Petition; viewers; examination and apportionment of assessments
Sec. 5. (a) The board of directors shall petition the board of
commissioners of the county where the fence is to be located.
(b) The petition must do the following:
(1) Be signed by the owners of the major part of the improved
land.
(2) Give a full description of the contemplated work, specifying
particularly:
(A) the points of beginning and ending of the work;
(B) the course and distances of the work;
(C) the manner and character of the gates to be placed on all
public highways crossed;
(D) the nature and character of the improvement;
(E) a detailed statement of the projected cost, as accurately
as the projected cost can conveniently be stated; and
(F) the description of the area to be enclosed.
(3) Request the appointment of viewers to view and apportion
among the owners of real estate in the area the cost of the
improvement, and all expenses that:
(A) are incurred procuring the improvement; and
(B) are considered to be necessary in maintaining the
improvement for one (1) year after the completion of the
fence.
(c) The apportionment of the cost and expenses incurred under
this chapter must be made according to the number of acres of land
owned by each landowner that is improved and used for the purposes
of cultivation, as described in section 6 of this chapter.
(d) The board of commissioners, on proof that the signers of the
petition own the major part of the improved land in the area, shall
hear and consider the petition. If the board of commissioners decides
the improvement is a public utility and is in the best interests of the
owners of the lands in the area, the board of commissioners shall
appoint three (3) viewers.
(e) The viewers, who may not be members of the association or
interested in the proposed work, shall make the apportionments
described in subsection (b)(3) among the landowners.
(f) The viewers shall be furnished:
(1) a copy of the plan and profile of the proposed work; and
(2) a certified copy of the order of the board of commissioners
for their appointment.
(g) The viewers shall meet at a time and place in the area to make
the apportionment as fixed by the board of commissioners.
(h) Before the apportionment begins, the owners of improved land
in the area are entitled to notice of the time when and place where the
viewers will begin the examination of lands and the apportionment
of assessments by written or printed notices posted at the door of the
courthouse of the county and five (5) public places in the area.
As added by P.L.2-2002, SEC.11.
Last modified: May 24, 2006