§ 162A‑36. Powersgenerally; fiscal year.
(a) Each district shall be deemed to be a public body and bodypolitic and corporate, exercising public and essential governmental functions,to provide for the preservation and promotion of the public health and welfare,and said district is hereby authorized and empowered:
(1) To adopt bylaws for the regulation of its affairs and theconduct of its business not in conflict with this or other law;
(2) To adopt an official seal and alter the same at pleasure;
(3) To maintain an office or offices at such place or places inthe district as it may designate;
(4) To sue and be sued in its own name, plead and be impleaded;
(5) To acquire, lease as lessor or lessee, construct,reconstruct, improve, extend, enlarge, equip, repair, maintain and operate anywater system or part thereof, and any sewerage system or part thereof, exceptinterceptors, treatment plants and facilities constituting a system operated bya metropolitan sewage district within or without the district; provided,however, that no such water or sewerage system or part thereof, shall belocated in any city, town or incorporated village except with the consent ofthe governing body thereof, and each such governing body is hereby authorizedto grant such consent;
(6) To issue general obligation bonds and revenue bonds of thedistrict as hereinafter provided, to pay the costs of a water or seweragesystem or systems;
(7) To issue general obligation refunding bonds and revenuerefunding bonds of the district as hereinafter provided;
(8) To fix and revise from time to time and to collect rents,rates, fees and other charges for the use of the services and facilitiesfurnished by any water or sewerage system;
(9) To cause taxes to be levied and collected upon all taxableproperty within the district sufficient to meet the obligations of thedistrict, to pay the costs of maintaining, repairing and operating any water orsewerage system or systems, and to pay all obligations incurred by the districtin the performance of its legal undertakings and functions;
(10) To acquire in the name of the district, either within orwithout the corporate limits of the district, by gift, purchase, lease or theexercise of the right of eminent domain, which right shall be exercised in accordancewith the provisions of Chapter 40A of the General Statutes, any improved orunimproved lands or rights in lands, and to acquire by lease or purchase suchpersonal property as it may deem necessary in connection with the acquisition,construction, reconstruction, improvement, extension, enlargement, repair,equipment, maintenance or operation of any water or sewerage system or systems,and to hold and dispose of real and personal property under its control;
(11) To make and enter into all contracts, leases and agreementsnecessary or incidental to the performance of its duties and the execution ofits powers under this Article, including a trust agreement or trust agreementssecuring any revenue bonds issued hereunder;
(12) To employ such consulting and other engineers,superintendents, managers, construction and financial experts, accountants,attorneys, employees and agents as may, in the judgment of the district board,be deemed necessary, and to fix their compensation; provided, however, that theprovisions of G.S. 159‑20 shall be complied with to the extent that thesame shall be applicable;
(13) To receive and accept from the United States of America orthe State of North Carolina, or any agency or instrumentality thereof loans,grants, advances or contributions for or in aid of the planning, acquisition,construction, reconstruction, improvement, extension, enlargement, repair,equipment, maintenance or operation of any water or sewerage system or systems,to agree to such reasonable conditions or requirements as may be imposed, andto receive and accept contributions from any source of either money, property,labor or other things of value, to be held, used and applied only for thepurposes of which such loans, grants, advances or contributions may be made;
(14) To negotiate and pay close‑out costs involved in theacquisition or lease of existing water supply or sewerage systems;
(15) To determine the extent to which local water distributionsystem and local sewerage system improvements will be financed out of districtrevenues and to contract with other political subdivisions for construction offacilities to be jointly financed and whose title would be vested in thedistrict;
(16) To lease from any city or town or any other municipalcorporation, or from any water or sewage district, any water or sewerage systemor portions thereof upon such terms and conditions and for such considerationsas may to the district board be deemed fair and reasonable;
(17) The metropolitan water district is authorized and empowered,through its district board, officers, agents and employees, to cause any userof water who shall fail to pay promptly his water rent or use bill for anymonth to be cut off, and his right to further use of water from said districtto be discontinued until payment of any water rent or use arrearages;
(18) To do all acts and things necessary or convenient to carryout the powers granted by this Article.
(b) (1) Eachmetropolitan water district shall publish an annual financial report and itsbooks shall be open for public inspection.
(2) Each district shall keep its accounts on the basis of afiscal year commencing on the first day of July and ending on the thirtieth dayof June of the following year.
(3) District revenues shall be used solely for the operation,improvement or benefit of the district's water and sewerage systems and theleasing of any portion thereof and to pay the principal and interest on bondsissued by the district. Said revenues shall not be used for the payment of interestor amortization of any utility bonds previously issued by any city, town orwater or sewerage district.
(4) A district may provide water to a city or county or portionthereof within the district for governmental purposes without charge or atreduced rates. (1971, c. 815, s.6; 1981, c. 919, s. 31.)