{"data":{"id":"us-ky/krs-67a.875","jurisdiction":"us-ky","citation":"KRS 67A.875","heading":"Determination of need by ordinance -- Preliminary planning procedures --","body":"Ordinance of initiation.\n(1) Any urban-county government which determines that the public health, safety, and\ngeneral welfare requires construction of a wastewater collection pro ject and which\nproposes to undertake, authorize, construct, and finance a wastewater collection\nproject pursuant to KRS 67A.871 to 67A.894 shall, by appropriate ordinance of its\nurban-county council make such determinations and cause preliminary plans,\ndesigns, specifications, and financial planning for such project to be prepared by\none (1) or more engineers, or one (1) or more firms of engineers, licensed to do\nbusiness in the Commonwealth of Kentucky.  Alternatively, such preliminary\nprocedures may be ac complished directly by duly -qualified government personnel.\nA preliminary engineering and financing report shall be prepared in writing by such\nengineers for submission to the government.\n(2) The preliminary engineering and financing report shall, design ate a geographical\narea in which a wastewater collection project is recommended for construction,\ncontain a reasonable description of the project facilities proposed to be constructed,\ncontain a statement as to benefits to be conferred by the proposed proj ect and the\ndistribution of such benefits and contain an estimate of the costs of the proposed\nproject.  The urban -county council of such government shall receive such\npreliminary engineering and financing report at a regular meeting, shall thereafter\nstudy and evaluate the same, and by duly -enacted ordinance either approve the\npreliminary engineering and financing report as submitted, disapprove such report,\nor amend and approve same in its sound discretion.\n(3) Upon approval of the preliminary engineerin g and financing report, or amendment\nthereof and approval thereof as amended, by the urban -county council of such\nurban-county government, such council shall formally initiate proceedings for the\nacquisition and financing of the proposed wastewater collect ion project by the\nenactment of an ordinance to be designated as the ordinance of initiation, in which\npublic announcement shall be made of the wastewater collection project proposed\nto be acquired, constructed, and financed, the identification of properti es proposed\nto be benefited by such project, which benefited properties may be identified by\nnaming the public way upon which the benefited properties abut, if any, or by\ngeographical location, or by metes and bounds or other appropriate description.  The\nordinance of initiation shall recite the nature and scope of the wastewater collection\nproject being initiated by the government, shall give a preliminary estimate of the\ncosts thereof, shall determine that each lot, parcel and tract of land named and\nidentified in the ordinance of initiation as benefited property shall be afforded\nbenefits by the project unless specifically excluded by such ordinance and shall\norder that a public hearing be held in respect of the proposed wastewater collection\nproject.\n(4) In all succeeding proceedings, the government shall be bound and limited by the\nordinance of initiation with regard to the nature, scope and extent of the proposed\nwastewater collection project, but shall not be bound by or limited to the\npreliminary estimate of the costs of the proposed project.  The costs of such project\nshall be determined upon the basis of construction bids publicly solicited by such\nurban-county government as required by KRS 67A.871 to 67A.894, and shall be\nbinding upon the government and upon the owners of benefited properties, whether\nthey turn out to be equal to, below, or above, such preliminary estimate of costs.\n(5) In the ordinance of initiation, the urban -county council shall make findings of fact\nregarding the degree and nature of benefit which will accrue to benefited properties\nby the installation of the project.  In the event the urban -county council determines\nas a fact that groups of benefited properties, or all benefited properties, will be\naffected and benefited in sub stantially the same manner and to substantially the\nsame degree, such urban -county council may determine that it is appropriate to\nclassify benefited properties into one or more assessment zones based upon the\nsimilarity of benefits to be derived by benefi ted properties from installation of the\nproject, and in such case, the urban -county council may deem all benefited\nproperties within a particular assessment zone to be equally benefited and therefore\nequally treated for purposes of levying improvement bene fit assessments to provide\nfunds to pay the costs of the project.  It is the intent of KRS 67A.871 to 67A.894 to\nvest in the urban -county council of any urban -county government undertaking a\nproject, authority to make findings of fact in order to classify properties according\nto benefits conferred from the construction of projects, and such urban -county\ncouncil may, as aforesaid, by appropriate ordinance, determine that identified\ngroups of benefited properties will be benefited similarly by a project and s hall\ntherefore be treated equally for purposes of levying improvement benefit\nassessments upon such benefited properties.  The urban -county council may accept\nand rely upon any pertinent data in making such findings of fact, including, the size\nand diamete r of sanitary sewer service connections to be made available.  In the\nevent the urban-county council of the government shall determine that all properties\nsituated within a particularly described classification or zone shall not receive\nsubstantially equal  benefits from the project, the urban -county council shall\ndetermine in the ordinance of initiation that such properties shall be assessed for\nbenefits conferred based upon the relative assessed land valuation of each benefited\nproperty as it relates to th e aggregate assessed land valuation of all benefited\nproperties within such particularly described classification or zone initially, when\nproperty owners shall be afforded the opportunity to pay improvement benefit\nassessments on a lump sum basis, and subs equently, during each annual period\nwhen bonds issued to provide for payment of costs of the project not paid by lump\nsum payments shall be outstanding.  Findings of fact made by any urban -county\ncouncil in accordance with the provisions of this section sh all be entitled to a\npresumption of regularity and accuracy when based upon receipt of, and\nconsideration of, factual data and information described in this section.\n(6) The ordinance of initiation shall provide that a public hearing shall be held in\nrespect of the proposed project at a time and place which shall be specified in the\nordinance of initiation, and shall give notice that at the public hearing any owner of\nbenefited property may appear and be heard as to whether the proposed project\nshould be undertaken, whether the nature and scope of the project should be altered,\nand whether the project shall be financed through the assessment of benefited\nproperties and issuance of bonds in respect of assessments not paid on a lump sum\nbasis, all as proposed  by the ordinance of initiation and as authorized by KRS\n67A.871 to 67A.894.\n(7) The ordinance of initiation shall be published pursuant to KRS Chapter 424, and\nshall designate an individual, who shall be a member of the urban -county council or\nany govern ment officer, to preside at the public hearing.  In the absence of a\ndesignation in the ordinance of initiation, the mayor of the government shall preside\nat the public hearing.  Notwithstanding the foregoing, the public hearing shall not be\ndeemed irregul ar or improper if it is in fact presided over and conducted at the\ndesignated time and place by any official of the urban-county government.","path":["KRS Chapter 67A"],"source_url":"https://apps.legislature.ky.gov/law/statutes/statute.aspx?id=23958","current_through":"Includes enactments through the 2026 Regular Session","vintage":"09/05/2026","retrieved_at":"2026-09-05T20:49:28Z","sha256":"9ae08e14c0afea642fd35bd6e505ac102c95f4c8bd37c3e665df6284fed20f38","source_id":"us-ky","stale":false,"prev":"us-ky/krs-67a.874","next":"us-ky/krs-67a.876"},"notice":"GroundRules: Original legal text. Not legal advice."}