Ch. 184) Bonds-Taxes 419 paying to the clerk the customary cost thereof, and the appeal in the district court shall be heard and tried as a case in equity and the appellant and appellee shall file such pleadings therein. as is provided for in appeals from justice of the peace courts to the district court and within the same time as is provided for filing pleadings in such last named appeals. Sec. 7. Correcting assessment.-In cases of omission, mistake, defect or other irregularity in the proceedings to assess any such special benefit the board upon giving the same notice as is provided for in this act respecting the levy in the first instance thereof, shall have power to correct any such omission, mistake, defect or other irregularity, and to levy or relevy, as the case may be, such special assessments, in accordance with the special benefits to the property, and shall have power to deduct from any relevy or reassessment, as a credit, any amount which any property owner may have paid on the assessment before such relevy thereof. Sec. 8. County aid-tax.-To provide for the carrying out of this act and to meet and defray or aid in paying the contemplated cost of any such road or boulevard improvement, over and above the amount to be realized from the special assessment which may be levied as hereinbefore provided, the board shall have power to submit, at any general or special election, to the qualified voters of any such county a proposition or question to vote general county bonds to bear interest not to exceed five per cent per annum and in such an amount and to run for such time or times as the board may determine to submit, but at the same time and in connection with the submission of such question the board must also submit to the voters the question or proposition of authorizing and empowering the board to levy, annually, a tax sufficient to pay the interest on such bonds as it falls due, and the question and notice of election must state the total amount of such bonds, the rate of interest, the time such bonds shall run, and he purpose for which they shall be issued; and if a majority of all the votes cast on such proposition be in favor thereof then the county board shall have power to issue such bonds and levy such interest tax, and although the board shall have the right and power to submit at one election, to the voters the question to issue any amount of such bonds yet not more than five hundred thousand dollars of such bonds shall be issued and sold in any one year and none of such bonds shall. be issued and sold unless and until the board shall have finally established the road improvement district or districts hereinbefore provided for. The board shall have power to call a special election at which to submit such question. Sec. 9. Use of federal funds-when.-Such board shall also possess the power to obtain and use for the purpose of paying the remainder of the cost of any such road improvement, over and above the amount realized from the special assessments herein before provided for, any funds which it can obtain from the national government under any law or appropriation passed and made for the purpose of aiding the improvement of roads or highways within the state, and also any funds obtained or obtainable from state funds provided for the improvement or to aid in the improvement of roads, highways or boulevards, and shall also have the power to use and apply to defray such cost of making any such road improvement any donation the county may receive for that purpose. Sec. 10. Emergency. Whereas, an emergency exists, this act shall be in force and effect from and after its passage. Approved, April 24, 1917. CHAPTER 185. (House Roll No. 722.) [Introduced by Committee on Roads and Bridges.] AN ACT to comply with the terms of the Federal Aid Road Act, approved July 11, 1916, to provide a State Aid Road Fund, to appropriate same, to provide for procedure in connection therewith, and to repeal Section 9 of Chapter 54 of the Session Laws of 1915. Be It Enacted by the People of the State of Nebraska: Section 1. Federal aid to highways-accepted.-Assent is hereby given to the provisions of an Act of Congress entitled "An act to provide that the United States shall aid the States in the construction of rural post roads and for other purposes" approved July 11, 1916, and the good faith of the State is hereby Ch. 185) Road Funds-Appropriation 421 pledged to provide funds sufficient to carry out the provisions of said Act. Sec. 2. Special road fund tax-appropriation of.-For the purpose of carrying out the provisions of this Act a tax of sixtyfive one hundredths of one mill on each dollar of the assessed valuation of the grand assessment roll of the State shall be levied for the years 1917 and 1918 and there is hereby appropriated out of the fund realized from said levy the sum of $320,000 to be expended during the year 1917 and the sum of $320,000 to be expended during the year 1918; provided that if any part of the sum so appropriated shall not be expended during the year for which it is appropriated it shall be available for use in any subsequent year. The funds herein appropriated shall be placed by the Auditor of Public Accounts and the State Treasurer to the credit of a fund to be known as the State Aid Road Fund and warrants not exceeding the amounts herein appropriated shall be drawn by the Auditor upon certificates presented by the State Board of Irrigation, Highways and Drainage, and warrants so drawn shall be paid by the State Treasurer. Sec. 3. Road fund-how used.-The State Board of Irrigation, Highways and Drainage, shall have power to use the funds herein provided for the purpose of aiding in the construction and improvement of public roads, highways and bridges in the State of Nebraska, and to that end shall co-operate with the counties within the State and with the Federal Government. Said roads, highways and bridges shall always remain free from tolls for use of the public. Sec. 4. Engineering cost. The proceeds of the levy herein shall be used exclusively for the purpose of aiding in the construction or improvement of roads and bridges in the State of Nebraska in conjunction with the money apportioned to the State from the Federal Government under the Federal Aid Road Act of July 11, 1916, and the cost of engineering and supervision by the State Board of Irrigation, Highways and Drainage shall not exceed five per centum of the total cost of the work. Sec. 5. Apportionment of fund.-The State Aid Road Fund, and the money apportioned to the State from the Federal Government under the Federal Aid Road Act of July 11, 1916, shall be apportioned among the several counties as follows: One-third in the ratio which the area of each county bears to the total area of the state: One-third in the ratio which the mileage of rural delivery and star routes in each county bears to the total mileage of rural delivery and star routes in the state; One-third in the ratio which the population of each county bears to the total population of the state. The ratio of population between the counties shall be determined by the number of votes cast in the respective counties for Governor at the General Election of 1916. Sec. 6. Federal aid districts.-The State Board of Irrigation, Highways and Drainage shall divide the State into project districts not exceeding five counties in any one district, in such a manner as in its judgment will best utilize the State Aid Road Fund available each year, as well as the money apportioned to the state from the Federal Government under the Federal Aid Road Act of July 11, 1916. Before submitting any project statement to the Secretary of Agriculture, as provided for in the Federal Aid Road Act, the same shall have received the approval of the county board of each county within the project district. The State Board of Irrigation, Highways and Drainage, at any time prior to the approval of the project by the county boards of the counties within the project district, may change the boundaries of any project district, as it may deem advisable; provided the funds available for all of the counties in each project district shall be considered as a unit for such district, and the work of construction or improvement of roads for each district shall begin in any part or parts of such district at the place or places designated by the State Board of Irrigation, Highways and Drainage, and whenever the work in any project district is completed, the amount of the fund apportioned to each county shall have been expended in the construction or improvement of roads and bridges within said county, or in the event that all of the apportionment for each county is not used in the construction or improvement of the roads outlined in the project district plans for such county, the unused funds shall be used in the construction or improvement of such other roads within the county as the county board and the State Board of Irrigation, Highways and Drainage may agree upon and which receive the approval of the Secretary of Agriculture. Ch. 185) Acceptance Taxes 423 Sec. 7. County acceptance.-Before any of the funds provided in this act shall be expended in any county in this state the county board shall, by resolution in such form as may be prescribed by the State Board of Irrigation, Highways and Drainage, accept the provisions of this act and set aside or provide for funds for the maintenance of such roads when constructed or improved and pledge the good faith and credit of the county to provide for the continued maintenance thereof. If at any time the State Board of Irrigation, Highways and Drainage shall find that any road in any county constructed or improved under the provisions of this act is not being properly maintained it shall give notice of such fact to the County Board of such county and if within two months from the receipt. of such notice said road has not been put in proper condition of maintenance then the State Board of Irrigation, Highways and Drainage shall thereafter refuse to approve any project or proceed with any road construction or improvement in said county until it has been put in a proper condition of main tenance. Sec. 8. County special tax-bonds.-Any county desiring to use a greater sum of money upon the roads within the county than is made available under the provisions of this act and the Federal Aid Road Act of July 11, 1916, may use other available county road funds or proceed to vote upon the question of issuing bonds or making a special levy of not to exceed five mills for such purpose in the same manner as is provided in Sections 2997, 2998, 2999 and 3000 of Article V of Chapter 28 of the Revised Statutes of Nebraska for 1913, in voting for bridge bonds. Subject to the approval of the State Board of Irrigation, Highways and Drainage, any other funds, whether in the form of donations, inheritance taxes, license fees, special assessments or otherwise, may be used in conjunction with the funds in this act provided for. Sec. 9. Repeal.-Section 9 of Chapter 54 of the Session Laws of 1915 is hereby repealed. Approved, April 19, 1917. |