Section 257.080

Title XVI CONSERVATION, RESOURCES AND DEVELOPMENT

Chapter 257

Effective - 28 Aug 1959   

  257.080.  Election district commission, creation, how composed — functions — expenses paid, how. — 1.  Upon entering the order organizing the district, the court shall establish an election district commission composed of the county clerks of the several counties or parts thereof included within the river basin district, or where in any such county there is a board of election commissioners a member of the board shall be appointed.  In the appointment the court shall designate a chairman and a secretary of the commission from its membership.

  2.  The election district commission, within thirty days after its appointment, shall apportion the river basin district into six election districts on the basis of the river basin area described in the court's order and the surveyor's map thereof, which election districts shall be as nearly equal in population as possible, with the boundaries of each of the six election districts to follow existing township, precinct or other election district lines except in the case of the outer boundaries of the river basin district where the boundaries may necessarily cut across the existing lines.

  3.  When the election district commission has so divided a river basin district it shall report the action to the court.  The court shall review the report and approve it or ask for corrections or changes.  When the report is finally approved by the court, the court shall thereupon designate each election district by number, from one to six.

  4.  The further duties of the election commission shall be:

  (1)  To advise the court, or the river basin conservancy district board when it is organized, of matters pertaining to elections, and election areas and boundaries.

  (2)  To supervise and conduct the first election of trustees, by and under order of the court.

  (3)  To redistrict the election districts of the river basin conservancy district, when so requested by the river basin conservancy district board, in a manner similar to the initial establishment of election districts provided for herein.

  5.  Prior to the establishment of the river basin conservancy district board and receipt of sufficient tax moneys by it, travel and necessary expenses of the election district commission shall be paid by the county commissions of the counties within or partially within the river basin district on a pro rata basis relating to the proportion of each county's lands to the whole area of the river basin district; but such expenses shall be included in the costs of the court proceedings if the voters do not approve establishment of the district, and shall be repaid to the respective counties accordingly.  In event of establishment of the district such expenses shall be repaid by the district board to the respective counties out of the first funds received from annual levies.  Thereafter the expenses of the commission shall be paid directly to it by the district board.  Authority for incurring expenses by the commission shall originate in an order of the court or the board, as the situation requires.

  6.  Changes in the personnel and offices of the commission, for any reason, shall be effected by the court, and the district board after it is organized, in a like manner as appointments made in the initial establishment of the commission.  After the district is established, the board secretary shall serve as secretary of the commission.

  7.  The duty performed by the court with respect to the election commission, election districts and areas, as provided herein, shall be for purposes of properly establishing a river basin conservancy district and its board, and shall not thereafter be a further duty of the court, but shall vest in the district board as an administrative responsibility.

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(L. 1959 S.B. 199 § 8)