§ 8A-385. Billing.

(a)

The billing process for remetering activities shall be as follows:

(1)

Sale/rental agreement for submetering. All sale/rental agreements between the Owner and the Resident shall clearly state that the unit is or may be submetered, that bills for water service will or may be issued on a submetered basis, and that bills shall not include charges for water service for common areas and facilities. The Resident shall initial this provision on the sale/lease agreement. Each Owner shall provide the Resident, at the time the sale/lease is signed, a copy of a narrative summary prepared by CSD (one (1) copy will be provided by the CSD to the Owner) to inform the Resident about remetering. Current Residents must be notified of the information required in this section ninety (90) days prior to the implementation of the service, unless notice was otherwise provided in the Resident's sale/rental agreement.

(2)

Condominiums, cooperatives and other such properties in which the units are owned by the Residents shall be billed in the same manner as paragraph (1) above. All common area's water service usage shall be paid by all owners of the association as designated in their by-laws.

(3)

Rendering and form of submetered bill.

a.

Bills shall be rendered for the same billing period as that of WASD, generally monthly or quarterly, unless service is rendered for less than that period. The submeters shall be read either during or no later than five (5) business days (excluding weekends and legal holidays) after WASD's scheduled window for reading the master meter. Bills shall be rendered as promptly as possible following the reading of the submeters.

b.

The billing rate shall be that used by WASD in its billing to the Owner for water service.

c.

The Owner shall ensure that water service consumption billed to each individual unit is only for each unit's submetered usage.

d.

A separate bill must be issued with the submetered billing information, separate and distinct from any other charges, and shall not be combined with the sale, rental and/or maintenance payment or with any other service provided to the Resident.

e.

The bill shall reflect only submetered usage and the applicable taxes.

f.

The Resident's water service submeter bill shall show all of the following information:

1.

The date and submeter reading of the period for which the bill is rendered.

2.

The prior and current submeter readings.

3.

The total gallons of ccf of water service being billed.

4.

The computed rate for gallons or ccf being billed.

5.

The total amount due for water service used and applicable taxes.

6.

The name and address of the Resident to whom the bill is issued.

7.

The name of the company rendering the submetering bill and the address and telephone number of the person or section from that firm that is to be contacted in case of a billing dispute.

8.

The date by which the Resident must pay the bill.

9.

The name, address and telephone number of the party to whom payment is to be made, if different from paragraph 7. above.

10.

If it is an estimated bill, the bill shall be distinctly marked as such.

11.

The telephone number of the CSD with a statement that indicates the CSD may be contacted if disputes are not resolved amicably with Owners and Remeterers.

(4)

Due date. The due date of the bill shall not be less than fifteen (15) days after issuance. A bill for service may be considered delinquent if not received by the due date. The postmark date, if any, on the envelope of the bill or on the bill itself shall constitute proof of the date of issuance. An issuance date on the bill shall constitute proof of the date of issuance if there is no postmark on the envelope or bill. If the due date falls on a holiday or weekend, the due date for payment purposes shall be the next business day after the due date.

(5)

Disputed bills. In the event a Resident disputes a bill, the Resident shall provide written notice to the Owner which specifically states the reason for the dispute. The Owner shall forthwith conduct an investigation and report the results, in writing, to the Resident within thirty (30) days. The investigation and report shall include, but not be limited to, the nature of the complaint; how the complaint was investigated; an explanation of the results, which shall include identification of any leaks, damaged pipes and running toilets; and, the corrective measures taken or the justification for the bill. A corrected bill must be issued if the disputed bill was found to be in error.

(6)

Overbilling and underbilling. If billings are found to be in error, the Owner and/or the Remeterer shall calculate a billing adjustment. If the Resident is due a refund, an adjustment shall be made for the entire period of the overcharges. If the Resident was undercharged, the Owner and/or Remeterer may backbill the Resident for the amount which was underbilled for a period not to exceed six (6) months. If the underbilling is twenty-five dollars ($25.00) or more, the Resident shall be offered a deferred payment plan option, for the same length of time as that of the underbilling. Adjustments for usage by a previous Resident may not be backbilled to the current Resident, except that condominium associations may transfer liabilities from owner to owner according to their condominium by-laws.

(7)

Delinquent accounts. A one-time per month penalty on current billing not to exceed ten (10) percent of current billing, or a flat rate fee not to exceed ten (10) percent of current billing, may be applied to delinquent accounts. If such penalty is applied, the bill shall indicate the amount due if paid by the due date and the amount due if the late penalty is incurred. No late penalty may be applied if the Resident has not been informed, in writing, of this condition and of the exact dollar amount or percentage amount of such late penalty. No late penalty may be applied if the bill is in dispute until ten (10) days after the dispute has been resolved.

(8)

Owners and remeterers shall not impose any extra charges on the Resident over and above the water service charges and including the applicable taxes that are billed by WASD to the Owner. The bill may not include a deposit, reconnect charge, or additional late penalty, other than as provided in item (7) above.

(b)

Estimated submetering bills. Estimated bills shall not be rendered unless:

(1)

The submeter has been tampered with or bypassed. The estimated billing shall not exceed two (2) billing periods.

(2)

The submeter is found not to be in conformance with AWWA accuracy standards or has stopped and found not to register for any period. The Owner may impose an estimated charge for a period not to exceed one (1) billing period, based on amounts used under similar conditions by the same resident during periods preceding or subsequent thereto, or during the corresponding period in previous years.

(Ord. No. 96-137, §§ 1, 2, 9-17-96)