§ 68-221-409 — Permits required - Performance bond requirement - Sewer moratoriums - Disclosure upon transfer

(a) Any person proposing to construct, alter, extend or repair subsurface sewage disposal systems, or engage in the business of removing accumulated wastes from such systems, shall secure a permit from the commissioner, in accordance with this part and rules and regulations promulgated pursuant to this part. (b) If the permit of an installer of subsurface sewage disposal systems has been suspended or revoked after January 1, 2006, or if the department denies an application for renewal of a permit after January 1, 2006, and the permit is later reinstated or the installer later applies for a new permit, then to be eligible to receive such reinstated or new permit, the installer shall file with the commissioner a performance bond, or an irrevocable letter of credit, in the amount of thirty thousand dollars ($30,000), for the benefit of any person who hires the installer and is damaged because of any negligence or fraud by the installer. Any person so damaged may sue directly on the bond without assignment of the bond. Liability under any such bond may not exceed, in the aggregate, the amount of the bond. If the bond of such installer later ceases to be in effect, the permit of the installer shall become null and void, subject to reinstatement, if a new bond is provided. (c) (1) The commissioner shall not deny a permit for a subsurface sewage disposal system solely because a public sewer system is accessible if: (A) The department or a local government has placed a moratorium on additional connections to the public sewer system; and (B) The applicant submits documentation with the application for a permit that the applicant cannot connect, or has been delayed from connecting, to the public sewer system because of the moratorium. (2) For purposes of subdivision (c)(1)(B), a person has been delayed from connecting to a public sewer system because of a moratorium if the person has been placed on a waiting list by the public sewer system due to a moratorium. (d) In any transfer by sale, exchange, installment land sales contract, or lease with option to buy residential real property consisting of not less than one (1) nor more than four (4) dwelling units, including site-built and nonsite-built homes, for which a permit was issued under this part and a subsurface sewage disposal system installed, whether or not the transaction is consummated with the assistance of a licensed real estate broker or affiliate broker, the potential future obligation to connect to the public sewer system must be disclosed by the seller to the purchaser. The remedies for a failure to disclose are the same as those provided under title 66, chapter 5, part 2.

Legislative History

Amended by 2019 Tenn. Acts, ch. 116,s 1, eff. 4/9/2019. Acts 1973, ch. 188, § 7; T.C.A., § 53-2050; Acts 1986, ch. 735, § 5; T.C.A., § 68-13-409; Acts 2005, ch. 495, §§ 1 - 3; 2010, ch. 1032, § 21.