Millbrae Municipal Code Art. VII Fees And Charges

It is the purpose of this article to levy charges and fees to provide for the recovery of costs from users of the city's wastewater collection system, including the POTW, for the implementation of the programs established in this chapter and operation and maintenance of the city's POTW and collection system.

(1976 Code § 8-4.701; Amended by Ord. 720 § 1; Ord. 637 § 2)

The city may adopt charges and fees which include but are not limited to:

A. Fees for all costs associated with providing collection, treatment and disposal, including construction;

B. Fees for capital equipment replacement and facilities purchased and for collection, treatment and disposal;

C. Fees for sanitary sewer connections;

D. Fees for reimbursement of costs to set up and operate the city's pretreatment program;

E. Fees for monitoring, inspections and surveillance procedures;

F. Fees for permit applications and permit reactivation fees;

G. Fees for filing appeals;

H. Fees for the city's consistent removal (as defined in 40 CFR Section 403.7(b)) of pollutants otherwise subject to federal pretreatment standards;

I. Other fees as the city may deem necessary to carry out the requirements contained in this chapter; these fees relate solely to the matters covered by this chapter and shall be separate from all other fees chargeable by the city.

(1976 Code § 8-4.702; Amended by Ord. 720 § 1; Ord. 637 § 2)

A. Inspection fees for the construction of sanitary sewer mains, sanitary sewer laterals and appurtenances within the public right-of-way and/or areas to be dedicated to the city and inspection fees on sanitary sewers within private property shall be established by the director.

B. For sewage pumping plants, industrial waste treatments or disposal facilities, the applicant shall deposit an amount with the city to cover the estimated costs for plan review and inspections required by the city. The minimum deposit shall be ten percent of the total valuation of the project as determined by the director of public works. The city's plan checking and inspection budget shall be reviewed during the life of the project to verify that the remaining deposit will cover the city's cost for plan checking and inspection services. As a result, the city may require the applicant to increase his/her deposit.

C. For sanitary sewer main extension projects, the applicant shall deposit an amount with the city to cover the estimated inspection and testing costs for the construction life of the applicant's project. Unless otherwise stated in the sanitary sewer main extension agreement, the minimum deposit shall be ten percent of the total valuation of the project. The city's inspection and testing budget shall be reviewed during the life of the project to verify that the remaining deposit shall cover the city's cost for inspection and testing services. As a result the city may require the applicant to increase his/her deposit.

(1976 Code § 8-4.703; Amended by Ord. 720 § 1; Ord. 637 § 2)

A. Before any premises are connected to the city's wastewater collection system, the owner or applicant shall pay the sum of the following capital facilities unit charges to the city:

B. Definitions.

"Biochemical oxygen demand (BOD)"

means a measure using an EPA-approved method determining the concentration of organic matter reduced by biochemical oxidation expressed in pounds in a wastewater sample.

"Total suspended solids (TSS)"

means all matter remaining as solid residue expressed in pounds upon evaporation using an EPA-approved method.

"Wastewater flow" or "flow"

means the total volume of wastewater expressed in gallons per day (gpd) discharged through a sewer connection during the peak month of wastewater discharge in a twelve-month period.

C. Calculation of Capital Facilities Charge. The capital facilities charge is the sum of the products of each unit charge multiplied by the number of units for any billing code.

D. The applicant or his/her engineer using a generally accepted estimating method approved by the city shall present a report with the application estimating the wastewater flow in gallons per day (gpd) for any premises, except a single-family residence or multiple-family dwelling, connecting to the city's wastewater collection system. Upon city approval, the wastewater flow value estimated in the report shall become the number of flow units multiplied by the unit charge for wastewater flow to determine the flow component of the capital facilities charge. The TSS and BOD components of the capital facilities charge shall be calculated by the city based on the estimated wastewater flow and the average pollutant strength of the project billing code.

Wastewater flow used to calculate the capital facility charge for a single-family residence shall be two hundred gpd and for a multiple-family dwelling shall be one hundred forty gpd per living unit.

E. The sanitary sewer capital facilities charge shall be paid at the time of or before making application for a plumbing permit in the case of new construction, or before requesting or making the connection in cases where construction has been commenced or is in existence.

(1976 Code § 8-4.704; Ord. 720 § 1; Amended by Ord. 684 § 1; Ord. 637 § 2)

A. Each person whose premises in the city is served by the publicly owned treatment works (POTW), or which may otherwise be discharging sewage which is conveyed in the sanitary sewer collection system and/or ultimately passes through the POTW, shall pay for the use, services and facilities of the sanitary sewer collection system and POTW by means of an annual sanitary sewer service and use charge. The table in subsection D of this section describes the customer classes for the annual sanitary sewer service and use charge. The charges for each customer class set forth in the current rate schedule for adopted by the city council and any updated charges will be reflected in the separate citywide fee schedule.

B. The charges for each person shall be determined using the following definitions:

Lifeline Customers. To qualify as a lifeline customer, a residential customer must provide satisfactory evidence to the director of public works or his/her designee that such customer has qualified for and is currently being provided telephone service under the universal lifeline telephone service rate or gas or electric service under the California alternate rate for energy, in which event such customer shall pay a basic sanitary sewer service and use charge per the table below so long as such customer is provided telephone, gas or electric services under these rates.

Variable User Fee. In addition to the basic sewer service and use charge, every customer shall pay the appropriate variable user fee, which shall be based on each unit (one hundred cubic feet) of water consumed, except that the variable user fee shall be based on consumption. For nonresidential customers, the variable user fee shall be calculated based on the consumption of water during the prior calendar year (January to December) and shall be collected for the next fiscal year (July 1st through June 30th). For residential customers, the variable user fee is based on the average water consumption for four months (December through March) winter water usage (the "base consumption"). Each June the base consumption amount by residential customers will be multiplied by three to determine the estimated consumption for the entire fiscal year, to which the variable user fee will be applied. Residential customers include, but, subject to the determination of the director of public works, are not limited to, single-family dwellings and multiple-family units such as duplexes, triplexes, multiplexes and condominiums. In the case of multiple-family units and condominiums, each separate dwelling unit within the complex is billed as if it was a single-family dwelling relative to the fixed amount of the sanitary sewer service and use charge. The variable user fee is based on the total water used unless each separate unit is metered separately, in which case the fixed amount and variable amount of each unit are combined.

C. For a residential customer who has less than the four months or no recorded winter consumption because of the period of their service, the average for billing purposes shall be determined as follows:

Less than four months (one hundred twenty days) but more than thirty days: the average shall be the average of the actual service period calculated on the basis of actual full (thirty-day/twenty-eight or twenty-nine for February) months only. (Example: seventy-five day period would be considered two months.)

Less than one month (thirty days) except for February twenty-eight/twenty-nine days or no use history: the average shall be calculated on an occupancy per capita basis of fifty gallons per day for each occupant six years old or older on the day water service begins.

D. The sanitary sewer and use charges shall be charged for each of the following classes of customer/user:

(1976 Code § 8-4.705; Ord. 802 § 2; Ord. 751 § 1; Ord. 724 § 1; Ord. 720 § 1; Ord. 701 § 1; Ord. 681 § 1; Amended by Ord. 663 § 1; Ord. 639 § 1; Ord. 637 § 2 )

The city establishes the following fees applicable to wastewater discharge and recycled water:

(1976 Code § 8-4.706; Amended by Ord. 720 § 1; Ord. 637 § 2)

The industrial and commercial pretreatment monitoring surcharge fees to be paid by the classes of wastewater dischargers described under this section are as follows:

A. Each Class I wastewater discharger shall pay an amount equal to one dollar and eight cents effective July 1, 1998, and one dollar and sixteen cents effective July 1, 1999, and thereafter for each one hundred cubic feet of water consumed as a surcharge fee for pretreatment program operating costs. A "Class I wastewater discharger" means a user who discharges or may potentially discharge Grade 2 or Grade 3 discharges, or users who have been classified as SIUs.

B. Each Class II wastewater discharger shall pay an amount equal to eighty-one cents effective July l, 1998, and eighty-seven cents effective July 1, 1999, and thereafter for each one hundred cubic feet of water consumed for pretreatment program operating costs. A "Class II wastewater discharger" means a user who discharges or may potentially discharge only Grade 1 discharges and has not been classified as an SIU.

(1976 Code § 8-4.707; Amended by Ord. 720 § 1; Ord. 639 § 1; Ord. 637 § 2 )

All of the following dischargers shall pay an initial discharge permit application fee as follows:

(1976 Code § 8-4.708; Amended by Ord. 720 § 1; Ord. 637 § 2)

All of the following dischargers shall pay a discharge permit renewal fee as part of the permit renewal process. The fee shall be received by the city no later than the expiration date of the user's discharge permit. The fees are as follows:

(1976 Code § 8-4.709; Amended by Ord. 720 § 1; Ord. 637 § 2)

A. All dischargers shall be responsible for the following surcharges when the city must respond to emergencies such as spills, illegal discharges, permit or Millbrae sanitary sewer ordinance violations, or other events which requires an unscheduled response by the city:

B. Such dischargers shall be responsible for payment of such other charges and fees as may be separately established by city council by resolution.

(1976 Code § 8-4.710; Amended by Ord. 720 § 1; Ord. 637 § 2)

A. Authorization. Pursuant to California Health and Safety Code Section 5473, sewer service charges for services rendered by the city shall be collected on the property tax roll of the county of San Mateo, state of California, in the same general manner, by the same persons and at the same time as the collection of general property taxes, in the manner provided pursuant to California Health and Safety Code Section 5470 et seq.

B. Preparation of Report, Hearing, and Transmission to Tax Collector. A written report shall be prepared once a year which shall contain a description of each parcel of real property receiving sewer service and the amount of the charge for each parcel for such year computed in conformity with the city's rate schedule and this chapter. The report shall be approved by the city council after a noticed public hearing and filed with the city clerk.

C. Authorization. The San Mateo County tax collector is hereby authorized and directed to include the amount of sewer charges on bills for taxes levied against the respective lots and parcels of land in the city.

(1976 Code § 8-4.711; Ord. 802 § 3; Amended by Ord. 720 § 1; Ord. 637 § 2)

Pursuant to California Health and Safety Code Section 5473.10, if the sewer service charges are unpaid and become delinquent, the following delinquency penalties shall attach to them:

A. A basic delinquency of ten percent; and

B. An additional delinquency penalty of one and one-half percent per month.

All such delinquency penalties shall be collected in the same general manner, by the same persons and at the same time as are delinquency penalties on general taxes for the county of San Mateo.

(1976 Code § 8-4.712; Ord. 802 § 4; Amended by Ord. 720 § 1; Ord. 637 § 2)

Upon delinquency, and following due process set forth in MMC § 6.20.080, the water service may be discontinued until all charges, penalties thereon and charges for recontinuance of service have been paid in full.

(1976 Code § 8-4.713; Amended by Ord. 720 § 1; Ord. 637 § 2)

A property tax lien may be imposed against the owner of a property that is delinquent in payment of the sanitary sewer service and use charges, fees or surcharges due and owing to the city for services to that property, as set forth in MMC § 6.20.100. As soon as payment is received in full the associated lien will be removed.

(1976 Code § 8-4.714; Amended by Ord. 720 § 1; Ord. 637 § 2)