The Utility Fee of the City of Bijeljina and the Issue of Payment Deadlines

The Stevanović Law Office has been handling an increasing number of cases over the past few months related to enforcement proceedings initiated by the City of Bijeljina concerning the collection of the municipal utility fee. A large number of clients have had their funds blocked in personal and business accounts, while the city has demanded payment of this fee, often for a period of 10 years.

The Decision on the Utility Fee (published in the Official Gazette of the Municipality of Bijeljina No. 10/11, 24/11, and 9/12), which was later replaced by the Decision on the Utility Fee of the City of Bijeljina (Official Gazette of the City of Bijeljina No. 5/17), establishes the obligation to pay this fee for the use of facilities and devices for communal consumption, as well as the criteria for determining its amount.

Although this decision has been in force for a long time, public interest in the basis of this fee's collection has recently increased. The reason for this is that the City of Bijeljina has decided to enforce the fee based on administrative decisions issued by the Department of Housing, Communal Affairs, and Environmental Protection of the City of Bijeljina, dating back to 2013. The city has been attempting to collect these fees through the courts via forced collection procedures, primarily by seizing funds from citizens' transaction accounts or monthly salaries, which has caused additional financial burdens due to extra costs imposed on citizens.

Statute of Limitations on the Collection of the Utility Fee

The forced collection of this fee is legally valid, as confirmed by a decision of the Constitutional Court of Bosnia and Herzegovina regarding its constitutionality and legality. However, the amounts and time frames claimed in the initiated enforcement proceedings are excessive and exceed the legally permitted limits.

Every citizen should file an objection to the enforcement decision issued by the court, as the city is attempting to collect utility fees for a period of 10 years, despite the fact that these claims qualify as periodic payments, which expire within three years from the due date of each individual installment.

According to Article 379(2) of the Law on Obligations (Official Gazette of the SFRY No. 29/78, 39/85, 45/89, and 57/89, and Official Gazette of the Republic of Srpska No. 17/93, 3/96, 37/01, 39/03, and 74/04), claims for periodic payments determined by a final court decision or decision of another competent authority expire within the limitation period prescribed for periodic claims. Additionally, Article 372(1) of the Law on Obligations states that claims for periodic payments due annually or at shorter intervals expire within three years from the due date of each individual installment.

Key Legal Argument: The Three-Year Limitation Period

In this case, the utility fee qualifies as a periodic claim, with each individual installment due by the 15th of the month. Most of these claims have expired, as nearly 10 years have passed between the issuance of the original administrative decisions and the initiation of enforcement proceedings.

Thus, all claims older than three years at the time of enforcement are statute-barred. As a result, the recent enforcement decisions that have caused concern among citizens of Bijeljina are legally incorrect and unlawful, as they require payment for obligations that have already expired.

Legal Precedent in Favor of Citizens

The position that utility fee claims older than three years are time-barred has also been upheld by the District Court in Bijeljina in case No. 80 0 Ip 107424 21 Pž 2.

It is crucial that citizens of Bijeljina respond promptly and exercise their legitimate rights by filing the appropriate legal remedies. This will prevent them from being forced to pay obligations that are no longer legally valid due to the statute of limitations.

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"Standard Prva" LLC Bijeljina is a company registered in Bijeljina at the District Commercial Court in Bijeljina. Company’s activities are accountancy, repurchases of receivables, angel investing and other related services. Distressed debt is a part of the Group within which the company repurchases the receivables, which function and are not returned regularly.

Lawyer’s Office Stevanović is the leading lawyer’s office in the region with the seat in Bijeljina. The LO abbreviation represents Lawyer’s Office of Vesna Stevanović and Lawyer’s Office of Miloš Stevanović.

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