[Adopted 10-21-1971 by Ord. No. 1971-4; amended in its entirety 7-9-2001 by Ord. No.
2001-2 (Ch. 18, Part 2, of the 1983 Code of Ordinances)]
Unless the context specifically and clearly
indicates otherwise, the meaning of terms used in this article shall
be as follows:
A building which is intended to be used for continuous or
periodic habitation by human beings and containing two or more family
dwelling units; or which contains business or professional offices
and one or more family dwelling units; or which contains business,
professional or any other similar type of office or offices.
The New Freedom Borough Authority, a municipal authority
incorporated, organized and existing under the provisions of 53 Pa.C.S.A. § 5601
et seq., as amended and supplemented.[1]
Includes, as applicable, each of the following: a commercial
establishment, a domestic consumer unit, a campground, a minor commercial
establishment, an educational establishment and an industrial establishment.
The Borough of New Freedom, York County, Pennsylvania, a
Pennsylvania municipal corporation, acting by and through its Council
or, in appropriate cases, acting by and through its authorized representatives.
A tract of land upon which there are located two or more
cabins or cottages, as well as structures and other facilities used
for the assembly of persons for any purpose, or for recreation, and
not operated for profit.
Each room, group of rooms, building or other enclosure connected,
directly or indirectly, to the sewer system and used or intended for
use in the carrying on of a trade, business or profession or for use
in the operation of one business enterprise for the sale and distribution
of any product, commodity, article or service, including social, religious,
charitable and public uses.
The group of elected officials acting as the governing body
of the Borough.
Each room, group of rooms, building or other enclosure connected,
directly or indirectly, to the sewer system and occupied or intended
for occupancy as separate living quarters by a family or other group
of persons living together as a unit or by a person living alone.
The projected sewage discharge from an improved property
in the amount of 246 gallons per day. Each domestic consumer unit
shall be considered one EDU.
[Amended 8-8-2005 by Ord. No. 2005-10]
Each room, group of rooms, building or other enclosure connected,
directly or indirectly, to the sewer system and used or intended for
use, in whole or in part, for educational purposes, including both
public and private schools.
Any property, situate within the Borough, upon which there
is erected a structure intended for continuous or periodic habitation,
occupancy or use by human beings or animals and from which structure
sewage shall be or may be discharged and which is accessible to a
sewer.
Each room, group of rooms, building or other enclosure connected,
directly or indirectly, to the sewer system and used or intended for
use, in whole or in part, in the operation of one business enterprise
for manufacturing, converting, processing, cleaning, laundering or
assembling any product, commodity or from which any industrial wastes,
as distinct from sanitary sewage, shall be discharged.
Any solid, liquid or gaseous or waterborne substance or form
of energy rejected or escaping in the course of any industrial, manufacturing,
trade or business process or in the course of the development, recovery
or processing of natural resources, as distinct from sanitary sewage.
Any person vested with ownership, legal or equitable, sole
or partial, of any improved property.
A property which is intended to be used for carrying on a
trade, business, or profession, or for social, religious, educational,
charitable or public uses and which employs no more than one employee.
Any individual, firm, partnership, company, association,
society, trust, corporation or other group or entity.
The normal water-carried household and toilet wastes from
any improved property.
Both sanitary sewage and industrial wastes.
Any pipe, main or conduit constituting a part of the sewer
system used or usable for sewage collection purposes.
All facilities, as of any particular time, for collecting,
transporting, pumping, treating and disposing of sewage, owned by
the Authority, leased to the Borough or contracted for by the Authority
or the Borough.
[Amended 8-8-2005 by Ord. No. 2005-10]
The Borough, as agent and lessee of the sewer
system constructed by the Authority, shall collect all tapping fees,
connection fees and customer facilities fees as set forth herein and
by the Authority.
A.
Tapping fees.
(1)
No person shall connect any improved property with
any part of the sewer system without first making application, securing
a permit therefor in writing from the Borough, and making payment
of a tapping fee in the amount hereinafter set forth. Such application
shall be made on a form to be provided by the Borough.
(2)
A tapping fee is hereby imposed against any improved
property and against the owner of such improved property whenever
such owner shall connect any such improved property with the sewer
system for each EDU within such improved property, regardless of whether
the sewer mains or extensions thereto are installed by the owner or
developer or by the Authority. The Borough of New Freedom shall amend
such tapping fees by resolution from time to time.
[Amended 3-8-2010 by Ord. No. 2010-1]
B.
Connection fees.
(1)
No person shall connect any improved property with
any part of the sewer system without first making application, securing
a permit therefor in writing from the Borough. Such application shall
be made on a form to be provided by the Borough.
(2)
A connection fee is hereby imposed against any improved
property and against the owner of such improved property whenever
such owner shall connect any such improved property with the sewer
system for each EDU. The Borough of New Freedom shall amend such tapping
fees by resolution from time to time.
[Amended 3-8-2010 by Ord. No. 2010-1]
C.
Liens. All tapping fees and connection fees shall
be a lien on the improved property connected to or required to be
connected to and served by the system where such fees or charges are
not paid as provided herein and shall further be assessed a penalty
at the highest rate permitted by law upon becoming delinquent. Such
lien, including applicable penalty, shall be filed against the aforesaid
property in the Office of the Prothonotary of York County, Pennsylvania,
and shall be entered and collected in the manner as provided by law
for the filing and collection of municipal claims. The liened amount
shall include all penalties, costs and attorney's fees associated
with the collection of the delinquent account and shall accrue interest
at the highest rate allowed by law. The attorney's fees and costs
associated with the collection of delinquencies shall be adopted from
time to time by resolution of Borough Council.
[Amended 7-11-2011 by Ord. No. 2011-2]
[Amended 12-13-2021 by Ord. No. 2021-8]
Sewer rentals or charges are hereby imposed
upon and shall be collected from the owner of each improved property
which shall be connected to the sewer system, for the use of the sewer
system, whether such use shall be direct or indirect, which sewer
rentals or charges shall commence and shall be effective upon the
date of connection of each improved property to the sewer system or
upon the date when this Borough first shall be capable of accepting
sewage from such improved property for transportation and treatment,
whichever date last shall occur, and shall be payable as provided
herein. Sewer rentals or charges, as set forth below, may be amended
from time to time by resolution of Borough Council.
A.
Computation of charges.
[Amended 8-11-2003 by Ord. No. 2003-4; 10-17-2005 by Ord. No. 2005-10; 11-13-2006 by Ord. No.
2006-7; 11-12-2007 by Ord. No. 2007-8; 12-8-2008 by Ord. No. 2008-3; 11-9-2009 by Ord. No.
2009-5; 11-8-2010 by Ord. No. 2010-3; 11-14-2011 by Ord. No.
2011-4; 12-10-2012 by Ord. No. 2012-7; 11-18-2013 by Ord. No. 2013-5; 11-10-2014 by Ord. No. 2014-2; 10-19-2015 by Ord. No. 2015-2; 11-19-2018 by Ord. No. 2018-5; 11-18-2019 by Ord. No. 2019-2; 10-19-2020 by Ord. No. 2020-4]
(1)
Domestic use. From and after January 1, 2021, sewer
rental or charges for domestic use shall be based upon actual water
consumption, with exceptions as noted, computed upon the following
schedule of rates:
|
Quantity of Sewage Use
|
Rates per Quarter
|
|---|---|
|
First 5,000 gallons of metered water or part
thereof
|
$69, plus:
|
|
Excess over 5,000 gallons of metered water
|
$11 per 1,000 gallons of metered water over
5,000 gallons
|
(2)
Commercial and industrial use. From and after January
1, 2021, sewer rental or charges for commercial or industrial use
shall be based upon actual water consumption, with exceptions as noted,
computed upon the following schedule of rates:
|
Quantity of Sewage Use
|
Rates per Quarter
|
|---|---|
|
First 5,000 gallons of metered water or part
thereof
|
$69, plus:
|
|
Excess over 5,000 gallons of metered water
|
$11 per 1,000 gallons of metered water over
5,000 gallons
|
(3)
Campground use. From and after January 1, 2016, sewer
rental or charges for campground use shall be based upon actual water
consumption, with exceptions as noted, computed upon the following
schedule of rates:
|
Quantity of Sewage Use
|
Rates per Quarter
|
|---|---|
|
First 5,000 gallons of metered water or part
thereof
|
$63, plus:
|
|
Excess over 5,000 gallons of metered water
|
$11 per 1,000 gallons of metered water over
5,000 gallons
|
(4)
Separate charges; From and after January 1, 2016,
sewer rental or charges for a separate use shall be based upon actual
water consumption, with exceptions as noted, computed upon the following
schedule of rates:
|
Quantity of Sewage Use
|
Rates per Quarter
|
|---|---|
|
First 5,000 gallons of metered water or part
thereof
|
$63, plus:
|
|
Excess over 5,000 gallons of metered water
|
$11 per 1,000 gallons of metered water over
5,000 gallons
|
B.
In the event the Borough authorizes an improved property
with more than one domestic consumer unit to discharge sanitary sewage
into the sewer system through one meter, the gallons of metered water
attributable to each consumer domestic until shall equal the total
gallons of metered water consumed divided by the number of consumer
domestic units.
C.
Rates for other users. Whenever an establishment,
subject to the metered rate schedule, shall obtain part of its water
supply from sources other than metered water by the Borough, then
and in that event the owner of such establishment shall install and
maintain, at his sole cost and expense, a water meter or meters satisfactory
to this Borough on all such nonmetered sources of water supply. The
quantity of water so used to determine the sewer rentals or charges
hereunder shall be the sum of the quantities of water measured by
all meters. Any person who wishes to assert that water is not discharged
into the sewer system shall have the burden to prove the amount of
water which is excluded. When it is shown, to the satisfaction of
the Borough, that water has not been discharged to the sewer system,
sewer rentals or charges shall be based upon total water consumption
less the amount shown not to be discharged to the sewer system. The
cost of furnishing, installing and maintaining any meters other than
those utilized to measure water purchased from the water company shall
be borne by the applicant. The type, size, location, arrangement and
maintenance of these meters shall be subject to the approval of the
Borough.
D.
The Borough may make additions and changes. Additional
classifications and sewer rentals or charges there for or modifications
of the above schedules of sewer rentals or charges may be adopted
and promulgated by this Borough, from time to time, as shall be deemed
necessary. Nothing contained in this section shall be construed as
prohibiting special agreements between the Borough and owners of improved
properties connected to the sewer system under conditions and circumstances
making special agreements advisable and necessary.
E.
Anything to the contrary notwithstanding, any costs
incurred by the Borough in the monitoring of or inspection for compliance
with the provisions of this article by the owner or occupiers of a
particular improved property, or in the enforcement of the provisions
of this article against the owners or occupiers of a particular improved
property, including by way of example and not limitation, salary of
Borough employees consumed in such activities, costs of sampling and
analysis of effluent being discharged into the sewer system and costs
of professional advisors, consultants and counsel, shall be charged
to and collected from the owners of such improved property as additional
sewer rental or charges.
[Amended 9-17-2007 by Ord. No. 2007-5]
A.
Sewer rentals or charges imposed by this article shall
be payable on a quarterly basis on dates determined by the Borough.
B.
All bills shall be rendered quarterly subsequent to
the quarter.
C.
When a customer pays for sewer service by personal
check and the check is returned due to insufficient funds, the customer
will be charged an additional fee as adopted by resolution of Borough
Council from time to time. The unpaid amount, in addition to the fee,
shall then be payable only by cash, certified check or money order.
After sufficient notice, the Borough reserves the right to specify
any future payments be in cash, certified check or money order.
[Amended 7-11-2011 by Ord. No. 2011-2]
D.
Late payments.
If the full amount of the bill for sewer rentals or charges is not
paid within 30 days from the date of the billing, such amount shall
be considered delinquent and a penalty shall be assessed at the highest
rate permitted by law which shall be added to the amount due, and
the amount of the billing and the amount of the penalty shall become
the gross delinquent amount due. The delinquent gross amount due shall
be a lien on the property serviced, and such lien shall be filed against
the aforesaid property in the Office of the Prothonotary of York County,
Pennsylvania, and shall be entered and collected in the manner as
provided by law for the filing and collection of municipal claims.
The liened amount shall include all penalties, costs and attorney's
fees associated with the collection of the delinquent account and
shall accrue interest at the highest rate allowed by law. The attorney's
fees and the costs associated with the collection of the delinquent
account shall be adopted from time to time by resolution of Borough
Council.
[Amended 7-11-2011 by Ord. No. 2011-2]
E.
Every
owner of improved property which is connected to the sewer system
initially shall provide this Borough with and thereafter shall keep
this Borough advised of his or her correct address. Failure of any
person to receive quarterly bills for sewer rentals or charges shall
not be considered an excuse for nonpayment nor shall such failure
result in an extension of the period of time during which said bills
shall be payable at the face amount thereof.
[Added 7-11-2011 by Ord. No. 2011-2]
[Amended 9-17-2007 by Ord. No. 2007-5; 7-11-2011 by Ord. No. 2011-2]
A.
If the
owner or occupant of a premises served by any water utility shall
neglect or fail to pay, for a period of 30 days from the date of billing,
any rental, rate or charge for sewer, sewerage, or sewerage treatment
service imposed by the Borough or Authority, such water utility is
hereby authorized and required, at the request and direction of the
Borough or Authority, to shut off the supply of water to such premises
in accordance with applicable law until all such overdue rentals,
rates, and/or charges, including, but not limited to the fees associated
with the preparation of notices, postage, shutoff and reconnection
charges, attorney's fees and costs, together with any penalties and
interest thereon, shall be paid. The attorney's fees and the costs
associated with the collection of the delinquent account shall be
adopted from time to time by resolution of Borough Council.
B.
The Borough
shall have the authority to require the charges stipulated to in this
article to be paid directly to the Borough office in cash, certified
check or money order only.
A.
No meter for measurement of water shall be installed
in any improved property until a plan for such installation shall
be submitted to this Borough and approved as satisfactory. All meters
installed or required to be used under the provisions of this article
shall be owned and under the control of this Borough and may be tested,
inspected or repaired by this Borough whenever necessary. The owner
of the improved property upon which such meter is installed shall
be responsible for its maintenance and safekeeping, and all repairs
thereto shall be made at such owner's expense, whether such repairs
are made necessary by ordinary wear and tear or other causes. Bills
for such repairs, if made by this Borough, shall be due and payable
immediately after completion of such repairs, shall be collected in
the same manner as sewer rentals or charges and shall constitute a
lien upon the improved property upon which such meter or other measuring
device is installed.
B.
This Borough shall be responsible for the reading
of all meters. In the case of establishments where, in the opinion
of this Borough, it is not necessary to install a meter or meters,
measurements of the discharge to the sewer system shall be made quarterly
by this Borough, and the measurements so made shall be used for determining
the sewer rental or charge for the applicable quarter annum.
This Borough reserves the right to adopt, from
time to time, such additional rules and regulations as it shall deem
necessary and proper in connection with use and operation of the sewer
system, which rules and regulations shall be, shall become and shall
be construed as part of this article.
[Amended 3-8-2010 by Ord. No. 2010-1]
Any person who shall violate the provisions
of article shall, upon conviction in proceedings commenced by New
Freedom Borough before a Magisterial District Judge, be subject to
a fine of no more than $1,000. Upon judgment against any person by
conviction or by proceedings by summons or default of the fine imposed
and costs, said person may be sentenced to the York County Jail for
a period not exceeding 30 days. If such person violating the provisions
of this article shall be a partnership, then the members thereof,
or if such person is a corporation or association, then the officers
thereof, shall, in default of payment of any fine levied hereunder,
be imprisoned. Each day of continued violation of any provision of
this article shall constitute a separate offense.
It is hereby declared that the enactment of
this article is necessary for the protection, benefit and preservation
of the health, safety and welfare of the inhabitants of this Borough.
