(a) Wherever legal proceedings are commenced or are now pending against property owners who have failed to pay required assessments made against them in any bridge improvement district in this state and summons is or has been issued against the property owners, the circuit clerk issuing the summons shall be required to collect and account for the cost, fees, and the taxes now provided by law for each and every original summons so issued, whether the summons is against one (1) defendant or several defendants.
(b) As used in this section, “original summons” includes every summons issued by the clerk against one (1) defendant or several defendants in the proceedings, whether the summons is a duplicate summons issued for the officer to make his return for service upon, and includes the name of only one (1) or all defendants and whether issued concurrently or consecutively, provided that the original summons shall not be construed to include the copy to be left with the defendant or posted upon his property by the officer serving it.