INSTRUCTIONS: The question/title is just text changed to an H1 (Header 1). Then add in a (1) bullet to create the "drop down" panel that will stay hidden until the user clicks on the question/title.

What is the fee to connect to the sewers?

• View the current rate (Resolution of Sewer Use Fees and Connection Charges)

What is the annual Sewer Use Charge?

• The annual Sewer Use Charge is based on the number of Equivalent Dwelling Units (EDUs) of 255 gallons per day (gpd).  This rate applies to most residential users.
  
  Larger users (such as commerical and business properties) that use a meter, are charged a dollar amount per 1,000 gallons of metered annual usage or a dollar amount per 100 cubic feet of metered annual usage (depending on type of meter used); subject to the single rate of 255 gpd.  
  
  View the current Sewer Use Fees (Resolution of Sewer Use Fees and Connection Charges)

When are the Sewer Use bills sent out?

• Sewer Use bills are mailed out in September, and are due October 1st. However, if your bill is more than $500, you will receive two bills a year. One due on October 1st for half of the payment due and the second installment is due on April 1st.

Where is my septic tank?

• The staff here at the Water Pollution Control Facility does not have access to this information.  Contact the Farmington Valley Health District at 860-676-1953.The staff here at the Water Pollution Control Facility does not have access to this information.  Contact the Farmington Valley Health District at 860-676-1953.

Where are my sewer lines located?

• We will be happy to assist you with this information and have available MOST properties. Please contact Superintendent Roger Ignazio at 860-693-7867 for assistance. at 860-693-7867 for assistance.

Where do I pick up an application and what are the procedures to connect to the sewers?

Can you tell me if I have public water available?

• No, however you may contact the Connecticut Water Company at 1-800-286-5700 for further assistance.No, however you may contact the Connecticut Water Company at 1-800-286-5700 for further assistance.

What can I flush down the toilet?

• Please flush ONLY toilet paper and human waste. Wipes for cleaning just about everything in the home from toilet bowls to baby bottoms can block pumps at our Water Pollution Control Facility. Even though some of the wipes are marketed as flushable or biodegradable, they don't break down fast enough to make it through the wastewater treatment process. Get more information by clicking here.

WPCA Definition of Charges

• Benefit Assessment – A charge that a WPCA places on a property to pay for improvements to the sewer system or treatment facility that benefits that property in some way. A benefit assessment is generally only applied when the municipality or WPCA pays the initial cost to construct the improvements. A benefit assessment may be a charge applied to all properties in a Town that have access to sewer service where the capital expenditures benefit the entire user base or more commonly is limited to individual streets or properties such as when a new sewer extension is constructed. The amount of the benefit assessment charged any particular property is generally equal to the capital cost of the improvement divided over the properties benefitted by any number of ways. Benefit assessments across multiple properties served are generally determined by some combination of methods including, but not limited to, frontage, lot size, property value, flow proportion and buildout potential.
  
  Connection Charge – A charge levied at the time of connection to the sewer system, which may be divided into two categories; a permit to connect and a capacity or facility connection charge. Neither category of connection charge is associated with the actual construction of improvements, i.e., this is not a payment for the WPCA to physically construct the sewer connection. The physical connection is typically made by a private contractor and paid for by the owner of the property to be served. In most communities, the “permit to connect” fee is a modest one-time application fee that typically ranges from $50 to $500. The capacity or facility connection charge can range from $2,000 to $12,000 per equivalent dwelling unit and serves as a means for a new connection to purchase capacity for a portion of the existing infrastructure (sewers, pump stations and treatment facility) that was paid for via previous benefit assessments applied to other properties. Because a capacity connection charge is paying for the previously constructed capacity of the WPCA’s system, an area where new sewers are constructed may be subject to both a benefit assessment for construction of the new sewers as well as a capacity connection charge for the existing infrastructure paid for by others. As with sewer use fees, Connecticut General Statutes (CGS) Section 7-267 specifically requires that funds collected for sewer benefit assessments and connection charges must be kept separate from other Town funds and can only be used for costs related to the sewers and treatment system.
  
  Sewer Use Charge – A charge, levied on the actual users of the sanitary sewer system, to recover the cost of operation, maintenance and replacement of the sewer and treatment system. Sewer use charges are generally not used to fund capital improvements for new infrastructure, only to repair or replace existing system components.
  
  Sewer Improvements not constructed by the WPCA – When an entity constructs sanitary sewers at their own expense, that are then connected to the WPCA’s collection system that entity has in essence paid the benefit assessment associated with those sewers. Provided that all requirements for review, inspection and approval are met, these sewers can be formally accepted into the WPCA’s system. However, the payment for construction of these new sewers does not relieve any entity (developer, single property owner or other governmental agency) of the requirement to pay a capacity connection charge, nor a sewer use charge once the property is connected to the sewer system and legally occupied.
  
  SUMMARY: The definitions above describe how WPCA’s allocate costs associated with capital projects, especially those that involve new infrastructure serving a limited portion of the service area, although there is some flexibility in the statute and standard practice. This memo provides information on existing practices, state statutes and other relevant documents relative to how WPCA’s pay for and recovers costs associated with capital projects. Note that this document significantly relies on the manual entitled “Methods of Capital Cost Recovery on Water Pollution Control Projects” prepared by the Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection (DEEP).