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Home My WebLink AboutOrdinance 5010 o C, OFFICIAL RECORD ORDINANCE NO . ',/o /a CITY SECRETARY FT. WORTH, TEX. AN ORDINANCE AMENDING SECTION V OF ORDINANCE NO . 3701, THE SAME BEING AN ORDINANCE REGULATING AND PRESCRIBING RATES CHARGED CONSUMERS OF WATER SUP- PLIED BY THE CITY OF FORT WORTH, BY PROVIDING FOR AN INCREASE IN THE CHARGES FOR TURNING OFF WATER OR DISCONNECTING THE SEWER SERVICE LINE, OR BOTH; MAKING SUCH ORDINANCE CUMULATIVE; PROVIDING A SEVERABILITY CLAUSE; INCORPORATING SUCH PROVISIONS IN CONTRACTS WITH CONSUMERS; AND PROVIDING AN EF- FECTIVE DATE . BE IT ORDAINED BY THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF FORT WORTH, TEXAS: SECTION 1. That Section V of Ordinance No . 3701 be and is hereby amended so that hereafter the same shall be and read as fol- lows: Section V. Meters shall be read monthly and the consumer notified in writing or otherwise, and proof of . notice may be made by showing the sending of a bill (by depositing same in the U. S . Mail) to the last known address of said consumer, stating the amount due from him for water and/or sewer service to said City Water Works;that unless the amount due from him for such service charges shall be paid within ten (10) days from date of bill, the water will be turned off or the sewer service line disconnected, or both. Such water shall not be turned on again or sewer service line reconnected until such time as the amount due is paid and Two Dollars ($2 .00) additional fee for turning off the water, or Five Dollars ($5 .00) additional fee for disconnecting said sewer service line. In the event that this notice is not complied with and if the full amount for water and/or sewer service charges due and owing remain unpaid for ten (10) days from date of bill, the water supply and sewer service shall be turned off and/or disconnected. The Water shall not be turned on again until the full amount due and the fee of Two Dollars ($2 .00) additional for turning same off shall have been paid and/or the sewer service shall not be recon- nected until the amount due and the additional fee of Five Dollars ($5 .00) for disconnecting such sewer service line shall have been paid. In such cases where the water has been turned off and the water service line or meter installation is broken, re- moved, destroyed or otherwise damaged, a fee of Ten Dollars ($10 .00) shall be collected from the customer in addition to the Two Dollars ($2 .00) cut-.off charge and the full amount of water and/or sewer service charges due and owing before water and/or sewer service will be restored. SECTION 2. This ordinance shall repeal every prior ordinance in conflict herewith, but only insofar as the portion of such prior ordinance shall be in conflict, and as to all other sections of ordinances not in direct conflict herewith, this ordinance shall be and is hereby made cumulative . SECTION 3 . If any section, part of a section or provision of any section of this ordinance shall be held to be void, ineffective or unconstitutional by a court of competent- jurisdiction, the holding of such section, part of a section or provision of any section to be void, ineffective or unconstitutional for any cause whatsoever shall in no way affect the validity of the remaining sections and provisions of this ordinance, which shall remain in full force and effect. The City Council would not have passed any sections, parts of sections or provisions of any section of this ordinance that were uncon- stitutional, void or ineffective if they had known that they were unconstitutional, void or ineffective at the time of adopting this ordinance . SECTION 4. All of the provisions of this ordinance shall be deemed to be incorporated in every contract between the City of Fort -Worth and its water and/or sanitary sewerage service customers, and each customer or consumer shall be charged with knowledge of the provisions of this ordinance and, by applying for and accepting water or sanitary sewerage service from the City of Fort Worth, to have assented to the provisions thereof . SECTION 5 . This ordinance shall take effect and be in full force and effect from and after the date of its passage and publi- cation as required by law. APPROVED AS TO FORM AND LEGALI Y: 62- City Attorney Oyu )rzw lee ' = City of' Fort Worth, Texas Wry1ii-t Mayor and Council f ICIP I RIP opD DATE REFERENCE SUBJECT: Proposed Amen:37061 ent to , r � �� NUMBER p CITY �9 8/26/63 G-524 Ordinance 'No. 2 The Water Department has completed a study of the actual cost to provide service to customers who are delinquent in the payment .of a water bill. The study indicates that a $1 cut-off charge established by the City's governing body. in 1907 and currently prescribed by Ordinance No . 3701 _does not generate sufficient revenues to reimburse the City for services required in connection with non-paying customers , Moreover, the study identifies the need for changes in the method of handling delinquent accounts which would permit more effective and economical service. Present Customer Non-Payment Policy Section V, Ordinance 3701 governs water billing and provides that water service will .be discontinued when the water and sewer service charges remain unpaid for more than _ten days from the date of the bill. When all arrears, including a $1 cut-off charge have been paid by the delinquent customer, water service is restored. During 1962, , the total estimated cost to handle delinquent water. customer .ac- counts was $74,000. Included in the total cost were both clerical and field expense, bad debt expense, .and the cost to recondition or repair water meters removed due to non-payment. During the same period, revenue from the $1 cut- off charges yielded approximately $17,000. Based upon these findings the City is spending an estimated net amount of $57,000 each year for services provided in connection with non-paying water customers . Proposed Ordinance Amendment A .proposed amendment to Section V, Ordinance No. 3701 provides for an increase in the cut-off charge levied against a non.-paying customer from $1 to $2. The amendment further provides that after water service has been cut off it will not be turned on .again until the full amount due, including the $2 cut-off charge has been paid. If the water service line or meter installation is damaged, -the amendment also provides a $10 charge which will be collected from the customer in addition to all other -back charges before water service is restored. in determining the proposed increase in the cut-off charge, consideration was given to the fact that there is a high percentage of "repeats" in water customers who are delinquent in payment of water bills . During 1962, for example, .70 per cent of all water meters .removed for non-payment had been in service for less than 12 months, An increase in the reconnection charge from -$l to $2 is expected to discourage repetitious delinquency as well as provide additional revenue. Although this charge will not provide revenues t. DATE REFERENCE SUBJECT: PAGE NUMBER Proposed Amendment to 8/26/63 G-524 Ordinance No. 3701 —2— of 2 sufficient to defray all City expense in connection with delinquent customers, it is believed .that a charge in excess of this amount might impose hardship on .low income customers -who are late in water payments . The proposed additional charge of $10 for damaging or tampering with the water service or meter installation will reimburse the City for all service costs in connection with a delinquent customer, including the cost of re- moving, repairing and replacing the meter installation. _ In order to permit more effective and economical handling of delinquent water customers, it is recommended that Section V, Ordinance No. 3701 .be amended as proposed, establishing a '$2 cut-off charge, and- an additional $10 reconnect charge if the meter or service line is broken, removed, destroyed or other- wise damaged. .JLB:GA Attachment: Proposed Amendment to Section V, Ordinance -No. 3701 SUBMITTED BY: DISPOSITION Y"COUNCIL: PRO ED BY PPROVED i_ER (DESCRIBE) PP �i7 Q, �YL`,i �� CITY SECRETARY CCCC�� DATE p