Maryland County Commissioners Section 169

      (a)      The board of county commissioners or the county council of the several counties of Maryland, and the Mayor and City Council of Baltimore City, shall have jurisdiction, power, and authority to establish public watershed associations in their respective counties or Baltimore City for the purpose of constructing, operating, maintaining, and carrying out works of improvement for watershed protection, flood prevention, recreation, soil conservation, drainage, and/or the conservation, development, storage, utilization, and disposal of water for all beneficial purposes in watershed or subwatershed areas, and the protection of areas subject to sediment or erosion damages, and to cooperate with local, county, State, and federal agencies; and it is hereby declared that such watershed protection, flood prevention, recreation, soil conservation, drainage and/or the conservation, development, storage, utilization, and disposal of water for all beneficial purposes is a public benefit and conducive to the public health, safety, and welfare.

      (b)      As used in this subtitle herein the term "county commissioners" shall mean the county commissioners of the county in which a petition for the establishment of a public watershed association is filed and such term shall include and be interchangeable with "County Council", and the "Mayor and City Council" and the term "county" shall include and be interchangeable with Baltimore City.

      (c)      As used in this subtitle the terms "watershed association" and "association" shall mean public watershed association.

      (d)      As used in this subtitle the term "landowner" and "owner of land" shall mean any person, firm, or corporation, who shall hold title to, or shall have contracted to purchase, land which shall be benefitted and/or damaged by the proposed works of improvement under consideration within a public watershed association organized or proposed to be organized under this subtitle.

      (e)      Notwithstanding any provision of law to the contrary, a unit of the State government or a unit of a local government that is a landowner or owner of land, as defined in subsection (d) of this section, is required to pay any fee, assessment, or tax levied under this subtitle if the fee, assessment, or tax is levied against all land which is similarly benefitted or damaged by the proposed works of improvement within a public watershed association organized under this subtitle.