a tax shall be levied upon all property, assets, and franchises of such company in the city for the payment thereof. Such tax shall constitute a first lien upon all property, assets, and franchises of all kinds whatsoever, of such company within the corporate limits of the city, and shall be due and payable at the same time and in the same manner, and shall bear like interest as the taxes assessed against the abutting property. Such railway company shall have the right to construct its own part of such proposed improvement, and if it shall do so, no tax shall be assessed against such company: Provided, however, that such company shall before the letting of the contract for such improvement elect by written request presented to the Common Council or said Board of Commissioners, to construct its part of such improvement, and shall execute a bond to the city with good and sufficient surety, to be approved by the mayor, conditioned that it will do the work of improving such part of the street with such material and according to such plans and specifications, and within such time and subject to such provisions as the ordinance therefor may prescribe. The city may pay the cost of the improvement of intersections with other public ways, including one-half of the width of the street or alley being improved, opposite other streets or alleys which run into but do not cross the street or alley so being improved, and of that proportion of any street abutting upon property belonging to the city, or it may assess the cost thereof against the property abutting on the street or way or part thereof ordered improved. If any property abutting on the improvement be owned by any county, it shall pay in cash such portion of the tax as may be assessed against it, and the same right of action for the collection of such tax shall lie

against the county as lies against any abutting owner. The city auditor shall keep in his office in a book to be provided for that purpose, a record of all assessments of local taxes as provided in this section, showing the name and portion of the street on which the improvement is made, the character of the improvement and the names of the persons against whose property the assessments are made. Such record shall be subject to inspection by any person desiring to inspect the same, and shall be conclusive. evidence of notice to all persons of such assessments and the lien created thereby. Upon payment of any improvement tax to the treasurer he will report the same to the auditor who will make proper entry thereof in the record book herein provided for whereupon the lien for such tax shall stand released. All local taxes paid into the city treasury shall, from time to time, be paid over to the contractor or other person entitled thereto, upon order of the Common Council, or Board of Commissioners. The auditor shall carefully keep a separate account of the funds arising from assessments for each particular improvement, and no proceeds arising from assessments for one improvement shall be diverted to the payment for any other improvement whatever. The proceeds shall in each case constitute a separate special fund for the payment of the contractor for the particular work for which the assessment is made or for the security and payment of improvement bonds, if any are issued as provided in section three thousand four hundred and fifty-nine for such improvement. The Common Council, or said Board of Commissioners of any city of the third class, may provide by general ordinance that such city shall pay part, and if so, what part of the cost of the improvement of the streets, alleys, or other public ways

Acts-2.

(excluding sidewalks) of such city. When such provision is made, it shall be uniform and shall thereafter apply to the improvement of all streets, alleys and public ways in the city (excluding sidewalks), and such general provision shall not thereafter be changed or repealed except at intervals of ten years

or more.

$ 3. That section three thousand four hundred and fifty-three of the Kentucky Statutes be, and the same is, amended and re-enacted to read as follows: Section three thousand four hundred and fifty-three. Before the Common Council, or the Board of Commissioners in cities which have adopted or may adopt the commission form of government, shall order the improvement of any street, alley, public way or sidewalk, as provided in section three thousand four hundred and fifty, it shall adopt a resolution designating the street or public way or sidewalk proposed to be improved, setting out in general terms the character and extent of the proposed improvement and declaring such improvement to be a necessity. Such resolution shall be published in one or more issues of a newspaper of general circulation published in such city at least thirty days before the ordinance ordering such improvement shall pass the Common Council, or said Board of Commissioner. At any time prior to the final passage of the ordinance ordering the improvement, the owners of more than fifty per cent. of the abutting property may file a written petition designating the materials to be used in the construction of that part of the improvement for the cost of which the abutting property would be liable or may file a written protest against the improvement. Such petition or protest shall be filed with the mayor and he shall trasmit the same to the Common Council, or said

Board of Commissioners, at its next meeting after he receives the same. Should such petition be filed as above provided, the improvement of that part of the street for the cost of which the abutting property is liable shall not be made with any other material than that designated in the petition unless the ordinance therefor be past by a two-third vote of the members elect of the Common Council, or of said Board of Commissioners. Should a written protest be filed against said improvement as above provided, the improvement shall not be made unless the ordinance therefor be passed by a two-third vote of the members elect of the Common Council, or said Board of Commissioners.

4. That section three thousand four hundred and fifty-four of the Kentucky Statutes be, and the same is, amended and re-enacted to read as follows: Section three thousand four hundred and fifty-four. Subject to the provisions of the preceding section, the Common Council, or the Board of Commissioners in cities which have adopted or may adopt the commission form of government shall have full power to determine what streets, alleys, public ways, or sidewalks (including curbing and guttering), or parts thereof shall be improved, the extent and character of the improvement, the kind of material or materials to be used, and the necessity for the improvement, and its determination shall be final. It shall have power to let contracts for the work, provided that no such contracts shall be let except upon competitive bidding to the lowest and best bidder, after advertisement for two consecutive weeks in a newspaper of general circulation published in said city. It may require cash deposits or other guarantee from bidders to insure compliance with their bids and forfeiture of same to the city in the event the

accepted bidder fails to comply with his bid. It may require bond of the contractor with surety for the performance of the work in accordance with his contract and a guarantee of the work for such time as the Common Council, or said Board of Commissioners, may require, and it shall have power to do all things necessary to the proper execution and carrying out of any such improvement whether specifically enumerated herein or not. The Common Council or said Board of Commissioners may prescribe one kind of material to be used in the improvement of that part of any street for the cost of which any railway company may be liable, and different material or materials for the improvement of the other portions of such street, and all courts will give a liberal construction to the rights and powers of the Common Council or said Board of Commissioners, under this act.

$ 5. That sections three thousand four hundred and fifty-five and three thousand four hundred and fifty-six of the Kentucky Statutes be, and the same are amended and re-enacted in one section to read as follows: Section three thousand four hundred and fifty-five. When any such improvement shall have been made and the contract therefor completed, the city engineer shall make a full and correct estimate of the total cost thereof, showing the total number of fronting or abutting feet of property, the cost per abutting foot, the names of the abutting property owners, the number of abutting feet of property owned by each person and the proportionate part of the cost of the improvement to be assessed against the property of each abutting property owner, the part payable by the city, if any, and the part payable by any street railway company, if any. One copy of this estimate shall be delivered by the city engineer