Clarification on landlord liability for water payments

I’ve been hearing some concern over one of the water ordinances that we passed on Monday. I’ve heard that a number of landlords were upset about it and I couldn’t understand why until I finally read the story in the paper and (worse) the story on KTVO’s website.

Folks, both of these stories are misleading and leave out a very important fact: We DID NOT add landlord liability for their tenant’s unpaid water bills to the current ordinance. It is ALREADY THERE, in the current ordinance.

Here is an excerpt from the current water ordinance:

Sec. 25-52. Rendering and payment of bills.

“(d) The occupant and user of the premises receiving water service and the owner of the premises shall be jointly and severally liable to pay for the services rendered to the premises. A minimum charge shall be paid whether the quantity of water is used or not. Credit shall not be allowed for any cause unless discontinuance of service has been requested by the customer in writing and service has not been shut off by the city.”

Landlords have ALWAYS been liable for their tenant’s unpaid water bills. The city has worked with landlords in the past and held some of them accountable. In fact, if you read some of the comments from one of the landlords on the KTVO story (Joe S), you’ll see that he is complaining about this very thing.

So what did we do on Monday then? We clarified it to bring our ordinance in compliance with state statute that limits the landlords responsibility to 90 days. We also gave the landlord input into the deposit amount and notice of when the accounts were past due. This is IN FAVOR of the landlords by limiting their liability and giving them more tools to hold their tenants accountable.

You can read a complete copy of the new ordinance yourself here: Landlord Liability Ordinance

Also somewhat related to this, we are planning to move to a monthly billing cycle next year. That should put the water/sewer/trash bill more in line with the rest of the monthly bills, so people can plan for them better and not forget to pay them so easily. I know I’ve had trouble remembering sometimes and been late more than once. The shorter billing cycle should also make it easier to catch problems early on – like a leaky toilet or faucet – before it has a chance to use so much water and accumulate a lot of money on the bill.

If you have any further questions, please don’t hesitate to send me a message or give me a call.