2000 State of Wyoming 00LSO-0078 SUBSTITUTE NO. 1
1
2 That Substitute No. 1 for HB0120 DO PASS. PASENEAUX, CHAIRMAN
HOUSE BILL NO. HB0120
Establishment of private roads.
Sponsored by: Joint Agriculture, Public Lands and Water
Resources Interim Committee
A BILL
for
1 AN ACT relating to roadways; providing procedures for access
2 to isolated land as specified; and providing for an
3 effective date.
4
5 Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Wyoming:
6
7 Section 1. W.S. 24-9-101 and 24-9-103 are amended to
8 read:
9
10 24-9-101. Petition; hearing; appointment of viewers
11 and appraisers; bond; rules.
12
13 (a) Any person whose land has no outlet to, nor
14 connection with a public road, may apply file an application
15 in writing to the board of county commissioners of his in
16 the county where the property is locatedfor a private road
17 leading from his premises to some convenient public road. If
18 the applicant has had an outlet and is now being denied
Page 1
1 access to his property, the board of county commissioners
2 may grant temporary access to the applicant until the
3 application has been processed and finalized. The board of
4 county commissioners shall review the application to
5 determine whether the application states that:
6
7 (i) The applicant is the owner of the real estate
8 described therein and the real estate is located within the
9 county;
10
11 (ii) The real estate is landlocked from all legal
12 access, other than a waterway, by being surrounded on all
13 sides by real estate belonging to another person or persons
14 or water;
15
16 (iii) The applicant after having made a good
17 faith effort is unable to purchase a right-of-way to a
18 public road;
19
20 (iv) The parcel being considered was not
21 landlocked at the time it was purchased by the applicant
22 after July 1, 2000; and
23
Page 2
1 (v) The landlocked status of the land was not
2 caused by the applicant or by any other person with the
3 knowledge and consent of the applicant.
4
5 (b) After reviewing the application, if the board
6 finds that the application is complete, the board shall hold
7 a hearing to determine whether the applicant has complied
8 with the law and that the private road is necessary. All
9 hearings under this statute shall be held in accordance with
10 the Wyoming Administrative Procedure Act, W.S. 16-3-101 et
11 seq. as it applies to a contested case.
12
13 (c) The board of county commissioners may require the
14 applicant to file with the board a bond of up to two
15 thousand five hundred dollars ($2,500.00) to pay for the
16 cost of hearing, viewers and other related costs.
17
18 (d) The board may also include other adjacent
19 landowners if the board believes that the best and most
20 appropriate roadway may lie through the land of a landowner
21 including the state of Wyoming not mentioned in the
22 application. The board shall give a thirty (30) day notice
23 of the pending hearing to all affected parties in reference
24 to the application for the establishment of the private
25 road. All parties interested may appear and be heard by the
Page 3
1 board as to the necessity of the road and all matters
2 pertaining thereto.
3
4 (e) At least sixty (60) days prior to applying to the
5 board any hearing, the applicant shall give notice in
6 writing by certified mailwith return receipt to the owner,
7 resident agent or occupant of all lands over which the
8 private road is applied for, of his intent to apply for a
9 private road. If the owner of the land is a nonresident, and
10 there is no resident agent upon which personal service can
11 be had, then the notice may be published once a week for
12 three (3) weeks in a newspaper published in the county. The
13 last publication shall be at least thirty (30) days before
14 the hearing of the application. At the hearing, all parties
15 interested may appear and be heard by the board as to the
16 necessity of the road and all matters pertaining thereto.
17 Upon the hearing of the application, whether the owner or
18 others interested appear or not if the board finds that the
19 applicant has complied with the law and that the private
20 road is necessary After the completion of the hearing, the
21 board shall appoint three (3) disinterested freeholders and
22 electors of the county, as viewers and appraisers., and
23 Before entering upon their duties the viewers shall take and
24 subscribe to an oath that they will faithfully and
25 impartially perform their duties under their appointment as
Page 4
1 viewers and appraisers.The board shall cause an order to be
2 issued directing them to meet on a day named in the order on
3 the proposed road, and view and locate a private road
4 according to the application therefor, and to assess damages
5 to be sustained thereby. If for any reason the viewers and
6 appraisers are unable to meet at the time set by the board
7 to view the proposed road, they may fix some other date, but
8 shall give notice in writing to the owner, resident agent or
9 occupant of the lands over which the road is proposed to be
10 laidappraise any damages and make a recommendation to the
11 board. Prior to meeting on-site to view the proposed road,
12 the viewers shall give notice in writing to the applicant,
13 all affected landowners and resident agents or occupants of
14 the lands through which the road is proposed of the time and
15 place where the viewers will meet, at least ten (10) days
16 before viewing the road, at which time and place all persons
17 interested may appear and be heard by the viewers. Before
18 entering upon their duties the viewers shall take and
19 subscribe to an oath that they will faithfully and
20 impartially perform their duties under their appointment as
21 viewers and appraisers.The viewers shall then proceed to
22 locate and mark out a private road in accordance with the
23 application or in such other manner and locationand, if
24 applicable,alternative routes as they deem appropriate,
25 provided the location of the road shall not be marked out to
Page 5
1 cross the lands of any person whose lands were not described
2 in the application and who was not given notice of the
3 application. The viewers shall determine the most reasonable
4 and convenient route. The proposed road shall not exceed
5 thirty (30) feet in width from a certain point on the
6 premises of the applicant to some certain point on the
7 public road, and shall be located so as to do the least
8 possible damage to the lands through which the private road
9 is located. The viewers shall also at the same time assess
10 simultaneously appraisethe damages sustained by the owner
11 over which the road is to be established and make full and
12 true returns, with a plat of the road to the board of county
13 commissioners. The viewers and appraisers shall also
14 determine whether or not any gates or cattleguards shall be
15 placed at the proper points on the road, and appraise
16 damages in accordance with that determination.
17
18 (f) When the viewers appraise the damages to be
19 suffered by the owner or owners of the real estate through
20 which the access shall be provided, they shall determine the
21 value of the property before and after the road is in place.
22
23 (g) The board of county commissioners shall enforce
24 the provisions of this article in accordance with the
25 Wyoming Administrative Procedure Act, W.S. 16-3-101 et seq.,
Page 6
1 and shall adopt such rules and regulations as necessary to
2 implement the provisions of and to insure compliance with
3 the intent and purposes of this article.
4
5 24-9-103. Report of viewers and appraisers;
6 confirmation by commissioners; appeal.
7
8 (a) The viewers and appraisers so appointed, or a
9 majority of them, shall make a report of their
10 recommendations to the county commissioners at the next
11 regular session, of the private road so located by them, and
12 also the amount of damages, if any, assessed appraised by
13 them, and the person or persons entitled to such damages.,
14 and if the commissioners are satisfied that such report is
15 just, andUpon receiving the report of the viewers and
16 appraisers, the board of county commissioners shall hold a
17 hearing at which time the interested parties may present
18 their case. The board may either accept or amend the report.
19 The board in its sole discretion shall select the most
20 reasonable and convenient route for the access, provided
21 that access shall be along section and boundary lines
22 whenever practical. The board may place conditions on the
23 road as the board deems necessary, including provisions for
24 maintenance and limitations on the amount and type of use.
25 After payment by the applicant of all cost of locating such
Page 7
1 the road, and the damages assessed, by the viewers, the
2 commissioners shall issue an order such report to be
3 confirmed and declare such declaring the road to be a
4 private road, and the same plat and any conditions imposed
5 by the board shall be recorded as such in the county clerk's
6 office. Any person aggrieved by the action of the board or
7 as to the amount of damages awarded, may appeal to the
8 district court at any time within thirty (30) days after
9 said the road is finally established by said the board of
10 county commissioners.
11
12 (b) In addition to paying the damages to be suffered
13 by the owner or owners of the real estate through which the
14 access shall be provided, the applicant shall be responsible
15 for obtaining any necessary engineers and contractors to
16 construct the road, and for paying any engineering and
17 construction costs incurred with the construction of the
18 road.
19
20 (c) If the proposed private road is located in two (2)
21 or more counties, or if all parties and the board of county
22 commissioners so stipulate, the applicant may bring an
23 action in district court in the county where any of the
24 affected real estate is located. The court shall make the
Page 8
1 same determinations as the board of county commissioners as
2 provided by this article.
3
4 Section 2. W.S. 24-9-102 is repealed.
5
6 Section 3. This act is effective July 1, 2000.
7
8 (END)
Page 9