(a) The Mayor shall appoint three members of the Council who shall constitute the Municipal Gas Committee and said committee shall under the direction of the City Council, have the general management, control and supervision of the Municipal Gas Distribution System of said City, and shall direct the Superintendent in all matters pertaining to the management, control and operation of said system and purchase of material and supplies.
(b) The Mayor shall with the consent of the City Council appoint a Municipal Gas Superintendent who shall, under the direction of the Municipal Gas Committee, have charge of the management of said Municipal Gas System, and have charge over the men employed by the City to assist him in such management.
(Ord. 92-0-2)
(a) All applications for gas service shall be made in writing on a contract blank furnished by the City, stating fully and truly the purposes for which the services are required.
(b) All services shall be laid by the City from the main to the property line or as agreed between the landowner and the City.
(c) All meters shall be installed outside the foundation of the building to be serviced. Meter settings and loops shall be constructed in accordance with the standards established by the City.
(d) The City of Morland shall keep all meters in repair and proper working condition without cost to the consumer except where the meter is damaged by neglect or fault of the consumer in which case the City shall collect from the consumer the cost of repairing or replacing any such meter damaged. No consumer shall repair or remove any meter or break any seal on a meter, nor tamper with or interfere with the proper registration of any meter.
(e) All meters shall remain the property of the City of Morland and may be removed at any time for the purpose of testing and repairing. Meter deposits cannot be sold or transferred by one customer to another.
(f) Any customer who becomes dissatisfied with the registration of the meter supplying his service or doubts the accuracy of the meter may demand that it be tested. Such customer shall first deposit with the City Clerk a fee of $20.00 to defray the cost of making such a test. If, upon test, the meter shall prove to be more than three percent (3%) fast, the deposit shall be returned to the consumer, but if the meter shall be proven to be accurate or within three percent (3%) slow, the deposit shall be retained by the City. No rebate shall be given to the customer on account of over registration, nor shall any charge be made on account of registration of any meter so tested.
(g) If a meter should stop, or for any reason fails to register properly, the Superintendent may estimate the monthly bill on the basis of the same monthly quantity consumed during the previous year.
(h) Consumers shall keep all of their pipes and fixtures in good repair and free from leaks at their expense. No claim for damages shall be made against the City for breaking or leaking of any valves or service pipe.
(i) It shall be the duty of any person or persons installing, altering, or extending any gas piping in the City to notify the Gas Inspector.
(j) The employees of the City shall have free access at any reasonable hour to all parts of any consumer’s premises for the purpose of making inspections, or repairs, or for reading meters. The City reserves the right to shut off gas at any time for the purpose of making repairs or for any other reason and no claim for damages shall be made against the City on account of any such interruption of service.
(k) Before any system of gas piping is put into service, it shall be inspected and carefully tested to assure that it is gas tight by City’s Gas Superintendent. To test for tightness the piping may be filled with the City gas, air or inert gas, but not with any other gas or liquid. The test shall consist of introducing air at a pressure of three (3) times the expected gas service pressure, said pressure to remain without a pressure drop for ten (10) minutes.
(l) The gas meters connected to said gas system shall be read as directed by the committee and governing body but no later than the 15th day of each month and not earlier than the first day of each month hereafter, and the readings deposited with the duly authorized collector of the City not later than the fifteenth day of each month.
(m) If a riser is installed on a vacant lot at the time the said gas line is being constructed by the contractor, at the request of the owner thereof, the said owner shall pay the cost per running foot for such line and riser installed with the cost of material and parts; that anyone connecting with the gas line thereafter a charge of the full cost of construction shall be made and paid b
(Ord. 91-0-3; Ord. 92-0-2)
(a) All consumers shall give notice at least two days in advance when they wish service discontinued. Such notice shall be given to the City Clerk.
(b) If the gas shall be discontinued to any customer for non-payment of gas bill for any other reason caused by the said customer, a charge of 1.5 times the highest bill shall be made to reconnect gas to such consumer. Gas shall be discontinued to any customer who gas bill is thirty (30) days delinquent.
(Ord. 91-0-3; Ord. 92-0-2)
(a) No person shall extend pipes from one property to another.
(b) No person shall remove, obstruct, alter or injure any pipe, connection, valve, box or meter, or in any way injure or damage any building, machinery, fixture or appurtenance of the gas system of the City of Morland, or carry off or injure any pipe, tools, fixtures, supplies or apparatus or other property belonging to the Gas System of Morland.
(Ord. 91-0-3)
(a) The installation, repair and restoration of gas piping, fittings, appliances, and connections shall be done and performed in full compliance with the following rules:
(1) Ordinary Dwellings.
(A) No gas service pipe installed hereafter from the meter shall be less than one inches (1”) inside diameter and must enter all buildings above the ground level.
(B) Minimum pipe size for service to any single appliance shall be not less than 1/2 inch (1/2”) inside diameter.
(2) All Premises.
(A) Appliance vent pipes shall not be smaller than the size indicated by the vent collar on the appliance to be vented: shall be straight; as short as possible; and be pitched upward toward the chimney or flue at least one-fourth inch (1/4”) to each foot of horizontal length. The vent pipe shall be of material which resists corrosion and shall enter the chimney or flue twelve inches (12”) above the bottom to avoid stoppage by falling plaster or debris.
(B) No cast iron fittings or galvanized fittings shall be used on any gas piping system.
(C) All fittings and connections must be standard make and size. All pipe and pipe threads shall comply with American Standard for Pipe Threads (A.S.A. B2.1-1945) American Standard Taper Pipe Threads. Pipe must be free from obstruction. Joint compounds (pipe dope) shall be applied sparingly and only to the male threads of the joint and shall be resistant to the action of natural gas.
(D) Unions shall be ground joint but shall not be used in concealed construction or places which are not plainly visible.
(E) Reducing fittings shall only be used to reduce pipe size. Reducing bushings shall not be used.
(F) In no case shall inaccessible valves be placed under floors or in any inaccessible place.
(G) All inside pipes shall be securely fastened with iron straps or pipe hooks.
(H) No cement or any substance shall be used to conceal or cover any leaks or flaws in pipes, fittings, or connections. New pipes, fittings shall be used to replace those in which holes, flaws, or defects may be found.
(I) Exact space for meter and regulator shall be left in piping.
(J) No extensions, connections or fittings consisting in whole or in part of rubber or tubing shall be permitted except when the gas is used for pressing irons, mangles, blow torches, or laboratory burners. And there shall be located on the fixed piping, at the point of connection with the flexible tubing, a valve which will serve as a shut off for such portable appliance. Only stainless steel flexible gas connections having a maximum length of forty-eight inches (48”) may be used between fixed piping and non-portable appliances such as refrigerators, ranges and radiant heaters located in fireplaces.
(K) A master valve shall be installed on all appliances and furnaces. This valve shall be a standard gas valve and accessible in the same location as the appliance or furnace.
(L) No solid dampers shall be installed in flue pipes of gas burning equipment. All dampers shall have a hole or holes with diameters not less than one-fourth inch (1/4) of the diameter.
(M) When gas appliances are disconnected, all openings in house lines shall be lugged or capped tightly so as to prevent the escape of gas.
(N) All furnaces, water heaters, and space heaters shall be equipped with 100 percent (100%) safety shut-off controls. All of the above appliances shall be vented.
(b) Any person performing work on or in any premise connected to the gas system for compensation shall register with the Gas Superintendent and provide proof of insurance in the amount of $300,000 general liability $100,000/$300,000 for bodily injury and $100,000 property damage. All work performed by any person shall be inspected and tested by the Gas Superintendent before service is connected. Unsatisfactory installations must be corrected before service is provided.
(c) All installations shall conform to current NFPA Part 54 standards on the date of installation. Any city code more restrictive than this shall apply.
(Ord. 91-0-3)
Rates for gas consumed shall be according to the metered quantities and shall be paid for at the monthly rate. The City of Morland, Kansas, shall furnish natural gas consumed or used within and outside the corporate limit of the City of Morland at the following rates:
First 1,000 cubic feet or part thereof per month $7.00 plus $5.00 per thousand cubic feet in excess of 1,000 cubic feet. Minimum charge: $7.00.
A deposit of $100 for residential and $200.00 for businesses shall be made with the City Clerk for all rental properties using gas and properties being bought on contract. Further, the City Council may at its discretion require a 1.5 times the highest bill deposit from any user who becomes delinquent in payment of a gas bill.
(Ord. 91-0-3; Ord. 92-0-2)
That any person violating any of the provisions of this Ordinance shall upon conviction thereof be deemed guilty of a misdemeanor and be punished by a fine of not exceeding one hundred dollars ($100.00) or by imprisonment in the county jail not exceeding thirty (30) days, or by both such fine and imprisonment, and shall be committed to the county jail until all such fine and costs of the case are paid.
(Ord. 91-0-3)