68-1103. County roads, bridges and culverts; construction and repair; costs, financing.
68-1103
68-1103. County roads, bridges and culverts;construction and repair; costs, financing.(a) Whenever the board of county commissioners of any county shall determinethat it is necessary to build or repair any road, bridge or culvert, theboard may appropriate an amount equalto its share and shall make all contracts for labor,material and all other expense necessary for the construction or repairof such work in the manner provided by law or may make and let acontract for the construction or the repair thereof, butthe amount appropriated shall not exceed the county engineer's estimatedcost to the county for the work.
(b) In any county wherethere has been constructed prior to the passage of this act orhereafter is constructed any road, bridge or culvertswhichshall have beendestroyed or rendered impassable, or hereafter is destroyed orrendered impassable by flood, high water, fire or other casualty, orwhere there is any road, bridge or culvertdetermined by the board of countycommissioners and the county engineer as unsafe or inadequate tomeetthe demands of present day traffic or where the board of county commissionershas made a determination under subsection (a), then such board of countycommissionersimmediately thereafter may construct, repair or reconstructsuchroad, bridge or culvert;may adopt a resolution finding and determining a necessity for suchconstruction, repair or reconstruction and may proceed toconstruct, repair orreconstructthe same at a cost to be determined by the county engineer's estimateand shall appropriate a sufficient amount of moneytherefor. If there is not a sufficient amount of money therefor in theproperfunds of thecounty, such board is hereby authorized and empowered to issue generalobligation bonds of the county to pay:
(1) The costs for the construction, repair or reconstruction of suchbridgeor culvert under the provisions of this subsection. Any bonds issued pursuantto this subsection to pay the costs of such bridge or culvert work shall not besubject to any limitation on the bonded indebtedness of the county; or
(2) the costs for the construction, repair or reconstruction of any suchroad under the provisions of this subsection; except that no such bonds shallbeissued until the board of county commissioners shall have published aresolutionauthorizing the issuance of such bonds once each week for three consecutiveweeks in the official county newspaper. If within 60 days following the lastpublication of such resolution, a petition in opposition to the issuance ofsuch bonds, signed by not less than 5% of the qualified electors of the county,is filed with the county election officer, no bonds shall be issued unless amajority of the electors voting on the question of issuing such bonds approvethe same. Such election shall be called and held in the manner provided forthe calling and holding of elections under the general bond law.
(c) The board ofcounty commissioners may levy and collecttaxes for the purpose herein named or for the purpose of retiring anybonds that have been issued.
History: L. 1917, ch. 80, § 3;L. 1919, ch. 98, § 2; L. 1920,ch. 8, § 1; L. 1923, ch. 4, § 1 (Special Session);R.S. 1923,68-1103; L. 1939, ch. 243, § 1;L. 1941, ch. 312, § 1;L. 1943, ch. 240, § 1;L. 1947, ch. 344, § 1; L. 1951, ch. 389, § 1; L. 1971, ch.223, § 1; L. 1972, ch.248, § 5;L. 1978, ch. 273, § 1;L. 1986, ch. 255, § 1;L. 1988, ch. 272, § 1;L. 1998, ch. 111, § 1; July 1.