SPIRO T. AGNEW, Governor                      1179

CHAPTER 549
(Senate Bill 622)

AN ACT to repeal and re-enact, with amendments, Section 652 (b)
of Article 43 of the Annotated Code of Maryland (1965 Replace-
ment Volume), title "Health", subtitle "Sanitary Districts", to
authorize sanitary commissions created by the petition of property
owners to dispense with the preparation of required plans for
water or sewerage facilities for any projects described in the peti-
tion creating the district. NECESSITY OF COMPLYING WITH
THE PROVISIONS OF SECTION 653 OF ARTICLE 43 WITH
RESPECT TO ANY PROJECT DESCRIBED IN THE NOTICE
PUBLISHED PURSUANT TO THIS SECTION.

Section 1. Be it enacted by the General Assembly of Maryland,
That Section 652 (b) of Article 43 of the Annotated Code of Mary-
land (1965 Replacement Volume), title "Health", subtitle "Sanitary
Districts", be and it is hereby repealed and re-enacted, with amend-
ments, to read as follows:

652.

(b) Whenever twenty-five property owners, and also, in Dorches-
ter County 25% of the property owners, residing in any locality in
a county, shall in writing petition the commission to have said
locality (the boundaries whereof shall be definitely stated in said
petition) constituted as a new sanitary district or added to an exist-
ing sanitary district to which such locality is contiguous, the com-
mission, if it approves, shall cause to be made a preliminary engi-
neering survey of the project to determine the feasibility and prob-
able cost of providing such area with utilities, whether water, sewer
or otherwise. If the commission disapproves of the project or is
unable or unwilling to undertake or obtain such preliminary engi-
neering survey, it shall so inform the petitioners by mail giving to
each of said petitioners an estimate of the cost of making or obtain-
ing such a preliminary engineering survey, and no further action
shall be taken on said project unless and until the persons signing
the petition therefor cause the estimated cost of such preliminary
engineering survey to be paid to the commission, which shall then
proceed to make or obtain such preliminary engineering survey.
Upon any locality becoming a sanitary district or a part of an exist-
ing sanitary district, pursuant to the provisions of this section, the
commission shall repay from the first funds available for such pur-
pose, including the issuance of bonds, any sums furnished by any of
the petitions to defray the cost of the preliminary engineering sur-
vey. Upon completion of the preliminary engineering survey, the
commission shall give notice by publication in one or more news-
papers of general circulation in the county or counties in which the
proposed sanitary district or enlargement thereof lies once a week
for three (3) successive weeks, which notice shall describe the pro-
posed sanitary district or enlargement, together with the time and
place of a hearing to be held, at which hearing a report shall be
made as to the then estimated approximate cost of the facilities
contemplated and the establishment of a sanitary district. Such
report shall also include an estimate of the amount, if any, to be
financed by the issuance of bonds pursuant to the authority of Sec-