Before any new counties shall be established, or any county lines in this state shall be altered or changed, such question shall first be submitted to a vote of the qualified electors residing in the territory to be formed into such new county or transferred to another county, and shall be approved by the sixty percent (60%) of the votes cast in each particular territory sought to be taken from an existing county in said election; provided, no new county shall be formed of less than four hundred square miles taxable area, nor with a population of less than fifteen thousand people, nor with taxable wealth less than two and one-half million dollars, as shown by the current tax rolls. Nor shall any territory be taken from an existing county for any purpose bringing the newly created lines of such existing county nearer than ten miles to the county seat thereof. Nor shall the taxable area, population or taxable wealth of said existing county be reduced below that required for a new county. Nor shall any territory, in any case, be transferred from one county to an existing county, if, by such transfer of territory, the county from which the territory to be taken will then be smaller in area than the county to which the addition is made; provided, that when the territory is to be transferred from one existing county to either a new or an existing county, there must be sixty percent (60%) of the vote cast in such particular territory in favor of the transfer, and, in case the transfer to be to an existing county, the acceptance of such territory must first be approved by a majority vote of the electors of said county; provided, that any such election shall be governed by the general election laws, when same are not in conflict herewith.
Added by Laws 1910-11, c. 40, p. 72, § 1.