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Show State of Ne^v Jersey is limited by its constitution to a debt of not more than 1 percent of the total amount appropriated by the general appropria- tion law for that fiscal year. This placed a limit, in 1950, of $1,500,000 upon the total State debt. When water supply conditions became serious in the northern industrial part of New Jersey, the State legislature authorized the formation of pub- lic water districts. The North Jersey District, formed of eight municipalities-Newark, Pater- son, Passaic., Clifton, Kearney, Montclair, Bloom- field, and Glen Ridge-had constructed works up to 1950 in the approximate cost of 31 million dollars. Each city meets its share of the debt obligations. Twenty municipalities receive all or part of their supply from the District's Wana- que Reservoir and related supply lines and pumping stations. The Hackensack Water Company, a private utility, serves 56 separately incorporated communities, of which 53 are in northern N~ew Jersey, and three in lower New York. The State of Pennsylvania, in 1935, adopted an authority act. By 1950, 71 waterworks had made use of this act, which permits the citizens of a single city or town or a group of such in- corporated or unincorporated areas to operate as self-liquidating utilities without financial obliga- tion to the preexisting units of Government. Such authorities may file liens for debts owed, and they have limited powers of eminent domain. They may issue revenue bonds but may not obli- gate municipalities. The act provides that life of an authority is limited to 50 years, and bond issues may not exceed 40 years. Authorities may engag-e in multiple-purpose activities and they have the power to assess benefited properties for the costs of improvements in proportion to the benefits received. The population of com- munities under the Pennsylvania authority act varies from. 700 to more than 100,000. The 65 authorities operating in 1947, 12 years after the act was passed, had 1,300,000 consumers and total assets of 100 million dollars. In other States there are laws providing for authorities or districts. The Washington Subur- ban Sanitary District in Maryland, adjacent to Washington, D.C, not only serves water to this rapidly growing area but also builds and operates sewers and sewage treatment works and collects and disposes of garbage. The 1918 act of the Maryland Legislature, by which it was estab- lished, has been modified from time to time as experience has dictated. In 1947, this sanitary district served an area of 95 square miles having a population of more than 200,000. The assets of the district are in excess of 29 million dollars. In California many water district, metropoli- tan, and authority acts have been passed from time to time by the State legislature. While these acts are general in character, they have been passed usually to fit the specific conditions under which a group of communities has sought to associate themselves in the procurement of an adequate water supply. The East Bay Municipality Utility District serving Oakland, Berkeley, and a large number of cities adjacent to San Francisco Bay, brings water from the Mokelumne River in the Sierras, a distance of more than 100 miles. It also con- structs and operates sewage disposal plants and can enter any public utility field. The San Diego County Water Authority is organized to dis- tribute water received from the Metropolitan Water District of Southern California, of which it is a part. The Metropolitan Water District of Southern California, organized under an act passed by the State legislature in 1928, was created to bring water from the Colorado River, a distance of more than 300 miles and with pump lift in excess of 1,600 feet, to supply Los Angeles and other cities and communities in the 2,500 square mile area along the 150-mile coast line from Los Angeles and Santa Monica to San Diego. This project is of special interest as it was made pos- sible by the Colorado River Compact of 1922 entered into by the seven Colorado River Basin States, and the construction of the Hoover Dam and power plant, authorized by the Boulder Can- yon Project Act, enacted by Congress in 1928. It was only as a result of the regulation of the Colorado River and the development of large quantities of low-cost hydro power by the Hoover Dam that the domestic water supply project was 182 |