Title 14, Local Government

(a) Any drainage district which shall merge the duties, obligations, and purposes for which it was originally created with those of another district under the provisions of this subchapter shall merge all assets held by it and arising from any projects and shall also assume all l…

No merger of a district under the terms of this subchapter shall impair or deny any creditor of the merging districts the right to the collection of its bona fide and valid indebtedness existing against the districts, but the creditors of the districts shall be subject to the pro…

(a) All claims against the district existing at the time of the merger of the district shall be presented to the board of directors duly itemized and verified as is required in actions of account. If not presented to the board of directors of the district within six (6) months fr…

(a) It shall be the duty of the county court to enter upon its records an order appointing an engineer to be selected by the petitioners when three (3) or more owners of real property within a proposed district shall:(1) Petition the county court to establish a drainage district …

(a) The county clerk shall thereupon give notice by publication for two (2) weeks in some newspaper published and having a general circulation in the county calling upon all persons owning property within the district to appear before the court on some day to be fixed by the cour…

(a) If land in more than one (1) county is embraced in the proposed district, the application shall be addressed to the circuit court in which the largest portion of the lands lie, and all proceedings shall be had in the circuit court. (b) The circuit court shall apportion all co…

(a) If, upon hearing provided for in §§ 14-121-201 — 14-121-203, the petition is presented to the county court signed by a majority, either in numbers or in acreage or in value of the holders of real property within the proposed district, praying that the improvement be made, it …

(a) The order of the county court establishing the district shall have all of the force of a judgment. (b) Any owner of real property within the district may appeal from the judgment within twenty (20) days after the judgment has been made, but if no appeal is taken within that t…

All cases in which there arises a question of the validity of the organization of drainage districts shall be advanced as matters of public interest and heard in all courts at the earliest practicable moment.

(1) Any district organized under the existing statutes may become a drainage district under the terms of this act as follows:(1) If three (3) owners of real property within the district shall petition the county court to constitute them a drainage district under the terms hereof,…

All drainage districts created by special acts are made drainage districts under Acts 1909, No. 279, with all the powers conferred by the latter and with all the liabilities and restrictions thereby imposed. However, nothing in this section shall be construed as taking away from …

(a) When the county court has established any such drainage district, it shall appoint three (3) owners of real property within the county to act as commissioners. (b) Each of these commissioners shall take the oath of office required by Arkansas Constitution, Article 19, § 20, a…

(a) Whenever a majority in value of the owners of real property in any drainage district in this state which was established pursuant to the provisions of special acts of the General Assembly, but which were, by the provisions of § 14-121-208, brought under the provisions of §§ 1…

(a) In case of a district lying in more than one (1) county, three (3) commissioners shall be appointed, and in all cases the commissioners must be owners of real property within the district. (b) However, where a district embraces lands in three (3) or more counties, the court m…

The board shall select one (1) of their number as chairman, and a majority shall constitute a quorum.

(a) The boards of commissioners under this chapter shall have control of the construction of the improvements in their districts. (b) (1) A board may advertise in local papers or papers published in other states for proposals for doing any work by contract.(2) Work that exceeds f…

All drainage districts in the State of Arkansas, whether created by special act or otherwise, are authorized, when considered practicable by the board of commissioners or directors of any such district, to make any necessary surveys for the securing of federal aid and assistance …

(a) If improvements are undertaken in cooperation with the United States, the board may enter into an agreement providing for the construction of the works of improvement and awarding of contracts therefor, to be by, and under the control and supervision of, the United States or …

(a) The commissioners of any drainage district organized under the provisions of §§ 14-121-101 — 14-121-104, 14-121-201 — 14-121-207, 14-121-301, 14-121-303 — 14-121-305, 14-121-307, 14-121-309 — 14-121-314, 14-121-401 — 14-121-406, 14-121-408, 14-121-411, 14-121-412, 14-121-420 …

(a) If the commissioners deem best, they shall deposit the funds of the district in a solvent bank which will pay interest at not less than three percent (3%) nor exceeding four percent (4%) and shall give a good bond, conditioned that the funds shall be safely kept and paid out …

(a) The treasurer shall:(1) Pay out no money, save upon the order of the board and upon a warrant signed by the chairman of the board;(2) Be allowed a commission not exceeding one percent (1%) upon all sums lawfully paid out, to be fixed by the board; and(3) Give special bond in …

(a) The commission shall also keep the original itemized bills and accounts of all financial transactions and all warrants which have been paid. Each warrant shall state on its face the service for which it was rendered, the person to whom paid, and the amount of the warrant. (b)…

The commissioners of drainage districts appointed under § 14-121-301 shall have power to employ attorneys as needed by the district and to fix their compensation.

No member of any board of improvement shall be liable for any damages sustained by anyone in the prosecution of the work under his charge unless it shall be made to appear that he has acted with a corrupt and malicious intent.

(1) The property owners in a drainage district may:(1) Consent to waive the right to resort to courts and may absolutely ratify and confirm what has been done by the board of commissioners and all other officials with reference to the district; and(2) Thereafter, be forever barre…

(a) As soon as the board shall have formed its plans for improvements and shall have ascertained the cost thereof, it shall file the plans with the county clerk. (b) The plans shall be accompanied by:(1) A map showing the location of all main and lateral ditches; and(2) Specifica…

(a) (1) The commissioners shall proceed to assess the lands within the district and shall inscribe in a book the description of each tract of land. They shall assess the value of the benefits to accrue to each tract by reason of the improvement and shall enter such assessment of …

(a) If the commissioners find that other lands not embraced within the boundaries of the district will be affected by the proposed improvement, they shall assess the estimated benefits and damages to the land and shall specially report to the county court the assessment which the…

(a) When their assessment is completed, the commissioners shall subscribe the assessment and deposit it with the county clerk, where it shall be kept and preserved as a public record. (b) Upon the filing of the assessment, the county clerk shall give notice of the fact by publica…

(a) Any owner of real property within the district who perceives himself to be aggrieved by the assessment of benefits or damages or deems that the assessment of any land in the district is inadequate shall present his complaint to the county court at the first regular, adjourned…

(a) Any property owner may accept the assessment of damages in his favor made by the commissioners or acquiesce in their failure to assess damages in his favor. He shall be construed to have done so unless he gives to the commissioners, within thirty (30) days after the assessmen…

(a) The commissioners of the districts shall have the power to make a reassessment of the benefits not more often than once a year, and the reassessment shall be made, advertised, and equalized as is provided for the original assessment of benefits. (b) All appeals of landowners …

(a) The commissioners may at any time alter the plans of the ditches and drains, but before constructing the work according to the changed plans, the changed plans with accompanying specifications showing the dimensions of the work as changed shall be filed with the county clerk.…

(a) If the commissioners shall have filed plans for additional work in the district, no proceeding shall be taken looking to a confirmation of the assessment of benefits based thereon until a petition has been filed with the county court, signed by a majority in numbers, acreage,…

(a) When any reassessment of benefits has been made and stands confirmed, it shall be the assessment of benefits until another reassessment has been made as provided in this chapter. (b) Levies of the taxes on the reassessed benefits shall be made and collected in the same manner…

In case any land in any drainage or other improvement district is benefited, and for any reason it was not assessed in the original proceedings, or was not assessed to the extent of benefits received or in case any corporation, individual, or other drainage district organized und…

(a) The district shall not cease to exist upon the completion of its drainage system but shall continue to exist for the purpose of preserving the system, of keeping the ditches clear from obstruction, and of extending, widening, or deepening the ditches from time to time as may …

(a) When assessments of benefits have been made in drainage districts organized either under general or special acts, the property owner shall have the right to pay the assessment in full within sixty (60) days after the formation of the district, but if he does not avail himself…

(a) When assessments of benefits are made in drainage and other improvement districts, the landowners shall have the privilege of paying the assessment in full within thirty (30) days after the assessment becomes final. However, the assessments shall be made payable in installmen…

(a) The county court shall, at the same time that the assessment of benefits is filed or any subsequent time when called upon by the commissioners of the district, enter upon its records an order, which shall have all the force of a judgment, providing that there shall be assesse…

No error in the names or residences of the owners of railroads, tramroads, lands, or improvements, or the description thereof, shall invalidate the assessment or levy of taxes if sufficient description is given to ascertain where the lands, railroads, or tramroads are situated.

(a) If the tax first levied shall prove insufficient to complete the improvement or to pay the bonds, both the principal and interest, issued by the board of commissioners on account of the improvement, as provided in this chapter, as the principal and interest shall become due a…

(a) The amount of the taxes provided for in this section shall be annually extended upon the tax books of the county and collected by the collector of the county along with the other taxes. For his services in making the collection, the collector shall receive a commission as is …

(a) All taxes levied under the terms of this act shall be payable on or before October 1 of each year. (b) If any taxes levied by the county court in pursuance to this act are not paid at maturity, the collector shall not embrace the taxes in the taxes for which he shall sell the…

(a) (1) Notice of the pendency of a suit shall be given by publication weekly for two (2) weeks before judgment is entered for the sale of lands, railroads, or tramroads in some newspaper published in the county where the suits may be pending.(2) The public notice may be in the f…

(a) The suit shall stand for trial at the first term of court after the complaint may be filed, if four (4) weeks shall expire either before the first day of the term, or during the term of court to which the suits are brought respectively, unless a continuance is granted for goo…