15-455

15-455. Formation of joint common school
district; petition; election; notice; canvass

A. A petition for the creation of a joint common school district shall include the
following:

1. A description of the territory comprising the proposed district.

2. A request that the question of the creation of the proposed district be
submitted to the qualified electors residing within each of the affected districts.

3. The signatures of not less than ten per cent of the qualified electors residing
within the portion of the proposed district within the respective county involved. The
county school superintendent of each county whose territory, or a portion thereof, will
be included in the proposed district shall receive the petitions containing signatures of
residents of his county.

B. Each county school superintendent with whom a petition for the creation of a
joint common school district is filed shall, within fifteen days of the date of receipt,
examine the petition to determine its sufficiency including the adequacy of the
signatures from the portion of the proposed district within his county. If the petition
is found sufficient, the county school superintendent shall transmit the petition to the
state board of education.

C. If the petitions for the creation of the proposed joint common school district
are found sufficient by the county school superintendent of each county whose territory
or a portion thereof is to be included in the proposed district, the state board of
education shall promptly schedule a review of the issue of the creation of the proposed
joint common school district. Such review and the board determination on the issue of
the creation of the proposed joint common school district shall be completed within sixty
days of the date of receipt of the final petition.

D. The review of the issue of the creation of a proposed joint common school
district shall include consideration of the following factors:

1. Operational costs.

2. Travel times and distances.

3. Climatic conditions.

4. Local terrain.

5. Number of pupils.

6. The fairness and appropriateness of any redistribution of taxable wealth from an
existing school district to a proposed joint common school district. If the state board
after considering all such factors determines that the proposed new district will not
cause an undue adverse effect on the operations of any existing school district or
jeopardize the operation of the proposed joint common school district or cause a
disproportionate amount of taxable wealth to be redistributed, it shall approve the
petitions and return them to the respective county school superintendents.

E. Upon receipt of the approved petitions the county school superintendent of each
county whose territory, or a portion thereof, will be included in the proposed joint
common school district shall submit the question of the formation of the proposed joint
common school district at a general election, or at a special election to be held for
that purpose. If no general election will be held within sixty days after the date the
county school superintendent receives the approved petition from the state board of
education, he shall promptly call a special election to be held within forty-five days
after receipt of the approved petition. Notice of such election shall be given by the
county school superintendent to the boards of supervisors.

F. The county school superintendent shall cause notice of the proposed election to
be posted in not less than three public places in the area within each of the affected
districts and to be published one time in a newspaper of general circulation in each
county, such posting and publication to be made at least ten days before the
election. Such notice shall state the following:

1. The question to be voted on and the boundaries of the proposed joint common
school district with sufficient definiteness to make them readily ascertainable.

2. Voter qualifications.

3. The voting places within each of the affected districts. There shall be at least
one voting place in each county. The election shall be called and held, and voters shall
possess qualifications as prescribed for the election of governing boards and shall be
residents of the territory within each of the affected districts. Ballots shall be
prepared and the officers of election appointed by the county school superintendent.

G. On the fifth day after the election the county school superintendent and the
chairman of the board of supervisors of each county shall canvass the vote. If a
majority of the votes cast in each county of persons who reside within each of the
affected districts is in favor of creation of the proposed joint common school district,
the boards of supervisors shall jointly declare the election and the joint common school
district is established. For the purpose of this subsection a majority of the votes cast
in each county of persons who reside within each of the affected districts means a
majority vote of the qualified electors voting in each county in each part of an affected
existing school district or affected area to be included in the proposed joint common
school district and a majority vote of the qualified electors voting in each county in
each part, if any, of an affected school district not to be included in the proposed
joint common school district.