Truly Agreed, 2015
SB 497, 2015 (Amended Section - as Truly Agreed)
67.950. 1. Any special purpose district formed
under the provisions of a statute of this state requiring approval
by the voters of the district, and for which no specific procedure
is provided to terminate or dissolve such a district, may be
dissolved [in the following manner:
(1)
Upon the filing with the governing body of the district of a
petition containing the signatures of eight percent or more of
the voters of the district or upon the motion of a majority of
the members of the governing body it shall submit the question
to the voters in the district using the same procedure and in
the same manner so far as practicable as is provided for the
submission of the question for forming the district.
(2)]
as provided in this section and section 67.955.
2.
A petition describing the boundaries of the district sought to
be dissolved shall be filed with the clerk of the circuit court
of the county in which the subject district is located or, if
the subject district embraces lands in more than one county,
with the clerk of the circuit court of the county having the
largest acreage within the boundaries of the subject district.
Such petition, in addition to such boundary description, shall
allege that further operation of the subject district is inimical
to the best interests of the inhabitants of the district and
that the district should, in the interest of the public welfare
and safety, be dissolved, and such other information as may be
useful to the court in determining whether the petition should
be granted and a decree of dissolution entered. Such petition
shall also include a detailed plan for payment of all debt and
obligations of the district at the time of dissolution. Such
petition shall be accompanied by a cash deposit of fifty dollars
as an advancement of the costs of the proceeding, and the petition
shall be signed by eight percent or more of the voters of the
district. The petition shall be verified by at least one of the
signers thereof and shall be served upon the governing board
of the district. The district shall be a party, and if the governing
board in its discretion determines that such dissolution is not
in the public interest, the district shall oppose such petition
and pay all cost and expense thereof.
3.
Upon the filing of the petition, the petition shall be presented
to the circuit court and such court shall fix a date for a hearing
on such petition. The clerk of the court shall give notice of
the filing of the petition in some newspaper of general circulation
in the county in which the proceedings are pending, and if the
district extends into any other county or counties, such notice
shall also be published in some newspaper of general circulation
in such other county or counties. The notice shall contain a
description of the subject boundary lines of the district and
the general purposes of the petition, and shall set forth the
date fixed for the hearing on the petition, which shall not be
less than seven nor more than twenty-one days after the date
of the last publication of the notice and shall be on some regular
judicial day of the court in which the petition is pending. Such
notice shall be signed by the clerk of the circuit court and
shall be published in three successive issues of a weekly newspaper
or in twenty successive issues of a daily newspaper.
4.
The court, for good cause shown, may continue the case or the
hearing thereon from time to time until final disposition thereof.
5.
Exceptions to the dissolution of a district may be made by any
voter or landowner of the district, and by the district as provided
in this section. Such exceptions shall be filed not less than
five days prior to the date set for the hearing on the petition.
Such exceptions shall specify the grounds upon which the exceptions
are filed, and the court shall take them into consideration in
passing upon the petition and shall also consider the evidence
in support of the petition and in support of the exceptions made.
Unless petitioners prove that all debts and financial obligations
of the district can be paid in full upon dissolution, the petition
shall be dismissed at the cost of the petitioners.
6.
Should the court find that it would not be to the public interest
to dissolve a district, the petition shall be dismissed at the
costs of the petitioners. If, however, the court should find
in favor of the petitioners, the court shall enter its interlocutory
decree of dissolution, which decree shall provide for the submission
of the question to the voters of the district. The decree of
dissolution shall not become final and conclusive until it has
been submitted to the voters residing within the boundaries described
in such decree and approved by a majority of the votes cast.
The decree shall provide for the submission of the question and
shall fix the date thereof.
7.
The question shall be submitted in substantially the following
form:
Shall the ....... district
be dissolved? [(3) If the question receives a majority
of the votes cast the district shall be dissolved for all purposes
except the payment of outstanding bonded indebtedness, if any]
8.
The returns shall be certified by the election authority to the
circuit court having jurisdiction in the case. Upon receiving
such certification, the court shall enter its order canvassing
the returns and declaring the result of such election. If a majority
of the votes cast on the question by the qualified voters voting
thereon are in favor of the question, then the court shall, in
such order declaring the result of the election, enter a further
order declaring the decree of dissolution to be final and conclusive.
If a majority of the votes cast on the question by the qualified
voters voting thereon are opposed to the question, then the court
shall enter a further order declaring such decree of dissolution
to be void and of no effect. No appeal shall lie from any of
such orders. In the event that the court declares the decree
of dissolution to be final as provided in this subsection, the
clerk of the circuit court shall file certified copies of such
decree of dissolution and of such final order with the secretary
of state, the recorder of deeds of the county or counties in
which the district is located, and with the clerk of the county
commission of the county or counties in which the district is
located.
9. Notwithstanding
any other provision of law in this section to the contrary, no
district shall be dissolved until all of its outstanding indebtedness
has been paid, and the court in its decree of dissolution shall
provide for the disposition of the remaining property of the
district.
Missouri General Assembly