reglab/statecodes huggingface dataset:
2023 Louisiana Laws › Revised Statutes › Title 38 - Public Contracts, Works and Improvements › §38:1610. Oath of commissioners

RS 38:1610 - Oath of commissioners
Before entering upon his official duties, each commissioner of a drainage district created under this Part shall take and subscribe to an oath before an officer authorized by law to administer oaths, that he will honestly, faithfully, and impartially perform the duties devolving upon him as a commissioner of the drainage district in which he was appointed, and that he will not neglect any of the duties imposed upon him by this Part. The oaths of the commissioners shall be recorded in the record book of the drainage district.
2023 Louisiana Laws › Revised Statutes › Title 38 - Public Contracts, Works and Improvements › §38:1611. Officers of board; seal; depository; payment of funds

RS 38:1611 - Officers of board; seal; depository; payment of funds
At the time and place designated by the police jury in the ordinance creating the drainage district, or as soon thereafter as possible, the commissioners appointed in the ordinance shall meet and immediately organize by electing officers. They shall elect from among their number a president and a vice-president. The president shall preside over the meetings of the commissioners and perform the duties usually required of presidents of corporate bodies. The vice-president shall perform the duties of the president in case of his absence or disability.
The commissioners shall also elect a secretary-treasurer, who need not be a commissioner, who shall perform all duties required of him by the commissioners.
The secretary-treasurer shall furnish bond in a sum fixed by the board of commissioners, which bond shall not be for less than one-fourth over and above any amount that may come into the possession of the secretary-treasurer, and which shall be increased or diminished accordingly. The premium on the bond shall be paid by the district. The secretary-treasurer shall receive compensation not in excess of two hundred fifty dollars, per month, which the board of commissioners may determine.
The board of commissioners shall adopt a suitable seal, and shall select without the necessity of advertising or receiving bids therefor one or more solvent chartered banks of the state, and other things being equal, a bank or banks situated within the drainage district, in which all funds of the drainage district derived from taxation shall be deposited. The depository shall pay not less than three per centum interest on daily balances.
Funds for the district shall be withdrawn or paid out only on warrants or checks of the board of commissioners signed in the manner provided by the board of commissioners.
2023 Louisiana Laws › Revised Statutes › Title 38 - Public Contracts, Works and Improvements › §38:1612. Record of proceedings of board

RS 38:1612 - Record of proceedings of board
The board of commissioners of drainage districts shall cause to be kept a well bound book, entitled "Record of Board of Commissioners of (Here insert name of drainage district)" in which shall be recorded the minutes of all meetings, all proceedings, certificates, oaths of commissioners, bonds of employees and contractors, and any and all corporate acts. The records shall be in the possession of the secretary of the board and shall be open to inspection at all times by any person interested.
2023 Louisiana Laws › Revised Statutes › Title 38 - Public Contracts, Works and Improvements › §38:1613. Domicile of district; place of suit; place of meetings

RS 38:1613 - Domicile of district; place of suit; place of meetings
The domicile of the drainage district shall be designated in the ordinance creating the district. The commissioners of a drainage district may at any time, by resolution, establish a different domicile, but the domicile shall always be within the parish or parishes in which any land of the district is situated, after having given notice of intention to change the domicile. The notice shall be signed by the president or secretary of the commissioners and published once a week for thirty days in a newspaper published in the parish of the then existing domicile, or if there is no newspaper, then in a newspaper published in an adjoining parish. After the publication of the notice, the commissioners by resolution may make the change of domicile. A copy of the resolution when adopted shall be recorded in the book of drainage records kept by the clerk of court.
Drainage districts shall be sued only in the court of their domicile.
In the ordinance creating drainage district under this Part a time and place for the commissioners of the district to hold their organization meeting shall be designated.
All meetings of the board of commissioners shall be held at the domicile of the drainage district. By unanimous vote of all of the commissioners composing the board at a meeting of the board held at the domicile, the board may designate a different place at which meetings of the board may be held, which the board of commissioners deemed most convenient to the board and the persons having business transactions therewith.
2023 Louisiana Laws › Revised Statutes › Title 38 - Public Contracts, Works and Improvements › §38:1615. Record of proceedings of board

RS 38:1615 - Record of proceedings of board
The clerk of the district court and ex-officio recorder of every parish of this state shall keep among the records of his office a well-bound book, which shall be known as the "Drainage District Record Book," in which shall be recorded, with the date of recording set forth, all proceedings and matters pertaining to drainage districts required to be recorded by the provisions of this Part. The clerks of court and recorders shall make and keep a proper index of the matters recorded in the drainage district record book as they are recorded.
For recording the proceedings in the drainage district record book, the clerks of court and recorders shall receive the fees they now receive for recording deeds and matters in the conveyance records of the parishes.
No matter or thing recorded in the drainage district record book shall be reported by the clerk of court and recorder on any mortgage or conveyance certificate issued by him.
2023 Louisiana Laws › Revised Statutes › Title 38 - Public Contracts, Works and Improvements › §38:1616. Recordation of certified copies of ordinances creating districts; publication

RS 38:1616 - Recordation of certified copies of ordinances creating districts; publication
Certified copies of all ordinances of police juries creating drainage districts under the provisions of this Part shall be recorded in the drainage district record book provided in R.S. 38:1615 in each parish in which any of the land is situate comprising the drainage district.
The ordinance creating the drainage district, after having been so recorded, shall be published once a week for two successive weeks in a newspaper published in the drainage district. If there is no newspaper published therein, then in a newspaper published in any parish in which any of the lands of the district are situated, or if there is no newspaper, then in a newspaper published in an adjoining parish. Whenever publication is made in a newspaper published outside the boundaries of the drainage district, copies of the ordinance shall be posted on the principal front door of the court house of the district court of each parish in which any lands of the district are situated, and shall also be posted at not less than four other public places within the drainage district.
2023 Louisiana Laws › Revised Statutes › Title 38 - Public Contracts, Works and Improvements › §38:1617. Contest of legality of district

RS 38:1617 - Contest of legality of district
Any interested person desiring to contest the legality of any drainage district created under this Part shall do so by suit against the drainage district brought in the district court of the domicile of the district within sixty calendar days from the date of the second publication or of the date of the last posting of the ordinance creating the district as herein provided. No right to bring any contest shall exist and no court shall have jurisdiction to entertain any such contest after the lapse of sixty days.
If no contest is filed within the sixty days, it shall be conclusively presumed that in every particular the drainage district was regularly and legally created, and that all lands embraced within the boundaries of the district are properly and legally included therein.
Any contest brought under the provisions of this section shall be tried summarily and by preference over all other cases and without the intervention of a jury. Appeal may be had as in other cases and shall be heard and determined in a summary manner.
2023 Louisiana Laws › Revised Statutes › Title 38 - Public Contracts, Works and Improvements › §38:1618. Sub-drainage districts

RS 38:1618 - Sub-drainage districts
The board of commissioners of any drainage district may form two or more sub-drainage districts out of the territory comprising the drainage district, by simple resolution to that effect, approved by the engineer of the district, defining the limits of the sub-drainage district. The sub-drainage district may be composed entirely of the land of one individual or corporation. No sub-district may be created after the adoption of the plan for reclamation for the drainage district. The sub-drainage district may be enlarged or diminished and the boundaries thereof changed by the board of commissioners of the drainage district by simple resolution, approved by the engineer of the district, prior to the adoption of the plan for reclamation of any of the lands affected by the change in boundaries.
The sub-drainage districts, in all matters affecting the reclamation and draining thereof, the incurring of debt and the issuance of bonds and the taxing of the lands therein, shall be treated as if they were drainage districts, except that the governing authority thereof shall be the board of commissioners of the drainage district out of which they were formed, or except as may be otherwise provided in this Part.
The drainage commissioners of any district created under this Part, upon creating a sub-drainage district shall appoint any number not exceeding three property owners, or representatives of property owners, of the sub-drainage district, who may or may not be drainage commissioners of the district, for the purpose of superintending and looking after the work of reclamation and drainage. The committee shall act under the direction of the drainage commissioners, but may conduct the work of drainage and reclamation, maintain the drainage, and make their report from time to time to the drainage commissioners of the district. The committee may employ and discharge laborers, perform ordinary works, and solicit and enter into contracts. Any contract in excess of one hundred dollars must be approved by the board of commissioners of the drainage district in which the sub-drainage district is situated.
2023 Louisiana Laws › Revised Statutes › Title 38 - Public Contracts, Works and Improvements › §38:1619. Acreage tax

RS 38:1619 - Acreage tax
A. The board of commissioners of drainage district organized under the provisions of this Part, immediately after organizing, shall levy and order the assessment and collection of a uniform acreage tax of not more than twenty-five cents per acre upon each acre of land within the limits of the drainage district, to be used to pay the expenses to be incurred in organizing the district, making surveys of the district, assessing benefits and damages, and to pay other expenses necessary to be incurred before the board of commissioners shall be empowered by this Part to provide funds to pay the total cost of works and improvements of the district. In case the boundary lines of the district are subsequently extended so as to include additional lands within its limits, the same uniform tax shall be made immediately upon the additionally included land.
B. Neither the state nor its subdivisions shall ever be liable for the acreage tax or forced contribution authorized by this Section.
C. As soon as the tax is levied, the secretary of the board of commissioners shall assess the tax against each acre of land in the drainage district, upon a triplicate assessment roll suitably bound, and shall file one copy thereof with the recorder of mortgages of the parish or parishes in which the lands of the district are situated, one copy with the tax collector of the parish or parishes, and shall keep the third copy in the records of the board of commissioners of the drainage district. If the drainage district is situated in more than one parish, the assessment roll for each parish shall embrace and include only the lands situated in that parish.
D. The tax shall be due and collectible and shall be a tax lien upon the lands against which it is assessed, immediately upon the rolls being filed as aforesaid, and shall become delinquent on December 31 of the year in which it has been levied.
E. The tax shall be collected and payment thereof enforced and be paid over to the board of commissioners of the drainage district in the same manner as the other taxes provided for in this Part.
F. If the sum received from the uniform tax authorized by this Section exceeds the total cost of the preliminary expenses for which it was levied, the surplus shall be prorated and refunded to the landowners paying the uniform tax.
G. If the report of the board of appraisers, as confirmed by the court, shows that there are lands within the drainage district which will not be benefited by putting into effect the plan for reclamation and against which no benefits have been assessed, then any uniform acreage tax which has been assessed against the land and paid by the owner or owners thereof shall be refunded to the owner or owners by the board of commissioners.
Amended by Acts 1975, No. 520, §2.
2023 Louisiana Laws › Revised Statutes › Title 38 - Public Contracts, Works and Improvements › §38:1620. Attorneys

RS 38:1620 - Attorneys
The board of commissioners of every drainage district created under the provisions of this Part may employ an attorney, to act for the drainage district, and to advise the board of commissioners. His employment shall be evidenced by resolution of the board and by an agreement in writing, which as far as possible, shall specify the amount to be paid to the attorney for all services to be rendered by him. The attorney shall conduct all legal proceedings and suits in court where the drainage district or any sub-drainage district thereof is a party or interested, and in all legal matters affecting the district or any sub-district shall advise the board of commissioners, all officers, employees, or agents thereof, and generally, shall look after, supervise, and attend to all matters of a legal nature affecting the drainage district, or any sub-district. When the board of commissioners may deem it necessary, they may, by and with the advice of the attorney and under like terms and conditions, employ an additional attorney or attorneys. For the work done by the attorney or attorneys in connection with the organization of the district, the assessing of benefits and the creating of debt and issuing of bonds, the board shall pay a fee not in excess of one and one-half per cent of the total benefits assessed by the board of appraisers as confirmed by the court.
2023 Louisiana Laws › Revised Statutes › Title 38 - Public Contracts, Works and Improvements › §38:1622. Petitions to proceed with work

RS 38:1622 - Petitions to proceed with work
Upon the adoption and filing of the plan for reclamation, the owners of a majority in acres of the lands in the drainage district if they desire to proceed with the work of reclaiming the drainage district, or the owners of a majority in acres of the lands in any subdrainage district, if they desire to proceed with the work of reclaiming the lands in the sub-drainage district, may respectively present a petition to that effect to the board of commissioners of the drainage district, signed by the landowners. When so petitioned, the board of commissioners of the drainage district shall proceed with the reclamation of the district or sub-district, the incurring of debt, the issuance of bonds, and the levy, assessment, and collection of taxes as hereinafter provided.
2023 Louisiana Laws › Revised Statutes › Title 38 - Public Contracts, Works and Improvements › §38:1623. Appointment and duties of board of appraisers

RS 38:1623 - Appointment and duties of board of appraisers
Within twenty days after having been petitioned for the carrying out of the plan for reclamation of the drainage district or of any sub-district, the board of commissioners shall name and appoint three appraisers who shall be residents of Louisiana, over the age of twenty-one years, who shall not be landowners in the drainage districts, nor related within the fourth degree of consanguinity to any person owning land in the district, nor be an officer or stockholder or bondholder of any corporation owning land in the district. These facts affecting the qualification of appraisers shall be made affirmatively to appear in the oath of each appraiser, and the oath shall make prima facie proof that the appraiser was legally qualified to act as an appraiser.
The three appraisers shall be known as "Board of Appraisers". They shall appraise the land within and without the drainage district or sub-district to be acquired for rights of way, holding basins, levees, canals, pumping plant sites, and other drainage works of the district, and to assess benefits and damages accruing to all land in the district or sub-district and other property by reason of the execution of the plan for reclamation.
2023 Louisiana Laws › Revised Statutes › Title 38 - Public Contracts, Works and Improvements › §38:1624. Notice of appointment and meeting of appraisers; oath; organization

RS 38:1624 - Notice of appointment and meeting of appraisers; oath; organization
The secretary of the board of commissioners of the drainage district shall notify each of the appraisers of his appointment by written or printed notice, in which shall be stated the time and place for the first meeting of the appraisers.
The secretary of the board of commissioners shall attend the meeting, and shall furnish to the appraisers a complete list of all lands within the drainage district or within any sub-drainage district which is to be reclaimed, or adjacent to the district or sub-district as may be affected by the carrying out and putting into effect of the plan for reclamation, with the names of owners of the lands as of the date of the filing of the petition for reclamation. The secretary shall also furnish the appraisers a copy of the plan for reclamation, with all maps and profiles, as prepared by the engineer of the district.
The appraisers at or before the meeting shall each take and subscribe to an oath, in which shall appear the facts necessary to show that the appraiser is qualified to act as an appraiser, and further to the effect that he will faithfully and impartially discharge his duties as appraiser and make true report of the work done by him and the other appraisers.
The appraisers shall also at the meeting elect one of their number as chairman, and the secretary of the board of commissioners shall be ex-officio secretary of the board of appraisers during their continuance in office. A majority of the appraisers shall constitute a quorum and shall control the action of the board of appraisers on all questions.
2023 Louisiana Laws › Revised Statutes › Title 38 - Public Contracts, Works and Improvements › §38:1626. Report of findings of appraisers; fees

RS 38:1626 - Report of findings of appraisers; fees
The board of appraisers shall prepare a report of their findings, which shall be arranged in tabular form, the columns of which shall be headed as follows: Column one, "Owner of property assessed"; Column two, "Description of property assessed"; Column three, "Number of acres assessed"; Column four, "Amount of benefits assessed"; Column five, "Number of acres taken for right of way"; Column six, "Value of property taken"; Column seven, "Damages"; Column eight, "Value of improvements constructed by landowners". They shall also, by and with the advice of the engineer of the district, estimate the cost of works set out in the plan for reclamation, which shall include the cost of property required for rights of way, holding basins, and other works, and damages, and the value of improvements already constructed by landowners as above set forth, and the probable expense of organization and administration, as estimated by the board of commissioners, and shall tabulate the costs. The report shall be signed by at least a majority of the appraisers, and shall be filed with the secretary of the drainage district. The secretary of the board of commissioners shall perform all clerical work of the board of appraisers; and shall, under the advice, supervision, and direction of the attorney for the district, prepare their report. The board of appraisers shall report to the board of commissioners the number of days each has been employed and the actual expenses incurred. Each appraiser shall be paid a reasonable fee for his services, and necessary expenses in addition thereto.
2023 Louisiana Laws › Revised Statutes › Title 38 - Public Contracts, Works and Improvements › §38:1629. Rejection of reclamation plan; submission of new or amended plan

RS 38:1629 - Rejection of reclamation plan; submission of new or amended plan
If after hearing all contests and considering the report of the board of appraisers, the court shall find that the estimated costs of works and improvements as reported by the appraisers, or as amended by the court, exceed the estimated benefits, the court shall decree the board of commissioners unauthorized to put into effect the plan for reclamation of the district or sub-district, as the case may be, and the clerk of the court shall certify a copy of the decree to the secretary of the board of commissioners who shall enter the decree in the records of the drainage district.
In case a plan for reclamation is rejected by the court as above provided, the board of commissioners, when petitioned to that effect by the landowners owning a majority of the land in the drainage or sub-drainage district, as the case may be, may cause other and amended plans for reclamation to be prepared by the engineer. The procedure in the case of the new or amended plan for reclamation shall be the procedure provided in the case of the original plan for reclamation; and the funds with which to pay the preliminary expenses of the new or amended plan for reclamation, the making of additional surveys, new assessments, and other necessary expenses, shall be advanced by the petitioning landowners, and reimbursed to them by the board of commissioners when the funds therefor shall be available.
2023 Louisiana Laws › Revised Statutes › Title 38 - Public Contracts, Works and Improvements › §38:1630. Board of commissioners to carry out reclamation plan; letting contracts

RS 38:1630 - Board of commissioners to carry out reclamation plan; letting contracts
Upon the filing with the secretary of the board of commissioners of a certified copy of the decree of the court, the board of commissioners of the district may reclaim the district or sub-district, in accordance with the plan for reclamation, and build, construct, excavate, and complete all or any works and improvements which may be needed to carry out, maintain and protect the plan for reclamation. To accomplish that end, the board of commissioners may employ men and teams and purchase machinery, employ men to operate the machinery, and directly have charge of and construct the works and improvements, or by the use of other or more efficient means than provided for in the plan adopted. They may, in their discretion, let the contract for the works and improvements either as a whole or in sections, and when the contract or contracts are let, they shall be advertised and let to the lowest and best bidder, who shall give a good and approved bond, with ample security, conditioned that he will well and promptly carry out the contract for the work and improvements, and further conditioned as may be otherwise provided by law. The contract shall be in writing and complete plans and specifications of the work to be done and the improvements to be made under the contract shall be attached to and made a part of the contract. The contract shall be prepared by the attorney for the district, and before the work is commenced shall be approved by the board of commissioners, signed by the president of the board and by the contractor, and shall be executed in duplicate. The chief engineer shall be the superintendent of all the works and improvements, and shall, whenever required, and at least once each year, make a full report to the board of all work done and improvements made and make the suggestions and recommendations to the board as he may deem proper.
2023 Louisiana Laws › Revised Statutes › Title 38 - Public Contracts, Works and Improvements › §38:1631. Tax levy for cost of work

RS 38:1631 - Tax levy for cost of work
After the list of lands, and other property, with the assessed benefits and the decree and judgment of court, have been certified by the district court clerk and transmitted to the secretary of the board of commissioners, then the board of commissioners shall without any unnecessary delay, levy a tax of the portion of the benefits on all lands, railroad, and other property in the district to which benefits have been assessed, which may be found necessary by the board of commissioners to pay the costs of the completion of the proposed works and improvements as shown in the plan for reclamation, and in carrying out the objects of the district, and plus ten percent of the total amount for emergencies. The tax shall be apportioned to and levied on each tract of land or other property in the district in proportion to the benefits assessed and not in excess thereof. In case bonds are issued, then the amount of the interest, as estimated by the board of commissioners plus ten per centum thereof for emergencies, which will accrue on the bonds shall be included and added to the tax, but the interest to accrue on account of the issuing of the bonds shall not be considered as a part of the cost of construction in determining whether or not the expenses and costs of making the improvements are or are not equal to or in excess of the benefits assessed. The secretary of the board of commissioners, as soon as the total tax is levied, shall, at the expense of the district, prepare a list of all taxes levied, in the form of a well bound book, which shall be endorsed and named "Drainage Tax Record of _____ Drainage District _____". This endorsement shall also be printed or written at the top of each page in the book, and shall be signed and certified by the president and secretary of the board of commissioners, attested by the seal of the district, and the book shall thereafter become a permanent record in the office of the secretary.
2023 Louisiana Laws › Revised Statutes › Title 38 - Public Contracts, Works and Improvements › §38:1632. Tax lien on property; certificate and tables; record

RS 38:1632 - Tax lien on property; certificate and tables; record
All drainage taxes, together with all penalties for default in payment of the taxes, and all costs in collecting the taxes, shall, from the date of filing the certificate hereinafter mentioned in the office of the clerk of court and recorder of mortgages for the parish wherein the lands and other properties are situated, until paid, constitute a tax lien upon all of the lands and other property against which the taxes shall be levied. The tax lien shall be evidenced by a certificate substantially in the following form:
State of Louisiana
)
) ss.
Parish of ________
)
To the Clerk of Court and Recorder of Mortgages, _____________ Parish, Louisiana.
This is to certify that by virtue and authority of the provisions of R.S. 38:1631, the Board of Commissioners of _____ Drainage District, in which are situated lands and other property in the parish of _____ in the State of Louisiana, have and do hereby certify the tax authorized thereby, which tax and the land and other property against which the same is levied in your parish are described in the following table, in which table are: (1) the names of the owners of the land and other property as they appeared in the report of the board of appraisers, assessing benefits in the district; (2) the descriptions of the land and other property opposite the names of the owners; and (3) the amount of the taxes levied on each tract of land or piece of property; to-wit: (here insert such table).
The tax shall be payable in annual installments; the amount of each installment as well as the amount of the maintenance tax will be determined and certified to the tax collector of your parish not later than the first day of September of each year. The aforesaid tax and the maintenance taxes which may be levied from time to time are hereby declared a tax lien upon all land and other property herein and heretofore described.
Witness the signature of the president of the board of commissioners attested by the seal of said district and the signature of the secretary of said board, this _____ day of _________ A.D. 19___
___________________________
President.
Seal
Attest
_______________________
Secretary.
The certificate and tables shall be prepared in a well bound book and filed in the office of the clerk of court and recorder of mortgages of each of the parishes having lands in the district as it may affect the land or other property in his parish, where it shall become a permanent record of the office. The book or books shall be prepared by the secretary of the board of commissioners at the expense of the drainage district, and shall be designated as the "Drainage Tax Record". Each clerk of court and recorder shall receive a fee of one dollar for filing and preserving the book. The "Drainage Tax Record" shall also be recorded by the clerk of court and recorder in the "Drainage District Record Book" of his office.
2023 Louisiana Laws › Revised Statutes › Title 38 - Public Contracts, Works and Improvements › §38:1633. Levy of maintenance tax

RS 38:1633 - Levy of maintenance tax
To maintain and preserve the ditches, drains, levees, or other improvements, and to strengthen, repair, and restore them, when needed, and for the purpose of defraying the current expenses of the district, or sub-district, the board of commissioners may, upon the completion of the improvements and on or before the first day of September in each year thereafter, levy a tax upon each tract or parcel of land and upon private corporate property within the district or sub-district, to be known as a maintenance tax. The maintenance tax shall be apportioned upon the basis of the net assessments of benefits accruing for original construction, shall not exceed five per cent thereof in any one year, and shall be certified to the sheriff and ex-officio tax collector of each parish in which lands of the district are situated in the same book, in like manner and at the same time as the annual installment tax is certified, but in a separate column, under the heading, "Maintenance Tax". The tax collector shall demand and collect the maintenance tax and make return thereof, and shall receive the same compensation therefor and be liable for the same penalties for failure or neglect so to do as is provided herein for the annual installment tax.
2023 Louisiana Laws › Revised Statutes › Title 38 - Public Contracts, Works and Improvements › §38:1636. Non-liability of state and its subdivisions for taxes

RS 38:1636 - Non-liability of state and its subdivisions for taxes
Neither the state nor its subdivisions shall ever be liable for any taxes or forced contributions levied, assessed or imposed under the provisions of this Part. No sale for taxes of any land or property subject to tax lien for drainage district taxes imposed under the provisions of this Part shall have the effect of destroying the lien; but the property shall always remain subject to the tax lien for the drainage taxes.
2023 Louisiana Laws › Revised Statutes › Title 38 - Public Contracts, Works and Improvements › §38:1637. Sale of land for delinquent taxes

RS 38:1637 - Sale of land for delinquent taxes
In the event any land or property subject to a tax lien for drainage taxes imposed by this Part shall be adjudicated to the state or any state subdivision or to any parish or municipality for non-payment of taxes, the land shall not be liable to the drainage district taxes while owned by the state or by any subdivision thereof, or by such parish or municipality, but after the property has been disposed of, it shall be subject to all installments of drainage district taxes, and assessments made for maintenance thereafter accumulating. If the property is redeemed from any tax sale, the person redeeming shall pay all installments of drainage district taxes and assessments made for maintenance due on the property, including those for the year for which the property was adjudicated.
At any sale for delinquent taxes of any property liable for drainage district taxes imposed under the provisions of this Part, the board of commissioners of the drainage district in which the property is situated may purchase the property in the same manner as any other bidder. In the event that the property is being sold for drainage district taxes only, the property, in default of other bidders, shall be adjudicated to the drainage district levying the taxes, and shall be held by it in the same manner as the state holds property adjudicated to it for non-payment of taxes. All property adjudicated for taxes to any drainage district shall be liable for state and parish taxes while so held by the drainage district.
2023 Louisiana Laws › Revised Statutes › Title 38 - Public Contracts, Works and Improvements › §38:1638. Works and improvements authorized

RS 38:1638 - Works and improvements authorized
In order to effect the drainage, protection and reclamation of the land and other property in the district subject to tax, the board of commissioners may clean out, straighten, widen, change the course and flow, alter or deepen any ditch, drain, watercourse, pond, lake, creek, bayou or natural stream in or out of the district, fill up any creek, drain, channel, watercourse or natural stream, and concentrate, divert or divide the flow of water in or out of the district. In so doing, the drainage district shall make adequate provision for the drainage of all lands and property affected thereby. The board may construct and maintain main and lateral ditches, canals, levees, dikes, dams, sluices, revetments, reservoirs, holding basins, floodways, pumping stations and syphons and any other works and improvements deemed necessary to preserve and maintain the works in or out of the district. They shall construct or enlarge or cause to be constructed or enlarged any and all bridges that may be needed in or out of the district across any drain, ditch, canal, floodway, holding basin, excavation, public highway, railroad right of way, track, grade, fill or cut, construct roadways over levees and embankments, construct any and all of the works and improvements across, through or over any public highway, railroad right of way, track, grade, fill or cut in or out of the district, remove any fence, building, or other improvements in or out of the district, and hold, control, and acquire by donation or purchase, and if need be, expropriate any land, servitude, railroad right of way, sluice, reservoir, holding basin or franchise in or out of the district for right of way, or holding basin for any of the purposes herein provided.
2023 Louisiana Laws › Revised Statutes › Title 38 - Public Contracts, Works and Improvements › §38:1639. Expropriation of land

RS 38:1639 - Expropriation of land
The board may expropriate for the use of the district any land or property within or without the district not acquired or condemned by the court on the report of the board of appraisers assessing benefits and damages, and shall follow the procedure that is now provided by law for expropriation of land or other property taken for telegraph, telephone, and railroad rights of way.
2023 Louisiana Laws › Revised Statutes › Title 38 - Public Contracts, Works and Improvements › §38:1640. Payment for property expropriated; assessment of portion not taken

RS 38:1640 - Payment for property expropriated; assessment of portion not taken
The board of commissioners of drainage districts may not enter upon or take possession of any land or property expropriated for rights of way, canals, levees, holding basins, pumping plant sites, or other works of the districts, until the prices awarded to the owners of the land or property shall have been paid to the owners or into the hands of the clerk of the court condemning the property for the use of the owners. If the sums awarded are not paid within five years from the date of the judgment of expropriation, the judgment shall be without further force or effect. Whenever any land is acquired by any district under the provisions of this Part and the price of the property has been paid the owner by the district, the title, use, possession and enjoyment of the property shall pass from the owner and be vested in the district, and subject to its use, profit, employment and final disposition. The price awarded for all lands acquired by any district for rights of way, canals, levees, holding basins, pumping plant sites, or other works, and the amount of damages assessed by the board of appraisers and confirmed by the court to any tract or parcel of land or other property in the district, shall be paid in cash to the owner or to the clerk of the court for the use of the owner, and that portion of any tract or parcel of land or other property not taken for use of the district shall be assessed for the benefits accruing in accordance with the provisions of previous sections of this Part.
2023 Louisiana Laws › Revised Statutes › Title 38 - Public Contracts, Works and Improvements › §38:1641. Bridges; ditch or lateral across highway; removal of bridge, flume or other work

RS 38:1641 - Bridges; ditch or lateral across highway; removal of bridge, flume or other work
All bridges and enlargements of existing bridges, shall be built or enlarged according to the plans and specifications approved by the chief engineer of the district. Where the bridges are outside of the drainage district the Department of Public Works shall first approve the plans and specifications therefor.
All new bridges and all enlargements of existing bridges made necessary by the work of reclamation shall be built or enlarged at the expense of the drainage district. All new bridges built at the expense of the drainage district shall be maintained by the drainage district. Any increased cost of maintenance of existing bridges occasioned by any enlargement thereof made by a drainage district shall be borne by the drainage district.
Any owner of land within or without the district, desiring to do so, may, at his own expense, and in compliance with the terms and provisions of this Part, construct a bridge across any drain, ditch, canal, or excavation in or out of the district.
All drainage districts may construct and maintain any ditch or lateral provided in the plan for reclamation across any of the public highways of this state, without proceedings for the condemnation of the highways, or being liable for damages therefor. Within ten days after having completed a ditch across any public highway, the drainage district shall construct and maintain a bridge over the ditch where the ditch crosses the highway.
All drainage districts when deepening, enlarging, or cleaning out any natural drain in or out of the district shall remove any bridge, flume, or other work in, over, or under the natural drain, without the necessity of condemnation or of paying damages therefor. The bridge, flume, or other work shall be replaced by the drainage district within a reasonable time and at its own expense.
2023 Louisiana Laws › Revised Statutes › Title 38 - Public Contracts, Works and Improvements › §38:1642. Raising of embankments to conform to district levee

RS 38:1642 - Raising of embankments to conform to district levee
When any right of way for levees has been obtained, over any embankment belonging to any person, railroad, tramway, or other corporation, the owner of the embankment shall raise the embankment so that the embankment will conform with the levee of the district. If the person or corporation fails or refuses to raise the embankment in the manner herein provided, the district may within three months after it has finished the building of its own levee enter upon and raise the embankment of the person or corporation to conform with the district levee. The cost for the construction in all cases shall be paid by the drainage district.
2023 Louisiana Laws › Revised Statutes › Title 38 - Public Contracts, Works and Improvements › §38:1644. Effect of change of ownership of land

RS 38:1644 - Effect of change of ownership of land
The death, interdiction, or ceasing to be owner, of any landowner who has signed any petition required to be signed by a majority of the landowners in connection with the creation, organization or administration of a drainage district or of any landowner required to be notified only by published notice, shall in no manner affect any proceedings had, begun, or taken under the provisions of this Part. The death, interdiction, or ceasing to be owner of any party to any proceeding required to be served with citation or who has filed contest in any proceeding required to be filed in suit in the district court shall not abate any proceeding, but upon suggestion the court shall order the legal representative of the party to be made party to the proceedings and served with a copy of the order not less than five days prior to any hearing of the proceeding. If the legal representatives be absentees or unknown, then the court shall appoint an attorney at law as curator ad hoc to represent them, and he shall be served as provided in this Section. The matter shall then proceed in all respects as in case of the original parties being in court.
2023 Louisiana Laws › Revised Statutes › Title 38 - Public Contracts, Works and Improvements › §38:1645. Change of venue; recusation of judge

RS 38:1645 - Change of venue; recusation of judge
No change of venue shall be allowed in any proceeding required under the provision of this Part to be brought before the district court. The judge may be recused and a judge ad hoc appointed as is now provided by law in civil matters in this state.
2023 Louisiana Laws › Revised Statutes › Title 38 - Public Contracts, Works and Improvements › §38:1646. Injunction or other writ granted only on rule nisi

RS 38:1646 - Injunction or other writ granted only on rule nisi
No injunction or other writ to prevent or delay the creation, organization or reclamation of any drainage or sub-drainage district created under this Part shall be granted or issued except upon a rule nisi.
2023 Louisiana Laws › Revised Statutes › Title 38 - Public Contracts, Works and Improvements › §38:1647. Compensation and expenses of officers and employees; removal of employees

RS 38:1647 - Compensation and expenses of officers and employees; removal of employees
The board of commissioners, except where otherwise provided in this Part, shall by resolution, at the time of hiring or appointing, provide for the compensation for work to be done and expenses incurred by any officer, engineer, attorney, or other employee and they shall also pay the fees, per diem, and necessary expenses of all court and parish officers who may by virtue of this Part render service to the district.
The board of commissioners may at any time, for cause, remove any officer, attorney or other employee appointed or employed by the board.
2023 Louisiana Laws › Revised Statutes › Title 38 - Public Contracts, Works and Improvements › §38:1648. Change of plan of reclamation

RS 38:1648 - Change of plan of reclamation
The board of commissioners of any drainage district, when petitioned by the land owners owning more than two-thirds of the acreage of all lands within the limits of the drainage district, with the advice and consent of the chief engineer of the district, may change the plan for reclamation theretofore adopted by the board.
2023 Louisiana Laws › Revised Statutes › Title 38 - Public Contracts, Works and Improvements › §38:1649. Enlargement of boundaries of district

RS 38:1649 - Enlargement of boundaries of district
The police jury or juries that by ordinance may have created any drainage district under the provisions of this Part, shall enlarge the boundaries thereof so as to include additional lands and property therein when petitioned to that effect by the land owners owning a majority of the acreage of the lands to be added to the drainage district. The petition shall be approved by the board of commissioners and the Department of Public Works.
Certified copies of the ordinance enlarging the boundaries of a drainage district shall be recorded without delay in the drainage district record book kept by the clerk of court and recorder in each parish in which any of the land is situated comprising the drainage district as enlarged.
2023 Louisiana Laws › Revised Statutes › Title 38 - Public Contracts, Works and Improvements › §38:1650. Appointment of appraisers upon change of boundaries or plan

RS 38:1650 - Appointment of appraisers upon change of boundaries or plan
In the event of a change in the boundaries of a drainage district so as to include additional land therein, or of a change in the plan for reclamation, the board of commissioners shall appoint three appraisers possessing the same qualifications as the appraisers appointed under R.S. 38:1623 to appraise property to be expropriated, assess benefits and damages, and estimate costs of improvements to be made under the plan for reclamation, and they shall do so and make their report in the same manner as is provided by R.S. 38:1623, 38:1624, 38:1625, 38:1626, after which the same proceedings shall be had as is provided for in preceding sections of this Part.
2023 Louisiana Laws › Revised Statutes › Title 38 - Public Contracts, Works and Improvements › §38:1651. Benefits, taxes, bonds and reclamation of sub-district

RS 38:1651 - Benefits, taxes, bonds and reclamation of sub-district
Wherever under the provisions of this Part a sub-drainage district has been formed, and a plan for reclamation of the sub-drainage district has been prepared, filed and adopted, the proceeding for assessing benefits, levying taxes, issuing bonds and reclaiming the subdistrict, shall be the same in that case as is provided in this Part for drainage districts.
2023 Louisiana Laws › Revised Statutes › Title 38 - Public Contracts, Works and Improvements › §38:1652. Issuance of bonds; form and terms

RS 38:1652 - Issuance of bonds; form and terms
The board of commissioners, may, if in their judgment it seems best, issue coupon bonds not to exceed ninety-one per cent of the total amount of the taxes levied under the provisions of R.S. 38:1631 in denominations of not less than fifty dollars, bearing interest from their date at a rate not to exceed six per cent per annum, payable semi-annually, to mature at annual intervals within a period not exceeding forty years from and after their date commencing after a period of years not later than five years, to be determined by the board of commissioners, both principal and interest payable at some convenient banking house or trust company's office to be named in the bonds. The bonds shall be signed by the president of the board of commissioners, attested with the seal of the district and by the signature of the secretary of the board, and the coupons shall be signed by the facsimile signatures of the officers. The delivery at any time thereafter of any bonds or coupons so executed shall be valid, although before the date of delivery the persons signing the bonds or coupons shall have ceased to hold office.