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If you have an idea, problem that needs to be solved, or are
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Minutes requirements for annual meeting
To whom it may concern,
In regards to the minutes of a annual
and election meeting of township do the minutes have to hand
written into the Township official book of information that has
specific official page for meeting minutes? Or can the minutes be
typed out and then attached to the page that indentifies the
Township information of the official page for meeting minutes? I
hope that this the correct place to ask the questions I have asked
D.Z. Clerk of township
***************************
Hello DZ
Thanks for the inquiry about township
minutes.
Here is what your township officers manual has to say:
http://ndtoa.com/images/2012/Township%20Officers%20Handbook%202012%20E.pdf
58-07-03. Duties of township clerk. The
township clerk shall perform the following duties:
1. Act as clerk of the board of township
supervisors and keep in the township clerk's office a true record
of all of its proceedings.
I can find nothing in ND century code
that makes a requirement about the form that minutes must be kept
in. So, yes, it appears that the minutes can be typed and
attached to your township official book. It would be a good
idea for the clerk to sign and date each page of the typed
minutes.
forum@ndtoa.com
***************************
Kerry/Dan: I agree with Kerry
here--especially in these days when most have word processors,
etc., it is much easier to bring a laptop along to the meeting and
take minutes that way, and then print them out later. Or, type
from the handwritte notes taken at the meeting, Signing and dating
is of course, most important as well.
Don't however, leave everything solely
electronic without printing, in case computers crash, etc.!
TRM
Payroll withholding and
unauthorized oil field roads
The township officers are not
employees of the township so the need for a w-2 seems strange.
Typically when someone receives a payments as a non-employee a
1099 Misc is issued if it is over a set limit. (used to be $600)
Why the W-2's and why a 1099 for a $75 payment?
Living in the recent oil boom area oil companies are constantly
developing trails and making them roads; typically along an
undeveloped section line. I have not been contacted concerning
road construction yet there are several roads that have been
developed. Strangely enough one company requested an easement for
boring under a road that another company developed. I do not know
if we as a township should be getting more involved in the
approval process or if we even can? Furthermore with the exception
of a couple of companies there are no stop signs at crossings, no
speed limit signs, no curve signs, etc. If we as a township
install them for safety reasons it is felt that we then take
responsibility for the road as well which we do not want. I think
the legislature needs to address this issue and set guidelines for
the companies that are developing section lines for access into
well locations.
Terry
**********************
From Roger:
IRS Publication 15 has a chart on
page 33 on how to handle payments to local elected officials.
Item # 1 on that chart should apply in the case of township
officers.
*********************
Hi Terry,
Thanks for the email.
Actually, I believe that the township officers are salaried
employees of the township, so, the W-2 is the correct form to use.
We'll try to answer your questions about the unauthorized township
roads.
As township officers, we are charged with the responsibility to
make sure that the township section lines are open for public use.
As you note in your email, most of the roads start out as trails
and then turn into roads. Your township should get more
involved in the approval process for the roads. If your
township doesn't get involved in the road construction process,
then, the township residents have to accept the results. The
legislature has already granted townships the right of approval
for any roads built on their section lines. I suggest that
when you learn of a "road" being built, that you go to the site
and ask the "road builder" if they have permission from the
township to build their road. If they don't have permission
from the township, tell them to stop and get the appropriate
approval. Your county sheriff, commissioners and state's
attorney should back you up on this.
In the approval process for the
new road, you can require that the new road be built to certain
specifications. After the road is built to your
specifications, then, the road becomes the township's for future
upkeep. The legislature has given you the power to take
control of your situation. You just need to exercise your
authority and develop your own set of guidelines for the road
development. And of course exercise your authority in an
appropriate manner. It will be in everyone's best interest
if the oil companies in your area build good, safe roads.
And, I would like to believe that in most cases, if the township
notifies the oil field company in writing, you will recieve a
favorable response from the oil company. If you notify the
oil company in your letter that they need to obtain township
approval before building any section line roads, you will have
greatly enhanced your ability to obtain damages from the oil
company. And, the oil company doesn't wasn't to have to pay
damages to you, they just want a road to their site. It is
your job to make sure they know what kind of road you expect them
to build. If the oil companies don't respect your authority,
drop the hammer on them and gain some respect. The word will
get out that the rules need to be followed.
If you start putting signs on
these unauthorized roads, or allowing others to post signs, you
are probably right - you have assumed responsibility and liability
for those roads.
You really should not allow unauthorized signs on your township
roads. If you do, I really think you are opening yourself up
to some unnecessary liability consequences. You need to get
in on the front end of the road building process instead of trying
to play "catch up" after the construction has been completed.
My suggestion to you is to have
a meeting of the township supervisors or your township zoning
board to establish a process for authorizing road construction on
your section lines. In that process, you could establish
fees that will need to be paid, which in turn can be used to
compensate the township for the time that is spent in the road
authorization process. If your township doesn't already have
it's own zoning ordinance, it may be time to take that step.
It may be possible for the
legislature to develop a set of guidelines for road construction,
however, I don't know if we want the legislature to do that for
us. That may be taking the authority away from the
townships.
I want to thank you for doing
this work for your township. Maybe somebody else has some
thoughts on this?
forum@ndtoa.com
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Zoning Ordinance
Establishment
Hi Kerry. I have a couple
questions. I've looked through the handbook and have not
found requirements for voting on a zoning plan - could have
missed it ! Do we need a special published meeting or can it
be done at annual township meeting? I supposed the notice
would have to include zoning to be discussed and/or voted
on. Would you recommend just discussion at annual meeting
and then voting at a later date to give everyone more
time? Thanks, Larry
Hello Larry,
Thanks for the inquiry
about establishing
a township zoning
ordinance.
What I suggest is that when
you publish your annual township meeting notice, you
mention that "Implementation of a township zoning
ordinance will be discussed and voted upon."
At the annual meeting you
could have a motion something to the effect:
"I move that xxxx township
develop a township zoning ordinance".
If that motion is approved,
then you can proceed with all of the steps outlined
Good luck with the zoning
ordinance.
You can contact me, or your
District Director, Floyd Miller if you have any more
questions or concerns.
Meeting
Notice Publication
I read in
the Century Code that a Public Meeting Notice needs to be
published a given number of days in advance of the meeting.
Does the township have the right to declare an “Official
Paper?” Are there requirements to the extent that the
official county paper must be used? G. W.
Hello GW,
Thanks for the inquiry about
newspaper requirements for publishing township notices. .
As we discussed on the phone,
the Century Code is very specific on where
township notices must be
published.
From the Century Code:
58-04-01. Annual township meeting - When held -
Change in meeting place -Notice.
The electors of each township annually shall assemble and
hold a township meeting on
the third Tuesday in March at such place in the township
or in an adjacent township as the board of township
supervisors thereof shall designate. Notice of the time
and place of holding the meeting must be given by the
township clerk at least ten days prior to the meeting
by publication in a legal newspaper published in
the township or, if there is no such newspaper, then in
the county's official newspaper.
Also:
58-04-03. Clerk to give notice of special meeting.
Each township clerk with whom a statement provided for in
section 58-04-02 is filed shall record the same and shall
cause notice of the special meeting to be published at
least ten days before the meeting in a legal
newspaper published
in the township or, if there is no such newspaper, then in
the county's official newspaper.
Click here for the Century Code page:
http://ndtoa.com/centurycode.htm
Click here to see the section on newspaper
notice requirements for townships:
http://www.legis.nd.gov/cencode/t58c04.pdf.
Thanks for your work on behalf of your township.
What you do is important.
Email your thoughts and
comments on this
or other matters to myself, any of the officer or directors,
or
forum@ndtoa.com .
Sincerely,Kerry
Schorsch
President, North Dakota Township Officers Assn.
701-579-4298
kerry@ndtoa.com
*****************************************
We live in a county without a
township board, so we have been dealing with the county
commissioners on our matter. We own 160 acres and do not
have access to it. We would like to develop a road
approximately 1/4mile long, and the board gave an opinion
that the section line was impassable and would be a
"taxpayer burden" in discussion. A petition was not
submitted. We have talked with all neighboring landowners
and none are willing to provide access. We are wondering
what, if any, options do we have?
If we were to build the road
down the section line under our own expense, what actions do
we take to have the section line opened up for the 33 feet
on each side of the section line?
Hello Levi,
Thank you for the inquiry.
If you lived in an organized township,
you could get permission from the township board
to build your road. Since you do not live
in an organized township, I believe that you will have
to get permission from your county to build a road.
The 66 foot right of way along the section line
is open for public use by you and anyone else unless
the section line has been "closed" by action of the county
commissioners.
Yours case is a pretty classic example of why it is
important to have grassroots township government.
What county are you in?
I am sorry we can't be of more assistance.
Maybe one of the users of this forum will have
some other suggestion for you.
Thank you Levi for taking
the time to email your question to us.
kerry@ndtoa.com
Email your thoughts on this
or other matters to
forum@ndtoa.com .
Open Meetings Guidelines -
Feb 13, 2008
There has been some question
among our township board whether emailing each other
information is legal or not. No decisions or voting is made
over email. Is this legal?
As far as I know, it is not illegal to email information
between township board members. To be safe, I think
that you should refrain from emailing any accompanying
discussion or comments concerning the information being sent
between board members.
We also have a question
regarding calling a quorum. Our situation was, the main
city outside of our township was hosting an public
meeting. Two of our supervisors and our chairman were
present in the audience. Do we have to call a quorum in
this instance?
As far as I know, you do
not have to call a quorum in this instance. Your board may
have been attending the meeting to obtain information
pertaining to a matter that may or may not concern your
township. The board members may certainly discuss the
information presented at the meeting. However, as long as
no Stanley township matters are discussed or decided by the
board at such a meeting, you should not be in violation of
the state's open meetings policy.
You can find more
specific information regarding the state's open records
Thank you Renee for taking
the time to email your question to us.
kerry@ndtoa.com
Email your thoughts on this
or other matters to
forum@ndtoa.com .
Safety and Dust on Township Roads - Feb 3, 2008
Kerry,
When it
comes to gravel roads and farmsteads being right on the road,
the occupants safety as well as the dust created by semi
trucks and trailers is coming into issue. There are dust
solutions such as calcium chloride but for most this is
becoming cost prohibitive. With such heavy usage year around
and the added need to grade more frequently which then adds to
the dust and speed problem as well the grading cost to my
township, are there any solutions for these people other than
moving. Just mentioning reducing the speed for trucks under
the 55mph on the gravel roads in front of these farmsteads met
with great resistance from the big farmers and county
commissioners. There are concerns for school bus stops on
these roads as well as they are school bus routes.
If your school bus stops are not signed, they should be and
that in itself, may also cause the traffic to slow down, at
least during the school year.
I see this becoming a bigger issue as I see these same trucks
now pulling two trailers. Has this issue been addressed
amicably in other townships?
Safety and dust for people living along township roads has
long been a problem. As your question reveals, the issue
has still not been adequately addressed. If anyone has
any answers, please let us know at
forum@ndtoa.com.
Is there any help for these farmsteads such as getting better
prices or suppliers for calcium chloride? Can
you work with your county to get better pricing? I am
not aware of any "volume" pricing opportunities available
through the state association. Also, maybe you could
work with adjoining townships in that regard.
What can my township do?
Some suggestions.
Many times the solution to township problems can be solved
with adequate funding. At your next annual meeting could
you authorize spending some additional money dedicated to dust
suppression in your township? You may have to raise your
annual levy to take care of the problem if the residents think
it is a serious enough problem to address.
Also, the state of North Dakota, Upper Great Plains Institute
is sponsoring a series of statewide meetings this spring
concerning the future funding of transportation needs in our
state. If township road needs are going to be
considered, we need your presence and your testimony at the
meeting in your area. As an elected official, you will
be given the opportunity to voice your opinion concerning
current and future system and program needs and funding
options. We encourage and need your township's
participation as well participation of lots of other townships
around the state to make sure that township residents needs
are addressed. Click here for information on the dates
and times of the Transportation Needs and Funding Workshops:
http://ndtoa.com/calendar.htm
If you want to help your township, get involved. Get
involved in your county and state township officers
association. Funding needs for townships are met through
the legislative process. Both of those organizations are
aggressively pursuing an agenda of getting townships the tools
needed to solve their problems. Whenever you get the
opportunity, let your state senators and representatives know
that you appreciate their efforts to provide funds for safe
and efficient township roads. Let representatives know
that most of the of the state's grain, livestock and oil
products begin their route to market on a township road.
Thanks,
dfite@fitedev.com
Thank you David for taking
the time to email your question to us.
Email your thoughts on this
or other matters to
forum@ndtoa.com .
State
Park Boundary Fence
The Turtle
River State Park, in Grand Forks County,
has a fence around the park. The south fence is on the section
line between
Hegton
township and
Arvilla Township. The current Park Manger claims that
the park actually owns 33 feet outside of
the fence line.
This fence has
been there for many years and I question that.
1. Why would
the fence be installed 33 feet off the section line?
Answer: There should be no fences installed in a
township section line, unless the section line in question has
been declared closed by action of the County Commissioners.
The 33 feet on each side of the section line should remain clear
of obstructions so that the section line can be used for public
right of way. You can find reference to section lines through
the link on the township website: at http://ndtoa.com/centurycode.htm
and
then here:
Section 24-07 of the ND Century Code:
http://www.legis.nd.gov/cencode/t24c07.pdf.
2. I believe
that this 33feet is actually property of
Arvilla Township. And, if the fence is on the section
line, as I suspect, the Township actually owns 33 feet inside
the fence line.
Answer: It would be unusual for the township
to own any land on a section line. In nearly all cases, the
adjoining land owner actually owns the land right up to the
middle of the section line, including the 33 feet of public
right of way. While the landowner owns the land up the middle
of the section line, the landowner must allow public access and
cannot restrict public access on the section line unless
the
landowner completes the "Section line closing" procedure found
in Section 24-07 of the ND Century Code.
There is no
road on the section line because U.S. Highway #2 is located
parallel to the section line at about 400 feet south, due to a
deep coulee and slough on the
section line.
3. Is there any
place we can find the record of the location of the fence line
without the cost of having it surveyed?
Answer: The Park Manager should be able to show you the Park
Service plans for construction of the fence. That plan should
show the location of the fence in relation to the
section line. The Park Manager is required to show you
those plans, upon your request, as directed by the North Dakota
Open Records laws.
A.L.
I am the new president of the
Stutsman County Township Officers and was looking for some ideas
to try and have a good informative fall meeting. What
are some of the things or topics that should be on the agenda?
Or who are some guest speakers that would be informative?
ranchn@daktel.com
December, 12, 2003
Sent: Thursday, December 11, 2003 7:31 PM
Subject: roads
I am a member of the Scott
township board in Adams County,ND. and I have a question
about roads.
If a non farmer
builds a house on a small plot of land out in the country and
that house is located along side of a unimproved section line,
does the township have to build a road up to his new home?
I do not believe that the
township is required to build a road to this new home.
If so, is the township also
responsible for putting gravel on this new road? We have
gravel
on all of the other majour
roads in the township.
In a letter
from the ndtoa last spring it was stated that the N.D.
attorney general ruled that the townships had to build a road
right up to the house no matter where it was built but
this ruling was going to be appealed. Is there anything new on
that ruling?
(Look for 24-07-06).
Sincerely,
Bill
You are welcome Bill.
Please feel free to call or email me anytime and we will look
forward to seeing you at one of the workshops this spring that
will be addressing the new IRS rulings http://www.ndtoa.com/workshops.htm.
Sincerely,
|
| Tax
Question:
December 22, 2003
Hello Eugene,
Sorry you didn't make it to the
convention,
hope you can make it to one of our
spring workshops:
In answer to your question, you
can't take this to the bank,
and I am not a tax lawyer, so this
is not legal advice, but,
it is my opinion that the township
must
furnish to each of the township
officers the following forms that
can be found by clicking on the
accompanying links to the IRS website
or the forms can be mailed to you by
calling 800-829-3676:
Call 800-870-3676
to order.
Form W-4, Employee's Withholding
Allowance Certificate (one time)
Call 800-829-3676 to order.
Form W-2, Wage and Tax Statement
(yearly)
To order forms
call 800-829-3676
Also, every year, the township
must also file with the IRS:
Form W-3, Transmittal of Wage and
Tax Statements (This is basically a summary of W-2's)
To order forms
call 800-829-3676
I hope this has answered your
questions.
If not, please feel free to call me
or any of the other township officers at:
In an effort to assist all of the
township officers, this correspondence
If anyone out there has any comment
this correspondence, please submit to:
Thanks again for the inquiry and
Sincerely,
Kerry Schorsch
701-579-4298
----- Original Message -----
Sent: Tuesday, December 23, 2003
1:16 PM
Subject: IRS ruling on W-2's for
Township Officers
> I was unable to be at the state
conv where this topic was discussed. I
> was wondering if someone who was there could give a little
help on what
> was discussed. Does a township has to file a W-2
for each of the
> officers on the board?
>
> Clerk
> Amundsville Township
> McLean County
>
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