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Sub. H. B. No. 470 As Passed by the HouseAs Passed by the House
127th General Assembly | Regular Session | 2007-2008 |
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Cosponsors:
Representatives Strahorn, Collier, Combs, Evans, Harwood, Uecker, Wagner, McGregor, J., Bacon, Batchelder, Blessing, Bubp, Coley, Flowers, Grady, Hagan, J., Hughes, Koziura, Lundy, Nero, Newcomb, Schneider, Zehringer
A BILL
To amend section 5543.14 and to enact sections
503.35, 5543.15, and 5571.18 of the Revised Code
to
authorize a board of county commissioners and
a board of township trustees to order removal of
vegetation on private property that blocks or
otherwise
interferes with the sight lines of
motorists
traveling on county or township roads,
to authorize a board of township trustees to
require certain ditches or culverts located in the
township to be
cleaned, and to require notice be
given to abutting landowners
before the trimming
or removal of certain vegetation growing in or
encroaching onto the right-of-way of county or
township roads.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF OHIO:
Section 1. That section 5543.14 be amended and sections
503.35, 5543.15, and 5571.18 of the Revised Code be
enacted to
read as follows:
Sec. 503.35. (A) A board of township trustees may require
that a ditch or culvert located on property in the township be
cleaned out if the ditch or culvert has become partially or
totally obstructed and, because of the obstruction, flooding of a
road or other public property may result.
(B) The board shall provide written notice that action to
remove an obstruction is necessary to the owner of the property on
which is located a ditch or culvert that has become partially or
totally obstructed. The notice shall specify a reasonable time
period of not less than fifteen days after the date of the notice
within which the owner of the property shall remove or provide for
the removal of the obstruction. The notice also shall inform the
owner of the property that if the owner does not remove or provide
for the removal of the obstruction within the time period
specified in the notice, the board will provide for the removal of
the obstruction and, if the board makes the report permitted under
division (E) of this section, the owner will be liable for all
costs of the
removal.
(C) If the owner of property who has received a notice under
division (B) of this section fails to remove or provide for the
removal of an obstruction in a ditch or culvert as required by the
notice, the board of township trustees shall provide additional
notice in writing to the owner that the board intends to take
actions to remove the obstruction. Not less than three days after
the issuance of the notice, the board shall provide for the
removal of the obstruction. The board may employ the necessary
labor, materials, and equipment to perform the task. All expenses
incurred, when approved by the board, shall be paid out of the
township general fund from moneys not otherwise appropriated. The
entrance on a person's property to remove an obstruction as
authorized by this section does not constitute a trespass.
(D) In the event of an emergency, a board of township
trustees or the board's designee may enter on private property for
the purpose of removing an obstruction in a ditch or culvert
without providing prior notice to the owner of the property as
otherwise required by this section.
(E) A board of township trustees may make a written report
to the county auditor of the board's actions under this section.
The board shall include in the report a proper description of the
property at issue and a statement of all expenses incurred in
providing for the removal of any obstruction as provided in
division (C) or (D) of this section, including the board's charges
for its services, the costs incurred in providing notice, any fees
or interest paid to borrow moneys, and the amount paid for labor,
materials, and equipment. The expenses incurred
shall be entered
on the tax duplicate, are a lien on the land from
the date of the
entry, shall be collected as other taxes, and
shall be returned
to the township and placed in the township
general fund.
Sec. 5543.14. The county engineer
may trim or remove any
and all trees,
shrubs, and other vegetation growing in or
encroaching
onto the right-of-way of the county roads of
the
engineer's county, and the board of township trustees
may trim or
remove any and
all trees, shrubs, and other vegetation
growing in
or encroaching onto the right-of-way of the township roads of
its
township,
as is
necessary in the engineer's or board's judgment to
facilitate the right of the
public to improvement and maintenance
of, and uninterrupted travel on, county and township roads. The
engineer or
board is not required to compensate the abutting
landowner for trimming or
removing such trees, shrubs, and other
vegetation as is necessary to
facilitate
these rights. Except in
the case of an emergency, at least
seven days before
trimming or
removing any such trees, shrubs,
and other vegetation,
the
engineer or board shall send a written
notice by certified
mail
generally describing the trees, shrubs,
and other vegetation
to
be trimmed or removed to the abutting
landowner of the
engineer's or board's intention to trim or
remove the trees,
shrubs, and other vegetation. The notice shall
state that the
engineer or board is not required to compensate
the abutting
landowner for trimming or removing the trees,
shrubs, and other
vegetation.
The
department of
agriculture or
other proper
department may, with the
consent of the proper
authorities, take
charge of the care
of such
trees to facilitate
these rights.
Such department may, with the consent of the proper
authorities
of the
township, county, or state, plant trees along
the public
highway and may use
any funds available for the
development of
forestry in the state to pay the expense of the
planting and
care
of such trees. The ownership of all trees, so
planted, shall
remain in
the public.
Sec. 5543.15. (A) If a county engineer
determines
upon the
basis of evidence that,
at a particular location, vegetation
located on
land that is
located on a county road constitutes a
clear and
present danger
to the safety of traveling public,
which may
include pedestrians,
because the vegetation blocks or
otherwise
interferes with the
sight lines of operators of motor
vehicles
traveling on that
county road, the engineer shall send
a written notice by certified mail to the owner of that land
informing the owner of that fact and also particularly
describing
the vegetation at issue.
The
notice shall
direct the owner to remove that vegetation
forthwith, but in no
case later than fifteen days after the date
of the notice. The
notice further shall inform the owner that if
the owner does not
remove the vegetation at issue within that
fifteen-day period, the
engineer will cause the vegetation to be
removed and, if the engineer makes the report permitted under
division (C) of this section, the owner will
be liable for all
costs of the removal.
(B) If a county engineer issues a notice to the owner of the
land
pursuant to division (A) of this section and the owner does
not
remove the vegetation described in the notice in a timely
manner,
the engineer shall issue an order directing that the
engineer or
employees or designees of the engineer enter upon the
land and remove
the vegetation at issue.
The engineer shall give
notice of the
proposed entry to the owner and
the person in
possession of the
land, if such person is not the
owner, by such
means as are
reasonably available not less than
three days but
not more than
seven days prior to the date of such
entry. The
engineer or
employees or designees of the engineer shall enter
upon the land and
shall
remove the vegetation at issue and
nothing more, and such
entry
does not constitute a trespass. If
the engineer makes the
report
permitted under division (C) of
this section, the owner is
liable
to reimburse the engineer for
expenses the engineer incurred in
having the vegetation at issue
removed.
(C) The county engineer may make a written
report to the
county auditor of the engineer's action under this
section. The
engineer shall include in any such report a proper
description
of the premises and a statement of all expenses the
county
incurred in having the
vegetation
at issue removed,
including
any costs incurred in providing the
required
notice
and the
amount the county paid for labor,
materials, fuel,
and
equipment. The expenses incurred shall be
entered upon the
tax
duplicate and are a lien upon the land from
the date of the
entry. They shall be collected as taxes are
collected and shall
be returned to the county and placed in the
county general fund.
(D) The county engineer shall make restitution or
reimbursement for any
actual damage done to the land or to
improvements or personal
property located on such land by the
engineer or employees or
designees of the engineer that is
not
incidental to the removal of
the vegetation.
(E) A county, county engineer, and any employee or designee
of an
engineer, is not liable in damages in a civil action for
any
injury, death, or loss to person or property that allegedly
arises under this
section.
Sec. 5571.18. (A) If a board of township trustees determines
upon the basis of evidence submitted by the county engineer that,
at a particular location, vegetation located on land that is
located on a township road constitutes a clear and present danger
to the safety of traveling public, which may include pedestrians,
because the vegetation blocks or otherwise interferes with the
sight lines of operators of motor vehicles traveling on that
township road, the board shall send a written notice by certified
mail to the owner
of that land informing the owner of that fact
and also
particularly describing the vegetation at issue.
The notice shall
direct the owner to remove that vegetation
forthwith, but in no
case later than fifteen days after the date
of the notice. The
notice further shall inform the owner that if
the owner does not
remove the vegetation at issue within that
fifteen-day period, the
board will cause the vegetation to be
removed and, if the board makes the report permitted
under
division (C) of this section, the owner will
be liable for all
costs of the removal.
(B) If a board issues a notice to the owner of the land
pursuant to division (A) of this section and the owner does not
remove the vegetation described in the notice in a timely manner,
the board shall issue an order directing that the
board or
employees or designees of the board enter upon the land and remove
the vegetation at issue.
The board shall give notice of the
proposed entry to the owner and
the person in possession of the
land, if such person is not the
owner, by such means as are
reasonably available not less than
three days but not more than
seven days prior to the date of such
entry. The board or
employees or designees of the board shall enter upon the land and
shall
remove the vegetation at issue and nothing more, and such
entry
does not constitute a trespass. If the board
makes the
report permitted under division (C) of this section, the
owner is
liable to reimburse the board for expenses the board
incurred in
having the vegetation at issue removed.
(C) The board of township trustees may make a written
report
to the county auditor of the board's action under this
section.
The board shall include in any such report a proper
description
of the premises and a statement of all expenses the
township
incurred in having the
vegetation at issue removed, including any
costs incurred in providing the
required notice and the amount
the township paid for labor,
materials, fuel, and equipment. The
expenses incurred shall be
entered upon the tax duplicate and are
a lien upon the land from
the date of the entry. They shall be
collected as taxes are
collected and shall be returned to the
township and placed in the
township general fund.
(D) The board shall make restitution or reimbursement for any
actual damage done to the land or to improvements or personal
property located on such land by the board or employees or
designees of the board that is
not incidental to the removal of
the vegetation. If the township
and owner of the land are unable
to agree upon restitution or
other settlement, damages are
recoverable by civil action to which
the township hereby
consents, except that the value of the
vegetation removed is not
recoverable.
(E) A township, board, and any employee or designee of a
board, is not
liable in damages in a civil action
for any
injury, death, or
loss to person or property that allegedly
arises under this
section.
Section 2. That existing section 5543.14 of the Revised Code
is hereby repealed.
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