May 8, 2018, Introduced by Rep. Hughes and referred to the Committee on Local Government.
A bill to amend 1956 PA 40, entitled
"The drain code of 1956,"
by amending section 72 (MCL 280.72), as amended by 1987 PA 60.
THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF MICHIGAN ENACT:
Sec. 72. (1) As soon as practicable after the filing of a
petition, the commissioner authorized to act on the petition, if
not disqualified under section 381 to make the apportionment of
benefits,
may appoint a board of determination. composed of 3
disinterested
property owners. If the
commissioner is disqualified
or chooses not to appoint the board of determination, the
commissioner shall immediately file a copy of the petition with the
chairperson of the county board of commissioners, together with a
statement,
signed by the commissioner, showing that he or she is
disqualified or chooses not to act in appointing a board of
determination.
Upon As soon as
practicable after receiving a copy
of the petition and certificate, the chairperson of the county
board
of commissioners, if not privately interested, as soon as
practicable,
unless he or she has a
conflict of interest, shall
appoint
a board of determination composed of 3 disinterested
property
owners and shall immediately notify
the drain commissioner
of the names and addresses of those appointed. If the chairperson
of
the board of commissioners has a private conflict of interest in
the proceedings, the drain committee of the county board of
commissioners
shall appoint the board of determination. Members of
boards
of determination shall be residents of the county but not of
a
township, city, or village affected by the drain, and may not be
members
of the county board of commissioners of the county.
(2) A board of determination shall consist of 3 members. The
officer or committee specified in subsection (1) shall select the
members by random draw from a permanent pool. The pool shall
consist of 1 individual appointed by the legislative body of each
city, village, and township in the county. A pool member appointed
by the legislative body of a municipality affected by a drain
project shall be excluded from the pool for the purposes of the
random draw for a board of determination for that project. To be
eligible for appointment to the pool and service on a board of
determination, an individual must be a disinterested owner of
property in and a resident of the appointing municipality and must
not be a member of the county board of commissioners. A pool member
shall serve at the pleasure of the appointing legislative body.
However, a new pool member appointed by a legislative body shall
not replace a pool member on an existing board of determination
unless the legislative body, after notice and an opportunity for a
hearing, has removed the pool member for misfeasance, malfeasance,
or nonfeasance in office.
(3)
A The drain commissioner shall call a meeting of the board
of
determination shall be called at
a convenient place within the
drainage
district at a convenient place to be designated by the
drain
commissioner. The board of determination meeting also may be
held
or at a public building within the city, village, or
township
in
which the drain is located. If 1 of those an individual
appointed to the board of determination fails or refuses to serve,
the
drain commissioner officer
or committee specified in subsection
(1)
shall appoint a successor. The per diem
compensation , and the
mileage ,
and expenses of and expense
reimbursements for a member
of the board of determination shall be the same as the county board
of commissioners of the county. In counties where commissioners are
not
paid on a per diem basis, the compensation , and the mileage ,
and
expenses expense
reimbursements shall be fixed set by
the drain
commissioner. The members of the board of determination shall not
receive more than 1 per diem for a day no matter how many separate
matters are considered on that day. Upon request of a state
legislator who represents the area in which the proposed drain
improvement is to be constructed, the county drain commissioner
shall
inform the legislator in writing the requesting state
legislator
who represents that portion of the area in which the
proposed
drain improvement is to be constructed of the names and
addresses
of the persons individuals
appointed to a board of
determination.
(4) (2)
The drain commissioner shall give
public notice of the
time, date, and place of the meeting of the board of determination
in
the manner required by the open meetings act, Act No. 267 of the
Public
Acts of 1976, as amended, being sections 15.261 to 15.275 of
the
Michigan Compiled Laws, and 1976
PA 267, MCL 15.261 to 15.275.
The commissioner shall also give notice, not less than 10 days
before
the meeting, by publication all of the following means:
(a) Publication in a newspaper of general circulation in the
county. at
least 10 days before the meeting. Notice also shall be
served
(b) Service on the county clerk and on the clerk of each
township, city, and village in the district, personally or by
registered
mail. , at least 10 days before the meeting. The drain
commissioner
also shall send notice, by first class mail, of the
time,
date, and place of the meeting, to
(c) Service by first-class mail on each person whose name
appears on the last city, village, or township tax assessment roll
as owning land within the special assessment district, at the
address shown on the roll. If an address does not appear on the
roll, a notice need not be mailed to the person. The drain
commissioner shall make an affidavit of the mailing and shall
recite
in the affidavit that the persons to whom the notice was
mailed
constitute to all of the persons whose names and addresses
appear
upon the tax rolls as owning land within the particular
special
assessment district. The affidavit shall be is conclusive
proof that notice was mailed to each person to whom notice is
required
to be mailed pursuant to under
this section. The failure
to
receive a notice by mail shall not constitute is not a
jurisdictional defect invalidating a drain proceeding or tax, or
both, if notice has been sent by first class mail as provided in
this
section. subdivision.
(5) Expenses of notification shall be paid by the drainage
district when created.
(6) (3)
At the time and place fixed specified in the notice,
the board of determination shall meet, elect a chairperson and
secretary,
and, proceed to after considering the evidence offered,
determine the necessity of the proposed drain and whether the drain
is conducive to public health, convenience, or welfare. The board
of determination, if it considers it necessary, shall require the
county drain commissioner to obtain from the county treasurer a
statement showing the amount of taxes and special assessments
levied against the land in the proposed drainage district on the
tax rolls for the immediately preceding 3 years and the amount of
the taxes and assessments remaining unpaid. If it appears from the
statement that 25% or more of the taxes are unpaid on the lands,
further
action shall not be taken. After hearing the evidence
offered,
the board of determination shall make its determination on
the
necessity of the drain and whether the drain is conducive to
public
health, convenience, or welfare. If
the board of
determination finds, by a majority vote of the members, that the
drain is not necessary and conducive to public health, convenience,
or welfare, the board of determination shall file with the
commissioner an order dismissing the petition, and a further
petition for the drain shall not be entertained within 1 year after
the determination. If the board of determination finds, by a
majority
vote, finds that the proposed
drain proposed to be is
necessary and conducive to the public health, convenience, or
welfare, the board of determination shall make an order to that
effect and file the order with the commissioner.
(7) If the board of determination finds that a portion of the
construction of the proposed drain is necessary for the protection
of the public health in 1 or more cities, villages, and townships,
the
order shall set forth the determination giving the names of the
and
identify those municipalities. receiving
benefit for health. If
the board of determination determines that the whole cost, except
that to be levied against state or county highways for highway
benefits, is necessary for the public health, the cost shall be
levied against the townships, villages, and cities at large, and it
shall
not be is not necessary
, in a subsequent order or notice to
describe or refer to land included in or comprising the drainage
district.
Upon filing of Within 10
days after the board of
determination
files the order of determination, by
the board of
determination,
the drain commissioner ,
within 10 days of filing,
shall notify the governing body of each municipality by registered
mail that it is liable to pay a percent of the cost of construction
of
the drain by reason of benefits at large for public health. The
governing
body of the township, city, or village, within Within 20
days
after receipt of the notification, by registered mail from the
drain
commissioner, the governing
body may appeal the order of the
board of determination to the probate court having jurisdiction in
the
county in which the township, city, or village municipality is
located.
Upon
(8) Not less than 21 days after receipt of the order of the
board
of determination under subsection
(6), and if an appeal has
not been taken by a municipality to the probate court under
subsection
(7), the commissioner ,
after 20 days, shall make his or
her
a first order of determination, in
writing, giving the name or
number
of the drainage district . The commissioner shall establish
and establishing the commencement, route, terminus, and type of
construction
of the drain. , a copy of which order he or she shall
file,
within 15 days, The drain
commissioner shall file a copy of
the
order in his or her office .
If within 15 days after the
order
is made or, if an appeal is taken to the probate court by a
municipality,
the commissioner shall file his or her first order of
determination
within 15 days after the appeal procedures are have
terminated.
Enacting section 1. This amendatory act takes effect 90 days
after the date it is enacted into law.