To amend sections 309.09, 1901.31, 1905.05, 3709.085, 6119.02, and 6119.04 and to enact section 6119.071 of the Revised Code to require the political subdivision or subdivisions proposing the establishment of a regional water and sewer district to hold a public meeting before filing the petition for the establishment, to provide for the removal of appointed members from the board of trustees of a district, to require additional study prior to the establishment of a district if the court in which the petition is heard orders that study, to allow a board of health to charge a fee for inspections of all semipublic disposal systems conducted under contract with the Environmental Protection Agency, to require the county prosecuting attorney to act as legal advisor to any township board or commission, to allow the compensation of a mayor's court magistrate to be fixed by contract, to specify that the clerk of the Medina Municipal Court shall be appointed by the judges of that court irrespective of whether the territorial population of that court is less than, equals, or exceeds 100,000, and to declare an emergency.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF OHIO:

Sec. 309.09. (A) The prosecuting attorney shall be the legal adviser of the board of county commissioners, board of elections, and all other county officers and boards, including all tax-supported public libraries, and any of them may require written opinions or instructions from the prosecuting attorney in matters connected with their official duties. The prosecuting attorney shall prosecute and defend all suits and actions which any such officer or board directs or to which it is a party, and no county officer may employ any other counsel or attorney at the expense of the county, except as provided in section 305.14 of the Revised Code.

(B) Such THE prosecuting attorney shall be the legal adviser for all township officers, BOARDS, AND COMMISSIONS, unless the township has adopted the limited self-government form of township government pursuant to Chapter 504. of the Revised Code and has not entered into a contract to have the prosecuting attorney serve as the township law director, in which case the township law director, whether serving full-time or part-time, shall be the legal adviser for all township officers, BOARDS, AND COMMISSIONS. When the board of township trustees finds it advisable or necessary to have additional legal counsel it may employ an attorney other than the township law director or the prosecuting attorney of the county, either for a particular matter or on an annual basis, to represent the township and its officers, BOARDS, AND COMMISSIONS in their official capacities and to advise them on legal matters. No such counsel or attorney may be employed, except on the order of the board of township trustees, duly entered upon its journal, in which the compensation to be paid for such legal services shall be fixed. Such compensation shall be paid from the township fund.

Nothing in this division confers any of the powers or duties of a prosecuting attorney under section 309.08 of the Revised Code upon a township law director.

(C) Whenever the board of county commissioners employs an attorney other than the prosecuting attorney of the county, without the authorization of the court of common pleas as provided in section 305.14 of the Revised Code, either for a particular matter or on an annual basis, to represent the board of county commissioners in its official capacity and to advise it on legal matters, the board of county commissioners shall enter upon its journal an order of the board in which the compensation to be paid for such legal services shall be fixed. The compensation shall be paid from the county general fund. The total compensation paid, in any year, by the board of county commissioners for legal services under this division shall not exceed the total annual compensation of the prosecuting attorney for that county.

(D) The prosecuting attorney and the board of county commissioners jointly may contract with a board of park commissioners under section 1545.07 of the Revised Code for the prosecuting attorney to provide legal services to the park district the board of park commissioners operates. All moneys received pursuant to such a contract shall be deposited into the prosecuting attorney's legal services fund, which shall be established in the county treasury of each county in which such a contract exists. Moneys in that fund may be appropriated only to the prosecuting attorney for the purpose of providing legal services under a contract entered into under this division.

Sec. 1901.31. The clerk and deputy clerks of a municipal court shall be selected, be compensated, give bond, and have powers and duties as follows:

(A) There shall be a clerk of the court who is appointed or elected as follows:

(1)(a) Except in the Akron, MEDINA, Clermont county, Hamilton county, Portage county, and Wayne county municipal courts, if the population of the territory equals or exceeds one hundred thousand at the regular municipal election immediately preceding the expiration of the term of the present clerk, the clerk shall be nominated and elected by the qualified electors of the territory in the manner that is provided for the nomination and election of judges in section 1901.07 of the Revised Code.

The clerk so elected shall hold office for a term of six years, which term shall commence on the first day of January following the clerk's election and continue until the clerk's successor is elected and qualified.

(b) In the Hamilton county municipal court, the clerk of courts of Hamilton county shall be the clerk of the municipal court and may appoint an assistant clerk who shall receive the compensation, payable out of the treasury of Hamilton county in semimonthly installments, that the board of county commissioners prescribes. The clerk of courts of Hamilton county, acting as the clerk of the Hamilton county municipal court and assuming the duties of that office, shall receive compensation at one-fourth the rate that is prescribed for the clerks of courts of common pleas as determined in accordance with the population of the county and the rates set forth in sections 325.08 and 325.18 of the Revised Code. This compensation shall be paid from the county treasury in semimonthly installments and is in addition to the annual compensation that is received for the performance of the duties of the clerk of courts of Hamilton county, as provided in sections 325.08 and 325.18 of the Revised Code.

(c) In the Portage county and Wayne county municipal courts, the clerks of courts of Portage county and Wayne county shall be the clerks, respectively, of the Portage county and Wayne county municipal courts and may appoint a chief deputy clerk for each branch that is established pursuant to section 1901.311 of the Revised Code, and assistant clerks as the judges of the municipal court determine are necessary, all of whom shall receive the compensation that the legislative authority prescribes. The clerks of courts of Portage county and Wayne county, acting as the clerks of the Portage county and Wayne county municipal courts and assuming the duties of these offices, shall receive compensation payable from the county treasury in semimonthly installments at one-fourth the rate that is prescribed for the clerks of courts of common pleas as determined in accordance with the population of the county and the rates set forth in sections 325.08 and 325.18 of the Revised Code.

(d) Except as otherwise provided in division (A)(1)(d) of this section, in the Akron municipal court, candidates for election to the office of clerk of the court shall be nominated by primary election. The primary election shall be held on the day specified in the charter of the city of Akron for the nomination of municipal officers. Notwithstanding section 3513.257 of the Revised Code, the nominating petitions of independent candidates shall be signed by at least two hundred fifty qualified electors of the territory of the court.

The candidates shall file a declaration of candidacy and petition, or a nominating petition, whichever is applicable, not later than four p.m. of the seventy-fifth day before the day of the primary election, in the form prescribed by section 3513.07 or 3513.261 of the Revised Code. The declaration of candidacy and petition, or the nominating petition, shall conform to the applicable requirements of section 3513.05 or 3513.257 of the Revised Code.

If no valid declaration of candidacy and petition is filed by any person for nomination as a candidate of a particular political party for election to the office of clerk of the Akron municipal court, a primary election shall not be held for the purpose of nominating a candidate of that party for election to that office. If only one person files a valid declaration of candidacy and petition for nomination as a candidate of a particular political party for election to that office, a primary election shall not be held for the purpose of nominating a candidate of that party for election to that office, and the candidate shall be issued a certificate of nomination in the manner set forth in section 3513.02 of the Revised Code.

Declarations of candidacy and petitions, nominating petitions, and certificates of nomination for the office of clerk of the Akron municipal court shall contain a designation of the term for which the candidate seeks election. At the following regular municipal election, all candidates for the office shall be submitted to the qualified electors of the territory of the court in the manner that is provided in section 1901.07 of the Revised Code for the election of the judges of the court. The clerk so elected shall hold office for a term of six years, which term shall commence on the first day of January following the clerk's election, and continue until the clerk's successor is elected and qualified.

(e) In the Clermont county municipal court, the clerk of courts of Clermont county shall be the clerk of the municipal court. The clerk of courts of Clermont county, acting as the clerk of the Clermont county municipal court and assuming the duties of that office, shall receive compensation at one-fourth the rate that is prescribed for the clerks of courts of common pleas as determined in accordance with the population of the county and the rates set forth in sections 325.08 and 325.18 of the Revised Code. This compensation shall be paid from the county treasury in semimonthly installments and is in addition to the annual compensation that is received for the performance of the duties of the clerk of courts of Clermont county, as provided in sections 325.08 and 325.18 of the Revised Code.

(f) IRRESPECTIVE OF THE POPULATION OF THE TERRITORY OF THE MEDINA MUNICIPAL COURT, THE CLERK OF THAT COURT SHALL BE APPOINTED PURSUANT TO DIVISION (A)(2)(a) OF THIS SECTION BY THE JUDGES OF THAT COURT, SHALL HOLD OFFICE UNTIL THE CLERK'S SUCCESSOR IS SIMILARLY APPOINTED AND QUALIFIED, AND SHALL RECEIVE PURSUANT TO DIVISION (C) OF THIS SECTION THE ANNUAL COMPENSATION THAT THE LEGISLATIVE AUTHORITY PRESCRIBES AND THAT IS PAYABLE IN SEMIMONTHLY INSTALLMENTS FROM THE SAME SOURCES AND IN THE SAME MANNER AS PROVIDED IN SECTION 1901.11 of the Revised Code.

(2)(a) Except in FOR the Alliance, Auglaize county, Lorain, Massillon, and Youngstown municipal courts, if IN A MUNICIPAL COURT FOR WHICH the population of the territory is less than one hundred thousand AND IN THE MEDINA MUNICIPAL COURT, the clerk shall be appointed by the court, and the clerk shall hold office until the clerk's successor is appointed and qualified.

(b) In the Alliance, Lorain, Massillon, and Youngstown municipal courts, the clerk shall be elected for a term of office as described in division (A)(1)(a) of this section.

(c) In the Auglaize county municipal court, the clerk of courts of Auglaize county shall be the clerk of the municipal court and may appoint a chief deputy clerk for each branch that is established pursuant to section 1901.311 of the Revised Code, and assistant clerks as the judge of the court determines are necessary, all of whom shall receive the compensation that the legislative authority prescribes. The clerk of courts of Auglaize county, acting as the clerk of the Auglaize county municipal court and assuming the duties of that office, shall receive compensation payable from the county treasury in semimonthly installments at one-fourth the rate that is prescribed for the clerks of courts of common pleas as determined in accordance with the population of the county and the rates set forth in sections 325.08 and 325.18 of the Revised Code.

(3) During the temporary absence of the clerk due to illness, vacation, or other proper cause, the court may appoint a temporary clerk, who shall be paid the same compensation and, have the same authority, and perform the same duties, as the clerk.

(B) Except in the Clermont county, Hamilton county, MEDINA, Portage county, and Wayne county municipal courts, if a vacancy occurs in the office of the clerk of the Alliance, Lorain, Massillon, or Youngstown municipal court or occurs in the office of the clerk of a municipal court for which the population of the territory equals or exceeds one hundred thousand because the clerk ceases to hold the office before the end of the clerk's term or because a clerk-elect fails to take office, the vacancy shall be filled, until a successor is elected and qualified, by a person chosen by the residents of the territory of the court who are members of the county central committee of the political party by which the last occupant of that office or the clerk-elect was nominated. Not less than five nor more than fifteen days after a vacancy occurs, those members of that county central committee shall meet to make an appointment to fill the vacancy. At least four days before the date of the meeting, the chairperson or a secretary of the county central committee shall notify each such member of that county central committee by first class mail of the date, time, and place of the meeting and its purpose. A majority of all such members of that county central committee constitutes a quorum, and a majority of the quorum is required to make the appointment. If the office so vacated was occupied or was to be occupied by a person not nominated at a primary election, or if the appointment was not made by the committee members in accordance with this division, the court shall make an appointment to fill the vacancy. A successor shall be elected to fill the office for the unexpired term at the first municipal election that is held more than one hundred twenty days after the vacancy occurred.

(C) In a municipal court, other than the Auglaize county municipal court, for which the population of the territory is less than one hundred thousand AND IN THE MEDINA MUNICIPAL COURT, the clerk of a municipal court shall receive the annual compensation that the legislative authority prescribes. In a municipal court, other than the Clermont county, Hamilton county, MEDINA, Portage county, and Wayne county municipal courts, for which the population of the territory is one hundred thousand or more, the clerk of a municipal court shall receive annual compensation in a sum equal to eighty-five per cent of the salary of a judge of the court. The compensation is payable in semimonthly installments from the same sources and in the same manner as provided in section 1901.11 of the Revised Code.

(D) Before entering upon the duties of the clerk's office, the clerk of a municipal court shall give bond of not less than six thousand dollars to be determined by the judges of the court, conditioned upon the faithful performance of the clerk's duties as clerk.

(E) The clerk of a municipal court may do all of the following: administer oaths, take affidavits, and issue executions upon any judgment rendered in the court, including a judgment for unpaid costs; issue, sign, and attach the seal of the court to all writs, process, subpoenas, and papers issuing out of the court; and approve all bonds, sureties, recognizances, and undertakings fixed by any judge of the court or by law. The clerk may refuse to accept for filing any pleading or paper submitted for filing by a person who has been found to be a vexatious litigator under section 2323.52 of the Revised Code and who has failed to obtain leave to proceed under that section. The clerk shall do all of the following: file and safely keep all journals, records, books, and papers belonging or appertaining to the court; record the proceedings of the court; perform all other duties that the judges of the court may prescribe; and keep a book showing all receipts and disbursements, which book shall be open for public inspection at all times.

The clerk shall prepare and maintain a general index, a docket, and other records that the court, by rule, requires, all of which shall be the public records of the court. In the docket, the clerk shall enter, at the time of the commencement of an action, the names of the parties in full, the names of the counsel, and the nature of the proceedings. Under proper dates, the clerk shall note the filing of the complaint, issuing of summons or other process, returns, and any subsequent pleadings. The clerk also shall enter all reports, verdicts, orders, judgments, and proceedings of the court, clearly specifying the relief granted or orders made in each action. The court may order an extended record of any of the above to be made and entered, under the proper action heading, upon the docket at the request of any party to the case, the expense of which record may be taxed as costs in the case or may be required to be prepaid by the party demanding the record, upon order of the court.

(F) The clerk of a municipal court shall receive, collect, and issue receipts for all costs, fees, fines, bail, and other moneys payable to the office or to any officer of the court. The clerk shall each month disburse to the proper persons or officers, and take receipts for, all costs, fees, fines, bail, and other moneys that the clerk collects. Subject to sections 3375.50 and 4511.193 of the Revised Code and to any other section of the Revised Code that requires a specific manner of disbursement of any moneys received by a municipal court and except for the Hamilton county, Lawrence county, and Ottawa county municipal courts, the clerk shall pay all fines received for violation of municipal ordinances into the treasury of the municipal corporation the ordinance of which was violated and shall pay all fines received for violation of township resolutions adopted pursuant to Chapter 504. of the Revised Code into the treasury of the township the resolution of which was violated. Subject to sections 1901.024 and 4511.193 of the Revised Code, in the Hamilton county, Lawrence county, and Ottawa county municipal courts, the clerk shall pay fifty per cent of the fines received for violation of municipal ordinances and fifty per cent of the fines received for violation of township resolutions adopted pursuant to Chapter 504. of the Revised Code into the treasury of the county. Subject to sections 3375.50, 3375.53, 4511.99, and 5503.04 of the Revised Code and to any other section of the Revised Code that requires a specific manner of disbursement of any moneys received by a municipal court, the clerk shall pay all fines collected for the violation of state laws into the county treasury. Except in a county-operated municipal court, the clerk shall pay all costs and fees the disbursement of which is not otherwise provided for in the Revised Code into the city treasury. The clerk of a county-operated municipal court shall pay the costs and fees the disbursement of which is not otherwise provided for in the Revised Code into the county treasury. Moneys deposited as security for costs shall be retained pending the litigation. The clerk shall keep a separate account of all receipts and disbursements in civil and criminal cases, which shall be a permanent public record of the office. On the expiration of the term of the clerk, the clerk shall deliver the records to the clerk's successor. The clerk shall have other powers and duties as are prescribed by rule or order of the court.

(G) All moneys paid into a municipal court shall be noted on the record of the case in which they are paid and shall be deposited in a state or national bank, or a domestic savings and loan association, as defined in section 1151.01 of the Revised Code, that is selected by the clerk. Any interest received upon the deposits shall be paid into the city treasury, except that, in a county-operated municipal court, the interest shall be paid into the treasury of the county in which the court is located.

On the first Monday in January of each year, the clerk shall make a list of the titles of all cases in the court that were finally determined more than one year past in which there remains unclaimed in the possession of the clerk any funds, or any part of a deposit for security of costs not consumed by the costs in the case. The clerk shall give notice of the moneys to the parties who are entitled to the moneys or to their attorneys of record. All the moneys remaining unclaimed on the first day of April of each year shall be paid by the clerk to the city treasurer, except that, in a county-operated municipal court, the moneys shall be paid to the treasurer of the county in which the court is located. Any THE TREASURER SHALL PAY ANY part of the moneys shall be paid by the treasurer at any time to the person who has the right to the moneys, upon proper certification of the clerk.

(H) Deputy clerks may be appointed by the clerk and shall receive the compensation, payable in semimonthly installments out of the city treasury, that the clerk may prescribe, except that the compensation of any deputy clerk of a county-operated municipal court shall be paid out of the treasury of the county in which the court is located. Each deputy clerk shall take an oath of office before entering upon the duties of the deputy clerk's office and, when so qualified, may perform the duties appertaining to the office of the clerk. The clerk may require any of the deputy clerks to give bond of not less than three thousand dollars, conditioned for the faithful performance of the deputy clerk's duties.

(I) For the purposes of this section, whenever the population of the territory of a municipal court falls below one hundred thousand but not below ninety thousand, and the population of the territory prior to the most recent regular federal census exceeded one hundred thousand, the legislative authority of the municipal corporation may declare, by resolution, that the territory shall be considered to have a population of at least one hundred thousand.

(J) The clerk or a deputy clerk shall be in attendance at all sessions of the municipal court, although not necessarily in the courtroom, and may administer oaths to witnesses and jurors and receive verdicts.

Sec. 1905.05. (A) A mayor of a municipal corporation that has a mayor's court may appoint a person as mayor's court magistrate to hear and determine prosecutions and criminal causes in the mayor's court that are within the jurisdiction of the mayor's court, as set forth in section 1905.01 of the Revised Code. No person shall be appointed as a mayor's court magistrate unless the person has been admitted to the practice of law in this state and, for a total of at least three years preceding the person's appointment or the commencement of the person's service as magistrate, has been engaged in the practice of law in this state or served as a judge of a court of record in any jurisdiction in the United States, or both.

A person appointed as a mayor's court magistrate under this division is entitled to hear and determine prosecutions and criminal causes in the mayor's court that are within the jurisdiction of the mayor's court, as set forth in section 1905.01 of the Revised Code. If a mayor is prohibited from hearing or determining a prosecution or cause that charges a person with a violation of section 4511.19 of the Revised Code or with a violation of a municipal ordinance relating to operating a vehicle while under the influence of alcohol, a drug of abuse, or alcohol and a drug of abuse or relating to operating a vehicle with a prohibited concentration of alcohol in the blood, breath, or urine due to the operation of division (C) of section 1905.03 of the Revised Code, or is prohibited from hearing or determining any other prosecution or cause due to the operation of division (C) of section 1905.031 of the Revised Code, the prohibition against the mayor hearing or determining the prosecution or cause does not affect and shall not be construed as affecting the jurisdiction or authority of a person appointed as a mayor's court magistrate under this division to hear and determine the prosecution or cause in accordance with this section. In hearing and determining such prosecutions and causes, the magistrate has the same powers, duties, and authority as does a mayor who conducts a mayor's court to hear and determine prosecutions and causes in general, including, but not limited to, the power and authority to decide the prosecution or cause, enter judgment, and impose sentence; the powers, duties, and authority granted to mayors of mayor's courts by this chapter, in relation to the hearing and determination of prosecutions and causes in mayor's courts; and the powers, duties, and authority granted to mayors of mayor's courts by any other provision of the Revised Code, in relation to the hearing and determination of prosecutions and causes in mayor's courts. A judgment entered and a sentence imposed by a mayor's court magistrate do not have to be reviewed or approved by the mayor who appointed the magistrate, and have the same force and effect as if they had been entered or imposed by the mayor.

A person appointed as a mayor's court magistrate under this division is not entitled to hear or determine any prosecution or criminal cause other than prosecutions and causes that are within the jurisdiction of the mayor's court, as set forth in section 1905.01 of the Revised Code.

The A MUNICIPAL CORPORATION THAT A MAYOR'S COURT MAGISTRATE SERVES SHALL PAY THE compensation for the services of a mayor's court THE magistrate, WHICH shall be EITHER a fixed annual salary set by the legislative authority of the municipal corporation that the magistrate serves and shall be paid by the municipal corporation OR A FIXED ANNUAL AMOUNT OR FEES FOR SERVICES RENDERED SET UNDER A CONTRACT THE MAGISTRATE AND THE MUNICIPAL CORPORATION ENTER INTO.

(B) The appointment of a person as a mayor's court magistrate under division (A) of this section does not preclude the mayor that appointed the magistrate, subject to the limitation contained in section 1905.03 and the limitation contained in section 1905.031 of the Revised Code, from also hearing and determining prosecutions and criminal causes in the mayor's court that are within the jurisdiction of the mayor's court, as set forth in section 1905.01 of the Revised Code.

Sec. 3709.085. (A) The board of health of a city or general health district may enter into a contract with any political subdivision or other governmental agency to obtain or provide all or part of any services, including, but not limited to, enforcement services, for the purposes of Chapter 3704. of the Revised Code, the rules adopted and orders made pursuant thereto, or any other ordinances or rules for the prevention, control, and abatement of air pollution.

(B)(1) As used in division (B)(2) of this section:

(a) "Semipublic disposal system" means a disposal system which THAT treats the sanitary sewage discharged from publicly or privately owned buildings or places of assemblage, entertainment, recreation, education, correction, hospitalization, housing, or employment, but does not include a disposal system which THAT treats sewage in amounts of more than twenty-five thousand gallons per day; a disposal system for the treatment of sewage that is exempt from the requirements of section 6111.04 of the Revised Code pursuant to division (F) of that section; or a disposal system for the treatment of industrial waste.

(b) Terms defined in section 6111.01 of the Revised Code have the same meaning MEANINGS as in that section.

(2) The board of health of a city or general health district may enter into a contract with the environmental protection agency to conduct on behalf of the agency inspection or enforcement services, for the purposes of Chapter 6111. and section 1541.21 of the Revised Code and rules adopted thereunder, for the disposal or treatment of sewage from single-family, two-family, or three-family dwellings located in special sanitary districts designated by section 1541.21 of the Revised Code, for the disposal or treatment of sewage from semipublic disposal systems, or for both. The board of health of a city or general health district may charge a fee established pursuant to section 3709.09 of the Revised Code to be paid by the holder OWNER OR OPERATOR of a permit under Chapter 6111. of the Revised Code SEMIPUBLIC DISPOSAL SYSTEM or the owner or resident of any such dwelling located in a special sanitary district for inspections conducted by the board pursuant to a contract entered into under this division (B)(2) OF THIS SECTION, except that the board shall not charge a fee for those inspections conducted at any manufactured home park, recreational vehicle park, recreation camp, or combined park-camp that is licensed under section 3733.03 of the Revised Code.

Sec. 6119.02. (A) Proceedings for the organization of a regional water and sewer district shall be initiated only by a petition filed in the office of the clerk of the court of common pleas of one of the counties all or part of which lies within the proposed district. Such THE petition shall be signed by one or more municipal corporations or, one or more counties, or by one or more townships, or by any combination of them, after having been authorized by the legislative authority of the POLITICAL subdivision. The legislative authority of any municipal corporation, the board of county commissioners of any county, and the board of trustees of any township may act in behalf of any part of their respective POLITICAL subdivisions. Such THE petition shall state SPECIFY ALL OF THE FOLLOWING:

(A)(1) The proposed name of the district;

(B)(2) The place in which its principal office is to be located;

(C)(3) The necessity for the proposed district and that it will be conducive to the public health, safety, convenience, or welfare;

(D)(4) A general description of the purpose of the proposed district;

(E)(5) A general description of the territory to be included in the district, which need not be given by metes and bounds or by legal subdivisions, but it is sufficient if an accurate description is given of the territory to be organized as a district; such. THE territory need not be contiguous, provided THAT it is so situated that the public health, safety, convenience, or welfare will be promoted by the organization as a single district of the territory described;.

(F)(6) The manner of selection, the number, the term, and the compensation of the members of the governing body of the district, which body shall be called a board of trustees. Such THE petition may set forth procedures for subsequent changes in the composition of and other provisions relating to such THE board of trustees.

(G)(7) The plan for financing the cost of the operations of the district until it is in receipt of revenue from its operations or proceeds from the sale of bonds;

(H)(8) A prayer for the organization of the district by the name proposed, either before or after a preliminary hearing as provided in section 6119.04 of the Revised Code.

(B) PRIOR TO FILING A PETITION UNDER DIVISION (A) OF THIS SECTION, A MUNICIPAL CORPORATION, COUNTY, OR TOWNSHIP SHALL HOLD A PUBLIC MEETING FOR THE PURPOSE OF RECEIVING COMMENTS ON THE PROPOSED ESTABLISHMENT OF A REGIONAL WATER AND SEWER DISTRICT. IF A COMBINATION OF MUNICIPAL CORPORATIONS, COUNTIES, OR TOWNSHIPS SIGNED THE PETITION, THE SIGNERS JOINTLY SHALL HOLD THE PUBLIC MEETING. AT THE MEETING, A REPRESENTATIVE OF THE SIGNER OR SIGNERS OF THE PETITION SHALL PRESENT A PRELIMINARY STUDY OF THE REASONS FOR THE PROPOSED ESTABLISHMENT OF THE DISTRICT.

THE SIGNER OR SIGNERS OF THE PETITION SHALL PROVIDE WRITTEN NOTICE OF THE PUBLIC MEETING TO EACH ELECTOR RESIDING IN THE TERRITORY OF THE PROPOSED DISTRICT. FAILURE TO NOTIFY AN ELECTOR DOES NOT INVALIDATE ANY PROCEEDING BEFORE A COURT UNDER THIS CHAPTER.

(C) Upon the filing of such THE petition, the judge of the court of common pleas of the county wherein IN WHICH the petition is filed or, in the case of a county having more than one such judge, a judge of such THAT court assigned by its presiding judge shall determine whether such IF THE petition complies with the requirements of this section as to form and content. No petition shall be declared void by the judge on account of alleged defects, and the. THE court in subsequent proceedings may at any time MAY permit the petition to be amended in form and substance to conform to the facts by correcting any errors in the description of the territory or in any other particular.

Sec. 6119.04. (A) The court of common pleas constituted as provided in section 6119.03 of the Revised Code, at its first meeting, shall fix the time and place of a hearing on the petition for the establishment of the proposed regional water and sewer district and such. THE hearing shall be either preliminary or final as the petition may request. Such hearing AND shall be held not later than sixty days thereafter, and the. THE clerk of the court shall give notice thereof OF THE HEARING by publication once each week for four consecutive weeks in a newspaper having a general circulation in each of the counties, in whole or in part, within the district. The clerk shall send A notice OF THE HEARING by certified mail to the director of environmental protection. Any

ANY person or any political subdivision residing or lying within an area affected by the organization of the district, on or before the date set for the cause to be heard, may file an objection to the granting of the requests made in the prayer of the petition.

(A)(B) Upon a preliminary hearing, if it appears that the proposed district is probably IS necessary and that it will probably WILL be conducive to the public health, safety, convenience, or welfare, the court, after disposing of all objections as justice and equity require shall AND by its findings, entered of record, SHALL issue a preliminary order declaring the district to be organized and an independent political subdivision of the state with a corporate name designated in the order for the purpose of ALL OF THE FOLLOWING:

(1) The election or appointment of the board of trustees in the manner provided in the petition;

(2) The election, appointment, or employment of such officers, employees, accounting experts, engineers, attorneys, financial consultants, architects, other consultants, and independent contractors or other persons as THAT may be necessary to prepare a plan for the operation of the district;

(3) The collection of the funds in the manner provided in the petition to be used and disbursed by the district;

(4) The preparation of a plan for the operation of the district, and the.

THE district shall possess such powers as THAT may be necessary to carry out said THOSE purposes.

The preliminary order shall direct the district to file a plan for the operation of the district within six months from the date of the preliminary order or within such THE further time or times as THAT the court may from time to time MAY order.

Upon the filing by the district of a plan for the operation of the district, the court shall fix the time and place for a final hearing on the petition for the establishment of the proposed district and the plan for the operation of the district as filed in the proceeding. The hearing shall be held not later than sixty days thereafter, and the clerk of the court of common pleas shall again SHALL give notice thereof OF THE HEARING as required in DIVISION (A) OF this section. Any

ANY person or any political subdivision residing or lying within the area affected by the organization of the district or by the plan for the operation of the district, on or before the date set for the cause to be heard, may file any objections to the final organization of the district or the plan for the operation of the district.

(B) The (C) IF, PRIOR TO GRANTING A FINAL ORDER, THE COURT DETERMINES THAT ADDITIONAL STUDY IS NEEDED OF THE FEASIBILITY OF ESTABLISHING THE DISTRICT, THE COURT SHALL ORDER THE SIGNERS OF THE PETITION TO CONDUCT AN ADDITIONAL FEASIBILITY STUDY. IF THE COURT HAS ORDERED SUCH A STUDY, THE COURT SHALL NOT GRANT A FINAL ORDER PRIOR TO RECEIVING THE RESULTS OF THE STUDY. NOTHING IN DIVISION (C) OF THIS SECTION PRECLUDES THE AWARDING OF A CONTRACT FOR A PROJECT OR IMPROVEMENT UNDERTAKEN UNDER THIS CHAPTER TO AN ENTITY THAT CONDUCTS A FEASIBILITY STUDY PURSUANT TO DIVISION (C) OF THIS SECTION.

THE court may, upon good cause shown at any time before the granting of a final order, MAY DO ANY OR ALL OF THE FOLLOWING:

(1) Grant a right to any municipal corporation or county acting in behalf of a sewer district within such THE county to become a party to such THE proceeding if such THE intervening party requests to have some part or all of its territory included within the district;

(2) Grant in part or in toto an intervening petition of a municipal corporation or a county acting in behalf of a sewer district within such THE county, which is not wholly included within territory described in the petition, to have some part or all of its territory included within the district;

(3) Grant a request filed by any party to the petition or intervening party to modify any request set forth in the petition, including ANY OR ALL OF THE FOLLOWING:

(a) A reduction in the territory to be included within the district;

(b) Addition to or deletion of a purpose or purposes of the proposed district as set forth in the petition so long as the purposes that remain are those included within section 6119.01 of the Revised Code;

(c) The manner of selection, the number, the term, and the compensation of the members of the board of trustees; provided that after.

AFTER the filing of any intervening petition or request to modify, the court has fixed SHALL FIX a time and place for a hearing thereof, such hearing to WHICH SHALL be held not less than sixty days after the filing thereof and the. THE clerk of the court of common pleas has given SHALL GIVE notice OF THE HEARING as required in DIVISION (A) OF this section.

(C)(D) Upon final hearing, whether or not a preliminary hearing is requested in the petition, if it appears that the proposed district is necessary, that it and the plan for the operation of the district is ARE conducive to the public health, safety, convenience, and welfare, and that the plan for the operation of the district is economical, feasible, fair, and reasonable, the court, after disposing of all objections as justice and equity require, shall AND by its findings, entered of record, SHALL declare the district finally and completely organized and to be, or to be empowered to continue as, a political subdivision. Thereupon the district shall have power to sue and be sued; to incur debts, liabilities, and obligations; to exercise the right of eminent domain and of taxation and assessment as provided in Chapter 6119. of the Revised Code THIS CHAPTER; to issue bonds; and to perform all acts authorized in such sections THIS CHAPTER and to execute and carry out the plan for the operation of the district and to amend, modify, change, or alter the plan for its operation as the board of trustees may from time to time MAY determine necessary.

(D)(E) If the court finds that the organization of the district is not necessary or will not be conducive to the public health, safety, convenience, or welfare, or that the plan for the operation of the district is not economical, feasible, fair, or reasonable, or if the district fails to file a plan for the operation of the district within the time prescribed by the court, it shall dismiss the proceedings and adjudge the costs against the petitioners, and if. IF a preliminary order has been made organizing the district, the court shall declare the district dissolved and enter its order for the distribution of any and all assets that may be owned by the district after the payment of its liabilities.

(F) Any municipal corporation, board of county commissioners, or board of township trustees may advance to the district such sums of money as THAT the legislative authority of the municipal corporation, the board of county commissioners, or the board of township trustees determines will not be in excess of the benefits that can be anticipated to be derived by such THE municipal corporation, county, or township from the establishment of the district at such times as THAT ARE requested by the district and authorized by such THE legislative authority or such board and pursuant to an agreement between the district and such THE municipal corporation, county, or township setting forth whether and when such THE sums shall be repaid. Such THE sums when paid to the district at any time after the preliminary order of the court shall be used by the district for its purposes in the preparation of a plan for the operation of the district and for other purposes of the district. The district shall keep proper records showing the amount so advanced and disbursed. If the court orders the district dissolved as permitted in this section, the interest any municipal corporation, board of county commissioners, or board of township trustees has in the assets of the district shall be limited to those assets remaining after the payment of all other liabilities of the district.

Sec. 6119.071. A MEMBER OF THE BOARD OF TRUSTEES OF A REGIONAL WATER AND SEWER DISTRICT WHO HAS BEEN APPOINTED TO THE BOARD MAY BE REMOVED BY THE APPOINTING AUTHORITY FOR MISFEASANCE, NONFEASANCE, OR MALFEASANCE IN OFFICE. PRIOR TO REMOVING A MEMBER, THE APPOINTING AUTHORITY SHALL NOTIFY THE MEMBER OF THE FACTS SUPPORTING THE PROPOSED REMOVAL AND SHALL PROVIDE THE MEMBER AN OPPORTUNITY TO APPEAR BEFORE THE APPOINTING AUTHORITY OR AT A PUBLIC HEARING HELD BY THE APPOINTING AUTHORITY AND SHOW CAUSE WHY THE MEMBER SHOULD NOT BE REMOVED FROM OFFICE.

A MEMBER OF A BOARD OF TRUSTEES WHO HAS BEEN REMOVED PURSUANT TO THIS SECTION MAY APPEAL THE REMOVAL NOT LATER THAN THIRTY DAYS AFTER THE REMOVAL TO THE COURT OF COMMON PLEAS CONSTITUTED AS PROVIDED IN SECTION 6119.03 OF THE REVISED CODE.