[No. 130.] AN ACT to provide for straightening and opening the channel of Cedar river, and its east and west branches, and making an appropriation of State swamp lands, to aid the work, and to authorize the levying of a tax for the completion of the same, and to repeal act number eighty-eight of the session laws of eighteen hundred and eighty-one, entitled "An act to authorize and empower the board of control of State swamp lands to make an appropriation of State swamp lands to drain and reclaim certain swamp and overflowed lands in the townships of Conway, Handy, and Iosco, in the county of Livingston." land made. SECTION 1. The People of the State of Michigan enact, That for Appropriation the purpose of aiding in straightening the channel of the Cedar of State swamp river and its east and west branches, and opening, widening, and deepening the same to the end that the large territory now periodically submerged may be reclaimed, and the sanitary condition of the adjacent lands improved, there shall be and hereby is appropriated to the county of Livingston, ten thousand acres of swamp lands in the lower peninsula, not otherwise appropriated. sale when SEC. 2. Said lands, or any part or parts thereof, when selected, Lands to be shall be withheld from sale from and after the time said county, its withheld from assigns or the contractor under this act shall notify the commis- selected, sioner of the State land office of the selection of the same, or any such part or parts, and shall be withheld for the entire time fixed by this act for the completion of the work. Upon the filing with Patents for. the said commissioner of the State land office the certificate of the commissioner hereby appointed, that one-half of said work is completed, one-half of said lands hereby appropriated shall be patented to said county, its assigns, or the contractor under this act, and the remainder upon a like certificate of the entire completion of the work. his powers and duties. SEC. 3. Spiridon S. Abbott of the said county of Livingston is Commissioner, hereby appointed commissioner under this act to superintend the survey and construction of said work, and superintend and perform such other duties as may devolve upon him by this act, and in case of his failure to act from any cause the governor may appoint his successor; said commissioner and his successor or successors shall Bond of. each give a bond to the county of Livingston, with sufficient surety or sureties, to be approved by the commissioner of the State land office, for the sum of ($30,000) thirty thousand dollars, for the faithful performance of the trusts and duties involved upon him. to have survey submitted to SEC. 4. Said commissioner hereby appointed shall at once proceed, Commissioner without petition or other preliminary proceedings, to have the sur- plans, estimates, vey for said work made or completed, and prepare the necessary etc., made and plans and specifications and detailed estimates of the expense for board of review. straightening, opening, deepening, and widening the said Cedar river, in the townships of Conway, Handy, and Iosco, in Livingston county, and in the townships of Locke, Leroy, and Williamstown, in Ingham county, or in so many of said towns as he may find necessary, and upon their completion submit the same to the board Determination of location of improvement. Proviso. Procuring title of commissioner in reference thereto. of review hereinafter named. It is not the intention to confine the said survey or improvement to the said county of Livingston, but like authority is also conveyed to extend the same into the county of Ingham, a sufficient distance to secure the best results, jurisdiction being hereby given to the probate court hereinafter named, said commissioner and said board of review, over the whole improvement: Provided, That the said commissioner is hereby authorized and empowered to adopt the survey map and profile made under the direction of Joshua Dodge, the special commissioner appointed by the board of control of State swamp lands, for the purpose of carrying out the provisions of act number eightyeight (88) of the session laws of eighteen hundred and eighty-one, and to make such alterations therein, or additions thereto, as in his discretion he may deem expedient. And said commissioner is hereby given the custody and possession of said map and profile which is now on file with the board of control of State swamp lands. SEC. 5. Upon the adoption of the survey plans and specifications etc., and powers of said improvements, the said commissioner shall take steps to procure title to the county of the lands or the right of way necessary therefor, and for this purpose is hereby vested with all the powers conferred upon county or special drain commissioners, and may proceed without petition or other preliminary proceedings in the manner provided by law for acquiring title for county drains, or he may proceed under any other law of this State providing for condemning right of way, and for the purpose of carrying out the full design and intent of this act, the said commissioner is hereby vested with all the powers conferred upon special drain commissioners appointed by the probate court in cases where drains are constructed affecting lands lying in more than one county, and may proceed in the same manner and be governed by the same law in the prosecution of said improvement, from its commencement to its completion, except as in this act otherwise provided, as he would or might proceed, or be governed, were he appointed as said special commissioner, by the probate court, in and for the county of Livingston aforesaid, in pursuance to act number two hundred and sixtynine, of the session laws of eighteen hundred and eighty-one, or of any amendments or revision of said act. It shall not be necessary to procure of owners of lands adjoining said Cedar river, the right of way where by the original survey the said river was recognized, or the estimated area thereof deducted from sectional subdivisions. But on all such portions of the line of this contemplated improvement, full authority is hereby given to remove all obstructions to the flow of the water of such river, or deepen the same. And the probate court, in and for the county of Livingston, shall have jurisdiction of all proceedings in the prosecution of said improvement the same as they would or might have had had said commissioners [commissioner] been appointed by said court, in pursuance of said act number two hundred and sixty-nine, statute laws eighteen hundred and eighty-one, or any amendment or revision of said act. SEC. 6. The cost of constructing said improvement, together probate court. ment, etc., in lands, etc., of report. with the expenses incident thereto, in excess of the appropriation Costs of improvehereby made, shall be paid by the lands and property benefited excess of apthereby, and by any township, city, or village, by reason of the propriation. benefit to the public health, and as a means of improving any public highway. The commissioner created by this act shall designate Commissioner in an assessment roll or rolls the lands and property benefited there- to designate by, and shall determine by assessed valuation, what per cent of benefited." such excess shall be assessed upon each parcel or description of lands and property, township, city, or village. He shall make a Report to board circumstantial report of his determination in the premises to the said of review. board of review, who may alter or amend the same as they may deem equitable, and their decision shall be final. Said report shall Publication be published in some newspaper of general circulation published in Fowlerville, Livingston county, and in Williamston, Ingham county, for two consecutive weeks, before being acted upon by said board of review, and any person or persons, feeling aggrieved by Hearing of said ratio or per cent of assessments, shall have the right to be persona agheard in person, or by attorney, before said board of review. Said Report to be report as affirmed, altered, or amended, by said board of review, assessment rolls. shall be divided into six assessment rolls, one for each of the towns of Iosco, Handy, and Conway, in the county of Livingston, and Locke, Leroy, and Williamstown, in the county of Ingham, or into so many rolls as there shall be townships affected by said improvement, the rolls containing respectively the lands to be taxed for the excess cost of the improvement in the respective townships. grieved. divided into contract. SEC. 7. Upon the completion of the said assessment rolls, the said Letting of commissioner shall advertise for letting the contract for the construction of said work for at least four consecutive weeks, in a newspaper published in Fowlerville, Livingston county, and Williamston, Ingham county, and he shall let such work to the person who will do the same, according to the specifications, for the least sum of money in addition to the lands hereby appropriated. Said commissioner may adjourn said letting from time to time, to such other time or place, to be by him at the time of such adjournment publicly announced, as to him shall seem proper, but not in all more than sixty days from the time first advertised, and he may reserve the right to reject any or all bids. The contractor shall Bond of give a bond to the said commissioner, with at least two sureties, to be approved by said commissioner, in such amount, and upon such terms as said commissioner shall require to secure the faithful performance of the contract. contractor. to compute costs of improvement, SEC. 8. Upon the letting of such contract the commissioner shall Commissioner make a computation of the costs of such improvement, in excess of the land hereby appropriated, which shall include all the expenses of locating and establishing the same, including the commissioner's compensation at the rate of three dollars per day for the time. actually employed, cost of survey, fees and expenses incident to determining damages, the amount of damages awarded, if any, and all other expenses not otherwise provided for. He shall add the Apportionment whole in a gross sum, which amount, when so ascertained, he shall of amount, etc., apportion to and assess upon the individuals, property, townships, property, etc. to individuals, Collection of tax. Disposition of money collected, etc. Proviso. Board of review. Meetings of. Notice of meeting. Chairman of board. Auditing ac count of commis- Return of unpaid taxes. Completion of improvement. Report of commissioner. or villages benefited thereby, according to the rate per cent fixed, as herein before provided in the assessment rolls, which amount so assessed shall be a lien upon the persons, property, townships, or villages so assessed until paid. The several amounts so assessed shall be added to or included in the next annual assessment rolls of the respective townships, and collected as other taxes are collected by the township treasurers respectively. The money when so collected by the township treasurers, or in case of unpaid taxes returned by the county treasurers, shall be held subject to the order of said special commissioner for the payment of the contract, damages, and other expenses pertaining to said improvement: Provided, That in case gross sums shall be assessed upon any township or village, by reason of the benefit to the public health, and as a means of improving any public highway, such gross sum shall be assessed upon the tax-roll of such village or township, by the proper officer, on the basis of the assessed value of the property for the then current year. SEC. 9. The supervisors of the townships of Handy, Conway, and Iosco, in Livingston county, and of the townships of Locke, Leroy, and Williamstown, Ingham county, shall constitute and be a board of review, as required by this act, and shall meet at such times and places as designated by said commissioner, and said commissioner shall give each of said board of review at least five days' notice of such meetings as may be required by this act. A personal notice, or a notice in writing of such meetings, left at their respective residences, shall be deemed a sufficient and legal notice of any such meeting. The special commissioner shall be chairman of said board of review, and shall be entitled to vote only in case of a tie. The account of the commissioner for services on the said improvement, shall be presented to and audited by the said board of review. The several supervisors composing said board of review, shall be entitled to and receive the sum of two dollars per day for their services on said board, the same to be audited by their respective township boards, and paid as other township expenses. SEC. 10. Unpaid taxes on real estate shall be returned by the township treasurers, respectively, to their respective county treasurers, and lands delinquent therefor shall be sold in the same manner, and in all respects, as are lands delinquent for State and county taxes. SEC. 11. This improvement shall be completed within five years from the passage of this act, and upon the completion of the work provided for in this act, the said special commissioner, or his successor, shall file with the commissioner of the State land office, a complete account of his doings hereunder, together with the survey, plans, and specifications used, a statement of the entire cost of the improvement, in excess of the lands granted, and the amount of such excess paid by each township, or village, all the releases obtained of right of way, and the statement showing what proceedings were had to obtain right of way, if any, when had, and what amounts, if any, were awarded as damages, a statement showing what amounts, if any, have come into his hands, as such commis sioner, from whom received, and to whom paid, together with the contractor's receipt in full for all moneys due him as such contractor; all of which statement shall be made under oath, and be verified by competent officers, and accompanied by statements of the supervisors of each of the townships named, showing the entire. sum of money, for such improvement, raised in their townships respectively. Whereupon, if it shall appear to the commissioner of Surrender the land office that the said special commissioner has faithfully discharged his duties under this act, and honestly disbursed the moneys which came into his hands, he shall cancel and surrender the bond mentioned in section three of this act. But if not, he shall bring suit upon said bond for all deficiencies or failures. of bond. SEC. 12. Act number eighty-eight of the session laws of eighteen Act repealed. hundred and eighty-one, entitled "An act to authorize and empower the board of control of State swamp lands to make an appropriation of State swamp lands to drain and reclaim certain swamp and overflowed lands in the townships of Conway, Handy, and Iosco, in the county of Livingston," be and the same is hereby repealed, Survey, etc., saving all acts done in relation to the aforesaid survey, map, and legalized. profile, which survey, map, and profile is hereby legalized and made valid for the purposes of this act, as herein before provided. SEC. 13. This act passed the senate and house by a two-thirds vote of all the members elect, of each house respectively, and ordered to take immediate effect. Approved May 31, 1883. [No. 131.] AN ACT to amend section one of act one hundred and sixty-seven, of the session laws of eighteen hundred and seventy-seven, entitled "An act to regulate the height of bridges over railroad tracks." amended, SECTION 1. The People of the State of Michigan enact, That Section section one of act one hundred and sixty-seven, of the session laws of eighteen hundred and seventy-seven, entitled "An act to regulate the height of bridges over railroad tracks," be amended so as to read as follows: railroads. SECTION 1. No bridge hereafter constructed over any railroad in Height of this State, except in cities and villages having power under their bridges over charters to regulate the height of such bridges, shall be at a height less than eighteen feet above the track of such railroad, except by the written consent of the commissioner of railroads; and any corporation managing, controlling, or operating any railroad in this State, the track of which is crossed by any bridge constructed less than eighteen feet above such track, except such bridge have the written approval of the commissioner of railroads, or be within the corporate limits of any city or village empowered by its charter to regulate the height of bridges, shall, within ninety days after this act shall take effect, raise or reconstruct such bridge |