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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2000-055 CCRMember Kay lasman introduced the following resolution and moved its adoption: RESOLUTION NO. 00-55 RESOLUTION AMENDING THE POLICY FOR PUBLIC UTILITY ACCOUNT COLLECTIONS WHEREAS, under Minnesota Statutes and City Ordinance, public utility services are considered to be services to the property and are obligations of the owner of the property; and WHEREAS, the attached policy for public utility account collections defines the major elements of the process that shall be followed in the utility billing cycle; and WHEREAS, Resolution 98-180 amended the policy for public utility account collections regarding unpaid delinquent accounts of prior owners which had not been pended to assessment; and WHEREAS, the attached policy for public utility account collections further amends the definition of unpaid accounts to include unpaid balances of a prior residential owner which may not yet be delinquent; and WHEREAS, the attached policy for public utility account collections further defines the major elements of the process that shall be followed in various circumstances where the utility billing accounts can not be certified to special assessments. NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED by the City Council of the City of Brooklyn Center, Minnesota, that the attached Policy for Public Utility Account Collections is adopted. March 13. 2000 Date Mayor ATTEST: ,U City Clerk The motion for the adoption of the foregoing resolution was duly seconded by member Debra Hilstrom , and upon vote being taken thereon, the following voted in favor thereof: Myrna Kragness, Debra Hlstrom, Kay Lasman, and Robert Peppe; and the following voted against the same: none; whereupon said resolution was declared duly passed and adopted. RESOLUTION NO. 2000-55 Draft February 29, 2000 POLICY FOR PUBLIC UTILITY ACCOUNT COLLECTIONS PURPOSE The purpose of this policy is to provide an orderly and reasonable method for the collection of accounts of the various utilities operated by the City of Brooklyn Center and any which may be added in the future. This policy is intended to follow with the provisions of Minnesota State Law, Brooklyn Center City Charter and City Ordinance. Utilities currently operated by the City of Brooklyn Center and the corresponding ordinances are as follows: Water and Sanitary Sewer, Chapter 4; Recycling, Chapter 7; and Storm Drainage, Chapter 16. POLICY In keeping with Minnesota State Law, all municipal utility services shall be considered to be services to the property, not to the person. All residential utility services shall be billed to the owner of the property, not to the tenant. Commercial or industrial properties may be billed to either the owner or tenant. Utility services shall be billed to the appropriate party by the Finance Department according to the rate schedule adopted annually by resolution by the City Council. Utility accounts shall become due immediately following billing and must be paid by the due date printed on the bill. Special assessment against the benefited property of any delinquent unpaid accounts shall be considered as the primary means of collection. Shutting off of water service to the benefited property shall be an alternate means of collection in any situation where special assessment isn't possible or practical and for situations where the customer has failed to provide a water meter reading for more than four quarters. Any city utility service for which a rate schedule is established by resolution is eligible for collection by means of either special assessment or water shut off. PROCEDURE NORMAL BILLING AND COLLECTION 1) A meter card is mailed to each residential property 28 days prior to the billing date. Readings must be submitted to the Finance Department by the date printed on the meter card. Penalties for failure to submit a meter reading will be charged on the date of billing .as defined by the rate schedule. Customers who fail to submit a meter reading card for four quarters, will be required to submit a meter reading, or face the shut off of water service. 2) A public utility bill is due 28 days from the date of billing. 3) The late payment penalty as defined in the rate schedule shall be applied five working days after the due date. RESOLUTION NO. 2000-55 4) A delinquent billing is generated for each account unpaid after 35 days from the date of billing. Customers have 21 days to pay this delinquent bill. DELINQUENT ACCOUNTS Delinquent accounts shall be pended as a special assessment. Rental Property (Commercial or Industrial) If delinquency not incurred by current tenant a) Obtain a meter reading and date of change of occupancy, and calculate final bill for previous tenant b) If a forwarding address is available for the previous tenant, send a final bill. Send an informational copy to the property owner. c) If no address is available, notify property owner of delinquent final bill d) If not paid in 28 days, the unpaid amount shall be certified as a special assessment If delinquency incurred by current tenant, follow normal procedures for delinquent bills and certification by special assessment to the property tax. FINAL BILLS All final bills unpaid after 28 days shall be pended as a special assessment. For residential properties undergoing sale to new owners, where a d&Unquent utility bill exists which had not been pended to the assessment rolls prior to the date of closing on the sale to the new owner, the unpaid balance of the old owner shall not be applied to the account of the new owner. Rental Property (Commercial or Industrial) a) All final bills unpaid after 28 days shall be billed to the property owner, due in 28 days after the date of the billing b) If not paid in 28 days, the unpaid amount shall be certified as a special assessment Other Property a) After 28 days unpaid, the bill shall be pended as a special assessment, and a letter of explanation sent to the new property owner. b). Two more attempts 28 days apart shall be made to collect from the previous property owner. If unpaid, the bill shall be certified as a special assessment. RESOLUTION NO. 2000-55 RETURNED CHECKS Checks which are returned to the City for non-sufficient funds, account closed, or other wise not honored by the bank shall be charged the maximum service fee allowed by Minnesota Statutes. SPECIAL ASSESSMENTS For accounts that remain uncollected after performance of the normal billing and collection procedure, special assessment against the property shall be considered as a primary means of collection.. 1) The annual City Council resolution adopting the utility rate schedule shall establish the number of assessment cycles per year and a schedule for public hearings to be held at City Council meetings for the purpose of adopting a certification roll of delinquent utility accounts for special assessment. At least one certification cycle will be timed each year to coincide with Hennepin County's requirements for certification to the following year's taxes. Additional certification cycles may be set in the annual resolution. 2) A certification cut-off date shall be established at which time all accounts which have been billed a delinquent bill and the account is unpaid as of the due date on the delinquent bill, shall have the balance on the account included in the preliminary special assessment certification roll. 3) A notice of public hearing will be published in the city's official newspaper at least two weeks prior to the public hearing. A notice of the public hearing and a copy of the proposed special assessment roll will be sent by first class mail to each affected property owner at least two weeks prior to the public hearing. 4) The owner of the property shall have the option of paying the balance due on the account until the date the notice of public hearing is mailed. After the date the notice of public hearing is mailed, payments will still be accepted, but will include the certification charge. S) The public hearing will be held at a City Council meeting at which the property owners shall have the opportunity to object to the special assessment. 6) After the public hearing, for each special assessment sustained by the City Council, the property owner shall have the options of: a) To prepay the special assessment and the special assessment certification charge listed on the preliminary roll, but without additional interest after the public hearing, within 30 days of the public hearing date. b) To prepay the special assessment and the special assessment certification charge after 30 days of the public hearing date, but before the county certification deadline, with RESOLUTION NO. 2000-55 interest at the rate set in the adopted rate schedule, accrued beginning on the 31st day following the public hearing date through the date of payment. c) To pay the special assessment as billed to them by Hennepin County on their property tax statement with an assessment term of one year. 7) After the 31 st day following the public hearing, the certified roll, minus any prepayments, shall be delivered to Hennepin County. WATER SHUT OFFS The City reserves the right to shut off water service to properties in situations where special assessment isn't practical or possible. Brooklyn Center Ordinance 4-202 provides that water service may upon reasonable notice be discontinued for nonpayment of individual accounts or for disregard of duly established rules and regulations pertaining to the operations of the water distribution system. The following is the procedure to be followed when it is necessary to discontinue water service to any customer. Appropriate procedures for various circumstances of a water shut-off shall be as follows: A) For public utility accounts are in arrears, or when a closing bill is more than 30 days overdue; for non-payment of the account by a property which is tax exempt and doesn't pay property taxes; or for non-payment of the account by a property which is in another city and that city doesn't cooperate with a request to special assess the delinquent account: 1) A "Final Notice' letter is sent to each delinquent account unpaid 56 days after the date of billing. This notice informs customers that they have 11 days to select one of the following three options for handling their account. a. . Deliver payment in full to the City. b. Sign and return a payment agreement to the City. A minimum acceptable agreement includes a partial payment of at least 1/4 the total amount due paid within 14 days, and full payment within 30 days of the date of the final notice. If that payment agreement is not met, the property will be red tagged. C. Provide a written letter to the City requesting an administrative hearing before the City Council at their next regularly scheduled meeting. At this meeting, the customer must show cause as to why the City Council should remove their name and account from the list of accounts for which service is to be discontinued. The City Council may either sustain the requirement for payment, modify the required terms of payment, or order staff to take such actions as it deems are necessary. If no written request is received, it is assumed the customer waives the right to a hearing. RESOLUTION NO. 2000-55 2) On the 70th day, a "red tag" is delivered to properties where the account remains unpaid, a payment agreement has not been made or isn't being adhered to, and where no request for a hearing has been made. This notice informs customers that payment is due within five days or water will be immediately shutoff. 3) Once service has been shut off for non-payment, the entire balance due and a restoration of service fee must be paid prior to service being turned on. The restoration of service fees will be established in the adopted rate schedule and will include a fee for restoration during normal business hours and a higher fee for restoration when workers must be called back on overtime. B) For a customer who short-circuits the special assessment process by paying the balance on the account with a check, then the check is returned to the city for non-suff cient funds or account closed after a critical step in the assessment process has been missed: 1) A "Final Notice" letter is sent to each delinquent account immediately upon receipt of the returned check from the bank The established fee for processing a returned check shall be added to the account. This notice informs customers that they have 11 days to select one of the following three options for handling their account. a. Deliver payment in full of the total amount which was to be assessed plus the fee for a returned check to the City. b. Sign and return a payment agreement to the City. A minimum acceptable agreement includes a partial payment of at least 114 the total amount which was to be assessed plus the fee for a returned check paid within 14 days, and full payment within 30 days of the date of the final notice. If that payment agreement is not met, the property will be red tagged. C. Provide a written letter to the City requesting an administrative hearing before the City Council at their next regularly scheduled meeting. At this meeting, the customer must show cause as to why the City Council should remove their name and account from the list of accounts for which service is to be discontinued. The City Council may either sustain the requirement for payment, modify the required terms of payment, or order staff to take such actions as it deems are necessary. If no written request is received, it is assumed the customer waives the right to a hearing. 2) Two weeks after the date of the Final Notice letter, a "red tag" is delivered to properties where the account remains unpaid, a payment agreement has not been made or isn't being adhered to, and where no request for a hearing has been made. This notice informs customers that payment is due within five days or water will be immediately shutoff. RESOLUTION NO. 2000-55 3) Once service has been shut off for non-payment, the entire balance due and a restoration of service fee must be paid prior to service being turned on. The restoration of service fees will be established in the adopted rate schedule and will include a fee for restoration during normal business hours and a higher fee for restoration when workers must be called back on overtime. C) For a customer who refuses to submit a meter reading for four quarters or refuses to allow the City access to a property for maintenance of a meter as provided in City Ordinances, Chapter 4, Section 201, Subdivision 6 1) After the City has contacted the owner through normal business channels and the owner has refused to provide a meter reading or allow access to a property for required maintenance, a "Final Notice " letter is sent to the owner and to the service address, if different. This notice reproduces the legal authority establishing the City's need for access, describes the work to be performed and informs customers that they have two weeks to make arrangements with the City to afford access to the property. 2) Two weeks after the date of the Final Notice letter, a "red tag" is delivered to properties where the meter reading or access have been denied. This notice informs customers that access is required within five days or water will be immediately shutoff. 3) Once service has been shut off for denial of a meter reading or access, the meter reading or access must be allowed and a restoration of service fee must be paid prior to service being turned on. The restoration of service fees will be established in the adopted rate schedule and will include a fee for restoration during normal business hours and a higher fee for restoration when workers must be called back on overtime. D) For a property owner making a request for the City to shut-off water service: 1) The property owner must complete and sign a Cityform requesting and authorizing the shut-off or an equivalent letter. Billing for water, sanitary sewer, and recycling services will be suspended during periods of at least one month while water is shut-off. Billing for storm drainage will continue. 2) Once service has been shut off at the owner's request, a restoration of service fee must be paid prior to service being turned on. The restoration of service fees will be established in the adopted rate schedule and will include a fee for restoration during normal business hours and a higher fee for restoration when workers must be called back on overtime. E) Cold Weather Rule: The City of Brooklyn Center will not shut off water service between October 15 and April 15 if the shut off would affect the primary heat source of a customer. Customers must contact the utility billing staff and explain how the cold weather rule applies to them.