PART III. DIVISION I. DIVISION II. Commencement and application of this Division. Powers and duties of Cf. 629, 1895, s. 3. 629 of 1895. The Drainage Board to have control and management of all drains. Cf. Act 629, 1895, s. 4. The South-Eastern Drainage Act Amendment Act.-1908. total annual revenue, and the total amounts disbursed under each head of expenditure, and the total annual outlay, made up to the thirtieth day of November in each year, to be laid before Parliament on or before the first day of March next ensuing if Parliament is then in Session; otherwise as soon thereafter as Parliament is in Session. Such annual account shall, on or before the first day of March, also be printed and published for distribution or advertised for public information as such Board directs. DIVISION II.--FUNCTIONS OF BOARD. 31. The provisions of this Division of this Part shall come into force on a date to be fixed by the Governor by Proclamation published in the Gazette, and shall apply to the South-East only. 32. (1) Upon the date referred to in the next preceding section all the property, rights, powers, functions, obligations, duties, and immunities of the District Councils, and any of them, under or by virtue of the principal Act or "The South-Eastern Drainage Act Amendment Act, 1895," and all other property, rights, powers, functions, obligations, duties, and immunities of the District Councils, and any of them, whether by Statute or otherwise, in connection with or for the purposes of main and district drains and drainage works, or any of them, shall cease to be vested in or exercised, performed, or enjoyed by the District Councils or any of them; and upon the said date and thereafter all such property, rights, powers, functions, obligations, duties, and immunities of the District Councils, and any of them, and all powers, functions, obligations, duties, and immunities which before the passing of the last-mentioned Act might be exercised, performed, or enjoyed within the South-East by a Drainage Board or Boards shall be vested in and be exercised, performed, and enjoyed throughout the SouthEast by the Drainage Board. (2) Upon the said date and thereafter (a) All the provisions of the principal Act and of "The SouthEastern Drainage Act Amendment Act, 1895," so far as they apply to the District Councils and their districts shall apply to the Drainage Board and the South-East to the same extent as if the Drainage Board and the South-East had been referred to in the lastmentioned Act in place of District Councils or a District Council and their districts or district; and (b) The South-East shall be a Drainage District within the meaning of the principal Act. 33. The Drainage Board shall have the care, control, and management of all main and district drains and drainage works within the South-East, whether heretofore or hereafter constructed, and shall thoroughly cleanse, repair, and maintain the same in a due The South-Eastern Drainage Act Amendment Act.-1908. due state of efficiency to the satisfaction of the Commissioner; and if the Drainage Board fails to cleanse or repair any drain or drainage work under its control within a reasonable time after being required by the Commissioner to do so, the Commissioner may cause the same to be cleansed or repaired, as the case may require; and the cost thereof shall be paid by the Drainage Board to the Commissioner, or may be deducted from any money or subsidy payable by the Government to the Drainage Board or from any money or subsidy payable by the Government to any of the District Councils within whose district such drain or drainage work is situated, or partly from one and partly from the other of such moneys and subsidies. PART III. DIVISION IT. Board. 34. The Commissioner may out of moneys voted by Parliament Loans to Drainage for the purpose make advances to the Drainage Board for the construction of district drains and drainage works, and such moneys Cf. ibid., s. 6. shall be repaid to the Commissioner in twenty yearly equal instalments, together with interest at a rate of not exceeding Five Pounds per centum per annum, to be fixed by the Commissioner. 35. State advances may be made pursuant to "The State Advances Act, 1895," and any Act amending the same or any Act substituted therefor in lieu of the advances mentioned in the next preceding section, and the Drainage Board shall be a local authority within the meaning of such Acts. 36. The Drainage Board may, with the consent of the Com- Power to connect missioner, connect district drains with main drains. district drains with main drains. Cf. ibid., s. 8. 37. All district drains and drainage works undertaken by the Drains to be conDrainage Board shall be constructed under the supervision and subject to the direction and control of the Engineer-in-Chief. 38. With regard to any works to be constructed under this Part and for the purposes of the Acts mentioned in section 10 of "The South-Eastern Drainage Act Amendment Act, 1895" [namely, "The Lands Clauses Consolidation Act" (being No. 6 of 1817), the Act to amend the same (being No. 26 of 1855-6), and the "Lands Clauses Consolidation Act Amendment Act, 1881" (being No. 202 of 1881), except sections 110, 114, 115, 116, 117, and 118 of the Act No. 6 of 1847], the expressions "the promoters of the undertaking" and "the special Act" shall, whenever used in the said Acts mentioned in the said section 10, or any of them, mean the Commissioner or the Drainage Board (as the case may be) and this Act respectively: Provided that, for the purposes of section 13 of the said Act No. 202 of 1881, there shall be deemed to be no such special Act. structed under superintendence of Engineer-in-Chief. Cf. ibid., s. 9. Lands Clauses Consolidation Acts incorporated. Cf. ibid., s. 10. to be considered in 39. In estimating the compensation or purchase-money to be Enhancement in value paid by the Commissioner or the Drainage Board for any land fixing compensation. acquired for the construction of any drain or drainage works or any Cf. ibid., s. 11. damage PART III. DIVISION II. Assessment of lands Cf. ibid., s. 12. The South-Eastern Drainage Act Amendment Act.-1908. damage suffered by reason of such construction, the enhancement in value of any lands belonging to the person to whom the compensation, purchase-money, or damage is to be paid, and the value of any other benefit or advantage which such person has obtained or may or will obtain by reason of the construction of such drain or drainage works, shall be deducted from the amount of such compensation, purchase-money, or damage. 40. The Drainage Board may, whenever they consider it necesfor drainage purposes. sary, cause an assessment to be made of all or any ratable property (within the meaning of the District Councils Act) within the SouthEast, and of the increase in value of such ratable property due to the construction of the drains and drainage works in the South-East, the assessment of such increased value to be made according to a percentage of five per centum on the increased value of the fee simple of such ratable property. Drainage Assessment Cf. ibid., s. 13. Drainage rates may Provisions of District Cf. ibid., s. 15. 41. Every such assessment shall be written in a book, to be called the “Drainage Assessment Book," and such book shall be in the form in the Eleventh Schedule to "The District Councils Act, 1887," except that an additional column under the heading "Assessed value of increase in fee-simple value due to drains and drainage works" may be added to Part 1. thereof, and all columns in Part II. showing rates declared may be omitted, and an additional column added under the heading "Drainage rate declared on the day of 19 ," with sub-headings "Amount payable" and "When paid." 42. The Drainage Board may declare and levy an annual rate on all ratable property entered in the Drainage Assessment Book, to be called the "drainage rate," and such rate shall be a differential rate, that is to say, the amount thereof shall vary with the increase in value of the ratable property due to the construction of drains and drainage works, and shall be calculated at a percentage on the assessment of such increased value. 43. All provisions of the District Councils Act relating to assessCouncils Act to apply. ments and rates and the recovery of rates (except as to limitations of the amounts of rates), and the forms therein provided for, varied as the circumstances may require, shall, so far as applicable thereto, apply to the assessments and rates herein provided for and the recovery of such rates. How drainage rate expended. Cf. ibid., s. 16. District Councils may provide money for drainage purposes. Cf. ibid., s. 17. 44. The moneys derived from the drainage rate shall be expended only in cleansing, repairing, and maintaining drains and drainage works, in repayment of advances made by the Commissioner and the interest thereon, and in expenses connected with the care, control, and management of drains and drainage works. 45. Notwithstanding anything herein contained, any of the District Councils may pay to the Drainage Board any portion of its ordinary The South-Eastern Drainage Act Amendment Act.-1908. ordinary revenue to be expended by such Board within the district of such District Council for any of the purposes specified in the next preceding section and for the construction of district drains and drainage works within such district. 46. Nothing in this Part or elsewhere in this Act contained shall be held to derogate from or in any way diminish the effect of the provisions of section 32 hereof. 47. (1) Any person constructing any drain or drainage works to connect with any main or district drain, or any drainage works under the care, control, and management of the Drainage Board, without the licence in writing of such Board first obtained, shall be guilty of an offence against this Act, and shall for every such offence be liable to a penalty of not more than Twenty Pounds. (2) Any such licence may authorise the person so licensed to Cf, ibid, s. 48. construct a drain or drainage works through any land; and any question of compensation between such person and the owners or occupiers of any land for any damage arising from or in connection with the construction of such drain or works shall be determined by the Drainage Board, whose decision shall be final and not subject to any appeal or to be questioned in any way. 48. (1) Any person obtaining such licence as mentioned in the next preceding section shall construct the drains or works only in manner prescribed by such licence, and to the satisfaction of the Drainage Board, and within the time (if any) limited by such licence, and shall keep the drain or works if and when constructed in good and substantial repair and properly cleansed. (2) If such person fails to construct such drain or works, or to construct the same as mentioned in subsection (1) of this section, or to keep the same in repair or cleansed as aforesaid, the Drainage Board may construct the same or repair or cleanse the same (as the case may require), and in that case such person shall be liable for all costs and expenses incurred by such Board in so doing, and the same may be recovered by the Board in any Court of competent jurisdiction, or by distress and sale of any goods and chattels on any property of such person. To be constructed to satisfaction of Board and kept in repair. Cf., ibid s. 50. PART IV. CONSTRUCTION OF DRAIN ON PETITION OF LANDHOLDERS. PART IV. 49. A petition may be presented to the Commissioner by land- Petition for drain. holders requesting that a drain or drains (hereafter in this Part Cf. Act 737, 1900, called the drain ") indicated in the petition be constructed. s. 3 (part). 50. Such petition shall be in the form in the Second Schedule Form of petition. hereto, and each signature thereto shall be witnessed by some person Cf. ibid., s. 4 who PART IV. Engineer-in-Chief's preliminary report. The South-Eastern Drainage Act Amendment Act.-1908. who shall make a declaration before a Justice of the Peace in the form at the end of said Second Schedule; and any person wilfully making any false statement in such declaration shall be guilty of a misdemeanor, and shall be liable, on conviction, to imprisonment with hard labor for any term not exceeding two years. 51. The Commissioner shall refer the petition to the Engineer in-Chief, who shall as soon as practicable furnish the Commissioner Cf. ibid., s. 3 (part). with a preliminary report certifying— Commissioner's approval. Cf. ibid, s. 5. Commissioner to decide whether petitioners are majority of landholders and hold of benefited lands. (a) Whether or not he recommends the construction of the drain; 52. (1) After receiving the Engineer-in-Chief's report the Commissioner shall, if he approves of the construction of the drain, by notice in the Gazette (hereafter in this Act called "the Commissioner's declaration ") declare— (a) That he approves of the same; and (b) The particulars referred to in paragraphs (6) and (c) of the next preceding section hereof. (2) The Commissioner's declaration shall be conclusive as to what lands will be benefited by the drain. (3) The Commissioner's declaration may be in the form in the Third Schedule hereto. 53. (1) Unless within one month of the publication of the Commissioner's declaration in the Gazette what the Commissioner in his discretion considers to be a substantial number of the petitioners, three-fourths in value by notice in writing received by the Commissioner, withdraw the petition, the Commissioner shall decide whether or not the petitioners are a majority of the landholders of the lands which will be benefited by the drain, and whether or not the value of the lands of which they are the landholders is at least three-fourths of the value of all the lands which will be benefited by the drain. Cf. ibid., s. 3 (part). (2) In this section "value" means 1. As to lands assessed for the purposes of land tax, the unimproved value of such lands as so assessed: 11. As to lands not so assessed, the unimproved value of such lands as assessed by the Assessment Board. (3) For the purpose of deciding as in this section mentioned the Commissioner shall, upon receiving the Engineer-in-Chief's report, direct the Assessment Board to assess the unimproved value of the lands referred to in paragraph II. of subsection (2) of this section, and the Assessment Board shall as soon as practicable thereafter make their assessment. (4) Upon |