198.14 Powers of district board.

1,113 words·~5 min read·/wi/chapter-198/198-14-2

A research copy — for the controlling text, always check the official state or federal source. Not legal advice.

198.14 Powers of district board. The board of directors of any district shall have power and authority:

(1)Seal. To adopt a corporate seal for the district and prescribe the style thereof.

(2)Mode of exercise. To exercise by vote, ordinance or resolution all of the general powers of the district.

(3)Grant permits. To grant by ordinance indeterminate permits, subject to the conditions prescribed in ss. 196.50 and 198.12 , for the construction or operation of utilities and extensions and additions thereto in the district but subject to local ordinances governing the use thereby of public streets, alleys, ways and places therein, but such ordinance shall be published as a class 1 notice, under ch. 985 , not more than 20 nor less than 10 days before its adoption.

(4)Purchases, sales, conveyances. To lease, purchase, sell, convey and mortgage the property of the district and to authorize and order all instruments, contracts, deeds or mortgages to be executed on behalf of the district by the chairperson of the board and the clerk of the district, except that the sale or lease of any public utility equipment in excess of 10 percent of the book value of the utility property of the district shall be made as nearly as may be in accordance with s. 66.0817 , except that the commission shall have no power to determine whether the interests of the district and the residents thereof will be best served by the sale or lease nor to fix the price and terms thereof other than to furnish the clerk of said district with its written recommendations thereon within 90 days.

(5)Employees. To authorize to be appointed and employed and fix the compensation of such employees as may be required for carrying on the business of the district.

(6)Depositories. To designate and appoint a suitable and responsible depository or depositories for the deposit and safekeeping of the funds of the district and to contract with such depository or depositories with respect thereto and the rate of interest to be paid the district on such deposits.

(7)Temporary loans. To borrow money for terms not exceeding ninety days, subject to the limitation of total indebtedness of the district contained in sub.

(9). Such temporary loans shall constitute a first lien on the revenue of the district after the payment of interest on, and retirement of, bonds, and after the payment of taxes.

(8)Eminent domain. To exercise the power of eminent domain and to condemn lands or any interest in lands including water powers, whether located within or without the district, whenever the same are necessary for the construction, operation, improvement or extension of any utility owned, or to be owned by the district and, in that behalf, to authorize condemnation proceedings to be instituted and prosecuted by the general counsel of the district in the name of the district and at its cost and expense and otherwise in the manner prescribed by law.

(9)Bond issues, debt limit. To provide by ordinance for the issuance and sale of bonds of the district to finance the purchase, acquisition or construction of any utility or parts of the utility or additions, extensions or betterments to the utility, that may be authorized, to authorize and require the execution of the bonds by the chairperson of the board and the clerk of the district under the corporate seal of the district and to approve the form of the bonds and prescribe the duties of the clerk and treasurer of the district with respect to the sale of the bonds and the application of the proceeds to the purposes for which the bonds were issued. Bonds issued under this subsection shall be subject to all of the following:

(a)The total amount of all indebtedness of the district shall not exceed 5 percent of the assessed value of the taxable property in the district, to be ascertained by the last preceding assessment for the state and county taxes.

(b)The ordinance authorizing the indebtedness shall levy a direct, annual, district tax sufficient to pay the interest on the debt as it becomes due, and to pay the principal of the debt within 20 years from the time of contracting the debt.

(c)All of the bonds shall mature in annual installments. The first installment of principal shall be due and payable not later than 2 years after the date of issue. The sum of the principal and interest due in any year after the first year shall not exceed the sum of the principal and interest due in any previous year by more than a denomination of a single bond issued.

(d)All of the bonds shall contain a provision requiring redemption of the bond, in whole or in part, at the option of the district on any interest payment date after 3 years from the date of the bonds.

(e)The authorization by the board of any bonds shall be approved by a majority vote of the electors of the district voting at a referendum election noticed, held, conducted and canvassed and the returns thereof made as nearly as may be in the manner provided for a referendum vote on the issuance of county bonds under ch. 67 .

(f)The income of a district from any source other than taxation may be applied for the payment of part or all of the installments of interest on and principal of the bonds due in any year. Any surplus remaining may be redistributed at any time to municipalities within the boundaries of the district in proportion to, and in a total amount not more than, the taxes levied and collected by the municipalities for the district during the existence of the district, or the surplus may be held by the district for the payment of its expenses, including the payment of subsequent installments of interest and principal as they become due.

(g)Any sums collected by taxation to be used for the payment of interest on and principal of the bonds, and not required in any year for that purpose, shall be held by the district to be used for that purpose in any succeeding year, and the tax provided for in this section shall be collected in the succeeding year only in an amount sufficient, together with any balance remaining over from the proceeds of taxation in previous years, to pay the installments of interest on and principal of the bonds due in that year.

(h)Except as otherwise provided by this chapter, the bonds shall be issued as nearly as may be in the manner provided by ch. 67 for county bonds.