Title 5, Municipal Corporations

The limitations imposed by SECTION 5-31-1910 shall not apply to cities having a population of over fifty thousand and not more than sixty thousand as shown by United States Government census of 1950. Such cities may contract as set forth in said section with persons or other citi…

No person shall turn, remove, raise or in any manner tamper with any cover of any manhole, filter, bed or other appurtenance of any public sewer without a written permit from the proper authorities of such works and no person except those engaged by the proper authorities shall e…

The General Assembly takes note of the fact that incorporated cities and towns (municipalities) throughout the State have in many instances experienced considerable growth with the result that sewage collection and treatment facilities must be extended and enlarged in order to se…

For all purposes of this article: (a) The term "municipality" shall mean any incorporated city or town now or hereafter existing; (b) The term "council" shall mean the governing body of any municipality as now or hereafter constituted; (c) The term "water distribution agency" sha…

Each council is empowered by ordinance duly adopted: (1) To place into effect and revise whenever it so wishes or may be required a schedule of sewer service and sewer connection charges for the use of and connection to any sewage disposal system which it may operate. Prior to th…

If the notice or notices prescribed by paragraph (1) of SECTION 5-31-2030 shall have been given and any hearing requested pursuant thereto shall have been held, all sewer service charges imposed by the council following that procedure under authority of this article and not paid …

At any election for bonds held to meet the costs of acquiring property of the character referred to in SECTION 5-31-610 the elector shall vote for three citizens of the city or town whose terms of office shall be respectively two, four and six years and until the general election…

In a city with a population of more than thirty thousand persons and fewer than fifty thousand persons, according to the most recent official United States Census, in addition to the commissioners of public works to be elected as provided in Section 5-31-210, the mayor and the ch…

In cities of fifty thousand inhabitants or more, in addition to the three commissioners of public works to be elected as provided in SECTION 5-31-210, the mayor and the chairman of the committee on water supply, if there be such a committee, shall be ex officio commissioners of p…

The following cities and towns shall have no board of commissioners of public works: Abbeville, Allendale, Barnwell, Beaufort, Belton, Bennettsville, Blackville, Bluffton, Bowman, Branchville, Camden, Central, Chapin, Cheraw, Cherry Grove Beach, Chesnee, Chester, Clemson, Clinton…

For the purposes of this article, "political subdivision" means a municipality, county, or special purpose district which operates a sewer system authorized by law.

Notwithstanding any other provision of law, a political subdivision by resolution or ordinance duly adopted may provide for the expenditure of funds collected by way of front-foot assessments or per-parcel assessments for sewer improvements in accordance with this article.

In the event that a political subdivision, pursuant to special or general act, has collected funds by way of front-foot assessments or per-parcel assessments to defray the cost of construction of sewer collection lines, these funds may be applied by the political subdivision to t…

Before the expenditure of funds in accordance with this article, the political subdivision first shall find by resolution or ordinance that the conditions set forth in Section 5-31-2330 are satisfied. The political subdivision also shall set forth in its resolution or ordinance a…

(A) If the commissioners of public works unanimously, by resolution, petition the municipal council to abolish the commission, the municipal council may, after a public hearing, adopt an ordinance abolishing the commission of public works. (B) The municipal council of any municip…

The mayor of the city or the mayor or intendant of the town shall notify the persons so elected as members of the commissioners of public works of their election, within ten days after the results of such election are declared. The persons elected or appointed to such office shal…

The board of commissioners of public works of any city or town may purchase, build or contract for building any waterworks or electric light plant authorized under Article 7 of this chapter and may operate them and shall have full control and management of them. It may supply and…

For purposes of this article: (1) "Licensed health care provider" means a licensed medical doctor, physician's assistant, nurse practitioner, or advanced-practice registered nurse. (2) "Special needs account customer" means the account of a residential customer: (a) when the cust…

(A) Each municipality furnishing electricity or natural gas to its citizens must establish written procedures for termination of service due to nonpayment for a special needs account customer at any time and for all residential customers during weather conditions marked by extrem…

Each municipality furnishing electricity or natural gas to its citizens must consider establishing and maintaining a third-party notification program to allow a residential customer to designate a third party to be notified if the electric or natural gas service is scheduled for …

Notwithstanding another provision of this article, a municipality furnishing electricity or natural gas to its citizens may disconnect a customer when it is determined that a public safety emergency exists.

This article does not create a new private right of action or a new duty of care. This article does not diminish, increase, affect, or evidence any duty of care existing under the laws of this State prior to the effective date of this article.

No board of commissioners of public works may incur any indebtedness without the concurrence of the city or town council.

Each board of commissioners of public works shall make a full statement to the city or town council at the end of each month of its receipts and disbursements of all kinds during the preceding month.

Whenever any city or town in this State had prior to February 7 1927 issued bonds for the acquisition, by construction, purchase or otherwise, of any waterworks, lighting plant or other public utility and sells such utility prior to the maturity of such bonds, the governing body …

The powers conferred by SECTIONS 5-31-210 to 5-31-270, 5-31-430, 5-31-610 to 5-31-640, and 5-31-660 upon the cities and towns of the State are, and shall be taken, deemed and construed to be, in addition to the powers now enjoyed by such cities and towns.

Any municipal corporation desiring to become the owner of any land, situate within the corporate limits of such municipal corporation, in this State, for the erection of a public building for the use of the corporation or the purpose of procuring a supply of water or establishing…

In case the owner of a any land situate within the corporate limits and desired by a municipal corporation for any of the purposes referred to in SECTION 5-31-410 or (b) any land desired by the corporation for enlarging, extending, or establishing a sewerage system or a water sys…

Cities and towns may purchase and hold suitable lands and water and erect aqueducts, dams, canals, buildings, machine shops, and other works and construct and lay conduits, mains, and pipes as may be necessary to obtain and secure a supply of water and power for operating the wat…

Any municipal corporation in this State desiring to establish waterworks or to enlarge or extend such works, whether it owns or operates the plant or not, may condemn lands, water rights, and water privileges or any other property, including existing waterworks or pipelines, or a…

Whenever, within the boundaries of any municipality, it shall be necessary or desirable to carry off the surface water from any street, alley or other public thoroughfare along such thoroughfare rather than over private lands adjacent to or adjoining such thoroughfare, such munic…

When any lands are condemned by a municipal corporation for the use of a corporation other than itself, such other corporation shall pay all the costs and expenses incurred in such condemnation, together with all damages which may be assessed in favor of the landowner under such …

All cities and towns of this State may grant to persons the exclusive franchise of furnishing water or waste disposal service to such cities and towns and the inhabitants thereof for a period not exceeding forty years. No such franchise shall be valid unless it shall first receiv…

Any city or town may: (1) Construct, purchase, operate and maintain waterworks and electric light works within or without, partially within and partially without, their corporate limits for the use and benefit of such city or town and the inhabitants thereof; (2) Purchase, own, o…

Before such construction, purchase, sale, conveyance or disposal of any such property, or any part thereof, shall be made under the provisions of this article, the city or town council of the municipality shall submit the question of such construction, purchase, sale, conveyance …

Proceedings to condemn existing waterworks shall not be instituted until after an election ordered by the city or town council upon thirty days' notice shall have determined, by a majority of the qualified electors of the city or town, the policy of the city or town in favor of m…

Before any election shall be held under the provisions of this article at least twenty-five per cent of the resident freeholders of the city or town, as shown by its tax books, shall petition the city or town council that such election be ordered.

Any question set forth in any petition for an election on the question of a city or town acquiring, by construction or purchase, and operating a waterworks system, presented and filed pursuant to SECTION 5-31-640, may, but need not, state that the cost of constructing or purchasi…

If a majority of the electors voting in such election shall vote for the construction or purchase of such property in question, the city or town council shall so declare by ordinance and shall acquire the property. And if a majority of the electors voting in any such election sha…

Any city or town or special service district may, after acquiring a waterworks or sewer system, furnish water to persons for reasonable compensation and charge a minimum and reasonable sewerage charge for maintenance or construction of such sewerage system within such city or tow…

Notwithstanding any other provisions of this article, any city or town may sell, lease or otherwise dispose of any municipally owned natural gas system upon the favorable vote of a majority of the qualified electors of the municipality voting in a general or special election held…

(A) Except as provided in subsection (B) of this section, a municipality must not interrupt electric or gas service to any residential customer for nonpayment of a bill until twenty-five days have elapsed from the date of billing. (B) A municipality may interrupt electric or natu…

Any city or town in this State may incur bonded indebtedness and own and possess property to any amount within the discretion of the municipal authorities of such city or town for the purposes of purchase, establishment and maintenance of sewerage systems; provided, that the ques…

Any municipal corporation in this State which is about to enlarge, extend or establish a system of sewerage therein may, by its mayor and aldermen, intendant and wardens or city or town council, elect five or seven of its citizens, who shall be freeholders therein, as a sewerage …

The members of the sewerage commission, before entering upon their duties, shall take the same oaths required of members of the body electing them. They shall organize by electing one of the members as chairman thereof and a secretary, who may be the same person as the clerk of t…

Any such sewerage commission shall have the construction of the sewerage system in charge and, subject to the approval of the city or town council, shall advertise for bids for at least thirty days in two or more newspapers for the work to be done and for material to be used ther…