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ARIZONA STATE SENATE
Fifty-Fifth Legislature, Second Regular Session
incorporation; urban areas
Purpose
Outlines a process for a planned community association (HOA) during the period of declarant control to be excluded from a proposed incorporation of an urbanized area. Outlines requirements for a written notice of intention to publish a copy of an incorporation petition to be filed with a county board of supervisors (county BOS). Allows an area to be incorporated to include large areas of uninhabited, rural or farm lands if certain conditions are met.
Background
Statute outlines requirements for the incorporation of communities and urbanized areas. 10 percent of the qualified electors in a community may petition the county BOS for incorporation of the community into a city or town. Prior to obtaining signatures on an incorporation petition, the petitioners must publish a copy of the petition, setting forth the metes and bounds of the community to be incorporated, in a newspaper of general circulation for two consecutive weeks and file a copy of the petition with the county recorder. By the next regularly scheduled county BOS meeting following submission of a petition with the county recorder, the county BOS must authorize the circulation of the petition. Petitioners have 180 days after the date of the meeting to circulate the petition and obtain the required number of signatures. Within 60 days of the filing of the map and signed petition with the county BOS, the county BOS must call an election for incorporation of the community (A.R.S. § 9-101).
An urbanized area includes all territory within three miles of an incorporated city or town with a population of fewer than 5,000 persons and all territory within six miles of an incorporated city or town that has a population of 5,000 or more persons. An urbanized area may only be incorporated as a city or town, with certain exceptions, if: 1) a resolution is adopted by the city or town causing the urbanized area to exist approving of the proposed incorporation; or 2) an affidavit is filed with the county BOS stating that a petition requesting annexation of the urbanized area has been filed with the city or town causing the urbanized area to exist and has not been approved within 120 days of presentation. If an urbanized area proposed for incorporation has a population of 15,000 or more persons and that is more than the population of the city or town causing the urbanized area to exist that opposed the proposed incorporation, the county BOS must take action on the initiative petition without a resolution approving the incorporation adopted by the city or town causing the urbanized area to exist. Any HOA under the period of declarant control and in an urbanized area with a population of 15,000 or more persons is excluded from the incorporated area unless the declarant grants permission for the incorporation and the petitioners comply with certain statutory requirements for notification and submission of permission to the county recorder or elections department (A.R.S. § 9-101.01).
There is no anticipated fiscal impact to the state General Fund associated with this legislation.
Provisions
1. Requires a county BOS, if an HOA during the period of declarant control notifies the county BOS and makes a request to be excluded from a petition to incorporate an urbanized area, to exclude the HOA from the proposed incorporation.
2. Specifies that if an HOA is excluded from a proposed incorporation of an urbanized area, the petitioners are not required to resubmit an incorporation petition if the remaining area meets statutory population qualifications for incorporation.
3. Requires a county BOS, if an HOA is excluded from a proposed incorporation of an urbanized area and the remaining area fails to meet statutory population qualifications for incorporation, to reject the incorporation petition.
4. Repeals the requirement that the petitioners for incorporation of an urbanized area with a population of 15,000 or more persons receive permission from the declarant for any HOA under the period of declarant control in order for the HOA to be included in the incorporation area.
5. Repeals requirements related to the notification by petitioners to HOAs within the boundaries of an urbanized area with a population of 15,000 or more persons proposed for incorporation and the submission of the declarant's permission and a list of property owners to the county recorder or county elections department.
6. Requires incorporation petitioners, before obtaining signatures on an incorporation petition and at least six months before publishing a copy of the petition in a newspaper, to provide a county BOS with written notice of intention to publish a copy of the petition.
7. Requires the written notice to the county BOS to be published for two consecutive weeks in a newspaper of general circulation in the area to be affected.
8. Allows an area to be incorporated to include large areas of uninhabited, rural or farm lands if the:
a) uninhabited, rural or farm lands have been platted and approved by a county BOS for housing or commercial development before the filing of an incorporation petition; or
b) the current owner of the uninhabited, rural or farm lands agrees to include the property in the proposed incorporation area and provides the petitioners with a written, notarized statement supporting the inclusion of the property in the proposed incorporation area with an attached copy of a map of the proposed incorporation area.
9. Defines uninhabited to include land owned by a mining or metallurgical company.
10. Makes technical and conforming changes.
11. Becomes effective on the general effective date.
House Action
GE 2/16/22 DPA 12-0-1-0
3rd Read 2/23/22 57-2-1
Prepared by Senate Research
March 3, 2022
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