Short title Interpretation Preparation for sale of lands for taxes in arrear 1915 CHAPTER 21 An Act to provide for the Collection of Arrears of Taxes. H [Assented to June 24, 1915.] IS Majesty by and with the advice and consent of the 1. This Act may be cited as "The Arrears of Taxes Act." 2. In this Act, unless the context otherwise requires, the expression: 1. "Municipality" means a locality the inhabitants of which are incorporated as a city, town, village or rural municipality; and "municipal" has a corresponding meaning; 2. "Clerk" means clerk of a municipality, and includes secretary treasurer; 3. "Treasurer" means treasurer of a municipality, and includes secretary treasurer; 4. "Arrears of taxes" includes penalties for default in payment; 5. "Purchaser" or "tax purchaser" means a person who purchases at a tax sale, and includes a municipality and the assignee of such person, or municipality; 6. "Registrar" means the registrar of titles for the land registration district in which the municipality lies; 7. "Lot" means a lot or part of a lot or block or part of a block; 8. "Parcel" means an acre or part of an acre or a number of acres. LIST OF LANDS TO BE SOLD. 3. Whenever the whole or any portion of any tax on any land has been due and unpaid for more than six months after the thirty-first day of December of the year in which the rate was struck, such land shall be liable to be sold for arrears of taxes unpaid thereon up to the time of the making up of the list for sale, and the costs of advertising; and the treasurer or collector, as the case may be, shall submit annually to the mayor, overseer or reeve a list, in duplicate, of all lands within the municipality so liable to be sold, with the amount of arrears against each lot, or parcel set opposite to same. (2) The mayor, overseer or reeve shall authenticate each of such lists by affixing thereto the seal of the corporation. and his signature, and one of such lists shall be deposited with the clerk, and the other shall be given to the treasurer, with a warrant thereto annexed under the hand of the mayor, overseer or reeve and the seal of the municipality, commanding him to levy upon the lands for the arrears due thereon. with costs, which warrant may be in the following form: City (Town, Village or Rural Municipality) of To the (Secretary) Treasurer of You are hereby commanded to levy upon the lands mentioned in the list hereunto annexed for the arrears of taxes due thereon with costs, as therein set forth, and for so doing this shall be your sufficient warrant and authority. Dated at the day of 19 Mayor (or Overseer or Reeve). 4. The treasurer shall forthwith after the receipt by him Lands in of the list, as provided by the last preceding section, proceed advertised to advertise and sell all the lands included in such list. list to be and sold to inquire 5. It shall not be the duty of the treasurer to make Not necessary inquiry before effecting a sale of lands for arrears of taxes, whether to ascertain whether or not there is any distress upon the there is land, nor shall he be bound to inquire into or form any opinion of the value of the land. distress be adver 6. The treasurer shall prepare a copy of the said list, and Lands to shall include therein, in a separate column, a statement of tised the proportion of costs chargeable on each lot or parcel for advertising, and shall cause such list to be published in one issue of The Saskatchewan Gazette. advertising (2) Such advertisement shall be published in The Saskat- Cost of chewan Gazette not more than sixty days and not less than thirty days next preceding the day of sale. The charge for advertising shall not exceed twenty-five cents per parcel. (3) The list shall not include any lands the title of which is vested in the Crown. place of mentioned 7. The advertisement shall contain a notification that, Time and unless the arrears of taxes and costs be sooner paid, the sale to be treasurer will proceed to sell the lands for taxes at the time in adverand place named in the advertisement. tisement and form 8. Every such notice shall specify the place, day and hour Contents at which such sale will commence, and each lot or parcel of of notice land, which shall be designated therein by a reasonable Lists to be hung up Advertisement of sale Annual sale to be held description or by stating the number of the registered instrument from which a description can be adduced or obtained, and the using of abbreviations for such descriptions shall be sufficient if the lot or parcel of land can be distinguished thereby. 9. Four copies of the list with such notice attached shall be hung up in the treasurer's office and shall be accessible to the public at all times during business hours up to and including the day of sale; and six copies shall be posted up in conspicuous places in the municipality, to remain there up to and including such day. (2) Any person tearing, defacing or destroying any of the said lists, or removing any of those posted up elsewhere than in the treasurer's office, shall be guilty of an offence and liable on summary conviction to a penalty of not less than $5 nor more than $25 with costs, and in default of payment forthwith after conviction to imprisonment for a period not exceeding one month. 10. The treasurer shall also insert in at least one newspaper published in the municipality; or, where there is no such newspaper, in the newspaper published nearest thereto, once a week for three successive weeks, immediately preceding the sale, an advertisement stating that a sale of land for arrears of taxes will be held, naming the day, hour and place of sale, and that a list of the lands to be sold with the amounts due thereon, may be seen, at the office of the treasurer, during business hours on any day up to and including the day of sale. 11. The sale shall take place annually, not later than the first day of November, at such convenient public place in the Place of sale municipality as may be selected by the treasurer, or at such place outside the municipality as the council shall by resolution or bylaw appoint. Penalty for treasurer for noncompliance Omission not to prevent sale 12. Any clerk or treasurer who neglects or refuses to comply with the provisions of sections 3, 4, 6, 7, 8, 9 or 10, shall, on summary conviction before two justices of the peace, be liable, for each offence, to a fine or penalty of not more than $200 nor less than $100. (2) The provisions of this section shall apply to a collector of taxes other than the treasurer, who neglects or refuses to comply with section 3 of this Act. 13. Omission to include in the list any land liable for sale shall not be held to prevent the sale of the said land on any future occasion for all arrears of taxes that may be due thereon. SALE OF LANDS FOR TAXES. sale 14. At the place and time appointed for the sale, if the Mode of arrears of taxes and costs have not been previously paid or collected, the treasurer shall offer the land for sale by public auction, and in doing so he shall make and declare the amount stated in the list or advertisement as the arrears of taxes due, together with the costs, and shall then sell the same to the highest bidder or to such person as shall be willing to take it, there being no higher bidder, but subject to redemption as hereinafter provided for; and the amount of arrears of taxes stated in the advertisement shall in all cases be held to be the correct amount due. for want 15. The treasurer may adjourn the sale, from time to Adjournment time, but no such adjournment shall be for a period of bidders exceeding fifteen days. assessed 16. When two or more parcels of land have been assessed Parcels together, the same may be advertised and sold together; but together the owner of any such parcel may redeem the same within the time hereinafter provided, upon payment of a proportionate part of the taxes and charges for which the said parcels were sold, together with a proportionate part of the interest or penalty required to be paid on the redemption of same. not to be 17. The treasurer may offer the said land for sale in legal Lots, etc., subdivisions or in different parcels so that no such parcel divided shall be less than a legal subdivision according to the Dominion government survey. may be offered different 18. In any case in which land liable to be sold for taxes How lands has been subdivided so that different persons are the owners for sale when of different portions of a single lot, legal subdivision or persons own quarter section, the treasurer may offer the said lands for portions of one sale in accordance with the divisions of the same which represent the actual ownership, so that the land of each. separate owner shall be separately offered for sale. lot in separate 19. When a single lot or parcel of land is owned by Lots owned different parties and assessed in separate parts or portions, parcels each such separate part or portion may be sold for the taxes. in arrear thereon respectively. less than 20. If the land when put up for sale, will not sell for the Sales for full amount of arrears of taxes and costs, the treasurer may amount due then and there sell for any sum he can realise, and shall, in such case, accept such sum as full payment of such arrears of taxes and costs; but the owner of any land so sold shall not be at liberty to redeem the same except upon payment Municipality may sell certificates If lands sold in error treasurer on resolution of council may redeem Effect of redemption to the treasurer of the full amount of arrears of taxes and costs, together with the additional penalties for redemption; and, in the event of redemption as aforesaid, the purchaser shall be entitled to receive from the treasurer the amount of his purchase money and taxes paid by him, with the additional penalties thereon, as provided in section 36. 21. The municipality in which lands put up for sale are situated may, at such sale, bid up to the amount due thereon for arrears of taxes and costs, and may through the mayor or reeve or any member of the council duly authorised by the council so to bid, become the purchaser thereof or of any number of lots advertised for sale. (2) If such bids be accepted and the municipality declared the purchaser, it shall not be necessary for any payment of the purchase money to be made, and in such case a certificate of sale shall be issued to the municipality by the treasurer, and, so far as may be, the provisions of this Act with reference to redemption shall apply to such sales. (3) The municipality may at any time sell and transfer such certificates. 22. In all cases when it appears to the council that, through an error, mistake or misdescription, or any other cause, lands have been improperly sold for taxes and penalties, the treasurer shall, on resolution of the council, redeem the same. (2) Such redemption by the treasurer shall have the effect by municipality of restoring the said lands, including their liability to taxes, to the position in which the same stood before being placed on the list for sale. Lands to be assessed owner until 23. Until the time for redemption as herein provided against former shall have elapsed, the land so purchased by the municipality shall continue liable to assessment and taxation in the name of the former owner as if the same had not been so purchased. time for redemption expires, but then vest in purchaser Municipality 24. The municipality may also, after lands so purchased by it have become vested in it, lease the same or sell and convey them by instrument under the seal of the municipality signed by the clerk and the head of the council, or by such other persons as may be authorised by the council so to sign; and the proceeds shall form part of its municipal funds, and the municipality shall not be compelled to account to the former owner of the land for any sum thus realised. |