Chapter
141
2006 -- H 7933
Enacted 06/16/06
A N A C T
RELATING
TO THE SEWER SYSTEM OF THE TOWN OF MIDDLETOWN
Introduced
By: Representatives Rice, and Long
Date
Introduced: March 23, 2006
It is enacted by the General Assembly as
follows:
SECTION 1.
Sections 9(a), 10, by adding subsection 10(d) and 11 in Chapter 1103 of
the 1941 Public Laws entitled "An Act to
Create a Sewer Commission for the Town of
Middletown and to Authorize said Town to
Construct and Maintain a Sewer System" as amended,
are further amended to read as follows:
Sec. 9. (a) Fees,
charges and assessments generally. The town council shall prescribe
annual just and equitable charges to be charged
all users of the sewage system, all owners of land
abutting upon that portion of any street or
highway or right of way in which sewers have been
constructed under the provisions of this
chapter, all owners of land abutting upon that portion of
any public street, highway or right of way in
which sewers have been constructed otherwise than
under this chapter, and all users of such other
sewers. The charges to owners of such abutting
land as do not use the sewers shall be less than
those charged to users of the sewers and shall be
at a uniform rate for each front footage of land
abutting on such street or highway or right of way;
provided, however, that a minimum rate may be
established for any lot of land having a front
footage of less than fifty (50) feet, which rate
may be equal to that charged for a lot with a front
footage of fifty (50) feet; and, provided,
further, that a higher rate per front footage may be
charged for a lot of land upon which a dwelling
house is located than for an unimproved lot of
land. Such annual charges shall be sufficient at
all times to pay the cost of and are hereby
appropriated to the construction, capital
improvement, debt service, operation, maintenance and
repair of the sewerage works, including sewers
constructed in public streets, highways or rights of
way otherwise than under this chapter as the
town council deems appropriate. There shall be
established and created a separate capital
improvements contingency account. There shall be
credited to the capital improvements contingency
account the sum of one hundred thousand
dollars ($100,000) each year until said account
aggregates the sum of five hundred thousand
dollars ($500,000) and thereafter no payments
shall be made into said capital improvements
contingency account except whenever money is
paid out of said account, payments into said
account shall be resumed and continued until
such time as the account has been again restored to
the aggregate amount of five hundred thousand
dollars ($500,000). The money in said account
shall be used to pay for major repair and/or
replacement of components of the sewer system, such
major repair or replacement being defined as a
repair or replacement which exceeds in total cost
the sum of twenty-five thousand dollars ($25,000), except
that funds held in said account to the
extent necessary to prevent or remedy a default
in the payment of the interest on or principal of
bonds herein authorized shall be used and held
for use for that purpose and shall be transferred to
the bond and interest fund account and whenever
such transfer is made, the amount so transferred
shall be added to the next deposit to be made,
and thereafter until full reimbursement of said
account has been made.
Sec. 10(d) Time
and Method of payment. Such annual charges shall be due and payable
at the time the regular town taxes are first due
and payable next after the date of receipt by the
town treasurer of the aforesaid certificate of
said annual charges from the town council and the
town treasurer shall forthwith certify said
charges to the tax collector for collection and the tax
collector shall proceed to collect such charges
in the manner and at the same time the regular
taxes of the town are first payable, with provision
for installments as in the case of the regular
taxes. Interest at the rate per annum fixed for
nonpayment of town taxes shall be charged and
collected upon all overdue charges from the date
they become due and payable until paid.
Sec. 11. If the
receipts from the annual charges provided for in section 9 or referred to in
section 22 of this chapter amount in any year to
more than is required for the purposes thereof,
the surplus shall be credited to the annual charges
of the next succeeding year. Provided that this
section shall be construed to require the credit
of funds from the capital improvements
contingency account only to the extent such
account exceeds in the aggregate of five hundred
thousand dollars ($500,000). If said receipts in any
year, including any surplus added in any
preceding year, amount to less than is required
for the aforesaid purposes, the deficiency shall be
added to the annual charges of the next
succeeding year unless the electors in town meeting order
the town council to make a special sewer
assessment upon those subject to the annual charges in
an amount sufficient to satisfy such deficiency.
Such special sewer assessment shall be made
immediately thereafter by the town council and
shall be at rates proportionate to the annual
charges and in an amount sufficient to satisfy
such deficiency. In prescribing annual charges for
the next succeeding year, any surplus or
deficiency under this paragraph shall be credited or
added pro rata among the annual charges for
items other than debt service, the annual charges for
district one (1) debt service and the annual
charges for district two (2) debt service and the
surplus or deficiency shall e taken to be in the
amount estimated by the town council at the time
of such prescription.
When the town
council shall have completed said special sewer assessments ordered by
the electors as aforesaid, it shall sign and
deliver a certified copy of said special sewer
assessments to the town treasurer who shall
forthwith certify said assessments to the tax collector.
Within ten (1) days thereafter the tax collector
shall give notice to the owners of lands so assessed
of such sewer assessment by advertisement in
some public newspaper published in the city of
Newport and said tax collector shall without
further warrant collect said sewer assessments at the
times directed by this chapter. Each special
assessment made by the town council pursuant to this
section shall be a lien upon the lands,
buildings and improvements upon which it is made in the
same way and manner as taxes assessed on real
estate but such lien shall not expire until the
assessment with all interest, costs and
penalties thereon is paid in full, and such special
assessments shall be due and payable at the time
regular town taxes or installments thereof are
first due and payable next after receipt by the
town treasurer of said certified copy of said
assessment, without provision for installment
payment of said assessments. If said assessments
are not paid as required by this chapter, they
shall be collected in the same manner that regular
taxes assessed on real estate are by law
collected. Interest at the rate per annum fixed for
nonpayment of the regular town taxes shall be
charged and collected upon all overdue
assessments from the date they become payable
until they are paid.
SECTION 2. This
act shall take effect upon passage.
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LC02795
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