TITLE 42

IRRIGATION AND DRAINAGE — WATER RIGHTS AND RECLAMATION

CHAPTER 32

WATER AND SEWER DISTRICTS

42-3218.  Inclusion of property petitioned — Hearing — Order — Annexation of property petitioned — Hearing — Order — Annexation of property by election — Election procedure. The boundaries of any district organized under the provisions of this chapter may be changed in the manner herein prescribed, but the change of boundaries of the district shall not impair or affect its organization or its rights in or to property, or any of its rights or privileges whatsoever; nor shall it affect or impair or discharge any contract, obligation, lien or charge for or upon which it might be liable or chargeable had any such change of boundaries not been made.

(a)  The owners of real property may file with the board a petition, in writing, praying that such real property be included in the district. The petition shall describe the property owned by the petitioners, and such petition shall be deemed to give assent of the petitioners to the inclusion in said district of the property described in the petition, and shall be accompanied by a reasonable filing fee in an amount to be determined by the board. Such petition must be acknowledged in the same manner that conveyances of land are required to be acknowledged. The secretary of the board shall cause notice of filing of such petition to be given and published in the county in which the property is situated, which notice shall state the filing of such petition, names of petitioners, descriptions of lands mentioned and the prayer of such petitioners; giving notice to all persons interested to appear at the office of the board at the time named in said notice and show cause in writing, if any they have, why the petition should not be granted. The board shall at the time and place mentioned or at such time or times to which the hearing may be adjourned, proceed to hear the petition and all objections thereto, presented, in writing, by any person showing cause why said petition should not be granted. The failure of any person to show cause in writing shall be deemed as an assent on his part to the inclusion of such lands in the district as prayed in the petition. If the petition is granted, the board shall make an order to that effect and, upon approval of said order, the property shall be included in the district.

(b)  The territory adjoining or in close proximity to and in the same county with any district created under the provisions of this chapter may be annexed to the district by either of the following procedures: (1) A petition for annexation of real property described in such petition, which has been signed by the owners of not less than sixty percent (60%) of the area in land within the territory to be annexed, and which contains the separate property descriptions of such petitioners, and which is acknowledged in the same manner that conveyances of land are required to be acknowledged, accompanied by a reasonable filing fee in an amount to be determined by the board, may be filed with the board. Upon filing with the board of such a petition, the secretary of the board shall cause notice of filing of such petition to be given and published in the county in which the property is situated, which notice shall state the filing of such petition, names of petitioners, descriptions of lands mentioned and the prayer of such petitioners; giving notice to all persons interested, including the staff and employees of said district and anyone designated by said district, to appear at the office of the board at the time named in said notice and show cause in writing, if any they have, why the petition should not be granted. The board shall at the time and place mentioned or at such time or times to which the hearing may be adjourned, proceed to hear the petition and all objections thereto, presented, in writing, by any person showing cause why said petition shall not be granted. The failure of any person to show cause in writing shall be deemed as an assent to the annexation of such lands into the district as prayed in the petition. The board shall have full discretion to determine if the petition shall be granted. If the petition is granted, the board shall make an order to that effect. (2) Upon filing with the board of a petition signed by registered voters owning real property residing in the territory to be annexed, who constitute at least twenty percent (20%) of the taxpayers in such territory, praying for an election to determine if annexation shall be made of property designated in such petition, together with payment of a reasonable filing fee in an amount to be determined by the board, the board shall cause notice of filing of such petition to be given and published in the county in which the property is situated, which notice shall state the filing of such petition, names of petitioners, descriptions of lands to be annexed and the prayer of such petition; giving notice to all persons interested, including the staff and employees of said district and anyone designated by said district to appear at the office of the board at the time named in said notice and show cause in writing, if any they have, why the petition shall not be granted. The board shall at the time and place mentioned or at such time or times to which the hearing may be adjourned, proceed to hear the petition and all objections thereto, presented, in writing, by any person showing cause why said petition shall not be granted. The board shall have full discretion to determine if the petition shall be granted, and if such petition is granted, the board shall direct that an election be held, subject to the provisions of section 34-106, Idaho Code. The election shall be conducted in the same manner as general elections in this state, except that the board shall establish as many voting places within such territory proposed to be annexed as are by the board deemed necessary and shall define the boundaries of such voting places. The board shall appoint three (3) judges of election for each voting place, one (1) of whom shall be designated by the board to be the clerk of such election precinct. Each elector shall be registered as required by the general election laws and shall have resided within the area to be annexed for thirty (30) days.

The secretary of the board of directors shall publish notice of the time and place of such election, in accordance with the provisions of section 34-1406, Idaho Code. The notice shall particularly describe the property to be annexed, the name of the district to which the territory is proposed to be annexed, and the terms and conditions prescribed by the board under which the property may be annexed. The notice shall designate the places in the territory where the election will be held, and shall require the voters to cast ballots which shall contain the words:

For annexation to …. District.

Against annexation to …. District.

The judges of the election shall make their return thereof to the board of directors of the district, which shall canvass the returns and render a statement of the results of the election on the records of the board. If the majority of the votes cast favor annexation, the board shall enter an order annexing the property described in the notice of election and the territory shall thereupon become annexed to the district and shall thenceforth be a part of the district.

(c)  In all proceedings for inclusion or annexation hereunder, the board shall have the power to prescribe terms and conditions under which said property may be included in the district, including the condition that such property may only be annexed or included within the district if the property is also established as a water or sewer subdistrict of the district, pursuant to sections 42-3218A through 42-3218D, Idaho Code, and may be required to pay the district its pro rata share of construction costs theretofore incurred by the district pursuant to any bond issue theretofore made or otherwise; provided, however, that such terms and conditions shall be announced by the board at or before the hearing to be held pursuant to subparagraphs (a) and (b) above. Within ten (10) days of the announcement of the terms and conditions under which the property may be included the majority of the petitioners filing petitions under the provisions of subparagraphs (a) or (b) may withdraw their petitions, and no further proceedings shall thereafter be had by the board upon such petitions.

(d)  All public streets, roads, highways or alleys upon or within which is situated any part of the operative system or equipment of the district and all public streets, roads, highways and alleys which abut against or touch property annexed or to be annexed to the district, to the extent they abut against or touch such property and are not included in a different district, shall be deemed to be included in the district as a part of the annexation and shall be included in the legal description and map which the district must file in the offices of the county assessor, county recorder and the state tax commission as required by section 63-215, Idaho Code; provided, however, that upon application by the district to the state tax commission, if the commission finds after consultation with the county assessor and the county recorder that exemption from the requirements of this subparagraph (d) will not unduly burden state and local tax administration, the commission by order may exempt the district from the requirements of this subparagraph (d), but the district shall be required to comply with section 63-215, Idaho Code.

History:

[42-3218, added 1947, ch. 152, sec. 18, p. 364, am. 1957, ch. 29, sec. 4, p. 40; am. 1969, ch. 274, sec. 1, p. 816; am. 1973, ch. 110, sec. 1, p. 196; am. 1975, ch. 28. sec. 1, p. 43; am. 1988, ch. 215, sec. 2, p. 407; am. 1995, ch. 118, sec. 67, p. 483; am. 1996, ch. 322, sec. 39, p. 1067; am. 2006, ch. 167, sec. 1, p. 515.]