Mo. Rev. Stat. § 72.422 — MO Code / Chapter 72 / Section 72.422
72.422 Petition to remain unincorporated — unincorporated area proposal, procedure ...
Status: in_force

72.422. Petition to remain unincorporated — unincorporated area proposal, procedure for creating established unincorporated areas — no boundary change to affect established unincorporated area prior to expiration. — 1. Notwithstanding any other provision of sections 72.400 to 72.420 to the contrary, residents of an unincorporated area of a county may remain unincorporated and not subject to any boundary change pursuant to sections 72.400 to 72.420 if the following are satisfied:

(1) The county petitions the boundary commission;

(2) A legal description of the unincorporated area accompanies the petition. If there is a minor error or discrepancy in the legal description of the unincorporated area, the commission, with the concurrence of the county, may make such changes to the proposal as are necessary to rectify the error in the legal description;

(3) The unincorporated area either contains a population of not less than two thousand five hundred or is contiguous with an existing established unincorporated area;

(4) A plan of intent accompanies the petition addressing the issues to be considered by the commission.

2. When an unincorporated area proposal has been submitted to the commission, the commission shall, within twenty-one days of receipt of such proposal, publish notice of such proposal and the date of the public hearing thereon in at least one newspaper of general circulation qualified to publish legal notices. Within twenty-one days of receipt of such proposal, the commission shall also mail written notification of such proposal and public hearing date to the county clerk, and to the city or village clerk of each neighboring municipality or village, and to any other political subdivision which, in the opinion of the commission, is materially affected by the proposal. The costs of publication and notification shall be borne by the county. The commission shall hold such public hearing concerning the proposal not less than fourteen nor more than sixty days after such publication and notification are complete. At such public hearing, the county and any municipality with an overlapping map plan shall be parties, and any other interested person, corporation, or political subdivision may also present evidence regarding the unincorporated area proposal. An unincorporated area proposal which has been disapproved by the commission and which is resubmitted with changes to the commission shall be subject to the public hearing requirement of this section, unless the commission determines that a public hearing on the resubmitted proposal is not necessary to achieve the objectives of this section. The commission shall issue findings approving or disapproving such proposal within nine months after submittal, except that final action may be deferred on part or all of an unincorporated proposal when necessary to accommodate an overlapping boundary change proposal as more particularly provided in subsection 10 of section 72.405 . The proposal shall be submitted at the next general or special election in accordance with the provisions of chapter 115 . The cost of the election shall be paid by the county. If the proposal is approved by the voters then the area shall be an established unincorporated area and shall remain unincorporated territory for a period of five years from the date of the vote and shall not be subject to any boundary change pursuant to sections 72.400 to 72.420 .

3. In reviewing any proposed unincorporated area proposal, the commission shall approve such proposal if it finds that continued provision of local services to the area by the county will not impose an unreasonable burden on county government and that such designation is in the best interest of the unincorporated territories affected by the proposal and the areas of the county next to such area. In making its determination, the commission shall consider the following factors:

(1) The impact, including but not limited to the impact on the tax base or on the ability to raise revenue, of such proposal on:

(a) The area subject to the proposed established unincorporated area and its residents;

(b) Adjoining areas not involved in the proposed established area and the residents thereof; and

(c) The entire geographic area of the county and its residents;

(2) A legal description of the unincorporated area;

(3) The creation of logical and reasonable municipal boundaries in the county, and for such purpose the commission shall have the ability to make additions, deletions and modifications which address legal boundaries, technical or service delivery problems or boundaries which overlap those of other proposals; however, such additions, deletions and modifications shall not make substantial changes to any proposed unincorporated area proposal;

(4) Whether approval of the unincorporated area proposal will result in unreasonable difficulty in provision of services by the county;

(5) The effect approval of the established unincorporated area will have on the distribution of tax resources in the county;

(6) The compactness of the area subject to such proposal.

4. After approval by the voters of an unincorporated area proposal, no boundary change affecting any part of such area shall be proposed to the commission until expiration of the area's status as an established unincorporated area, but map plans affecting the area may be filed during the planning period pursuant to section 72.423 . If no map plan of a boundary change proposal with respect to an established unincorporated area has been submitted during the most recent planning period pursuant to section 72.423 , the commission shall commence review of the circumstances of such established unincorporated area six months prior to its expiration, and shall submit reauthorization of such unincorporated area to the voters if the commission determines that its circumstances have not materially changed since it was approved.

(L. 1998 S.B. 809, A.L. 1999 S.B. 160 & 82, A.L. 2000 H.B. 1967) Effective 6-27-00