Article 7 – Fees and Charges

7.0  ARTICLE 7 – FEES AND CHARGES

7-1 GENERAL:

7-1-1 Purposes. The purpose of the fees and charges provided in this Article is to provide for the payment of all actual costs of operating, maintaining, repairing, replacing, and expanding the District System, including the funding of reasonable reserves to accomplish any or all of said purposes in the future, and for contingencies. All such fees and charges shall be based upon the approximate cost of providing the service for which such fees and charges are made and have been determined by the Board of Directors to be reasonable and necessary for the recovery of all such costs.

7-1-2 Liability. The fees and charges provided in these Rules and Regulations are the personal, joint and several obligation of the owners of the property for which service is furnished or the charge is made, but the full amount of any such fees and charges shall also be a perpetual lien against any such property, as provided by Section 32-1-1001(1)(j), C.R.S. The District assumes no responsibility for any agreement made between Property Owners and tenants, regardless of how made and regardless of whether the District has notice thereof. Notwithstanding the foregoing, however, any Plan Review, Observation/Inspection, or Disconnection/Reconnection Fee shall also be the personal obligation of any person who orders or requests the District to perform such work, even though such person may have acted in a representative capacity when doing so.

7-1-3 Schedule of Fees and Charges. The Board shall establish by resolution a schedule of fees and charges authorized by these Rules and Regulations, such resolution to remain in effect until modified by passage of a subsequent resolution establishing a new schedule of fees and charges.

7-2 SYSTEM DEVELOPMENT CHARGES

There is hereby imposed several System Development Charges which shall be due and payable in full at the time of applications for Inclusion within the District and for a Tap Permit, as noted below:

7-2-1 Infrastructure Equity Fee. This fee is levied against those properties within the Service Area that have not previously Included into the East Boulder County Water District. These owner(s) have not contributed to the payment of the bonds issued to build the infrastructure of the District; however, they will receive the benefit of that infrastructure being in place at the time of their Inclusion. The Board added this fee during the February 13, 2017 Regular Meeting. This fee, and any other System Development and Inclusion fees, must be paid by the property owner to be Included within the District.

A. The amount levied is determined by the amount of taxes that would have been paid by the property owner for District's bonds during the years 2012 through the year previous to the year of the property's Inclusion. Boulder County Assessor's Office records will be used for property valuations during the subject years as well as the mill levies, specific to the East Boulder County Water District, for each year.

B. The monies from the Infrastructure Equity Fee will go to the Debt Service Fund until the District's bonds are retired, and will then go to the Capital Improvements Reserves.

7-2-2 Administrative Fees. In order to defray the costs and expenses incurred in processing Tap applications, issuing Tap Permits and maintaining accurate records in connection with Tap sales, there is hereby imposed an administrative fee per Tap, regardless of size. Such fee is in addition to any and all other fees and charges imposed by the District, and shall be paid in full at the time application for the Tap is made.

A. District Water Tap - 5/8" Meter. There is a one-time charge as specified in the Fee Schedule.

B. District Water Tap - 3/4" Meter. There is a one-time charge as specified in the Fee Schedule.

7-2-3 Inclusion Fee. There is a separate fee associated with the Inclusion process. See Rule 7-6 for Inclusion Fees.

7-2-4 Refunds. The District will not refund a System Development Charge or other charges collected in association with Inclusion or Tap Permit.

7-3 MAIN EXTENSION REVIEW/OBSERVATION FEES: Any person who is required to obtain District review of plans or design or District observation of construction in connection with a Main Extension shall pay a review/observation fee. Such fee shall be paid in full at the time the plans or design are presented to the District for review.

7-4 OBSERVATION/INSPECTION FEE. Any person who is required to obtain District construction observation other than in connection with a Main Extension shall reimburse the Actual Costs incurred by the District for such observation or inspection. If required by the District, such person shall deposit an amount reasonably estimated by the District to cover the fee for such observation when the request for or notice of the needed observation is made. Any unused portion of the deposit will be refunded, and any deficit will be invoiced to the person liable therefor within 30 days after the observation.

7-5 SERVICE CHARGES:

7-6 INCLUSION/EXCLUSION FEES: Any person who petitions for inclusion of his property into or exclusion of his property from the District shall pay the following fees and charges in connection therewith:

7-7 DISCONNECTION/RECONNECTION CHARGES: Whenever any water service is physically disconnected, interrupted, or reconnected by the District for any reason, the Property Owner or any other person liable therefor shall reimburse the actual costs incurred by the District for such work.

7-8 METER TESTING FEES: If the Property Owner requests a meter test to determine the meter’s accuracy, the District shall charge a fee for such testing only if the meter is determined to be accurate. The amount of the Meter Testing Fee shall be determined in accordance with the schedule established by the District. If the meter is not working properly and needs repair, there will be no charge assessed for testing or repair.

7-9 CONSTRUCTION WATER CHARGE: A non-refundable construction water charge shall be paid when the applicant for a new water service desires to have water service available at the premises for construction use prior to the time a meter may be properly set and protected from damage. Payment of the construction water charge will enable the premises to receive unmetered water service for construction until the service is activated, or the permit for service has expired, whichever occurs first. Occupancy of the premises shall not occur until a meter has been installed. The non-refundable construction water charge shall be established by the District from time to time according to the size of the service and the applicable rate schedule. The construction water charge shall be uniform according to the foregoing criteria, and shall be sufficient to generate the revenue estimated to have been collected if a meter had been installed.

7-10 CURE CHARGES: Whenever the District cures any defect, deficiency, nonconformity or violation as provided in these Rules and Regulations, any person who is responsible under these Rules and Regulations to cure such condition, or whose act or omission resulted in the necessity for the curative action, shall be liable and obligated to reimburse the actual costs incurred by the District for such undertaking.

7-11 CIVIL FINES PASS-THROUGH: Any person who, by act or omission, causes the District to incur any fine or penalty assessment imposed by federal, state, county, or municipal authorities shall be fully liable to the District for the total amount of the fine so assessed.

7-12 DELINQUENCY CHARGES; COLLECTION COSTS; LIEN: Full payment of any and all fees or charges imposed or assessed by the District is due upon presentation of the District's invoice, unless these Rules and Regulations provide otherwise for notice or payment of any specific charge. The invoice shall be conclusively deemed presented to a Property Owner if personally served upon him, or if mailed postage prepaid by first class mail addressed to the service address of the property or any other address for the Property Owner known to the District. Any amount so invoiced or otherwise due and payable will become delinquent 30 days thereafter, and the full amount of any delinquent balance shall thereafter bear interest at the rate of one percent (1.0%) per month, compounded monthly. Further, the District may impose a penalty and add the same to any unpaid indebtedness after 60 days from the invoice or due date. Any person liable for such fees and charges shall also be obligated to pay any and all costs of collection, including reasonable attorney fees and court costs, actually incurred by the District. Until paid, all rates, tolls, fees, charges, interest, penalties, and costs of collection shall constitute a perpetual lien on or against the property served.

7-13 WITHHOLDING APPROVALS AND PERMITS: Notwithstanding any provision of these Rules and Regulations to the contrary, the District may withhold permits, approvals, or other authorizations from any person until all sums then due to the District from such person are paid in full.

7-14 RIGHTS AND REMEDIES PRESERVED: Nothing in this Article 7 shall be construed as a limitation or as an alternative to any right or remedy of the District regarding collections, termination of service, or other enforcement rights and remedies set forth in Article 9.