Chapter CVI. to define the Powers and Duties of the Levy Court of the County of Washington, District of Columbia, in regard to Roads, and for other Purposes
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Chap. CVI.— An Act to define the Powers and Duties of the Levy Court of the County of Washington, District of Columbia, in regard to Roads, and for other Purposes.March 3, 1863. *Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,* ThatLevy court to consist of nine members. the levy court of the county of Washington, District of Columbia, shall hereafter consist of nine members, to be appointed by the President of the United States, by and with the advice and consent of the Senate, who shall hold their officesAppointment and term of office.One third to go out each year. for the term of three years.
But of the members to be first appointed one third shall be appointed and hold their offices for one year, or until the thirty-first day of December, eighteen hundred and sixty-three; one third for two years, or until the thirty-first of December, eighteen hundred and sixty-four; and one third for three years, or until the thirty-first of December, eighteen hundred and sixty-five. The terms of membersWhen terms commence. shall commence on the first day of January, and end on the thirty-first day of December; and it shall be the duty of the President to nominate members, to fill the places of those whose term is about to expire, as early as the fifteenth day of December; and he may renominate any outgoing member, should he think proper to do so.
Of the nine members of the court, five shall be residents of the county, three of the city of Washington,Residence.Vacancies. and one of the city of Georgetown. In case of vacancies happening, the President shall fill them as other vacancies are filled; and the term of the person appointed to fill any vacancy shall expire when the term of him in whose place he is appointed would have expired. Sec. 2. *And be it further enacted,* ThatOath of office and allegiance. every person appointed as a member of the levy court shall, before he enters on his duties, take an oath faithfully to discharge the duties of the office, and also to support the Constitution of the United States; and he shall also take the oath of allegiance prescribed by the act of July second, eighteen hundred and sixty-two.
The members of said court shall hereafter be entitled to receive four dollars a day, each, for every day they shall attend a sitting ofPay. the court, and not absent themselves without permission of the court, and four dollars for every day they shall serve on a committee, to be paid by the county treasurer upon the certificate of the president of said court. Sec. 3. *And be it further enacted,* ThatJurisdiction, power, and duty of court.Roads and bridges. the said court shall have the care and charge of, and the exclusive jurisdiction over, all the roads and bridges in said county, except such roads and bridges as belong to and are under the care of the United States.
And the said court shall have power, and it shall be their duty — First.Laying out, &c., highways. To lay out. alter, repair, discontinue, and regulate any of the public roads and highways within said county, and at any time hereafter to inquire and to decide whether any road in said county held by any incorporated company, has been, and is at the time of such inquiry, kept in the condition required by the charter thereof, and if not, to take legal proceedings to acquire possession of the same as other county roads.
Second.Levying, &c., taxes for highways, &c. To levy and collect taxes for that purpose upon and from the inhabitants of said county, of the age of twenty-one years and over; those having no property to assess to be assessed to labor. Third.Appointment, &c., of clerk, treasurer, and collector. To appoint, annually, and take bond and security from, a clerk and treasurer, and also to appoint a collector of taxes, who shall have800THIRTY-SEVENTH CONGRESS. Sess. III. Ch. 106. 1863. power to collect all the taxes (not to be paid in labor) levied by said court, and to proceed to collect the same, in such manner and within such periods of time as the said levy court may direct.
Fourth.Superintendent and supervisors of road. To appoint, annually, a general superintendent of roads and such number of supervisors of roads as they may deem expedient; to remove them, as well as the clerk and treasurer and tax collector, Whenever, in their judgment, there is sufficient cause, or the public interests will be subserved thereby. Fifth.Bridges. To cause bridges to be erected whenever necessary or convenient, and to keep all bridges in good repair. Sixth.Pay of clerk, &c.
To fix, from time to time, the pay of the clerk, treasurer, tax collector, superintendent, and supervisors of roads, and the rates per day or hour, to be paid for labor to be performed by men or teams when employed upon roads or bridges. Seventh.Tax on lands, &c.,on dogs. To levy a tax upon all lands and other assessable property lying in said county, at. a rate not exceeding one dollar in the hundred dollars of their valuation, and also a tax of not exceeding one dollar each on dogs.
Eighth.Accounts of collectors, treasurer, &c.Reports of supervisors. To require reports or the rendition of accounts from the collector of taxes, the treasurer of the county, and from supervisors of roads, whenever they shall deem it expedient or proper. Also, reports from supervisors as to the condition of the roads and bridges in their respective districts, and estimates of the probable amount that will be required to put and keep the same in good repair for the ensuing year.
Ninth.Fines for obstructing roads, &c. To pass ordinances imposing fines for trespassing upon or obstructing or injuring any road or trees therein, or bridge, in said county, and to empower and require the tax collector to collect the same in the same manner as other fines are now collected, and to exercise a general police power over all roads and bridges in said county. Tenth.Private roads. To lay out private roads. Eleventh.Support of the poor and poor-house. To provide for the maintenance and support of the poor; to erect a “poor-house ” for that purpose, if deemed by said court necessary and proper; and, in addition to the tax otherwise herein authorized, to levy and collect a tax on real and personal property in said county to pay for the same.Powers apply to what part of the county.
The powers herein given are to apply only to that portion of the county not included within the corporate bounds of Washington and Georgetown. Sec. 4. *And be it further enacted,* ThatPart of taxes may be paid in labor. the said court may authorize any portion, not exceeding three fourths of the taxes levied for road and bridge purposes, to be paid in labor, of men, horses, mules, oxen, the use of ploughs, carts, and wagons, at rates per day or hour, for each, to be fixedWhen whole tax may be so paid.Labor on roads, how performed. by said court.
But in case any one assessed shall have no visible property, and shall prefer it, he may pay the whole of his tax in labor. All labor upon roads and bridges shall be performed at such times and places as the superintendent of roads shall direct, and under his supervision, or that of the supervisor of the road, or such other person as may be appointed to superintend the work. And it shall be the duty of the superintendentNotice to those liable to work. to notify all persons liable to pay road tax, or to labor on roads, of the time and place, when and where they must appear and perform such labor, at least one week before the day they are required to appear.
And he may notify such as have teams of horses, mules, or oxen, or may have a cart or wagon, to come or send an ablebodied hand with such team, cart or wagon, to be used in repairing or making roads or bridges; such notice to be given personally or in writing left at the residenceIf labor is not performed,amount to be paid in cash and 20 per cent. over. of the individual notified. If the person so notified shall fail to appear at the time and place, or send an ablebodied substitute, or shall not conform to the directions of the person having charge of the work, or shall not labor diligently, in the latter case he shall be dismissed, and in either case he shall pay the whole amount of his road tax in cash, with an addition of twenty per centum thereon.
For the convenience of the801 tax collector and the superintendent of roads, it shall be the duty of all taxpayers who desire to work out that portion of their road tax which is herein provided they may work out, as early as the first Monday of April of each year, to give notice to the supervisor of their district of such desire, and such supervisor shall notify the tax collector. But in case any one shall fail to perform the labor required of him, the tax collector shall, upon being notified thereof, collect the said tax in cash, with the twenty per centum added.
Sec. 5. *And be it further enacted,* ThatThree fourths of the work to be done as early as middle of July.Crowning of roads. it shall be the duty of the superintendent and supervisors of roads to have at least three fourths of the work to be done on them during the year performed as early as the middle of July; and in making and repairing the roads they shall be raised full twelve inches higher in the middle than at the sides, and shall be gradually rounded off to the gutters, which shall be made capacious enough to carry off all the falling water.
Sec. 6. *And be it further enacted,* ThatWhat bills only to be paid. no bill for labor performed upon any road or bridge shall be allowed or paid to any supervisor by the levy court which is not accompanied by a certificate of the superintendent of roads that he has personally examined the road or bridge so made or repaired, and that the work has been well done and according to law, and that the charges are reasonable and just: *Provided, however,*Proviso. That one or more members of the court, to be appointed for that purpose, may, after personal examination, make such certificate.
Sec. 7. *And be it further enacted,* ThatImmediate and extraordinary repairs. on extraordinary occasions, when any public road or bridge shall be destroyed, or so injured as to require immediate repair, it shall be the duty of the superintendent as well as the supervisor of the road to cause the necessary repairs to be forthwith made; and if there are no funds in hand with which to hire laborers and teams, or if laborers and teams cannot be otherwise procured, the said supervisor shall immediately summon a sufficient number of men living nearest the place to appear and labor on said road or bridge until it shall be repaired; and be may also require any person owning a team and living within a reasonable distance to appear with said team and cart or wagon and plough.
And if any one thus called upon, having received two days’ notice, shall neglect or refuse to appear and labor, or send an ablebodied substitute, or shall refuse his team, cart, wagon, or plough, he shall forfeit and pay to the levy court a sum not less than three dollars, nor more than ten, to be recovered before any justice of the peace in said county, with costs. For labor, the use of teams, and other necessary implements, performed and furnished on such occasions, a just and fair compensation shall be paid, to be fixed by the said court.
Sec. 8. *And be it further enacted,* ThatOpening of new roads or changing course of old one. whenever the levy court shall deem it conducive to the public interests to open a new road, or change the course of an old one, they shall direct the route of such road to be surveyed by the county surveyor, and a plat or map of the same to be prepared. They shall then cause notice to be given, by advertisement,Proceedings. twice a week for three weeks, of the proposed opening of the new road, or of the alteration of an existing one, calling upon all persons who may have any objections thereto to present them to the court at its next regular meeting.
If any objections are made, the court shall then and there hear them. If the route only is objected to, and another or others suggested as more advantageous, the court may adopt it, or appoint five discreet, disinterested men, of whom the county surveyor shall be one, to examine all the proposed routes, and report such an one as they shall deem most feasible and advantageous to the county, and such report shall be made to the court at its next session. If no objection to the opening or altering a road by the owners of the land through which it must pass after such notice [is made], it shall be taken for granted that no damages are or will be claimed, and the road may be recorded and opened, and shall then be802 a publicDamages. road or highway; but if any owner or owners of the land shall object and claim damages, and the court cannot agree with such owner or owners upon the amount, then the court shall direct, the marshal of the DistrictJury. to summon a jury of seven judicious, disinterested men, not related to any party interested, to be and appear on the premises on a day specified to assess the damages, if any, which each owner of land through which the road is to pass may sustain by reason thereof.
And the marshal shall summon such jury, and administer an oath or affirmation to them that they will, without favor or partiality to any one, to the best of their judgment, decide what damage, if any, each owner may sustain by reason of running the road through his premises; but in doing this they shall take into consideration the benefit it may be to him or her by enhancing the value of his or her land, or otherwise, and give their verdict accordingly. It shall be the duty of the marshal, upon receiving the order from the court, to give the owner or owners aforesaid not less than ten days’ notice of the time and place of the meeting of the jury to assess their damages.
In cases where notice cannot be served on the owner or owners, the same proceedings shall be had as is provided in this section in the ease of minors. The jury, having been upon the premises and assessed the damages, shall make out a written verdict, to be signed by them, or a majority of them, and attested by the marshal, which the marshal shall transmit to the court at its next session, and which shall be recorded. If the court or any owner or owners of the land aforesaid are dissatisfied with the verdict thus rendered, and no arrangement being made between the court and the said owner or owners, the court shall orderSecond jury. the marshal to summon a second jury of twelve judicious, disinterested men, not related to any one interested, to meet and view the premises, giving the parties interested at least ten days’ notice of the time and place of meeting.
And the marshal and jury shall proceed as before directed in regard to the first jury. And the verdict, signed by each of the jurors, or a majority of them, shall be returned to the court at its next session, and recorded as final and conclusive, and the road shall then be declared a public road, and the court shall order it to be opened as such. And the same mode of proceeding shall be observed in cases where application shall be made to the court by the residents of the county to lay out a new, or alter any existing road.
In all cases where the land through which it is proposed to run a road shall belong to a minor or minors, it shall be presumed that objection is made, and the damages assessedCosts. accordingly. In all cases where it becomes necessary to summon a second jury to assess damages, if the amount assessed by the second jury shall not be greater than the amount assessed by the first, the costs of the second jury shall be paid by the party or parties objecting to the first verdict; but if greater, they shall be paid by the county.
All expenses up to the second jury shall be paid by the county. marshal’s fees. ForMarshal’s feesSummoning jurors. summoning each juror the marshal shall be entitled to fifty cents. ForTravel. travel, per mile, going and coming to the premises to be examined, twelve and a half cents. ForAttendance. each day’s attendance, two dollars and fifty cents. juror’s fees. ForJuror's fees. each day’s attendance, two dollars. Sec. 9. *And be it further enacted,* ThatMaterials for making or repairing road, how procured. in any case where materials of any kind shall be deemed necessary for making or repairing a public road, if the levy court cannot agree with the owner as to their purchase, the said court may proceed in the same manner for condemning said materials as in cases of condemnation of land for the purposes of a public road, as is provided for in the next preceding section of this act.
THIRTY-SEVENTH CONGRESS. Sess. III. Ch. 106, 107. 1863.803 Sec. 10. *And be it further enacted,* ThatCourt may make sanitary rules and regulations, abate nuisances, &c. said levy court shall have full power to make sanitary rules and regulations in said county, to abate nuisances, and to pass such ordinances as it may deem necessary for their condemnation and removal, and for the punishment of persons creating them or suffering them to exist on their premises; which punishment shall not exceed a fine of twenty dollars, for the use of the county, or imprisonment in the county jail thirty days for each offence.
SaidSabbath-breaking.Regulations as to game.Fishing.Metropolitan police to enforce ordinances of levy court, &c. levy court shall also have power to pass such ordinances as it may deem necessary to effectually prevent Sabbath-breaking in said county by hunting, gaming, fishing, or otherwise, on Sunday; to prohibit the killing of such game as said court may think proper during certain periods; to regulate fishing in the waters of said county, and to provide for sufficient penalties for the violation thereof.
And it shall be the duty of the metropolitan police of the District of Columbia to enforce any and all of the ordinances of the said levy court in the same mariner as they are now required to enforce the ordinances of the cities of Washington and Georgetown; the funds required for that purpose to be paid by said levy court from the county treasury. AndLimit of power of county constable.County constables to take oath of allegiance. from and after the passage of this act the duties of county constable shall be confined exclusively to the service of civil process and the collection of strictly private debts within the said District of Columbia.
And each of the county constables holding office at the time of the passage of this act, and each of said constables hereafter appointed, shall, before performing any duties required to be performed in his said office, take the oath of allegiance required by the act of July second, eighteen hundred and sixty-two, in addition to any oath of office required of him at the time, and shall moreover enter into a bondBond. to the United States in the sum of five thousand dollars, with security to be approved by the clerk of the circuit court, conditioned for the faithful performance of the duties of his office, and for the punctual payment of all moneys coming into his hands to the persons entitled to receive the same, and shall renew the said bond on the thirty-first day of JuneRenewal. in every alternate year of his continuance in office.
Sec. 11. *And be it further enacted,* ThatLevy court may grant licenses, &c.1860, ch. 115.*Ante,* p. 29. the act entitled “An act to authorize the levy court to issue tavern and other licenses in the District of Columbia,” approved June twelfth, eighteen hundred and sixty, be so extended as to authorize the levy court to grant licenses to wholesale and retail dealers in goods, wares, or merchandise in the county of Washington outside the limits of the cities of Washington and Georgetown, under such restrictions and penalties as the said levy court may deem expedient.
Sec. 12. *And be it further enacted,* ThatFines, how recovered. fines, under any of the ordinances of the levy court, may be recovered in the name, and for the use, of said levy court, before any magistrate of said county of Washington, and the person or persons against whom a fine may be imposed shall pay the same at the time it is so imposed with costs, or give security for the payment of such fine and costs, as required by the sixth section of an act entitled “An act to amend ‘An act to create a metropolitan police district1861, ch. 62.*Ante,* p. 320.1862, ch. 181, § 6.*Ante,* p. 581. of the District of Columbia, and to establish a police therefor,’” approved August six, eighteen hundred and sixty-one, or shall stand committed till the whole is paid.
Sec. 13. *And be it further enacted,* ThatRepealing clause. all laws inconsistent with this act are hereby repealed. Approved, March 3, 1863.