Revised 1988

Recall.

Acquisition of property; eminent domain and appeals; damages.

Liability for damages; appeals.

Sewer extensions policy.

Rules.

Existing developments.

Assessments.

Private sewers; entry; connection.

Connection not always required.

Contracts for disposal of sewage or sludge.

Borrowing powers.

Resolutions; amount.

Authorization of notes.

General requirements for issuance of bonds and notes.

Legal investment; tax exemption.

Rates.

Established.

Public hearings.

Purposes of rates.

Operating expenses.

Sinking fund.

Repairs, replacements, renewals, and extensions.

Assessments.

Determined.

Nonusers not assessed.

Reimbursement.

Collection of unpaid bills.

Treasurer to collect.

Rates.

Assessments.

Bylaws.

Regulations.

Authorized.

Public notice; hearing.

Publication.

Procedure of the Board of Trustees.

Reports; access to information.

Reports.

Financial management.

Trustees.

Budget approval.

Public notice.

Purchases of goods and services.

Purpose.

Expenditure of funds.

Amendment to the Charter.

Effective date.

Revised 2003

Chapter 19, Private & Special Law, Part A

Consultation.

Chapter 19, Private & Special Law, Part B

Expanded health, safety and welfare territorial limits.

Chapter 19, Private & Special Law, Part C

STATE OF MAINE

In the Year of our Lord Nineteen Hundred and Eighty-Two

H.P. 2097 - L.D. 2031

AN ACT to Revise the Charter of the Brunswick Sewer District.

Be it enacted by the People of the State of Maine as follows.

Private & Special Law 1947, c. 77, as amended is repealed, and the following enacted in its place.

BRUNSWICK SEWER DISTRICT

Short title.  This document shall be known as the "Brunswick Sewer District Charter, revised version 1982," called "the Charter."  It replaces the Charter of 1947, as amended to date.

Savings clause.  The creation by this Act of a revised Charter for the Brunswick Sewer District shall not prejudice any claims of creditors towards the sewer District existing prior to this Act or relieve that District of any liability already created or assumed, or affect any existing causes of action in favor of or against the District, or the existing rights or obligations of other persons; but, for all purposes, the District shall be regarded as the same District which existed prior to this Act.

Territorial limits; expansion; voters.  The territory of the District shall extend from the center of Town as follows, to include the entire area within the outer limits specified:

 Beginning at a point in the Androscoggin River at the Topsham line, 2-1/2 miles easterly from the location of the Town Hall as of January 1, 1981, thence southerly to the intersection of Storer Road and Old Bath Road, thence easterly to the intersection of new U. S. Route 1 and Harding Road, thence southerly along the easterly side of Harding Road to Bath Road, thence southwesterly to the intersection of Thomas Point Road and Meadow Road (not including either side of Adams Road), thence southwesterly to the intersection of Gurnet Road and Board Road, thence southwesterly to Dyers Corner, thence along the southerly side of Middle Bay Road, thence northwesterly to the intersection of Woodside Road and Pleasant Hill Road, thence northwesterly to the intersection of U. S. Route 1 and Greenwood Road, thence northwesterly to the intersection of Pleasant Street and Interstate Route 95, thence northeasterly along the median of Route 95 to the Androscoggin River, thence easterly along the Brunswick-Topsham line in the center of the river to the point of beginning.

Voters.  All registered voters of the Town of Brunswick who reside within the District are voters of the District, for all purposes.  In determining whether a voter resides within the District, if any part of his residential property lies within the District, he shall be considered to reside within the District.

Authorization.  The affairs of the District shall be managed by a 5-member Board of Trustees.  Three members shall constitute a quorum.

Appointment.  Trustees shall be appointed by the Brunswick Town Council for 3-year terms, beginning in April of each year and staggered as follows:  One beginning in 1982 and every 3 years after that; 2 beginning in 1983 and every 3 years after that; and 2 beginning in 1984 and every 3 years after that.  Vacancies shall be filled for the unexpired portion of a term or for a new term by the Town Council, after advertisement of the vacancy in a local newspaper.  All Trustees shall serve until their successors are appointed and qualified.  All Trustees must be residents of the Town of Brunswick when appointed and shall resign if they move outside the Town.

Initially, the terms of the Trustees scheduled to end in 1982, 1983, and 1984 shall be unchanged, but the terms of the Trustee scheduled to end in 1985 shall be shortened to end in 1983, and the term of the Trustee scheduled to end in 1986 shall be shortened to end in 1984.

Recall.  A Trustee may be recalled, after hearing, for misfeasance, malfeasance, or nonfeasance, as determined by the Town Council.

Compensation.  The Trustees shall receive compensation as recommended by them and approved by majority vote of the Town Council, including compensation for any duties they perform as officers, as well as for their duties as Trustees.  Certification of that approval shall be recorded with the Secretary of State and recorded in the bylaws.  Their compensation for duties as Trustees shall be on the basis of a specific amount specified in the bylaws, per meeting actually attended and reimbursement for travel and expenses, with the total not to exceed a specific amount set forth in the bylaws.

Compensation schedules in effect on January 1, 1982, shall continue in effect until changed in accordance with this subsection.

Acquisition of property; eminent domain and appeals; damages.  The District may acquire and hold, for the purposes stated in this Charter, real estate and personal estate and any interest therein necessary for such purposes by purchase, lease, taking or otherwise, including property as necessary for the purposes of Section 21, for such other objects necessary, convenient and proper for the purposes of its incorporation and for rights-of-way of roadways to its works, facilities and land.

Liability for damages; appeals.  The District shall be liable for damages sustained by any person in his property by the taking of any land, rights, easement, or interest in them or by entering in or excavating through any land.  Appeals are authorized in accordance with the Revised Statutes, Title 38, Section 1154.

Sewer extensions policy.  Extension of any part of the sewer systems shall be governed by the following.

Rules.  The District shall adopt rules stating in detail the sewer extension policies for new developments and for existing developments.

Existing developments.  For existing developments, the District may construct new public sewers if required by a majority of the property owners abutting the new sewer, or if the Public Health Officer or an appropriate environmental agency advises that the public health, safety, or welfare requires such construction.

Assessments.  Assessments against lots benefited and any District participation in the cost shall be governed by Section 34.

Consultation.  Prior to authorizing any sewer extension, except by specific state or federal mandate, the Trustees shall notify the Town Council and consult with the planning Board in order to assure conformity with their comprehensive plans and other public policies relating to growth and development.  The Trustees shall publish a notice of the proposed action in a newspaper with general circulation in the District, no less than 7 days prior to the meeting at which they will take final action on the authorization of the extension.

Public hearings.  The Brunswick Sewer District shall hold a public hearing prior to the extension of an existing sewer line or the construction of a new sewer line, by a distance equal to 500 feet or more within any 3-year period.  If the public health and welfare of the community, as determined by the health officer, might be adversely affected by delay, the hearing may be waived.

Private sewers; entry; connection; charges.  Private sewers may be entered into the sewers of the District as follows.

Connection not always required.  Existing buildings which are already served by a private sewer system are not required to connect with any sewer of the District as long as the private sewer system functions in a satisfactory and sanitary manner and does not violate any applicable law or ordinance or any applicable requirements of the State Plumbing Code, as determined by the municipal plumbing inspector, his alternate or, in the event that both are Trustees or employees of the District, the Bureau of Health, Division of Health Engineering.

Free access to premises.  The officers or agents of the District shall have free access to all premises served by its sewers, at all reasonable hours, to permit the inspection of plumbing and sewerage fixtures, to ascertain the amount of sewerage discharged and the manner of discharge and to enforce the provisions of this Charter and related regulations.

Contracts for disposal of sewage or sludge.  The District may enter into agreements within or outside the District with individual property owners, commercial or industrial establishments, or federal, state or municipal governments on mutually acceptable terms for operation and maintenance of on-site treatment plants, for acceptance and treatment of sewerage, and for sludge disposal by any method approved by the Department of Environmental Protection.

The District shall accept and treat septic tank waste with acceptable characteristics from within the District and may accept such waste from out side the District upon such terms as its Trustees determine.  The District may enter into agreements with other sewer or sanitary Districts for the joint treatment of sewage or sludge.

Borrowing powers.  The District may borrow money as follows.

Resolution; amount.  The District may provide by resolution of its Trustees, without District vote except as provided in this Charter, for borrowing of money and the issuance of bonds, notes or other evidences of indebtedness, for any of its corporate purposes, including the purpose of paying, redeeming or refunding outstanding bonds, notes or evidences of indebtedness.  All bonds, notes or other evidences of indebtedness shall have inscribed on their faces the words "Brunswick Sewer District" and shall be signed manually by the Treasurer or Assistant Treasurer, and the Chairman of the Board of Trustees.  The total indebtedness at any time shall not exceed $ 20,000,000.

Authorization of notes.  The District may provide by resolution of its Trustees for the issuance of notes in anticipation of bonds authorized under this Charter and of notes in anticipation of the revenues to be collected or received in any year, or in anticipation of the receipt of federal or state grants or other aid.  The issue of these notes shall be governed by the applicable provisions of this Charter relating to the issue of bonds, provided that this Charter relating to the issue of bonds, provided that note in anticipation of revenue must mature no later than one year from their respective dates and notes issued in anticipation of federal or stated grants or other aid and renewals thereof must mature no later than the expected date of receipt of those grants or aid.

General requirements for issuance of bonds and notes.  Bonds, notes, and other evidences of indebtedness shall be issued in accordance with the procedures and requirements of the Maine Revised Statutes, Title 38, Section 1201, subsections 1 to 9, unless otherwise specified in this Charter.  Authorization of bonds under the Maine Revised Statutes, Title 38, Section 1201, subsection 1, shall not be subject to the Maine Revised Statutes, Title 38, Section 1201, subsection 10, but shall instead be subject to subsection 5 of this section.

Public hearings and approval.  In the event that the Trustees vote to authorize bonds or notes, for any of the corporate purposes of a sanitary District, excluding notes payable within one year, notes in anticipation of bonds authorized pursuant to this section, notes in anticipation of the revenues to be collected or received in any year, or notes in anticipation of the receipt of approved federal or state grants, the authorized amount of which, singly or in aggregate included in any one financing, is $ 150,000 or more, the Trustees shall call a special District meeting for the purpose of collecting testimony from the public concerning the purpose and the amount of debt so authorized.  Notice of the special District meeting stating the approximate amount of the debt and the purpose for which it is being issued shall be published not less than 7 full days prior to the date of the meeting, and shall be mailed to each ratepayer in the District not later than the date of the publication.  No debt may be incurred under the vote of the Trustees until the expiration of 7 full days following the date of the special District meeting.

Except for debt to fund that part of any project which has been approved for grant financing by the state government or federal government to meet the requirements of the United States Clean Water Act, Public Law 92-500, and the United States Code, Title 33, Section 1251, et seq., including any related facilities not eligible for that financing, but essential to the operation of the approved project as an integral system.  For debts in excess of the amount specified in this section, the following petition and referendum procedure shall apply.  If, on or before the 7th day following the date of the special District meeting, a petition signed by at least 5 %, but not less than 50, of the registered voters of the District is filed with the Clerk of the District requesting reference of the vote of the Trustees to referendum, the Clerk of the District shall call and hold a special election of the voters of the District for the purpose of submitting to referendum vote a question of approving the vote of the Trustees.  The vote of the Trustees shall be suspended until it has received approval by vote of a majority of the voters of the District voting on the question at the special election.

Sinking fund; reserves.  The District is encouraged to use serial bonds to finance long-term debt.  In some instances, term bonds may be desirable.  To ensure the timely repayment of term-bonded indebtedness, the District shall establish a sinking fund and appropriate to it annually a sum sufficient for the eventual extinguishment of that indebtedness.  The sinking fund shall be devoted to the retirement of the obligations of the District and invested in securities or financial instruments which are rated within the three highest grades by any rating service approach by the Superintendent of Banking; in bonds and other obligations of the United States; or in debentures and certificates of deposit of any financial institution insured by an agency of the United States or a state.  All income generated from those investments shall be added to the sinking fund.  The District shall maintain any other reserves required by any trust agreement or resolution securing bonds or notes.

Legal investment; tax exemption.  All bonds, notes, and evidences of indebtedness issued by the District are legal investments for savings banks and other entities in the state, as specified in the Revised Statutes, Title 38, Section 1201, and are tax exempt.

Rates.  Rates for sewer service provided by the District shall be subject to the following requirements.

Established.  All persons, firms and corporations, whether public, private, or municipal, shall pay to the Treasurer of the District the rates established by the Trustees for the services used, and the rates shall be uniform within the District.

Abatements.  The Trustees, on written application stating the grounds therefore, may make such reasonable abatements of any rates as they deem proper.  The application shall be an attachment to the minutes of the Trustees' meeting at which the abatement is approved.

Public hearings.  Prior to its adoption, the Trustees shall hold a public hearing regarding any proposed new rate schedule.  The Trustees shall publish the proposed rates and notice of the hearing, at least once in a newspaper having a general circulation in the District, not less than 7 days prior to the hearing.  The District shall mail to each ratepayer a notice of the public hearing and the proposed new rate at least 14 days prior to the hearing.

Operating expenses.  To pay the current expenses for operating and maintaining the District;

Sinking fund.  To create and maintain sinking funds and such other reserves as may be required by any trust agreements or resolutions securing bonds and notes;

Construction, repairs, replacements, renewals, and extensions.  To pay for such repairs, replacements, renewals, and extensions as may be necessary to maintain the system in good, safe, efficient working condition; to pay the District share in the cost of extensions authorized under Section 34; or to pay for the cost of capital projects constituting additions or improvements to the system, including the costs of acquisition, design, construction, building, alteration, enlargement, reconstruction, renovation, improvement, and equipping those projects, and the cost of all lands, structures, real or personal property, rights, easements, site development and improvement, plans and specifications, surveys, engineering, feasibility studies, and other legal, accounting, and professional services associated with those projects;

Depreciation reserve.  To create and maintain a funded depreciation reserve, with annual increments not to exceed annual depreciation.

Assessments.  Assessments to pay for the construction of a common sewer shall be subject to the following requirements.

Determined.  After the District has constructed and completed a common sewer, except as providing in subsection 3, the Trustees may, in order to defray a portion of the expense, determine what lots or parcels of land are served by the sewer, and make an assessment upon those lots and parcels of land on which the owners have agreed to participate.

Nonusers not assessed.  Nonusers shall not be assessed until they avail themselves of service.  Then they shall be assessed using the same uniform and equitable formula that was applied to other properties on that specific sewer line.

Reimbursement.  When additional users are added to a sewer line and assessed in accordance with subsection 2 or 3, the funds collected shall be reimbursed to the users on property which was previously assessed, in proportion to the amount of assessment previously paid.

District participation; existing dwellings.  In providing service to existing dwellings, if community health and welfare concerns dictate, the Trustees may determine to participate in the financing to the extent they deem appropriate, but not to exceed the lesser of 1/3 of the cost or the 10-year anticipated revenue of the sewer and sewage disposal units, except that, in the case of demonstrated hardship for an individual homeowner, the cost limit shall not apply.

Notification; hearing.  The Trustees shall file with the Clerk of the District the location of the sewer line and appurtenances as may be necessary, the total of the assessments for the entire project, together with a statement of the amount assessed on each parcel or lot, and the name of the person or persons against whom the assessment will be made.  The Clerk of the District shall record that information on a permanent record.  Within 10 days after filing, each person so assessed shall be notified of the assessment and of the time and place for a hearing on the proposed assessments.

Notice may be made by personal service in hand by an officer qualified to serve civil process in this State, or by certified mail, return receipt requested, to the person at his last known address.  If the owner or owners are not known, or if they cannot be notified by personal service or certified mail, notice may be given by publication in a local newspaper of general circulation once a week for 3 successive weeks, the last publication to be at least one week prior to the hearing.  Upon such hearing, the Trustees may revise, increase, or diminish any of the assessments, and all revisions, increases or diminution shall be in writing and recorded by the Clerk of the District.

Appeals.  Any person aggrieved by the assessment made by the Trustees for sewer construction under this section, may within 60 days after the hearing on the assessment, appeal to the Cumberland County Superior Court.  The court shall determine the assessment by a verdict of its jury or, if all parties agree, by the court without a jury or by a referee, and shall render judgment for the assessment with interest where that is due and for costs in favor of the party entitled to them.

Collection of unpaid bills.  The District may collect bills for rates and assessments as follows.

Treasurer to collect.  The Treasurer of the District may collect the rates and assessments established in accordance with this Charter, and may exercise the authority set forth in this Charter in enforcing the collection of any rates or assessments due and payable to the District.

Charge for late payment.  The District may apply a charge for late payment of rates and assessments.

Rates.  There shall be a lien on real estate served or benefited by the sewers of the Brunswick Sewer District, to secure the payment of rates established and due under this Charter, which shall take precedence over all other claims on the real estate, excepting only claims for taxes.  The Treasurer of the District shall have full and complete authority and power to collect the rates, tolls, rents, and other charges established under this chapter, and the same shall be committed to him.  The Treasurer may, after demand for payment, sue in the name of the District in a civil action for any rate, toll, rent, or other charge remaining unpaid in any court of competent jurisdiction.  In addition to other methods established by law for the collection of rates, tolls, rents, and other charges, and without waiver of the right to sue for the collection of rates, tolls, rents, and other charges, the lien hereby created may be enforced in the following manner.  The Treasurer, when a rate, toll, rent, or other charge has been committed for collection, may, after the expiration of 3 months and within one year after the date when the same became due and payable, give to the owner of the real estate served, or leave at the owner's last and usual place of abode, or send by certified mail, return receipt requested, to the owner's last known address, a notice in writing signed by the Treasurer or bearing the Treasurer's facsimile signature, stating the amount of that rate, toll, rent, or other charge, describing the real estate upon which the lien is claimed, stating that a lien is claimed on the real estate to secure the payment of the rate, toll, rent, or other charge, and demanding the payment of the rate, toll, rent, or other charge, together with a fee of $ 1 for mailing the notice and fee for the certified mail, return receipt requested, all within 30 days after service or mailing.  The notice shall contain a statement that the District is willing to arrange installment payments of the outstanding debt.  For the purpose of this section, a mobile home is defined as real estate.  After the expiration of the 30-day period and within one year thereafter, the Treasurer shall record in the registry of deeds of the county in which that property is located a certificate signed by the Treasurer, setting forth the amount of such rate, toll, rent, or other charge, describing the real estate on which the lien is claimed, stating that a lien is claimed on the real estate to secure payment of the rate, toll, rent, or other charge, and that a notice and demand for payment of the rate, toll, rent, or other charge has been given or made in accordance with this section, and stating further that the rate, toll, rent, or other charge remains unpaid.  At the time of the recording of any such certificate in the registry of deeds, the Treasurer shall file in the office of the District a true copy of the certificate and shall mail a true copy thereof by certified mail, return receipt requested, to each record holder of any mortgage on the real estate addressed to the record holder at the record holder's last and usual place of abode.  The fee to be charged by the District to the ratepayer for that notice and filing shall not exceed the amount authorized by the Maine Revised Statutes, Title 33, Section 751, subsection 12, concerning District liens.

The filing of the certificate in the registry of deeds shall be deemed to create, and shall create, a mortgage on the real estate therein described to the District, which shall have priority over all other mortgages, liens, attachments, and encumbrances of any nature, except liens, attachments, and claims for taxes, and shall give to the District all the rights usually possessed by the mortgagees, except that the District as mortgagee shall not have any right to possession of the real estate until the right of redemption provided shall have expired.  If the mortgage, together with interest and costs, has not been paid within 18 months after the date of filing of the certificate in the registry of deeds, the mortgage shall be deemed to have been foreclosed and the right of redemption to have expired.  The filing of the certificate in the registry of deeds shall be sufficient notice of the existence of the mortgage.  In the event that the rate, toll, rent, or other charge, with interest and costs, is paid within the period of redemption, the Treasurer shall discharge the mortgage in the same manner provided for discharge of real estate mortgages.  The fee for recording the discharge shall be borne by the ratepayer.

Bylaws.  The Trustees may adopt bylaws, by majority vote at 2 regular meetings, to govern the internal procedures of the Board of Trustees in carrying out their duties under this Charter.  The bylaws may be amended in the same way.  The bylaws shall be published and copies made available to the public on request.  Meetings shall be conducted in accordance with Robert's Rules of Order.

Regulations.  The District shall adopt regulations as follows.

Authorized.  The Trustees may promulgate regulations to supplement this Charter in accomplishing the purposes of the District.  The regulations shall include, but are not limited to, the following:

B.       

C.       

D.       

Public notice; public hearing.  Proposed regulations shall be published in a local newspaper of general circulation at least 14 days before the first meeting at which the Board will vote on them.  If requested by 5 or more voters of the District, the Trustees shall hold a public hearing before taking a final vote on the proposed regulations.

Publication.  The regulations shall be published and copies made available to the public on request.

Transition.  The District shall promulgate a complete set of regulations after public hearing and prior to July 1, 1983, to replace the present rules and regulations.  Existing regulations consistent with this Charter shall remain in effect until that promulgation.

Public hearings.  The time, place, and purpose of all hearings called by the Trustees of the District in accordance with the Charter, the bylaws or the regulations of the District shall be publicized by paid newspaper advertisements and notices to ratepayers as follows.

A minimum of one notice shall be carried in a paid advertisement a least 14 days prior to the hearing, except in those instances where 2 notices are required by this Charter, in which case one advertisement shall be carried at least 14 days prior and a second advertisement at least 7 days prior to the date of the hearing.

At least 14 days before the hearing date, the District shall send notices to all ratepayers of the District, stating the purpose, time, and place of all public hearings on indebtedness under Section 31, rate changes under Section 32 and proposed regulations under Section 42.

All testimony at public hearings shall be recorded either by a qualified stenographer or by tape recording, and all transcripts or tapes of the hearing proceedings shall be made available to the public.  Copies of transcripts or duplicate tapes shall be made available for a fee covering the actual cost of reproduction.