§ 31-17. Service fee.

(a)

Purpose and authority. The solid waste services fee levied by this article has the purpose of paying for the service of collection and disposal of solid waste, of paying the cost of a residential recycling program, and of raising revenue to fund the solid waste collection and disposal costs of the unified government. The revenue collected may be used to pay for all costs relating to solid waste services including without limitation the unified government contract for the collection and disposal of residential and municipal solid waste, house hold hazard waste, any curbside recycling programs, community waste collection and clean up programs, collection and disposal of street sweepings and all trash and debris collected by the street department and the park and recreation department, and the Solid Waste Environmental Liability Fund created by Ordinance No. 65837. The unified government's authority to levy the fee is derived from article 12, section 5(b) of the Kansas Constitution and K.S.A. 12-137 and 12-138. The fee shall be a tax, excise, fee, charge or other exaction levied for revenue purposes.

(b)

Levy and payment of fee and effective date.

(1)

Effective January 1, 2014, a monthly solid waste fee in the amount of $15.25 is hereby levied on all single family residences and all residential units in buildings containing not more than four dwelling units in the city.

(2)

Effective January 1, 2015, a monthly solid waste fee in the amount of $15.40 is hereby levied on all single family residences and all residential units in buildings containing not more than four dwelling units in the city.

(3)

The fee shall be billed and collected through the administrative departments of the board of public utilities of the unified government and the board of public utilities may discontinue water services to premises for which the fee has not been paid.

(4)

The solid waste fee shall be a debt due to the unified government. If the debt is not paid on the due date, it shall be deemed delinquent and may be recovered by initiating the necessary civil action in the name of the unified government against the property owner or the occupant of the premises.

(c)

Appeals.

(1)

Any person required to pay the fee may appeal the payment. The notice of appeal shall be in writing, filed with the unified government clerk, and state with particularity the decision being appealed; the grounds for the appeal; and the specific relief sought. The decision of the county administrator shall be final.

(2)

The filing of an appeal or other legal challenge with a court of competent jurisdiction shall not stay the imposition, calculation or collection of the fee.

(d)

Bi-annual adjustment to tax rate. Effective January 1 of each even-numbered year, the tax rates specified in subsection (b) of this section shall increase or decrease uniformly by the same percentage increase as that of the Consumer Price Index for Urban Wage Earners and Clerical Workers, in the Kansas City metropolitan area as published by the Bureau of Labor Statistics, United States Department of Labor, for the 24-month period ending the preceding June 30.

(Ord. No. O-60-07, §§ 1—4, 8-2-2007; Ord. No. O-60-09, § 1, 7-30-2009; Ord. No. O-42-14, § 1, 7-13-2014)