Title 49, Waters, Water Resources and Drainage

Upon the filing of the report of the commissioners the clerk of the court of common pleas shall give notice thereof by causing publication to be made once a week for two consecutive weeks in some newspaper published in each county in which there are lands covered by the report, t…

It shall not be necessary for the clerk to name the parties interested but it shall be sufficient to say: Notice of Filing Commissioners' Report For __________ Drainage District. Notice is hereby given to all persons interested in the following described real estate in __________…

The board of drainage commissioners, the drainage district or any owner of land or other property to be affected and covered by the report may file exceptions to any part or all of the report of the commissioners on or before the date specified therefor in the notice published pu…

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 the court exceed the estimated benefits, the court shall then render its decr…

If no exceptions are filed or if it is shown upon the hearing of all of the exceptions that the estimated cost of construction of improvements contemplated in the Plan of Reclamation is less than the benefits assessed against the lands in the district the court shall approve and …

Any property owner may accept the assessments of damages in his favor made by the commissioners or acquiesce in their failure to assess damages in his favor and shall be construed to have done so unless he gives the supervisors of the district on or before the time shall have exp…

Any person or party aggrieved may appeal the final judgment of the circuit court in the manner provided by the South Carolina Appellate Court Rules.

The clerk of the court of common pleas shall transmit a certified copy of the court decree and a copy of the commissioners' report, as confirmed or amended by the court, to the secretary of the board of supervisors of the district. The clerk shall also transmit a certified copy o…

Drainage districts providing for the storage, conservation, utilization and disposal of water by authority of SECTION 49-19-100 may cooperate and enter into agreements with, and receive financial and other assistance from State agencies and political subdivisions of the State, in…

The board of supervisors of any drainage district organized under the provisions of this chapter may, as soon as they have organized as provided under SECTION 49-19-580 or at any time before the adoption of the Plan of Reclamation, levy a uniform assessment, hereinafter called a …

Such tax shall be due and payable as soon as assessed and become delinquent ninety days after the filing of the certificate of such assessment with the county treasurer. It shall become a lien upon the land against which it is assessed from the date of assessment and shall be col…

In case the sum received for such assessment exceeds the total cost of items for which it has been levied the surplus shall be placed in the general fund of the district and used to pay costs of construction. But if the incorporation of the district be dissolved, as provided else…

The board of supervisors may issue to any person performing work or services or furnishing anything of value in the organization of the district negotiable evidences of debt, bearing interest at not exceeding six per cent.

If it shall appear necessary to obtain funds to pay any expense incurred or to be incurred in organizing the district before a sufficient sum can be obtained by the collection of such uniform tax the board of supervisors may borrow a sufficient amount of money to meet emergencies…

If no assessment for such preliminary expense is made such preliminary expense shall be included in the total cost of the works and improvements of the district.

If it be determined that such uniform tax has been paid upon an excess of acreage, as found by the survey constituting a part of the Plan of Reclamation, the amount so paid upon such excess shall be refunded to the person paying it. And if it be determined by such survey that any…

If it shall be ascertained and determined that any tract or lot of land or parts thereof upon which the uniform tax authorized and levied as provided in SECTION 49-19-1210 has been paid will not be benefited by or receive any benefit from the completion of the plan for improvemen…

The board of supervisors of the district may build, construct, excavate and complete any and all works and improvements which may be needed to carry out, maintain and protect the Plan of Reclamation. To accomplish that end the board of supervisors may employ men and teams and pur…

The contract shall be in writing and to it shall be attached and made a part thereof complete plans and specifications of the work to be done and improvements to be made under such contract. The plans and specifications shall be prepared by the chief engineer and shall be incorpo…

The chief engineer shall be the superintendent of all the works and improvements and shall at least once each year, and when required, make a full report to the board of all work done and improvements made and make suggestions and recommendations to the board as he may deem prope…

In order to effect the drainage, protection and reclamation of the land in the district subject to the tax the board of supervisors may: (1) Clean out, straighten, open up, widen, change the course of flow of, alter or deepen any canal, ditch, drain, river, watercourse or natural…

The boards of supervisors of drainage districts organized under this chapter shall not have the right to enter upon or appropriate any land for rights of way, holding basins or other works of the districts until the prices awarded to the owners of such land shall have been paid t…

All bridges constructed under the provisions of this chapter and all enlargements of bridges already in existence shall be built and enlarged according to and in compliance with the plans, specifications and orders made or approved by the chief engineer of the district.

If any such bridge shall belong to any corporation or be needed over a public highway or right of way of any corporation the secretary of the board of supervisors shall give such corporation notice by delivering to its agent or officer in any county wherein the district is situat…

Any drainage district may construct and maintain any ditch or lateral provided in the Plan of Reclamation across any of the public highways of this State without proceedings for the condemnation of the highway or being liable for damages therefor. Within ten days after a dredge b…

After the list of lands with the assessed benefits and the decree and judgment of court have been filed in the office of the clerk of the court of common pleas, as provided in SECTION 49-19-1090, then the board of supervisors shall, without any unnecessary delay, levy an assessme…

All lands in the district belonging to the State shall be assessed to and the taxes thereon shall be paid by the State out of the funds on hand, or which may hereafter be obtained, derived from the sale of lands belonging to the State and this provision shall apply to taxes asses…

The secretary of the board of supervisors, as soon as the total tax is levied, shall, at the expense of the district, prepare a list of all taxes levied in the form of a well-bound book which shall be endorsed and named "Drainage Tax Record of __________ Drainage District, ______…

The board of supervisors shall each year thereafter determine, order and levy the amount of the annual installment of the total taxes levied under SECTION 49-19-1610, which shall become due and be collected during such year at the same time that State and county taxes are due and…

The certificate of such installment tax shall be in substantially the following form: State of South Carolina, County of __________ This is to certify that by virtue and authority of the provisions of Chapter 19 of Title 49 of the Code of South Carolina the board of supervisors o…

The county treasurer of each county in which lands in any drainage district organized under this chapter are situated shall receive the Drainage Tax Book each year and shall promptly and faithfully collect the tax therein set out and exercise all due diligence in so doing. The Dr…

Before receiving the Drainage Tax Book the county treasurer of each county in which lands of the drainage district are located shall execute to the board of supervisors of the district a bond, with at least two good and sufficient sureties or some surety or bonding company approv…

The county treasurer shall retain for his service one per cent of the amount he collects on current taxes and two per cent of the amount he collects on delinquent taxes.

Upon the request of the taxpayer the county treasurer shall segregate State, county and school taxes from the drainage taxes or assessments and permit such taxes or assessments to be paid at different times.

When any tract or part thereof has been divided and sold or transferred the county treasurer shall receive taxes on any part of any tract, piece or parcel of land charged with such taxes and give his receipt accordingly. But the board of supervisors shall ascertain and determine …

The county treasurer shall make due return of the Drainage Tax Book immediately after the 31st day of December of each year to the secretary of the board of supervisors of the drainage district and shall pay over and account for all moneys collected thereon each year to the treas…

The secretary shall each year, within ten days after the return of the county treasurer is delivered to him, prepare and certify to the county treasurer a Drainage Tax Book containing the list of lands so returned by the county treasurer as delinquent, deliver the book to him and…

All taxes provided for in this chapter remaining unpaid after December 31st of the year for which such taxes were levied shall become delinquent and bear the same penalty as provided by law for delinquent property taxes.

If any county treasurer refuses, fails or neglects to make prompt payment of the tax or any part thereof collected under this article to the district treasurer he shall pay a penalty of ten per cent on the amount of his delinquency. Such penalty shall at once become due and payab…

All drainage taxes provided for in this chapter, together with all penalties for default in payment thereof and all costs in collecting them, including a reasonable attorney's fee fixed by the court and taxed as costs in the action brought to enforce payment, shall, from the date…

Such lien shall be evidenced by a certificate substantially in the following form, to wit: State of South Carolina, County of __________ To __________, Clerk of the Court of Common Pleas of said county: This is to certify that by virtue and authority of the provisions of Chapter …

The certificate and tables specified in SECTION 49-19-1760 shall be prepared in a well-bound book and filed in the office of each of the clerks of the court of common pleas of the counties having lands in the district where they shall become a permanent record of the office. The …

The Drainage Tax Book of the district, as returned by the county treasurer to the secretary of the board of supervisors of the drainage district, shall be prima facie evidence in all courts of all matters therein contained.

The liens established and declared in SECTION 49-19-1750 shall be enforced by an action in chancery on delinquent tax statements made and certified by the county treasurer which shall be instituted in the court of common pleas without regard to the amount of the claim within twel…

In such suits it shall be sufficient to allege generally and briefly the organization of the district and the levy and nonpayment of the taxes, setting forth the descriptions of the lands proceeded against and the amount chargeable to each tract.

All or any part of such delinquent lands situate in one county may be included in one suit, instituted for the county for the collection of such delinquent taxes.