Senate Introduced Bill 855























SENATE BILL NO. 855


  January 28, 1998, Introduced by Senator STILLE and referred 
       to the Committee on Local, Urban and State Affairs.
     


        A bill to amend 1978 PA 34, entitled

   "An act to revise the laws relating to fences on certain lands
   and fence viewers; and to repeal certain acts and parts of acts,"

   by amending sections 4, 5, and 6 (MCL 43.54, 43.55, and 43.56).

               THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF MICHIGAN ENACT:

 1         Sec.  4.  (1) The township board in each township shall

 2    appoint not less than 1 resident of the township,  which
              WHO may

 3     include  BE A township  trustees 
             TRUSTEE, as a fence viewer.

 4    The person OR PERSONS appointed shall serve at the pleasure of

 5    the township board.  The governing body of a city or village

 6    shall appoint a fence viewer only  when required 
             under section

 7    6(2).

 8         (2) A person may engage a fence viewer upon written request

 9    and upon the payment of  $25.00 for each day that the
             services of

10     the fence viewer are needed  $50.00 to the TOWNSHIP
                       treasurer  of



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 1    the township  or to the CITY OR VILLAGE treasurer
              of the city or

 2     village  under section 6(2) FOR EACH DAY THAT THE
                       FENCE VIEWER'S

 3    SERVICES ARE NEEDED.  The fence viewer shall  inform
              NOTIFY in

 4    writing the person who made the request and the OWNER OR owners

 5    of the property to be viewed  at least  NOT LESS
             THAN 5 days  in

 6     advance of  BEFORE the date on which the fence
                        viewer's  VIEWER

 7    WILL RENDER HIS OR HER services.  shall be rendered.
              The fence

 8    viewer shall be compensated 80% OF the amount received by the

 9    TOWNSHIP treasurer OR CITY OR VILLAGE TREASURER UNDER SECTION

10    6(2) when the requested service has been performed.

11         Sec.  5.  (1) If engaged under section 4(2), a fence viewer

12    shall DO 1 OR MORE OF THE FOLLOWING:

13         (a) Determine  whether an adjoining  IF A
             property owner or

14    tenant  using the  IN POSSESSION OF property
              of the adjoining

15     property owner  is  in fact  using
                       a fence constructed or main-

16    tained by  a neighboring  AN ADJOINING property
             owner, and if so,

17    what  amount the adjoining property owner or tenant should
             con-

18     tribute to  PERCENTAGE OF THE COST OF construction
                       and mainte-

19    nance of the fence THE PROPERTY OWNER OR TENANT USING THE FENCE

20    IS RESPONSIBLE FOR.

21         (b) Assess the amount of damage  caused where 
             IF an animal

22    of a property owner or of a tenant  on the  IN
             POSSESSION OF

23    property  of the property owner  causes damage to
              the fence of

24     the  AN adjoining property  owner 
                       OWNER'S FENCE.

25         (2)  Within  NOT MORE THAN 7 days after a
             FENCE VIEWER

26    RENDERS A decision  is rendered  under subsection
             (1), the fence





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 1    viewer shall notify in writing the appropriate property owners or

 2    tenant of  the  THAT decision.

 3         (3) A fence viewer is not  responsible for the
              CHARGED WITH

 4    THE RESPONSIBILITY OF settling  of  boundary
             disputes OR DETER-

 5    MINING THE LOCATION OF A BOUNDARY.  BOUNDARY DETERMINATIONS SHALL

 6    USE A REGISTERED SURVEYOR'S FINDINGS, NOT AN EXISTING FENCE OR

 7    FENCE REMNANTS.

 8         (4) A person may appeal the decision of a fence viewer to a

 9    court of competent jurisdiction.

10         Sec. 6.  (1) If a dispute arises with regard to a fence

11     which  THAT is the boundary line between
             townships, or partly in

12    1 township and partly in another TOWNSHIP, 1 fence viewer from

13    each township  shall  MAY be selected to settle the
             dispute OR 1

14    FENCE VIEWER MAY BE SELECTED BY MUTUAL AGREEMENT OF EACH

15    TOWNSHIP.  IF NO APPRECIABLE DIFFERENCE IN BENEFIT IS DERIVED BY

16    EITHER TOWNSHIP, EACH TOWNSHIP IS RESPONSIBLE FOR THE COST OF

17    CONSTRUCTING AND MAINTAINING THAT PORTION OF THE FENCE THAT IS TO

18    THE RIGHT OF THE CENTER OF THE FENCE AS THE FENCE IS VIEWED FROM

19    THAT TOWNSHIP'S PROPERTY.

20         (2) If a dispute arises with regard to a fence  which
              THAT

21    is the boundary line between a township and a city or village, or

22    partly in 1 township and partly in a city or village, 1 fence

23    viewer from the township and 1 FENCE VIEWER FROM the city or vil-

24    lage  shall  MAY be selected to settle the dispute
             OR 1 FENCE

25    VIEWER MAY BE SELECTED BY MUTUAL AGREEMENT OF THE TOWNSHIP AND

26    THE CITY OR VILLAGE.  IF NO APPRECIABLE DIFFERENCE IN BENEFIT IS

27    DERIVED BY EITHER THE TOWNSHIP OR THE CITY OR VILLAGE, THE



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 1    TOWNSHIP AND THE CITY OR VILLAGE ARE RESPONSIBLE FOR THE COST OF

 2    CONSTRUCTING AND MAINTAINING THAT PORTION OF THE FENCE THAT IS TO

 3    THE RIGHT OF THE CENTER OF THE FENCE AS THE FENCE IS VIEWED FROM

 4    THE TOWNSHIP'S PROPERTY AND THE CITY'S OR VILLAGE'S PROPERTY.
















































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