§ 33:4562.1 — Service charge authorized; assessment and collection; St. Mary Parish

Louisiana § 33:4562.1

• Jurisdiction: Louisiana
• Title 33: Municipalities and Parishes

Text

§4562.1. Service charge authorized; assessment and collection; St. Mary Parish
A. The governing authority of any recreation district in the parish of St. Mary is
hereby authorized to establish, by majority vote of the members of the authority, a service
charge or rates of service charges for each residential or commercial structure for a term not
to exceed ten years to be assessed on persons owning each structure, whether occupied or
unoccupied, located wholly or partly within the boundaries of the recreation district, subject
to the provisions of Subsection B of this Section. For purposes of this Section, each
residential or commercial unit in a structure shall be considered a separate structure, and a
factory-built home as defined in R.S. 9:1149.2 shall be considered a structure. The service
charges or rates of service charges shall be equal for all structures and shall be framed to
cover, and shall be used for, the costs of constructing, acquiring, maintaining, operating, or
improving recreation services and facilities for the recreation district, including property and
equipment necessary for those purposes.
B. Service charges or rates of service charges so established shall be assessed by
resolution of the governing authority of the recreation district. However, the resolution
assessing the service charges shall be adopted by the governing authority only after the
question of the assessment, its duration, and the amount of the service charge or rates of
service charges to be established have been submitted to and approved by a majority of
voters of the district voting at an election held for that purpose. Such election shall be
conducted in accordance with the election laws of the state.
C.(1) The governing authority of any recreation district assessing a service charge
or rates of service charges for recreation services and facilities as provided in this Section
shall also have the authority to use any reasonable means to collect and enforce the collection
of such service charges, including any means authorized by law for collection of taxes.
(2) The governing authority of any such district shall also have the authority to place
liens for recreation service charges upon the structure subject to the charge, upon the
building, if any, in which the structure is located if it is owned by the owner of the structure,
and upon the lot of ground not exceeding one acre on which the structure is situated if such
lot of ground belongs to the person who owns such structure; however, if such structure or
building is owned by a lessee of the lot of ground, the lien shall exist only against the lease
and shall not affect the owner of the lot. Such lien shall be placed upon property only in the
event of the refusal of the owner of a structure to pay the service charges when requested to
do so by the governing authority within thirty days of receipt by the owner of such a request
by registered or certified letter. The governing authority may file a statement reflecting the
amount of the unpaid charges in the mortgage office of the parish, which, when so filed and
recorded, shall operate as a lien and privilege in favor of the district against property as
provided herein. In addition, the governing authority of the district shall be entitled to
recover the amount of the charges, together with all costs of court and attorney fees, by
ordinary process in the judicial district in which the recreation district is located. The
governing authority may also provide, by resolution, for interest on the amount of the
charges, which shall be paid prior to cancellation of the lien. The rate of interest charged
shall not exceed the rate of legal interest, as provided in R.S. 9:3500, and such interest shall
be computed from the date of recordation of the lien until paid.

Legislative History

Acts 1993, No. 1010, §1; Acts 2011, 1 st Ex. Sess., No. 20, §1, eff. June 12, 2011; Acts 2024, No. 287, §6.