2023 -- H 5718

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LC001352

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     STATE OF RHODE ISLAND

IN GENERAL ASSEMBLY

JANUARY SESSION, A.D. 2023

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A N   A C T

RELATING TO THE KINGSTON FIRE DISTRICT IN THE TOWN OF SOUTH

KINGSTOWN

     Introduced By: Representatives Fogarty, Tanzi, Spears, McEntee, Cardillo, Cotter,
Azzinaro, Kennedy, Casey, and Hull

     Date Introduced: February 17, 2023

     Referred To: House Municipal Government & Housing

     It is enacted by the General Assembly as follows:

     SECTION 1. Sections 2, 4, 5, 7, 9, 10, 11, 15, 17, 18 and 19 of Chapter 544 of the 1923

Public Laws entitled "An Act to Incorporate the Kingston Fire District in the Town of South

Kingstown" as amended, are hereby amended to read as follows:

     Sec. 2. The electors, who shall consist of electors of said district qualified to vote in town

affairs on propositions to impose taxes or for the expenditure of moneys the residents of said district

qualified to vote in elections of the Town of South Kingstown, shall be entitled to vote and act in

all meetings of the corporation.

     Sec. 4. Said electors at each annual meeting, and at any other meeting when vacancies

occur, may elect officers to serve for one year or until the next annual meeting, and until others be

elected in their stead, which officers shall consist of a moderator, clerk. Treasurer, treasurer, three

assessors, auditors, and a collector of taxes, whose duties and powers within said district shall be

such as like officers of towns in this state have within their respective towns. They may also elect

fire wardens, a president of fire wardens and such other officers and committees as they may deem

necessary.

     Sec. 5. Said electors at any of their legal meetings shall have power to order such taxes,

and provide for assessing and collecting the same, on the taxable inhabitants and property in said

district as they shall deem necessary for purchasing and procuring real estate, buildings and

implements, apparatus, other equipment and a supply of water for the extinguishment of fire, for

constructing cisterns and reservoirs, laying water pipes and purchasing rights to lay the same, for

the purpose of lighting the street in said district with electricity or otherwise, for the payment of the

current expenses of said district, the payment of such police force as they may deem necessary for

the protection of the inhabitants of said district from fires and for the preservation of the public

peace therein and for the payment of obligations that have been or may be incurred, by said district

in the exercise of the powers granted to said district, and also for the payment of any indebtedness

that has been or may be incurred by said district. Such taxes so ordered shall be assessed by the

assessors of said district on the taxable inhabitants and property therein according to the last

valuation made by the assessors of the town next previous to said assessment, adding, however,

any taxable property which may have been omitted by said town assessors or which may have been

since acquired; and in all cases where the town assessors have included property within said district

and propc1ty without said district in one valuation, the assessors of said district shall make an

equitable valuation of that portion of the same lying within said district; and in the assessing and

collecting of said taxes such proceedings shall be had by the officers of said district, as near as may

be, as are required to be had by the corresponding officers to towns in this state in assessing and

collecting town taxes assessed for said district have the same powers and authorities as are now by

law conferred upon collectors of taxes for towns in this state. Said district may provide for such

deduction from the tax assessed against any person if paid by an appointed time, or for such penalty

by way of percentage on the tax if not paid at an appointed time as they shall deem necessary to

insure punctual payment, which penalty shall not exceed that provided by law to be charged by the

cities and towns of the state on prope1ty taxes assessed by them.

     Sec. 7. Said electors shall have power to enact by­laws prescribing the duties of fire

wardens and the several officers and committees of said district, and of the inhabitants of said

district in time of conflagration, and to enforce obedience to the commands of the fire wardens for

suppressing disorder and tumult, guarding or removing property or rendering other services in time

of fire, and also for the protection of the water pipes, hose, hydrants or other apparatus or property

of said district and for the preservation of order and the public peace in said district; and said

electors may provide for the breach of any such by-law a penalty consisting of a fine not exceeding

twenty dollars five hundred dollars, to be recovered for the use of said district, or imprisonment for

a term not exceeding thirty days, or both, which penalty may be enforced by prosecution on

complaint and warrant in the district court of the fourth judicial district.

     Sec. 9. The fire wardens elected by said district shall publicly within four days next

preceding the day of holding and regular meeting of said fire district, make a corrected list of the

names of all persons entitled to vote in such meeting, and certify and deliver the same to the

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moderator before the time shall arrive for the calling of the meeting to order. In making such list

the fire wardens shall take from the last corrected voting list of the town of South Kingstown the

names of all persons residing within the limits of said district who continue qualified to vote in

elections of the Town of South Kingstown on a proposition to impose a tax, or for the expenditure

of money in said town and place said names upon the list to be made up by them, and shall add

thereto the names of all persons residing within said district who shall be so qualified and whose

names shall not be upon said voting list and shall cause printed notices of the time and place named

by them to make such list to be posted in five public places within said district, not more than ten

nor less than five days before the time appointed for such district meeting, and the list so made and

certified shall be used in determining any question before such meeting when demanded by ten of

the voters present; and thereupon the moderator shall receive the votes of all persons whose names

arc upon such list, and shall reject the votes of all persons claiming to vote whose names are not

thereon.

     Sec. 10. Said electors at any of their legal meeting shall have power to choose and appoint

so many men persons as they may think needful to be formed into a fire company or companies,

and also a hook and ladder company, and to make all such laws and regulations for organizing and

establishing the same as they shall see fit, and the members of such companies shall be entitled to

the exemptions, privileges and remedies provided by the general laws of the state for members of

the fire departments of cities and towns.

     Sec. 11. Said electors may hold special meetings which, as well as the annual meetings,

shall be notified in such manner as they shall prescribe; and it shall be the duty of the clerk board

of wardens to call a special meeting upon written application signed by twelve or more of such

electors, and whenever the subject of ordering a tax or borrowing money is to be acted on, the same

shall be mentioned in the notice unless it be an annual meeting.

     Sec. 15 13. The District may have a common seal, and in its corporate name may sue and

be sued, prosecute and defend, in any court and elsewhere and enjoy all the other powers generally

incident to corporations. Every suit whether in law or equity, brought against the district shall be

brought in the County of Washington unless otherwise directed by law.

     Sec. 17 14. The District may from time to time make and ordain all ordinances, by-laws

and regulations for the District that shall not be in conflict with or in violation of other provisions

of this act and not repugnant to law.

     Sec. 18 15. All property held by the said district, except land, pursuant to the authority

granted by this chapter as amended and located within said district is and shall he exempt from

taxation. Such exemption shall also apply to any taxes which, but for the passage of this act, might

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be assessable with respect to property, except land, held by said district on December 31, 1962.

     Sec. 19 16. This act shall take effect upon its passage, and all acts and parts of acts

inconsistent herewith are hereby repealed.

     SECTION 2. Sections 13, 14, and 16 of Chapter 544 of the 1923 Public Laws entitled "An

Act to Incorporate the Kingston Fire District in the town of South Kingstown" are hereby repealed

in their entirety:

     Sec. 13. In addition to the foregoing, said district shall have the power for the purpose of

supplying water within said district for fire protection and for domestic, manufacturing and other

purposes and for the transaction of any other business connected therewith, to acquire, by purchase

or otherwise, own, operate, subdivide, construct. improve, repair, develop, manage, lease,

mortgage, pledge, sell, exchange, assign or otherwise deal in real estate, interests in real estate,

riparian rights, water, rights of water and of way, any and all kinds of buildings, and any and all

personal and other property of any and all kinds incidental thereto. Said district may acquire and

hold the capital stock of any water company authorized to do business within said district.

     Sec. 14. Said district may construct driven and bored artesian or other wells and may erect

on land acquired by it such dams, buildings, reservoirs, filtering galleries, filters, standpipes,

fixtures and other structures, apparatus or equipment as may be convenient for the establishment

and maintenance of a complete and effective system of water works and may do all other acts

reasonably necessary to carry out the powers granted in Section 13 hereof. Said district may make

excavations, procure and operate machinery, lay and maintain aqueducts, conduits, pipes and other

works under or over any land, water courses, and along or over any highway or other way, in such

manner us not unnecessarily to obstruct the same; and for the purpose of constructing, laying,

maintaining and repairing such aqueducts, conduits, pipes and other works and for all other

purposes of this act, said corporation may dig up, raise and embank any such land, highways or

other ways, in such manner as to cause the least hindrance to public travel under the protection and

with the assent of the town council of the town as to highways or other ways within its control, and

of the department of public warks (sic) as to highways or other ways within its control.

     Sec. 16. Said district may sell and distribute water throughout said district, or authorize the

same to be done, and may regulate its use and fix the price and rates to be paid therefor, subject to

and with the benefit of the provisions of chapters 122 and 449 of the general laws, as amended.

Said district shall have the exclusive right to the water acquired or distributed by it, and may

maintain an action against any person for using the same without its consent.

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     SECTION 3. This act shall take effect upon passage.

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EXPLANATION

BY THE LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL

OF

A N   A C T

RELATING TO THE KINGSTON FIRE DISTRICT IN THE TOWN OF SOUTH

KINGSTOWN

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     This act would clarify that qualification to vote in elections of the Kingston Fire District

extends to those residents of the District qualified to vote in the town of South Kingstown elections.

It also would remove all those sections addressing the use of water for district fire protection.

     This act would take effect upon passage.

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