A. Whenever the owners of sixty-six and two-thirds percent or more of the total assessed valuation of the property described in Subsection C of Section 4-55A-3 NMSA 1978, but exclusive of any land owned by the United States or the state of New Mexico, petition the board in writing to create an improvement district and construct the improvement described in the petition, the board may:

(1) create the improvement district;

(2) select the type of material and method of construction to be used; and

(3) proceed with the construction of the improvement as authorized in Section 4-55A-14 NMSA 1978 after complying with the requirements for a preliminary hearing required in this section. A governing body of a municipality, board of county commissioners or local board of education may sign a petition seeking the improvement for any land under its control. The submission of separate petitions for any one improvement district within a six-month period shall be considered as a single petition.

B. The board may:

(1) pay the cost of the improvement;

(2) assess the cost of the improvement against the benefiting tracts or parcels of land;

(3) pay part of the cost of the improvement and assess part of the cost of the improvement against the benefiting tracts or parcels of land; or

(4) impose an improvement district property tax pursuant to the County Improvement District Act.

C. If any part or all of the cost of the improvement sought to be constructed as authorized in this section is to be assessed against the benefiting tracts or parcels of land or paid for by the imposition of an improvement district property tax, the board shall hold a preliminary hearing on the proposed improvement district and give notice of the preliminary hearing.

History: Laws 1980, ch. 91, § 10; 1991, ch. 199, § 38; 1998, ch. 47, § 4.

The 1998 amendment, effective July 1, 1998, in Subsection A, substituted "described in Subsection C of Section 4-55A-3 NMSA 1978, but" for "to be benefited"; added Subsection B(4); in Subsection C, inserted "or paid for by the imposition of an improvement district property tax"; and made minor stylistic changes.

The 1991 amendment, effective April 4, 1991, in the introductory paragraph in Subsection A, substituted "total assessed valuation of the property to be benefited" for "front feet of any tracts or parcels of land", deleted "which abuts on a street or road" following "New Mexico" and made a minor stylistic change; in Subsection A(3), substituted "Section 4-55A-14 NMSA 1978" for "Section 14 of the County Improvement District Act" in the first sentence and substituted "for any one improvement district" for "on any one street" in the second sentence; substituted "benefiting tracts or parcels" for "abutting tract or parcel" in Subsections B(2) and B(3); and substituted "tracts or parcels" for "tract or parcel" in Subsection C.