§ 186. Savings clause.
1.Except as otherwise provided by law, fire\ndistricts now existing shall continue to exist as now established,\nsubject to the provisions of this chapter. Except as hereinafter\nprovided no fire district officers shall be appointed or elected as\nsuccessors to such officers holding office at the time this article\nshall take effect.\n 2. Nothing herein contained shall be construed to require the election\nof fire district commissioners or a fire district treasurer in any water\ndistrict, highway district, town fire district, water supply district or\nschool district in which fire protection was provided on June first,\nnineteen hundred thirty-three, pursuant to the provisions of article\nfourteen of chapter sixty-three of the laws of nineteen hundred nine,\nenti
Free access — add to your briefcase to read the full text and ask questions with AI
§ 186. Savings clause. 1. Except as otherwise provided by law, fire\ndistricts now existing shall continue to exist as now established,\nsubject to the provisions of this chapter. Except as hereinafter\nprovided no fire district officers shall be appointed or elected as\nsuccessors to such officers holding office at the time this article\nshall take effect.\n 2. Nothing herein contained shall be construed to require the election\nof fire district commissioners or a fire district treasurer in any water\ndistrict, highway district, town fire district, water supply district or\nschool district in which fire protection was provided on June first,\nnineteen hundred thirty-three, pursuant to the provisions of article\nfourteen of chapter sixty-three of the laws of nineteen hundred nine,\nentitled "An act relating to towns, constituting chapter sixty-two of\nthe consolidated laws," and acts amendatory thereof and supplemental\nthereto, if there were no fire district commissioners in or for such\ndistrict on the said first day of June, nineteen hundred thirty-three;\nbut in each town fire district established pursuant to the provisions of\nchapter two hundred twenty-six of the laws of nineteen hundred sixteen,\nin which there were town fire commissioners on the first day of June,\nnineteen hundred thirty-three, five fire district commissioners but no\ntreasurer shall be elected on the fifth day of December, nineteen\nhundred thirty-three, upon the notice, in the manner and for the terms\nspecified in this section for election of fire district commissioners on\nsuch date, and one commissioner shall be elected annually thereafter in\nthe manner provided in this article. The fire district commissioner so\nelected shall have and may exercise all the powers conferred by this\nchapter or any other law upon the commissioners of fire districts but\nthe supervisor of the town shall act as the treasurer and the town clerk\nas secretary of such fire district; provided, however, that in any such\ntown fire district the fire district commissioners may submit at a\nspecial fire district election held prior to the first day of October in\nany year, or at any annual fire district election, the proposition\n"Shall the fire district treasurer be elected and the fire district\nsecretary be appointed?" If a majority of the votes cast on such\nproposition submitted as herein provided be in the affirmative, a fire\ndistrict treasurer shall be elected at the next annual fire district\nelection and a fire district secretary shall thereafter be appointed, as\nprovided in this article. The terms of office of such fire district\ntreasurer and such fire district secretary shall commence on the first\nday of January next succeeding the date of such annual election. In a\ntown fire district established pursuant to the provisions of chapter two\nhundred twenty-six of the laws of nineteen hundred sixteen in which\nthere were no town fire commissioners on June first, nineteen hundred\nthirty-three, the town board shall have and may exercise all the powers\nconferred upon fire district commissions pursuant to this chapter or any\nother law except that the supervisor of the town shall act as treasurer\nof the district and chairman of the commission and the town clerk shall\nact as secretary thereof. The supervisor whenever acting as treasurer of\nthe fire district shall not be required to give the additional\nundertaking provided in subdivision four of section one hundred\nseventy-six but the undertaking executed pursuant to section twenty-five\nof this chapter shall include and cover the moneys and property of the\nfire district coming into his hands as treasurer.\n 3. Every incorporated fire company, and every town fire company\nestablished and existing on June first, nineteen hundred thirty-three,\npursuant to sections three hundred ten, three hundred eleven and three\nhundred twelve of article fourteen of chapter sixty-three of the laws of\nnineteen hundred nine, entitled "An act relating to towns, constituting\nchapter sixty-two of the consolidated laws," and acts amendatory thereof\nand supplemental thereto, which shall have its headquarters in any water\ndistrict, water supply district, or highway district, and providing fire\nprotection in such district on the first day of June, nineteen hundred\nthirty-three, shall continue to exist and may provide fire protection in\nsuch districts or any of them, and each such district shall constitute a\nfire protection district and be subject to all of the provisions of this\nchapter relating to fire protection districts, so far as the same do not\nconflict with the provisions of this subdivision. However, any water\ndistrict, governed by district commissioners, providing fire protection\npursuant to this subdivision shall constitute and be a fire district,\nwith all powers and limitations of a fire district so far as the same do\nnot conflict with the provisions of this subdivision. The town board of\nthe town in which any such district is located may contract with any\nsuch incorporated fire company or town fire company for the furnishing\nof fire protection within such district and the amount of any such\ncontract shall be assessed and levied upon the taxable property in such\ndistrict and collected in the same manner as town charges are assessed,\nlevied and collected. The funds so collected shall be paid by the\ncollector to the supervisor of the town who shall apply the same in\npayment of the amount of such contract. The board of water\ncommissioners, in the case of water districts to which the provisions of\narticle thirteen of this chapter apply, or the town board of the town in\nthe case of the other districts hereinbefore specified, shall have and\nmay exercise any and all of the powers and duties of fire district\ncommissioners as provided in subdivisions nine to twenty-five inclusive\nof section one hundred seventy-six of this chapter, and may purchase,\nequip and operate an ambulance for the benefit of the residents of the\ndistrict and may, upon its own motion and shall, upon petition, cause to\nbe submitted at a special or annual district election a proposition in\nthe manner and for any of the purposes specified in section one hundred\nseventy-nine of this chapter. The board of water commissioners, if there\nbe any, in the case of water districts, and the town board in the case\nof other districts shall annually prepare and file with the supervisor\nand town clerk of each town in which such district is located, an\nitemized and verified statement of the amount of moneys necessary to be\nraised in such district for fire purposes and the amount thereof shall\nbe assessed and levied on the taxable property of such district, and\ncollected, all in the manner provided in section one hundred eighty-one\nof this chapter. An annual financial statement setting forth in detail\nthe receipts and expenditures of such district for fire purposes shall\nbe filed by the board of water commissioners, if there be any, in the\ncase of water districts and by the town board, in the case of all other\ndistricts, in the manner provided in section one hundred eighty-one.\n 4. Nothing herein contained shall affect or impair the validity or\nrestrict the exercise of any power or limit the obligation or liability\nconferred or imposed by law upon any now existing fire district or the\nofficers thereof or the qualified voters or electors thereof, except to\nthe extent specified in this chapter.\n