Chapter 7, Chapter 7

The county fire association upon two-thirds vote of its membership shall submit an application to the county commission requesting that the county commission create the county fire board. Upon receipt of such application the county commission may by majority vote create such a fi…

All members of the county fire board shall be residents of the county in which the county fire board is intended to operate. If a county boundary line divides a municipality's city limits, the area of the municipality in which the majority of the municipality's population resides…

No member of the board may receive any compensation in connection with his services as a member. Each member, however, is entitled to reimbursement by the county fire board for any necessary expenses actually incurred in connection with the performance of his duties. However, not…

The county fire board shall constitute and if authorized be created a public corporation under the name provided for in its articles of incorporation and, as such, shall have perpetual succession, may contract with and be contracted with, sue and be sued, and have and use a corpo…

(a) Authority to impose. -- On and after July 1, 1985, any county or municipality may impose and collect a privilege tax upon the occupancy of hotel rooms located within its taxing jurisdiction. The tax shall be imposed and collected as provided in this article. (b) Municipal tax…

Unless otherwise provided by ordinance, order, rule or regulation of the taxing authority, the tax authorized by this article, if imposed or levied by any municipality or county, shall be due and payable in monthly installments on or before the fifteenth day of the calendar month…

Each hotel operator shall keep complete and accurate records of taxable sales and of charges, together with a record of the tax collected thereon, and shall keep all invoices and other pertinent documents in such form as the taxing authority may require. Such records and other do…

If the taxpayer is an association or corporation, the officers thereof actually participating in the management or operation of the association or corporation shall be personally liable, jointly and severally, for any default on the part of the association or corporation; and pay…

(a) The taxing authority shall promulgate, by ordinance, order, rule or regulation, administrative procedures for the assessment, collection and refund of the tax authorized by this article. In the case of a county, the sheriff of that county shall be the county's agent for admin…

(a) On or before 90 days after the end of its fiscal year, every convention and visitor’s bureau which receives any appropriation of hotel occupancy tax from one or more counties or municipalities shall file with each such county or municipality, the State Auditor, the Joint Comm…

(a) Application of proceeds. — The net proceeds of the tax collected and remitted to the taxing authority pursuant to this article shall be deposited into the general revenue fund of such municipality or county commission and, after appropriation thereof, shall be expended only a…

(a) It shall be unlawful for any person to willfully refuse to collect or to pay the tax or to willfully refuse to make the return required to be made by this article; or to willfully make any false or fraudulent return or false statement in any return with the intent to defraud …

(a) The rate of tax imposed shall be three percent of the consideration paid for the use or occupancy of a hotel room. (b) On and after July 1, 2005, a municipality may by ordinance increase the rate of tax imposed in this section to not more than six percent of the consideration…

For the purposes of this article: (a) “Consideration paid” or “consideration” means the amount received in money, credits, property, or other consideration for, or in exchange for, the right to occupy a hotel room as herein defined. (b) “Consumer” means a person who pays the cons…

(a) The consumer shall pay to the hotel operator the amount of tax imposed by any municipality or county hereunder, which tax shall be added to and shall constitute a part of the consideration paid for the use and occupancy of the hotel room, and which tax shall be collectible as…

(a) Hotel room occupancy billed directly to the federal government shall be exempt from this tax: Provided, That rooms paid for by a federal government employee for which reimbursement is made shall be subject to this tax. (b) Hotel room occupancy billed directly to this state or…

A hotel operator doing business wholly or partially on a credit basis shall require the consumer to pay the full amount of tax due upon a credit sale at the time such sale is made or within thirty days thereafter.

In the distribution, voluntary or compulsory, in receivership, bankruptcy or otherwise, of the property or estate of any person, all taxes due and unpaid authorized under this article shall be paid from the first money available for distribution in priority to all claims and lien…

If any hotel operator fails to collect the tax authorized by this article and levied pursuant to municipal ordinance or order of the county commission or shall fail to properly remit such tax to the taxing authority, he shall be personally liable for such amount as he failed to c…

A profit may not accrue to any person as a result of the collection of the tax authorized under this article. Notwithstanding that the total amount of taxes collected by a hotel operator may be in excess of the amount for which a consumer would be liable by the application of the…

(a) "Agent" means the county commission or, where created, the county economic development program or the county economic development agency. (b) "Eligible lending institution" means a financial institution that is eligible to make commercial loans, is a public depository of coun…

The Legislature finds that many small businesses throughout the state are experiencing economic stagnation or decline, that high interest rates have caused small businesses in this state to suffer disproportionately in profitability and competition and that such high interest rat…

County commissions are hereby authorized and empowered, in addition to all other powers and duties now conferred by law upon county commissions, to invest in linked deposits: Provided, That at the time of placement of the linked deposit not more than ten percent of the county's t…

(a) An eligible lending institution that desires to receive a linked deposit shall accept and review applications for loans from eligible small businesses. The lending institution shall apply all usual lending standards to determine the credit worthiness of each eligible small bu…

(a) The agent may accept or reject a linked deposit loan package or any portion thereof, based on the ratio of county funds to be deposited to jobs to be sustained or created. (b) Upon acceptance of the linked deposit loan package or any portion thereof, the agent may place certi…

(a) Upon the placement of a linked deposit with an eligible lending institution, such institution is required to lend such funds to each approved eligible small business listed in the linked deposit loan package required in subsection (d), section four of this article, and in acc…

Neither the county commission or its agent is liable in any manner to any eligible lending institution for payment of the principal or interest on the loan to an eligible small business. A delay in payment or default on the part of an eligible small business does not in any manne…

Any violation of this article shall be deemed a misdemeanor and, any person convicted thereof shall be fined not less than $100 nor more than $500 and imprisoned in the county jail not less than one month nor more than one year.

This article shall be known as the "Local Powers Act."

County commissions that require the payment of impact fees in providing capital improvements and public services shall incorporate such financial requirements within a master land use plan in order that any new development or developments are not required to contribute more than …

(a) In addition to any other powers which a county may now have and not withstanding the provisions of section six of this article, each county, by and through its county commission, shall have the following powers: (1) To acquire, whether by purchase, construction, gift, lease o…

(a) Notwithstanding any provision of this code to the contrary, every county shall have plenary power and authority to impose a countywide service fee upon each employee and self-employed individual for each week or part of a calendar week the individual works within the county, …

(a) The county commission, in its discretion, may use the moneys in such special infrastructure fund to finance the costs of the special infrastructure projects on a cash basis. The county commission periodically may issue special infrastructure revenue bonds of the county as pro…

(a) The proceeds from the sale of any bonds issued under authority of this article shall be applied only for the purpose for which the bonds were issued: Provided, That any accrued interest and premium received in any such sale shall be applied to the payment of the principal of …

(a) No county commission shall have the power to pay out of its general funds, or otherwise contribute, any of the costs of acquiring, constructing or financing a special infrastructure project to be acquired, constructed or financed, in whole or in part, out of the proceeds from…

Bonds issued under the provisions of this article shall be legal investments for banks, building and loan associations, and insurance companies organized under the laws of this state and for a business development corporation organized pursuant to chapter thirty-one, article four…

Neither this article nor anything herein contained shall be construed as a restriction or limitation upon any powers which a county might otherwise have under any laws of this state, but shall be construed as alternative or additional; and this article shall not be construed as r…

No notice to or consent or approval by any other governmental body or public officer shall be required as a prerequisite to the issuance or sale of any bonds or the making of any agreement, a mortgage or deed of trust under the authority of this article. No publication or notice …

No member of a county commission or other county officer shall be personally liable on any contract or obligation executed pursuant to the authority contained in this article. Nor shall the issuance of bonds under this article be considered as misfeasance in office.

(a) It is the purpose of this article to provide for the fair distribution of costs for county development by authorizing the assessment and collection of fees to offset the cost of commercial and residential development within affected counties. (b) The Legislature hereby makes …

For the purpose of aiding and cooperating in the planning, undertaking or carrying out of a special infrastructure project located, in whole or in part, within the area in which it is authorized to act, any public body may, upon such terms, with or without consideration, as it ma…

(a) In the event a county commission determines that any public utility line or facility located upon, across or under any portion of a street, avenue, highway, road or other public place or way shall be temporarily or permanently readjusted, removed, relocated, changed in grade …

(a) Any special infrastructure project acquired, constructed or financed, in whole or in part, by service fees imposed by a county commission under section twelve of this article shall be considered to be a "public improvement" within the meaning of the provisions of articles one…

(a) When revenue bonds have been issued as provided in this article and the amount of service fees imposed pursuant to section twelve of this article and collected by the sheriff, less costs of administration, collection and enforcement, exceeds the amount needed to pay project c…

If any section, clause, provision or portion of this article shall be held to be invalid or unconstitutional by any court of competent jurisdiction, such holding shall not affect any other section, clause or provision of this article which is not in and of itself unconstitutional…

(a) "Capital improvements" means the following public facilities or assets that are owned, supported or established by county government: (1) Water treatment and distribution facilities; (2) Wastewater treatment and disposal facilities; (3) Sanitary sewers; (4) Storm water, drain…

County governments affected by the construction of new development projects are hereby authorized to require the payment of fees for any new development projects constructed therein in the event any costs associated with capital improvements or the provision of other services are…

Credits or offsets for past or future payments toward capital improvement costs shall be adjusted for time-price differentials inherent in fair comparisons of monetary amounts paid or received at different times. The receipt of an incidental benefit by any development shall not b…

(a) As a prerequisite to authorizing counties to levy impact fees related to population growth and public service needs, counties shall meet the following requirements: (1) A demonstration that population growth rate history as determined from the most recent base decennial censu…

(a) Impact fees assessed against a development project to fund capital improvements and public services may not exceed the actual proportionate share of any benefit realized by such project relative to the benefit to the resident taxpayers. Notwithstanding any other provision of …