Residential utility reselling.
Columbus City Codes § 4553.02
in effect4553.02 - Residential utility reselling.
Except as otherwise provided in section 4553.03, a property owner or operator can practice Residential utility reselling only under the following conditions:
A. Except as otherwise permitted in this Chapter, all rates and charges that a property owner or operator or a Third-party billing agent passes on to a Tenant shall not exceed the amounts that would be charged by the Utility provider if the Utility provider had billed the Tenant directly, except for the following fees:
1. A property owner or operator or a Third-party billing agent may impose at maximum an $8.00 administrative fee per billing cycle.
2. Except as otherwise provided by a contract between the Tenant and the property owner, a late payment charge, no greater than the property owner or operator is billed by the Utility provider, may be imposed.
B. A property owner or operator or a Third-party billing agent may charge a Tenant an amount for Utility service that is based on a ratio or formula, such a ratio or formula may be based on the number of occupants, square footage, or other similar factors, provided that the ratio or formula does not violate section 4553.03(A)(2).
C. A property owner or operator or a Third-party billing agent may use one or more submeters to determine the cost of Utility service provided to Common areas and factor the Tenant's portion of that cost into a standard monthly Utility charge, provided payments made by the Tenant are first applied towards the payment of rent.
(Ord. No. 3354-2025, § 1, 12-8-2025)
Source: City of Columbus, City Codes and City Charter (Municode Library, library.municode.com)URL: https://library.municode.com/oh/columbus/codes/code_of_ordinances?nodeId=TIT45HOCO_CH4553SHTEREBUBITEPR_4553.02REUTREFetched: 10/27/2026