RegionalLongwood, FL

Longwood Commercial and Multifamily Utility Billing Rules: Ordinance 26-2282

Direct answer

Longwood’s amended Ordinance 26-2282 and approved minutes show that the City adopted operational and collections rules on June 15, 2026, but deleted proposed water and wastewater rate adjustments. The enacted text covers commercial and multifamily metering, access, delinquency, disputes, liens, and payment plans. Do not treat the still-posted pending rate tables as adopted.

Longwood adopted commercial and multifamily utility rules for metering, collections, disputes, liens, and payment plans—but deleted the proposed rate section.

8 min readPublished September 11, 2026Effective June 15, 2026Status checked September 11, 2026

Deleted

Proposed rate section

Section 2 did not survive adoption; no phased rate table is reported here.

>15 days

Past-due threshold

The City may discontinue service, subject to the ordinance’s stated rental-unit limitation.

10 days

Written dispute window

A good-faith dispute runs from bill receipt; undisputed charges remain due.

Up to 12 months

Payment-plan term

Tenant plans cannot exceed the lease term; current charges must stay current.

Adopted record versus pending tables

The amended ordinance controls this guide; the posted phased tables are not adopted rates

The approved June 15 minutes say the City Commission unanimously adopted Ordinance 26-2282 only after deleting Section 2 on proposed water and wastewater rate adjustments. The amended ordinance itself reads “Section 2. Intentionally Deleted.”

The City’s current Utility Rates page still labels its phased tables pending approval of Ordinance 26-2282. This guide does not reproduce, model, or describe those values as adopted, effective, or future rates.

The minutes say staff may return with later recommendations. A later proposal or page edit is not an adopted schedule; a new controlling official record would require a fresh review.

Account and policy decisions

Match the Longwood issue to the enacted text and the account record

These are separate rules and procedural steps, not one automatic enforcement chain. This guide summarizes the cited City records and is not legal advice; verify the actual account, dates, documents, and current written City direction.

Account or policy fact: Rate-section status
What the enacted text says: Section 2 was intentionally deleted before the Commission adopted the amended ordinance. The proposed water and wastewater rate adjustments did not survive this action.
What to verify: Use the amended ordinance and approved minutes. Do not treat the still-posted pending tables as adopted rates.

Account or policy fact: Connection and meter classification
What the enacted text says: Separate commercial or industrial units require separate connections and meters. A combined residential/commercial building is one commercial connection only when owner-occupied and no subunit is rented, leased, or sold. For apartment complexes with more than ten dwelling units, the director may require a master meter when the stated conditions are met.
What to verify: Confirm provider, service address, property use, unit arrangement, current meter record, any director determination, and any collection or access basis.

Account or policy fact: Late charge and seven-business-day path
What the enacted text says: The late charge is the greater of 10% of the balance due or the Appendix B charge. It is added without notice, may be waived once in a 12-month period at the City’s discretion, and can support discontinuance when the late charge and arrears remain unpaid seven business days after assessment.
What to verify: Confirm the assessment date, every arrears and reconnection line, any written waiver, and the current Appendix B charge; this guide does not supply that charge.

Account or policy fact: More-than-15-days path
What the enacted text says: Fees or charges more than 15 days past due may separately support discontinuance until the late charges, reconnection charge, and arrears are paid. The ordinance preserves a Florida Statutes section 180.135 limitation for certain former-occupant sewer charges at rental units.
What to verify: Confirm the charge due date, service type, who contracted for the former service, ownership and occupancy facts, and whether the related-entity provision applies.

Account or policy fact: Meter and connection access
What the enacted text says: The City states a right of entry to access meters and utility connections. Multifamily owners and property managers must permit access; refusal can lead to disconnection of all or part of the property under the enacted text.
What to verify: Preserve access requests and responses. Ask the City for an account-specific written position and obtain qualified advice when rights or consequences are disputed.

Account or policy fact: Related entities and sworn statements
What the enacted text says: The City may refuse service to a prospective customer that meets the ordinance’s related-entity definition tied to a delinquent account. It may request a sworn statement and may discontinue service if it later determines the statement was untrue.
What to verify: Do not infer related status from a shared address or name alone. Verify the entities, officers or members, corporate relationships, delinquent account, and City determination.

Account or policy fact: Nonpayment notice
What the enacted text says: The City sends notice by certified mail with return receipt and by regular U.S. mail to the service address and current property owner. If sent, failed delivery does not invalidate the notice. The notice identifies the property, unpaid charges, amount due, and a 30-calendar-day payment period.
What to verify: Record the notice date, both addresses, property description, stated amount and charges, mailing evidence, and the deadline stated by the City.

Account or policy fact: Interest, lien, foreclosure, and judgment
What the enacted text says: If the amount remains unpaid 30 days after the notice, the outstanding balance accrues 12% per annum and the City may record a notice of lien and mail a copy. A foreclosure suit may be filed only after 30 days from lien recording. The City may also seek a monetary judgment with or without first recording a lien.
What to verify: Keep the nonpayment-notice date, lien-recording date, mailed copy, interest calculation, collection costs, and any court filing separate. None of these later steps is automatic merely because a bill is late.

Account or policy fact: Written payment plan
What the enacted text says: The customer must request a plan in writing and approval is discretionary. A plan may run up to 12 months; a tenant’s plan cannot extend beyond the earlier lease-term limit, renewals do not extend it, current charges must stay current, and default accelerates the balance and can authorize discontinuance.
What to verify: Confirm the written request and decision, effective date, lease end where relevant, installment schedule, current bills, and default terms.

Account or policy fact: Good-faith written dispute
What the enacted text says: A customer may submit a written, good-faith dispute to the City manager within 10 days of bill receipt, identifying the charges and basis. Discontinuance for disputed charges is suspended during review and for 10 calendar days after the written determination; undisputed charges remain due.
What to verify: Record receipt date, disputed charges, written basis, submission evidence, City determination, undisputed balance, and any corrected bill. Do not calculate a personal deadline from incomplete facts.

Match the Longwood issue to the enacted text and the account record
Account or policy fact	What the enacted text says	What to verify
Rate-section status	Section 2 was intentionally deleted before the Commission adopted the amended ordinance. The proposed water and wastewater rate adjustments did not survive this action.	Use the amended ordinance and approved minutes. Do not treat the still-posted pending tables as adopted rates.
Connection and meter classification	Separate commercial or industrial units require separate connections and meters. A combined residential/commercial building is one commercial connection only when owner-occupied and no subunit is rented, leased, or sold. For apartment complexes with more than ten dwelling units, the director may require a master meter when the stated conditions are met.	Confirm provider, service address, property use, unit arrangement, current meter record, any director determination, and any collection or access basis.
Late charge and seven-business-day path	The late charge is the greater of 10% of the balance due or the Appendix B charge. It is added without notice, may be waived once in a 12-month period at the City’s discretion, and can support discontinuance when the late charge and arrears remain unpaid seven business days after assessment.	Confirm the assessment date, every arrears and reconnection line, any written waiver, and the current Appendix B charge; this guide does not supply that charge.
More-than-15-days path	Fees or charges more than 15 days past due may separately support discontinuance until the late charges, reconnection charge, and arrears are paid. The ordinance preserves a Florida Statutes section 180.135 limitation for certain former-occupant sewer charges at rental units.	Confirm the charge due date, service type, who contracted for the former service, ownership and occupancy facts, and whether the related-entity provision applies.
Meter and connection access	The City states a right of entry to access meters and utility connections. Multifamily owners and property managers must permit access; refusal can lead to disconnection of all or part of the property under the enacted text.	Preserve access requests and responses. Ask the City for an account-specific written position and obtain qualified advice when rights or consequences are disputed.
Related entities and sworn statements	The City may refuse service to a prospective customer that meets the ordinance’s related-entity definition tied to a delinquent account. It may request a sworn statement and may discontinue service if it later determines the statement was untrue.	Do not infer related status from a shared address or name alone. Verify the entities, officers or members, corporate relationships, delinquent account, and City determination.
Nonpayment notice	The City sends notice by certified mail with return receipt and by regular U.S. mail to the service address and current property owner. If sent, failed delivery does not invalidate the notice. The notice identifies the property, unpaid charges, amount due, and a 30-calendar-day payment period.	Record the notice date, both addresses, property description, stated amount and charges, mailing evidence, and the deadline stated by the City.
Interest, lien, foreclosure, and judgment	If the amount remains unpaid 30 days after the notice, the outstanding balance accrues 12% per annum and the City may record a notice of lien and mail a copy. A foreclosure suit may be filed only after 30 days from lien recording. The City may also seek a monetary judgment with or without first recording a lien.	Keep the nonpayment-notice date, lien-recording date, mailed copy, interest calculation, collection costs, and any court filing separate. None of these later steps is automatic merely because a bill is late.
Written payment plan	The customer must request a plan in writing and approval is discretionary. A plan may run up to 12 months; a tenant’s plan cannot extend beyond the earlier lease-term limit, renewals do not extend it, current charges must stay current, and default accelerates the balance and can authorize discontinuance.	Confirm the written request and decision, effective date, lease end where relevant, installment schedule, current bills, and default terms.
Good-faith written dispute	A customer may submit a written, good-faith dispute to the City manager within 10 days of bill receipt, identifying the charges and basis. Discontinuance for disputed charges is suspended during review and for 10 calendar days after the written determination; undisputed charges remain due.	Record receipt date, disputed charges, written basis, submission evidence, City determination, undisputed balance, and any corrected bill. Do not calculate a personal deadline from incomplete facts.

Meter and account boundary

Property type alone does not settle the connection or account treatment

The enacted text addresses separate commercial and industrial units, a narrow owner-occupied combined-use condition, apartment master meters, and access to utility connections. It does not establish from a property label alone who holds each account or receives each bill.

For an apartment complex with more than ten dwelling units, master metering remains a City determination—not an automatic conversion or a savings conclusion. Start with the actual provider, service address, account structure, meter record, unit arrangement, and any written director decision.

Collections sequence

Discontinuance, notice, interest, lien, and court action use different triggers

The ordinance states one potential discontinuance path tied to an unpaid late charge and arrears seven business days after the late fee is assessed, and a separate path when fees or charges remain more than 15 days past due. The stated rental-unit limitation must be checked against the service and occupancy facts.

The later collection path begins with prescribed mailed notice and its 30-calendar-day period. Interest and possible lien recording follow that condition; a possible foreclosure suit uses a separate 30-day period after lien recording. Treat every date and document as its own fact.

Two written paths

A payment-plan request and a bill dispute solve different problems

A requested payment plan addresses a delinquent balance and remains discretionary, time-limited, and conditioned on keeping current charges paid. A good-faith dispute identifies specified charges and a basis within the ordinance’s receipt-based window.

For a dispute, only discontinuance for the disputed charges is suspended during review and for the stated period after the written determination. Undisputed charges remain due. Use the City’s official written process; seek qualified Florida legal advice when rights, entity status, liens, access, or deadlines are contested.

Bill boundary

This ordinance is not a rate, savings, or product model

The adopted record does not establish a phased rate schedule, a usage-to-charge relationship, a sample commercial bill, or a Smart Valve result. Keep policy compliance and City procedures separate from the printed account and any later technical review.

A metered-use assessment can begin only after the provider, account, meter arrangement, billed usage and sewer linkage, operating need, policy compliance, and site feasibility are established from current records.

Decision checklist

What to gather before relying on a Longwood utility rule

1Confirm the provider, service address, account holder, printed customer class, property use, and separate or master meter arrangement.
2Preserve the complete bill, bill-receipt date, late-fee assessment, due date, disputed and undisputed charges, and any reconnection line.
3Keep every City notice, certified-mail record, written determination, director decision, lien record, and related response in date order.
4For a rental unit or tenant plan, verify the former occupant, service type, property ownership, lease term, and the conditions stated in the ordinance.
5Use Longwood’s official written process for a payment-plan request or good-faith bill dispute; do not send legal filings or unredacted sensitive records through a general contact form.
6Seek current written City guidance and qualified Florida legal advice when access, related-entity status, statutory protection, lien, foreclosure, or a disputed deadline matters.
7Separate the City-policy question from any later review of printed bill lines, metered use, sewer linkage, operating need, and technical feasibility.

Scope boundary

Where Smart Valve realistically fits

Smart Valve cannot change Longwood policy, rates, fixed charges, late charges, interest, liens, customer class, meter or access requirements, collection decisions, bill-dispute determinations, or payment-plan decisions.

This guide does not evaluate a product or promise a usage or bill result. A separate technical assessment may begin only after the actual provider, account, meter arrangement, billed use, policy compliance, and site feasibility are verified.

Track Southeast commercial utility decisions

Return to the regional watch for official rate, billing, meter, sewer, and operating-policy decisions.

Separate policy rules from printed bill lines

Identify the provider, customer class, fixed, usage-linked, sewer, penalty, and other account lines before analysis.

Prepare the Longwood account review

Gather the provider, account, meter, bills, notices, dates, and written City responses before a bill assessment.

Review the evidence and modeling boundary

See how official facts, source conflicts, analysis, assumptions, and open questions stay separate.

Primary source trail

Sources and retrieval details

City of Longwood: Amended Ordinance 26-2282

Effective: June 15, 2026Status checked: September 11, 2026Retrieved: September 11, 2026

Controlling enacted text for the intentional deletion of Section 2 and the retained connection, meter, access, late-charge, discontinuance, related-entity, notice, interest, lien, payment-plan, and written-dispute provisions. It establishes no phased rate table or account result.

Source URL: https://longwoodfl.api.civicclerk.com/v1/Meetings/GetAttachmentFile(fileId=2512) (opens in a new tab)

City of Longwood: Approved June 15, 2026 City Commission minutes

Published: Approved July 20, 2026Status checked: September 11, 2026Retrieved: September 11, 2026

Official meeting record confirming unanimous adoption of the amended ordinance after proposed utility rate and fee increases were removed. Staff may return with later recommendations; the minutes do not establish a future rate.

Source URL: https://longwoodfl.api.civicclerk.com/v1/Meetings/GetMeetingFileStream(fileId=1473,plainText=false) (opens in a new tab)

City of Longwood: Utility Rates

Status checked: September 11, 2026Retrieved: September 11, 2026

Current official page that still labels the phased water and wastewater tables pending approval of Ordinance 26-2282. It is included to explain the visible conflict and is not used as evidence of adopted, effective, or future rates.

Source URL: https://www.longwoodfl.org/176/Utility-Rates (opens in a new tab)

Editorial contact

Media & product inquiries

Send relevant corrections, launch information, approved assets, or testing opportunities to thesmartwatervalve@gmail.com. Contact does not guarantee coverage, favorable treatment, commercial placement, or a review.

Map the Longwood account before relying on a policy rule

Bring the provider and account holder, meter arrangement, property use, bill and notice dates, disputed and undisputed amounts, and written City responses. Redact account, payment, and personal identifiers before sharing documents.

Prepare the Longwood account review Request an actual-bill assessment