Reference Title: city incorporation; urbanized area

AN ACT
AMENDING SECTIONS 9-101.01 AND 9-471, ARIZONA REVISED STATUTES; RELATING TO CITY INCORPORATION.

Be it enacted by the Legislature of the State of Arizona:

Section 1. Section 9-101.01, Arizona Revised Statutes, is amended to read:

9-101.01 . Incorporation, urbanized area

A. Notwithstanding any other provisions of law to the contrary, all territory within six miles of an incorporated city or town, as the same now exists or may hereafter be established, having a population of five thousand or more as shown by the most recent federal census, and all territory within three miles of any incorporated city or town, as the same now exists or may hereafter be established, having a population of less than five thousand as shown by the most recent federal census is declared to be an urbanized area.

B. No territory within an urbanized area shall hereafter be incorporated as a city or town, and the board of supervisors shall have no jurisdiction to take any action upon a petition to incorporate a city or town within such area, unless:

1. There is submitted with the petition for incorporation a resolution adopted by the city or town causing the urbanized area to exist approving the proposed incorporation; or

2. There is filed with the board of supervisors an affidavit stating that a proper and legal petition has been presented to the city or town causing the urbanized area to exist requesting annexation of the area proposed for incorporation and such petition has not been approved by a valid ordinance of annexation within one hundred twenty days of its presentation.

C. If such resolution or affidavit is filed with the board of supervisors, the board shall proceed with incorporation of the area.

D. Notwithstanding any other provisions of this section to the contrary, no portion of the territory of any city or town incorporated prior to the effective date of this section JUNE 20, 1968, shall be declared to be an urbanized area. In the event any such city or town shall be declared to have been unlawfully incorporated by the final judgment of a court of competent jurisdiction after the effective date of this section JUNE 20, 1968 , all or any portion of the territory thereof may be incorporated without regard to any of the provisions of this section, provided petitions praying for the incorporation thereof or petitions praying for the calling of an election for such purpose shall be filed with the board of supervisors within one year from the date upon which such judgment shall become final.

Sec. 2. Section 9-471, Arizona Revised Statutes, is amended to read:

9-471 . Annexation of territory; procedures; notice; petitions; access to information; restrictions

A. The following procedures are required to extend and increase the corporate limits of a city or town by annexation:

1. A city or town shall file in the office of the county recorder of the county in which the annexation is proposed a blank petition required by paragraph 4 of this subsection setting forth a description and an accurate map of all the exterior boundaries of the territory contiguous to the city or town proposed to be annexed. If state land is included in the territory, written approval of the state land commissioner and the selection board established by section 37-202 shall also be filed.

2. Signatures on petitions filed for annexation shall not be obtained for a waiting period of thirty days after filing the blank petition.

3. After filing the blank petition pursuant to paragraph 1 of this subsection, the governing body of the city or town shall hold a public hearing within the thirty day waiting period to discuss the annexation proposal. The public hearing shall be held in accordance with the provisions of title 38, chapter 3, article 3.1, except that, notwithstanding the provisions of section 38-431.02, subsections C and D, the following notices of the public hearing to discuss the annexation proposal shall be given at least six days before the hearing:

(a) Publication at least once in a newspaper of general circulation, which is published or circulated in the city or town and the territory proposed to be annexed, at least fifteen days before the end of the waiting period.

(b) Posting in at least three conspicuous public places in the territory proposed to be annexed.

(c) Notice by first class mail sent to the chairman of the board of supervisors of the county in which the territory proposed to be annexed is located.

(d) Notice by first class mail with an accurate map of the territory proposed to be annexed sent to each owner of the real and personal property as shown on the list furnished pursuant to subsection G of this section that would be subject to taxation by the city or town in the event of annexation in the territory proposed to be annexed.

4. Within one year after the last day of the thirty day waiting period a petition in writing signed by the owners of one-half or more in value of the real and personal property and more than one-half of the persons owning real and personal property that would be subject to taxation by the city or town in the event of annexation, as shown by the last assessment of the property, may be circulated and filed in the office of the county recorder.

5. No alterations increasing or reducing the territory sought to be annexed shall be made after a petition has been signed by a property owner.

6. The petitioner shall determine and submit a sworn affidavit verifying that no part of the territory for which the filing is made is already subject to an earlier filing for annexation. The county recorder shall not accept a filing for annexation without the sworn affidavit.

B. All information contained in the filings, the notices, the petition, tax and property rolls and other matters regarding a proposed or final annexation shall be made available by the appropriate official for public inspection during regular office hours.

C. Any city or town, the attorney general, the county attorney, or any other interested party may upon verified petition move to question the validity of the annexation for failure to comply with the provisions of subsection A of this section. The petition shall set forth the manner in which it is alleged the annexation procedure was not in compliance with the provisions of subsection A of this section and shall be filed within thirty days after adoption of the ordinance annexing the territory by the governing body of the city or town and not otherwise. The burden of proof shall be upon the petitioner to prove the material allegations of his verified petition. No action shall be brought to question the validity of an annexation ordinance unless brought within the time and for the reasons provided in this subsection. All hearings provided by this section and all appeals therefrom shall be preferred and heard and determined in preference to all other civil matters, except election actions. In the event more than one petition questioning the validity of an annexation ordinance is filed, all such petitions shall be consolidated for hearing. If two or more cities or towns show the court that they have demonstrated an active interest in annexing any or all of the area proposed for annexation, the court shall consider any oral or written agreements or understandings between or among the cities and towns in making its determination pursuant to this subsection.

D. The annexation shall become final after the expiration of thirty days from the adoption of the ordinance annexing the territory by the city or town governing body, provided the annexation ordinance has been finally adopted in accordance with procedures established by statute, charter provisions, or local ordinances, whichever is applicable, subject to the review of the court to determine the validity thereof if petitions in objection have been filed.

E. For the purpose of determining the sufficiency of the percentage of the value of property under this section, such values of property shall be determined as follows:

1. In the case of property assessed by the county assessor, values shall be the same as shown by the last assessment of the property.

2. In the case of property valued by the department of revenue, values shall be appraised by the department in the manner provided by law for municipal assessment purposes.

F. For the purpose of determining the sufficiency of the percentage of persons owning property under this section, the number of persons owning property shall be determined as follows:

1. In the case of property assessed by the county assessor, the number of persons owning property shall be as shown on the last assessment of the property.

2. In the case of property valued by the department of revenue, the number of persons owning property shall be as shown on the last valuation of the property.

3. If an undivided parcel of property is owned by multiple owners, such owners shall be deemed as one owner for the purposes of this section.

4. If a person owns multiple parcels of property, such owner shall be deemed as one owner for the purposes of this section.

G. The county assessor and the department of revenue, respectively, shall furnish to the city or town proposing an annexation within thirty days after a request therefor a statement in writing showing the owner, the address of each owner and the appraisal and assessment of all such property.

H. Territory is not contiguous for the purposes of subsection A, paragraph 1 of this section unless:

1. It adjoins the exterior boundary of the annexing city or town for at least three hundred feet.

2. It is, at all points, at least two hundred feet in width, exclusive of highways.

3. The distance from the existing boundary of the annexing city or town where it adjoins the annexed territory to the furthest point of the annexed territory from such boundary is no more than twice the width of the annexed territory.

I. A city or town shall not annex territory if as a result of such annexation unincorporated territory is completely surrounded by the annexing city or town.

J. Notwithstanding any provisions of this article to the contrary, any town incorporated prior to 1950 which had a population of less than two thousand persons by the 1970 census and which is bordered on at least three sides by Indian lands may annex by ordinance territory owned by the state within the same county for a new townsite which is not contiguous to the existing boundaries of the town.

K. The provisions of subsections H and I of this section shall not apply to territory which is surrounded by the same city or town or which is bordered by the same city or town on at least three sides.

L. A city or town annexing an area shall adopt zoning classifications which permit densities and uses no greater than those permitted by the county immediately before annexation. Subsequent changes in zoning of the annexed territory shall be made according to existing procedures established by the city or town for the rezoning of land.

M. The annexation of territory within six miles of territory included in a pending incorporation petition filed with the county recorder pursuant to section 9-101.01, subsection C shall not cause an urbanized area to exist pursuant to section 9-101.01 which did not exist prior to the annexation.

N. M. Notwithstanding any other provision of this section, a county right-of-way with no taxable real property may be annexed to an adjacent city or town by mutual consent of the governing bodies of the county and city or town if the property annexed is adjacent to the annexing city or town for the entire length of the annexation and if the city or town and county each approve the proposed annexation as a published agenda item at a regular public meeting of their governing bodies.