Re: [Oama] Water Bills - Property Owners
No, as far as I know the property owner isn’t required to sign an agreement when the tenant signs up for water service.
The language of the ordinance is very clear, though.
Thank you,
Kim Spady
From: Michael Warwick warwickmp@aol.com
Sent: Monday, April 06, 2020 9:35 AM
To: Kim@spadylaw.com
Subject: Re: [Oama] Water Bills - Property Owners
Do you require a non occupying owner to sign the application for service?
MIKE WARWICK OBA #9377
MICHAEL P WARWICK INC.
400 N BROADWAY, PO BOX 1211
405-273-1554 (O) 405-395-4650 (F)
This communication, and any documents attached thereto, are covered by the Electronics Communications Privacy Act, and are protected by the Attorney/Client and/or Attorney Work Product Privilege. This communication is intended only for the use of the intended recipient. If you are not the intended recipient,you are hereby notified that any reading, disclosure, copying, distribution, or action regarding the communication is prohibited. If you have received this communication in error, please notify the sender and delete the communication and attached documents, if any.
-----Original Message-----
From: Kimberlee Spady <Kim@spadylaw.com mailto:Kim@spadylaw.com >
To: oama <oama@lists.imla.org mailto:oama@lists.imla.org >
Sent: Fri, Apr 3, 2020 12:40 pm
Subject: [Oama] Water Bills - Property Owners
Municipality’s ordinance provides that the property owner is jointly & severally liable with any tenant or occupier of property for the payment of all water and sewer charges. The town has never sued the property owner for unpaid water/sewer bills (as far as I know) but the water will not be restored to the property until all past-due accounts are brought current.
Do you see any issue with this?
Thanks
Kim Spady
--
Oama mailing list
Oama@lists.imla.org mailto:Oama@lists.imla.org
http://lists.imla.org/mailman/listinfo/oama_lists.imla.org
We have implemented a system in one of the towns I represent. The
application requires both the tenant AND landlord to sign up for services.
Based upon my research into this issue, I believe you have to have a
contractual relationship with the landlord to require the landlord to be
responsible for the tenant's unpaid utilities.
On Mon, Apr 6, 2020 at 3:55 PM Kimberlee Spady Kim@spadylaw.com wrote:
No, as far as I know the property owner isn’t required to sign an
agreement when the tenant signs up for water service.
The language of the ordinance is very clear, though.
Thank you,
Kim Spady
From: Michael Warwick warwickmp@aol.com
Sent: Monday, April 06, 2020 9:35 AM
To: Kim@spadylaw.com
Subject: Re: [Oama] Water Bills - Property Owners
Do you require a non occupying owner to sign the application for service?
MIKE WARWICK OBA #9377
MICHAEL P WARWICK INC.
400 N BROADWAY, PO BOX 1211
405-273-1554 (O) 405-395-4650 (F)
This communication, and any documents attached thereto, are covered by the
Electronics Communications Privacy Act, and are protected by the
Attorney/Client and/or Attorney Work Product Privilege. This communication
is intended only for the use of the intended recipient. If you are not the
intended recipient,you are hereby notified that any reading, disclosure,
copying, distribution, or action regarding the communication is prohibited.
If you have received this communication in error, please notify the sender
and delete the communication and attached documents, if any.
-----Original Message-----
From: Kimberlee Spady Kim@spadylaw.com
To: oama oama@lists.imla.org
Sent: Fri, Apr 3, 2020 12:40 pm
Subject: [Oama] Water Bills - Property Owners
Municipality’s ordinance provides that the property owner is jointly &
severally liable with any tenant or occupier of property for the payment of
all water and sewer charges. The town has never sued the property owner
for unpaid water/sewer bills (as far as I know) but the water will not be
restored to the property until all past-due accounts are brought current.
Do you see any issue with this?
Thanks
Kim Spady
--
Oama mailing list
Oama@lists.imla.org
http://lists.imla.org/mailman/listinfo/oama_lists.imla.org
Oama mailing list
Oama@lists.imla.org
http://lists.imla.org/mailman/listinfo/oama_lists.imla.org
--
Corry S. Kendall
Attorney at Law
216 W. Commerce
Altus, OK 73521
corry.kendall@swoklaw.com
Phone: (580) 482-3355
Fax: (580) 954-0060
www.swoklaw.com
Please note the new email address: corry.kendall@swoklaw.com
corry.kendall@swoklaw.com
Thanks, Corry. Any chance you could share that research?
Kim
From: Corry Kendall corry.kendall@swoklaw.com
Sent: Monday, April 06, 2020 5:47 PM
To: Kimberlee Spady Kim@spadylaw.com
Cc: Michael Warwick warwickmp@aol.com; OAMA luistserv (OAMA@lists.imla.org) oama@lists.imla.org
Subject: Re: [Oama] Water Bills - Property Owners
We have implemented a system in one of the towns I represent. The application requires both the tenant AND landlord to sign up for services. Based upon my research into this issue, I believe you have to have a contractual relationship with the landlord to require the landlord to be responsible for the tenant's unpaid utilities.
On Mon, Apr 6, 2020 at 3:55 PM Kimberlee Spady <Kim@spadylaw.com mailto:Kim@spadylaw.com > wrote:
No, as far as I know the property owner isn’t required to sign an agreement when the tenant signs up for water service.
The language of the ordinance is very clear, though.
Thank you,
Kim Spady
From: Michael Warwick <warwickmp@aol.com mailto:warwickmp@aol.com >
Sent: Monday, April 06, 2020 9:35 AM
To: Kim@spadylaw.com mailto:Kim@spadylaw.com
Subject: Re: [Oama] Water Bills - Property Owners
Do you require a non occupying owner to sign the application for service?
MIKE WARWICK OBA #9377
MICHAEL P WARWICK INC.
400 N BROADWAY, PO BOX 1211
405-273-1554 (O) 405-395-4650 (F)
This communication, and any documents attached thereto, are covered by the Electronics Communications Privacy Act, and are protected by the Attorney/Client and/or Attorney Work Product Privilege. This communication is intended only for the use of the intended recipient. If you are not the intended recipient,you are hereby notified that any reading, disclosure, copying, distribution, or action regarding the communication is prohibited. If you have received this communication in error, please notify the sender and delete the communication and attached documents, if any.
-----Original Message-----
From: Kimberlee Spady <Kim@spadylaw.com mailto:Kim@spadylaw.com >
To: oama <oama@lists.imla.org mailto:oama@lists.imla.org >
Sent: Fri, Apr 3, 2020 12:40 pm
Subject: [Oama] Water Bills - Property Owners
Municipality’s ordinance provides that the property owner is jointly & severally liable with any tenant or occupier of property for the payment of all water and sewer charges. The town has never sued the property owner for unpaid water/sewer bills (as far as I know) but the water will not be restored to the property until all past-due accounts are brought current.
Do you see any issue with this?
Thanks
Kim Spady
--
Oama mailing list
Oama@lists.imla.org mailto:Oama@lists.imla.org
http://lists.imla.org/mailman/listinfo/oama_lists.imla.org
--
Oama mailing list
Oama@lists.imla.org mailto:Oama@lists.imla.org
http://lists.imla.org/mailman/listinfo/oama_lists.imla.org
--
Corry S. Kendall
Attorney at Law
216 W. Commerce
Altus, OK 73521
mailto:corry.kendall@swoklaw.com corry.kendall@swoklaw.com
Phone: (580) 482-3355
Fax: (580) 954-0060
www.swoklaw.com http://www.swoklaw.com
***Please note the new email address: corry.kendall@swoklaw.com mailto:corry.kendall@swoklaw.com ***
Here are a sampling of some cases on the issue. As to a requirement that a city can require owners to sign up for utilities not tenants see the last case from the 2nd circuit in this list.
Overview: A city's policy of denying water service to tenants whose predecessors left delinquent water accounts divided tenants in an irrational manner because it denied water service only to those tenants whose predecessors or landlords failed to pay the water bills; as the policy was not rational, an equal protection challenge survived summary judgment.
Golden v. City of Columbus
United States Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit Apr 18, 2005 404 F.3d 950
Overview: A property owner was awarded mandamus relief to compel a city to furnish water to its dwellings. The city could not refuse under § 916A, Revised Ordinances of Logan City, Utah, 1927, because that ordinance violated §§ 15-7-10, 11, R. S. U. 1933 (Utah). The city could not force the owner to pay for the delinquencies of past tenants.
Home Owners' Loan Corp. v. Logan City
Supreme Court of Utah Jul 06, 1939 97 Utah 235
Overview: Municipal water provider could not impose liability on property owner for the unpaid water bill of a tenant in the absence of a lien or a statute that authorized third party liability for the tenant's obligation.
Etheredge v. Norfolk
Supreme Court of Virginia Sep 29, 1927 148 Va. 795
Overview: A city's refusal to furnish water to a new tenant because the previous tenant had not paid a water bill was not rationally related to the city's purpose of collecting debts and was invalid on equal protection grounds.
O'Neal v. City of Seattle
United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit Sep 25, 1995 66 F.3d 1064
Overview: Defendants were properly granted judgment on pleadings on tenant's claim that city's policy of denying tenants opportunity to open water accounts in their own name violated equal protection because city offered sufficient reasons for its policy of refusing to allow tenants to open their own water accounts, and thus satisfied rational basis test.
Winston v. City of Syracuse
United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit Apr 11, 2018 887 F.3d 553 distinguished by: HARR, LLC v. Town of Northfield, 2019 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 190408
From: Oama oama-bounces@lists.imla.org On Behalf Of Kimberlee Spady
Sent: Monday, April 6, 2020 6:55 PM
To: 'Corry Kendall' corry.kendall@swoklaw.com
Cc: 'OAMA luistserv' oama@lists.imla.org
Subject: Re: [Oama] Water Bills - Property Owners
Thanks, Corry. Any chance you could share that research?
Kim
From: Corry Kendall <corry.kendall@swoklaw.commailto:corry.kendall@swoklaw.com>
Sent: Monday, April 06, 2020 5:47 PM
To: Kimberlee Spady <Kim@spadylaw.commailto:Kim@spadylaw.com>
Cc: Michael Warwick <warwickmp@aol.commailto:warwickmp@aol.com>; OAMA luistserv (OAMA@lists.imla.orgmailto:OAMA@lists.imla.org) <oama@lists.imla.orgmailto:oama@lists.imla.org>
Subject: Re: [Oama] Water Bills - Property Owners
We have implemented a system in one of the towns I represent. The application requires both the tenant AND landlord to sign up for services. Based upon my research into this issue, I believe you have to have a contractual relationship with the landlord to require the landlord to be responsible for the tenant's unpaid utilities.
On Mon, Apr 6, 2020 at 3:55 PM Kimberlee Spady <Kim@spadylaw.commailto:Kim@spadylaw.com> wrote:
No, as far as I know the property owner isn’t required to sign an agreement when the tenant signs up for water service.
The language of the ordinance is very clear, though.
Thank you,
Kim Spady
From: Michael Warwick <warwickmp@aol.commailto:warwickmp@aol.com>
Sent: Monday, April 06, 2020 9:35 AM
To: Kim@spadylaw.commailto:Kim@spadylaw.com
Subject: Re: [Oama] Water Bills - Property Owners
Do you require a non occupying owner to sign the application for service?
MIKE WARWICK OBA #9377
MICHAEL P WARWICK INC.
400 N BROADWAY, PO BOX 1211
405-273-1554 (O) 405-395-4650 (F)
This communication, and any documents attached thereto, are covered by the Electronics Communications Privacy Act, and are protected by the Attorney/Client and/or Attorney Work Product Privilege. This communication is intended only for the use of the intended recipient. If you are not the intended recipient,you are hereby notified that any reading, disclosure, copying, distribution, or action regarding the communication is prohibited. If you have received this communication in error, please notify the sender and delete the communication and attached documents, if any.
-----Original Message-----
From: Kimberlee Spady <Kim@spadylaw.commailto:Kim@spadylaw.com>
To: oama <oama@lists.imla.orgmailto:oama@lists.imla.org>
Sent: Fri, Apr 3, 2020 12:40 pm
Subject: [Oama] Water Bills - Property Owners
Municipality’s ordinance provides that the property owner is jointly & severally liable with any tenant or occupier of property for the payment of all water and sewer charges. The town has never sued the property owner for unpaid water/sewer bills (as far as I know) but the water will not be restored to the property until all past-due accounts are brought current.
Do you see any issue with this?
Thanks
Kim Spady
--
Oama mailing list
Oama@lists.imla.orgmailto:Oama@lists.imla.org
http://lists.imla.org/mailman/listinfo/oama_lists.imla.org
Oama mailing list
Oama@lists.imla.orgmailto:Oama@lists.imla.org
http://lists.imla.org/mailman/listinfo/oama_lists.imla.org
--
Corry S. Kendall
Attorney at Law
216 W. Commerce
Altus, OK 73521
corry.kendall@swoklaw.commailto:corry.kendall@swoklaw.com
Phone: (580) 482-3355
Fax: (580) 954-0060
www.swoklaw.comhttp://www.swoklaw.com
Please note the new email address: corry.kendall@swoklaw.commailto:corry.kendall@swoklaw.com