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Home My WebLink About024530 ORD - 07/24/2001 AN ORDINANCE AMENDING THE CODE OF ORDINANCES, CITY OF CORPUS CHRISTI, CHAPTER 55, UTILITIES, REGARDING SECURITY DEPOSITS FOR UTILITY CUSTOMERS; PROVIDING FOR SEVERANCE; PROVIDING FOR PUBLICATION; AND DECLARING AN EMERGENCY. BE IT ORDAINED BY THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF CORPUS CHRISTI, TEXAS: SECTION 1. Section 55-25 of the Code of Ordinances is revised to read as follows: "Sec. 55-25. Security for the payment of bill and performance of other obligations by customer. "The customer shall, upon request by the city, deposit with the city as security fur the payment of bills and fur the performanoe of all other obligationEl Elf the customer a sum of money equal to tv.'o (2) a\'eFa!ile monthly bills for service furnished during the preceding tv.'elve n:lElnth period or to be furnished as estimates by the city. In case the customer's bills fur any two (2) consecutive mont"'ly billing periods of normal operation actually pro'/e to Olmees appreciably the amount of the deposit, the city may, at its option, require the customer to deposit an additional amount of money sufficient to make the total on deposit '.\lith the city equal to the amount of bills fur two (2) consecutive months. If the customer fails to deposit the additional required sum '....ithin ten (10) days of written notice of the deposit requirements ans penalty fur f.ailure to pay, such notice sent by U.S. mail to the customer at the address shown on the customer application, the city may discontinue service without further notice. "The minimum deposit fur services will be in aocordance with the fullowing sohedule: "Resisential: "(1) Fifty dollars ($50.99) for gas, '.vater, waste water and garbage. "(2) Thirty dollars ($30.00) fur gas only. "(3) Thirty dollars ($30.00) for water or water and '....oste woter only. "(1) Ton dollars ($10.00) fur garbago only. "(5) No addition31 deposit for garbage if another servioe is requested. "(6) Upon presentation of a good credit referenoe letter from another utility, oity may adjust the requires security deposit amount. "Commercial: ". "", ...~ rj 0 : ~ / '. .) - ...~. ~ \. 0 -_._~ .." 2 "(1) Fifty Elollars ($50.00) for water and waste water. "(2) Thirty dollars ($30.00) for gas. "If the required deposit exoeeds five hundred dollars ($500.00), the oity will aooept a oash deposit of the initial five hundred dollars ($500.00) anEl a eertifioate of deposit or an irrevooable letter of oreEli! in lieu of oash for the amounts in exoess of five hundred dollars ($500.00), or the entire amount in the form of a certifioate of deposit or irrevooable letter of oredit. "An irrevooable letter of oredit under this provision must be isslJed by a finanoial institution with offioes looated within Nueoes County, Texas, be valid for one year or more, and require as sole dooumentation for payment an unpaid lJtility bill or failure to furnish proof of rene'Nal or reJ3laoement of the letter of oredit no less than thirty (30) days J3rior to expiration of the then current letter of credit. Suoh letter of oredit must be renewed upon expiration, and proof of such renewal must be reoeived by the oity at least thirty (30) days prior to expiration. If no rene'....al is reoeived, or oash in lieu ther.eof, the oity may, after ten (10) days prior written notioe mailed to the clJstomer at the address on the oustomer applioation, disoontinue the service upon the expiration of the letter of oredit or oall the letter of credit for failure to timely renew. "/\ oertifioate of Eleposit under this provision must be made out jointly to the oustomer and the oity, endorsed by the oustomer and physioally held by the oity and must be issued bY:1 finanoial institution with offioes looated within Nueoes County, Texas, be valid for one year or mor-o, and require as sole dooumentation for payment an unpaid utility bill or failure to furnish proof of renewal or replaoement of the oertifioate of deposit no less than thirty (30) days prior to expiration of the then ourrent oertifioate of deposit. Suoh oertifioate of deposit must be renewed upon expiration, and proof of suoh rene'llal must be reoeived by the oity (It least thirty (30) days prior to expiration. If no renewal is reoei'/eEl or oash in lieu thereof, the oity may, after ten (10) days prior written notice mailed to the oustomer at the address on the oustomer applioation, disoontinue the servioe upon the expiration of the oertifioate of deposit or oall the oertifioate of deposit for failure to timely renew. "The deposit need not be applied against a delinqlJent aooount until a final bill is rendered to the oustomer, and the existenoe of a deposit shall not relieve the oustomer of any of the oharges provided in this Code f.or performing prooedures in oonnection with delinquent aooounts, disoonnections, reoonnections, damages to preJ3erty or other charges ""AicA may be made agaiAst tAe customer in accordance '....itA the ordinances, rulcs and regulations of the oity. "Effeetive August 1, 1991, deposits shall have lileeA fOfI,JAEleEJ, 'Nithout interest, to individual residential oustomer aooounts whioh, while served oontinuously during the preoeding PNelve (12) months, were not disoonnected and did not reoeive two (2) delinquent bills, and whioh arc not ourrently in arrears. R12106A2 ., " . 3 "Effective I\ugust 1, 1991, deposits shall have been refunded, without interest, to individual commercial customer accounts which, while served continuously during the preceding twenty four (24) months, were not discer-meoted and did not recoi'Io t\vo (2) delinquent bills, and ",.'hich are not currently in arrears. "/\fter the deposit has been refunded, the city shall reserve the right to (a) The City may request that a security deposit be again placed on the account, if an account has become delinquent. An account will be considered delinquent if two (2) delinquent bills are issued and/or if disconnection of service occurs once within a twelve (12) month period. "(b) The City will refund a security deposit. without interest. to a customer. upon the request of the customer. if the followinq conditions have been satisfied: "(1) The customer has maintained service for at least twelve (12) consecutive months. "(2) The customer's service was not disconnected durinq the precedinq twelve (12) months. "(3) The customer has not been sent two (2) or more delinquent bills durinq the previous twelve (12) months. "(4) The account is not currently in arrears. "ifLA customer sIlalI--may claim E-.refund of a deposit owed by the city no later than one year after termination of service to the account to which the deposit applies. Thereafter, such deposit shall become city property." SECTION 2. If for any reason any section, paragraph, subdivision, clause, phrase, word or provision of this ordinance shall be held invalid or unconstitutional by final judgment of a court of competent jurisdiction, it shall not affect any other section, paragraph, subdivision, clause, phrase, word or provision of this ordinance, for it is the definite intent of this City Council that every section, paragraph, subdivision, clause, phrase, word or provision hereof be given full force and effect for its purpose. SECTION 3. Publication shall be made in the official publication of the City of Corpus Christi as required by the City Charter of the City of Corpus Christi. SECTION 4. That upon written request of the Mayor or five Council members, copy attached, the City Council (1) finds and declares an emergency due to the need for immediate action necessary for the efficient and effective administration of City affairs and (2) suspends the Charter rule that requires consideration of and voting upon ordinances at two regular meetings so that this ordinance is passed and takes effect upon first reading as an emergency measure on this the day of ,2001. R12106A2 -""", r ",.. ATTEST: A1..,.~~ Armando Chapa City Secretary -!-I" APPROVED: This.l.2:- day of J u I Y James R. Bray, Jr. City Attorney By: R12106A2 -, . 4 THE CITY OF CORPUS CHRISTI .48.~ ~ Samuel L. eal, Jr. - Mayor ,2001: 5 Corpus Christi, Texas ~~YOf~,2001 TO THE MEMB~RS O~ THE CITY COUNCIL Corpus Christi, Texas For the reasons set forth in the emergency clause of the foregoing ordinance an emergency exists requiring suspension of the Charter rule as to consideration and voting upon ordinances at two regular meetings: IIwe, therefore, request that you suspend said Charter rule and pass this ordinance finally on the date it is introduced, or at the present meeting of the City Council. Respectfully, Respectfully, ~'-~~-~. -SamueIL.Ne ,Jr.' Mayor Council Members Samuel L. Neal, Jr. Brent Chesney Javier D. Colmenero Henry Garrett Bill Kelly Rex A. Kinnison John Longoria Jesse Noyola Mark Scott ~ R12106A2 1'-"." .' .~ r} 0 - ,-;:-; J ,) ._-"~ r .... FINANCE. OEPARTMEhtUBLISHER'S AFFIDAVIT 01 AUG-2 AMrD: /2 } CITY OF CORPUS CHRISTI } ss: Ad # 3904779 PO # State of Texas County of Nueces Before me, the undersigned, a Notary Public, this day personally came Eugenia Cortez, who being first duly sworn, according to law, says that she is Customer Service Manager of the Corpus Christi Caller-Times, a daily newspaper published at Corpus Christi in said City and State, generally circulated in Aransas, Bee, Brooks, Duval, Jim Hogg, Jim Wells, Karnes, Kenedy, Kleberg, Live Oak, Nueces, Refugio, San Patricio, Victoria and Webb Counties, and that the publication of, NOTICE OF PASSAGE OF ORDINANCE NO. which the annexed is a true copy, was inserted in the Corpus Christi Caller-Times and on the World Wide Web on the Caller-Times Interactive on the 30TH day(s) of JULY, 01((1. No, Ol~S-30 2001. Corpus :llfC4lller-nn.. MondIlr; JaIy 30, 2001/D1 tr.4. g t?~ OI'~ Credit Customer Service Manager - m Subscribed and sworn to me on the date of JULY 31,2001. (;?WtlJ. 'In~ ~ Notary Public, Nueces County, Texas ROSA MARIA FLORES Print or Type Name of Notary Public My commission expires on 04/23/05. -~