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24-538: In the United States an irrigation district is a cooperative, self-governing public corporation set up as a subdivision of the State government, with definite geographic boundaries, organized, and having taxing power to obtain and distribute water for irrigation of lands within the district; created under the authority of a State legislature with the consent of a designated fraction of the landowners or citizens. It

48-459: A design-basis that is rooted in laws, including the local building code and fire code, which are enforced by the authority having jurisdiction . Buildings must be maintained in accordance with the current fire code, which is enforced by the fire prevention officers of a local fire department. In the event of fire emergencies, Firefighters , fire investigators, and other fire prevention personnel are called to mitigate, investigate and learn from

72-456: A governmental area or by their governmental representatives. Special districts possess some form of civil office , that is, the board has received a delegation of sovereign power from the state. Some boards may be appointed by only landowners. Private entities may appoint some or all of the members of a special district; however, there must be evidence of civil office. In addition to special districts with privately appointed boards,

96-426: A special district government, rather than as a subordinate agency, an entity must possess three attributes—existence as an organized entity, governmental character, and substantial autonomy. Each state description also lists various statutory authorities, commissions, corporations, and other forms of organizations that have certain governmental characteristics, but are subject by law to administrative or fiscal control by

120-451: A special district may have a privately founded board; however, such a board could not be given the power to set a tax. There is a citizen-government fiscal accountability relationship. To maintain accountability for special districts, states must maintain ultimate control (the power to repeal the authorizing law at any time). Due to public foundation and, thus, ultimate control, the state can freely delegate sovereign power (such as

144-485: Is a special-purpose district created by statute in order to develop large irrigation projects. These districts have the power to tax, borrow, and condemn. Special-purpose district The United States Census counts government units across all States. This includes "special districts". To count the special districts the Census must define the special districts so as to address all such governmental entities across

168-427: Is no standard definition for what this means quantifiably, though it always refers to the level response by the local authorities. In some cities, the numeric rating refers to the number of fire stations that have been summoned to the fire. In others, the number counts the number of "dispatches" for additional personnel and equipment. Fire protection in land-based buildings , offshore construction or on board ships

192-481: Is the study and practice of mitigating the unwanted effects of potentially destructive fires . It involves the study of the behaviour, compartmentalisation , suppression and investigation of fire and its related emergencies, as well as the research and development, production, testing and application of mitigating systems . In structures, be they land-based, offshore or even ships, the owners and operators are responsible to maintain their facilities in accordance with

216-405: Is typically achieved via all of the following: Passive fire protection (PFP) in the form of compartmentalisation was developed prior to the invention of or widespread use of active fire protection (AFP), mainly in the form of automatic fire sprinkler systems. During this time, PFP was the dominant mode of protection provided in facility designs. With the widespread installation of fire sprinklers in

240-453: The damage of a fire . When deciding on what fire protection is appropriate for any given situation, it is important to assess the types of fire hazards that may be faced. Some jurisdictions operate systems of classifying fires using code letters. Whilst these may agree on some classifications, they also vary. Below is a table showing the standard operated in Europe and Australia against

264-479: The AHJ to make sure that the change is still in compliance with the law to prevent any unsafe conditions that may violate the law and put people at risk. For example, if the firestop systems in a structure were inoperable, a significant part of the fire safety plan might be compromised in the event of a fire because the walls and floors that contain the firestops are intended to have a fire-resistance rating . Likewise, if

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288-606: The Incorporated Guardians of the Poor, which were created by special acts in the 17th century. Turnpike trusts were an early and popular special purpose authority in England. Internal drainage boards are current examples in parts of England and Wales. The state of Illinois leads the nation in the number of special districts with California close behind. State counts of their special districts may differ from

312-590: The United States are founded by some level of government in accordance with state law (either constitutional amendment, general law, or special acts) and exist in all states. Special districts are legally separate entities with at least some corporate powers. Districts are created by legislative action, court action, or public referendum . The procedures for creating a special district may include procedures such as petitions , hearings, voter or landowner approval, or government approval. Tribal governments may create special districts pursuant to state law and may serve on

336-538: The United States follow the English custom. The earliest known general law in England authorizing special purpose authorities was the Statute of Sewers of 1532. Single purpose authorities created by individual charters also existed at the time. However, the early authorities were temporary and unconnected to local government structure. The first laws authorizing permanent authorities connected to local governments were

360-1043: The board. The board of a special district serves primarily as a managing board and often appoints a chief executive for day-to-day operations and decision making and policy implementation. In the New England states, special districts are often run in the same town meeting fashion as other local governments. Most districts have employees, but some districts exist solely to raise funds by issuing bonds and/or by providing tax increment financing . Special districts perform many functions including airports , ports , highways , mass transit , parking facilities , fire protection , libraries , parks , cemeteries , hospitals , irrigation , conservation , sewerage , wastewater treatment , solid waste , fiber optic systems , stadiums , water supply , electric power , and natural gas utility . Special districts are authorized by state law and must have public foundation, civil office , and public accountability . Special districts in

384-403: The boards of special districts. Special districts, like all public entities, have public foundation. The landmark case of the U.S. Supreme Court addressing public versus private charters was Dartmouth College v. Woodward in 1819. Dartmouth established the fundamental differences between public and private organizations. Critically, a government must be founded by all of the people of

408-407: The broad spectrum of 50 states' definitions and interpretations. The Census's full definition is: Special district governments are independent, special purpose governmental units, other than school district governments, that exist as separate entities with substantial administrative and fiscal independence from general purpose local governments. As defined for Census Bureau statistics on governments,

432-421: The federal count because the states may have different definitions of a special district than the U.S. Census Bureau. All of the following examples have been found by the U.S. Census Bureau to be special districts. See the Census of Governments Government Organization publications at a depository library or visit https://www.census.gov and select Governments Division. Fire protection Fire protection

456-746: The less conspicuous tasks of mosquito abatement and upkeep of cemeteries. The Census Bureau classification of special district governments covers a wide variety of entities, most of which are officially called districts or authorities. Not all public agencies so termed, however, represent separate governments. Many entities that carry the designation "district" or "authority" are, by law, so closely related to county, municipal, town or township, or state governments that they are classified as subordinate agencies of those governments in Census Bureau statistics on governments, and are not counted as separate special district governments. In order to be classified as

480-500: The past 50 years, the reliance on PFP as the only approach was reduced. Fire protection within a structure relies on all of its components. The building is designed in compliance with the local building code and fire code by the architect and other consultants. A building permit is issued after review by the Authority Having Jurisdiction (AHJ) . Deviations from that original plan should be made known to

504-538: The power to tax) to special districts and can allow them to act autonomously with little supervision. There is little information available on the earliest special districts in the United States. It is known that park districts existed in the 18th century. Toll road and canal corporations existed in the 19th century. The first general statute authorizing irrigation districts was adopted by California in 1887. The U.S. Census Bureau began identifying and collecting data on special districts in 1942. Special districts in

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528-620: The state or by independent local governments; therefore, they are classified as subordinate agencies of those governments. Special districts serve limited areas and have governing boards that accomplish legislatively assigned functions using public funds . Each district is governed by a board of directors , commissioners , board of supervisors , or the like. These boards may be appointed by public officials , appointed by private entities, popularly elected, or elected by benefited citizens (typically, property owners). Sometimes, one or more public officials will serve as an ex officio member on

552-615: The system used in the United States . Technically there is no such thing as a "Class E" fire, as electricity itself does not burn. However, it is considered a dangerous and very deadly complication to a fire, therefore using the incorrect extinguishing method can result in serious injury or death. Class E, however generally refers to fires involving electricity, therefore a bracketed E, "(E)" denoted on various types of extinguishers. Fires are sometimes categorized as "one alarm", "two alarm", "three alarm" (or higher) fires. There

576-518: The term "special district governments" excludes school district governments as they are defined as a separate governmental type. Special district governments provide specific services that are not being supplied by existing general purpose governments. Most perform a single function, but in some instances, their enabling legislation allows them to provide several, usually related, types of services. The services provided by these districts range from such basic social needs as hospitals and fire protection, to

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