2006 New York Code - Safe And Adequate Service; Just And Reasonable Charges; Unjust Discrimination; Unreasonable Preference; Protection Of Privacy.

 
    § 89-b. Safe and adequate service; just and reasonable charges; unjust
  discrimination;  unreasonable  preference;  protection  of privacy.   1.
  Every water-works corporation shall furnish and  provide  such  service,
  instrumentalities  and  facilities  as shall be safe and adequate and in
  all respects just and reasonable. All charges made or  demanded  by  any
  such  water-works  corporation  for water, or for equipment furnished or
  for any service rendered or to be rendered shall be just and  reasonable
  and  not  more  than allowed by law or by order of the commission. Every
  unjust or  unreasonable  charge  made  or  demanded  for  water  or  for
  equipment furnished or for any such service, or in connection therewith,
  or in excess of that allowed by law or by the order of the commission is
  prohibited.
    2.  No  water-works  corporation  shall directly or indirectly, by any
  special rate, rebate,  drawback  or  other  device  or  method,  charge,
  demand,  collect  or receive from any person or corporation a greater or
  less compensation for  water,  or  for  equipment  or  for  any  service
  rendered  or  to  be  rendered  or  in  connection  therewith, except as
  authorized in this  article,  than  it  charges,  demands,  collects  or
  receives  from  any  other  person  or  corporation for doing a like and
  contemporaneous  service  with  respect  thereto  under  the   same   or
  substantially similar circumstances or conditions.
    3.  No  water-works  corporation  shall  make  or  grant  any undue or
  unreasonable preference or  advantage  to  any  person,  corporation  or
  locality,  or  to  any  particular description of service in any respect
  whatsoever, or subject any particular person, corporation or locality or
  any particular description of  service  to  any  undue  or  unreasonable
  prejudice or disadvantage in any respect whatsoever.
    3-a.  No  water-works  corporation shall discontinue or disconnect the
  supply of water for non-payment of water rents, rates or charges, unless
  such water-works  corporation  shall  have  first  given  fifteen  days'
  written  notice  of  its intention so to do to the owner of the premises
  thereby affected, or in lieu thereof, to the person, firm or corporation
  to whom or which the last preceding bill has been rendered and from whom
  or which the water-works corporation has received payment therefor,  and
  to  the  superintendent  or  other  person  in charge of the building or
  premises thereby affected, if it can be readily ascertained  that  there
  is  such  superintendent or other person in charge. Such notice in every
  case  shall  be  served  either  personally  on  the  person,  firm   or
  corporation  to  which  it  is  directed,  or  by  mailing the same in a
  postpaid wrapper to the address of such person, firm or corporation.
    3-b. (a) No water-works corporation can effect the  discontinuance  of
  residential  service  for nonpayment of bills rendered for water service
  on Friday after twelve noon, Saturday, Sunday, public holiday, or day on
  which the main business office  of  the  corporation  is  not  open  for
  business.
    (b)  Discontinuance for nonpayment of bills rendered for water service
  of residential services can only take place between Monday and  Thursday
  between  the hours of eight a.m. and six p.m., and Fridays before twelve
  noon.
    (c) The term public holiday refers to those holidays enumerated in the
  general construction law.
    3-c.  It  shall  be  unlawful  for  any  water-works  corporation   to
  discontinue the supply of water to any person or entity receiving public
  assistance, for nonpayment of bills rendered for service, if the payment
  for  such  service  is  to  be paid directly by the department of social
  services or the social services official in such locality.
    4. Nothing in this chapter shall be taken to  prohibit  a  water-works
  corporation from establishing a sliding scale for a fixed period for the
  automatic adjustment of charges for water, or any service rendered or to
  be  rendered  and  the  dividends  to  be  paid  to stockholders of such
  corporation, provided the sliding scale shall first have been filed with
  and  approved  by  the commission; but nothing in this subdivision shall
  operate to prevent the commission after the  expiration  of  such  fixed
  period  from  fixing proper, just and reasonable rates and charges to be
  made for service as authorized in this article.
    5. Nothing in this chapter shall be taken to  prohibit  a  water-works
  corporation  from establishing classifications of service based upon the
  quantity of water  used,  times  when  used,  purpose  for  which  used,
  duration  of  use,  or  upon  any  other  reasonable  consideration, and
  providing schedules of just and reasonable  graduated  rates  applicable
  thereto.    No  such  classification,  schedule, rate or charge shall be
  lawful unless it shall be filed with and approved by the commission, and
  every such classification, rate or charge shall be  subject  to  change,
  alteration and modification by the commission.
    6. No water works corporation shall sell or offer for sale any list of
  names of its customers.
    7. Every water-works corporation providing service to the residents of
  a  county with a population of one million two hundred fifty thousand or
  more which is not wholly contained within a city shall meter service  to
  its   customers   within  two  years  of  the  effective  date  of  this
  subdivision.