§ 10-35 — Solid waste services fee

Sec. 10-35. - Solid waste services fee.

(a) Purpose. This fee is for the provision of services set forth in section 10-30(a), section 10-30(d), section 10-32, and section 10-33. (b) Eligibility and ownership date. (1) The fee shall be imposed upon any premises receiving service pursuant to section 10-30(a), section 10-30(d), section 10-32, and section 10-33 by the city or the city's agents as of January 1. (2) The premises' ownership shall be determined as of January 1 for each successive fiscal year. (3) Any changes to the premises' ownership between January 2 and December 31 will not cause the premises to lose its eligibility for imposition of the fee. (4) No fee shall be imposed by the city upon any premises if the premises receives service from a business enterprise providing solid waste collection service. (c) Administration. (1) The fee shall be: i. Billed with property taxes; and, ii. Payable in the same manner as property taxes; and iii. Collected in any manner by which delinquent personal or real property taxes can be collected. (2) The fee may be billed by a separate bill if: i. Property taxes are not levied upon the premises. ii. The structure is exempted from property taxation. (3) If a fee should have been assessed during a fiscal year but was not assessed, then the city may levy the unassessed fee for the year in which discovered and for any of the preceding five years during which it escaped assessment. (4) If there are multiple owners of a premises and such multiple owners are assessed separately for the property taxes, then the fee shall be levied on a ratable basis in accordance with the percentage of interest owned by the multiple owners. (5) The fee shall be a lien on real and personal property under the same rules as set forth in G.S. 105-355, 160A-314.1, and other sections of the Machinery Act. (6) The county tax administrator may promulgate additional rules and regulations necessary for the implementation of this section not inconsistent with the specific provisions set forth in this section. (d) Adjustments. (1) Notice of exception i. Any property owner, whom is assessed a fee, may file a notice of exception in writing with the county tax administrator. The notice of exception should include documentation supporting the property owner's argument. The filing of a notice of exception shall not relieve a property owner of the obligation to pay the fee prior to the date interest accrues. ii. The county tax administrator shall provide a copy of the notice of exception to the SWS department head. A hearing may be scheduled. The SWS department head shall determine if the fee is or is not owed by the property owner. The SWS department head shall issue a written decision to the property owner and provide a copy to the county tax administrator. iii. If the SWS department head determines the fee is owed, the property owner shall have 15 days from the receipt of the written decision to appeal to the city manager's office. The city manager's office shall review the information and determine if the fee is or is not owned by the property owner. The city manager's office shall issue a written decision to the property owner and provide a copy to the SWS department head and the county tax administrator. iv. If a written decision is favorable to the property owner, then the city shall issue a refund. (2) If a fee has been assessed in an amount that is in excess of the amount established by city, then the city shall refund, rebate, or credit an appropriate amount to any affected property owner.

(Ord. No. 9151, § 1(Exh. A), 9-11-2017; Ord. No. 1111, § 1(Exh. A), 4-13-2026)