SECTION 1. (a) Notwithstanding any general or special law to the contrary, there shall be a sewer district in the town of East Bridgewater called the East Bridgewater town center sewer district. The district shall include the land and buildings located in the town center section of the town shown on assessors map 51 as parcels 1,13,15,16,23,25,26,29,37 and 45 and on assessors map 61 as parcels 3,4,14,122 and 137. The land and buildings shall be served by the East Bridgewater high school sewer treatment facility. The area contained in the district may be expanded by a vote of the board of selectmen and approval by town meeting.

(b) The board of selectmen of the town of East Bridgewater shall serve as the board of sewer commissioners. The board shall have all the powers and responsibilities of a sewer commission under section 4 of chapter 40N for the East Bridgewater town center sewer district and may adopt rules and regulations for access and use of the sewer system. The board shall establish connection fees, use fees and other charges that shall be paid by every person who connects into the district; provided, however, that the fees shall be reasonably related to the capital and operational costs of the sewer system. The director of public works of the town of East Bridgewater, appointed pursuant to chapter 178 of the acts of 2005, shall have the powers and responsibilities of a superintendent of the sewer department pursuant to section 69 of chapter 41 of the General Laws.

(c) The board of selectmen of the town of East Bridgewater shall have sole discretion to determine which property owners may connect to the East Bridgewater town sewer district and the amount of wastewater treatment capacity allocated to each user of the system. An application for a connection to the district shall be reviewed by a representative of the board of health, a representative of the planning board and the director of the department of public works or the director’s designee, who shall make a recommendation to the board regarding the application. In making the recommendation, the representative and director or designee shall consider the overall economic benefit afforded by approval of the application, the amount of available wastewater treatment capacity and other factors that the representatives and director or designee shall deem appropriate.

SECTION 2. This act shall take effect upon its passage.