HomeMy WebLinkAboutOrdinance 2015-001 Deferring 2015 Utility Rate Increases 1-20-15 CITY OF ARLINGTON
ORDINANCE NO. 2015-001
AN ORDINANCE OF THE CITY OF ARLINGTON, WASHINGTON
DEFERRING CERTAIN INCREASES TO CITY UTILITY RATES AND CHARGES
WHEREAS, the City of Arlington, Washington has the authority to enact laws to
promote the health, safety and welfare of its citizens; and
WHEREAS, the City of Arlington continues to examine equitable rates for water, sewer
and stormwater service; and
WHEREAS, the City's utility rates contain a CPI adjustment factor which the City
Council wishes to defer for 2015; and
WHEREAS, the City wishes to defer the planned utility rate increases for 2015;
NOW, THEREFORE, be it ordained by the City Council of the City of Arlington as
follows:
Section 1. The two prefatory subparagraphs of Arlington Municipal Code section 13.12.040
shall be and hereby are amended to read as follows:
13.12.040 Water rates and charges. State and city utility taxes are included in the
following rates and charges for water service. The water charges shall include a base charge by
meter size, and a consumption rate, as set forth below.
Beginning on January 15, 2011, the rates set forth for the year 2010 shall be increased
annually by the October reported percentage increase of the Consumer Price Index (CPI) for the
Seattle-Tacoma-Bremerton area for All Urban Consumers, or other measure commonly used by
the city should it change; provided, however, that no CPI adjustment shall be made for the period
from January 15, 2012 to January 14, 2016; and provided further, however, that notwithstanding
any reduction in the CPI, rates shall not decrease.
Section 2. Arlington Municipal Code section 13.12.040(4)(B) shall be and hereby is amended
to read as follows:
(B) The usage rates set forth for temporary water service shall be increased annually
by the October reported percentage increase of the Consumer Price Index (CPI) for the
Seattle-Tacoma-Bremerton area for All Urban Consumers, or other measure commonly
used by the city should it change; provided, however, that no CPI adjustment shall be
made for the period from January 15, 2012 to January 14, 2016, and provided further,
however, that notwithstanding any reduction in the CPI, rates shall not decrease.
ORDINANCE 2015-001 1
Section 3. Arlington Municipal Code section 13,12.130 shall be and hereby is amended to read
as follows:
13.12.130 - Residential and other sewer rates and charges.
State and city utility taxes are included in the following rates and charges for sewer
service. The effective dates for the following four-year plan will be based on the city's
billing cycle for use beginning on June 1, 2010, and January 15th of each year thereafter:
Monthly 2010 RATE 2011 RATE 2012 RATE 2013 RATE 2014/2015
charge RATE
(sewer)
Base rate per $57.45 $ 62.80 $ 68.15 $ 70.15 $70.15
residential
unit
Beginning on January 15, 2016, the rates set forth for the year 2015 shall be increased
annually by the October reported percentage increase of the Consumer Price Index (CPI)
for the Seattle-Tacoma-Bremerton area for All Urban Consumers, or other measure
commonly used by the city should it change; provided, however, that notwithstanding
any reduction in the CPI, rates shall not decrease.
Section 4. Arlington Municipal Code section 13.12.140(a) and (b) shall be and hereby are
amended to read as follows:
13,12.140 Commercial classification and sewer rates and charges.
a. All sanitary sewerage users consisting of any public or private premises not
classified under Section 13.12.110 or classified as an industrial user under Section
13.12.150 shall be classified as commercial and charged upon the basis of water
consumption. State and city utility taxes are included in the following rates and
charges for sewer service. The effective dates for the following five-year plan will be
based on the city's billing cycle for use beginning on June 1, 2010 and January 15th
of each year thereafter. Each user shall pay a minimum monthly charge of one base
rate plus a volume rate for all consumption over three hundred cubic feet per month.
ORDINANCE 2015-001 2
Monthly 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014/2015RATE
charge RATE RATE RATE RATE
(sewer)
Base rate $57.45 $62.80 $68.15 $70.15 $70.15
(includes
300 cubic
feet per
month)
Volume rate $5.95 $6.50 $7.05 $7.25 $7.25
(per 100
cubic feet
per month)
b. Beginning on January 15, 2016, and on January 15th each year thereafter the rates set
forth for the year 2015 shall be increased annually by the October reported percentage
increase of the Consumer Price Index (CPI) for the Seattle-Tacoma-Bremerton area for All
Urban Consumers, or other measure commonly used by the city should it change,
provided, however, that notwithstanding any reduction in the CPI, rates shall not decrease.
Section 5. Arlington Municipal Code section 13.12.150 shall be and hereby is amended to read
as follows:
13,12.150 - Industrial user classification and charges.
The rates and charges for industrial users, as defined in Sections 13.08.240, 13.08.250, and
13.36 of this code, shall be as follows:
(1) All user charges shall be based upon equitable unit charges established for flow
BOD (biochemical oxygen demand) loading and TSS (total suspended solids)
loading, based upon the average BOD, TSS and other parameter(s) concentrations (as
established by the public works director) monitored for the industrial user and the
flow recorded in the monitoring manhole or water use.
(2) A minimum monthly charge will be established by the city to cover the basic
sewer costs and monitoring of the industrial user's wastewater discharge, and in the
event the monthly sewer bill does not exceed this amount the industrial user shall
agree to pay the estimated minimum monthly charge. This charge shall be reviewed
from time to time and adjusted to ensure the charge is covering the monitoring
services and sewer costs provided and must be reviewed every two years. Initially,
ORDINANCE 2015-001 3
the monthly charges shall be based on the following, unless otherwise established in
the negotiated discharge permit:
(A) For an industrial user with waste strength less than two hundred fifty mg/l,
measured as five-day BOD and TSS, and other parameters within limits established in
Sections 13.08.240, 13.08.250, 13.36 of this title, and whose discharge does not
require regular monitoring other than flow, the minimum monthly charge is as set
forth below:
Sewer 2010 RATE 2011 RATE 2012 RATE 2013 RATE 2014/2015
Charges RATE
(monthly)
Waste $352.00 $384.00 $417.00 $429.00 $429.00
strength
<250 mg/1
(B) For an industrial user with waste strength in excess of two hundred fifty mg/1 for
two months or more per year, the minimum monthly charge is as set forth below:
Sewer 2010 RATE 2011 RATE 2012 RATE 2013 RATE 2014/2015
Charges RATE
(monthly)
Waste $1,406.00 $1,536.00 $1,666.00 $1,715,00 $1,715.00
strength
>250 mg/1
(C) Beginning January 15, 2016, and each January 15th thereafter, the charges set
forth in Subsections (1) (A) and (1) (B) of this section, shall be increased annually, by
the October reported percentage increase of the Consumer Price Index (CPI) for the
Seattle-Tacoma-Bremerton area for All Urban Consumers, or other measure
commonly used by the city should it change; provided, however, that notwithstanding
any reduction in the CPI, rates shall not decrease.
(3) Until such time as a sewer user charge analysis can be conducted to establish
equitable charges under a negotiated discharge permit between the city and the
industrial user, the following shall be used as the basis for industrial user charges:
(A) Flow based charge per cubic foot of wastewater discharged;
(B) BOD charge per pound of BOD discharged; and
(C) TSS charge per pound of TSS discharged, pursuant to the following table:
ORDINANCE 2015-001 4
Sewer charge 2010 RATE 2011 RATE 2012 RATE 2013 RATE 2014/2015
(monthly) RATE
Flow-based $0.01681 $0.01837 $0.01993 $0.02051 $0.02051
charge (per
cubic foot)
BOD charge $0.529 $0.578 $0.627 $0.645 $0.645
(per pound
BOD)
TSS charge $0.354 $0.386 $0.419 $0.431 $0.431
(per pound
TSS
(D) Beginning January 15, 2016, and each January 15th thereafter, the charges set
forth in subsections (c) of this section, shall be increased annually, by the October
reported percentage increase of the Consumer Price Index (CPI) for the Seattle-
Tacoma-Bremerton area for All Urban Consumers, or other measure commonly used
by the city should it change; provided, however, that notwithstanding any reduction in
the CPI, rates shall not decrease.
(4) Flow shall be based upon one hundred percent of the water consumption or rate
of flow of wastewater discharge into the sewer (measured in an industrial user
installed flow measurement and recording equipment installed in control manhole,
pursuant to Chapter 13.36 of the Arlington Municipal Code). Strength of wastewater
discharged shall be established based upon twenty-four-hour composite samples
made by the city at the control manhole and tested by the city's wastewater treatment
plant laboratory or state certified testing laboratory. All testing shall be in accordance
with the latest edition of"Standard Methods for Examination of Water and
Wastewater," APHA, AWWA and WPCF. BOD and TSS, pounds per day, shall be
calculated based upon concentration of composite samples and established flow rates.
(5) Appeal.
(A) If any user believes that a portion of the user's metered flow, larger than ten
percent, is not discharged into the sewer system (when flow measurement is not
provided in the control manhole), the user should make written application to the
public works director for review of the user's flow of wastewater. If the public works
director agrees that charges for the user should be adjusted, they shall so notify the
city council, which may approve such change, or direct a recomputation of the user's
sewer rates.
(B) If the public works director does not agree to the adjustment of user charges, the
user may further appeal to the city council, which may direct further study or take
other appropriate action.
ORDINANCE 2015-001 5
Section 6. Arlington Municipal Code section 13.12.540 shall be and hereby is amended to read
as follows:
13.12.540 - Initial service charge rates.
In accordance with the rate structure established herein, there is hereby levied upon all
developed real property within the boundaries of the utility, the following service
charges:
(1) State and city utility taxes are included in the following rates and charges for
stormwater service. See Table 3.
(2) Beginning on January 15, 2016, the rates set forth for the year 2015 shall be
increased annually by the October reported percentage increase of the Consumer
Price Index (CPI) for the Seattle-Tacoma-Bremerton area for All Urban Consumers,
or other measure commonly used by the city should it change; provided, however,
that no annual increase shall exceed two percent; and provided further, that
notwithstanding any reduction in the CPI, rates shall not decrease.
Stormwater 2011 RATE 2012 RATE 2013 RATE 2014/2015
charges RATE
(monthly)
Base rate per 4.75 5.82 $6.89 $6.89
ESU
(3) For all other developed property including multifamily, condominiums and
mobile home parks within the boundaries of the utility, except as specified under
Section 13.28.130, the monthly service charge shall be based on the above table
(Table 3) per month multiplied by the number of equivalent service units determined
by the utility to be contained in such parcel. For all single-family property owners
qualifying for the senior low-income utility discount established in Section 13.12.140,
the discount shall apply to stormwater service charges.
Section 7. Severability. Should any section, paragraph, sentence, clause or phrase of this
ordinance, or its application to any person or circumstance, be declared unconstitutional or
otherwise invalid for any reason, or should any portion of this ordinance be preempted by state
or federal law or regulation, such decision or preemption shall not affect the validity of the
remaining portions of this ordinance or its application to other persons or circumstances.
Section 8. Effective Date. The title of this ordinance, which summarizes the contents of this
ordinance, shall be published in the official newspaper of the City. The ordinance shall take
effect and be in full force five (5) days after the date of publication, provided, however, that the
amended rates shall be effective on January 15, 2014.
ORDINANCE 2015-001 6
PASSED BY THE CITY COUNCIL AT A REGULAR MEETING THEREOF ON THE
DAY O�3 i`1 LtL 2015
CITY OF ARLINGTON
By �
Barbara Tolbert, Mayor
Attest:
Kristi anfield, City Cle k
Approved as to form:
Steve J. Pei orney
ORDINANCE 2015-001 7