| 39 | | - | [ county roads - domestic animals - exemption - open |
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| 40 | | - | range road designation - construction - appeal - |
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| 41 | | - | liability - codification - effective date ] |
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| 63 | + | AS INTRODUCED |
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| 64 | + | |
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| 65 | + | An Act relating to county roads; amending 4 O.S. |
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| 66 | + | 2021, Section 99, which relates to the enclosure of |
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| 67 | + | domestic animals; providing certain exemption; |
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| 68 | + | defining term; allowing for open range road |
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| 69 | + | designation; creating certain process for open range |
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| 70 | + | road designation; requiring certain construction; |
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| 71 | + | providing for appeal to district court; allowing for |
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| 72 | + | the removal of open range road designati on; exempting |
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| 73 | + | certain individuals from certain liability; creating |
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| 74 | + | certain process for removal of open range road |
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| 75 | + | designation; requiring removal of certain |
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| 76 | + | construction; providing for appeal to district court; |
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| 77 | + | providing for codification; and providing an |
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| 78 | + | effective date. |
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| 79 | + | |
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| 42 | 80 | | |
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| 43 | 81 | | |
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| 44 | 82 | | |
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| 45 | 83 | | BE IT ENACTED BY THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF OKLAHOMA: |
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| 46 | 84 | | SECTION 1. AMENDATORY 4 O.S. 2021, Section 9 9, is |
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| 47 | 85 | | amended to read as follows: |
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| 48 | 86 | | Section 99. A. Any person who: |
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| 49 | 87 | | 1. Willfully omits to keep a domestic ani mal such person owns |
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| 50 | 88 | | or has charge of within a suita ble enclosure; |
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| 51 | 89 | | 2. Allows the animal to be unrestrained or to run at large, |
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| 52 | 90 | | with notice, actual or constructive, that the enclosure within which |
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| 53 | 91 | | the animal is kept is open; or |
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| 86 | 148 | | B. The provisions of this s ection shall not be construed as |
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| 87 | 149 | | applying to domestic animals that are on a county road designated as |
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| 88 | 150 | | an open range road as provided for in Section 2 of t his act. |
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| 89 | 151 | | C. For the purpose of this act, the term “domestic animals” |
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| 90 | 152 | | shall not include domestic house pets. |
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| 91 | 153 | | SECTION 2. NEW LAW A new section of law to be codified |
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| 92 | 154 | | in the Oklahoma Statutes as Section 646.1 of Title 69, unless there |
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| 93 | 155 | | is created a duplicatio n in numbering, reads as follows: |
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| 94 | 156 | | As used in this act, an “open range road” means a road |
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| 95 | 157 | | maintained by the county that does not require livestock to be |
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| 96 | 158 | | fenced out of the roadway. |
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| 97 | 159 | | SECTION 3. NEW LAW A new section of law to be codifie d |
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| 98 | 160 | | in the Oklahoma Statutes as Section 646.2 of Title 69, unless there |
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| 99 | 161 | | is created a duplication in numbering, reads as follows: |
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| 100 | 162 | | A. The board of county commissioners of a county may designate |
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| 101 | 163 | | a public road, as defined in Section 23 2 of Title 69 of the Oklahoma |
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| 102 | 164 | | Statutes, as an open range road according to the following |
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| 103 | 165 | | procedure: |
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| 137 | 223 | | located belongs to the property owner reque sting such designation . |
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| 138 | 224 | | If the petition is in proper form, the board of county commissioners |
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| 139 | 225 | | shall promptly investigate the proposa l to attest that according to |
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| 140 | 226 | | its records the road in question is within its jurisdiction and is |
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| 141 | 227 | | considered to be open for use by the general public, through grant |
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| 142 | 228 | | or ownership, by easement or dedication, by adverse possession, or |
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| 143 | 229 | | by open and notorious use, regardless of the frequency of |
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| 144 | 230 | | maintenance or lack thereof . If the board of county commissioners |
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| 145 | 231 | | determines that such road is not open for use by the general public, |
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| 146 | 232 | | or the petition was not in proper form, th e board shall have grounds |
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| 147 | 233 | | to dismiss the request; |
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| 148 | 234 | | 3. If the petition is in proper form, and the board of county |
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| 149 | 235 | | commissioners attests that such road in question is open for use by |
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| 150 | 236 | | the general public, the board shall set a hearing date. The |
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| 151 | 237 | | petitioner requesting such action, under the direction of the count y |
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| 152 | 238 | | clerk, shall then notify those landowners whose property is |
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| 153 | 239 | | immediately affected by the road by providing ingress or egress to |
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| 188 | 298 | | to the hearing date. The notice shall be paid for by the petitioner |
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| 189 | 299 | | requesting such action, under the direction of the county clerk. A |
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| 190 | 300 | | record of all such proceedings shall be made by t he county clerk. |
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| 191 | 301 | | B. In considering the proposal to designate a n open range road, |
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| 192 | 302 | | the board of county commissioners shall hear testimony provided by |
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| 193 | 303 | | the petitioner and others who may testify at the hearing as t o |
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| 194 | 304 | | whether the road should be so designated. Upon a decision by the |
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| 195 | 305 | | board of county commissioners to designate an open range road, a |
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| 196 | 306 | | cattle guard that meets industry -accepted standards shall be |
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| 197 | 307 | | installed at the access points of the road, the installation cost of |
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| 198 | 308 | | which shall be paid for by the petitioner. The board of county |
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| 199 | 309 | | commissioners shall pay for and erect at the access points of such |
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| 200 | 310 | | road signage clearly indicating that such roadway is an open range |
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| 201 | 311 | | road. |
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| 202 | 312 | | C. If the board of county commissioners should deny such |
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| 203 | 313 | | designation, the petitioner taking such action may appeal such |
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| 204 | 314 | | decision to the district court , conditioned that the appellant will |
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| 205 | | - | prosecute his or her appeal without delay. The appeal shall be |
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| 206 | | - | taken within ten (10) d ays after the board of county comm issioners |
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| 207 | | - | makes such determination , by serving a written notice to the county |
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| 208 | | - | clerk, which notice shall set out in detail, in numbered paragraphs, |
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| 209 | | - | the grounds on which the appellant will rely on the appeal . A copy |
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| 210 | | - | of the notice, together with a certified transcript of the |
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| 211 | | - | proceedings, shall be immediately transmitted by the county clerk to |
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| 366 | + | prosecute his or her appeal without delay. The appeal shall be |
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| 367 | + | taken within ten (10) days after the board of county commissioners |
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| 368 | + | makes such determination , by serving a written notice to the county |
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| 369 | + | clerk, which notice shall set out in detail, in numbered paragraphs, |
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| 370 | + | the grounds on which the appellant will rely on the appeal . A copy |
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| 371 | + | of the notice, together with a certified transcript of the |
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| 372 | + | proceedings, shall be immediately transmitted by the county clerk to |
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| 239 | 373 | | the clerk of the district court, who shall docket it as other cases |
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| 240 | 374 | | and set the same for speedy trial. |
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| 241 | 375 | | D. Neither the property owner nor the owner of livestock that |
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| 242 | 376 | | are on a property where such o pen range road is located are liable |
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| 243 | 377 | | for damages to any motor vehicle or occupants thereof caused by |
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| 244 | 378 | | collision with livestock on a designated open range road. |
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| 245 | 379 | | SECTION 4. NEW LAW A new section of law to be codified |
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| 246 | 380 | | in the Oklahoma Statutes as Section 646.3 of Title 69, unless there |
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| 247 | 381 | | is created a duplication in numbering, reads as follows: |
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| 248 | 382 | | A. The board of county commissioners may remove the designation |
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| 249 | 383 | | of a public road as an open range road according to the following |
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| 250 | 384 | | procedure: |
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| 251 | 385 | | 1. A proposal for such removal shall be upon a petition to the |
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| 252 | 386 | | board of county comm issioners by at least fifty percent (50%) of |
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| 253 | 387 | | landowners whose property is immediately affected by the road by |
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| 254 | 388 | | providing ingress or egress to their propert y to the board of county |
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| 255 | 389 | | commissioners; |
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| 290 | 448 | | considered to be open for use by the general public, through grant |
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| 291 | 449 | | or ownership, by easement or dedication, by adverse possession, or |
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| 292 | 450 | | by open and notorious use, regardless of the frequency of |
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| 293 | 451 | | maintenance or lack thereo f. Additionally, the board shall |
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| 294 | 452 | | determine that such road has been designated as an open range road. |
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| 295 | 453 | | If the board of county commissioners determines that such road is |
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| 296 | 454 | | not open for use by the general public , was not designated as an |
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| 297 | 455 | | open range road, or the petition was not in proper for m, the board |
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| 298 | 456 | | shall have grounds to dismiss the request ; |
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| 299 | 457 | | 3. If the petition is in proper form, and the board of county |
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| 300 | 458 | | commissioners attests that such road in question is open for use by |
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| 301 | 459 | | the general public and was previously designated as an open range |
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| 302 | 460 | | road, the board of county commissioners shall set a hearing date. |
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| 303 | 461 | | The petitioners requesting such action, under the direction of the |
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| 304 | 462 | | county clerk, shall then notify those landowners whose property is |
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| 305 | 463 | | immediately affected by th e road by providing ingress or egress to |
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| 306 | 464 | | their property and who are not part of the petition, as well as the |
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| 341 | 523 | | for three (3) consecutive weeks at least twenty -one (21) days prior |
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| 342 | 524 | | to the hearing date. The notice shall be paid for by the |
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| 343 | 525 | | petitioners requesting such action , under the direction of the |
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| 344 | 526 | | county clerk. A record of all such proceed ings shall be made by the |
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| 345 | 527 | | county clerk. |
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| 346 | 528 | | B. In considering the proposal to remove a public road from |
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| 347 | 529 | | designation as an open range road, the board of county commissioners |
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| 348 | 530 | | shall hear testimony provided by the petitioners and others who may |
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| 349 | 531 | | testify at the hearing as to whether the designation of the road |
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| 350 | 532 | | should be so removed. Upon a decision by the board of county |
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| 351 | 533 | | commissioners to remove the designation of a public road as a n open |
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| 352 | 534 | | range road, the board shall require that any installed cattle guards |
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| 353 | 535 | | be removed, the removal cost of which shall be paid for by the |
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| 354 | 536 | | petitioners. Additionally, the board of county commissioners shall |
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| 355 | 537 | | pay for the removal of any road signage that indicates that such |
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| 356 | 538 | | roadway was an open range road. |
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| 357 | | - | C. If the board of county commissioners should deny such |
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| 358 | | - | removal of designation, the petitioners taking such action may |
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| 359 | | - | appeal such decision to the district court , conditioned that the |
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| 360 | | - | appellants will prosecute their appeal without delay. The appeal |
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| 361 | | - | shall be taken within ten (10) days after the board of county |
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| 362 | | - | commissioners makes su ch determination, by serving a written notice |
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| 363 | | - | to the county clerk, which notice shall set out in detail, in |
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| 364 | | - | numbered paragraphs, the grounds on which the appellant will rely on |
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| 590 | + | C. If the board of county commissione rs should deny such |
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| 591 | + | removal of designation , the petitioners taking such action may |
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| 592 | + | appeal such decision to the district court , conditioned that the |
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| 593 | + | appellants will prosecute their appeal without delay. The appeal |
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| 594 | + | shall be taken within ten (10) days after the board of county |
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| 595 | + | commissioners makes such determination , by serving a writte n notice |
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| 596 | + | to the county clerk, which notice shall set out in detail, in |
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| 597 | + | numbered paragraphs, the grounds on which the appellant will rely on |
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