[HISTORY: Adopted by the Village Board of the Village of
Benton as indicated in article histories. Amendments noted where applicable.]
[Adopted as Title 3, Ch. 4, Sec. 3-4-1, of the Benton Code
of Ordinances]
As used in this article, the following terms shall have the
meanings indicated:
Shall not include land or buildings but shall include fixtures
and such salvage as may be taken from a building without structural
damage when such fixtures and salvage are not part of a demolition
contract. Surplus Village property shall not include property which
is obtained by the Village as a result of abandonment or loss by the
property's original owner. Surplus Village property shall not
include items of property which are traded in for newer items.
Property which is owned by the Village of Benton and which
has no further usefulness to the Village. An item of property shall
be considered to have no further usefulness when:
The item or its function has been totally replaced by other
Village property and no probable future function exists for it; or
The Village no longer performs the service for which the item
was purchased and no other service can reasonably be provided by the
item; or
The item is no longer able to reliably or economically perform
the work required of it.
Whenever an item of Village property is determined to be surplus
Village property on the basis that the Village no longer performs
the service for which the item was purchased, or whenever the fair
market value of the item is more than $5,000, the Village Board shall
determine whether or not the item is surplus Village property.
A.
Whenever the Village Board determines that an item of property is
surplus Village property, it shall dispose of such property as it
determines.
B.
Whenever the fair market value of an item is more than $500 and the
Village Board has determined, pursuant to the previous subsection,
that the item is surplus Village property, the appropriate committee
responsible for the items shall dispose of the property by:
C.
In the event of a public auction or sale by sealed bid, the item
will be sold in as-is condition to the person submitting the highest
bid; provided, however, that a lower bid submitted by a nonprofit
organization or governmental agency may be accepted by the Village
Board. The committee responsible for the item shall determine the
time in which the successful bidder must remove the item. In the event
the item is not removed within that time, the item shall revert to
the Village and the amount of the bid shall be forfeited to the Village.
In the event no bids are received, the item shall be disposed of as
directed by the Village Board.
D.
No public auction or awarding of bids shall occur under this article
unless a description of the item to be sold and an advance notice
of the time and place for such auction or bid submission is first
published as a Class 1 notice in the official Village newspaper.
E.
Whenever the fair market value of an item is $500 or less and the Village Board has determined, pursuant to the previous section, that it is surplus Village property, the item shall be either disposed of as set forth in Subsection B above or destroyed.
F.
The Village has the right to accept or reject any bids received.
Whenever this article requires a determination of the fair market
value of an item of property, that determination shall be made by
the committee responsible for the property, whose decision shall be
final.
A.
Except for library materials used by the public library for lending
purposes, only the Village Board may dispose of Village property which
is not surplus Village property.
B.
Whenever this section provides for an auction or other disposition
of any property, the Village Board shall be authorized to hire an
auctioneer or take such other action as is necessary to properly dispose
of the property; provided, however, that the fees of such auctioneer
and all such costs, other than those for Village labor and the use
of Village property, do not exceed the payment received by the Village
from the auction or sale of the property.
[Adopted as Title 3, Ch. 4, Sec. 3-4-2, of the Benton Code
of Ordinances]
A.
Property which appears to be lost or abandoned, discovered by officers
or turned in to the Chief of Police/Officer in Charge by citizens
shall be disposed of according to this section.
B.
Lost and abandoned property will be examined by the Chief of Police/Officer
in Charge for identifying marks in an attempt to determine the owner.
If identifying marks are present, they shall be used by the Chief
of Police/Officer in Charge to attempt to contact the owner to return
the property. If no identifying marks are present, the property shall
be taken into custody by the Chief of Police/Officer in Charge.
C.
No Village employee shall keep for his or her own use property found
in the course of duty, nor take possession of property during off-duty
hours when the discovery was made while on duty.
D.
The Chief of Police/Officer in Charge shall permit citizens to claim
lost property if they can provide sufficient proof that they are rightful
owners.
E.
No Village employee shall receive any lost, stolen, abandoned or
other unclaimed property from the Chief of Police/Officer in Charge,
unless that person receives a written receipt signed by the Chief
of Police/Officer in Charge, a copy of which shall remain with the
Village Clerk-Treasurer.
A.
Classes of property. All property which has been abandoned, lost
or remained unclaimed for a period of 30 days after the taking of
possession of the same by the Village shall be disposed of as follows,
except that if the property is usable for Village operations, the
property need not be sold at auction, but may become the property
of the Village.
(1)
Vehicles. Vehicles shall be disposed of as set forth in the applicable provisions of Chapter 315, Vehicles, Abandoned, of the Code of the Village of Benton.
(2)
Intoxicating liquor and fermented malt beverages. Intoxicating liquor
and fermented malt beverages shall be destroyed.
(3)
Firearms, ammunition and explosives. Firearms or ammunition shall
be returned to their rightful owner, destroyed, or transferred to
the State Crime Laboratory, the Division of Law Enforcement Services
of the Department of Justice, the Federal Bureau of Investigation
or the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives of the
United States Department of Justice. Any explosive, flammable, or
other material proving a danger to life or property may be disposed
of immediately upon taking possession thereof. The Chief of Police/Officer
in Charge and the Fire Chief, after consulting with the County Sheriff's
Department, are hereby authorized to determine the disposal procedure;
provided, however, that any such procedure will attempt to return
to its rightful owner any such material which appears to have been
stolen.[1]
(4)
Other property with a fair market value of $100 or less. An item
of property with a fair market value of $100 or less shall be destroyed
or sold at public auction. Perishable property which deteriorates
to a fair market value of less than $100 shall be destroyed.
(5)
Other property with a fair market value of over $100. An item of
property with a fair market value of more than $100 shall be sold
at public auction or by sealed bid.
(6)
Illegal property. Property which cannot be legally possessed shall
be destroyed.
B.
Disposal by auction or sealed bid.
(1)
Whenever any property under this section is sold by public auction
or sale or by sealed bid, such auction or the awarding of bids shall
be preceded by a Class 1 notice describing the property and arranging
the time and place for the auction or bid submission; such notice
shall be published in the official Village newspaper. The property
auctioned or sold by sealed bid shall be sold in as-is condition to
the highest bidder. No sale or auction shall occur until the Chief
of Police/Officer in Charge has determined that the property has no
value to any probable investigation or legal proceeding. The department
head responsible for the property shall determine the time in which
the successful bidder shall remove the property. In the event the
property is not removed within that time, the property shall revert
to the Village and the amount of the bid be forfeited to the Village.
(2)
Any Village official selling property under this section shall maintain
for two years an inventory of any property not disposed of by auction
or sale by sealed bid and shall include a record of the date and method
of disposal, any payment received for the property, and the name and
address of the person acquiring the property.
C.
Lost property. Property which is found by persons and delivered to
the Chief of Police/Officer in Charge for the purpose of locating
the former owner shall not be considered abandoned or unclaimed under
this section until 30 days after mailing to the person finding the
property a notice that he may claim ownership of said property. The
Chief of Police/Officer in Charge shall determine what portion, if
any, of the property or its value shall be given to the finder. This
provision shall not apply to any Village employee finding property
in the regular course of his or her employment.
D.
Payment to Village treasury. All sums received from the sale of property
under this section shall be paid to the Village treasury.
