(1) The general assembly hereby declares that the policies and procedures in this part 1 are necessary and desirable for the orderly growth of urban communities in the state of Colorado, and to these ends this part 1 shall be liberally construed. The general assembly further declares that it is the purpose of this part 1:

(a) To encourage natural and well-ordered development of municipalities of the state;

(b) To distribute fairly and equitably the costs of municipal services among those persons who benefit therefrom;

(c) To extend municipal government, services, and facilities to eligible areas which form a part of the whole community;

(d) To simplify governmental structure in urban areas;

(e) To provide an orderly system for extending municipal regulations to newly annexed areas;

(f) To reduce friction among contiguous or neighboring municipalities; and

(g) To increase the ability of municipalities in urban areas to provide their citizens with the services they require.

(2) The general assembly further declares that:

(a) Section 30 of article II of the state constitution was added to the state constitution as a voter-approved ballot measure in 1980;

(b) Since its adoption, section 30 of article II of the state constitution has been in lawful force and effect. As part of the state constitution, all annexations since its enactment have been or should havebeen undertaken subject to its terms.

(c) By enacting House Bill 10-1259, enacted in 2010, which amends various provisions of this part 1, the general assembly does not intend to change the law governing annexations in the state but rather to better harmonize the provisions of this part 1 with those of section 30 of article II of the state constitution.