Many times, a customer has a shut off valve installed to the second residence that can be turned off for plumbing repairs or when inspections like these are to be conducted. The defined area is depicted in Appendix 1. (This cut-off valve may be installed as a part of the original meter installation by the Corporation.). 5' <84> <84> <201E> The TRWA Sample Tariff addresses this issue and follows the Public Utility Commission (PUC) Chapter 24 rules about the systems ability to access a meter for repairs and normal service. <98> <98> <02DC> /CIDInit /ProcSet findresource begin /CMapName /Times-RomanOPBaseFont0 def It is not cost effective for us to run a six inch line extension just to supply water to one new house. The actual cost of the meter and installation should be assessed as well. <8A> <8A> <0160> The valve shall meet AWWA standards (a ball valve is preferred). A: This is a common problem for older systems as they try to come into compliance with newer rules. Is this a fool-proof verification? 10. The ERUs would be equivalent to what would be used by typical single-family residences, if they were using the water. These waivers usually apply only when the customer voluntarily contacts the system to either install the appropriate number of meters or allow for inspection by system staff to verify that the other connections are not being used. Only the labor to reinstall the meter, a new customer service inspection fee, the BPAT test if there was a backflow assembly there before, and the refundable membership fees could be charged to the new applicant at that previously served location. (16) Connection--A single family residential unit or each commercial or industrial establishment to which drinking water is supplied from the system. There is nothing that prevents a customer from having a separate meter just for their irrigation system. The normal straight run of pipe prior to the meter is five times the diameter of the pipe. Language establishing the utilitys ownership of customer service meters runs throughout TRWAs model tariffs and service policies. The sample tariff also allows service to be disconnected, after notice, if access is denied for three consecutive months. <09> <0A> <0009> CONTACT 1002 Washington Ave., 3rd floor Houston, TX 77002 832.394.8888 wcrtechs@houstontx.gov 8 am to 3 pm Wastewater Capacity Reservation Letter - Wastewater You, the property owner or authorized agent, must apply for a Wastewater Capacity Reservation letter if you are: Wastewater Capacity Reservation Letter - Water He has offered to buy a ladder, but does not want it left all the time, only when the meter is read. 0000001445 00000 n Does the one meter per residence apply in this situation? They summarized that because there had been a meter at that location, the new applicant should not be responsible to pay for upgrades to the water mains because of new customers being added at other locations along that same water main. <80> <80> <20AC> <20> <7E> <0020> Yu%]OV^jhzUKI51*&;?m'{{~aTV%jkC
PM 5#:
5$Gn ma0Mg]q}ZjBT8!t0#HD4"?@taAhDDDDDDDDDD~""""""?YY#ldd#3334k$WT M&=R <86> <87> <2020> Systems generally dont want to extend their liability onto or across private property to read meters or make repairs after dark within a private property on the off chance that frequent trips onto that property raises the chance of some type of accident or damage to the owners property or tenants. Most importantly, you should enforce these policies and refuse to set a meter until you are satisfied that the applicant does, in fact, own the property on which the meter will be placed. We had the owner submit a feasibility study and it shows that we can support them. <00> CMapName currentdict /CMap defineresource pop To Top. It is best to set the meters close to the structure to be served and to always obtain an easement for service lines and meters before new service is established. <88> <88> <02C6> How common are they compared to the traditional positive displacement manual read meters? <86> <87> <2020> TRWA has provided numerous training sessions at conferences and at water system offices to demonstrate the impact of larger meters from a revenue impact as well as regulatory requirements. It appears they have done this to supply water to more than 60 small rental homes on two 5/8 x 3/4 meters. The date of construction is not relevant to the issue of whether a single master meter or individual meters would be preferable; however, it is important when considering the required customer service inspection (CSI) which must be completed for all eight units and the tract of property to be served. The main billing consideration is normally that meters for irrigation purposes only are typically not charged a sewer bill and if your system provides sewer service this could reduce the overall revenue if enough of these meters are installed. A: TRWA hasnt tracked the number of systems that have installed electronic read meters, whether they be the AMR (drive-by) or AMI (instrumental gathered information) meters. We would like to have the chain restaurant apply for and install a meter since the convenience store has a meter and active account. "Equivalent residential units" or "ERU" is a unit of measurement based upon a standard single-family residential home used to establish rates, fees and charges and volume capacity limits. fA=~0xO}wASICHzKnp[o One note here about equipment costs to replace the assets being removed TCEQ explained this to include the price of a meter, tapping saddle, curb stops, meter box, service tubing and any parts which were purchased by the original applicant when the service was first installed. A new membership fee should be required for each new meter. A: New meters are supposed to be calibrated and ready to use when shipped to systems. The assumed population equivalent per connection should be indicated. Even a temporary hose hook-up is prohibited since that is a violation of the conditions found in your customer service application and agreement. <9F> <9F> <0178> endstream
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In many cases, system staff were simply too timid to enforce their own policies relating to meter locations if a customer raised their voice, said they would sue the system, or used an intimidating attitude. I have visited several systems who have purchased AMR meters that are compatible with the AMI meters. Other systems are installing AMR Meters for the first time, installing AMR Meters in high density or high-traffic areas or upgrading to AMI meters. Now the member wants the water meter moved to a different property about 100 yards from its original location. <09> <0A> <0009> The elimination of external parts should reduce the need for re-reads due to malfunctions. I told her that was incorrect and that I would mail her the documentation to prove it. The wait times at the transit Schengen passport control might be a bit longer but probably not since the border police seems to be managing staff levels. stream <93> <94> <201C> One of our customers is demanding that she keep her meter since she paid for it and she feels it should be hers to keep. All usage rates per thousand gallons should be the same across all classes of ratepayers, although conservation rates, designed to encourage efficient and non-wasteful water use practices by customers, can assess higher usage rates per thousand gallons for customers using more than a specified amount each month. This certificate should meet the TCEQ master meter test requirements for initial installation of the meter. 1 begincodespacerange /Supplement 0 <9A> <9A> <0161> g
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+IB> Q: Some of our customers have built duplexes in our system. 0000000825 00000 n
Extension of pipe(s) to transfer utility service from one property to another, to share, resell, or submeter water to any other persons, dwellings, businesses, or property, etc., is prohibited. Id like to offer an observation though, based on the information from the TRWA Sample Tariff. Additionally, Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (TCEQ) rules require that all public water systems be designed with a minimum of 15 percent extra capacity. <8B> <8B> <2039> I am not aware of any legal or state regulations that would prohibit this, but I caution your board to look at every conceivable contingency and try to address them before agreeing to this free meter reading offer. Q: How important is the NSF 60 certification on meters or does it even matter? Any correspondence you send to this regard should include a deadline for the customers to contact the system to set up a CSI so the utility can verify whether any prohibited interconnection between the two dwellings exists. One of the main reasons for a turbine or propeller master meter to register incorrectly is improper piping configurations from the well to and past the meter location. When setting these new meters, it is important to remember that if the property is subdivided in the future, each meter should be on the property with the residence or structure to be served. The capacity requirement is driven, in part, by the maximum potential amount of water that could be pushed through that meter on a peak day. A: Master metered accounts are typically used when a landowner wants a single meter to provide water service to multiple buildings, apartments, offices, trailer spaces or other types of business activities. /CIDInit /ProcSet findresource begin There also is a section in the Service Application and Agreement form RUS-TX Bulletin 1780-9 (05/17) that states: All water shall be metered by meters to be furnished and installed by the Corporation.
A: The property owner may have a single master meter as long as the property is not divided or does not consist of separate tracts of land. The rules provide some ways for the applicant to opt out of individual meters and having multiple water service lines crisscrossing their tract of land. Most of these systems have had positive comments about the dependability of these newer types of meters, and some reported only a 5 percent re-read when the meters were originally installed (this percentage typically went down as they got the bugs worked out). <8F> <8F> <2022> Now climb the tank again after the well pump is stopped and measure the height of water again at the manway. Q: Can we install a meter on land that is not owned by the system member if he gets an easement from the land owner? 0000001032 00000 n
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We want to be fair, but we also want be responsible. We don't know what size the line is behind the meters or how they have them hooked up. While this may have been more of an undertaking many years ago, most counties have modernized and this research can now generally be done from the systems office. <9B> <9B> <203A> The side benefit of the AMI technology is that when someone reports a leak in the system, this type of meter allows the system to read meters in that section to determine if the leak is from their system lines or from overwatering or leaks on the customers side. <<9e8032b06c2c514a87349e8822134d26>]>>
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To your knowledge, are there any parts of the tariff that would prohibit the member from entering into such an agreement or any part of the regulations that would prohibit such an agreement or jeopardize the systems compliance? However, if your homeowner needs a 1" or larger meter, then the requirements for non-standard service as outlined in Section F. of the TRWA Sample Tariff would apply, including an engineering study for each oversized meter. /CIDSystemInfo <8B> <8B> <2039> The Commercial facilities are calculated by an Equivalent . D/^&H What should we do with these boxes? Your board should look at all the different access related issues at customer locations and define in your tariff what the system considers to be reasonable access to the meters. These previously existing meter locations had already paid for or been granted capacity from the water main, and therefore they should not be required to pay for system upgrades. <85> <85> <2026> Getting customers to understand is sometimes challenging. 0000000766 00000 n Total non -residential 6. to TCEQ rules regarding elevated storage, the number of connections that are allocated to the tract will be four, because that allocation is determined on the number of meter connections. For example, the provisions of TRWAs Sample Tariff regarding non-standard service include the requirement that the corporation approve the design requirements of the applicants required facilities prior to initiation of a non-standard service contract. Example: A 20-space trailer park with a 2-inch meter has been evaluated by some TCEQ inspectors to be the actual number of trailer spaces available. <002D> Next, the utility should contact the systems engineer to obtain a study showing how the number and location of the different dwellings are situated on the tract of land. He does not want us to move the meter outside the fence for safety reasons. endcmap <88> <88> <02C6> The result is an estimate of total 67.016(d) provides that a corporation may make water or sewer service conditional on ownership of the real estate designated to receive service and from which the membership or other right of participation arises. Subsection (e) authorizes a corporation to cancel a persons membership if he fails to meet a condition of service prescribed by the corporation. endcodespacerange \\~;XBM?!GIjM_%
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6+VM?mHAMA5i }l& How should this be handled? The member knows that resale of the water for a profit is not allowed. end The result is an estimate of total Under 30 TAC 290.38(16), "connection" means "A single-family residential unit or each commercial or industrial establishment to which drinking water is supplied" from the PWS. a@0VZ
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0a;AS#ii <]/Info 87 0 R/Prev 844706 >> startxref By doing this, when they get a few more meters, they can begin replacing the meter tops with these newer AMI tops. Is it ethical for us to charge a second equity buy-in fee for this meter if we already charged such a fee for their first meter? 1.1 Land Use Assumptions and Projected Population The BPSUD water system operates as 4 independent pressure planes, which requires that each pressure plane be analyzed as a stand-alone system. 0000006201 00000 n
How do you protect the integrity of the system when you do not know the background or intent of the person performing the volunteer work? Do they have to register as a business with the state or get a water commercial permit? A licensed operator of a water system can calibrate their own master meters regardless of size or type by using the volumetric calibration method. All connections shall be calculated based upon its equivalency to a customary Equivalent Single Family Connection using the City of Houston's equivalency table. /CMapType 2 def PUC rules also specify the requirements for language that must be included in the rental agreement regarding submetering, how the charges are to be calculated and how billing is to be conducted. Wouldnt it make sense for the owner to have to pay the cost of extending the line(s) out to those structures? For customers who have their homes 500 feet or more off the road, meters may be relocated to the edge of the customers property instead of at the house. Check to be sure these references are included in your tariff and if so, the member would be prohibited from extending service from one side of the road/alley or across a property line to provide service to a neighbors property not designated to receive service according to your tariff. Private or domestic wells can be used for a variety purposes, such as irrigation, drinking water and industrial uses. Due to an expansion, the two split and are now serviced by the same meter. <9B> <9B> <203A> 12 dict begin <9E> <9E> <017E> <80> <80> <20AC> The system is not responsible for securing or requiring an easement for any service line from the meter to the ultimate customers home. endstream
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each new commercial connection and $1,000 for each new residential connection. H|T0WQNd(>3IQb= 0
<91> <92> <2018> lmr19a9s;rw;A$PsI@mr+9pB? A particular manufacturer is selling a pretty good meter, but it is not certified and before I invest a lot of money into their radio read system I need someone to answer this question. ESFCequivalent single-family connection. <7F> <7F> <2022> However, the applicant or landowner can request a single master meter if they dont want to re-plumb their entire property to accommodate individual meters. The two businesses had been in a partnership in the past under one roof. 0000002966 00000 n When a system sees that there is inequity in their current rate structure causing some customers to subsidize the water usage and capacity requirements for other customers, the board ought to rectify the situation by amending rates. In the event that the placement ends up being wrong, the PUC would likely side with the owner in a dispute about relocation costs because they would see it as the utility shirking its responsibility to exercise due diligence when it set the meter in the wrong location in the first place. Published in January/February 2020 (Issue 1 of Quench). Hopefully this will help address the customers concerns. >> def The impact fee and other front-end capital improvement fees also remain with the existing tap and location and should never be transferred to another property for the same reasons above. <> It doesnt matter whether the extra capacity is used to supply brand new customers who have never had service or to existing customers seeking an additional meter. <00AE> hb```m ea>O)~N7vy)20:sLr Until Saturday there was a higher level called "very high-risk area where there is a variant of concern" but that category . 36 beginbfrange The District currently encompasses 767 acres and is located wholly within the extraterritorial jurisdiction of the City of Houston, Texas (the "City") and is located within Katy Independent School District. Accordingly, at Section 24.169(a)(2) of the PUCs rules, the Commission unequivocally states that unless otherwise ordered by the commission, each utility shall provide, install, own and maintain all meters necessary for the measurement of water provided to its customers..