Jung v. City of Phoenix

770 P.2d 339, 160 Ariz. 35, 1987 Ariz. App. LEXIS 673
CourtCourt of Appeals of Arizona
DecidedFebruary 24, 1987
DocketNo. 1 CA-CIV 8692
StatusPublished
Cited by4 cases

This text of 770 P.2d 339 (Jung v. City of Phoenix) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Court of Appeals of Arizona primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Jung v. City of Phoenix, 770 P.2d 339, 160 Ariz. 35, 1987 Ariz. App. LEXIS 673 (Ark. Ct. App. 1987).

Opinion

OPINION

EUBANK, Presiding Judge.

Appellants, customers of the Phoenix Water Department who live outside the Phoenix city limits, brought this action against appellees pursuant to 42 U.S.C. §§ 1983 and 1988 seeking damages and injunctive relief on the ground that their water rates were twice those charged to city residents. The City moved to dismiss appellants’ complaint pursuant to Rule 12(b)(1), (2) and (6), Arizona Rules of Civil Procedure. The trial court granted the motion to dismiss and entered formal judgment for the City. The trial court later denied appellants’ motion for new trial or reconsideration, and this appeal followed.

On appeal from the granting of a motion to dismiss for failure to state a claim upon [36]*36which relief may be granted, we assume that the allegations of the complaint are true. Donnelly Construction Company v. Oberg/Hunt/Gilleland, 139 Ariz. 184, 677 P.2d 1292 (1984); Chirco Construction Co., Inc. v. Stewart Title and Trust of Tucson, 129 Ariz. 187, 629 P.2d 1023 (App.1981). Appellants’ complaint alleged that at all times material to the litigation the City maintained two separate rate structures for water and standby fire prevention services, one for customers located within the geographic boundaries of Phoenix and, with two exceptions not material here, another for all customers outside those boundaries. Phoenix City Code §§ 37-63 and 37-64. The outside rates were alleged to be twice the inside rates.

The complaint further alleged that appellants represented a class composed of all persons subject to the outside rates who had received and paid for, or were currently receiving and paying for, water or standby fire prevention services at the outside rates. The complaint alleged that the City was the sole provider of water and standby fire prevention services within the physical boundaries of its water system, and that, as a practical matter, no other source of such services was available to the members of the class. The complaint also asserted that appellants and the members of the class had been “denied the opportunity for any meaningful participation in the enactment and implementation of the CITY’S water and standby fire prevention services rates ordinances.”

The complaint additionally alleged that by enacting and implementing those ordinances, the City denied appellants and the members of the class their rights to due process of law and equal protection of the law pursuant to the fourteenth amendment to the United States Constitution. The complaint sought damages "equal to the amount by which the charges billed to them by the CITY under the authority of said ordinances exceeds the amount the CITY would have billed for similar services inside the CITY.” The complaint also sought injunctive relief prohibiting the City from adopting, implementing or enforcing any water or standby fire prevention rate ordinances that discriminate among customers based on their location within or outside Phoenix and from adopting, implementing or enforcing any such ordinance in a manner which does not afford due process of law to all affected customers. Finally, an award of attorney’s fees was sought pursuant to 42 U.S.C. § 1988.

In dismissing appellants’ complaint, the trial court reasoned:

The City contends that the Court lacks jurisdiction to review the reasonableness of water rates charged by the City to non-residents of the City and also contends that Plaintiffs have failed to comply with the procedural requirements of submitting a claim against the City. On the substantive issue, the City relies heavily on the Supreme Court case of City of Phoenix v. Kasun, 54 Ariz. 470 [97 P.2d 210] (1939) and subsequent cases citing Kasun. Plaintiffs argue that Kasun is distinguishable or that certain changes since Kasun, most notably a change in the Phoenix City Code and the enactment of ARS Section 9-516 in 1964, which should result in the conclusion that Plaintiffs’ Complaint states a viable claim. Plaintiffs disclaim any intent to have the Court act as the rate-making authority for non-resident water users.- However, in order to grant the relief requested by the Complaint, the Court would have to rule that the proper rate to be charged non-resident water users is the rate charged to resident water users. Thus, the Court would be setting the rate for non-resident water users.
Based upon a review of the applicable precedents, the Court is convinced it lacks such rate-making authority or jurisdiction notwithstanding the requirements imposed upon the municipalities by ARS Section 9-516. Accordingly, IT IS ORDERED granting Defendants’ Motion to Dismiss the Complaint. Having reached this conclusion, it is unnecessary for the Court to decide whether the Plaintiffs have complied with the procedural requirements for bringing this claim. (Emphasis added).

Initially, we disagree with the trial court concerning the scope and effect of City of Phoenix v. Kasun, 54 Ariz. 470, 97 P.2d [37]*37210 (1939). In that case the City of Phoenix adopted an ordinance increasing the water rates to be charged to water consumers outside the city limits of Phoenix. Plaintiffs, who were affected by the ordinance, brought an action seeking to enjoin its enforcement. The theory of the complaint was that the ordinance raising the outside water rate was void because the amount sought to be charged was “exorbitant, excessive, oppressive, unreasonable and confiscatory.” 54 Ariz. at 472, 97 P.2d at 211. The trial court denied the City’s motion to dismiss the complaint and issued a temporary injunction prohibiting the collection of water charges pursuant to the ordinance. On appeal by the City, the Arizona Supreme Court reversed, holding that the trial court lacked jurisdiction to review the challenged water rates. The court noted it was established that a municipality had the right to sell water to consumers residing both within and outside the city, and that in doing so it was subject to rate regulation only by the legislature and not by the Arizona Corporation Commission. The court stated:

Was the service which the City of Phoenix rendered to plaintiffs and those in like situation with them, based upon contract or law? If it was based upon a legal right, regardless of contract, by all the decisions the courts may determine whether the terms on which he obtains this service are reasonable or not. On the other hand, if his right to receive service is based solely on a voluntary contract with the City, then that contract is subject to review by the courts only in the same manner as any other private contract, and it is not for them to determine whether its provisions are arbitrary, unreasonable or discriminatory.

54 Ariz. at 476, 97 P.2d at 213. The court concluded:

After a careful consideration of all the authorities,

Free access — add to your briefcase to read the full text and ask questions with AI

Related

Fidelty Security Life Insurance v. State
935 P.2d 861 (Court of Appeals of Arizona, 1997)
Jung v. City of Phoenix
770 P.2d 342 (Arizona Supreme Court, 1989)

Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
770 P.2d 339, 160 Ariz. 35, 1987 Ariz. App. LEXIS 673, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/jung-v-city-of-phoenix-arizctapp-1987.