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FAQs
- CATEGORIES
-
- General
Questions
- Residential
/ Agricultural / Vacant
- Non-residential
- Non-Profits
- Use
of Funds & Results
- Environmental
General
Questions
Q: What
is a Storm Water District?
A: In January 2003,
Butler County, Ohio formed a Storm Water District for the purpose
of complying with new unfunded EPA water quality guidelines that
went into effect in March 2003. Many of the jurisdictions within
the County and many thousands across the country are required
to comply with these guidelines. Just as residents and businesses
currently pay a fee for the amount of water they use, and the
amount of wastewater they discharge (sanitary sewer bill), certain
property owners in Butler County will be charged a user fee based
on the amount of contribution they make to storm water runoff.
That funding will be used for the complying with the new unfunded
EPA water quality guidelines.
Q: Which
communities are included in the Storm Water District?
A: Currently, the following
communities have joined the Butler County Storm Water District:
Fairfield
Township;
Hanover Township;
Lemon Township;
Liberty Township;
Madison Township;
Ross Township;
St. Clair Township;
Wayne Township;
West Chester Township;
City of Trenton;
Village of New Miami;
Village of Seven Mile.
Q: Why
does Butler County need a Storm Water District?
A: Butler County has
no dedicated funding source for managing storm water runoff and
the related water quality issues. The current budget only allows
for emergency repairs. It does not provide funding for implementing
and enforcing new unfunded EPA water quality guidelines.
A comprehensive
program is needed to: 1) Improve the water quality of local rivers
and streams, and 2) Ensure that the county is in compliance with
the tough, new regulations required by the U.S. EPA.
Q: Isn't
flooding in Butler County just a problem in certain areas of
the County?
A: The fee you are required
to pay only covers the cost of complying with the new unfunded
EPA water quality guidelines. Flooding and drainage issues will
not be addressed under the current operating plan. A plan that
addresses flooding and drainage issues would be much more expensive
to implement, and would result in a higher annual cost to property
owners. If you want the Storm Water District to consider flooding
and drainage related issues for your community, you need to contact
your elected officials and convey that message to them.
Q: What
is hard surface or impervious area?
A: Hard surfaces, also
known as impervious areas, are any surfaces that do not allow
for rainwater to penetrate or be absorbed into the ground, such
as a rooftop, driveway, parking lot, or gravel surface.
Q: What
is an ERU?
A: ERU stands for Equivalent
Residential Unit. The ERU was determined by measuring the impervious
area for a representative random sample of single-family residential
properties located within Butler County. We used aerial photography
and Geographic Information System (GIS) data provided by the
Butler County Auditor's Office, along with a computer mapping
software program. The average impervious area for those measured
single-family residential properties was 4,000 square feet.
Q: How
did you measure my property?
A: We used aerial photography
and Geographic Information System (GIS) data provided by the
Butler County Auditor's office, along with a computer mapping
software program.
Q: When
will we begin paying?
A: Storm Water District
fees will first appear on the January 2004 county property tax
bills distributed by the County Auditor's Office. The charges
will appear on the property tax bill as "NPDES Phase II,"
which stands for National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System.
This is the acronym and title used by the EPA for their new unfunded
water quality guidelines.
Q: Will
I get a separate bill for storm water fees or charges?
A: No, the storm water
fee will be a new line item on the property tax bill that you
currently receive semi-annually from the Butler County Auditor's
Office. The charges will appear on the property tax bill as "NPDES
Phase II," which stands for National Pollutant Discharge
Elimination System. This is the acronym and title used by the
EPA for their new unfunded water quality guidelines.
Q: Will
tax-exempt, non-profit organizations like schools, churches and
hospitals be charged this fee?
A: Yes. Much like these
organizations now pay for water and sanitary sewer services,
they will pay a user fee based on their contribution to the storm
water system. No one will be exempted from the program.
Q: Why
can't we just use county funds to cover the costs?
A: The County's current
budget is already strained and has been threatened with cutbacks
from the State of Ohio. There just isn't any room in the current
budget to pay the costs of complying with the unfunded EPA water
quality guidelines.
Residential
/ Agricultural / Vacant (Undeveloped)
Q: How
much will storm water fees cost?
A: All owners of single-family
residential, agricultural or vacant and undeveloped properties
will be charged a semi-annual rate of $6.50, or $13.00 per year.
That rate is based on an average amount of "hard surface
areas" such as driveways and roofs, found on residential
properties in Butler County. The average residential property
in the County contains around 4,000 square feet of hard or "impervious"
surface area.
Q: What
is impervious area?
A: Impervious area is
any hard surface such as a rooftop, driveway, parking lot, or
gravel surface that does not allow for rainwater to penetrate
it or be absorbed into the ground.
Q: What
is an ERU?
A: ERU stands for Equivalent
Residential Unit. The ERU was determined by measuring the impervious
area for a representative random sample of single-family residential
properties located within Butler County. We used aerial photography
and a Geographic Information System (GIS) computer software program
for that purpose. The average impervious area for those measured
single-family residential properties was 4,000 square feet.
Q: I live
in an apartment. Will I have to pay?
A: No, unless you are
the owner of the property. The Storm Water District charges will
only be billed to the property owner. The property owner may
however pass part of that cost along to you depending on the
terms of your rental or lease agreement.
Q: When
will rates go up?
A: The semi-annual rate
of $6.50 per ERU is based on a five-year operating plan. It is
expected that the rate will be reviewed in five years. However,
some communities may petition the District to begin addressing
flooding and drainage issues within their community. If so, the
rate of charge may increase during the next five years.
Q: What
about the charge for my farm? Am I going to have to pay for all
of my acreage?
A: The Storm Water
Advisory Committee recommended and the County Commissioners agreed
that agricultural activities should be charged the same rate
as a single-family residential property, or one ERU per month.
Q: I have
a vacant lot that does not contain any impervious area. Why am
I being billed?
A: The Storm Water
Advisory Committee agreed that every parcel in the Storm Water
District should be charged at least a minimum charge of one ERU
per month since all properties contribute to water pollution,
even if there are no structures or hard surfaces.
Non-Residential
Q: What
is impervious area?
A: Impervious area
is any hard surface such as a rooftop, driveway, parking lot,
or gravel surface that does not allow for rainwater to penetrate
it or be absorbed into the ground.
Q: What
is an ERU?
A: ERU stands for Equivalent
Residential Unit. The ERU was determined by measuring the impervious
area for a representative random sample of single-family residential
properties located within Butler County. We used aerial photography
and a Geographic Information System (GIS) computer software program
for that purpose. The average impervious area for those measured
single-family residential properties was 4,000 square feet.
Q: How
much will non-residential property owners pay? How was their
rate of charge determined?
A: Non-residential
property owners will also be asked to pay based on the amount
of hard surface area on their properties. The impervious area
for each non-residential property in the District was measured
using information from the Butler County Auditor's Office.
The residential
rate is used in the calculation for non-residential properties.
In the calculation, the flat residential rate equals one "equivalent
residential unit" or ERU. One ERU = 4,000 square feet of
hard surface area.
Non-residential
property owners are charged based on the number of ERUs of hard
surface on their property. For example, if a commercial property
has three times as much hard surface area as the average residence
(12,000 sq. feet or 3 ERUs), its storm water charge would be
three times the residential rate per year, or three times $13.00
($39.00).
Q: How
do I know that you measured my property correctly?
A: The data that we
received from the Butler County Auditor's Office is quite accurate.
Extreme care was used in measuring each non-residential property
within the District. However, if you believe that an error was
made in your measurement, we can review the measurement data
for your property. We will contact you after we review the data
and advise you if any adjustment was made.
If after
the Storm Water District has reviewed your measurement data you
still believe that we made an error in calculating the impervious
surface for your property, please provide us with a written explanation
and include any documentation to support your claim. If possible,
please include a site plan with buildings, parking lot, roadways,
and sidewalks shown. We will review the measurement information
for your property again and make any adjustments if we agree
with your documentation. If after reviewing your documentation
we determine that the measurement was made correctly, we can
schedule an appointment for you to come into our office and review
the measurement information with us. Please send your letter
and any documentation you have to support your claim to:
- Butler County
Storm Water District
- Attn: Bob
Lentz
- 1921 Fairgrove
Ave.
- Hamilton,
Ohio 45011-1965
Please include
your name, address, telephone number, and best time to contact
you.
Q: Why
is the amount of hard surface area used to calculate the rates?
A: Hard surface areas
are used because they prevent water from being absorbed into
the ground. Hard surfaces create more runoff and increase the
rate at which storm water drains from an area.
Q: What
has impervious area got to do with water quality?
A: Historically, impervious
area has been the primary method used in computing storm water
charges nationwide. This method for establishing storm water
fees has been challenged a number of times in court and has been
upheld. The amount of runoff from a property during a storm does
reflect the potential for pollutants and sediment to be carried
to our lakes and streams.
Q: I have
detention / retention on my property. Doesn't that stop pollution
from getting to the rivers and streams?
A: Detention / retention
can have a positive or a negative impact on stream quality depending
on how it is designed, maintained, and operated. The Credits
Program will evaluate each storage basis submitted for a
credit to determine its individual effectiveness.
Q: Is
there anything that non-residential property owners can do to
reduce their bill?
A: The Butler County
Storm Water District has established a Credits
Program to reduce storm water charges to those properties
that provide services resulting in water quality improvement.
The Credits
Program is an application process available to all non-residential
property owners/customers only. Non-residential property owners/customers
can reduce the amount of storm water charges assessed to their
respective property by completing an application and performing
storm water activities that improve water quality.
A Storm Water
Credit is offered as an incentive to owners of non-residential
properties for being good stewards of the Butler County Storm
Water District resource. Property owners benefit through a reduction
in their storm water utility bill as a result of "hands
on" involvement in the Butler County Storm Water District
program. The overall concept is that the entire community will
benefit from enhancements to the Storm Water system through improvements
to the quality of its water.
Q: How
will I apply for credits?
A: Applications for
the Credit Program are available
here on the Storm Water District Website. Click
here to download an application.
Q: What
if I don't agree with the County's calculation of the amount
of hard surface area I have on my property?
A: If you believe that
we made an error in calculating the impervious surface for your
property, please provide us with a written explanation and include
any documentation to support your claim. If possible, please
include a site plan with buildings, parking lot, roadways, and
sidewalks shown. We will review the measurement information for
your property and make any adjustments if we agree with your
documentation. If after reviewing your documentation we determine
that the measurement was made correctly, we can then schedule
an appointment for you to come into our office and review the
measurement information with us. Please send your letter and
any documentation you have to support your claim to:
- Butler County
Storm Water District
- Attn: Bob
Lentz
- 1921 Fairgrove
Ave.
- Hamilton,
Ohio 45011-1965
Please include
your name, address, telephone number, and best time to contact
you.
Q: When
will the rate go up?
A: The semi-annual rate
of $6.50 per ERU is based on a five-year operating plan. It is
expected that the rate will be reviewed in five years. However,
some communities may petition the District to begin addressing
flooding and drainage issues within their community. If so, the
rate of charge may increase during the next five years.
Non-Profits
Q: Our
tax exempt property (school district, church, etc.) doesn't pay
any taxes now. Why are we being charged this tax?
A: This charge is not
a tax. It is a storm water fee or user charge and is no different
than the water and/or wastewater bill that your organization
pays now.
Use
of Funds & Results
Q: Isn't
this just another tax?
A: No, it is a user
fee based on the amount of storm water runoff a property contributes
to the system.
Q: I don't
remember voting on this tax. How can the county do this without
a vote?
A: This is not a tax.
This is a user fee just like your water and sewer user fee. Under
the Ohio Constitution and State Law, cities and counties are
allowed to set up a user fee for water, sanitary sewer, and/or
storm water by a vote of their respective elected officials.
A referendum or vote of the people is not required under this
law.
Q: How
can we be sure that the money raised will be used for complying
with the unfunded EPA water quality guidelines and not diverted
to other projects by the County?
A: All of the funds
raised by the District will go into a storm water "Enterprise
Fund" and under state law can only be used for the intended
purposes for which it was collected.
Q: Won't
this Storm Water District create a whole new government bureaucracy?
A: The District is operated
within the County's current departments. There will not be any
new buildings or infrastructure. Only a small portion of the
funds will be used for administration of the program.
Q: How
will the money collected for the Storm Water District be used?
A: All of the funds
collected by the District will be used to implement the Best
Management Practices (BMP's) that were chosen to meet the EPA's
unfunded water quality guidelines. These BMP's were chosen by
a Steering Committee that was comprised of representatives (including
some elected officials) from a majority of Butler County communities.
A list of these BMP's can be found in the Storm
Water Management Plan.
Q: How
soon can we expect to see results, such as reduced flooding?
A: Flooding and drainage
issues will not be addressed under the current operating plan.
A plan that addresses flooding and drainage issues would be much
more expensive to implement and would result in a higher annual
cost to property owners. If you want the Storm Water District
to consider flooding and drainage related issues for your community,
you need to contact your local elected officials and convey that
message to them.
Q: What
specific issues will be addressed by the District?
A: The District will
work to ensure that it is in compliance with the new strict EPA
regulations. There are six minimum control measures that must
be implemented in order to comply. One part of those minimum
control measures requires that we prepare and distribute educational
materials to property owners within the District. Another requires
that we involve members of the community in activities directed
toward improving the quality of storm water that eventually ends
up in our County's streams and rivers. For a more complete explanation
of the six minimum control measures, and how the District plans
to meet the requirements, click
here.
Environmental
Q: How
does storm water affect the environment?
A: One of the reasons
the city is implementing the storm water utility is to meet tough
new U.S. EPA regulations. In addition to flooding, poor storm
drainage also causes water pollution. Uncontrolled runoff also
contributes to erosion which causes sediment build-up in our
streams and rivers.
Storm water
also picks up a lot of things on its way to area streams and
rivers -- litter, road salt, lawn, garden, and agricultural chemicals,
and more. Backyard mechanics that drain oil, antifreeze, or gas
into the storm sewer pose a threat to the environment.
Q: How
will the new District help to improve the environment?
A: The Storm Water District
will provide funding for public education to help reduce pollution.
The new District will also fund water quality monitoring and
testing and will provide strict enforcement of current regulations
on sedimentation and erosion control issues as well as pollution
control measures.
Q: What
happens if the District fails to meet the new requirements and
regulations of the EPA?
A: The District or local
governments could face fines of up to $27,500 per day for each
violation.
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