023 of 2006 - relating to no-fault utilities claims 0 06-1
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SALT LAKE CITY ORDINANCE
No. 23 of 2006
(Relating to No-Fault Utilities Claims)
AN ORDINANCE REPEALING IN ITS ENTIRETY CHAPTER 3.36, SALT LAKE CITY
CODE, RELATING TO NO-FAULT UTILITIES CLAIMS, AND ENACTING A NEW
CHAPTER 3.36 RELATING TO NO-FAULT UTILITIES CLAIMS; ESTABLISHING
PROCEDURES FOR INITIAL CLEANUP RESPONSE, AND FOR THE PROCESSING OF
CLAIMS FOR DAMAGES CAUSED BY A BREAK, LEAK, BACKUP OR OTHER FAILURE
OF CITY WATER, SEWER, STORM DRAIN AND CANAL FACILITES, THROUGH NO
FAULT OF THE CITY; ESTABLISHING STANDARDS FOR CLEANUP; ESTABLISHING
QUALIFICATIONS FOR ASSISTANCE; AND RELATED MATTERS.
Be it ordained by the City Council of Salt Lake City, Utah:
SECTION 1. That Chapter 3.36, Salt Lake City Code, pertaining to no-fault utilities
claims be, and the same hereby is, repealed in its entirety.
SECTION 2. That a new Chapter 3.36, Salt Lake City Code, is enacted to read as
follows:
3.36.010 Short Title:
The ordinance codified in this chapter shall be known as the NO-FAULT UTILITIES
CLAIMS ORDINANCE.
3.36.020 Purpose:
The purpose of this chapter is to assist in the cleanup of real and personal property, and/or
compensate persons for the loss of real or personal property, destroyed or damaged as the result
of a break, leak,backup or other failure of city facilities, regardless of fault, within the
restrictions, limitations and other provisions of this chapter.
3.36.030 Definitions:
Unless the context specifically indicates otherwise, the following terms and phrases, as
used in this chapter, shall have the meanings hereinafter designated:
(a) "Actual cash value"means the actual, depreciated value of an item, and not the
replacement value.
(b) "City" means Salt Lake City Corporation, a political subdivision of the state.
(c) "City attorney" means the city attorney or his/her designee.
(d) "City facilities"means any culinary water, sanitary sewer or storm sewer pipeline,
any irrigation water canal, and all related appurtenances, which are owned, operated and
maintained by the department.
(e) "Cleanup" means all activities necessary to reasonably restore destroyed or
damaged real and personal property to its pre-event condition, in accordance with cleanup
criteria.
(f) "Cleanup contractor"means an independent disaster cleanup contractor, licensed
to do business in the state.
(g) "Cleanup criteria" means cleanup standards,procedures and protocol established
by the director pursuant to this chapter.
(h) "Department" means the city's department of public utilities.
(i) "Director" means the director of the department, or his/her designee.
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(j) "Force majeure"means acts of God; acts of public enemies; insurrection; riots;
war; landslides; lightning; earthquakes; fires; storms; floods; washouts; droughts; civil
disturbances; explosions; acts of terrorism, sabotage; or any other similar cause or event not
reasonably within the city's control.
(k) "Person or applicant" means any individual, partnership, firm, company,
corporation, association,joint stock company, trust, estate or any other legal entity(except the
United States government or any of its agencies, and the state and any of its agencies and
political subdivisions) or their legal representatives, agents or assigns.
(1) "Private facilities"means any pipelines and related facilities which are owned and
operated by a property owner, and which connect to city facilities.
(m) "Property owner"means the owner of the premises which has sustained a loss
described in this chapter, or any person lawfully in possession of such premises.
3.36.040 Establishment Of Cleanup Criteria And Other Regulations:
The director shall, from time to time, establish cleanup criteria which shall constitute the
standard for cleanup and payment under this chapter. In establishing such cleanup criteria, the
director shall give due consideration to generally available health guidelines, recommendations
from industry, governmental and academic experts, and other sources of guidance reasonably
deemed by the director to be balanced, unbiased, and protective of health and safety. The
director may establish such additional rules, regulations and procedures which are consistent with
this chapter, as may be necessary or convenient in effecting the purposes of this chapter.
3.36.045 Cleanup Of Real And Personal Property:
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(a) The director shall, in accordance with the city's standard procurement procedures,
engage the services of one or more cleanup contractors to perform cleanup services at the
direction of the director on an as-needed basis.
(b) Upon discovering a break, leak, backup or other failure of city facilities, or any
damage resulting from the same, a property owner shall immediately notify the director of such
event.
(c) Upon notification of the occurrence of the event, the director shall contact a
cleanup contractor under contract with the city pursuant to subsection(a) above, and direct the
cleanup contractor to perform all cleanup work at the premises, in accordance with established
cleanup criteria.
(d) In the event the property owner engages the services of a cleanup contactor prior
to notifying the director of the event, the department may reimburse the property owner for actual
expenses incurred by the property owner, but only up to the amount the department would have
paid its own cleanup contractor under subsection(c) above.
(e) In the event the damaged real or personal property cannot, in the judgment of the
director, be reasonably restored to its pre-event condition, in accordance with the cleanup criteria,
the department may pay to the property owner the estimated actual cash value, at the time of the
event, of such property. Such value shall be determined by a professional appraiser engaged by
the city for such purpose.
(f) In no event shall the department pay, or reimburse the property owner for the
payment of, special or consequential damages.
3.36.050 Application; Time Limitations:
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Any request for cleanup under Section 3.36.045(c), reimbursement of cleanup expenses
under Section 3.36.045(d), or payment of actual cash value under Section 3.36.045(e), shall be
made by filing a written application in such form as shall be prescribed by the director pursuant
to Section 3.36.040; provided that the initial request for cleanup may be made by contacting the
director by telephone or other means, followed by a written application. Written applications
shall be submitted to the city recorder within ninety(90) days after the occurrence of the event.
3.36.060 Application-Investigation And Recommendation:
Applications received by the city recorder shall be referred to the department for
investigation and recommendation. The department's report shall be forwarded to the city
attorney for determination under the criteria of this chapter. All payments authorized by the city
attorney shall be made by the director solely from the appropriate enterprise fund managed by the
director.
3.36.065 Qualification For Assistance:
An application or request for assistance or payment under this chapter shall qualify only if
the director, after due inquiry or investigation, makes an affirmative determination that the event
was the result of a break, leak, backup or other failure of city facilities, and that none of the
following circumstances apply:
(a) The loss was the result of a force majeure which damaged the city facilities;
(b) The loss was caused by either an act or omission of the property owner, the
property owner's agent, or a member of the property owner's family or business;
(c) The property owner failed to file a claim hereunder in a timely manner, or failed
to comply with any other procedural requirements of this chapter;
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(d) The loss was the result of intentional or negligent acts of third parties;
(e) The loss was the result of a break, leak, backup or failure of private facilities; or
(f) The loss is wholly covered by private insurance.
3.36.070 Reduction In Assistance:
The city may limit any assistance, or reduce any payment, under this chapter based upon
any of the following:
(a) The property owner did not act responsibly to prevent, avoid or minimize the loss;
(b) The property owner is unable to fully substantiate or document the extent of the
loss;
(c) The loss is partially covered by private insurance.
3.36.080 Payment Does Not Imply Liability:
(a) Any assistance or payment made under this chapter shall not be construed as, and
does not imply, an admission of negligence or responsibility on the part of the city or the
department for any damage or loss.
(b) Any assistance or payment made under this chapter is strictly voluntary on the part
of the department. While it shall be the general policy of the city to follow the provisions of this
chapter, the city shall not be required to do so. The city may, based on the particular facts and
circumstances of an event, elect to reject a request for assistance hereunder. If a request for
assistance under this chapter is not approved by the director within 90 days of filing, it is deemed
rejected. In the event a request hereunder is rejected, the property owner's recourse would be to
proceed under the provisions of the Utah Governmental Immunity Act and file a notice of claim
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thereunder. Nothing in this chapter shall be construed as an acknowledgment by the city that the
property owner has a meritorious claim under the Utah Governmental Immunity Act, and the city
reserves the right to assert any and all available defenses. The ninety-day notice period under
this chapter shall not operate to extend the one-year notice period under the Utah Governmental
Immunity Act. This chapter shall not in any way supersede, change or abrogate the Utah
Governmental Immunity Act, and its application to the city and the department, or establish in
any person a right to sue the city under this chapter.
(c) Any assistance or payment made under this chapter and accepted shall constitute a
full and complete release of any and all claims against the city(including the department), its
officers, employees and agents arising from the incident.
3.36.090 Budget Expenditures:
The department is authorized to provide for and include within each enterprise fund it
manages a separate fund from which amounts may be drawn to make the foregoing assistance or
payments. Each such separate fund shall be funded, in amounts deemed by the director to be
sufficient for the purpose, from revenues accruing to each respective enterprise fund from all
available sources, including regular service charges. The establishment and funding of such
funds, and the expenditure of the amounts therein, shall be consistent with applicable law, and all
applicable bond covenants of the city.
3.36.100 Claims From Other Governmental Agencies:
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Notwithstanding any other provisions of this chapter, no application shall be accepted
from the United States or any of its departments or agencies, the state or any political
subdivision.
SECTION 3. This ordinance shall take effect immediately upon the date of its first
publication. �
Passed by the City Council of Salt Lake City, Utah this 2 day of /` e/`7 ,
2006.
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CHAIRPERSON
A ST:
CHIEF DEPUTY C RE 0 ER
Transmitted to Mayor on 5-3-06 .
Mayor's Action: /C.
Approved. Vetoed.
AYOR
IEF DEPU IT CORD
(SEAL) * .?tw � r;4': ...
Qj .'V APPROVED AS TO FORM
Sa 7=' " lt Lake gi.V5ttorney's Office
Bill No. 23 of 2006. `°.
w Date c
Published: BY r A �-��f
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