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The following opinion is presented on-line for informational use only and does not replace the official version. (Mich Dept of Attorney General Web Site - www.ag.state.mi.us) STATE OF MICHIGAN FRANK J. KELLEY, ATTORNEY GENERAL Opinion No. 6366 June 3, 1986 MOBILE HOMES AND MOBILE HOME PARKS: Individual meters and billings for mobile home users of township water system TOWNSHIPS: Installation of individual meters for mobile home park users of water system Individual billings for mobile home park users of water system WATER SUPPLY: Installation of individual meters for mobile home park users of township water system Individual billing for mobile home park users of township water system Assuming compliance with the township ordinance for installation of water meters, a township would be required to permit the installation of individual water meters for mobile home water users of the township water system. A township is required to render separate and individual billings to each mobile home water user, based upon volumes recorded on each of the separate meters installed. Honorable Art Miller, Jr. State Senator The Capitol Lansing, Michigan You have requested my opinion in relation to the installation of water meters and billing for water service within a township. You state that a licensed, rental-type mobile home park located in the Township of Washington, Macomb County, is served by the township's municipal water and sanitary sewer system. The township presents a single bill to the park owner for water and sewer service rendered to the park owner's tenants, pursuant to volumes measured by a single master water meter. In regard to your question, you cite the Revenue Bond Act of 1933, MCL 141.121; MSA 5.2751, which provides, in part: 'Charges for services furnished to a premises may be a lien on the premises, and those charges delinquent for 6 months or more may be certified annually to the proper tax assessing officer or agency who shall enter the lien on the next tax roll against the premises to which the services shall have been rendered, and the charges shall be collected and the lien shall be enforced in the same manner as provided for the collection of taxes assessed upon the roll and the enforcement of the lien for the taxes. The time and manner of certification and other details in respect to the collection of the charges and the enforcement of the lien shall be prescribed by the ordinance adopted by the governing body of the public corporation. However, in a case when a tenant is responsible for the payment of the charges and the governing body is so notified in writing, the notice to include a true copy of the lease of the affected premises, if there be one, then the charges shall not become a lien against the premises after the date of the notice. In the event of filing of the notice, the public corporation shall render no further service to the premises until a cash deposit in a sum fixed in the ordinance authorizing the issuance of bonds under this act is made as security for the payment of the charges.' [Emphasis added.] Your first question is: 'Assuming that the mobile home park owner complies with the requirements of the underlined portion of Section 21 above, is the township then required to permit installation of separate and individual water meters to each mobile home served?' Townships have only those powers which are conferred by law. Hanslovsky v Twp of Leland, 281 Mich 652; 275 NW 720 (1937). MCL 141.104; MSA 5.2734, empowers townships to purchase, acquire, construct, improve, enlarge, extend, or repair a water supply system and a sewage disposal system, and to own, operate, and maintain the same. Seltzer v Sterling Twp, 371 Mich 214, 219; 123 NW2d 722, 724 (1963). In addition, MCL 141.106; MSA 5.2736, provides that a township 'may adopt an ordinance relating to the exercise of the powers granted in this act and to other matters necessary or desirable to effectuate this act, to provide for the adequate operation of a public improvement established under this act, and to insure the security of bonds issued.' MCL 141.121; MSA 5.2751, deals primarily with the fixing of rates, methods by which a municipality may enforce the payment of charges for water and sewer service furnished to a premises and, under certain circumstances, a means by which the responsibility for the payment of charges for water and sewer service may be shifted to a tenant. The section does not itself impose any specific requirements as to the methods by which a municipality must monitor the usage of its system by its customers or how it should install its meters to accomplish said monitoring. The Revenue Bond Act of 1933 grants the township extensive authority to provide by ordinance for the operation of its water and sewage system including the method of metering usage to various premises. A review of the Washington Township Sewer and Water Ordinance indicates, pursuant to section 81.04.02 thereof, that upon proper application for a permit, payment of the fees involved and compliance with certain other requirements of the ordinance for the installation of a water meter, any person may have a water meter installed. The Michigan Court of Appeals, in finding the City of Grandville's ordinance regulating its water and sewer system valid and constitutional, stated, in part: 'Modern trailer parks afford modern living accommodations for many of the families in America today, and should not be classified other than dwellings or residences. The fact that there is only one meter servicing the 150 trailers is a convenience and saving of expense to the trailer owners as well as the city of Grandville.' Land v City of Grandville, 2 Mich App 681, 696-697; 141 NW2d 370, 377 (1966). Earlier therein the court stated: 'Plaintiffs could have had separate meters installed for each of the 150 trailer units and each of the 16 motel units upon payment of connection charges as provided in said [city] ordinance.' Land v City of Grandville, at 686. In a Texas case brought by a landlord against the City of Galveston to require the city to install a separate and distinct meter and water service for each of the landlord's tenants, the court concluded: 'That the city of Galveston, in undertaking to furnish water to the inhabitants thereof, subjected itself to the same liabilities in its relation to them growing out of the service that a private corporation so engaged would do; (2) that one of these obligations or duties is, upon proper request, to meter the water used by tenants occupying distinct tenements or storehouses (as in the instant case), read the meters, and collect directly from the tenants; (3) that, in so far as the ordinance to which we have referred undertakes to deny this service to the inhabitants of Galveston, it is unreasonable and void.' City of Galveston v Kenner, 111 Tex 484, 488; 240 SW 894, 895 (1922). It is my opinion, in answer to your first question, that assuming compliance with the township ordinance for installation of water meters, the township would be required to permit the installation of individual water meters. Your second question is: 'Is the township thereafter required to render separate and individual billings to each mobile home water user, based upon the volumes recorded on each of the separate meters?' Your question assumes that separate meters have been installed for each of the mobile home units so that it would be possible to individually monitor water usage by each mobile home and to separately charge and bill based on said usage. On the basis of the existence of the ordinance provision 81.04.02, it is clear from the language of MCL 141.121; MSA 5.2751, that where it can be demonstrated that a tenant is responsible for the payment of charges for water service to a premises, the burden of paying said charges could be shifted from the property owner or landlord to the tenant. It is my opinion, in response to your second question, that the township is required to render separate and individual billings to each mobile home water user, based upon the volumes recorded on each of the separate meters installed. Frank J. Kelley Attorney General
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