Separate Road Districts

Miss. Code Ann. tit. 65, ch. 19
in effect

Miss. Code Ann. § 65-19-1 Creation of separate road districts.

Separate road districts, composed in whole or in part of one or of more than one supervisors’ district, may be created and organized by the board of supervisors of any county (a) upon its own initiative or (b) upon petition as follows: Whenever in the judgment of the board the public interest and the interest of the proposed district will be promoted by the creation and organization of a separate road district, the said board shall determine the boundaries of the district in such manner as the existing public highways, the territory tributary thereto, the engineering and topographical conditions, and other pertinent considerations render expedient, and shall accurately define the said boundaries by land numbers, by natural boundaries, by metes and bounds, or by combinations thereof, so long as said description may be clearly understood or would be sufficient as a description in a deed of conveyance. The board shall enter an order declaring its intention to create and organize a separate road district according to the boundaries so defined and made a part of said order. When a petition or petitions containing the boundaries of a proposed district, defined and bounded as hereinbefore required, signed by twenty per cent. of the qualified electors of the proposed district has been filed and presented to the board, requesting the creation and organization of a separate road district composed of the territory aforesaid, it shall be the duty of the board to make an order reciting the fact and to proceed thereupon with said proposal as is hereinafter provided. No road district shall hereafter be created which has an assessed value of property therein of less than Five Hundred Thousand Dollars ($500,000.00), according to the last completed assessment for taxation, but this limitation shall not apply to the consolidation of existing road districts.

Miss. Code Ann. § 65-19-3 Publication of notice.

Whenever the proceeding has been initiated or proposed by either of the methods above provided, the said board shall cause notice to be published of the said proposal, which notice shall be sufficiently full to fairly apprise all persons in interest of the character and objects of said proposal. The notice shall fix a time and place when and where the board of supervisors will hear objections to the creation of said district and to the bringing of any of the defined territory within said district. Said notice shall be published in a newspaper of general circulation published in the county once a week for three weeks prior to the date of the hearing fixed in said notice; the first publication shall be not less than eighteen nor more than forty days prior to said date. If there be no newspaper published in the county in which the territory is located, the notice shall be published in some newspaper having a general circulation therein.

Miss. Code Ann. § 65-19-5 Amount of bonds to be preliminarily estimated.

If the board of supervisors of its own motion initiates the proceedings, it shall make a careful preliminary estimate of the probable amount of the bonds of the proposed district that will be required to be issued by the district; and if the proposal be made by petition, then the petitioners shall make a like estimate and recite the same in their petition or petitions. The preliminary orders of the board in either case shall recite the said proposed or probable amount of the bonds to be issued, and the notice required under Section 65-19-3 shall contain a like recital. But said estimates, whether by the board or by the petitioners, shall be deemed no more than estimates and, if the district be created, shall not be controlling upon the amount of bonds subsequently to be issued, whether more or less, as future necessity may require.

Miss. Code Ann. § 65-19-7 Hearing of objections.

At the time and place named in said notice, or at any other time or place not later than fifteen days thereafter which may be designated by said board, said board of supervisors shall meet and shall hear remonstrances or objections to the creation of said road district or to the bringing of any part of said territory within the district, shall pass upon and determine the sufficiency of the petition, the boundaries of the district to be created, or the territory to be placed therein, and shall make such orders as justice and equity shall require. The board of supervisors upon said hearing is hereby vested with full authority to decline to create the district or to exclude from said district any lands named in its previous order or in said petition which, in the discretion of said board, should not be included in said district. If it be determined to create the district, the order to that effect shall clearly define the territory to be included therein, which territory and district may be described by a reference to supervisors’ districts or to fixed and known boundaries of the county or of any subdivision thereof, or by specifying the lands included by range, township, and section or lot, or by defining the metes and bounds. The said order shall designate said district or territory by some suitable name, or the district or territory may be designated “road district No._______________of_______________county, or road district of_______________county.” If at the time of the said hearing twenty-five percent (25%) of the qualified electors of such proposed district petition against its creation or against the amount of the bonds proposed, then the district shall not be created unless at an election, ordered by the board of supervisors for the purpose, a majority of the qualified voters of such district, voting in such election, vote in favor of the creation of the district; the board of its own motion may order an election with like effect as if ordered under the foregoing proviso.

Miss. Code Ann. § 65-19-9 Extension of road beyond the limits of district.

If the qualified electors petitioning for the creation and organization of a separate road district shall so desire, they may petition, in addition, that the proceeds of the sale of said bonds may be used to extend and build roads beyond the limits of such district and that a tax be levied on such district or districts to pay such bonds and maintain such roads, in which case it shall be the duty of the board, in publishing the notice as hereinbefore provided, to add thereto notice of the further purpose to use part of the proceeds of said bonds in building and maintaining roads in other territory, naming the said other territory; and to levy taxes for that purpose. In any election ordered therein, the further question shall be submitted to the electors, whether such roads are to be so extended or not, which shall be submitted as follows: “For the extension of roads into other districts,” or “against the extension of roads into other districts.” If said election result in favor of such action, determined and adjudicated in like manner by the election commissioners and board of supervisors, as required by law, then the said road commissioners shall, with the approval of the board of supervisors, have the power to extend said roads into other districts and pay for the same out of the proceeds of the sale of said bonds, and levy a tax to maintain the same on such district consenting thereto, as provided for in this chapter.

Miss. Code Ann. § 65-19-11 Consolidations and additions.

In like manner and under like conditions as mentioned in the preceding sections, (a) separate road districts heretofore or hereafter created may be consolidated into a single separate road district; (b) a separate road district may be created from parts of two or more districts heretofore or hereafter created, or from territory partly of such a district or districts and partly of territory not theretofore in any separate road district; and (c) suitable territory, whether within or without a separate road district, may be added to an adjoining separate road district. All the qualified electors residing in each of the component parts of the territory proposed to be consolidated or joined in or added, as well as of the proposed district when completed, shall have the right to be heard and to vote in any election held as a part of said procedure. If twenty-five percent (25%) of the qualified electors in any one of the component parts aforesaid of the proposed territory or a like percent of the entire territory so petition, the board shall order an election and, unless at said election the qualified electors of each of the said component parts counted separately and a majority of the entire proposed new district counted in the aggregate shall favor the proposal, it shall not be allowed and the proposal shall be ordered rejected.

Miss. Code Ann. § 65-19-13 District may be abolished.

In like manner and under like conditions, the board of supervisors may by order abolish any separate road district and, thereupon, either add the said territory or a part thereof to another separate road district, or else leave the same, or the remainder, as a part of the general road territory of the county.

Miss. Code Ann. § 65-19-15 Previous obligations.

When a separate district has been established or abolished under Section 65-19-11 or Section 65-19-13, the said establishment or abolishment shall not release the territory or taxable property or persons of the former district or districts or parts thereof from assessments for the benefit and purposes of the original district or districts or parts thereof, nor impair nor in any wise release the property or persons in the new district so established from assessment and liability for the payment of the debts and obligations of the original district. In the respects last aforesaid, the creation of such new district as in the foregoing sections provided shall in no wise change the lines or territorial construction and integrity of the original district or districts or parts thereof from which such new district may be formed. In event a separate road district is consolidated or added to or otherwise established or abolished, as in the foregoing sections provided, out of territory embraced in whole or in part within any district that has outstanding bonds or loan warrants or other valid indebtedness, the board of supervisors shall annually levy a tax on the territory that originally issued said bonds or loan warrants or incurred the indebtedness, in accordance with the contract under which such indebtedness was created, until the same is fully paid.

Miss. Code Ann. § 65-19-17 Aggrieved parties may appeal.

Any party aggrieved by the order of the board of supervisors creating a road district or bringing territory therein, as herein provided, may appeal to the circuit court from the order of said board of supervisors as now provided by law for appeals from the orders of boards of supervisors, or may sue at law or in equity for relief therefrom; however, no action or suit attacking the validity of the said order, or in any manner questioning the same, shall be begun after the expiration of sixty days from the date of making or entering the said order. From and after the expiration of said period of sixty days, if no suit be filed or appeal taken as herein provided, the determination of the board of supervisors as to said matters shall be final, and the territory defined in said order of said board of supervisors shall constitute a road and taxing district of the state to which is delegated the power hereinafter mentioned to levy general ad valorem taxes upon all of the taxable property of said district assessed for state and county taxes, for the purpose of constructing and maintaining or repairing roads and highways, or for the payment of the principal and interest of any bonds issued for that purpose in the manner provided by the general laws. If under the foregoing sections an election is held and the majority vote in favor of the district proposed, the appeal to the circuit court hereinabove mentioned shall not lie or, if taken, shall be dismissed.

Miss. Code Ann. § 65-19-19 Elections.

The elections hereinbefore mentioned shall be held and conducted according to the provisions of Chapter 5, Title 23, Mississippi Code of 1972, so far as applicable, the tickets to be used in said election to contain the following: “For the creation of the district” and, either below or above on the ticket, “Against the creation of the district.”

Miss. Code Ann. § 65-19-21 Supervisors to provide for election.

In any election held under the provisions of this chapter in respect to the creation of, or addition to, separate road districts, the board of supervisors shall have the power to fix the place and provide for holding the election by the qualified electors of such territory, whenever the voting precincts as fixed for general elections will not be convenient or suitable.

Miss. Code Ann. § 65-19-23 Result of election.

Such election shall be held so far as practicable in accordance with the laws regulating general elections in this state; however, in order to authorize the creation of such proposed road district, a majority of the qualified electors residing in such territory shall vote in favor of such creation. When the election commissioners of the county shall have received returns of said election and have declared the result thereof, they shall, after having canvassed the same, forthwith make returns of said election to the board of supervisors by filing with the board of supervisors a certificate stating the number of votes cast in favor of the creation, the number of votes cast against the creation, and the number of qualified electors residing in the territory proposed to be created into a road district. The number of qualified electors residing in said territory shall be determined at the meeting of the election commissioners first preceding said election, as required by Section 23-5-79, Mississippi Code of 1972. At its next meeting after it has received said returns, the board of supervisors shall adjudicate whether or not a majority of the qualified electors of the territory have voted in favor of the creation of said road district, from the findings of the election commissioners as herein required. Should the result of such election show that it has carried in favor of the creation of the district by a majority vote of the qualified electors residing in the proposed district, then it shall be the duty of the board of supervisors to issue the bonds of such district in the necessary amount, not to exceed ten percent (10%) of the assessed value of all taxable property of the district. The amount within this limit shall be fixed by the commissioners hereinafter provided for, subject to the approval of the board of supervisors, such bonds to be issued and sold either all at one time or in installments from time to time as funds are needed for the construction of such highway or highways, in the discretion of the commissioners and the board of supervisors. Any county, supervisor’s district, part of supervisor’s district, or districts which have heretofore issued bonds in said county, supervisor’s district, parts of supervisor’s district, or districts for road purposes may, under the provisions of this chapter and in pursuance thereof, issue bonds in addition to those already issued, provided that the total amount of bonds for road purposes outstanding and to be issued shall not exceed ten percent (10%) of the assessed value of all the taxable property of the district.

Miss. Code Ann. § 65-19-25 General provisions for bonds.

The bonds issued under authority hereof shall mature not later than twenty-five (25) years from the date of their issuance; shall bear interest at such rate or rates, provided that the bonds of any issue shall not bear a greater overall maximum interest rate to maturity than that allowed in Section 75-17-101, payable annually or semiannually, as the board of supervisors shall direct; shall be exempt from all taxes, and shall be payable in annual installments, the amount to be paid each year to be fixed by the board of supervisors when the bonds are issued. All such bonds, with interest coupons if any attached, shall be lithographed with suitable devices to prevent counterfeiting; shall be in denominations to be fixed by the board of supervisors; shall be registered by the clerk of the board of supervisors in a book to be kept for that purpose; shall be numbered as provided by the board of supervisors, and shall be signed by the president of the board and countersigned by the clerk, who shall impress the seal of the county upon each bond as it is issued. The coupons, if any, shall be lithographed with the facsimile signatures of the president and clerk of said board, and every such bond shall specify on its face the purpose for which it was authorized and the total amount authorized to be issued. Each bond shall be made payable to a person by name, or may be made payable to bearer without any name, such bonds to be entitled “Road bonds of ,” describing by name or number the territory created and organized into a road district. Such bonds shall not be sold for less than their face value; and the board of supervisors of each county shall levy annually a special tax upon all the taxable property of the district to be used exclusively in paying the interest on the bonds and providing a sinking fund for their redemption. Notwithstanding the foregoing provisions of this section, bonds referred to hereinabove may be issued pursuant to the supplemental powers and authorizations conferred by the provisions of the Registered Bond Act, being Sections 31-21-1 through 31-21-7.

Miss. Code Ann. § 65-19-27 District road commissioners.

It shall be the duty of the board of supervisors in case the election shall result in favor of the creation of the district, at its next regular meeting or any subsequent meeting, to appoint three commissioners, who shall be qualified electors of the district and real estate owners therein, who shall hold office for a term of four years from the time of their appointment and until their successors are appointed by the board of supervisors, whose duty it shall be to have the management and supervision of the construction and maintenance of the roads built under the provisions hereof, subject to the approval of the board of supervisors, and for their services shall be paid their actual expenses, not exceeding one hundred dollars each per annum. The board of supervisors may remove any commissioner, for cause or at pleasure, at any time and fill the vacancy thereby caused; and the board may, at any time after the roads within a district have been constructed by the proceeds of bonds sold, discontinue the commissioners, proceed to administer the fiscal affairs of the road district in the manner authorized by law, and make tax levies without recommendation of the commissioners on all taxable property in such district or districts. The commissioners may employ an attorney, if necessary, and pay him a reasonable compensation.

Miss. Code Ann. § 65-19-29 Duties of commissioners.

It shall be the duty of such commissioners, subject to the approval of the board of supervisors, to determine and fix what road or roads shall be constructed, or constructed and maintained, or maintained in the district out of the proceeds of the sale of bonds and the levy of taxes. It shall be their duty to let all contracts for the construction, or for the construction and maintenance, or for the maintenance of such roads in the manner provided by law for the letting of contracts for public work by the board of supervisors. It shall be their duty to employ a competent engineer to survey and lay out the road or roads in the district as they shall determine upon, whose duty it shall be to make an estimate of the cost of constructing and maintaining such highway or highways for each separate mile covered by such survey and to report the survey and estimate to said commissioners before contracts are let for the construction or for the construction and maintenance of such highway or highways. Said commissioners shall have the power to adopt or reject such survey and estimate and in the latter event to have another made. When adopted, it shall be their duty to report the same to the board of supervisors, whose duty it shall be to order the clerk of said board to file the same among the records of the office, spread the same on the minutes of the board, and make an order adopting such survey and estimate so reported and adopted by the commissioners. All of said acts of said commissioners shall be subject to ratification or rejection by the board of supervisors.

Miss. Code Ann. § 65-19-31 Rejection of bids.

Where contracts are let upon competitive bids, if the commissioners deem the bids too high, they are authorized to reject all bids.

Miss. Code Ann. § 65-19-33 Special tax levied.

The public highway or highways so surveyed and adopted by such commissioners shall be constructed and maintained out of the proceeds of the aforementioned bonds, proceeds of such bonds to be used alone in their construction and maintenance. The board of supervisors shall levy an annual tax, on the recommendation of the commissioners, on all the taxable property in the district not exceeding three mills on the dollar, which shall be used to supplement the general fund of the county in maintaining said road or roads and the culverts, bridges, and levees therein. For the purpose of paying such bonds and interest and so maintaining said roads, the board of supervisors shall, at the time fixed by law, levy the tax for the same, and it shall be the duty of the county auditor to keep a separate account of such funds so raised from the other funds of the county; and it shall be the duty of the county depository, which shall be the treasurer of such funds and liable on its bond therefor, to keep a separate account thereof. All allowances against said special funds shall be made by the board of supervisors on the recommendation of the commissioners, and special warrants prepared for the purpose shall be issued against said funds.

Miss. Code Ann. § 65-19-35 Separate assessment of district.

The tax assessor, when ordered so to do by the board of supervisors, shall make a separate assessment of all the taxable property of the district or part of districts or territory forming a road district. In making such assessment, it shall not be necessary for him to reassess the property in the road district, but he shall copy from the assessment rolls in use at the time, or mark and separate thereon, all the property and persons in the district or parts of districts forming a road district, so that the county tax collector, in collecting the taxes levied on such road district, may easily ascertain the property and persons situated therein.

Miss. Code Ann. § 65-19-37 Convict labor.

Each separate road district shall receive a fair portion of the convict labor assigned to the roads of the county.

Miss. Code Ann. § 65-19-39 Disbursement of road fund.

The county auditor shall have prepared proper warrants for the disbursement of district road funds and shall issue such warrants when properly authorized by ordinance of the board of supervisors. All the costs and expenses of organizing such road district and of constructing, maintaining, and working the highways, roads, bridges, and culverts, except county bridges maintained by the county, shall be paid out of such fund.

Miss. Code Ann. § 65-19-41 Payment of contractors.

The payment to the contractors for the construction of the roads adopted by said commission, when the roads are constructed or maintained by contract, shall be made by the board of supervisors on certificates issued by the engineer or superintendent and approved by the commission.

Miss. Code Ann. § 65-19-43 Acceptance and final settlement.

The roads hereinbefore provided shall have been completed for a period of at least one month before the board of supervisors and the road commissioners shall finally accept the same and make final settlement therefor. Nor shall the board of supervisors allow any final payment to any contractor for the construction of any such road until an itemized statement shall be filed, showing in detail the amount that may be due for each separate mile, the number of yards hauled for each mile, and the amount of work completed for each mile.

Miss. Code Ann. § 65-19-45 Final settlement with engineer.

The board of supervisors shall retain fifteen percent (15%) of the amount due the engineer employed upon a percentage basis until the road constructed under his supervision shall have been finally accepted.

Miss. Code Ann. § 65-19-47 Surplus funds loaned.

The commissioners are hereby authorized to loan out any surplus funds of the district, and where such loans are secured by real estate, they shall be made in the manner and under the terms and provisions of the laws now relating to the loan of funds of the sixteenth sections; or they may purchase the bonds or evidences of debts of this state or of any county, municipality, drainage or road district situated in the State of Mississippi, or notes or bonds of the United States, or accept same as security for loans therein.

Miss. Code Ann. § 65-19-49 May borrow money.

The road commissioners of a separate road district, by and with the consent of the board of supervisors evidenced by ordinance duly passed, may borrow money in a sum or sums not greater in the aggregate than two percent (2%) of the assessed valuation of the real and personal property within such district. Such loans shall be evidenced by the loan warrant or warrants of such district, signed by the road commissioners thereof and countersigned by the president of the board of supervisors, to bear not more than six percent (6%) interest per annum, and to run not more than five years from the issuance thereof. Provision shall be made at the time of making said loans for the payment thereof at maturity out of the roads funds for said district.

Miss. Code Ann. § 65-19-51 General supervision.

The road commissioners shall have general direction and supervision over the highways, bridges, and culverts of their district and the laying out, constructing, working, and maintenance of the same.

Miss. Code Ann. § 65-19-53 Roads and bridges constructed and maintained.

When the funds arising from the road district bonds shall have been expended in the construction of roads and the contracts for construction of roads have been completed, then the road engineers, by and with the consent of the board of supervisors, are hereby authorized and empowered to purchase teams, implements and material, employ labor, work said roads and build bridges, and may do all things necessary to be done to work, maintain and improve the roads and build bridges, as herein provided; but all contracts for material and supplies shall be made according to state law governing public purchases, as provided in Sections 31-7-1 et seq., and all labor shall be employed by and under the direction of said engineers, by and with the consent of the board of supervisors. If the road district be composed of only a part of a supervisors district and the principal of the bonds issued does not exceed Fifty Thousand Dollars ($50,000.00), the road engineers, by and with the consent of the board of supervisors, are hereby authorized and empowered, in their discretion, to purchase and hire teams, implements and material and employ labor to build and work said roads and build bridges, and may do all things necessary to be done to construct, work, maintain and improve the roads and build bridges, as herein provided; but all contracts for material and supplies shall be made on and after competitive bids for the same, except as otherwise provided by law, and all labor shall be employed by and under the direction of said engineers, by and with the consent of the board of supervisors. The board of supervisors may use any teams and implements which it owns to assist on the roads of such district; and the like authority may be granted by the board for the maintenance of the roads, as to those not under construction, during the period when the roads or some of them are being constructed.

Miss. Code Ann. § 65-19-55 Commissioners may turn over completed roads to county.

When the funds raised in any separate road district by bond issue have been expended and the contracts for road construction have been completed under the methods of building roads authorized by law, it shall be lawful for the road commissioners of any such road district, by and with the consent of the board of supervisors, to turn over to the county in which such road district is situated the roads so constructed. It shall then become the duty of the board of supervisors of such county to maintain and keep up such roads in place and stead of and in the same manner as the road commissioners of such district, and manage in place of said commissioners all of the fiscal affairs of said road district. The funds of each district shall be kept separate and applied to the district in which it was collected.

Miss. Code Ann. § 65-19-57 Transfer of roads not to affect obligations of district.

Such transfer shall in no way release any such road district from any of the obligations of its bond issue, nor obligate the county in any way to assume any responsibility for the same.

Miss. Code Ann. § 65-19-59 Public roads worked in separate districts.

All the public roads of any separate road district, or parts thereof, shall be worked by contract, if the board of supervisors of such county so elect, by an order entered to that effect on its minutes.

Miss. Code Ann. § 65-19-61 Board of supervisors; powers and control.

The board of supervisors of the county in which a road district organized under this chapter is situated shall have plenary power of supervision and control over all of the official acts of the road commissioners and the road superintendent, and shall refuse to ratify or confirm any contract or report of any action of such commissioners or superintendent, when the same is reported to them, which is not for the best interest of such district. They shall require the letting of contracts and the purchase of teams, materials, lumber, supplies, and all other property for the use of the district to be made after advertisement and competitive bidding when such method is deemed likely to best subserve the interest of the district and be most economical.

Miss. Code Ann. § 65-19-63 Emergency repair of roads and bridges.

The said commissioners maintaining the roads may, in case of emergency, repair such roads and bridges and keep the same in a proper state of repair without waiting until due advertisement shall be made; however, the amount so expended by them shall not in any one instance exceed the sum of Two Hundred Fifty dollars ($250.00).

Miss. Code Ann. § 65-19-65 Roads connecting districts.

The boards of supervisors of the several counties upon request of a separate road district are hereby authorized to cooperate in the construction and maintenance of any public road connecting two such districts, and may, in their discretion, appropriate and expend such district road funds for such purpose in such an amount as may appear to be for the best interest of the respective districts.

Miss. Code Ann. § 65-19-67 Supervisors to build all bridges and culverts.

It shall be the duty of the boards of supervisors to build all bridges and culverts in districts coming under this chapter, the cost of which shall be paid out of either the county fund or the proceeds from the sale of bonds of said separate road district, in the discretion of the board of supervisors.

Miss. Code Ann. § 65-19-69 Supervisors may acquire rights of way.

The board of supervisors are authorized to acquire rights of way for the roads proposed to be constructed in said district, in the manner now prescribed by law for the acquisition of the rights of way for roads. Such rights of way shall be of necessary width, and if it be deemed necessary to acquire rights of way for such roads in excess of thirty feet, then the board of supervisors is authorized to acquire same up to any width deemed by them to be necessary for such road.

Miss. Code Ann. § 65-19-71 Road superintendent.

There may be selected by the road commissioners, subject to the confirmation of the board of supervisors, a competent road superintendent, whose compensation shall be fixed by the board of supervisors, who shall hold his office for one year unless sooner removed, and who shall give a good and sufficient bond for the faithful performance of his duties. Such superintendent shall work under the direction of the road commissioners and may require any or all directions given him by the commissioners to be in writing. He shall give his whole time to the working of the roads in the district except when the commissioners, on account of weather or other conditions, may direct him otherwise. All labor employed on the roads in the district shall be employed by the superintendent and shall be under his control and direction, but the wages paid or agreed to be paid such labor shall be subject to revision and correction by the road commissioners. The superintendent shall file each month with the road commissioners a payroll showing the name of each laborer, the number of days each worked, and the amount due him. When this payroll shall have been approved by the commissioners and transmitted to the board of supervisors and approved by them, warrants on the road fund of the district shall be issued in accordance therewith.

Miss. Code Ann. § 65-19-73 Duties of road superintendent.

The road superintendent shall have the custody, care, and control of all the teams, machinery, materials, supplies, and any and all property owned or hired by the district and used in working the road. It shall be his duty to care for and preserve the same, and he and his bondsmen shall be responsible for the proper care and safekeeping of such property and the economical use of the supplies and materials. He shall make a monthly report to the commissioners, which shall be forwarded by them with their recommendations or criticisms to the board of supervisors. Such report shall be a complete inventory of such property, showing the present number, amount, and condition of such property and what was used since his preceding report.

Miss. Code Ann. § 65-19-75 Reports to be filed.

The reports of the road commissioners and the road superintendent shall be kept on file by the clerk of the board of supervisors and shall be open to inspection of any resident or taxpayer of such road district.

Miss. Code Ann. § 65-19-77 Purchases by road superintendent.

The road superintendent shall have the power to purchase nails, lumber, tools, and other things necessary, where the need for the same is immediate and the value of said purchase does not exceed Fifty Dollars ($50.00). In cases of emergency he shall have power to contract for the immediate repair of a bridge, causeway, culvert, or a bad place in the road, provided such contract is not for a sum greater than Fifty Dollars ($50.00) and the need of the repair immediate and urgent. Such purchases and contracts shall be subject to ratification by the road commissioners and the board of supervisors.

Miss. Code Ann. § 65-19-79 Provisions of general road laws to govern.

All the provisions of law in respect to roads and bridges, so far as applicable and where not in conflict with the special provisions in respect to separate road districts, shall govern in said road districts.

Miss. Code Ann. § 65-19-81 Public highways extending into municipalities.

Where any public highway being constructed, improved, or maintained by any separate road district shall run or extend into or through any incorporated municipality within the said district, such highway may be constructed, improved, and maintained the same within as without the corporate limits of said municipality. With the consent of and in conjunction with the road commissioners, the said municipality may, out of its own funds, add such street crossings or make improvements, such as grading, culverts, graveling, paving, or other improvements, as it may desire; the mayor and board of aldermen shall, by an order spread upon their minutes, consent for the work to be done by the commissioners. This section shall not be construed as any limitation upon those sections of this title in reference to state highways.

Miss. Code Ann. § 65-19-83 Benefit district roads.

Whenever the owners of not less than one-half of the land bordering on or adjacent to any section of road established shall petition for a survey and estimate of the cost of building the road in a substantial and permanent manner of stone, gravel, chert, slag, brick, a combination of such material, or of any material equally durable and economical, the board may cause a survey and estimate to be made by a licensed civil engineer. Whenever thereafter the petitioners shall present to the board a map or description of the land which in their opinion would be directly benefited by the construction of such road, together with the written requests of the owners of not less than three-fifths of such land asking that all lands so benefited be assessed in proportion to the benefit conferred to pay one-third of the cost of construction, the board may levy and collect a special tax on such lands sufficient to pay one third of the cost thereof. Such lands shall be known as the benefit district of such section of road.

Miss. Code Ann. § 65-19-85 Assessment of benefit district lands.

The board, in assessing the benefits derived by any land in such district, shall consider only its proximity to the road and its market terminus. No benefit assessment shall be made on any lands when the distance between it and the nearest point on the road is greater than three tenths of the distance from such point on the road to the market terminus of the road, and no benefit assessment shall be made on any land more than three and one-half miles from the road. Any subdivision of a section of land containing forty acres, more or less, for the purposes of the benefit assessment may be included in such district if one fourth thereof is within the lines of the district. The board may collect from a benefit district an amount equal to One Thousand Dollars ($1,000.00) for each lineal mile of road constructed therein, and no more, except interest on the amount that may be expended twelve months or more in advance of the collection of any tax. The board shall not undertake the construction of any road when the estimate indicates that the total cost will exceed Thirty-five Hundred Dollars ($3,500.00) per mile.

Miss. Code Ann. § 65-19-87 Collection of benefit district taxes.

The board shall provide for the collection of taxes from the benefit district in such annual installments as it may determine, extending over not more than fifteen years, and may borrow money in advance of the collection of such taxes, in which event an amount sufficient to pay the annual interest shall be collected in addition to the principal. The taxes so assessed and levied shall be a lien upon the land and be collected at the same time and in the same manner that state and county taxes are collected. A separate assessment roll shall be provided by the board, and the assessor shall assess the lands in each benefit district separately, together with the benefit tax assessed thereon. He shall also mark in red ink on the general assessment roll the particular lands the benefits of which have been assessed.

Miss. Code Ann. § 65-19-88 Construction and improvement of unpaved streets or roads within developed subdivision.

Whenever the owners of not less than one-half (1/2) of all lots bordering on any unpaved, dedicated public street or road within a developed subdivision located outside the boundaries of any incorporated municipality of a county petition for a survey and estimate of the cost of building and paving the street or road in a substantial and permanent manner of asphalt, blacktop, concrete or other such material equally durable, the board may cause a survey and cost estimate thereof to be made by a licensed civil engineer. Thereafter, if at least three-fifths (3/5) of such landowners sign and file a petition with the board of supervisors, along with a map or description of the lots bordering such street or road and designating the owners of all lots bordering thereon, requesting such street or road to be paved with the costs thereof to be charged or assessed against the owners of such lots bordering thereon, the board of supervisors may proceed to the paving and permanent construction of such street or road. The entire costs of paving and permanently constructing such street or road within the subdivision shall be paid by the owners of the lots bordering on the street or road so improved within the subdivision only by either, at the option of each such lot owner, a lump sum, one-time payment or by a special tax imposed by the county on the lots sufficient to pay such lot owner’s proportionate share of the total costs. A lot owner’s share of the total costs for building and improving such street or road shall be determined according to the proportion which the number of lineal feet of a lot owner’s lot which borders on the improved street or road bears to the total number of lineal feet of improved street or road. If one or more lot owners elect to pay their share of the costs of improving a street or road under subsection (1) of this section by means of a special tax on their lots, then the board shall provide for the collection of taxes from the lot owners thereof in such annual installments as it may determine, extending over not more than twenty (20) years, and may borrow money in advance of the collection of such taxes, in which event an amount sufficient to pay the annual interest shall be collected in addition to the principal. The taxes so assessed and levied shall be a lien upon the lots and be collected at the same time and in the same manner that state and county taxes are collected. A separate assessment roll shall be provided by the board, and the assessor shall assess the lots of each lot owner separately, together with the special tax assessed thereon. He shall also mark in red ink on the general assessment roll the particular lots which have been so assessed. The provisions of this section shall not be construed as amending or repealing the provisions of Sections 65-19-83 through 65-19-87, but shall be supplemental and additional to the provisions contained therein.

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