HDWILF 3911/25/08*SAMPLE USER CHARGE ORDINANCE*THIS FORM IS INTENDED AS A SAMPLE ONLY. PLEASE CONSULT YOUR ATTORNEY AND CONSULTING ENGINEER BEFORE ENACTING A USER CHARGE ORDINANCE.*SAMPLE USER CHARGE ORDINANCEAN ORDINANCE TO PROVIDE FOR THE COLLECTION OF USER CHARGES FROM USERS OF THE PUBLIC WATER WORKS.BE IT ORDAINED BY THE CITY OF _, COUNTY OF _, STATE OF MISSISSIPPI AS FOLLOWS:ARTICLE IDEFINITIONSThe following words and terms when used in this ordinance are intended to mean and shall mean as follows, to wit:Superintendent shall mean the general manager of the utilities of the City of _.Person shall mean any person, firm or corporation, either as principal or as agent for another.Municipal Mains shall mean any all water-carrying and water-distributing pipes, mains and conduits owned and maintained by the City of _.Water shall mean the water service or water supply belonging to and furnished, or to be furnished, by the City of _.ARTICLE IIUSER CHARGESSection 1.User charge shall be the charge levied on all users including, but not limited to, persons, firms, corporations or governmental entities that consume water from the public supply.Section 2.The user charge shall include the costs of operation and maintenance (including replacement) of the public water works, retirement of existing debt included herein, and repayment of any Drinking Water Systems Loans in accordance with the approved User Charge System, included herein by reference.Section 3.The Superintendent shall review not less often than every two years the contributions of users, the total costs of operation and maintenance (including replacement) of the water works, and the user charge system. The Superintendent shall revise the user charge, if necessary, to generate sufficient revenue to pay the total operation and maintenance (including replacement) costs of the water works, retirement of existing debt included herein, and repayment of any Drinking Water Systems Loans.Section 4.Each user shall be notified, at least annually, in conjunction with a regular bill, of the rate and that portion of the user charge which is attributable to operation and maintenance of the water works.Section 5.No free water shall be furnished to any user.Section 6.All private homes and residences, and all trailer parks and apartment complexes having two or more users to a water meter shall pay a straight monthly charge of per gallons of water, with no quantity discount.Section 7.All current water customers or consumers who are supplied water beyond the corporate limits of the municipality will pay the applicable amounts shown herein.Section 8.Any and all future connections outside the corporate limits of the municipality will be evaluated on an individual basis to determine demand and supply capability, and any and all connections may or may not be approved if connection or connections are deemed to not be in the best interest of the municipality, and all connections made will not constitute a guarantee of continuing service or supply (pressure) during the period of service.Section 9.Charges and bills for water furnished to business or commercial customers or consumers or any other person furnished water shall mature on the date of the statement or bill. Such charges and bills shall be due and payable on the date of the statement and any such charges or bills not paid on or before days from date of statement shall be in default.Section 10.Failure, neglect or refusal to pay any water bill on or before days from date of statement shall subject the customer, consumer or user of the water to the loss and discontinuance of his water service and supply without notice. If any such water service and supply is lost or discontinued because of the nonpayment of any such statement on or before days from date of statement, the service and supply shall not be resumed until the bill or statement is paid in full, together with a recontinuance charge of , this amount being determined as the reasonable cost to be incurred by the municipality in resuming such service.Section 11.Meter Deposits-Any water customer or consumer shall not be entitled to any water service or supply unless and until such person makes a meter deposit with the municipality as follows, to wit:A.All residences: per family unit.B.For a 1-inch tap or larger, a meter deposit shall be required in advance, in such amount as shall be determined from time to time as reflected in the official minutes of the City/Town.C.The size of the meter installed shall be determined by the superintendent, who shall give consideration t