§ 198-A — Special districts for disposal of duck waste in Suffolk county

§ 198-a. Special districts for disposal of duck waste in Suffolk\ncounty. 1. The town board of any town in Suffolk county is hereby\nauthorized to create a special waste disposal district, or more than one\nsuch district, in said town, outside of any incorporated village or\ncity, the area of which said special waste disposal district shall be\nless than the territorial limits of said town, for the purpose of\nconstructing, maintaining and operating within said special waste\ndisposal district a treatment and disposal plant and other facilities,\nincluding the acquisition of necessary land and rights in land, to\nprovide for the collection, treatment and disposition, or either, of\nduck waste. Such special waste disposal district shall be created or\nextended in the manner provided by and pursuant to the provisions of\nthis article relating to the creating or extension of sewer districts\nand shall embrace only duck farms as hereinafter defined in this\nsection. The territory embraced within any such special duck waste\ndisposal district may be composed of non-contiguous areas or properties.\nWhen so created, it shall be deemed to be an improvement district\ncreated pursuant to the provisions of this article, and shall be subject\nto the procedural requirements therein set forth.\n 2. After a special waste disposal district shall have been\nestablished, the town board, as the governing agency thereof, may\nprovide for the collection, treatment and disposition, or either, of\nduck waste in such district, and for that purpose, may construct, equip,\noperate and maintain a collection system or a treatment and disposal\nplant, or both, and pipes and sewer lines and connections thereto,\nacquire the necessary land and rights in lands therefor, and purchase,\noperate and maintain all necessary appliances appurtenant thereto,\nincluding such vehicles as may be required in connection with the\ncollection, treatment and disposition thereof. The cost of such\nconstruction and equipment and the acquisition of such land and rights\nin land shall be at a cost not to exceed the maximum amount proposed to\nbe expended as stated in the petition. Whenever the town board may\ndetermine it advantageous to do so, it may (a) employ a sufficient\nnumber of persons and provide the necessary equipment to operate and\nmaintain said collection system or said treatment and disposal plant, or\nboth, at the expense of said district, and (b) establish from time to\ntime, charges, fees or rates to be paid by users for such operation and\nmaintenance and may provide for the payment of said charges in advance.\nSuch charges, fees or rates may be based upon the volume of duck waste\ntreated, or upon any other equitable basis as the town board may\ndetermine. Such charges shall be a lien upon the real property for which\nor in connection with which the services are rendered. The town board\nmay provide by ordinance, rule or regulation for the time within which\nrates, charges or fees for such operation and maintenance shall be paid,\nand may provide a penalty not exceeding ten per centum of the amount\ndue, when such rates, charges or fees are in arrears for thirty days, or\nlonger. The town clerk shall annually file with the town board\nstatements showing unpaid rates, charges or fees in such districts.\nSuch statements shall contain a brief description of the property for\nwhich or in connection with which such operation and maintenance was\nprovided, the names of the persons or corporations liable to pay the\nsame and the amount chargeable to each. The supervisor shall transmit\nsuch statements to the board of supervisors, which shall levy such sums\nagainst the property liable and shall state the amount of the tax in a\nseparate column in the annual tax rolls of such town under the name of\n"duck waste charges". Such tax shall be paid to the supervisor of such\ntown. All the provisions of the existing laws of the state of New York\ncovering the enforcement and collection of unpaid town taxes or\nassessments for special improvements in the several towns of the county\nof Suffolk, not inconsistent herewith, shall apply to the collection of\nsuch unpaid charges for the treatment and disposition of duck waste. All\nsuch rates, charges and fees shall be used for the payment of the cost\nof the management, maintenance and operation of the duck waste\ncollection, treatment and disposition service, or for the enlargement or\nreplacement of the same. The town board may adopt from time to time\nordinances, rules and regulations for the collection, treatment and\ndisposition of duck waste in the special waste disposal districts in the\ntown and the use of the equipment therein, and, in addition to the\nremedies provided in section one hundred and thirty-five of this chapter\nfor the enforcement thereof or for the punishment of violators, the town\nboard may enforce compliance with such rules, ordinances and regulations\nby discontinuing the duck waste and other waste matter collection,\ntreatment or disposal service.\n 3. The expense of the establishment of a special waste disposal\ndistrict and of constructing a waste disposal system therein, as\nauthorized by subdivision two of this section, shall be assessed, levied\nand collected from the several lots and parcels of land within the\ndistrict in the same manner and at the same time as other town charges,\nunless the petition for the establishment thereof shall provide that the\nexpense thereof shall be assessed by the town board upon the several\nlots and parcels of land in said district especially benefited by the\nimprovement in proportion to the amount of benefit which the improvement\nshall confer upon the same, in which case such expense shall be assessed\nin such manner.\n 4. After the improvement has been constructed and completed it shall\nbe maintained by the town board and the expense thereof shall be a\ncharge upon the district in the manner as may be determined by the town\nboard in accordance with subdivision two of this section.\n 5. Whenever the town board shall determine it necessary to acquire\nadditional lands or rights in land in order to maintain the waste\ndisposal system or to increase, improve and reconstruct the facilities\nthereof and the appurtenances thereto, it is authorized to do so by\nfollowing the procedure set forth in section two hundred and two-b of\nthis article.\n 6. The town board may provide for the payment of the cost of any\npublic improvement hereby authorized by making funds available therefor\npursuant to the local finance law. The period of probable usefulness of\nany public improvement authorized by this act is hereby determined to be\ntwenty-five years. In case the expense of the establishment of the\nspecial waste disposal district is to be assessed, levied and collected\nfrom the several lots and parcels of land within the district in the\nsame manner and at the same time as other town charges, the provisions\nof section two hundred thirty-one-a of this chapter shall be applicable.\nIn case the expense of the establishment of the special waste disposal\ndistrict is to be assessed upon benefited property in proportion to the\namount of benefit which the improvement shall confer upon the same, the\nprovisions of section two hundred thirty-one of this chapter shall\napply.\n 7. For purposes of this section, the term "duck waste" shall mean duck\nexcrement, offal and corpses, or any other waste, material or substance\nresulting from the raising and processing of ducks for commercial use,\nand the term "duck farm" shall mean any farm or property on which more\nthan five thousand ducks per year are raised for commercial purposes.\n