Title 31 — HIGHWAYS AND BRIDGES

The board of township supervisors shall construct, repair, and maintain all of the township roads within the township except for section lines designated as no maintenance section lines pursuant to § 31-13-1.4 and roads designated as no maintenance roads pursuant to §

The board of township supervisors shall post signs on a minimum maintenance road to notify the motoring public that it is a minimum maintenance road and that the public travels on the road at its own risk. The signs shall be posted at the entry points to and at regular intervals …

The board shall, at its annual meeting, designate which township roads are full maintenance roads and which are minimum maintenance roads. The board of township supervisors shall publish any resolution designating a township road as minimum maintenance if the road is a school rou…

The board of township supervisors may designate an unimproved section line not maintained for vehicle travel as a no maintenance section line. The board shall identify the beginning and end point of the section line designated as no maintenance. The board does not have any respon…

The board of township supervisors shall post signs on a no maintenance section line to notify the motoring public that it is a no maintenance section line and that no travel is advised. The signs shall be posted at each entry point and at regular intervals along a no maintenance …

The board of township supervisors may designate a road that is unsafe for vehicle travel as a no maintenance road. The board shall identify the beginning and end point of the road designated as no maintenance. The board does not have any responsibility on a no maintenance road ex…

The board of township supervisors shall post signs on a no maintenance road to notify the motoring public that it is a no maintenance road and that no vehicle travel is advised. The signs shall be posted at each entry point and at regular intervals along a no maintenance road. A …

There shall be voted and levied each year in each civil township, as taxes for other township purposes are voted and levied, a highway tax for the construction and repair of secondary highways within such township. Source: SL 1899, ch 41 , § 4; RPolC 1903, § 2138; SL 1911, ch 221…

It shall be the duty of the township clerk, immediately after the board of township supervisors shall have made a levy of taxes for highway purposes, or within three days thereafter, to notify the county auditor of the amount of the levy, who shall enter the same upon the county …

The board of county commissioners of each county is hereby empowered to designate in its discretion township roads or roads in unorganized townships within the county, as it may deem advisable and in the public interest as "county aid roads," and to expend any funds available fro…

The board of supervisors of any township may jointly contract with the county of which the township is a part, and also with any municipality within or adjoining the township, for the laying out, construction, graveling, hard surfacing, or maintenance of designated township roads…

31-13-15 Road districts. 31-13-16 Petition for improvement of road district--Notice to property owners. 31-13-17 Road district improvement--Hearing--Assessment. 31-13-18 Affidavit of township failure to maintain mail route--Service of affidavit and notice on township. 31-13-19 Co…

Each organized township in the state has power to transfer upon resolution to the county in which it is situated for its highway purposes surplus funds acquired from the prorationing of the fees from the motor vehicle licenses as provided in §§ 32-11-4.1 to 32-11-7 , inclusive. S…

Each organized township may divide the roads or streets in the township into road districts which shall include not more than: (1) One-half mile of township road which provides access to a rural subdivision or unincorporated town; (2) Three miles of streets in an unincorporated t…

Whenever the owners of eighty percent of the property fronting upon any road in a road district established pursuant to § 31-13-15 shall by petition in writing filed with the township clerk request that the property in the road district be assessed for road improvement, the super…

The board of supervisors shall consider the petition at the time of the hearing pursuant to §

Whenever it shall appear by an affidavit filed by a patron of the mail route with the county auditor that a certain described secondary road in any township of the county is regularly used as part of a United States mail route, and is, in certain designated places, in urgent need…

If the fact of the execution of the repairs or maintenance referred to in § 31-13-18 be not certified to the county auditor within a reasonable time, or if the county auditor be satisfied that such repairs or maintenance have not been or will not be attended to by the township bo…

The board of township supervisors shall designate at least one of its members to attend to the road business in the township. The member shall receive for the member's services twenty dollars per hour, unless otherwise provided by resolution at the annual township meeting. Not mo…

Each expense incurred for repair and maintenance pursuant to § 31-13-19 must be paid, on the presentment of itemized and verified vouchers approved by the county highway superintendent, to the county auditor, by warrants drawn on the county treasurer payable out of township funds…

When a warrant as provided in § 31-13-20 is presented and there are insufficient funds in the county treasury to pay it, the county treasurer shall register the warrant and endorse the date of registration on the back thereof and shall pay it, with interest to be negotiated by th…

The board of township supervisors may establish a township snow removal reserve fund by the levy of a tax up to but not exceeding sixty cents per thousand dollars of taxable valuation within the township, and which levy hereby authorized shall be in addition to all other township…

The intent of §§ 31-13-22 to 31-13-28 , inclusive, is for the accumulation and continuation of a sufficient fund for the use of the respective townships so as to permit and make possible in any year the efficient and immediate snow removal on township roads and for repairs thereo…

All money collected and received under the provisions of the tax levy authorized by § 31-13-22 shall be remitted at the times and in the manner required by the laws of this state relating to townships. All money allowed and paid from said fund shall first be authorized and approv…

The township snow removal reserve fund after the creation thereof shall be used as provided by §§ 31-13-26 to 31-13-28 , inclusive, and for these purposes only. Source: SL 1953, ch 480 , § 2; SL 1955, ch 427 ; SDC Supp 1960, § 58.0512; SL 1969, ch 278 , § 1.

After establishment of a township snow removal reserve fund, the board of township supervisors is hereby authorized to contract for the removal of snow on township roads, to purchase equipment for the removal of snow or repair the same, and to repair damages to township roads res…

If the projected total cost of a contract for winter road maintenance under § 31-13-26 is less than ten thousand dollars, the township supervisors are not required to advertise for bids for the contract. If the township supervisors anticipate that snow removal or road repair cost…

In the event that in the judgment of the board of township supervisors a disaster exists resulting from snow and that the public peace and the health or safety of the people or their property is in jeopardy, the board of township supervisors may by resolution declare that an emer…

Any unexpended balance remaining in the township snow removal reserve fund shall be allowed to accumulate as a reserve fund and available for future use as set forth under §§ 31-13-26 and

When any highway within any township is regularly traveled by a bus or other motor vehicle used for free transportation of school children, the township board may, in its discretion, open snowbound roads and keep them passable for such vehicles. Such expense shall be paid from th…

The township supervisors may hire such help as may be necessary by the hour at such rates as may be agreed upon by the township board of supervisors. Source: SL 1911, ch 221 , § 4; SL 1913, ch 232 , § 2; SL 1917, ch 369 , § 1; RC 1919, § 8552; SDC 1939, § 28.0405; SL 1953, ch 146…

The township board of supervisors may establish a secondary road capital improvement fund for the purpose of constructing, reconstructing, repairing, and maintaining secondary roads, bridges, and culverts under the jurisdiction of the township board of supervisors. Source: SL 201…

Whenever any unincorporated town which is laid out into streets is included in the limits of an organized civil township, the township supervisors may cause improvements to be made in said streets. Source: SL 1872-3, ch 51 , § 49; PolC 1877, ch 23, § 33; SL 1883, ch 112 , ch 1, §…

All contracts or agreements of supervisors of organized civil townships, entered into between such supervisors and residents or landowners of such township, whereby such residents or landowners were to perform work, furnish equipment and material in the construction or repair of …

For the purposes of §§ 31-13-32 to 31-13-54 , inclusive, subdivision means the division of any tract or parcel of land into two or more lots, sites, or other division for the purpose, whether immediate or future, of sale or building development. For the purposes of §§ 31-13-32 to…

Whenever the board of supervisors of any township deem it necessary to open, widen, extend, grade, gravel, surface with oil or other bituminous material, pave, repave, bridge, construct a viaduct upon or over, erect equipment for street lighting in, curb, gutter, drain, or otherw…

The improvement of more than one street may be embraced in one proposed resolution if the improvement is substantially uniform as to all streets embraced therein. Minor variations in the amount of earth work, drainage, or labor or other minor variations in the construction expens…

If the improvements are not substantially uniform, then the improvement of two or more streets or portions of the same on which the improvements are not uniform may be included in one resolution, if the nature of the improvement or its estimated cost per linear foot on each porti…

If it is deemed expedient for the township to assume and pay any portion of the cost of the improvement, the resolution may so provide, or the portion to be assumed may be provided by a subsequent resolution, subject to the right of referendum on such resolution, pursuant to the …

The resolution required by § 31-13-33 shall be published once in the official newspapers of the county, with an appended notice stating the place and time, at least two weeks after such publication, at which the board of supervisors will meet for the consideration of the adoption…

If the improvement is petitioned for by the owners of more than fifty - five percent of the frontage of the property to be assessed therefor, it may be provided for by resolution without publication. Source: SL 1979, ch 197 , § 5.

In addition to the published notice required by § 31-13-37 , the board of supervisors, at least fifteen days prior to the hearing on the adoption of the resolution, shall cause personal notice to be sent by first class, registered, or certified mail to each person owning property…

Plans and specifications for contracts let by the board of township supervisors shall provide that all highway grades shall be not less than twenty feet in width. Source: SL 1911, ch 221 , § 5; RC 1919, § 8554; repealed SL 1919, ch 333 , § 69; re - enacted SDC 1939, § 28.0402. 31…

At the time of the meeting referred to in § 31-13-37 or at any adjournment thereof the governing body shall consider any objections to such proposed resolution and may adopt such resolution, with or without amendment as it may deem proper. No amendment shall be made affecting pro…

After twenty days from the adoption and publication of the resolution referred to in § 31-13-40 , unless the referendum be invoked, pursuant to § 31-3-14 , or unless a written protest has been filed with the township clerk and signed by the owners of more than fifty - five percen…

In the circumstances mentioned in §§ 31-13-33 to 31-13-41 , inclusive, the benefits shall be apportioned in the manner prescribed by §

If the board of supervisors by resolution so provides, any portion of the cost may be paid by the township out of its general funds appropriated for that purpose and the proper deduction shall be made of the cost to be so paid before the cost to be assessed is distributed to the …

The cost of the improvement, except the cost of street intersections, may be assessed to the property fronting or abutting on the improvement. The cost of each portion of the project on which the construction is by resolution substantially uniform shall be divided by the number o…

The cost of each street intersection may be assessed to all lots according to area so as to include one - half of the property between the street improved and the next street, whether the property abuts the street. In no case may the property situated more than three hundred feet…

In lieu of the method of apportionment prescribed in §§ 31-13-44 and 31-13-45 , it may be provided in and by the resolution determining the necessity of any street improvement that the cost shall be assessed against all assessable lots and tracts of land fronting or abutting ther…