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The Phase II requirements are unfunded federal mandates, and most local jurisdictions have had to levy a fee to comply with those requirements and perform storm water projects.
These service fees are not considered taxes in the eyes of the law and therefore are not voted on by the area residents.
In 2005 the District appointed an advisory group composed of area residents and non-residential representatives to study the needs of the Township and determine how quickly projects should be done. This group recommended a fairly aggressive capital improvement program. They determined a five year budget which was then divided by the number of ERUs in the Township to determine a monthly user fee.
The District has studied these recommendations, evaluated proposed projects, and met with Deerfield Township to determine what projects the Township is planning to address. With this information in mind, the District Board voted on August 8, 2006 to adopt a storm water fee of $1.92 per month per ERU. To see a breakdown of the storm water program and funding, click here.
The fee began appearing on the Warren County Water and Sewer bills in November, 2006. Those people who do not receive their water through Warren County, will receive a "storm water only" bill once per year for the annual amount, usually in February, from Warren County Water and Sewer.
Additional projects are being brought to the District's attention. The District anticipates that it will take well beyond the five years already budgeted to complete them all. Also, the federal mandates will remain ongoing for an unspecified period of time.
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What is an ERU?
Fees will be determined by the amount of impervious surface (rooftops, driveways, sidewalks, parking lots) on each property.
- A sampling of township residential property was measured for impervious surface which was then averaged. This average came to 3,407 square feet and is considered one ERU (Equivalent Residential Unit).
- Each residential property owner pays a flat fee based on one ERU per property.
- Non-residential property owners pay a higher fee based on their amount of impervious surface divided by the average residential surface area. Thus a non-residential property could contain only one ERU or many ERUs. The number of ERUs is multiplied by the residential fee to determine that property's overall fee.
- Non-residential properties include, but are not limited to, commercial centers, industrial complexes, religious buildings such as churches and temples, schools, and government offices.
- Fees determined in this manner have been upheld by the courts as a fair and equitable way to pay for storm water improvements.
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