2019 -- H 6143

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LC002642

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     STATE OF RHODE ISLAND

IN GENERAL ASSEMBLY

JANUARY SESSION, A.D. 2019

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A N   A C T

RELATING TO THE CITY OF WARWICK -- SEWER AUTHORITY

     

     Introduced By: Representatives Shekarchi, Vella-Wilkinson, Bennett, Solomon, and
Jackson

     Date Introduced: May 23, 2019

     Referred To: House Municipal Government

     It is enacted by the General Assembly as follows:

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     SECTION 1. Unless otherwise amended by this act, the terms, conditions, provisions and

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definitions of Chapter 254 of the Public Laws of 1962, as amended by Chapters 60 and 61 of the

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Public Laws of 2016 are hereby incorporated by reference and shall remain in full force and

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effect.

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     SECTION 2. Sections 2, and 9 of Chapter 254 of the Public Laws of 1962 entitled "An

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Act to Create a Sewer Authority for the City of Warwick and to Authorize said City to Plan,

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Construct, Finance, Operate and Maintain Sewage Works", as amended, by Chapters 60 and 61 of

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the Public Laws of 2016 are hereby further amended to read as follows:

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     Section 2. Sewer Authority. -- There shall be a bi-partisan sewer authority for the city

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consisting of five (5) seven (7) qualified electors of the city, not more than three (3) five (5) of

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whom shall be members of the same political party, to be appointed by the mayor subject to

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confirmation by the city council. It shall be the purpose of the sewer authority to provide

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wastewater collection and treatment services to the City of Warwick in a cost effective and

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environmentally sound manner. The mayor shall appoint the five (5) seven (7) members of the

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authority, two (2) of each from lists of not less than three (3) names submitted by the respective

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chairman of the city political committees and one (1) member three (3) members without party

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designation; one (1) member to hold office until one (1) year from the first day of February

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preceding said appointment, one (1) member to hold office until two (2) years from the first day

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of February preceding said appointment, one (1) member to hold office until three (3) years from

 

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the first day of February preceding said appointment, one (1) member to hold office until four (4)

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years from the first day of February preceding said appointment, and one (1) member to hold

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office until five (5) years from the first day of February preceding said appointment. In the month

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of January preceding the expiration of the term of each of the authority's members, the mayor

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shall appoint one (1) member to succeed the member whose term will next expire to hold office

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for the term of five (5) years from the first day of February next after his appointment and until

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his successor is appointed and qualified in the same manner as provided in the original

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appointment for such term. The two (2) members added to the authority by the 2019 amendment

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of the enabling act shall serve for five (5) years. In case any person appointed as a member of said

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authority shall decline to serve or neglect to qualify within ten (10) days after his appointment, or

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a vacancy shall occur in said authority for any other cause, the mayor, within thirty (30) days

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shall appoint some person to fill such vacancy for the unexpired term in the same manner as

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provided in the original appointment for such term. A person holding any other office of

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emolument or profit under the government of the city shall not be eligible to membership on the

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authority and if any member of said authority shall accept any such office or shall remove from

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the city, his place on the authority shall immediately become vacant. The members of the

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authority shall be severally sworn to the faithful performance of their duties under this act. They

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shall elect from among their members a chairman and a secretary at the first meeting after the

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organization and upon the appointment of any new member for a full term and shall fill any

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vacancy that may occur in either office from any cause. A majority of the members of the

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authority shall constitute a quorum for the transaction of business. The mayor may remove any

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member of the authority from office for cause shown after a hearing before the city council of

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which such member shall be given seven (7) days' notice in writing.

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     The mayor, with the advice and consent of the city council, shall fix the compensation of

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the members of the authority and shall annually appropriate a sum sufficient to pay the same

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together with a sum sufficient for office expenses.

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     The authority may adopt by-laws governing the transaction of business by an affirmative

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vote of at least four (4) five (5) members, but no such by-laws shall authorize any action by the

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authority except by the affirmative vote of at least three (3) four (4) members thereof and with the

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advice and consent of the mayor.

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     The authority shall review the sewer survey (Facilities Plan) in order to develop

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procedures for the implementation of the general sewer program and to conduct preliminary

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studies in order to execute the administrative details contained in this act.

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     Such activities may include:

 

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     (a) The planning and programming of the various phases of the sewer project, and

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     (b) A review of the procedures of various financing programs in terms of charges and

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assessments to be instituted upon the commencement of the construction of sewers, and

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     (c) An establishment and exercise of a public information program.

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     The members of the authority and their duly authorized agents may enter upon any

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premises within the city to examine, inspect or survey the same, whenever necessary for the

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performance of their duties under this act.

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     Section 9. Apportionment of costs; sewer assessments and charges; enforcement of

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charges and assessments. -- The authority with the advice and consent of the mayor, shall

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prescribe just and equitable sewer assessment rates on account of the construction costs and the

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cost of principal and interest for any bonds or notes issued for sewage works, to be levied against

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owners of parcels abutting on that portion of any highway in which a common sewer is laid

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under this act and also rates of user charges on account of operation and maintenance costs and

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renewal and replacement funding and the cost of principal and interest for any bonds or notes

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issued for sewage works, to be levied against owners of parcels which are connected to a

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common sewer or in accordance with section 17(b).

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     Such assessments herein referred shall be paid by every parcel owner whose parcel abuts

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on that portion of any highway in which a common sewer is laid, under this act, in a manner

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prescribed by the authority, with the approval of the mayor and the finance director. Such annual

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user charges herein referred shall be paid by every parcel owner whose parcel is connected to a

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common sewer, or in accordance with section 17(b), in a manner prescribed by the authority, with

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the approval of the mayor and the finance director.

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     Notwithstanding the foregoing, the authority may defer sewer assessments against parcels

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that are undeveloped or not developed to the extent permissible by city zoning ordinances;

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provided, that such parcels remain subject to assessment upon the development or redevelopment

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of such parcels in accordance with the authority's rules and regulations. The authority may shall

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defer sewer assessments against any parcels, if the owner of a parcel has installed a new a

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functioning septic, ISDS, or OWTS that was installed within twenty (20) years of sewer service

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initially becoming operational, provided that such parcel shall remain subject to assessment and

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shall begin paying such assessment twenty (20) years from the date of the installation of the

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septic, ISDS or OWTS or when the septic, ISDS, or OWTS stops functioning, or upon connection

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to the sewer system, whichever occurs first .

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     The sewer assessments shall be determined by a method(s) adopted by the sewer

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authority that assesses charges for use of the sewers and the sewer systems in an amount that

 

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bears a reasonable relation to the cost of construction to the city and authority of the service

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rendered to the users, which method(s) may include, but is not limited to, the frontage along the

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highway of each parcel of land abutting on a common sewer, the area of such land within a fixed

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depth from the highway, or other alternative methods. The sewer authority with the advice and

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consent of the mayor may, from time to time, redetermine the rates fixed for sewer assessments,

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if construction costs warrant, and may redetermine rates for user charges if costs so warrant.

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     The sewer assessments herein referred to shall be paid by every parcel owner whose

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parcel is abutting on that portion of any highway in which a common sewer is laid under this act

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or is connected to the city's sewage works.

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     Sewer assessments levied hereunder may shall be paid in as many as thirty (30) annual

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installments in accordance with the terms of the loan secured for sewer construction, upon

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application by the parcel owner and approval of the sewer authority. In the case of installment

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payments, at a simple interest at a rate not to exceed a maximum rate of one and twenty-five

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hundredths percent (1.25%) above the average interest rate the authority is charged on the loan

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used to fund the construction of the sewers shall be charged annually on the unpaid balance of the

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total sewer assessment. Such annual installment payments may be paid on a quarterly basis.

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     Sewer assessments shall be levied at a uniform rate based upon the final cost of

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constructing all sewers, sewer service connections and other sewage works belonging to the city.

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Sewer assessment revenues shall be used for the payment of the principal and interest costs for

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any bonds or notes issued for sewage works.

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      User charges shall be levied upon every parcel owner or institution whose parcel is

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connected to the city's sewage system. The charge shall be computed as annual rates based upon

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water consumption or other factors deemed equitable by the sewer authority. The user charge

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shall be set at a level sufficient to support operation and maintenance costs of the sewer system

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and the wastewater treatment plant, the renewal and replacement fund and the principal and

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interest for any bonds or notes issued for sewage works. The revenues to be raised by user

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charges will be reduced by revenues generated by sewer assessments.

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     The authority shall annually certify to the finance director and to the mayor all the

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charges and sewer assessments made by it under the authority of this act. Each charge or

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assessment made by the authority pursuant to this act shall be a lien upon the parcels, lands,

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buildings and improvements upon which it is made in the same way and manner as taxes assessed

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on real estate, but such liens shall not expire until the charge or assessment with all interest, costs

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and penalties thereon is paid in full, and, if the charge or assessment is not paid as required, it

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shall be collected in the same manner that taxes assessed on real estate are by law collected. The

 

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finance director, after receiving a list of charges or assessments under this act, shall forthwith, at

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the expense of the authority, send to each person assessed or charged notice of the amount of his

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assessment or charge. The notice shall substantially identify the person assessed, state the amount

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of the assessment or charge and refer to the remedy available under section 19 of this act. The

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notice shall be mailed postpaid and directed to the last known address of the person assessed. If

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there are persons whose addresses are unknown, a similar notice covering the assessments against

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such persons shall be published in a newspaper of general circulation in the city and such

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published notice may be a single collective notice for all such persons. No irregularity in the

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notice required by this section shall excuse the nonpayment of the assessment or charge or affect

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its validity or any proceedings for the collection thereof as long as there is substantial compliance

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with the provision hereof. No deficiency in the notice to the person assessed shall excuse the

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nonpayment by others of the assessment or charges assessed against them or affect the validity

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thereof or any proceedings for the collection thereof. The finance director shall without further

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warrant collect such charges and assessments in the same manner as the regular taxes of the city

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may be payable. Interest at the rate per annum fixed for nonpayment of city taxes shall be charged

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and collected upon all overdue charges and assessments from the date they become payable until

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paid, provided however, that the total overdue charge for non-payment of installment of sewer

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assessments shall be applied to past due installments and not the total assessment; and provided

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further, that there shall be no penalty on installment assessments deferred by reason of income

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subject to rules and regulations that the Warwick City Council may prescribe by ordinance.

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     The authority with the advice and consent of the mayor may at any time modify in whole

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or in part any charge or assessment to the extent the authority determines such charge or

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assessment to have been improperly imposed.

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     SECTION 3. This act shall take effect upon passage and the sewer authority shall adopt

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rules and regulations within one year thereafter in accordance with this act.

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EXPLANATION

BY THE LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL

OF

A N   A C T

RELATING TO THE CITY OF WARWICK -- SEWER AUTHORITY

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     This act would modify the enabling act for the Warwick Sewer Authority by: expanding

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the number of authority members to seven (7); increasing the number of votes for changes to by-

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laws; providing for as many as thirty (30) year installment payments on sewer connections; and,

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relieving parcel owners with functioning septic systems from paying sewer assessments for 20

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years provided their systems remain functioning.

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     This act would take effect upon passage and the sewer authority would adopt rules and

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regulations within one year thereafter in accordance with this act.

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