1995-096D ! SCOVER. ORD
NOTE: Amended by Ordinance No. 98-265.
ORDINANCE NO. ~
AN ORDINANCE OF THE CITY OF DENTON, TEXAS AMENDING ORDINANCE 93-164
INSOFAR AS IT RELATES TO CREDIT CARD SERVICE FEES; AUTHORIZING THE
CITY MANAGER TO EXECUTE AN AGREEMENT WITH DISCOVER CARD SERVICES,
INC.; AND PROVIDING FOR AN EFFECTIVE DATE.
THE COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF DENTON HEREBY ORDAINS:
~ECTION I. That the portion of City of Denton Ordinance 93-164
specifying and authorizing a credit card service fee is hereby
amended to read as follows:
MASTERCARD/VISA/DISCOVER SERVICE FEES
APPLICATION
Applicable when payment for fees, fines, court costs,
taxes, utilities or other charges are made with a
Mastercard, Visa or Discover card.
RATE/SERVICE CHARGE
MasterCard/Visa 2.2S% per cent of payment amount.
Discover Card As per Service Charge Table, below:
Payment Amount Fee
$ .ol - $ 20.00 Go.os
$ 20.01 - $200.00 SZ.O0
$2oo.ol - $5oo.oo $3.00
$5oo.ol - $8oo.oo Gs.oo
$800.01 - and up $7.00
SECTION II. That the City Manager is hereby authorized to
execute an agreement with Discover Card Services, Inc. under the
terms and conditions contained within the agreement, a copy of
which is attached hereto as Exhibit A.
SECTION III. That if any section, subsection, paragraph,
sentence, clause, phrase or word in this ordinance, or application
thereof to any person or circumstances is held invalid by any court
of competent jurisdiction, such holding shall not affect the valid-
ity of the remaining portions of this ordinance, and the City
Council of the city of Denton, Texas, hereby declared it would have
enacted such remaining portions despite any such invalidity.
SECTION IV. That this ordinance shall become effective, and
apply to all qualifying consumer credit transactions occurring on
or after May 3, 1995.
PASSED AND APPROVED this the--~ day of~J~, 1995.
ATTEST:
JENNIFER WALTERS, CITY SECRETARY
APPROVED AS TO LEGAL FORM:
MICHAEL A. BUCEK, ACTING CITY ATTORNEY
BY: '~ ~'~ '-~ ~'
PAGE 2
GOVERNMENTAL ENTITY SERVICES MAIL/TELEPHONE ORDER AGREEMENT
CITY OF DENTON, TEXAS
[egal Name
215 EAST MCKINNEY
Street Address
DENTON, TEXAS 76201
City, State, Zip Code $ .01 - 20.00 $.05/TI~qNSACTION
$ 20.01 -200.00 $1.00/TP~ANSACTION
$ 200.01 -500.00 $3.00/TRANSACTION
$ 500.01 -800.00 $5.00/TP~ANSACTION
$ 800.0! - AND UP $7.00/TRANSACTION
-0- /Transaction
Floor Limit Fee
(Mail/Telephone Orders) (Mail/Telephone Orders)
$-0- SAME AS ABOVE/Transaction
Floor Limit (In-person) Fee (In-person)
This Agreement governs the acceptance of Cards, issued by any authorized Card
issuer (the "Bank") by the governmental entity specified above. It supersedes any
other agreements between such governmental entity and Discover Card Services, Inc.
concerning acceptance of the Card. In this Agreement, the words "you" and "your"
mean the governmental entity identified above; the words "we", "our" and "us"
refer to Discover Card Services, Inc.; "Card" means a valid credit, charge or
other card bearing a Discover Card or NOVUS logo, servicemark or trademark
identified in the Operating Guide or as otherwise approved in writing by us; and
"Cardmember" means a consumer to whom the Bank has issued a Card and/or any
authorized user of a Card. Please read this Agreement carefully. You must follow
all its terms.
1. Acceptance of Cards. You agree to accept all valid and unexpired
Cards in payment for amounts due you from all Cardmembers who want to use the Card
at your establishment(s). All Card transactions resulting from acceptance of the
Card shall be submitted to us in United States dollars. We agree that you may
impose a surcharge, levy or fee of a similar kind for any transaction where a
Cardmember desires to use the Card for any payment of amounts owed you. However,
such surcharge, levy or fee may be only in the amount shown above and you agree
that you will not add any additional markup to such amounts. You may not accept
the Card in exchange for advancing cash to a Cardmember, unless you have executed
a separate agreement with us, although you may accept Card Checks that the Bank
makes available to Cardmembers and treat them as you would any other check. Your
owners, officers or employees may not receive cash advances or make payments to
you using their personal Cards, except for bona fide payments in the ordinary
course of business. If you have asked us to issue you a test Card or test account
in order to test Card acceptance at your locations, you are liable for any
improper or fraudulent use of such Card or account by any of your employees. You
agree to use reasonable efforts to safeguard such Card or account in a secure
place. You agree to follow the procedures in this Agreement and in the Operating
Regulations concerning acceptance of Cards and completion and submission of sales
slips. The Operating Regulations is a part of this Agreement and is incorporated
into this Agreement as Exhibit A. We may change the Operating Regulations from
time to time by sending you written notice 30 days in advance of any change.
However, for security reasons certain changes may become effective immediately. In
the event that you find any such change to the Operating Regulations unacceptable,
you may terminate this Agreement as provided in Section 19 below, while operating
under the prior Operating Regulations during the 30 day notice period. If there
is any conflict or inconsistency between this Agreement and the Operating
Regulations, the terms of this Agreement govern. You agree that you will not
require that any Cardmember must make a minimum dollar payment in order to use the
Card, and you will not limit the maximum amount that a Cardmember may spend when
using the Card. You further agree that you will not institute or adopt any
practice that discriminates or provides unequal treatment for the Card versus any
other credit or charge card.
2. Mail/Telephone Order Card Sales. For each Card sale made by mail or
telephone you shall complete a mutually acceptable sales form on which y. ou shall
record the following:
(a) The date of the Card sale;
(b) A brief description of the purchased goods or services;
(c) The total amount of the Card sale, including any tax;
(d) The Cardmember's Account number;
(e) The expiration date of the Card;
(f) The Authorization number or code; and
(g) Your merchant number.
The Cardmember's signature is not required with respect to mail/telephone
order Card sales, provided that you identify each such Card sale as "Mail Order"
or "Telephone Order". If a Cardmember asserts that he or she has not authorized a
mail/telephone order Card sale or otherwise denies the validity of the Card sale,
such Card sale shall be subject to chargeback pursuant to section 8 below.
3. In-Person Outlet Card Sales. It is anticipated that some of the Card
sales transacted by you will be mail/telephone order Card sales. However, to the
extent you generate Card sales at your office or other sites of operation
("Office"), if any, you shall prepare a Sales Slip using a form supplied by us or
such other form that is mutually acceptable. Each Sales Slip must be legible and
fully completed with the same information required for mail/telephone order Card
sales. Each Sales Slip relating to a Card transaction made at an Office shall be
imprinted to obtain a clear imprint of the Card, provided that in the case of
Sales Slips that are electronically produced by you, and which are identifiable as
electronically produced, you are not required to obtain an imprint of the Card.
You shall include all payments made in a single transaction on one Sales Slip (or
a continuous Sales Slip), except for customer deposits or partial payments. You
may not split a Card sale to avoid obtaining authorization. For your Office Card
sales, if any, the Cardmember or authorized user of the Card must sign the Sales
Slip in your presence and the signature must be reasonably similar to the
signature appearing on the signature panel of the Card.
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4. Authorization. For any individual Card sale at or above the applicable
floor limit specified above, you must obtain our prior authorization to make the
Card sale, provided that you must obtain our prior authorization for all
mail/telephone order Card sales, regardless of the amount of the Card sale. We
will provide you with an authorization code that must be recorded on the sales
slip or supplied with other Sales Data set forth in Section 2. If at the
commencement of this Agreement you regularly receive authorizations by means other
than with an electronic authorization terminal, your floor limit will be the
amount specified above. However, notwithstanding the above floor limit, if at any
time during the term of this Agreement you begin to utilize one or more electronic
authorization terminals to receive authorizations for Card sales, your floor limit
will automatically be reduced to $0, meaning all Card sales must be authorized.
If you accept the Card for a transaction above the applicable floor limit without
receiving our prior authorization, we are not required to pay you for the charge,
and if we have already paid you, we may process a chargeback, as described below.
Even if we give you authorization for a Card transaction, it is not a guaranty
that you will be paid, as there may be other reasons why it can be charged back,
as specified below and in the Operating Regulations. We may change your floor
limit(s) from time to time by sending you written notice of your new floor
limit(s). As explained in the Operating Regulations, you can obtain authorization
from us by telephone or electronic terminal or in such other mutually acceptable
manner, e.g., batch authorization, that we may agree to in writing from time to
time.
When you ask for authorization in connection with a Card sale, we may ask you
to request certain information from a Cardmember for verification purposes. Also,
where applicable, we may request that you take a Card from a Cardmember. If we
do, you agree to follow, to the extent allowed by law, the instructions given by
our authorization center. Except for actions taken by sworn peace officers
engaged in the lawful discharge of their duties, you agree not to use any force or
effort if the Cardmember refuses to give up the Card and not to take any action
that will alarm or embarrass the Cardmember. You agree to advise all your
employees who handle Card transactions of these terms. We will pay you a fee in
an amount specified in the Operating Regulations for each Card you pick up.
5. Cardmember Refunds and Credits. You may establish your own policy
concerning refunds, and you agree to advise Cardmembers in advance of any sale of
this policy, provided that any such policy shall be consistent with applicable
laws and regulations. If you have so notified the Cardmember, and your return
policy complies with applicable law, we will honor your policy. You agree to send
us a copy of each Credit Slip within seven (7) calendar days after you issue it.
6. Settlement of Transactions. You agree to promptly, but at least once
each week, send to us at the address we specify, all Sales Slips and Credit Slips
pertaining to Card transactions generated at your retail outlets, if any. If you
transmit Sales Data by electronic means, you agree to transmit your Sales Data
each business day to the location that we specify. With respect to mail/telephone
order Card sales, you will transmit the required Sales Data to us each business
day electronically or by magnetic tape in our form and format. If you fail to
send us Card transaction data within 60 days of the date of the Card sale, we will
not be required to reimburse you for them.
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You agree to follow the instructions in the Operating Regulations regarding
summary information which must be sent with the transaction data. We will
reimburse you for each Card sale you submit to us which results from a payment
made by a Cardmember to you with the Card, minus the amounts of any Credits you
have issued to Cardmembers or adjustments we make to reconcile or correct errors
in the settlement data. We call this procedure "Settlement". We will use our
best efforts to initiate the appropriate credit to an account that you designate
at a financial institution (called the "Settlement Account") through the Automated
Clearinghouse Network ("ACH Network") within two (2) business days but no later
than five (5) business days after we receive your transaction data in a form and
format acceptable to us. You authorize us to credit the Settlement Account, as
applicable, as specified in this Agreement and in accordance with the rules and
procedures of the applicable clearing house association and settlement
institution(s). This authority remains in effect until five (5) business days
after we receive written notice of your cancellation of such authorization. We
are not liable for any delays in receipt of funds or errors in credit entries
caused by third parties, including, without limitation, a clearing house or your
financial institution or agent. Any settlement debit amount will be invoiced
daily to you. All such invoices shall-be due and payable by you within thirty
(30) days of receipt of same. In the event that such invoice remains unpaid
beyond said thirty (30) day period, you agree to pay us any amounts owed on demand
or we may deduct the balance of the unpaid invoice(s) from subsequent payments
owed by us to you.
You are responsible for reviewing all Settlement amounts you receive to
confirm that the payment you received correctly matches your Sales Data
submissions. If you believe you have received an underpayment, you must notify us
immediately so that we may pay you any additional amounts owed. If you fail to
notify us within 90 days of the date funds have been settled, and we are unable to
recover any misposted funds that should have been paid to you, we will not be
required to pay you the amount of any such funds. If you have received an
overpayment or a payment is mistakenly sent to you, you agree to immediately
notify us and remit the overpayment to us. You may not spend any overpayment, and
if an overpayment is in the Settlement Account, you may not withdraw it.
7. Fees. In consideration of your participation in the Card plan, you
agree to pay us a fee ("Fee"), in the amount specified above that is applicable to
the type of Card transaction that occurred; i.e., mail/telephone order or in-
person. We will calculate the amount of the Fee once each month on or about the
last day of the month for the month having just ended. To collect the Fee, we
will send you an invoice for the amount of the Fee within twenty (20) days of the
last business day of each month. All such invoices shall be due and payable by
you within thirty (30) days of receipt of same. In the event that such invoice
remains unpaid beyond said thirty (30) day period, you agree to pay us any amounts
owed on demand or we may deduct the balance of the unpaid invoice(s) from
subsequent payments owed by us to you. Any amounts owed to us which cannot be
paid by the foregoing means shall be due and payable by you on demand. Upon 30
days prior written notice to you, we may convert the calculation and payment of
your Fee from a monthly to a daily basis if, in our sole judgement, we believe
your financial condition warrants it, or if you have previously failed to satisfy
any obligation to us in a timely manner, as provided herein. In addition to the
above-referenced Fee, you further agree to pay us, on demand, for any application
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charges, set-up fees, fixed monthly fees and per-transaction fees that you have
agreed to pay us, as set forth hereon, and/or as reflected in our records.
8. Char§eback Rights. If you do not follow all the relevant terms of this
Agreement and the Operating Regulations with respect to a Card sale made by you or
if a Card sale which is the subject of a billing dispute is subject to chargeback,
as specified in sections 9 and 10 below, we may refuse to pay you for the Card
sale or disputed portion of it, and if we have already paid you, we will send you
an invoice for the amount(s) in question, said invoice(s) to be due and payable
within thirty (30) days of receipt of same. In the event that such invoice
remains unpaid beyond said thirty (30) day period, you agree to pay us any amounts
owed on demand or we may deduct the balance of the unpaid invoice(s) from
subsequent payments owed by us to you. These returned charges are called
"chargebacks". Any chargebacks that are not paid by the foregoing means shall be
due and payable by you on demand. We will notify you of Card sales that are
subject to chargeback as they arise, but in some instances chargebacks will be
processed prior to notification, as specified in the Operating Regulations. If
chargebacks exceed 2% of the total number of Card sales submitted by you in any
calendar quarter, we reserve the right to charge you, and you agree to pay, a fee
of $5.00 for each chargeback in excess of such 2% limit.
If you and a Cardmember resolve a billing inquiry or dispute on a Card sale
which has been charged back, and the Bank is permitted by law to rebill the
Cardmember for all or a portion of the disputed amount, we will reimburse you for
the charge, or that portion for which the Bank can bill the Cardmember. If due to
federal and/or state consumer laws, the Bank is not able to bill a Cardmember for
a disputed transaction, we will not be required to reimburse you for the charge or
non-billable portion of it, even if you complied with the terms of this Agreement.
9. Billinq Inquiries. From time to time we or the Bank may receive a
request from a Cardmember for information regarding a Card sale transacted by a
Cardmember with you, or a Cardmember may dispute a Card transaction. If we notify
you of such an inquiry, you agree to provide us with the information we request
within fifteen (15) business days of our request. In some cases we will require a
copy of the Sales Slip, mail/telephone order form, Credit Slip, or other related
document(s) and in others we will also need a written explanation from you
concerning the inquiry. If you do not respond to our inquiry within the fifteen
(15) business days specified above, we may charge back the transaction in
question, as described above.
10. Cardmember Disputes. You agree to cooperate in attempts to resolve
disputes with Cardmembers. If the Cardmember refuses to pay the Bank for charges
made due to a billing error alleged by the Cardmember, we may process a chargeback
for the charge or the disputed portion of it. If we or the Bank are involved in a
lawsuit with a Cardmember relating to a Card transaction made at your
establishment, you agree to cooperate with us or the Bank and provide us or it
with all assistance we or it may reasonably require.
11. Retention of Records. You agree to keep an original copy of each Sales
Slip, mail/telephone order form, Credit Slip and other related document(s), for no
less than 210 days from the transaction date and a legible copy, e.g. microfilm or
microfiche, for no less than 3 years from the transaction date. You agree to
-5-
provide us with a copy of any Sales Slip, mail/telephone order form or Credit Slip
within fifteen (15) business days of our request.
12. Payments by Cardmembers. The Bank or its designated agent has the sole
right to receive payment from Cardmembers for Card sales transacted with you. If
you receive a payment from a Cardmember you agree to immediately forward it to us
and we will send it to the Bank.
13. Confidentiality. In order to protect the confidentiality of
Cardmembers and of our confidential and proprietary information, you agree (i)
that the names, addresses and Card Account numbers of Cardmembers are our property
and that you will use such Cardmember names, addresses, and Card Account numbers
only in connection with your rights and responsibilities under this Agreement,
(ii) that you will not sell, distribute or otherwise disseminate a list of
Cardmembers, Cardmember Account numbers or Merchant Account numbers to any third
party, except to effectuate the terms of this Agreement, without our prior written
consent and (iii) not to disclose to third parties confidential or proprietary
information pertaining to the Card, the Card plan or programs associated with the
Card that we provide to you. We understand and agree that you will act in
accordance with the terms of this section only to the extent that this section is
not in conflict with the Open Records Act, Tex. Gov't. Code Ann., Ch. 552 (Vernon
1994). The terms of this section will survive termination of this Agreement.
14. Advertisinq of the Card. We will supply you with advertising and
display materials concerning the Card and other programs associated with it which
you agree to visibly display in your Office. You agree to follow the procedures
we specify in the Operating Regulations concerning the use of our servicemarks
"NOVUS" and "Discover" and such other servicemarks as may be associated with the
Card plan in accordance with specifications provided by us from time to time. If
this Agreement is terminated, you will immediately cease using our advertising
materials and upon our request, you agree to return these materials to us. You
agree that we may use your name in connection with our marketing of the Card to
consumers and merchants. You agree that you will treat us in an equitable manner
with respect to the way in which you advertise or promote any other charge card
that you accept at your locations.
15. Supplies. As specified in the Operating Regulations, we will provide
you with certain supplies that are necessary for you to accept the Card and
process Card transactions. We will replenish these supplies from time to time
upon request. You may call us for additional supplies at the number listed in the
Operating Regulations.
16. Third Party Processors. The use of any third party processor is
subject to our approval, which we will not unreasonably withhold. You agree to be
liable for the actions of and all charges imposed by any third party processor
which you use to perform your obligations under this Agreement. If at any time
during the term of this Agreement you elect to begin utilizing a third party
processor, or to change from an existing third party processor to a different
third party processor, to process any of your required activities under this
Agreement, and such processor assesses or increases transaction fees to us, we
may, at our option, adjust your Fee an appropriate amount to compensate us for our
expense, or invoice you directly, for the total amount of such transaction fees.
-6-
17. Assignment. You cannot assign or transfer this Agreement to any other
party without our prior written approval. If you sell all or a substantial part
of your business, materially change the nature of your business, or by any means
cause or permit a new entity to own a substantial part of your business, you agree
to notify us in advance and we may terminate this Agreement as provided below. We
can assign this Agreement and our rights and obligations under it, in whole or in
part, to any company which is a direct or indirect parent, subsidiary or affiliate
of ours. We will notify you of any such assignment.
18. Changing This Agreement. Except as otherwise provided herein, this
Agreement may be amended or supplemented only if evidenced in a writing signed by
both parties.
19. Term and Termination. This Agreement will become effective when it is
signed by each of us and approved at our home office. It remains in full force
and effect until terminated as provided in this paragraph. Either party may
terminate this Agreement at any time by giving the other thirty (30) days prior
written notice. We may terminate this Agreement without such notice if you have
materially breached this Agreement or, if in our sole discretion, Card sales
transacted by you are irregular, you have had, or, in our opinion, you may have,
an unusual or inappropriate number of Cardmember inquiries, credit requests or
chargebacks during a relevant period, we have security concerns regarding your
Card sales, or your financial condition or other conditions or security concerns
warrant earlier termination. You agree to accept the Card and follow the terms of
this Agreement until the termination becomes effective. The provisions governing
processing of Sales Slips, mail/telephone order forms and Credit Slips and
Settlement will continue to apply even after the termination, until all Card
transactions made prior to the termination are settled or resolved. Upon
termination you agree to immediately send us all previously unsubmitted Sales
Slips, mail/telephone order forms and Credit Slips for Card sales made up to the
date of termination. We are not liable to you for any direct or consequential
damages you may suffer as a result of our termination of this Agreement.
20. Financial Information. From time to time we may request information
concerning Card sales transacted by Cardmembers with you. Upon reasonable notice,
you agree to supply us with this information, to the extent allowed by Texas law.
21. Factoring. You may only submit Sales Data regarding Card sales that
are made by you and that occur at one of your Office locations or by
mail/telephone. A submission of Sales Data by you regarding a Card sale made by
any other person or business not covered under this Agreement, whether or not that
other person or business has a separate agreement with us, is called "factoring",
is strictly prohibited hereunder and constitutes a material breach of this
Agreement for which we may terminate this Agreement immediately without notice.
Any Card sales that in our judgment have been factored are, in our sole
discretion, subject to chargeback.
22. Type of Business. You understand that we have considered your
application to become a Card merchant and proposed the terms of this Agreement
based upon the information you provided in your application for the types and
kinds of business you listed on your application. In the event you are presently
engaging in, or in the future elect to engage in, any new lines or types of
-7--
business activities not disclosed on your application, or you materially change
your business activities, you agree to immediately inform us of this. If you fail
to so notify us, we may terminate this Agreement and/or reject or Chargeback any
Card sales related to a new business activity about which we have not been
notified. You understand that there are some types of business activities that we
have determined we will not accept as merchants, and that acceptable merchant
businesses may have different merchant fees, depending upon the nature of their
business activities. You agree that we may charge you a different Fee for any
Card sale that we elect to accept that is related to any of your new business
activities.
23. Performance of Duties. Neither party shall be liable for its failure
to perform under this Agreement if such failure arises out of causes beyond the
control and without the fault or negligence of such party. Such causes may
include but are not limited to acts of God, fires, wars, or strikes.
24. Governinq Law; Miscellaneous. This Agreement shall be binding upon and
inure to the benefit of the parties and their respective successors and assigns.
This Agreement is governed by the laws of the State of Texas. If any part of this
Agreement is not enforceable the remaining provisions still remain valid and
enforceable. We have not waived any of our rights under this Agreement unless we
agree in writing to do so. Each party agrees to comply with all applicable laws
and regulations in connection with this Agreement.
25. Notice. Any written notices required to be given under this Agreement
shall be given or made (i) by personal delivery or (ii) by depositing such notice
in the United States mail, postage prepaid, addressed to you at the address listed
above and to us at:
Discover Card Services, Inc.
2500 Lake Cook Road
Riverwoods, Illinois 60015
Attn: Vice President - Merchant Operations
Either party may change the address to which notice to it shall be sent by
giving written notice of such change to the other party in the manner provided in
this Agreement.
26. Captions. The captions used in this Agreement are for reference only
and will not be interpreted to limit or define the text of this Agreement.
CITY OF DENTOJC/~TEXAS // /~/ DISCO~R~CARD SERVICES, INC.
Title: i
Date: Date:''---j/--~ ~t~ Iq~
s:\dahm3395\jvzagrmt\denton
-8-
ORDINANCE NO.
AN ORDINANCE OF THE CITY OF DENTON, TEXAS AMENDING THE SCHEDULE OF
MISCELLANEOUS FEES, DEPOSITS, BILLINGS AND PROCEDURES FOR PROVIDING
ADMINISTRATIVE SERVICES TO CITY CUSTOMERS AND TAXPAYERS CONTAINED
IN ORDINANCE NO. 93-164; AMENDING THE DELINQUENT SERVICE FEE FOR
RECONNECTION OF SERVICE AFTER HOURS; AMENDING THE CREDIT CARD
SERVICE FEE; AMENDING THE CREDIT CARD SERVICE FEE PROVISIONS
CONTAINED IN ORDINANCE N(!~/~ROVIDING FOR A REPEALER; PROVIDING
FOR A SEVERABILITY CLAUSE; ANDTR~OVIDING FOR AN EFFECTIVE DATE.
THE COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF DENTON HEREBY ORDAINS:
SECTION I: That the schedule of fees and charges for general utility services as
generally provided for in Chapter 26 of the Code of Ordinances; and for services to other City of
Denton customers and taxpayers, are hereby established as follows:
SERVICE CHARGES AND PROCEDURES SCHEDULES
PAGE
A. ACCOUNT CONNECTION AND RECONNECTION FEES
Electric Meter Installation Fee 2
Meter Connection Fee 2
Delinquent Service Fee 2
B. METER READING AND TEST FEES 3
C. MISCELLANEOUS FEES, CHARGES AND DEPOSITS
Insufficient Fund Check Handling Charge 4
Service Deposits 4
Interest Earned on Contract Retainage 5
Credit Card Service Fee 5
ACCOUNT CONNECTION AND RECONNECTION FEES
(Effective 10/01/98)
ELECTRIC METER INSTALLATION FEE
APPLICATION
Applicable when a customer requests electric service on a first time basis where no permanent
service previously existed and where a new account number is established.
FEE
First Service Requested $20.00
First Service Requested, after $30.00
business hours
METER CONNECTION FEE
APPLICATION
Applicable when a customer requests service at an address which has existing or previous
service, with an existing account number and history.
FEE
First Service Requested $10.00
First Service Requested, after $30.00 -
business hours
DELINQUENT SERVICE FEE
APPLICATION
Applicable when a customer's account is processed for disconnection due to nonpayment.
FEE
Delinquent Service Fee $20.00
Delinquent Service Fee $50.00
and reconnection after
business hours
Page 2
METER READING AND TEST FEES
(Effective 10/01/98)
Meter Reading
APPLICATION
Applicable to any customer who requests a reading of a city meter due to a contested billing
more than twice in the previous 12 months and no error is found.
FEE
Per Additional Reading $20.00
Meter Testing
APPLICATION
Applicable to any customer who requests the testing of a city meter previously tested within the
past four years and the meter is found to be within accuracy standards.
FEE
Per Test $25.00/KWH Electric Meter
$35.00/KW & KWH Electric Meter
ACCURACY STANDARDS
A meter is defined as within accuracy standards when found to be in error plus or minus two
percent (2%) or less.
P~e3
MISCELLANEOUS FEES, CHARGES, AND DEPOSITS
(Effective 10/01/98)
INSUFFICIENT FUND CHECK HANDLING CHARGE
APPLICATION
Applicable when a customer's or taxpayer's check for payment of fees, fines, court costs, taxes,
utilities, or other charges has been dishonored by the maker's bank and returned to the City of
Denton.
FEE
Per Check $15.00
SERVICE DEPOSITS
APPLICATION
Applicable when a customer requests utility service for the first time in the Denton service area
and does not have 12 months of good credit standing with Denton or another utility system for
the type of service requested, or does not have a co-signer with 12 months of good credit
standing with Denton or another electric utility system.
FEE
Residential Customer $150.00 or an amount equal to 1/6 of the last
12 months of billing at the service location.
If utility service is disconnected for non-
payment, then the customer will be required
to pay a deposit sum equal to 1/6 of the last
12 months of billing.
Commercial Customer $300.00 or an amount equal to 1/6 of the last
12 months of billing at the service location,
whichever is greater.
Deposits will earn interest for the customer. The rate of interest will be adjusted semi-annually
to equal the interest rate of a one year United States Treasury Note on October 1 and April 1 of
each year. If refund of deposit is made within thirty (30) days of receipt of deposit, no interest
payment will be made. If the City retains the deposit more than thirty (30) days, payment of
interest shall be made retroactive to the date the deposit was paid.
A. Payment of the interest to the customer shall be made at the time the deposit is returned
or credited to the customer's account.
B. The deposit shall cease to earn interest on the date it is returned or credited to the
customer's account.
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CONTRACT RETAINAGE
Contract retainage will earn interest for the contractor as provided by TEX. REV. CIV. STAT.
ANN. Article 6252, Sec.5b (Vernon Supp. 1992). The rate of interest will be adjusted semi-
annually to equal the interest rate of a one year United States Treasury Note on October I and
April 1 of each year. Payment of the interest shall be made at the time the retainage is paid to the
contractor.
CREDIT CARD SERVICE FEE
APPLICATION
Applicable when payment for fees, fines, court costs, taxes, utilities or other charges are made
with a "Discover" credit card.
RATE/SERVICE CHARGE
Payment Amount Service Charge
$ .01-20.00 $ .05
$ 20.01-200.00 $ 1.00
$ 200.01-500.00 $ 3.00
$500.01-800.00 $ 5.00
$800.01-and up $ 7.00
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SECTION II: That all ordinances or parts of ordinances in force when the provisions of
this ordinance became effective which are inconsistent, or in conflict with the terms or
provisions contained in this ordinance are hereby repealed to the extent of any such conflict.
SECTION III: That if any section, subsection, paragraph, sentence, clause, phrase or
word in this ordinance, or application thereof to any person or circumstances is held invalid by
any court of competent jurisdiction, such holding shall not affect the validity of the remaining
portions of this ordinance, and the City Council of the City of Denton, Texas, hereby declares it
would have enacted such remaining portions despite any such invalidity.
SECTION IV: That this ordinance shall become effective, charged, and applied to all
services occurring on or after October 1, 1998; and a copy of said fees and charges shall be
maintained on file in the office of the City Secretary.
PASSED AND APPROVED this the (~' day of ~~~~t , 1998.
JACK~
ATTEST:
JENNIFER WALTERS, CITY SECRETARY
/ } ~
APPROVED AS TO LEGAL FORM:
HERBERT L. PROUTY, CITY ATTORNEY
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