§ 54-30. County disposal facilities; disposal fees; tipping fees.

(a)

Pursuant to G.S. 153A-292(b), the owner of each improved property located in the unincorporated areas of the county shall be assessed an annual disposal fee per dwelling or dwelling unit for the use of the county disposal facilities, which fee shall be established from time to time pursuant to G.S. 153A-102 and imposed and collected on a fiscal year basis. The disposal fee shall not exceed the direct and indirect cost of operating the county disposal facilities. The disposal fee shall be billed with the property taxes of all owners of improved property located in the unincorporated areas of the county. It shall be subject to the same discount, interest, penalties and discovery procedures as property taxes. The disposal fee shall be a lien on the real property described on the bill that includes the disposal fee. The disposal fee shall be assessed in the same manner as real property taxes are assessed.

(b)

Inasmuch as all municipal solid waste collected by the county or its contractor under section 54-29 is taken to county transfer station for disposal, it shall be conclusively presumed that all property owners who use the municipal solid waste and recyclable materials collection services provided by the county are users of the county disposal facilities, and therefore subject to the disposal fee imposed under this section. Any owner of improved property or an eligible commercial establishment requesting additional carts will be billed an annual disposal fee for each additional cart.

(c)

It shall be conclusively presumed that owners of improved property who do not use the municipal solid waste and recyclable materials collection service of the county are users of the county's disposal facilities, and therefore subject to the disposal fee imposed under this section. Provided, any owner of a mobile home park or apartment complex that uses a commercial dumpster that is served by a private entity shall not be required to pay the per dwelling disposal fee assessed under this section.

(d)

It shall be the burden of the property owner to establish that her/his/its property is not improved property as defined in section 54-26, and therefore not subject to the disposal fee imposed under this section. Upon such showing, the assessment for the disposal fee will be removed from the tax bill for the next fiscal year and subsequent years. There will be no release or refund of the disposal fee for any current or prior fiscal year except for an assessment of the disposal fee due to clerical error by the county, which release or refund must be approved by the board or its designee. Failure of the owner to timely notify the county and establish that an unoccupied dwelling or dwelling unit is unfit for human habitation (i.e., before May 1 of the ensuing fiscal year) shall not constitute clerical error by the county. For purposes of this article, the county shall have no obligation or duty to discover on its own that a dwelling or dwelling unit is unoccupied and unfit for human habitation.

(e)

Pursuant to G.S. 153A-292(b) there is hereby imposed a fee for all commercial users of the County's disposal facilities based upon a tonnage rate ("tipping fee") to be established from time to time pursuant to G.S. 153A-102. This tonnage rate or tipping fee will be charged and collected by account established for the commercial user with the county. Tipping fees may vary according to the amount and type of solid waste or other material brought to the county disposal facilities.

(f)

Pursuant to G.S. 153A-292(b), the disposal fees and tipping fees imposed under this section may be used to cover the direct and indirect cost of operating the disposal facilities provided by the county, including the convenience centers, and including the cost of transporting municipal solid waste and other materials to their ultimate site of disposal.

(Res. of 5-1-17(1); Res. of 6-5-17(1), §§ 7—10)