H. B. 2484
(By Mr. Speaker, Mr. Kiss (By Request))
[Introduced February 22, 2001; referred to the
Committee on the Judiciary.]
A BILL to amend and reenact section nine, article thirteen-a,
chapter sixteen of the code of West Virginia, one thousand
nine hundred thirty-one, as amended, relating to providing
that the owner of real property upon which a mobile home,
owned by another, is situated, is not liable for delinquent
utility charges incurred by the mobile home owner.
Be it enacted by the Legislature of West Virginia:
That section nine, article thirteen-a, chapter sixteen of the
code of West Virginia, one thousand nine hundred thirty-one, as
amended, be amended and reenacted to read as follows:
ARTICLE 13A. PUBLIC SERVICE DISTRICTS FOR WATER, SEWERAGE AND GAS
SERVICES.
§16-13A-9. Rules; service rates and charges; discontinuance of service; required water and sewer connections; lien
for delinquent fees.
The board may make, enact and enforce all needful rules and
regulations in connection with the acquisition, construction,
improvement, extension, management, maintenance, operation, care,
protection and the use of any public service properties owned or
controlled by the district, and the board shall establish rates and
charges for the services and facilities it furnishes, which shall
be sufficient at all times, notwithstanding the provisions of any
other law or laws, to pay the cost of maintenance, operation and
depreciation of such public service properties and principal of and
interest on all bonds issued, other obligations incurred under the
provisions of this article and all reserve or other payments
provided for in the proceedings which authorized the issuance of
any bonds hereunder. The schedule of such the rates and charges
may be based upon either: (a) The consumption of water or gas on
premises connected with such the facilities, taking into
consideration domestic, commercial, industrial and public use of
water and gas; or (b) the number and kind of fixtures connected
with such the facilities located on the various premises; or (c)
the number of persons served by such the facilities; or (d) any
combination thereof; or (e) may be determined on any other basis or classification which the board may determine to be fair and
reasonable, taking into consideration the location of the premises
served and the nature and extent of the services and facilities
furnished. Where water, sewer and gas services are all furnished
to any premises, the schedule of charges may be billed as a single
amount for the aggregate thereof. The board shall require all
users of services and facilities furnished by the district to
designate on every application for service whether the applicant is
a tenant or an owner of the premises to be served. If the
applicant is a tenant, he or she shall state the name and address
of the owner or owners of the premises to be served by the
district. All new applicants for service shall deposit a minimum
of fifty dollars with the district to secure the payment of service
rates and charges in the event they become delinquent as provided
in this section. In any case where a deposit is forfeited to pay
service rates and charges which were delinquent at the time of
disconnection or termination of service, no reconnection or
reinstatement of service may be made by the district until another
minimum deposit of fifty dollars has been remitted to the district.
Whenever any rates, rentals or charges for services or facilities
furnished remain unpaid for a period of thirty days after the same become due and payable, the property and the owner thereof, as well
as the user of the services and facilities provided are delinquent
and the owner, user and property are liable at law until such the
time as all such rates and charges are fully paid: Provided,
That
the property owner shall be given notice of any said delinquency by
certified mail, return receipt requested: Provided, however, That
in the event the unpaid rates, rentals or charges have been
incurred for services provided to a mobile home owned by a person
other than the owner of the real property upon which the mobile
home is situated, the owner of the real property is not liable for
the rates, rentals or charges. The board may, under reasonable
rules promulgated by the public service commission, shut off and
discontinue water or gas services to all delinquent users of either
water or gas facilities, or both: Provided, however,
That upon
written request of the owner or owners of the premises, the board
shall shut off and discontinue water and gas services where any
rates, rentals, or charges for services or facilities remain unpaid
by the user of the premises for a period of sixty days after the
same became due and payable.
In the event that any publicly or privately owned utility,
city, incorporated town, other municipal corporation or other public service district included within the district owns and
operates separately either water facilities or sewer facilities,
and the district owns and operates the other kind of facilities,
either water or sewer, as the case may be, then the district and
such the
publicly or privately owned utility, city, incorporated
town or other municipal corporation or other public service
district shall covenant and contract with each other to shut off
and discontinue the supplying of water service for the nonpayment
of sewer service fees and charges: Provided,
That any contracts
entered into by a public service district pursuant to this section
shall be submitted to the public service commission for approval.
Any public service district providing water and sewer service to
its customers has the right to terminate water service for
delinquency in payment of either water or sewer bills. Where one
public service district is providing sewer service and another
public service district or a municipality included within the
boundaries of the sewer district is providing water service, and
the district providing sewer service experiences a delinquency in
payment, the district or the municipality included within the
boundaries of the sewer district that is providing water service,
upon the request of the district providing sewer service to the delinquent account, shall terminate its water service to the
customer having the delinquent sewer account: Provided, however,
That any termination of water service must comply with all rules
and orders of the public service commission.
Any district furnishing sewer facilities within the district
may require, or may by petition to the circuit court of the county
in which the property is located, compel or may require the bureau
of public health to compel all owners, tenants or occupants of any
houses, dwellings and buildings located near any such sewer
facilities, where sewage will flow by gravity or be transported by
such other methods approved by the bureau of public health
including, but not limited to, vacuum and pressure systems,
approved under the provisions of section nine, article one, chapter
sixteen of this code, from
such the
houses, dwellings or buildings
into
such the
sewer facilities, to connect with and use
such the
sewer facilities, and to cease the use of all other means for the
collection, treatment and disposal of sewage and waste matters from
such houses, dwellings and buildings where there is such gravity
flow or transportation by such other methods approved by the bureau
of public health including, but not limited to, vacuum and pressure
systems, approved under the provisions of section nine, article one, chapter sixteen of this code, and
such the
houses, dwellings
and buildings can be adequately served by the sewer facilities of
the district, and it is hereby found, determined and declared that
the mandatory use of
such the
sewer facilities provided for in this
paragraph is necessary and essential for the health and welfare of
the inhabitants and residents of
such the
districts and of the
state: Provided,
That if the public service district determines
that the property owner must connect with the sewer facilities even
when sewage from
such the
dwellings may not flow to the main line
by gravity and the property owner must incur costs for any changes
in the existing dwellings' exterior plumbing in order to connect to
the main sewer line, the public service district board shall
authorize the district to pay all reasonable costs for such changes
in the exterior plumbing, including, but not limited to,
installation, operation, maintenance and purchase of a pump, or any
other method approved by the bureau of public health; maintenance
and operation costs for such extra installation should be reflected
in the users charge for approval of the public service commission.
The circuit court shall adjudicate the merits of
such the
petition
by summary hearing to be held not later than thirty days after
service of petition to the appropriate owners, tenants or occupants.
Whenever any district has made available sewer facilities to
any owner, tenant or occupant of any house, dwelling or building
located near
such the
sewer facility, and the engineer for the
district has certified that
such the
sewer facilities are available
to and are adequate to serve
such the
owner, tenant or occupant,
and sewage will flow by gravity or be transported by such other
methods approved by the bureau of public health from
such the
house, dwelling or building into
such the
sewer facilities, the
district may charge, and
such the
owner, tenant or occupant shall
pay the rates and charges for services established under this
article only after thirty-day notice of the availability of the
facilities has been received by the owner.
All delinquent fees, rates and charges of the district for
either water facilities, sewer facilities or gas facilities are
liens on the premises served of equal dignity, rank and priority
with the lien on
such the
premises of state, county, school and
municipal taxes. In addition to the other remedies provided in
this section, public service districts are hereby granted a
deferral of filing fees or other fees and costs incidental to the
bringing and maintenance of an action in magistrate court for the collection of delinquent water, sewer or gas bills. If the
district collects the delinquent account, plus reasonable costs,
from its customer or other responsible party, the district shall
pay to the magistrate the normal filing fee and reasonable costs
which were previously deferred. In addition, each public service
district may exchange with other public service districts a list of
delinquent accounts.
Anything in this section to the contrary notwithstanding, any
establishment, as defined in section three, article eleven, chapter
twenty-two, now or hereafter operating its own sewage disposal
system pursuant to a permit issued by the division of environmental
protection, as prescribed by section eleven, article eleven,
chapter twenty-two of this code, is exempt from the provisions of
this section.
NOTE: The purpose of this bill is to
provide that the owner
of real property upon which a mobile home, owned by another, is
situated, is not liable for delinquent utility charges incurred by
the mobile home owner.
Strike-throughs indicate language that would be stricken from
the present law, and underscoring indicates new language that would
be added.