The following form of request for a special meeting of the town board may be used: FORM NO. 16. Request for Special Session of Town Board. To the Supervisor (or Town Clerk) of the Town of .... ........... ..... in the The undersigned, commissioners of highways of the town of ........ do hereby request that the town board be convened in special session, for the purpose of auditing the bills and expenses incurred in the erection (or repair) of the highway (or bridge) under consent given by said board on the Dated this ........ ........ day of day of 19..... ............... 19..... A. B., C. D., E. F., Commissioners of Highways The following is a form of the certificate of the audits of claims on account of extraordinary repairs of highways and bridges as provided in the above section: Town of COUNTY OF FORM NO. 17. Certificate of Supervisor and Town Clerk. } ss.: The undersigned, supervisor and town clerk of the town of.......... do hereby certify that at a special session of the town board this day held, for the purpose of auditing and allowing the bills and expenses incurred by the commissioners of highways of said town, under the consent given by said town board, the .... day of 19..... the following bills and accounts were audited and allowed, with interest: § 11a. Damages for change of grade.-In any town in which a highway hereafter shall be repaired, graded and macadamized from curb to curb by the authorities of the town in ac cordance with the provisions of section sixty-nine of chapter six hundred and eighty-six of the laws of eighteen hundred and ninety-two, the owner or owners of the land adjacent to the said highway shall be entitled to recover from the town the damages resulting from any change of grade. A person claiming damages from such change of grade, effected since May fifteenth nineteen hundred and three and prior to the passage of this act, must present to the town board of such town a verified claim therefor within ninety days after this act takes effect. A person claiming damages from such change of grade hereafter effected must present to the town board of such town a verified claim therefor within sixty days after such change of grade is effected. The board may agree with such owner upon the amount of damages to be allowed him. If no agreement be made within thirty days after the presentation of the claim, the person presenting it may apply to the supreme court for the appointment of three commissioners to determine the compensation to which he is entitled. Notice of the application must be served upon the supervisor of the town at least ten days before the hearing thereof. All proceedings subsequent to the appointment of commissioners shall be taken in accordance with the provisions of the condemnation law so far as applicable. Such town board, or such commissioners, shall, in determining the compensation, consider, the fair value of the work done, or necessary to be done, in order to place the claimants' lands, or buildings, or both, in the same relation to the changed grade as they stood to the former grade, and make awards accordingly, except that said board or said commissioners may make an allowance for benefits derived by the claimant from such improvement. The amount agreed upon for such damages, or the award therefor together with the costs, if any, allowed to the claimant, shall be a charge against such town and the supervisor shall pay the same, if there be sufficient funds in his hands available, and if not, the town board shall borrow money for the payment thereof, or issue certificates of indebtedness therefor. This act shall not affect any pending proceeding or action. (Inserted by L. 1903, chap. 610, and amended by L. 1904, chap. 443, in effect September 1, 1904.) § 12. Accounts, how made out.-No account for services rendered, or material furnished according to the provisions of this chapter, shall be allowed by such board unless the same shall be verified in the same manner as town accounts are required by law to be verified, nor unless the commissioners of highways shall certify that the service has been actually performed, and the material was actually furnished, and that the same performed or furnished by the request of such commissioners; and the town board may require and take such other proof as they may deem proper, to establish any claim for such labor and material, and the value thereof. Verification of town accounts must be in the form prescribed by § 167 of the Town Law. Such section reads as follows: "No account shall be audited by any board of town auditors or supervisors or superintendent of the poor for any services or disbursements unless such account shall be made out in items and accompanied with an affidavit attached thereto, and to be filed with such account, made by the person presenting or claiming the same, that the items of such account are correct and that the disbursements and services charged therein have been in fact made or rendered or are necessary to be made or rendered at that session of the board, and stating that no part thereof has been paid or satisfied; and the chairman of the board or either of the superintendents may administer any oath required under this section." And it is also provided in § 168 of the Town Law that: "Nothing in the preceding section shall be construed to prevent any board from disallowing any account, in whole or in part, when so rendered and verified, nor from requiring any other or further evidence of the truth and propriety thereof, as such board may think proper." Defective accounts.-A town board may properly refuse to audit a bill or account that is in improper form; but the fact that a claimant has presented an informal and defective bill to the board for audit is not a reason for absolutely rejecting his claim and thus depriving the claimant of that which may be fairly and honestly due him. The claimant should be permitted to amend his bill for the purpose of curing the defects. People ex rel Mason v. Board of Supervisors, 45 Hun. 62. Where a proper claim has been disallowed because not presented in proper form, or not properly verified or accompanied by proper vouchers, or for any other reason not involving a determination on the merits, it may be presented to, and audited by a subsequent board. Osterhoudt v. Rigney, 98 N. Y. 222; so where a bill which has been presented to a town board, so informal or defective in form as to justify its rejection for that reason, the claimant should be permitted to represent his bill in such form as to obtain its adjudication upon its merits. People ex rel Andrews v. Town Auditors, 33 App. Div. 277. The account, verification and certificate required by the above section may be in the following form: L. M., being duly sworn, deposes and says that he is the claimant mentioned in the foregoing account against the town of that the items of such account are correct and that the disbursements and services (or articles specified, as the case may be) charged therein have been in fact made or rendered (or furnished as the case may be), and that no part thereof has been paid or satisfied. The undersigned, commissioners of highways of said town, do hereby certify that in the foregoing account of L. M., the services mentioned were actually performed, and the material mentioned was actually furnished, and the same was so performed and furnished at our request. Dated this day of 19..... A. B., C. D., E. F., Commissioners of Highways. § 13. Unsafe toll-bridge.-Whenever complaint in writing, on oath, shall be made to the commissioners of highways of any town in which shall be, in whole or in part, any toll-bridge belonging to any person or corporation, representing that such toll-bridge has from any cause become, and is unsafe for the public use, such commissioners of highways shall forthwith 'make a careful and thorough examination of such toll-bridge, and if upon the examination thereof, they shall be of the opinion that the same has from any cause become dangerous or unsafe for public use, they shall thereupon give immediate notice to the owners of such toll-bridge, or to any agent of such owners, acting as such agent, in respect to such bridge, that they have on complaint made, carefully and thoroughly examined the bridge, and found it to be unsafe for the public use. Such owners shall thereupon immediately commence repairing the same, and cause such repairs to be made within one week from the day of such notice given, or such reasonable time thereafter as may be necessary to thoroughly repair the bridge, so as to make it in all respects, safe and convenient for public use; and for neglect to take prompt and effective measures so to repair the bridge, its owners shall forfeit twenty-five dollars; and shall not demand or receive any toll for using the bridge, until the same shall be fully repaired; and the commissioners of highways shall cause such repairs to be made, and the owners of the bridge shall be liable for the expense thereof, and for the services of the commissioners at two dollars per day; and upon the neglect or refusal to pay the same upon presentation of an account thereof, the commissioners of highways may recover the same by action, in the name of the town. |