HomeMy WebLinkAboutORD 2013-12 - Water Utility ServicesAN ORDINANCE OF THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF GEORGETOWN,
TEXAS, AMENDING TITLE 13, ENTITIED "PUBLIC UTILITIES AND
SERVICES," TO INCLUDE CHAPTER 13.15 ENTITLED "WATER UTILITY
SERVICES" OF THE CODE OF ORDINANCES OF THE CITY OF
GEORGETOWN TEXAS; REPEALING CONFLICTING ORDINANCES AND
RESOLUTIONS; INCLUDING A SEVERABILITY CLAUSE; AND
ESTABLISHING AN EFFECTIVE DATE.
WHEREAS, The City currently has no utility ordinances dedicated solely to the conservation and
water quality activities provided by the City water utility; and
WHEREAS, The City of Georgetown wishes to identify conservation and water quality activities
and integrate them into the water services provided to the City's customers, as directed by the Texas
Administrative Code, Title 30, Chapter 288; and
WHEREAS, An irrigation schedule that increases efficiencies by limiting the time allowed for
irrigation activities has successfully reduced the per capita usage of water during the time that the drought
contingency plan is in effect; and
WHEREAS, The adoption of a three-day iirigation program as the standard irrigation schedule, to
be utilized throughout the year, will provide continuous motivation to conserve the City's water resources;
and
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT ORDAINED BY THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF
GEORGETOWN, TEXAS THAT.
Section 1. The meeting at which this ordinance was approved was in all things conducted in
compliance with the Texas Open Meetings Act, Texas Government Code, Chapter 551.
Section 2. The facts and recitations contained in the preamble of this ordinance are hereby
found and declared to be true and correct and are incorporated by reference herein and expressly made a
part hereof, as if copied verbatim. The City Council hereby finds that this ordinance complies with the
Vision Statement 4.0(G) of the City of Georgetown 2030 Comprehensive Plan relating to the conservation of
water resources.
Section 3. A new Chapter 13.15 is hereby adopted and shall provide as shown in EXHIBIT A.
Ordinance Number: Page 1 of 10
Description: Water nUtility Ordinance
Date Approved: 611 , 2013
Section 4. All ordinances that are in conflict with the provisions of this ordinance be, and the
same are hereby, repealed and all other ordinances of the City not in conflict with the provisions of this
ordinance shall remain in full force and effect.
Section 5. If any provision of this ordinance or application thereof to any person or circumstance
shall be held invalid, such invalidity shall not affect the other provisions, or application thereof, of this
ordinance which can be given effect without the invalid provision or application, and to this end the
provisions of this ordinance are hereby declared to be severable.
Section 6. The Mayor is hereby authorized to sign this ordinance and the City Secretary to attest.
This Ordinance shall become effective and be in full force and effect on May 1, 2013 after publication and
in accordance with the provisions of the Charter of the City of Georgetown.
PASSED AND APPROVED on First Reading on the 12th day of March, 2013
PASSED AND APPROVED on Second Reading on the 26th day of March 2013
ATTEST:
111
Ordinance Number: c�OL3^( cam.
Description: Water Utility Ordinance
Date Approved:liL 1 , 2013
THE CITY OF GEORGETOWN
Page 2 of 10
Exhibit A
CHAPTER 13.15 — WATER UTILITY SERVICES
Sec. 13.15.010. - Definitions.
For the purpose of this chapter the following definitions shall apply unless the context clearly indicates or
requires a different meaning.
"Commission" means the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality or its successor agency (TCEQ).
"Customer" means the person, company or entity contracting with the City utility to receive potable water
service.
"Customer's potable water system" means that portion of the privately owned potable water system lying
between the point of delivery and the point of use. This system will include all pipes, conduits, tanks,
receptacles, fixtures, equipment and appurtenances used to produce, convey, store or utilize the potable
water.
"General Manager" means the Georgetown Utility Systems General Manager of the City of Georgetown
responsible for the operation of the Georgetown Utility System or his authorized representative or
designee.
"Irrigation System" means the pipes, tanks, backflow prevention device, valves, controllers, spray heads,
and appurtenances installed after the point of delivery and used to irrigate landscape with Potable water.
"Potable water" means water which is satisfactory for drinking, culinary and domestic purposes and meets
the requirements of the Commission.
"Public potable water system" means the publicly owned water system operated as a public utility under a
permit to supply water for domestic purposes. This system will include all sources, facilities and
appurtenances between the source and the point of delivery such as valves, pumps, pipes, conduits, tanks,
receptacles, fixtures, equipment and appurtenances used to produce, convey, treat or store potable water
for public consumption or use.
"Service connection" means the terminal end of a service connection from the public potable water
system, i.e., where the utility loses jurisdiction and sanitary control over the water at its point of delivery to
the consumer's water system. If a meter is installed at the end of the service connection, then the service
connection shall mean the downstream end of the meter.
"Utility" means Georgetown Utility Systems.
Ordinance Number: Page 3 of 10
Description: Water Utility Ordinance
Date Approved: 12013
Sec. 13.15.020 General Provisions
A. Declaration of policy. It is declared the policy of the City to preserve the public health, safety
and welfare of the City's water supply, in adequate quantities, as stated in the Texas Health and
Safety Code, Title 5, Section 341 by:
1. Implementing the rules for Drinking Water Standards governing drinking water quality
and reporting requirements for Public Water Supply Systems promulgated by the State
and Federal Authorities;
2. Implementing potable water system connection and usage requirements for customers of
the system;
3. Implementing requirements to permit the location and connection of private groundwater
wells within the City's water service area;
4. Implementing landscaping requirements for the use of irrigation systems.
B. Purposes. This chapter shall be construed so as to achieve the following objectives:
1. To preserve the public potable water supply of the City by promoting the efficient use
of the City's water resource to provide for sustainable development and future growth; and
2. To preserve the underground aquifers used by the City to provide a public water supply by
identifying the use of the underground aquifers by private water users within the City's
water service area.
C. Applicability. This chapter shall apply to all water utility customers and private well owners
within:
1. The corporate city limits of Georgetown, the extraterritorial jurisdiction, or limited
purpose annexed areas where potable water is provided by the City; and
2. Any area outside the city limits of Georgetown and the extraterritorial jurisdiction where
the City provides retail water service.
D. Rulemaking. The General Manager is authorized to promulgate regulations not in conflict
with this chapter, the Plumbing Code, the City Charter, the laws of the State of Texas. Texas Health and
Safety, Section 341.031 et seq., as amended, and the Federal Safe Drinking Water Act, 42 U.S.C.A.
Section 300f et seq., as amended.
Ordinance Number: Page 4 of 10
Description: Water Utility Ordinance
Date Approved: , 2013
Sec. 13.15.030. Water System Requirements
A. Utility Connection Required. It is unlawful for any owner, lessee, tenant or other person in
possession of any premises where any person lives or works, or occupies the same, to establish
water service to such premises by any means other than by:
1. Connection to an approved private well on the property in accordance with the
requirements of this chapter; or
2. Connection to an approved rainwater collection system on the property; or
3. Connection to a public water supply system.
B. Upon the development of the property, the provisions of Chapter 13 of the Unified Development
Code shall govern the provision of water service to the property. For purposes of this section,
the term "development" shall have the same meaning as in Section 16.05 of the City's Unified
Development Code.
Sec. 13.15.040. — Water Use Requirements.
A. It is unlawful for any customer to waste water through use that serves no practical purpose.
Such water waste includes the failure to repair a leak within a reasonable period, after having
been given Notice to repair such leak and irrigation that results in water runoff or accumulation in
a street, gutter, or parking lot.
B. The use of an automatic irrigation system and hose -end sprinklers is restricted to the following
schedule:
1. Property with an address ending in an ODD number may be irrigated on Tuesday and/or
Thursday and/or Saturday, but no other day of the week without an approved variance from
the City.
2. Property with an address ending in an EVEN number may be irrigated on Wednesday
and/or Friday and/or Sunday, but no other day of the week without an approved
variance from the City.
3. There shall be NO irrigation, except by means of a handheld hose, drip irrigation, or soaker
hoses on Monday.
4. Irrigation with an automatic irrigation system may NOT take place during the day between
Noon and 7:00 PM on any day of the week.
C. Landscape Irrigation Use is allowed anytime, if it meets one or more of the following criteria:
1. Watering occurs by means of a hand-held hose, soaker hoses, or drip irrigation; or
2. Watering occurs within the first 14 days after installation of a new landscaping, with a
qualifying variance; or
Ordinance Number: Page 5 of 10
Description: Water Utility Ordinance
Date Approved: 92013
3. Watering occurs at a commercial plant nursery; or
4. Watering occurs during testing of new irrigation system installation or existing irrigation
system repair.
E. Irrigation Variance
1. Applications for a variance from the standard irrigation schedule shall be filed with the General
Manager and shall be in effect for two weeks from the date of approval. .
2. A customer may file an application for an irrigation variance, which may include, but is not
limited to vacation absence, installation of new landscaping, and installing new turf.
3. The General Manager may grant an irrigation variance upon his/her determination that special
circumstances exist, which upon strict enforcement, will adversely affect the health, sanitation,
or fire protection for the public or the applicant.
4. Irrigation Variances granted under this section will expire upon implementation of any phase
of the Drought Contingency Plan,
Sec. 13.15.050. — Private Wells.
A. The use of a private well for potable water shall be in accordance with the requirements of this
chapter and the Commission.
B. Owners of private wells within the water service area of the City of Georgetown shall initially
report the location and any other such information as may be determined to be necessary by the
General Manager using a reporting method developed by the City. The deadline for making the
initial report to the City shall be January 1, 2014,
C. If a private well is in use on a property where a connection to the public water supply is in
service, such well shall not be connected to the same plumbing system as that which is supplied by the
public water supply, and the plumbing system must have a backflow prevention assembly to protect
the public supply from contamination in the event of inadvertent connection of the private well to the
same plumbing system served by the public water supply. Such backflow prevention assembly
installation, maintenance, and testing shall be in accordance with Section 13.36.
D. Owners of private wells that are decommissioned in accordance with the requirements of the
Commission shall report such decommissioning to the City. Upon proper decommissioning and
reporting, the use of a backflow prevention assembly due to the existence of a private well on the
property is no longer required and the backflow prevention assembly may be removed in accordance
with Section 13.36,
Ordinance Number: Page 6 of 10
Description: Water Utility Ordinance
Date Approved: , 2013
Sec. 13.15.060. - Maintenance responsibility.
The customer is responsible for general maintenance and upkeep of their plumbing and irrigation system
starting at the point of delivery. Where an owner of property leases or rents the same to any person as
tenant or lessee, the owner or tenant or both may be held responsible by the GM for maintenance.
Sec. 13.15.070. — Private Fire Hydrant Maintenance
A. All private hydrant barrels will be painted red with the bonnet painted using the Hydrant
Flow Standard in paragraph C of this section to indicate flow. It will be the customer's responsibility to
test and maintain their private fire hydrant(s).
B. All private fire hydrants should be tested annually and shall be color coded to indicate the
expected fire flow from the hydrant during normal operation. Such color coding shall be applied to the
fire hydrant by painting the bonnet the appropriate color for the expected flow condition.
C. Hydrant Flow Coding Standards:
FLOW
COLOR
Greater than 1500 GPM
BLUE
1000 to 1500 GPM
GREEN
500 to 999 GPM
ORANGE
Less than 500 GPM
RED
NOT WORKING
BLACK OR BAGGED
Sec. 13.15.080: Violations
A. It shall be a violation of this ordinance for any person to intentionally, knowingly,
recklessly or with criminal negligence disregard any provisions, specifications or requirements of this
ordinance.
Sec. 13.15.090. - Inspections.
The General Manager shall be authorized under this chapter to inspect any premise, real property or
building connected to the public potable water system. Inspections shall include, without limitation, a
survey of such premise, real property or building for plumbing code violations, cross connections, and
irrigation system controller settings.
Ordinance Number: Page 7 of 10
Description: Water Utility Ordinance
Date .Approved: 12013
Sec. 13.15.100. - Enforcement.
A. Enforcement Authority. The General Manager and the City Attorney of the City of
Georgetown and each of them are authorized to enforce the provisions of this chapter by any
one or more of the enforcement mechanisms set forth in this chapter.
B. The General Manager is hereby granted the authority to designate specific City staff to act as
his/her agents, and assign the designated staff administrative authority to address violations of
this ordinance.
C. Inspection and Enforcement a Governmental Function. The General Manager and his
designees that are charged with enforcement of this chapter shall be deemed to be performing a
governmental function for the benefit of the general public and neither the City, the General
Manager, nor the designee engaged in inspection or enforcement activities under this chapter
when acting in good faith and without malice, shall ever be held liable for any loss or damage,
whether real or asserted, caused or alleged to have been caused as a result of the performance of
such governmental function.
D. Right of Entry. As a condition of the City providing water service directly or indirectly to
property, whether within or outside the corporate limits and as a condition of connection to the
public potable water system by customers under this chapter, any authorized officer or
employee of the City may enter, inspect, monitor or conduct enforcement activities with respect
to any part of the public or private potable water system servicing such premises, and shall have
a right to enter without delay to, upon or through any premises to gain access to inspect any
customer's potable water system, or piping, or records pertinent thereto, required under this
chapter and/or the cross connection control ordinance, rules or regulations of any governmental
entity with whom the City may have an inter -local agreement for the provision of wholesale
water services. This right of entry shall extend to public streets, easements and private property
within which any portion of the public or private potable water system servicing such premises
may be located.
E. Arrangement for Access. The customer connected to the public potable water system shall
make all necessary arrangements, at its sole expense, to remove without delay security barriers
or other obstacles to access by the General Manager.
F. Obstruction of Access, Unreasonable Delays Prohibited. Obstruction or unreasonable delay
security barriers or other obstacles are prohibited to access by the General Manager.
G. Administrative Search Warrants. If the General Manager has been refused access to a
building, structure or property or any private potable system connected to the public potable
water system, and if the General Manager has demonstrated probable cause to believe that a
violation of this chapter, a plumbing permit or other order issued hereunder exists, or that there
is a need to inspect as part of the City's routine inspection program designed to verify
compliance with this chapter or any permit or order issued hereunder, or to protect the overall
health, safety and welfare of the community then, upon application by the General Manager, a
judge of the Municipal Court shall issue a search and/or seizure warrant describing therein the
specific location subject to search and the property or items subject to seizure. Such warrant
shall be served at reasonable hours in the company of a uniformed police officer. In the event of
an emergency affecting public health and safety, such inspection shall be made without the
Ordinance Number: Page 8 of 10
Description: Water Utility Ordinance
Date Approved: 92013
necessity of a warrant.
H. Notice of Violation (NOV). Whenever the General Manager determines that any person has
violated or is violating this chapter, the General Manager may, but shall not be required, to
serve upon such person a written NOV describing the violation and the action required to
correct the same. Such NOV shall inform the recipient that, within five calendar days of receipt
thereof, the person receiving the same shall provide to the General Manager an explanation of
the violation and a plan for the satisfactory correction and prevention thereof, to include
specific actions for correction of the violation, provided however that:
1. Submission of the proposed corrective plan shall in no form or manner relieve the user of
criminal or civil liability for violations of this chapter whether before or after receipt of the
NOV; and
2. Nothing in this subsection shall be construed to limit the authority of the General Manager
to pursue any other enforcement action or remedy, including, without limitation, such
emergency actions the General Manager determines to be necessary, without first issuing a
NOV.
I. Criminal Penalty. A person who violates any provision of this chapter is violating a City
ordinance that governs health and safety and shall be guilty of a class "C" misdemeanor for each
day or portion thereof during which the violation is continued. Each such offense is punishable
by a fine not to exceed $2,000.00.
J. Civil Actions. The City Attorney is authorized to enforce this chapter by civil court actions in
accordance with the procedures therefor provided by State or Federal law, including, without
limitation, actions for injunction, damages, declaratory, relief or other remedies that the City
Attorney shall deem appropriate to pursue.
K. Civil Penalties. Notwithstanding any other provisions of this chapter, if (1) a person has
received actual notice of the provisions of this chapter; and (2) after the person received notice
of the provisions of this chapter, such person committed or continued acts in violation of this
chapter or failed to take action necessary for compliance with this chapter; the City Attorney
may initiate a suit against the owner, occupant or manager of premises that are in violation of
this chapter to recover a civil penalty not to exceed $1,000.00 per day for each such violation.
Each day or fractional part thereof that such noncompliance continues shall constitute a
separate violation for which civil penalties shall accrue under this chapter. Water service may
be discontinued if violations are not corrected within five days of notification by the General
Manager.
A suit for civil penalties hereunder shall not prevent nor be a prerequisite for taking any other
action against a person in violation of this chapter. Such suit may also include therein a request
for such other and further relief as the City Attorney shall deem advisable including, without
limitation, an action for injunction or claim for damages to recover for expenses, loss or damage
to City property occasioned by reason of such violation.
L. Remedies Cumulative. All remedies authorized under this chapter are cumulative of all others
Ordinance Number: Page 9 of 10
Description: Water Utility Ordinance
Date Approved: 92013
unless otherwise expressly provided. Accordingly, the filing of a criminal action shall not
preclude the pursuit of a civil or administrative action for violation of this chapter nor shall the
filing of a civil action preclude the pursuit of any other action or remedy, administrative or
criminal, and the administrative authority of the General Manager does not diminish the City
Attorney's authority in regard to enforcement of this ordinance
M. Persons Responsible. A person is responsible for a violation of this chapter if:
1. The person commits or assists in the commission of a violation; or
2. The person is the owner, occupant or manager of the property or facilities determined to be
the source of a violation of this chapter.
N. Tenant Responsibility. Where an owner of property leases or rents the same to any person as
tenant or lessee, the owner or tenant, or both, may be held responsible by the General Manager
for noncompliance with the provisions of this chapter.
O. Expenses, Loss or Damage. Any person violating the provisions of this chapter shall be liable
to the City for all expenses, loss or damage incurred by the City by reason of such violation.
Ordinance Number: Page 10 of 10
Description: Water Utility Ordinance
Date Approved: 92013