CHAPTER 163 - REHOBOTH
AN ACT TO AMEND CHAPTER 119, VOLUME 38, LAWS OF DELAWARE, ENTITLED "AN ACT AUTHORIZING THE COMMISSIONERS OF REHOBOTH TO BORROW MONEY AND ISSUE BONDS TO SECURE THE PAYMENT THEREOF, FOR THE PURPOSE OF ESTABLISHING A SEWER SYSTEM AND SEWAGE TREATMENT PLANT AND TO CONTROL AND REGULATE THE SAME WHEN SO ESTABLISHED", BY PROVIDING FOR AN ANNUAL SCRAP SEWER ASSESSMENT AND COLLECTION OF THE SAME.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the State of Delaware in General Assembly met (two-thirds of all the members elected to each House of the General Assembly concurring therein):
Section 1. That Chapter 119, Volume 38, Laws of Delaware, be and the same is hereby amended by adding thereto a certain new Section immediately following Section 27, to be known as Section 28 and to read as follows:
Section 28. So long as any "Rehoboth Sewer Bonds" or the interest thereon, as provided for in Sections 3 and 23 of this Act remain outstanding, due and unpaid and so long as sufficient funds be not available in the "Sinking Fund for Sewers", to pay off such outstanding, due and unpaid Bonds and the interest thereon, "The Commissioners of Rehoboth" shall, at the end of each and every calendar year cause a survey to be made of all properties now assessable and taxable within the corporate limits of the Town of Rehoboth.
From such survey The Commissioners of Rehoboth shall determine:
(1) The entire area of the floors including the floor of the cellar or basement of all new buildings to be drained, constructed during any such calendar year upon any property or properties theretofore assessed upon the sole basis of the lineal feet thereof abutting on any street or streets, highway or highways, lane or lanes, alley or alleys, in which sewers have been constructed under the provisions of this Act.
(2) The increased area of the floors including the floor of the cellar or basement of building or buildings to be drained; which increased area was created by virtue of repairs and additions made during any such calendar year to such building or buildings theretofore constructed upon any property in the Town of Rehoboth and assessed in accordance with the provisions of this Act and the rules and regulations of the Commissioners of Rehoboth adopted in pursuance thereof.
(3) The increased area of the floors, including the floor of the cellar or basement of all new buildings to be drained, constructed during any such calendar year, over and above the entire area of the floors including the area of the cellar or basement of any old buildings razed or removed by the owner or owners theretofore to make way for such new building or buildings; provided, such old building or buildings so razed or removed shall have been assessed in accordance with the provisions of this Act and the rules and regulations of the Commissioners adopted in pursuance thereof.
(4) The entire area of the floors including the floor of the cellar or basement of all buildings theretofore determined to be non-assessable by the Commissioners by virtue of their use, or otherwise, which shall, by virtue of a change in the use thereof, or otherwise, in the judgment of the Commissioners exercised in accordance with the provisions of this Act be deemed to have become assessable under the provisions thereof.
(5) The lineal feet of all properties within the Town of Rehoboth abutting on any street or streets, highway or highways, lane or lanes, alley or alleys, in which sewers have been constructed under the provisions of that Act and which theretofore had been determined to be non-assessable by the Commissioners by virtue of their use, or otherwise, which shall, by virtue of a change in the use thereof, or otherwise, in the judgment of the Commissioners, exercise in accordance with the provisions of this Act be deemed to have become assessable under the provisions thereof.
From such survey, the Commissioners of Rehoboth shall cause to be prepared a complete list of all such properties to be thus assessed as a scrap sewer assessment. Such list shall state the name of the owner or owners of the property or properties to be affected thereby; provided, that no error or mistake in regards to the name of an owner shall be held to invalidate any assessment so made and it shall be sufficient if the name of the last owner, as shown by the records in the Office of the Recorder of Deeds, in and for Sussex County, at Georgetown, Delaware, appear on such scrap sewer assessment list; a description locating the property to be assessed thereby; the lineal feet of such property abutting on any street or streets, highway or highways, lane or lanes, alley or alleys in which sewers are built and which is subject to a scrap assessment; the square footage of floor area which is to be assessed under such scrap assessment; the rate of assessment per lineal foot, which shall be and is hereby fixed at forty (40c) cents per lineal foot; the rate of assessment per square foot of floor area, which shall be and is hereby fixed at two and one-quarter (21/4c) cents per square foot; and the total amount to be assessed against such property or properties under such scrap sewer assessment.
Immediately upon the completion of such list, the Commissioners shall cause a copy thereof to be exhibited in some public place within the Town for one week and a notice of such exhibit shall be advertised in the local newspaper in at least two successive issues thereof, and the said notice shall also state a time and place, when and where the said Commissioners shall sit to hear any and all objections which may be made against such scrap sewer assessment as set forth in the aforesaid list. The time of such meeting shall be not less than one nor more than two weeks after the date of the last issue of said notice. The said Commissioners shall sit on the evening of the day appointed in said notice from 8 P. M. until 10 P. M. and may adjourn from night to night and shall hear all objections which may have been made to such scrap assessment list and shall make such alterations and corrections in the said list as the said Commissioners may deem proper; provided, such alterations and corrections shall be in compliance with the provisions of this Act.
After having heard such objections and after having made such alterations and corrections, the Commissioners shall cause to be exhibited for at least one week following the date of the last meeting as aforesaid, a copy of said scrap sewer assessment list as thus altered and corrected.
After the said scrap sewer assessment list, altered and corrected as aforesaid shall have been exhibited for one full week the said list shall be certified to by the said Commissioners as correct and the several amounts shown upon such altered and corrected list as having been assessed against the properties therein shall be liens upon the respective properties upon which such scrap sewer assessment was made and such liens shall have priority over any liens, encumbrances and conveyances except tax liens and prior liens of a like nature for public improvement.
The Secretary of the said Commissioners shall immediately prepare statements of such scrap sewer assessment against each property so assessed and shall mail or deliver or cause to be delivered such statements to the party or parties whose name or names appear as the owner of said property. If mailed to the last known address of such party it shall be full and sufficient notice of such scrap sewer assessment for the purpose of this Act.
All sums paid on account of such scrap sewer assessment shall be paid to the Treasurer of the Commissioners of Rehoboth who shall give his receipt therefor, and all such sums shall be by him deposited within forty-eight hours of their receipt in some banking institution in Sussex County or elsewhere in Delaware in the account known as the "Sinking Fund for Sewers" as hereinbefore provided in this Act. All such amounts thus received shall form a part of the sinking fund, and shall only be paid out for the purpose of paying the indebtedness incurred for the building of such sewer system or sewage treatment plant hereinbefore authorized for paying the interest thereon as it becomes due and for retiring the Bonds in accordance with the provisions of this Act.
All scrap sewer assessments so made shall be due upon the date of the certifying by the Commissioners as to the correctness of the same and the rules and regulations hereinbefore provided in this Act in respect to the payment or the collection of the general sewer assessment hereinbefore provided shall likewise apply in respect to the payment or the collection of any amount or amounts due by virtue of any annual scrap sewer assessment provided for in this Section.
Approved May 19, 1937.