Nearly 100 Howe water customers have not had their backflow prevention devices tested, and the City Council is set on Tuesday, Oct. 20, to take up an ordinance that spells out what happens to people who fall behind, up to having their water shut off.
A backflow device keeps water from a home's plumbing or sprinkler system from being pulled back into the public supply. In a memo to the council dated Oct. 13, City Administrator Monte Walker wrote that state environmental regulators at the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality require those devices to be tested and records kept for each one, and that Howe requires a test every year.
The city uses an outside company, SC Tracking Solutions, to collect results from licensed testers and to mail customers yearly reminders and notices when they are out of compliance. Walker wrote that the company recently told the city 98 customers are currently not in compliance, and that "it is the city's responsibility to enforce compliance."
How enforcement would work
Under the process Walker described, SC Tracking would send two letters telling a customer the device needs testing. If the customer still does not comply, the city would send a third letter saying water service will be disconnected unless the device is tested.
The draft ordinance, which would repeal and replace the city's existing backflow ordinance, No. 754, also says:
- Tests are at the customer's expense, and testers must file results electronically through SC Tracking within five days.
- If a customer does not get the test done, the city may hire a licensed backflow contractor to do it and bill the customer for the cost plus any authorized administrative charge.
- The city may suspend water service with 24 hours' notice for failing to show proof of the yearly test, among other violations, and a customer may ask the city in writing to reconsider.
- Service would not be restored until the property is inspected, proof of the test is shown and reconnection costs are paid.
- Violations carry a fine of up to $500, with each day counted as a separate offense.
The ordinance also sets rules for lawn irrigation systems, including a city permit to install or change one. Homeowners working on their own property do not need an irrigator's license but must meet state design standards.
