inforwtion ,~ [~-,d,,~,,~~, Contact City Socse4a9ty oi' th Wade Adkins 1623 o ityof Port W or ' Adopted Ordinance ao, ~~~~~,