Chapter
369
2006 -- S 2457 AS AMENDED
Enacted 07/07/06
A N A
C T
RELATING TO THE CITY
OF WARWICK -- SEWER AUTHORITY
Introduced By: Senators
McCaffrey, and Walaska
Date Introduced: February
09, 2006
It is enacted
by the General Assembly as follows:
SECTION
1. Section 17 of Chapter 254 of the 1962 Public Laws entitled "An Act to
Create
a Sewer Authority for the City of Warwick and to Authorize Said City to Plan,
Construct,
Finance,
Operate and Maintain Sewage Works," as amended, is hereby further amended
to read
as
follows:
Section
17. Authority to order connection to sewer; ordering cesspool, etc. to be
filled up,
etc.
-- (a) The sewer authority
with the advice and consent of the mayor in the interest of public
health
and safety is authorized to order any abutting owner or occupant of land upon
any street in
which
there is a sewer or in which a sewer may hereafter be constructed, to connect
the sewage of
such
premises with such sewer, and to order any owner or occupant to fill up and
destroy any
cesspool,
privy vault, drain or other arrangement on such land for the reception of
sewage. Upon
the
service of any such order, or copy thereof, upon any such owner or occupant, to
connect the
sewage
as aforesaid, or to fill up or destroy any cesspool, privy vault, drain or
other arrangement
for the
reception of sewage, such owner or occupant shall comply therewith within
thirty (30)
days
from the time of service of such order. In case the owner or occupant to whom
any such
order
is directed shall neglect or refuse to comply therewith within thirty (30) days
after the
service
thereof upon him/her, he/she shall be fined not less than one hundred dollars
($100) nor
more
than five hundred dollars ($500) for each subsequent twenty-four (24) hours
during which
he/she
shall neglect or refuse to comply therewith and in case such neglect or refusal
shall
continue
for sixty (60) days after the service of such an order, the authority may cause
such
cesspool,
privy vault, drain or other arrangement for the reception of sewage which is
the subject
of such
order to be filled up and destroyed and the sewage from such land to be
connected with a
common
sewer. The pendency of any appeal from any such order, shall not affect the
power of
the
authority, after the expiration of said period of sixty (60) days, to cause
such cesspool, privy
vault,
or other arrangement for the reception of sewage to be forthwith filled up and
destroyed.
Whenever
the authority shall cause any cesspool, privy vault, or other arrangement for
the
reception of sewage to be filled up and destroyed, or the sewage of any land to
be connected
with a
common sewer, it shall keep careful account of the cost of such work and of any
expense
caused
the city by reason of the neglect or refusal of the owner or occupant of such
land to
comply
with the order of the authority issued as aforesaid, and upon the completion of
such work
the
authority shall file statement of such cost and expense with the director of
finance and
thereupon
the amount of such cost and expense shall be a lien upon the land, including
improvements
thereon, for which such cost and expense was incurred and the same shall be
collected
in the same manner as other assessments and charges are collected under this
act.
(b)
Mandatory connection to sewer prior to sale or transfer. – Any abutting owner
or
occupant
of land upon any street in which there is a sewer must connect the sewage of
such
premises
with such sewer and fill up and destroy any cesspool, privy vault, drain or
other
arrangement
on such land for the reception of sewage, excluding any Rhode Island department
of
environmental
management ISDS approved system, prior to the one year anniversary of the sale
or
transfer in ownership. If such abutting owner or occupant of land who is
required to connect to
the
sewage system fails to do so in prescribed time period, then such abutting
owner or occupant
of land
shall be required to pay usage fees as if such abutting owner or occupant of
land were
connected
to the sewage system.
SECTION 2. This act shall take effect upon passage.
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LC01541
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