twenty-one years lawfully enrolled in each school and entitled to apportionment as reported to him by the county superintendent of schools; and the county auditor shall transmit to the clerk of each district a copy of the apportionment of said district, and such money shall be used only in payment of teachers' wages, including board.

Provided, first, that no district shall receive any share Provisions. of the apportionment of moneys accruing from liquor licenses, unless all sums paid for such licenses in such districts are appropriated to the county school fund; provided, second, that any district which, for the first year after its organization, shall have made provision for a four months' school, by the levy of a sufficient tax, and shall have begun and continued a school for one month, shall be entitled to its share in the first succeeding apportionment in proportion to the actual enrollment of pupils between the ages of five and twenty-one years, which enrollment shall be reported by the clerk, through the county superintendent, to the superintendent of public instruction and to the auditor of the county in which district is situated; and these officers shall include such enrollment of scholars in the next succeeding apportionment. Such district shall also be entitled to a share in each subsequent apportionment for two years succeeding, in proportion to the number of pupils who (m) have been in actual attendance thirty days, on condition that the school is taught four months each year by a qualified teacher; provided, further, that no district shall receive from the apportionment in any given year an amount greater than that appropriated by such district from its special tax and local one mill tax levied in that year, unless such district is levying in such year for support of school the maximum rate of taxation allowed by law.

SEC. 2. This act shall take effect and be in force from and after its passage.

Approved March 12, 1897.

CHAPTER 50.

An act to authorize all cities of the State of Minnesota having no more than fifty thousand and not less than fifteen thousand inhabitants to sprinkle its streets, lanes, alleys, avenues and public grounds and to assess the cost thereof on abutting property.

Be it enacted by the Legislature of the state of Minne

sota:

S. F. No. 299.

Street sprinkling in cities having from

15,000 to 50,000 in

habitants.

Authorization.

May levy assessments.

On abutting property.

Expense chargeable.

Payable upon monthly estimates.

Provided.

50

SECTION 1. All cities in the state of Minnesota having no more than fifty thousand and not less than fifteen thousand inhabitants are hereby authorized to and shall have power to sprinkle the streets, lanes, alleys, avenues and public grounds of such city or any part thereof, and may make contracts for so sprinkling the same in accordance with this act on such terms and conditions as its city council may deem best.

SEC. 2. All cities in the state of Minnesota having no more than fifty thousand and not less than fifteen thousand inhabitants are hereby authorized to levy assessments for sprinkling its streets, lanes, alleys, avenues and public grounds, upon the property fronting upon such improvement as hereafter designated.

SEC. 3. The expense of any such improvement shall be chargeable to and assessed upon the lots and parcels of land abutting upon the street, lane, alley or public ground in which such improvement is contracted to be done, upon the following basis:

The entire expense of such improvement in each dis trict, designated by the council of such city for sprinkling purposes, for each season, shall be chargeable to and assessed upon the lots and parcels of land, in such district, abutting upon the streets, lanes, alleys and public grounds or parts thereof in which such sprinkling is done; such assessment to be apportioned among the several lots and parcels of land according to the number of square feet of territory sprinkled, abutting on such lot or parcel of land; but in determining such apportionment the territory abutting on a lot or parcel of land shall in no instance be estimated beyond the center of the street, nor shall any portion of any street intersection be estimated as a part of the territory abutting upon a corner lot.

All work authorized by this act shall be paid for from the local improvement fund of such city upon monthly estimates made by the person or persons designated by the city council for that purpose, and approved by such council.

Provided, if said city council shall by resolution determine that the cost of a portion of such improvement shall be borne by the city, such portion to be designated in such resolution and not to exceed the street intersections and all territory abutting upon public parks, squares and grounds, and lots and parcels of ground owned by such city, the state of Minnesota and United States of America, then and in such case such portion so designated shall not be included in such assessment, and shall be paid for out of the general fund of such city.

determine

tract price.

SEC. 4. Before any proceedings are had by the coun- Ordinance to cil, said council shall each year by ordinance determine territory. what territory in said city shall be sprinkled, and may divide such territory into one or more sprinkling districts, accurately describing the boundary lines of each district; each district so determined shall be designated by number, and thereafter all reference to such district by number shall be deemed a sufficient designation; said ordinance shall further provide for all supervision and inspection of said work and shall designate what officer or officers of said city shall supervise and inspect said work, in accordance with the plans and specifications therefor, and shall accurately determine the powers and duties of such officer or officers with reference to all sprinkling contracts awarded by the city council. SEC. 5. The contract price to be paid by said city for Basis of con the doing of such work shall be upon the basis of sprinkling one hundred square feet per week, during the life of such contract; if in the opinion of said council it is deemed impracticable, at the time of letting said contract, to designate the exact length of time during which sprinkling is necessary in the district designated, during any particular season, said council may let such contract without so designating the beginning and ending of such sprinkling season; and upon the city so letting such contract, the officer or officers of said city designated as superintendent of said work shall have power to order the beginning of said work upon three days' notice to the contractors therefor, and shall likewise have power to order said work to cease for the season, if in his opinion no necessity therefor exists, and such order and direction by said superintendent shall be final, conclusive and binding upon all parties concerned.

SEC. 6. Prior to the passage of any resolution for the Plans and specifications. letting of a contract for sprinkling, the expense of which is to be assessed upon abutting lots or parcels of land, as provided in this act, the city council of such city shall cause plans and specifications for such sprinkling to be made and presented to the council for its approval, and the same shall immediately upon the approval thereof by the council be filed with the city clerk or recorder of said city, for the inspection of all parties interested.

The city council shall then designate a time, not less Sealed prothan twenty days distant, and a place at which it posals. will meet and act in relation to the doing of the proposed work, and direct that notice be given by the clerk or recorder of such meeting and the time and place thereof, and that in the meantime sealed proposals for the doing of such work will be received by the city clerk.

Action on contract.

Resolution.

Mayor's veto.

In such notice shall be named the district where such sprinkling is to be done, and reference shall be made therein to the specifications so filed with the clerk, and the said notice shall be given by publication thereof in the official paper of such city at least once in each week for two successive weeks prior to the time designated as aforesaid by the council.

At the time and place designated in such notice an opportunity shall be given to any and all interested parties to be heard for or against such proposed work, and the recorder or clerk shall in the presence of the city council, open and read all sealed proposals which may have been received for the doing of such work, and the furnishing of all material therefor, and the city council may then, by a majority vote of all its members, accept the most favorable proposal (such proposal to be that of the lowest responsible bidder), and by resolution authorize the doing of the proposed work, or any part thereof, by the person or persons whose proposal shall have been accepted, and direct that written contract be made with him or them therefor (e), or may reject any or all proposals offered, and refuse to authorize the doing of such work, or may, in its discretion, from lack of quorum or other reason, postpone the consideration and decision of the whole matter or any branch thereof to a future time, of which postponement all parties interested shall be required and deemed to take notice.

Such resolution, after the same has been passed by the council, shall be signed by the president of the council and attested by the recorder or clerk, and on the next day after the passage thereof the same shall be transmitted by such recorder to the mayor for his approval.

If the mayor approve the same he shall append his signature with the date of his approval thereto, and return the same to said recorder within five days (Sundays excepted) from the date of its transmission to him, and if he declines to approve the same he shall within said period of five days return the same to the clerk or recorder with a statement of his objections thereto, to be presented to the council at its next meeting thereafter.

Upon the return of said resolution to the council, without the mayor's approval, the question shall again be put upon the passage of the same, notwithstanding the objections of the mayor, and if, upon such vote, which shall be taken by a call of the ayes and noes, twothirds of all the members of the council shall vote in favor of such resolution, the same shall be declared en

acted and shall have the same force and effect as if approved by the mayor.

If such resolution so submitted to the mayor shall not be returned by him to the recorder within said five days, Sundays excepted, after presentation thereof to him, the same shall be deemed to be approved by him, and he shall deliver the same to the clerk or recorder on demand.

SEC. 7. All contracts authorized by this act shall be executed on behalf of the city by the mayor, and attested by the clerk or recorder.

when made.

SEC. 8. Upon the completion of a season's work, Assessments, authorized by this act, in any sprinkling district, the officer or officers designated by said council to superintend the same shall immediately assess the cost of such work to the several lots and parcels of land in such district in the manner provided by this act, and determine what part of the cost shall be borne by each such lot or parcel, and shall make an assessment thereof in writing in which shall be given a description of each lot or parcel so assessed, and the exact amount assessed thereto, and shall, at the next regular meeting of the city council after the completion of such assessment, submit the same to the city council, with a certificate that said work has been completed.

SEC. 9. On receipt of said assessment the council shall direct that the same be placed on file with the clerk or recorder for the inspection of all parties interested, and shall appoint a time not less than ten days distant, and a place when and where it will meet to consider and act upon such assessment, and the clerk or recorder shall thereupon cause notice of such meeting and the time, place and purpose thereof, to be given by one publication of such notice in the official newspaper of such city at least five days prior to the time so appointed for said meeting; in such notice reference shall be made to the number of the sprinkling district in which such assessment is made, and shall state the amount assessed for each hundred square feet of territory adjacent to the property so assessed.

Notice of assessment to publication.

be given by

Hearing to be

SEC. 10. At the time and place so appointed as pro- given. vided in the last preceding section, the council shall proceed to consider said assessment, and hear all objections which parties interested may desire to make thereto, and may adjourn, if necessary, from time to time, and shall after due consideration make such corrections or changes in said assessment as they may deem necessary to perfect and equalize the same on the basis prescribed in this act, and shall confirm and establish the assessment as so corrected and equalized;