1. (a) The ordinance establishing the initial rates or charges, either as:

   1. (1) originally introduced; or

   2. (2) modified and amended;

      shall be passed and put into effect after the hearing.

2. (b) A copy of the schedule of the rates and charges established must be:

   1. (1) kept on file in the office of the district; and
   2. (2) open to public inspection.

3. (c) Whenever the board acts under section 8(b) of this chapter, to change or readjust the rates and charges, the board shall mail or electronically share, either separately or along with a periodic billing statement, a notice of the new rates and charges to each user affected by the change or readjustment. In the case of a sewage district, if the change or readjustment increases the rates and charges by the amount specified in section 15(c) of this chapter, the notice required by this subsection:

   1. (1) must include a statement of a ratepayer's rights under section 15 of this chapter; and
   2. (2) shall be mailed or electronically shared within the time specified in section 15(c) of this chapter.

4. (d) Following the passage of an ordinance under subsection (a), the lesser of fifty (50) or ten percent (10%) of the ratepayers of the district may file a written petition objecting to the initial rates and charges of the district. A petition filed under this subsection must:

   1. (1) contain the name and address of each petitioner;
   2. (2) be filed with a member of the district authority, in the county where at least one (1) petitioner resides, not later than thirty (30) days after the district adopts the ordinance; and
   3. (3) set forth the grounds for the ratepayers' objection.

5. (e) The district authority shall set the matter for public hearing not less than ten (10) business days but not later than twenty (20) business days after the petition has been filed. The district authority shall:

   1. (1) send notice of the hearing:

      1. (A) by certified mail; or

      2. (B) electronically;

         to the district and the first listed petitioner; and

   2. (2) publish the notice of the hearing:

      1. (A) in a newspaper of general circulation in each county in the district; or
      2. (B) in an electronic manner that maximizes notice of the hearing to the impacted individuals.

6. (f) Upon the date fixed in the notice, the district authority shall hear the evidence produced and determine the following:

   1. (1) Whether the board of trustees of the district, in adopting the ordinance establishing sewer rates and charges, followed the procedure required by this chapter.
   2. (2) Whether the sewer rates and charges established by the board by ordinance are just and equitable rates and charges, according to the standards set forth in section 9 of this chapter.

7. (g) After the district authority hears the evidence produced and makes the determinations set forth in subsection (f), the district authority, by a majority vote, shall:

   1. (1) sustain the ordinance establishing the rates and charges;
   2. (2) sustain the petition; or
   3. (3) make any other ruling appropriate in the matter, subject to the standards set forth in section 9 of this chapter.

8. (h) The order of the district authority may be appealed by the district or a petitioner to the circuit court, superior court, or probate court of the county in which the district is located. The court shall try the appeal without a jury and shall determine one (1) or both of the following:

   1. (1) Whether the board of trustees of the district, in adopting the ordinance establishing sewer rates and charges, followed the procedure required by this chapter.

   2. (2) Whether the sewer rates and charges established by the board by ordinance are just and equitable rates and charges, according to the standards set forth in section 9 of this chapter.

      Either party may appeal the circuit court's, superior court's, or probate court's decision in the same manner that other civil cases may be appealed.

      [Pre-1996 Recodification Citation: 13-3-2-25(e).]

As added by P.L.1-1996, SEC.16. Amended by P.L.123-2011, SEC.4; P.L.97-2012, SEC.13; P.L.84-2016, SEC.67; P.L.27-2024, SEC.12.