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HomeMy WebLinkAboutOrd 898 Amending Chapter 74 Solid WasteOrdinance 898 Page 1 of 5 TOWN OF WESTLAKE ORDINANCE NO. 898 AN ORDINANCE OF THE TOWN OF WESTLAKE AMENDING CHAPTER 74 “SOLID WASTE” BY AMENDING AND REPLACING SECTIONS 74-43 74-47, PROVIDING FOR FEES; PROVIDING A CUMULATIVE CLAUSE; PROVIDING A SEVERABILITY CLAUSE; PROVIDING A SAVINGS CLAUSE; AUTHORIZING PUBLICATION; AND ESTABLISHING AN EFFECTIVE DATE. WHEREAS, the Town of Westlake, Texas (“Town”) is a Type A general law municipality incorporated and operating under the laws of the State of Texas; and WHEREAS, the Town of Westlake Town Council (“Town Council”), pursuant to the authority granted to it by Texas Local Government Code Section 51.001, may adopt, publish, amend, or repeal any ordinance, rule, or police regulation that is for the good government, peace, or order of the Town; and WHEREAS, the Town Council, pursuant to its authority granted to it by Texas Local Government Code Section 51.012, may adopt an ordinance, act, law, or regulation, not inconsistent with state law, that is necessary for the government, interest, welfare, or good order of the Town and that is not inconsistent with state law; and WHEREAS, Texas Health and Safety Code Section 363.113 requires the Town to review provisions of solid waste management services in its jurisdiction and assure that those services are provided to all persons in its jurisdiction; and WHEREAS, pursuant to Texas Health & Safety Code Section 363.111(a), the Town Council is fully enabled to adopt rules for regulating solid waste collection, handling, transportation, storage, processing and disposal; and WHEREAS, the Town Council finds and determines that the currently adopted Code of Ordinances Chapter 74 and the regulations therein were adopted pursuant to authority granted by law and to the Town Council’s commitment to protect the health, safety, and welfare of residents, visitors, and property owners the Town; and WHEREAS, the Town Council finds it necessary for the public health, safety and welfare that there be appropriate regulations for the proper disposal of trash; and WHEREAS, the Town Council finds it necessary for the public health, safety and welfare that there be appropriate regulation regarding the people and companies that remove and transport waste utilizing Town rights-of-way; and WHEREAS, the Town has the ownership of and responsibility for the waste stream and appropriate regulations are required under state and federal law; and Ordinance 898 Page 2 of 5 WHEREAS, the Town Council finds and determines that temporary construction waste stored in such a manner that it spills, leaks, or blows has an adverse impact on the health, safety, and welfare of persons, property, and rights-of-way; and WHEREAS, the Town Council finds and determines that the regulations herein do not prohibit or restrict the sale or use of temporary construction waste containers, but instead establish minimum safety conditions for temporary construction waste containers; and WHEREAS, the Town Council finds and determines that the fees established and authorized by this ordinance were not intended to exceed the amount reasonably necessary to provide the services and administer, monitor, and enforce the regulatory programs to which they are related; and WHEREAS, the Town Council finds and determines that the currently adopted fees in Code of Ordinances Chapter 74 are necessary to 1) ensure that temporary construction waste storage/removal services are safely provided to all persons; and 2) recover the administrative costs of regulation, enforcement, monitoring, and the associated impact to infrastructure resulting from temporary construction waste services; and WHEREAS, the Town Council finds and determines that the primary purpose of the fees currently authorized and codified in Code of Ordinances Chapter 74 is for regulation; and WHEREAS, the Town Council finds and determines that the primary purpose of the fees currently authorized and codified in Code of Ordinances Chapter 74 is not to raise revenue; and WHEREAS, the Town Council finds and determines that the objectives of this ordinances include, but are not limited to, 1) ensuring that temporary construction waste storage/removal services are safely provided to all persons and 2) recovering the administrative costs of regulation, enforcement, monitoring, and the associated impact to infrastructure resulting from temporary construction waste services; and WHEREAS, the Town Council finds and determines that the primary purpose of the fees authorized and adopted by this ordinance is for regulation; and WHEREAS, the Town Council finds and determines that the primary purpose of this ordinance is not to raise revenue; and WHEREAS, the Town Council finds and determines that there is no conflict with State statute or the U.S. or Texas Constitutions as to the passage or enforcement of this Ordinance; and WHEREAS, the Town Council finds and declares that the meeting at which this Ordinance is considered is open to the public as required by law, and that public notice of the time, place and purpose of said meeting was given as required by Chapter 551, Texas Government Code; and Ordinance 898 Page 3 of 5 WHEREAS, the Town Council finds and determines that the passage of this Ordinance is for the good government, peace, or order of the Town; and WHEREAS, the Town Council finds and determines that the passage of this Ordinance is necessary or proper for carrying out a power granted by law; and WHEREAS, the Town Council finds and determines that the adoption of this Ordinance is in the best interests of and necessary to protect the health, safety, and welfare of the public. NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT ORDAINED BY THE TOWN COUNCIL OF THE TOWN OF WESTLAKE, TEXAS: SECTION 1: That all matters stated in the preamble are found to be true and correct and are incorporated herein as if copied in their entirety. SECTION 2: That Article III of the Code of Ordinances Chapter 74, titled “Commercial Solid Waste, Liquid Waste, and Recyclable Materials Operators,” is amended by amending and replacing Section 74-43, which shall read as follows: Sec. 74-43. – Fees; purpose. Each commercial solid waste transporter must pay a monthly fee to the town for use of streets, roadways and rights-of-way. Such fee is imposed with the objective of recovering the administrative costs of regulation, enforcement, monitoring, and the associated impact to infrastructure resulting from solid waste transport services SECTION 3: That Article III of the Code of Ordinances Chapter 74, titled “Commercial Solid Waste, Liquid Waste, and Recyclable Materials Operators,” is amended by amending and replacing Section 74-47, which shall read as follows: Sec. 74-47. – Solid waste license fee. (a) Each commercial solid waste operator that has been granted a license under this article must pay a license fee equal to 12 percent (12%) of the operator's gross revenues from the collection, hauling, or transporting of commercial and industrial solid waste collected within the town, after excluding therefrom the revenues licensee received from the collection, hauling, or transporting of recyclable material collected within the town. (b) Each commercial solid waste operator must pay the required license fee monthly to the Town within thirty (30) days following each month. Each monthly payment must be computed on the revenues for the month preceding the month in which the payment is due. Each commercial solid waste operator must provide with each monthly payment a statement of the gross revenues upon which the Ordinance 898 Page 4 of 5 payment is computed, prepared according to generally accepted accounting practices, and signed by an authorized representative of the licensee. The commercial solid waste operator must pay a late penalty of twelve percent (12%) per annum, compounded daily, on any monthly payment, or portions thereof, that is paid subsequent to the required payment date. (c) Each monthly payment must also be accompanied by a listing of the location and number of commercial containers serviced by the commercial solid waste operator in the Town. (d) The Town may inspect and audit the commercial solid waste operator's records upon which payments to the town are computed and paid. If the Town's inspection or audit shows that the commercial solid waste operator has underpaid an amount required to be paid under this article, the commercial solid waste operator must pay the deficiency within sixty (60) days of the date the town gives the commercial solid waste operator written notice of the deficiency. If the deficiency is more than ten percent of the amount the commercial solid waste operator was required to pay for the quarter, the commercial solid waste operator must also pay a penalty of ten percent (10%) per annum on the deficiency and the Town's reasonable cost incurred for the inspection or audit. (e) The Town's acceptance of a payment is not deemed to be a release or an accord as satisfaction of any claim the Town may have for further or additional sums payable under this article. The town is not liable to refund to the commercial solid waste operator any payment the commercial solid waste operator makes to the Town that is more than the amount required to be paid by commercial solid waste operator under this article. SECTION 4: No prosecution or administrative action pending, and no violation of or noncompliance with any prior ordinance shall be affected or terminated by the passage of this ordinance. SECTION 5: That this Ordinance shall be cumulative of all other Town Ordinances and all other provisions of other Ordinances adopted by the Town which are inconsistent with the terms or provisions of this Ordinance are hereby repealed. SECTION 6: It is hereby declared to be the intention of the Town Council of the Town of Westlake, Texas, that sections, paragraphs, clauses and phrases of this Ordinance are severable, and if any phrase, clause, sentence, paragraph or section of this Ordinance shall be declared legally invalid or unconstitutional by the valid judgment or decree of any court of competent jurisdiction, such legal invalidity or unconstitutionality shall not affect any of the remaining phrases, clauses, sentences, paragraphs or sections of this Ordinance since the same would have been enacted by the Town Council of the Town of Westlake without the incorporation in this Ordinance of any such legally invalid or unconstitutional, phrase, sentence, paragraph or section. Ordinance 898 Page 5 of 5 SECTION 7: This ordinance shall take effect immediately from and after its passage as the law in such case provides. PASSED AND APPROVED ON THIS 28th DAY OF OCTOBER 2019. _____________________________ ATTEST: Laura Wheat, Mayor ____________________________ Kelly Edwards, Town Secretary APPROVED AS TO FORM: ____________________________ L. Stanton Lowry, Town Attorney