Title GOV — California Gov. Code

No petition shall be accepted for filing pursuant to this article unless the signatures therein shall have been secured within six months of the date on which the first signature on the petition was affixed and such petition is submitted for filing as provided in Section 23515 wi…

All petitions shall be filed with the clerk of the principal county. All counterparts of a petition shall be filed at the same time.

Within 30 days after the date of filing of a petition, the clerk of the principal county shall examine the petition and determine whether it is signed by the requisite number of electors. When the clerk has completed the examination, the clerk shall certify the results of the exa…

If the clerk certifies a petition to be insufficient the clerk shall give mailed notice thereof to each of the chief petitioners, if any, and file the petition as a public record without prejudice to the filing of a new petition.

If the clerk certifies a petition to be sufficient, the clerk shall immediately transmit a copy of the certification to the board of supervisors of each county and to each of the chief petitioners, if any.

In certifying the sufficiency of a petition, the clerk shall compare the name of each person signing the petition with the registration records of the county in which the person signing the petition resides.

Upon receipt of the certification of a petition for county consolidation or the adoption of resolutions pursuant to Section 23510, the board of the principal county shall forthwith transmit to the Governor a copy of the certification or a certified copy of the resolutions.

Upon receipt of notice pursuant to Section 23520, the Governor shall create a County Consolidation Review Commission to review the proposed county consolidation and appoint two residents of each affected county to be members of the commission and one member who shall not be a res…

Within 10 days after notice of appointment and acceptance by the last appointed member, the members of the commission shall meet at the principal administrative office of the principal county and organize by electing from their number a chairman. They shall also appoint a secreta…

The hearing may be continued from time to time during the course of the commission’s review.

By citation or subpoena signed by its chairman and secretary, the commission may compel the attendance of such persons and the production of such books, papers and other documents before it as it deems necessary for the performance of its duties.

All officers and employees of each affected county shall cooperate with, perform any functions required by, and produce any books, records or other documents of the county requested by the commission and necessary for the performance of the commission’s duties.

The commission shall determine: (a) The fiscal impact of the proposed consolidation on the affected counties. (b) A procedure for the orderly and timely transition of services, functions, and responsibilities from each affected county to the consolidated county. (c) The division …

In determining the fiscal impact of the proposed consolidation, the commission shall consider: (a) The cost of providing services in the consolidated county. (b) Projected revenues available to the consolidated county. (c) Projected economics of scale to result from consolidation…

Members of the commission shall receive as compensation a per diem not to exceed fifty dollars ($50) a day for every day they are actually employed together with their actual expenses incurred in performing their duties. If consolidation is effected all expenses of the commission…

The commission shall adopt a resolution making its determinations and transmit its report to the board of supervisors of each affected county within 180 days after notice of appointment and acceptance by the last appointed member, and shall be signed and attested to by each membe…

Upon receiving the commission’s determinations, the board of supervisors of each affected county shall order and give proclamation and notice of an election to be held in their respective affected county, the election to be held in each affected county on the same specified day w…

The proclamation and notice of election to determine whether a consolidated county should be organized shall be published at least once a week for three weeks commencing not less than 70 days prior to the date of the election in a newspaper of general circulation in each affected…

At the same time that the board of supervisors of each affected county issues a proclamation and notice of election for the purpose of determining whether the proposed consolidated county shall be organized, the boards shall issue a proclamation and notice of an election to be he…

The notice of election shall: (a) State distinctly the propositions to be submitted. (b) State the names of the counties proposed to be consolidated. (c) State the date of the election. (d) Designate the election precincts and places at which the polls will be open as established…

All qualified electors of each affected county who have been registered electors of the county 30 days prior to the date of the election are entitled to vote at the election. Registration and transfers of registration shall be made and shall close in the manner and at the times p…

Ballots at the election shall contain the words: (a) “For consolidation Yes,” and “For consolidation No.” Each voter shall stamp a cross (+) opposite the words “Yes,” or “No.” (b) “For (name of county seat as determined by commission) as county seat Yes” and “For (name of county …

Candidates for elective offices of the consolidated county shall file nomination papers at the same time and in the same manner as candidates for the governing body of general law counties.

The election shall be governed and controlled by the general election laws of the state so far as applicable, except as otherwise provided in this article.

If more than one argument for or more than one argument against the proposed consolidation is filed with the clerk of the principal county the clerk shall select one of the arguments for and one of the arguments against the proposed consolidation for printing and distribution to …

The elections official of the principal county shall cause a ballot pamphlet concerning the proposed consolidation to be printed and mailed to each qualified elector of each affected county. The ballot pamphlet shall contain the following in the order prescribed: (a) An impartial…

The clerk shall also prepare and mail to the qualified electors of each affected county a sample ballot. The sample ballot shall be mailed with and at the same time as the ballot pamphlet.

The law relating to the preparation, printing, and distribution of sample ballots and primary elections does not apply to any election held pursuant to this article.

Except as otherwise provided by this article, the election shall be conducted as other elections in the principal county.

The board of each affected county shall appoint as election officers three representatives who reside in the affected county represented.

Immediately on the closing of the polls the election officers shall, in connection with the affected county they represent: (a) Canvass the ballots. (b) Make up and certify the tally sheets of the ballots cast. (c) Seal up the ballots. (d) Attach a statement, signed by each elect…

The clerk of each affected county shall upon the completion of a canvass of the vote, in the county the clerk represents, forward to the board of that affected county, a certified copy of the results of the canvass, giving the number of votes cast in that affected county for each…

All costs of the election on county consolidation shall be borne by the consolidated county if the county consolidation is effected. If the county consolidation is not effected, the costs of the election shall be borne by all the affected counties on an equal basis.

If upon a canvass of the total votes cast in all the affected counties at the election, it appears that within each affected county, more than 50 percent of the total number of all votes cast in such affected county are in favor of formation of the proposed consolidated county, t…

The clerk of the principal county shall immediately make out and deliver to each person elected a certificate of election, authenticated by his signature and the seal of the board of the principal county.

All the officers elected at the election shall hold their offices until the time provided by general law for the election and qualification of such officers, and until their successors are elected and qualified.

The board of supervisors of the principal county shall cause a copy of the resolution adopted pursuant to Section 23566 to be filed with the State Board of Equalization, the Secretary of State, and the board of supervisors of each affected county.

When the consolidated county is deemed legally established, the affected counties are dissolved and if any of the affected counties has a charter, it is deemed surrendered and annulled. The title to any property owned or held by, or in trust for, any of the affected counties, or …

Any county created by the consolidation of counties pursuant to this chapter is the successor of the affected counties.

The maximum tax rate for the consolidated county shall be determined in accordance with Chapter 3 (commencing with Section 2201) of Part 4 of Division 1 of the Revenue and Taxation Code.

The affected counties shall continue to provide necessary service from the date of establishing the consolidated county until service responsibilities and functions are transferred to the consolidated county according to the provisions of the resolution of the board of supervisor…

Notwithstanding any other provision of law no special district which is organized within any affected county and governed by the board of supervisors thereof, shall have its territory divided or in any other way have its organization changed as a result of the county consolidatio…

After the establishment of the consolidated county its officers shall proceed to complete all proceedings necessary for the assessment or collection of the state and county taxes for the current year, and all acts and steps theretofore taken by the officers of the affected counti…

The officers of each affected county shall immediately execute and deliver to the board of supervisors of the consolidated county copies of all assessments or other proceedings relative to the assessment and collection of the current state and county taxes on property in the cons…

The superior court of the principal county shall become the superior court of the consolidated county.

On or after the date the consolidated county is established, the superior court in the affected counties shall retain jurisdiction in all cases pending in a session of such court immediately prior to consolidation.

Except as otherwise provided in this chapter, consolidation does not affect any debts, demands, liabilities, or obligations of any kind existing in favor of or against the counties consolidated, at the time of consolidation. Consolidation does not affect any pending action or pro…

Subject to the provisions of this chapter, the board of a local agency may undertake and issue revenue bonds to finance the following public improvements: (a) The acquisition, construction, maintenance, operation, improvement and development of public golf courses, marinas, or sm…

Each separate improvement shall be designated as a “project.”

If in the opinion of the board, it is advisable that any project be acquired, constructed or completed, in whole or in part, it shall cause a report thereon to be made by any appropriate officer or officers of the local agency, which shall include: (a) An estimate of the probable…