(a) Submission requirements.

(1)  The applicant shall submit to the administrative officer the items required by the local regulations for the final plan, as well as all material required by the planning board when the application was given preliminary approval.

(2)  Arrangements for completion of the required public improvements, including construction schedule and/or financial guarantees.

(3)  Certification by the tax collector that all property taxes are current.

(4)  For phased projects, the final plan for phases following the first phase, shall be accompanied by copies of as-built drawings not previously submitted of all existing public improvements for prior phases.

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(b) Certification.  The application for final plan approval shall be certified complete or incomplete by the administrative officer in writing, within twenty-five (25) days, according to the provisions of § 45-23-36(b). This time period may be extended to forty-five (45) days by written notice from the administrative officer to the applicant where the final plans contain changes to or elements not included in the preliminary plan approval. The running of the time period set forth herein shall be deemed stopped upon the issuance of a certificate of incompleteness of the application by the administrative officer and shall recommence upon the resubmission of a corrected application by the applicant. However, in no event shall the administrative officer be required to certify a corrected submission as complete or incomplete less than fourteen (14) days after its resubmission. If the administrative officer certifies the application as complete and does not require submission to the planning board as per subsection (c) below, the final plan shall be considered approved.

(c) Referral to the planning board.  If the administrative officer determines that an application for final approval does not meet the requirements set by local regulations or by the planning board at preliminary approval, the administrative officer shall refer the final plans to the planning board for review. The planning board shall, within forty-five (45) days after the certification of completeness, or within a further amount of time that may be consented to by the applicant, approve or deny the final plan as submitted.

(d) Failure to act.  Failure of the planning board to act within the prescribed period constitutes approval of the final plan and a certificate of the administrative officer as to the failure of the planning board to act within the required time and the resulting approval shall be issued on request of the applicant.

(e) Expiration of approval.  The final approval of a major subdivision or land development project expires one year from the date of approval with the right to extend for one year upon written request by the applicant, who must appear before the planning board for the annual review, unless, within that period, the plat or plan has been submitted for signature and recording as specified in § 45-23-64. Thereafter, the planning board may, for good cause shown, extend the period for recording for an additional period.

(f) Acceptance of public improvements.  Signature and recording as specified in § 45-23-64 constitute the acceptance by the municipality of any street or other public improvement or other land intended for dedication. Final plan approval shall not impose any duty upon the municipality to maintain or improve those dedicated areas until the governing body of the municipality accepts the completed public improvements as constructed in compliance with the final plans.

(g) Validity of recorded plans.  The approved final plan, once recorded, remains valid as the approved plan for the site unless and until an amendment to the plan is approved under the procedure stated in § 45-23-65, or a new plan is approved by the planning board.