TAXER RIVER IMPROVEMENT ACT.

Otago Witness, Issue 3522, 13 September 1921, Page 25

TAXER RIVER IMPROVEMENT ACT.

Proposed amendments to the Taieri River Improvement Act, 1920, were submitted and approved at Tuesday’s meeting of the Taieri River Trust. Briefly, these would give power to the trust to levy and collect the same special rates as were made as security for loans raised by the Otokia, West Taieri, Berwick, and Maungatufi Drainage Boards, and the Henley River Board, until the loans concerned were fully paid of. At any poli taken on a proposal to raise a special loan a majority of the valid votes recorded shall suffice to carry the proposal. For the purpose of repairing any extraordinary damage done by flood, tempest, or accident to any works, the trust may from time to time raise a special loan or loans without obtaining the consent of the ratepayers to tile doing of such work or to the raising of such loan or loans; and may make and levy on all the rateable land in the district, or special area, as the case may he (which special area shall be defined and determined by the trust in the manner provided by subsection 4 of section 8 of the principal Act) a special rate or rates for the purpose of providing the interest, and other charges on any loan or loans or raised. Such special rate or rates shall be uniform and be made and levied on the acreage on the basis of the classification or classifications made in the manner provided by paragraph (b) of subsection 1, of subsection 2. or subsection 4 of section s’ of the principal Act or of section 6 of this Act, and in force at the time of making such rate or rates. Pending the raising of any special loan or loans proposed to be raised under the provisions of the last preceding section the trust may. for the purpose of paying the cost of repairing any extraordinary damage borrow from the bank by way of overdraft any sum or sums of money, not exceeding the whole amount of the loan or loans authorised to bo raised: but all moneys so borrowed shall be a first charge upon and shall be repaid out of the loan or loans when raised. Subsection 1 of section 8 of the principal Act to be amended by adding the following paragraph at the end thereof: —(d) An embankment rate to provide for the maintenance and repair of the existing river embankments and lake embankments, but before making any such rates the _ trust shall causo all the land in the district to be classified into two classes —namely—(a) Lands receiving a benefit from the embankments, so to bo maintained and repaired. and such lands shall be rateable; and (b) all other lands, such lands shall not be rateable. Section 8 of the principal Act to be amended by inserting in paragraph (B) of subsection T the words “Waipori River” after the words “Taieri River” ; by inserting in paragraph (C) of subsection 1. the words “or any extension or improvement of such work or works” after the word “board”; by inserting in subsection 3 the word “embankment” after the word “maintenance” ; by inserting in subsection 8 the word “embankment” after the word “maintenance” ; by omitting in subsection 9 the word “the” and substituting the word “all,” and by omitting the words “administration and maintenance” and substituting the word “administrative”; by omitting in sub-section 10 tbo word “board” wherever it occurs, and substituting the word “trust.”