48-815.01. District dissolution; procedures; notice; hearing; determinations; petitions
A. A fire district may be dissolved by the following procedures:
1. Any adult person desiring to dissolve a fire district shall prepare and submit a dissolution statement to the board of supervisors of the county in which the district is located. The dissolution statement shall contain at least the following information:
(a) A legal description of the boundaries of the district and a detailed, accurate map of the district.
(b) A list and explanation of benefits that will result from the proposed dissolution of the district.
(c) A list and explanation of the injuries that will result from the proposed dissolution of the district.
2. On receipt of the dissolution statement, the board of supervisors shall set a day, not fewer than thirty nor more than sixty days from that date, for a hearing on the dissolution statement. The board of supervisors, at any time prior to making a determination pursuant to paragraph 4 of this subsection, may require that the dissolution statement be amended to include any information that the board of supervisors deems to be relevant and necessary.
3. On receipt of the dissolution statement, the clerk of the board of supervisors shall mail, by first class mail, written notice of the statement, its purpose and notice of the day, hour and place of the hearing on the proposed dissolution of the district to each owner of taxable property within the boundaries of the district. The clerk of the board of supervisors shall post the notice in at least three conspicuous public places in the area of the district and shall publish twice in a daily newspaper of general circulation in the area of the district, at least ten days before the hearing, or, if no daily newspaper of general circulation exists in the area of the district, at least twice at any time before the date of the hearing, a notice setting forth the purpose of the dissolution statement, the description of the area of the district and the day, hour and place of the hearing.
4. At the hearing called pursuant to paragraph 2 of this subsection, the board of supervisors shall hear those who appear for and against the proposed dissolution of the district and shall determine whether the dissolution of the district will promote public health, comfort, convenience, necessity or welfare. If the board of supervisors determines that the public health, comfort, convenience, necessity or welfare will be promoted, it shall approve the dissolution statement and authorize the persons proposing the dissolution of the district to circulate petitions as provided in this subsection. The order of the board of supervisors shall be final, but if the request to circulate petitions is denied, a subsequent request for a similar district dissolution may be refiled with the board of supervisors after six months from the date of such denial.
5. Within fifteen days after receiving the approval of the board of supervisors as prescribed by paragraph 4 of this subsection, the clerk of the board shall determine the minimum number of signatures required for compliance with paragraph 7 of this subsection. After making that determination, that number of signatures shall remain fixed.
6. After receiving the approval of the board of supervisors as provided in paragraph 4 of this subsection, any adult person may circulate and present petitions for the dissolution of the district to the board of supervisors of the county in which the district is located. All petitions circulated shall be returned to the board of supervisors within one year from the date of the approval of the board of supervisors pursuant to paragraph 4 of this subsection. Any petition that is returned more than one year from that date is void.
7. The petitions presented pursuant to paragraph 6 of this subsection shall comply with section 48-815.02 and shall at all times, contain a legal description of the boundaries of the district and a detailed, accurate map of the district. Petitions shall be signed by more than one-half of the property owners in the area of the district and be signed by persons owning collectively more than one-half of the assessed valuation of the property in the area of the district.
8. On receipt of the petitions, the board of supervisors shall set a day, not fewer than ten nor more than thirty days from that date, for a hearing on the petition.
9. Prior to the hearing called pursuant to paragraph 8 of this subsection, the board of supervisors shall determine the validity of the petitions presented.
10. At the hearing called pursuant to paragraph 8 of this subsection, the board of supervisors, if the petitions are valid, shall order the dissolution of the district. The board of supervisors shall enter its order setting forth its determination in the minutes of the meeting, not later than ten days from the day of the hearing, and a copy of the order shall be filed in the county recorder's office. The order of the board of supervisors shall be final, and the district shall be dissolved thirty days after the board of supervisors votes. A decision of the board of supervisors under this section is subject to judicial review under title 12, chapter 7, article 6.
11. On the recording of the order prescribed in paragraph 10 of this subsection, all money remaining in the fire district fund after the payment of all valid claims against the district shall be transferred to the general fund of the county in which the fire district is located, but if all of the fire district has been included within the corporate limits of a city or town, then on dissolution as provided by this section, the equipment, assets and liabilities of the district shall be transferred to that city or town. If the district was an employer covered by the Arizona state retirement system, the clerk of the county board of supervisors shall notify the director of the Arizona state retirement system of the dissolution of the district.
12. Taxes shall continue to be levied as provided in section 48-806, subsection I on all the taxable property within the formal boundaries of the district to pay the principal or any interest on outstanding bonds of the district.
B. For the purpose of determining the validity of the petitions presented pursuant to subsection A, paragraph 6 of this section:
1. Property held in multiple ownership shall be treated as if it had only one property owner, so that the signature of only one of the owners of property held in multiple ownership is required on the formation petition.
2. The value of property shall be determined as follows:
(a) In the case of property assessed by the county assessor, values shall be the same as those shown on the last assessment roll of the county containing such property.
(b) In the case of property valued by the department of revenue, the values shall be those determined by the department in the manner provided by law, for municipal assessment purposes. The county assessor and the department of revenue, respectively, shall furnish to the board of supervisors, within twenty days after such a request, a statement in writing showing the owner, the address of each owner and the appraisal or assessment value of properties contained within the boundaries of the proposed district as described in subsection A of this section.
C. For the purposes of this section assessed valuation does not include the assessed valuation of property that is owned by a county, this state or the United States government and in the case of multiple ownership of a single parcel of property, any one property owner constitutes the entire ownership interest.
D. The board of supervisors may require of the person desiring to dissolve a district pursuant to subsection A, paragraph 1 of this section a reasonable bond to be filed with the board at the start of proceedings under this section. The bond shall be in an amount sufficient to cover costs incurred by the county if the district is not finally dissolved. County costs covered by the bond include any expense incurred from completion of the dissolution statement, mailing of the notice of hearing to district property owners, publication of the notice of hearing and other expenses reasonably incurred as a result of any requirements of this section.
E. If a district is dissolved pursuant to this section, the cost of publication of the notice of hearing, the mailing of notices to property owners and all other costs incurred by the county as a result of this section shall be a valid charge against the district.