Stockton Municipal Code
Chapter 7
HEALTH AND SANITATION CODE

Part VIII
STORM WATER MANAGEMENT AND DISCHARGE CONTROL

Division III
BILLING PROCEDURES, COLLECTIONS, AND ADJUSTMENTS

SEC. 7-815. MANDATORY STORM WATER SERVICE REQUIRED:
Except as otherwise provided in this Chapter, it shall be mandatory for all owners, occupants or persons in possession, charge, or control of all places or premises in the City of Stockton subscribe to and pay for storm water service.
(Amended by Ordinance 014-02 C.S. – Effective June 30, 2002) (Added by Ordinance 013-95 C.S. — Effective date July 26, 1995)

SEC. 7-815.1. BILLING AND COLLECTION PROCEDURES:
Billing and collection procedures for storm water, including the billing cycle, whether monthly, quarterly or otherwise, shall be as determined by the Administrative Services Officer with the concurrence of the City Manager.
Residential storm water service shall be billed on a unified bill to the customer receiving the bill for water at the service location. Residential dwellings, consisting of two or more separate units, served by a single water meter shall be billed for storm water service for the total number of such separate units served by such water meter on a unified bill.
To eliminate the potential for revenue loss and ensure that all storm water system users are charged on a fair and equitable basis, the parcel owner for nonresidential units shall receive the storm water bill.
(Amended by Ordinance 014-02 C.S. – Effective June 30, 2002) (Added by Ordinance 013-95 C.S. — Effective date July 26, 1995)

SEC. 7-815.2. STORM WATER RATE STRUCTURE:
The storm water rate structure will be based on an "estimated impervious area" concept. Impervious area is that portion of the parcel which is covered by pavement or other hard surfacing, or is covered by buildings, roofs, etc.
The storm water rate structure will be used to determine storm water rates based on an Equivalent Residential Unit (ERU). This number is the base unit of measure in the storm water rate structure and is calculated by the total amount of impervious area for all residential parcels in the service area divided by the total number of residential units. This value represents the average amount of impervious area per residential unit, including single family, duplexes, triplexes, and multifamily apartments.
Under the ERU basis, a single average amount of impervious surface area is calculated for all residential dwelling units, including multifamily and apartments. For the City of Stockton, the ERU value is two thousand three hundred forty-seven square feet (2,347) of impervious surface area.
A. Residential Charges:
All single family, multifamily, and apartment residences, shall be assigned one ERU for each dwelling unit. The actual service charge shall equal the one ERU multiplied by the ERU rate.
B. Nonresidential Charges:
Nonresidential customers shall be charged based on the number of ERUs existing on each individual parcel. The actual service charge shall equal the number of ERUs on the parcel multiplied by the ERU rate.
The number of ERUs on each parcel shall be determined using an estimate of the impervious area on each parcel. This estimate shall be made using a density of development factor.
A density of development factor is defined as the mean, or average, percent of impervious coverage for parcels in a given customer class. In Stockton, the density of development factors for nonresidential properties have been determined to be as follows:
Customer Class Density of Development Factor
Commercial 90%
Institutional 62%
Industrial 79%

The calculation of the rate for each nonresidential parcel shall be made in the following manner:
1. The gross parcel size shall be multiplied by the density of development factor. This result equals the estimated amount of impervious surface area on the given parcel.
2. The estimated amount of impervious surface area shall then be divided by the average amount of impervious surface area per ERU (2,347 square feet). This result equals the number of ERUs which shall be assigned to the given parcel.
3. The number of ERUs shall be multiplied by the rate per ERU. This result equals the total monthly charge for the given parcel.
C. Nonresidential Appeals:
Nonresidential property owners shall have the right to adjust the density of development factor used to determine their service charge.
All adjustments shall require the property owner to provide a written request for adjustment and a certified calculation of impervious area for the given parcel as made by a California registered land surveyor or civil engineer. The approval of all adjustments shall be made in accordance with the provisions as set forth in Section 7-822.
D. Effective Date of Charges:
The effective date of all service charges shall be established by City Council resolution
(Added by Ordinance 014-02 C.S. – Effective June 30, 2002)

SEC. 7-816. VACANT PARCELS, NOT DEVELOPED:
Vacant parcels shall not be required to pay a storm water charge until such time as that parcel is developed. However, vacant parcels where the surface is altered or disturbed in any manner, including adding fill material or removing soil from the site, shall be considered developed and this change in parcel surface alteration shall result in a storm water charge being assessed for that parcel as determined by the provisions set forth in Section 7-815.1.
(Added by Ordinance 013-95 C.S. — Effective date July 26, 1995)

SEC. 7-817. VACATED DEVELOPED NON-RESIDENTIAL PARCELS:
If any developed non-residential parcel shall become vacated, the applicable storm water charges shall continue to be charged to the property owner of record.
(Amended by Ordinance 014-02 C.S. – Effective June 30, 2002) (Added by Ordinance 013-95 C.S. — Effective date July 26, 1995)

SEC. 7-818. OUTSIDE USERS — USERS NOT IN CITY BOUNDARIES:
Users not within City boundaries but who contribute to the City storm drainage system shall be assessed and charged according to a properly executed memorandum of understanding document between the City and County which fairly assesses fees in accordance with the current City users charge system. Unless regulated by other Sections of the Stockton Municipal Code, fees which are not a part of the storm water user charge system will be set from time to time by City Council resolution.
(Added by Ordinance 013-95 C.S. — Effective date July 26, 1995)

SEC. 7-819. ESTABLISHING RULES AND REGULATIONS:
The City Manager is hereby authorized to establish any rules or regulations necessary for the enforcement of this Division. The City Manager may delegate and appoint members of the City administration to act in behalf of the City Manager.
(Added by Ordinance 013-95 C.S. — Effective date July 26, 1995

SEC. 7-820. CHARGES PAYABLE TO CITY OF STOCKTON OR AUTHORIZED AGENT FOR BILLING AND COLLECTION:
All storm water service charges shall be payable to the City of Stockton or its authorized agent for billing and collection.
(Amended by Ordinance 014-02 C.S. – Effective June 30, 2002) (Added by Ordinance 013-95 C.S. — Effective date July 26, 1995)

SEC. 7-821. ADJUSTMENT AND REFUND OF CERTAIN CHARGES:
The Administrative Services Officer or authorized agent for billing and collection may adjust or refund such charges as are deemed to be inequitable in the presentation of an amount billed, penalty charges under extenuating circumstances, cancellation of duplicate billing, refunds of duplicate payments and refunds of amounts due to customers on closed accounts. Refunds on closed accounts of five dollars ($5) or less will not be made unless a specific request is received from the party to whom the refund is to be made.
The Administrative Services Officer or authorized agent for billing and collection may cancel all closed accounts with a balance of ten dollars ($10) or less.
(Amended by Ordinance 014-02 C.S. – Effective June 30, 2002) (Added by Ordinance 013-95 C.S. — Effective date July 26, 1995)

SEC. 7-822. ADJUSTMENT OF CHARGES FOR SERVICE:
The Director of Municipal Utilities may make such adjustments as are deemed necessary based on a charge for service. All adjustments will require a specific written request by the customer for whom the adjustment is made and such adjustments shall be approved by the Director of Municipal Utilities, and forwarded in writing to the Administrative Services Officer for processing. All adjustments may be credited to customer accounts or refunded directly to the customer upon request by the customer. All direct refunds shall require the approval of the Administrative Services Officer.
(Amended by Ordinance 014-02 C.S. – Effective June 30, 2002) (Added by Ordinance 013-95 C.S. — Effective date July 26, 1995)

SEC. 7-823. MAINTENANCE OF RECORDS:
The Administrative Services Officer or authorized agent for billing and collection is responsible for maintaining adequate records of bills tendered, payments received, delinquencies recorded, cash deposited, and charges incurred. The records shall be maintained in accordance with the City’s Record Retention Policy.
(Amended by Ordinance 014-02 C.S. – Effective June 30, 2002) (Added by Ordinance 013-95 C.S. — Effective date July 26, 1995)

SEC. 7-824. DELINQUENCY, PENALTIES AND NONPAYMENT:
An account shall be deemed delinquent where payment in full of the unified bill is not received at the office of the City or its authorized agent for billing and collection within twenty-five (25) days of the billing date. A postmark date is not considered the date of payment.
Where all or any part of any bill remains unpaid twenty five (25) days after the billing date, a basic penalty of ten percent (10%) of the total delinquent amount shall be added to such bill for the first month delinquent. In addition, an amount equal to one percent (1%) per month of the total delinquent amount shall be added to such bill during the time said bill remains unpaid.
Except as otherwise provided by law, if a unified bill remains unpaid more than thirty (30) days after the date of billing, water service at the service location may be terminated. Water service will not be restored until the amount of all delinquent charges and associated service charges, deposits and reconnection charges have been paid in full, or an amortization agreement has been authorized by the City or its authorized agent for billing and collection pursuant to Sections 779 or 10010 of the Public Utilities Code or other applicable statute.
(Amended by Ordinance 014-02 C.S. – Effective June 30, 2002) (Added by Ordinance 013-95 C.S. — Effective date July 26, 1995)

SECTIONS 7-825 THROUGH 7-832 WERE REPEALED BY ORDINANCE 014-02 C.S. – EFFECTIVE JUNE 30, 2002)

SEC. 7-833. PAYMENT OF FEES — RESPONSIBLE PARTY; RESPONSIBILITIES OF PROPERTY OWNER:
A. No facility or service of the storm water system shall be furnished to any premises free of charge.
The residential water service customer of any premises is and shall be responsible for payments of any and all storm water service charges applicable to the premises. It shall be and is hereby made the duty of each residential water service customer to ascertain from the City of Stockton Administrative Services Department or its authorized agent for billing and collection the amount and due date of any charge applicable to premises and to pay such charges when due and payable.
Stormwater charges for Commercial and Industrial parcels will be billed to the property owner of record on an individual basis separate from the water service bill. The property owner is and shall be responsible for payment of any and all sewer service charges applicable to the premises. It shall be and is hereby made the duty of each such property owner to ascertain from the City of Stockton Administrative Services Department the amount and due date of any charge applicable to premises and to pay such charges when due and payable.
B. It shall also be and is hereby made the duty of each owner of any premises to inform the City Administrative Services Department or its authorized agent for billing and collection immediately of all circumstances, and of any change(s) in any circumstance which will in any way affect the applicability of any charge to premises owned by said person or the amount of any such charge. In particular, but not by way of limitation, an owner of any premises shall immediately inform the City Administrative Services Department or its authorized agent for billing and collection of any sale or transfer of any such premises by or to such owner.
(Amended by Ordinance 014-02 C.S. – Effective June 30, 2002) (Added by Ordinance 013-95 C.S. — Effective date July 26, 1995)

SEC. 7-834. STORM WATER CONNECTION CHARGE SYSTEM:
A system of connection charges may be applied to users connecting or increasing their usage. The connection charge system fees will be set by the City Council by resolution from time to time and periodically adjusted to meet the needs of the capital improvement funds.
Special Rates. Special rates for connection charges for specific areas or specific cases may be made by resolution of the City Council where special conditions warrant such action by reason of hardship or inequities, or if judged by the City Council to contribute to the general good or betterment of the community.
(Added by Ordinance 013-95 C.S. — Effective date July 26, 1995