Title XV — LANDS, LEVEES, DRAINAGE, SEWERS AND PUBLIC WATER SUPPLY

245.010. Definitions. — 1. The term "levee districts" as used in sections 245.010 to 245.280, and all other terms or provisions of law contained in sections 245.010 to 245.280, which have heretofore been interpreted, as apply to said levee districts, shall be construed to include…

245.015. Owners may form levee district, where — articles of incorporation to be filed in circuit court. — 1. The owners of a majority of the acreage in any contiguous body of swamp, wet or overflowed land or other property in the nature of individual or corporate franchises in t…

245.020. Circuit clerk to give notice by publication — form of notice — mailing required. — 1. After such articles of association shall have been filed, the clerk in whose office the articles of association have been filed shall give notice by causing publication to be made once …

245.025. Objections to incorporation heard — court decree filed with secretary of state and county recorder. — Any owner of real estate or other property as herein described in said proposed district, who may not have signed said articles of association objecting to the organizat…

245.030. Adjacent districts may consolidate — petition, hearing and decree. — 1. Any two or more adjacent districts, whether incorporated in the same or different counties, may be united and consolidated in one district, and such new district and the board of supervisors thereof …

245.035. Time of corporate existence may be extended. — Whenever the board of supervisors of any district organized under sections 245.010 to 245.280 or any previous enactment of the general assembly of the state of Missouri providing for the organization of levee districts by th…

245.040. Districts may reorganize. — Any levee district of Missouri heretofore organized, in process of organization or that may hereafter be organized under the provisions of any previous or existing laws of this state, either general or special, other than sections 245.010 to 2…

245.045. Districts reorganized to receive all benefits — reorganization articles of association to be filed with circuit court. — Any levee district heretofore organized and any district that is now in process of organization or any levee district that may hereafter be organized …

245.050. Notice of reorganization hearing. — Immediately after such articles of association have been filed, the circuit clerk in whose office the same have been filed shall give notice in the manner and for the time specified in section 245.020, said notice to be in substantiall…

245.055. Procedure. — After said notice has been so given the matter shall be proceeded with in the same manner as is provided for where articles of association for the formation of a levee district have been filed. ­­-------- (RSMo 1939 § 12543) Prior revisions: 1929 § 10953; 19…

245.060. Election of board of supervisors — term of office. — Within thirty days after any levee district shall have been organized and incorporated under the provisions of section 245.025 the circuit clerk of the court organizing such district shall, upon giving notice by causin…

245.065. Improper election of board of supervisors — court to declare vacancies — new election called. — If it is made to appear to the judge of the circuit court organizing the district, either in term time or vacation, by an application in writing made by any person or persons …

245.070. Board of supervisors to call annual meeting and election — owners of land benefitted entitled to vote. — In the same month of each year after the election of the first board of supervisors, the board of supervisors shall call a meeting of the owners of land and other pro…

245.075. Supervisors to take oath. — Each supervisor before entering upon his official duties shall take and subscribe to an oath before some officer authorized by law to administer oaths, that he will honestly, faithfully and impartially perform the duties devolving upon him in …

245.080. Organization of board — to make annual report — compensation. — 1. The board of supervisors immediately after their election shall choose one of their number president of the board, and elect some suitable person secretary, who shall serve until his successor is elected,…

245.085. County clerk and treasurer to deliver records and moneys of district to secretary of board. — Immediately after the election of the board of supervisors as provided for in section 245.055, and the election of a president and a secretary, and the secretary has filed the n…

245.090. Secretary of board to be ex officio treasurer — board to audit books annually and publish financial statement. — The secretary of the board of supervisors in any levee district shall hold the office of treasurer of such district, except as otherwise provided herein, and …

245.095. Powers and duties of supervisors. — 1. In order to effect the leveeing, protection and reclamation of the land and other property in the district subject to tax, the board of supervisors is authorized and empowered to straighten, widen, change the course and line of any …

245.100. Chief engineer appointed — duties. — Within sixty days after organizing, the board of supervisors shall appoint a competent civil engineer as chief engineer, who may be an individual, copartnership or corporation, and who shall engage such assistants as the board of supe…

245.105. Chief engineer to make report — supervisors to adopt plans and supplemental plans for reclamation. — The chief engineer shall make a report in writing to the board of supervisors when said board shall so require it. Upon receipt of the final report of said engineer conce…

245.110. Secretary of board to file copy of plan with circuit clerk — commissioners appointed. — Within twenty days after the adoption of the plan for reclamation the secretary of the board of supervisors shall prepare and transmit a certified copy thereof to the circuit clerk of…

245.115. Organization of board of commissioners. — Said circuit clerk upon the filing of said order of appointment shall notify each of said commissioners of his appointment by written or printed notice, and in the same notice he shall state the time and place for the first meeti…

245.120. Commissioners to inspect district and assess benefits and damages — report to be filed. — 1. Within thirty days after qualifying, as provided for in section 245.115, the commissioners shall begin their duties. They may at any time call upon the attorney of the district f…

245.125. Property owners notified of commissioners' report by publication — form of notice — mailing required. — Upon the filing of the report of the commissioners, the clerk of said circuit court shall give notice thereof by causing publication to be made once in some newspaper …

245.130. Exceptions to commissioners' report heard and determined. — 1. The levee district or any owner of land or other property in said district, may file exceptions to said report or to any assessment for either benefits or damages, within ten days after the last day of public…

245.135. Court to declare corporation dissolved if costs exceed benefits. — If, after determining the objections made to the commissioners' report, the court shall find that the estimated costs of works and improvements as reported by the board of commissioners, or as amended by …

245.140. Plan of reclamation may be changed — procedure. — 1. The board of supervisors for and in behalf of any levee district organized under the provisions of sections 245.010 to 245.280, or the owners of land adjacent to such district, shall have the right to file a petition i…

245.145. Damages assessed must be paid before appropriating land. — The board of supervisors of levee districts organized under sections 245.010 to 245.280 shall not have the right to enter upon or appropriate any land for rights-of-way, or other works of the districts, until the…

245.150. Board to construct works — may let contracts for construction. — The board of supervisors of said district shall have full power and authority to build, construct, excavate and complete all or any works and improvements which may be needed to carry out, maintain and prot…

245.155. Embankments on right-of-way to be raised at expense of owner to conform to district levee. — When any right-of-way has been obtained under sections 245.010 to 245.280, over any embankment belonging to any person, railroad, tramway or other corporation, it shall be the du…

245.160. Board to employ attorney. — The board of supervisors shall employ an attorney to act for the district and to advise said board. Such employment shall be evidenced by an agreement in writing, which, as far as possible, shall specify the exact amount to be paid to said att…

245.165. Board to keep record of proceedings — open to inspection. — The board of supervisors of any district organized under sections 245.010 to 245.280 shall cause to be kept a well-bound book, entitled "Record of board of supervisors of ______ district", in which shall be reco…

245.170. Board to provide for compensation of employees and fees of officers. — The board of supervisors, except where otherwise provided, shall, by resolution, at time of hiring or appointing, provide for the compensation for work done and necessary expense incurred by any offic…

245.175. Board to levy tax to pay cost of organization. — 1. The board of supervisors of any levee district organized under the provisions of sections 245.010 to 245.280 shall levy a uniform tax of not more than eight dollars per acre upon each acre of land and each mile of right…

245.180. Board to levy tax, when — new tax authorized, when — tax, how levied — secretary to prepare levee tax record. — 1. After the lists of lands and other property, with the assessed benefits and the decree and judgment of court, have been filed in the office of the county re…

245.181. Additional bonds authorized, when — meeting, votes how cast — form of notice — notice, how given. — 1. The board of supervisors may, if in their judgment it seems best, issue additional bonds which do not exceed ninety-one percent of the amount of new taxes levied pursua…

245.185. Annual installment of tax to be levied — when due — form of certificate of tax. — 1. The said board of supervisors shall each year thereafter determine, order and levy the amount of the annual installment of the total taxes levied under section 245.180, which shall becom…

245.190. Board may make additional levy of tax. — Where the works set out in the plan for reclamation of any levee district is found insufficient to reclaim in whole or in part any or all of the land and other property of the district the board of supervisors shall have the right…

[Repealed or reserved.]

245.196. Annual benefit fee, how levied, amount. — In addition to any tax which may be levied pursuant to the provisions of section 245.180 or any other provision of sections 245.010 to 245.280, the board of supervisors may levy an annual benefit fee on nonpublic improvements on …

245.197. Readjustment of benefits, when — levy of new tax for carrying out supplemental plan — notice, how given — form of notice — lists, where filed. — 1. Whenever the board of supervisors of any district now existing or hereafter organized pursuant to sections 245.010 to 245.2…

245.198. Tax levy, when — emergency levy of ten percent. — 1. If the board of supervisors deem it necessary, the board shall without unnecessary delay, levy a tax of such portion of said readjusted assessed benefits on all lands, railroad and other property in the district to whi…

245.199. Additional bonds authorized when — how issued. — 1. The board of supervisors may, if in their judgment it seems best, issue bonds which, when added to the bonded indebtedness then outstanding, do not exceed ninety-one percent of the total amount of taxes levied pursuant …

245.200. County collector of revenue to collect levee tax — to give bond to board of supervisors. — 1. It shall be the duty of the collector of revenue of each county in which lands or other property of any levee district organized under sections 245.010 to 245.280 are situate, t…

245.205. Secretary of board to extend and certify levee tax to collector-treasurers — duties of collector-treasurer — county collector-treasurer to collect delinquent taxes. — 1. In counties where the provisions of chapter 65 are or may hereafter be in force, the secretary of the…

245.210. Levee tax delinquent December thirty-first — penalty. — All taxes provided for in sections 245.010 to 245.280 remaining unpaid after December thirty-first of the year for which said taxes were levied shall become delinquent and bear a penalty of one percent per month on …

245.215. Levee tax to constitute a lien — how evidenced — acquisition of lands, duty to satisfy outstanding liens, limitation. — 1. All levee taxes provided for in sections 245.010 to 245.280, together with all penalties for default in payment of the same, all costs in collecting…

245.220. Tax book to be prima facie evidence — suits for taxes brought in circuit court. — The levee tax book of the district, as returned by the collector of the revenue to the secretary of the board of supervisors of the levee district shall be prima facie evidence in all court…

245.225. Suits and notices to be filed in recorder's office against last record owners. — 1. Whenever any levee district organized and existing under the provisions of what now appears as sections 245.010 to 245.280 shall hereafter institute an action, in the manner now provided …

245.230. Board may issue bonds — how funds are to be used. — 1. The board of supervisors may, if in their judgment it seems best, issue bonds not to exceed ninety-one percent of the total amount of the taxes levied under the provisions of section 245.180, in denomination of not l…