[Senate File No. 168.] CHAPTER 36. AN ACT to provide for the organization of sanitary districts, and to define their powers. Be it enacted by the Legislature of the State of of sanitary drainage SECTION 1. That whenever one or more muni- Organization cipal corporations may be situate upon a stream districts. which is bordered by lands subject to overflow from natural causes, or which is obstructed by dams or artificial obstructions so that the natural flow of waters is impeded, so that drainage or the improvement of the channel of such stream will conduce to the preservation of public health such municipal corporation or corporations, and the surrounding lands deleteriously affected by the condition of the stream, may be incorporated as a sanitary drainage district under this act, in the manner following: Any one hundred (100) legal voters, free- Petition. holders resident within the limits of such proposed sanitary district, may petition the county board of he county wherein they reside to cause the quesion to be submitted to the legal voters whether they will organize as a sanitary district under this ct, such petition shall contain a definite description f the territory intended to be embraced in such disrict according to government survey and the name f the proposed district, but no lands not included ithin any municipal corporation, or within three miles thereof, shall be included in any sanitary istrict, nor shall any lands not within an incorpo Hearing of petition. Election. Trustees. rated town be included within any sanitary district, unless the same be within three miles of the channel of such stream or of the area of lands subject to its overflow. Upon the filing of such petition in the office of the county board, it shall give notice in one or more newspapers daily, if there be a daily paper in said county, during twenty (20) days prior to such meeting, of the time and place where the petition will be heard. At the time so fixed the board shall meet and all persons in such proposed sanitary district shall have opportunity to be heard touching the location and boundary of the proposed district, and thereupon the county board shall by an order determine the boundaries of such district, whether described in such petition or otherwise. After such determination by the county board, or a majority of them, they shall call a special election and submit to the legal voters of the proposed sanitary district the question of the organization of such district, and notice in a daily paper, if there be one, shall be given of such election twenty days prior thereto. At such election each legal voter resident within the proposed sanitary district shall have a right to cast a ballot with the words thereon, "For sanitary district," or "Against sanitary district," and the ballots cast shall be received, returned, and canvassed in the manner as upon county elections, and the result shall be entered of record, and if a majority of the votes cast be in favor of the proposed district such proposed district shall be deemed an organized sanitary district under this act. SEC. 2. On the organization of any sanitary district the county board shall call an election for the election of three trustees, who shall hold their offices until their successors are elected and qualified, and annually at the November election in each year there shall be elected one trustee. At the first meeting after election of one or more. members, the board shall elect one of their number president, and in case they fail to elect, then the member who at his election received the highest number of votes shall be president of such board. Such district shall be a body corporate and politic District a body by name of Sanitary District of with power to sue, be sued, contract, acquire and hold property, and adopt a common seal. corporate. tees; clerk; engineer. SEC. 3. The board of trustees shall elect one of Powers of trus their members clerk and shall have power to appoint, employ, and pay an engineer, who shall be removable at pleasure. The clerk may be paid by said board not to exceed three hundred ($300) dollars per year. The board shall have power to pass all necessary ordinances, orders, rules and regulations for the necessary conduct of their business and for carrying into effect the objects for which such sanitary district is formed. SEC. 4. The board of trustees of any sanitary Drugs. district organized under this act shall have power to provide for the drainage of such district by laying out, establishing, maintaining, and constructing one or more channels, drains, or ditches for carrying off and disposing of the drainage and sewerage of such district in a satisfactory manner, and for such purpose to straighten, widen, or deepen the channel of any stream, or remove any dam, so as to quicken and improve the flow of any Eminent domain. Borrowing money; bonds; amount of stream or effect satisfactory and efficient drainage. SEC. 5. Such sanitary district may acquire by purchase, condemnation, or otherwise, real or personal property, right of way, and privilege, within or without its corporate limits, necessary for its corporate purposes. SEC. 6. Such district may borrow money for indebtedness. Corporate purpose and issue bonds therefor, at not more than six (6) per centum interest, but it shall not become indebted in any manner or for any purpose to an amount in the aggregate in excess of four (4) per centum of the assessed valuation of property in said district for county purposes. Vote on bonds. SEC. 7. At the time or before incurring any bonded indebtedness the question shall be submitted to the people in the manner provided by law in cases of borrowing money for internal improvements. Contracts for work. Taxes. SEC. 8. All contracts for work to be done, the expense of which is more than five hundred ($500) dollars, shall be let to the lowest responsible bidder, upon notice of not less than twenty days o the terms and conditions of the contract to be let and they shall have power to reject any and all bids and re-advertise for the letting of such work SEC. 9. The board of trustees may levy and collect annually taxes for corporate purposes upon property within the limits of such sanitary district to the amount of not more than five (5) mills o the valuation as assessed for state and county purposes, and shall, on or before the first day of Au gust in each year, certify the same to the county clerk, who shall extend the same upon the county tax list, and the same shall be. collected by the county treasurer in the same manner as state and county taxes, and the county treasurer shall dis- Warrants. burse the same on warrants of the board of trustees, and in respect to such fund the county treasurer shall be ex-officio treasurer of the sanitary district. SEC. 10. The board of trustees shall have General tax and special assessments for power to defray the expenses of any improvement improvements. made by it in the execution of the powers hereby granted, by special assessment, or by general taxation, or partly by special assessment and partly by general taxation, as they may by order determine. It shall constitute no defense to any tax or special assessment that the improvement for which the same is imposed lies partly outside the limits of such district. No property shall be specially assessed more than it is benefited by the improvement for which the assessment is levied. The proceedings for imposing of special assessment by said. board shall be, as near as may be, according to those for special assessments by the mayor and council under the act governing cities of the first class. special assessments. SEC. 11. Where any special assessment is made Payment of under this act, the order making such assessment may provide that it be divided into equal annual installments, not more than twenty in number, with interest at seven per cent, payable on the whole amount unpaid annually with the installment that year falling due, and in such case the several installments of principal and interest shall be collected and payment enforced in the same manner as delinquent taxes; and sale of the land |