the secretary of the school district and the secretary of the municipality not later than ten days prior to the mailing of the tax notices.

amended

33. Section 293, as amended by section 19 of chapter Section 293 24 of the statutes of 1924-25, is further amended by adding thereto the following subsection:

"(3) The provisions of subsection (2) shall be retrospective in operation and shall be deemed to have been. at all times the law of this province; provided that nothing herein contained shall affect the rights of parties to any action or proceeding now pending."

34. This Act shall come into force on the first day Coming into of May, 1927.

force

Short title

1927

CHAPTER 27

An Act respecting Local Improvement Districts.

H'

[Assented to March 1, 1927.]

IS Majesty, by and with the advice and consent of the Legislative Assembly of Saskatchewan, enacts as follows:

SHORT TITLE.

1. This Act may be cited as The Local Improvement Districts Act, 1927.

Interpretation

"Department"

"District"

"Gazetted"

"Land," "lands," "real property"

"Minister"

"Occupant"

"Owner"

"Person"

"Prescribed"

INTERPRETATION.

2. In this Act, unless the context otherwise requires, the expression:

1. "Department" means the Department of Municipal Affairs;

2. "District" means a district constituted under the provisions of this Act;

3. "Gazetted" means published in The Saskatchewan Gazette;

4. "Land," "lands" or "real property" includes lands, tenements and hereditaments and any estate or interest therein;

5. "Minister" means the Minister of Municipal Affairs; 6. "Occupant" includes the inhabitant occupier of any land, or, if there be no inhabitant occupier, the person entitled to the possession thereof, a leaseholder or holder under agreement of sale and any person having or enjoying in any way or for any purpose whatsoever the use of land; 7. "Owner" includes any person who has any right, title or estate whatsoever or any interest other than that of a mere occupant in any land;

8. "Person" includes corporations, joint stock companies and partnerships;

9. "Prescribed" means prescribed under or by this Act or by any regulation or resolution made under its authority;

notice"

10. "Public notice" or "published" means a notice "Public published in some newspaper issued in or near the area "published" within which notice is to be given or by written or printed placards containing the notice affixed to public places within the area; in cases where notice is required to be given of any document or its contents, it shall be sufficient if the notice sets forth the object, purport or general effect of the document;

11. "Resident" means any owner or occupant of land "Resident" over eighteen years of age residing in an area proposed to be organised or established as a district;

person"

12. "Taxable person" means any person who may be "Taxable taxed in respect of ownership or occupancy of land. R.S.S. 1920, c. 90, s. 2.

ORGANISATION OF DISTRICTS.

district

3. The minister may by order notice of which shall be Erection of published in The Saskatchewan Gazette organise and constitute as a local improvement district any portion of Saskatchewan not already contained in a rural municipality, village, town or city; and may designate such district by a distinctive name and number. R.S.S. 1920, c. 90, s. 5.

tion or

boundaries

4. Should it at any time be deemed expedient to dis- Disorganisaorganise or alter the boundaries of any district or to with- alteration of draw an area therefrom or to amalgamate any two or more districts which have been organised, such disorganisation, alteration, withdrawal or amalgamation may be effected by order of the minister. R.S.S. 1920, c. 90, s. 17.

lines

5. (1) For the purposes of this Act, whenever any Boundary district is wholly or in part described as comprising certain townships, parts of townships or sections in accordance with the system of Dominion lands survey, the boundary lines of such district shall be the posted side of the road. allowance between adjoining sections or townships except in the case of correction lines where the south side of the road allowance shall be the boundary.

(2) Any road allowance between an Indian reserve and a district shall be deemed to be in the district notwithstanding anything herein to the contrary. R.S.S. 1920, c. 90, s. 4.

Assessment and Taxation.

ASSESSMENT.

lands made in

6. The assessment of lands in a district now or here- Assessment of after organised and constituted under the provisions of department this Act shall be made as hereinafter provided in the

Rates of assessment

Assessment roll

Assessment

if owner or occupants address

unknown

Notice of assessment

Department of Municipal Affairs; and all notices of such assessment shall be issued from that department. R.S.S. 1920, c. 90, s. 7.

7.-(1) In each district the rate of assessment shall be three and one-eighth cents per acre:

Provided that in any district if the minister is satisfied that the said rate of assessment would raise a sum greater than is necessary to effect the improvements required in such district the rate of assessment may be reduced to such less amount per acre as the minister may determine; Provided further that any person whose assessment would be less than fifty cents shall be assessed fifty cents.

(2) Notwithstanding anything in subsection (1), the holder of lands under a grazing lease or license from the Dominion Government shall not be taxed in respect of his occupancy, or of his beneficial or equitable interest therein, at a higher rate than three-quarters of a cent per R.S.S. 1920, c. 90, s. 8.

acre.

8. As soon as possible after the beginning of each year or after the organisation of a district an assessment roll shall be prepared for each district upon which shall be entered as accurately as may be the following information:

(a) each lot or parcel of land owned or occupied within the district and the number of acres it contains;

(b) the name and post office address of the person assessed as owner or occupant of each lot or parcel;

(c) the amount of assessment;

(d) the amount of previous assessments which have. not been paid. R.S.S. 1920, c. 90, s. 9.

9. If after reasonable inquiry the name or address of the owner or occupant of any lot or parcel of land in a district cannot be ascertained, the same shall be deemed to be duly assessed if entered on the roll as "owner unknown" or "address unknown," as the case may be. R.S.S. 1920, c. 90, s. 10.

10. Upon completion of the assessment roll it shall be signed by the minister; and a notice shall then be sent by ordinary mail to each person whose name appears upon the roll stating the land in respect of which such person is assessed and the amount of such assessment and requesting payment of same; and the entry upon the assessment roll of the date of mailing such notice, together with the

initials of the clerk mailing the same shall be prima facie evidence that the notice was duly mailed on that day. R.S.S. 1920, c. 90, s. 11.

of errors

11. If any property in a district in respect of which Correction any person should have been assessed has been omitted in roll from the assessment roll or been entered on the roll in the name of the wrong person or with an incorrect acreage, the necessary addition or alteration to correct the error may be made at any time in the year in which such assessment is made, such addition or alteration being initialed by the clerk making the same and a notice of assessment in accordance with such addition or alteration shall forthwith be sent to the owner or occupant of the property affected. R.S.S. 1920, c. 90, s. 12.

TAXATION.

12. In any district the property exempt from taxation Exemptions under the provisions of this Act shall be:

1. All lands held by His Majesty for the public use of the province;

2. All land held by or in trust for the use of any tribe of Indians;

3. The land to the extent of three acres held by or for the use of any school district erected under The School Act;

4. The land to the extent of three acres held by or for the use of any church and occupied by a building used for church purposes;

5. The land in use as a public cemetery not exceeding twenty-five acres;

6. The buildings and grounds of agricultural societies organised under The Agricultural Societies Act. R.S.S. 1920, c. 90, s. 24.

13. In case the Dominion government has agreed to Compromise reduce its claim for arrears of rental due by a lessee of grazing lands or his assignee, the minister may reduce his claim for arrears of the taxes due under this Act, in respect of the occupancy of the same lands, by such a sum that the percentage of arrears of taxes payable under the compromise shall be not less than the percentage of the arrears of rental payable to the Dominion GovernNew.

ment.

lien and

cash

14. The taxes accruing upon or in respect of any land Taxes a in a district shall be paid in cash and shall be a special payable in lien upon such land having priority over any claim, lien, privilege or incumbrance thereon. R.S.S. 1920, c. 90, s. 13.