SECTIONS 9161-9168 - California Statutes

PUBLIC RESOURCES CODE

SECTION 9161-9168

9161. (a) A new district may be formed pursuant to this chapter.
(b) A proposal to form a district may be made by a petition of
registered voters or by the adoption of a resolution of application.

9162. A proposal to form a new district may be made by petition
which shall do all of the following:
(a) State that the proposal is made and request that proceedings
be taken for the formation pursuant to this chapter.
(b) Set forth a description of the boundaries of the territory to
be included in the district.
(c) Set forth the methods by which the district will be financed.
(d) State the reasons for forming the district.
(e) Propose a name for the district.
(f) Designate not more than three persons as chief petitioners,
setting forth their names and mailing addresses.
(g) State whether the formation is consistent with the sphere of
influence of any affected city or affected district.
(h) Specify the number of members, whether five, seven, or nine,
of the initial board of directors and the method of their selection,
as provided by Article 4 (commencing with Section 9201).

9163. (a) Before circulating any petition, the chief petitioners
shall publish a notice of intention which shall include a written
statement not to exceed 500 words in length, setting forth the
reasons for forming the district. The notice shall be published
pursuant to Section 6061 of the Government Code in one or more
newspapers of general circulation within the territory proposed to be
included in the district. If the territory proposed to be included
in the district is located in more than one county, publication of
the notice shall be made in at least one newspaper of general
circulation in each of the counties.
(b) The notice shall be signed by at least one, but not more than
three, chief petitioners and shall be in substantially the following
form:

"Notice of Intent to Circulate Petition

Notice is hereby given of the intention to circulate a petition
proposing to form the ____ (name of the district). The reasons for
the proposal are: ____."

(c) Within five days after the date of publication, the chief
petitioners shall file with the executive officer of the local agency
formation commission of the principal county a copy of the notice
together with an affidavit made by a representative of the newspaper
in which the notice was published certifying to the fact of
publication.
(d) After the filing required pursuant to subdivision (c), the
petition may be circulated for signatures.

9164. The petition shall be signed by not less than 10 percent of
the registered voters residing in the area to be included in the
district, as determined by the local agency formation commission
pursuant to subdivision (h) of Section 56375 of the Government Code.
Sections 100 and 104 of the Elections Code shall govern the signing
of the petition and its format.

9165. A petition may consist of a single instrument or separate
counterparts. The chief petitioner or petitioners shall file the
petition, including all counterparts, with the executive officer of
the local agency formation commission of the principal county within
six months of the date on which the chief petitioner or petitioners
filed the affidavit with the executive officer pursuant to
subdivision (c) of Section 9163.

9166. (a) Within 30 days after the date of filing a petition, the
executive officer of the local agency formation commission shall
cause the petition to be examined and shall prepare a certificate of
sufficiency indicating whether the petition is signed by the
requisite number of signers.
(b) If the certificate of the executive officer shows the petition
to be insufficient, the executive officer shall immediately give
notice by certified mail of the insufficiency to the chief
petitioners. That mailed notice shall state in what amount the
petition is insufficient. Within 15 days after the date of the notice
of insufficiency, the chief petitioners may file with the executive
officer a supplemental petition bearing additional signatures.
(c) Within 10 days after the date of filing a supplemental
petition, the executive officer shall examine the supplemental
petition and certify in writing the results of his or her
examination.
(d) The executive officer shall sign and date a certificate of
sufficiency. That certificate shall also state the minimum signature
requirements for a sufficient petition and show the results of the
executive officer's examination. The executive officer shall mail a
copy of the certificate of sufficiency to the chief petitioners.

9167. (a) A proposal to form a new district may also be made by the
adoption of a resolution of application by the legislative body of
any county or city which contains territory proposed to be included
in the district. Except for the provisions regarding signers and
signatures, a resolution of application shall contain all of the
matters specified for a petition in Section 9162. Before submitting a
resolution of application, the legislative body shall conduct a
public hearing on the resolution.
(b) Notice of the hearing shall be published pursuant to Section
6061 of the Government Code in one or more newspapers of general
circulation within the county or city.
(c) At the hearing, the legislative body shall give any person an
opportunity to present his or her views on the resolution.
(d) The clerk of the legislative body shall file a certified copy
of the resolution of application with the executive officer of the
local agency formation commission of the principal county.

9168. Once the chief petitioners have filed a sufficient petition
or a legislative body has filed a resolution of application, the
local agency formation commission shall proceed pursuant to Chapter 5
(commencing with Section 56825) of Part 3 of Division 3 of Title 5
of the Government Code.