A petition for the formation of a district, signed by at least 20 percent or 500 of the qualified electors within the proposed district, shall be presented to the board of supervisors of the principal county. The petition shall be presented at a regular meeting of the board of supervisors.
FormationFormation Petition
Section § 74050
This law states that to form a new district, you need a petition signed by either 20% or 500 of the qualified voters in the proposed area. This petition must be submitted during a regular meeting of the main county's board of supervisors.
district formation qualified electors petition submission
Section § 74051
If you live in the area where a new district is being proposed and your name was on the voting list from the last election or within 30 days before the petition to create the district is presented, you are considered a qualified voter. Being a qualified voter means you can sign the petition to form this new district.
Any elector residing within the proposed district, whose name appears on the register of voters of the last general election, or on the register of voters at any time within 30 days preceding the presentation of a petition for the formation of a district, shall be deemed to be a qualified elector of the proposed district eligible to sign the petition.
proposed district qualified elector register of voters
Section § 74052
This section explains how to create a proposal to form a new district. The proposal, known as a petition, must include a detailed description of where the district will be. It should also suggest a name for the district and ask the local governing board to officially set up the district boundaries and divide the district into three, five, or seven parts.
The petition shall set forth and particularly describe the proposed boundaries of the district, shall pray that the district be organized under the provisions of this division, and shall propose a name by which the district shall be known. The petition shall also request the board of supervisors, upon its definition and establishment of the proposed boundaries of the district, to divide the district into either three, five, or seven divisions.
district formation proposed boundaries petition details
Section § 74053
This law requires that any petition related to water districts must be published in a local newspaper once a week for at least three weeks before it is shown to the board of supervisors. The notice must also indicate the board meeting date when the petition will be presented.
If any part of the proposed district involves another county, the petition and notice must also be published in newspapers in those counties.
The petition shall be published once a week for at least three weeks before the presentation to the board of supervisors in some newspaper printed and published in the principal county, together with a notice stating the date of the meeting of the board at which the petition will be presented.
If any portion of the proposed district lies within another county, or counties, the petition and notice shall be likewise published in a newspaper printed and published in each of such counties.
petition publication newspaper requirements water district petition
Section § 74054
This law allows a petition to be made up of multiple documents. If the petition is spread across different documents, only one copy of the petition needs to be published. However, the names of all people signing the petition must still be published as if they were all on the original document.
The petition may consist of any number of separate instruments, and, when contained upon more than one instrument, one copy only of the petition need be published, but the names of all the petitioners shall be published the same as if appended to the original petition.
petition structure multiple instruments petition publication
Section § 74055
Before the hearing, all copies of a petition must be treated by the board of supervisors as if they are the original petition.
All copies of the petition filed prior to the hearing of the petition shall be considered by the board of supervisors the same as though filed with the petition first placed on file.
petition copies board of supervisors hearing preparation
Section § 74056
This law states that a petition for creating a water district can declare that all bonds from the district or any of its improvement districts will be paid by taxing real property within those areas. If this is mentioned in the petition, then any notifications about hearings or elections for the district's creation must also mention it. Once formed, the district or improvement districts can issue bonds, which get paid back through these property tax assessments until the debt is fully settled. These assessments have to follow the specified legal process.
The petition may include a statement that all bonds of the district and all bonds of any improvement district created therein shall be payable from assessments to be levied upon all real property in the proposed district or in the improvement district created therein. If such a statement is included in the petition, the notice of hearing of the petition and the notice of election for the formation of the district shall so state, and, if the district is formed, all bonds thereafter issued by the district and all bonds of any improvement district organized therein shall be payable from assessments levied upon all real property in district or improvement district, as the case may be, and such real property shall be liable to be taxed for the payment of principal and interest of such bonded indebtedness until the bonds are fully paid. Any such assessment shall be levied in the manner provided in this division.
water district bonds real property assessments improvement district
