(1) Special taxing districts may be established pursuant to the provisions of this section.
(2) (a) The governing body of a home rule county may by resolution propose the formation of such district which resolution shall designate the proposed boundaries thereof, specify the proposed service or services, and set forth the methods of financing proposed for such district.
The governing body shall present the proposal at a public hearing to be held withinsixty days after introduction of such resolution, with notice thereof to be published not less than fifteen days before the date set for hearing.
At such hearing any registered elector of the county may be heard on the proposal,including questions of inclusion in or exclusion from the district, and all such objections shall be determined by the governing body on the basis of the public interest, taking into consideration the needs of the people and the availability of the service to the territory which is the subject of any such objection.
The governing body may continue the hearing as necessary and may, after the conclusion thereof, enact the proposed resolution, with or without amendments, or may reject the proposed resolution.
Decisions of the governing body concerning the formation of a special taxing districtare not subject to review unless action is instituted by a registered elector to review such proceedings within forty-five days after passage of the resolution. Any such review shall extend only to the question of whether the governing body exceeded its jurisdiction or abused its discretion. If the court so finds, it shall remand the matter to the governing body for further proceedings, consistent with such findings.
(3) (a) A petition, signed by at least eight percent of the registered electors in the proposed district, shall be sufficient to require the governing body of a home rule county to pass a resolution creating the proposed special taxing district.
(b) At the top of each page of the petition must be printed, in plain red letters no smaller than the impression of ten-point, bold-faced type, the following:
WARNING:
IT IS AGAINST THE LAW:
For anyone to sign this petition with any name other than his own, or to knowingly sign his name more than once for the same measure, or to sign such petition when not a registered elector.
DO NOT SIGN THIS PETITION UNLESS YOU ARE A REGISTERED ELECTOR
TO BE A REGISTERED ELECTOR, YOU MUST BE:
At least eighteen years of age.
A citizen of the United States.
A resident of the state of Colorado for at least twenty-two days.
A resident of the precinct in which you live.
Registered to vote in the county.
Do not sign this petition unless you have read or had read to you the proposal in its entirety and understand its meaning.
The petition shall only be signed by registered electors of the proposed district withtheir own signatures, after which shall be written their residence addresses, including street and number, if any, city or town, and the date of signing.
To each petition there shall be attached an affidavit of the person who circulated thepetition, which shall state the person's address, that he or she is a resident of the state, a citizen of the United States, and at least eighteen years of age, that each signature thereon was affixed in his or her presence, that each signature thereon is the signature of the person whose name it purports to be, that to the best of his or her knowledge and belief each of the persons signing the petition was at the time of signing a registered elector of the proposed district, and that he or she has not or will not in the future pay any money or thing of value to any signer for the purpose of inducing the signer to affix his or her signature to the petition.
The petition shall contain all the information required by subsection (2)(a) of thissection.
The petition shall be on pages eight and one-half inches wide by fourteen inches longwith a margin of two inches at the top for binding. The signature sheets shall have ruled lines and be numbered consecutively.
No restraining order or temporary injunction pending final judgment of the districtcourt and enjoining the formation of, the inclusion or exclusion of territory in, or the operation of the special taxing district may be issued. Any final judgment which has the effect of enjoining the formation of, the inclusion or exclusion of territory in, or the operation of a special taxing district shall automatically be stayed upon the filing of any appeal of such decision, and no application for supersedeas shall be necessary. Such stay shall continue in full force and effect pending final disposition of the proceedings.
Changes in the boundaries or major changes in the basic or essential nature of services or financing of a special taxing district may be initiated by resolution of the governing body or by petition signed by five percent of the registered electors of the district, and such proposals shall be considered in the same manner as provided in this section for proposals for the original formation of a district.
Upon adoption of a resolution forming a district, the governing body of the homerule county shall function as the governing board of such district.
Source: L. 81: Entire article added, p. 1484, § 1, effective June 8. L. 82: (3)(b) amended, p. 626, § 33, effective April 2. L. 2007: (3)(d) amended, p. 1984, § 40, effective August 3. L. 2016: (3)(b) amended, (SB 16-142), ch. 173, p. 590, § 75, effective May 18.