A. There may be created economic advancement districts for the purposes of the Economic Advancement District Act.

B. Petitions for the organization of a district shall designate the name of the proposed district and with particularity the proposed territorial area to be included within the district. The proposed district shall comprise and be concurrent with the territorial areas of one or more existing public school districts in the county, other than that area comprising another district; provided, however, that the territorial area encompassed by any proposed district shall in all cases be contiguous.

C. The petition calling for the organization of a district shall be signed by qualified electors residing in each school district within the area of the proposed district in a number equal to or in excess of ten percent of the votes cast for governor in the last preceding general election in each school district within the area of the proposed district. For the purpose of determining the votes cast in such school districts for governor in the last preceding general election, any portion of a precinct within any affected school district shall be construed to be wholly within the proposed district.

D. Upon receipt of the county clerk's certification of receipt of a petition meeting the requirements of Subsection C of this section, the board of county commissioners shall issue a proclamation calling for an election to be held not less than sixty or more than one hundred twenty days from the date of the receipt of the county clerk's certification. The election shall be for the purpose of determining whether the district shall be created and for the establishment of a tax rate of two dollars ($2.00) or any lower maximum amount required by operation of the rate limitation provisions of Section 7-37-7.1 NMSA 1978 on each one thousand dollars ($1,000) of net taxable value as that term is defined in the Property Tax Code [Chapter 7, Articles 35 to 38 NMSA 1978] for the funding of the district. The debt limitation specified in this section shall be in excess of other existing debt limitations provided by law. No more than ten percent of the funds produced by the imposition of the tax created shall be used for operations of the district. The balance shall be used for the purpose of paying the principal and interest on general obligation bonds authorized pursuant to the Economic Advancement District Act or any other activities authorized for districts. A separate election shall be called for the selection of members of the board of trustees.

E. Only qualified electors who reside in the territory of the proposed district may vote in the election.

F. The proclamation of the election shall be published by the county clerk once each week for four consecutive weeks in a newspaper of general circulation in the territory of the proposed district, the last notice being published not more than one week from the date of the election.

G. The election shall be conducted, counted and canvassed in substantially the same manner as school board elections are conducted, counted and canvassed.

H. A district shall be declared created by the board of county commissioners when a majority of the qualified electors voting on the issue in the area of each school district within the boundaries of the district are certified by the board of county commissioners to have voted in favor of establishing the district.

I. In the event a majority of the qualified electors voting on the issue in the area of a school district within the boundaries of the district shall not approve the creation of the district, the proposal shall fail as to the area of that school district, and no election upon the creation of a district encompassing the area of that school district shall be held within one year of such date.

J. The expense of calling and conducting the election shall be borne by the county in which an election is held; provided, if the election results in the creation of a district, the district shall reimburse the county for all expenditures made in the course of calling and conducting the election.

History: Laws 1987, ch. 115, § 4; 1988, ch. 86, § 2; 1989, ch. 268, § 1.

The 1989 amendment, effective June 16, 1989, in Subsection C substituted all of the present language of the first sentence beginning with "votes" for "qualified electors in each such school district", and added the second sentence.

The 1988 amendment, effective March 8, 1988, deleted "advancement" preceding "district" throughout Subsection B; in Subsection C, substituted "residing in each school district within the area of the proposed district in a number equal to or in excess of ten percent of the qualified electors in each such school district" for the former provisions requiring signatures in a number equal or in excess of five percent of the votes cast for governor in the last preceding general election; deleted "economic advancement" preceding "district" or "districts" throughout Subsections D, H and I; deleted "wherein the voters did not approve such creation" preceding "shall be held" near the end of Subsection I; and made minor stylistic changes.