2023 New York Laws › TWN - Town › Article 11 - Fire, Fire Alarm and Fire Protection Districts › 171 - Petition and Hearing.

§  171.  Petition  and hearing. 1. A petition to establish or extend a
fire, fire alarm or fire protection district pursuant to the  provisions
of  section  one  hundred  seventy  of this article shall be signed, and
acknowledged or proved in the same manner as a deed to be  recorded,  or
authenticated  in  the  manner  provided  by  the  election  law for the
authentication of nominating petitions,  by  resident  taxpayers  owning
taxable  real  property  aggregating  at  least one-half of the assessed
valuation of all the taxable real property of the proposed  district  or
extension thereof owned by resident taxpayers, as such valuations appear
upon  the latest completed assessment roll of said town or towns, except
that where there are  no  resident  taxpayers  within  a  proposed  fire
protection  district or fire alarm district or a proposed extension of a
fire district, fire protection district or fire alarm district then  the
petition  shall  be signed by non-resident taxpayers owning taxable real
property aggregating at least one-half of the assessed valuation of  all
the taxable real property in the proposed district or extension as shown
on such last completed assessment roll. If a portion only of a parcel of
such  real  estate appearing upon the assessment roll is situated within
the proposed district or extension, then the town board  or  boards  may
determine  the  relative  value of that part thereof within the proposed
district or extension, based upon the valuation of the entire parcel  as
the  same  appears  upon  the  assessment  roll.  If the boundaries of a
proposed fire district as described in the petition  therefor  shall  be
coterminous  with  those  of an existing water supply district having no
bonded indebtedness, the petition may provide  for  the  dissolution  of
such  water supply district upon the establishment of said fire district
and the assumption by said fire district  of  all  the  liabilities  and
indebtedness of such water supply district.
2.   a. The town board or town boards shall hold a public hearing upon
such petition and shall cause a notice thereof to be published at  least
once  in  a  newspaper  having  general  circulation  in  the  territory
affected, the first publication thereof to be not less than ten days nor
more than twenty days before the day designated therein for the hearing,
and the town clerk or town clerks shall cause copies of such  notice  to
be  posted  on  the  sign-board  of  the  town  maintained  pursuant  to
subdivision six of section thirty of this chapter, and conspicuously  in
such  other  places within or without the territory affected as the town
board or town boards may direct, not less than ten nor more than  twenty
days  before  the  day  designated  for the hearing as aforesaid. In the
event that the town maintains a website, such information  may  also  be
provided  on the website. Such notice shall contain a description of the
proposed district or extension, state the estimated  rate  per  thousand
dollars of assessed valuation, based on the aggregate assessed valuation
of  taxable real property of the proposed district or extension district
shown in the latest completed final assessment  roll,  projected  to  be
assessed,  levied and collected for purposes of the proposed district or
extended district for the fiscal year of its operation and  specify  the
time  when  and  the  place  where the town board or boards will meet to
consider such petition and to hear all persons interested in the subject
concerning the same. If the petition shall provide for  the  dissolution
of  an existing water supply district upon the establishment of the fire
district,  the  notice  of  hearing  shall  so  specify.  If,  upon  the
establishment  or  extension of a fire district, the fire district would
become the sponsor of a service award program pursuant  to  section  two
hundred  sixteen-b  of  the general municipal law, the notice of hearing
shall so specify and contain a statement of the estimated annual cost of
the service award program to the fire district; provided, however,  that
if,  upon the establishment or extension of a fire district, the ensuing

fire district would become  the  sponsor  of  a  service  award  program
pursuant  to section two hundred sixteen-b of the general municipal law,
the resolutions establishing the districts shall be  submitted  in  each
such town in the manner provided by article seven of this chapter. Prior
to  the publication of the notice, the board or boards shall cause to be
prepared, and file for public inspection with the town clerk, a detailed
explanation of how the estimated rate of  assessment  for  the  proposed
district or extended district was computed.
b.  (1)  If  the  permission  of the state comptroller is not required
pursuant to section one hundred seventy-three of this article because it
is not proposed to finance an expenditure for the district or  extension
by  the  issuance  of  bonds,  notes, certificates or other evidences of
indebtedness of the fire district, a certified copy of the notice  shall
be  filed  with  the  state  comptroller  on  or  about  the date of the
publication of such notice.
(2)  Notwithstanding  the  provisions  of  subparagraph  one  of  this
paragraph  the  state  comptroller shall not be precluded from requiring
the submission of additional information or data in such form and detail
as the state comptroller  shall  deem  sufficient  or  from  causing  an
investigation  to be made with respect to the establishment or extension
of a district or an increase in the maximum amount to be expended.
3. After a hearing held upon notice as hereinbefore provided and  upon
the  evidence given thereat, the town board or boards shall determine by
resolution:
(a) Whether the petition is signed, and  acknowledged  or  proved,  or
authenticated as required by law and is otherwise sufficient;
(b)  Whether  all the property and property owners within the proposed
district or extension are benefited thereby;
(c) Whether  all  the  property  and  property  owners  benefited  are
included within the limits of the proposed district or extension;
(d)  Whether it is in the public interest to grant in whole or in part
the relief sought.
If the town board shall determine that the petition is not signed, and
acknowledged or proved, or authenticated as required by law or  that  it
is  otherwise insufficient, or if it is determined that it be not in the
public interest to grant in whole or in part the relief sought, the town
board shall deny the petition.
If the town board shall determine that the  petition  is  signed,  and
acknowledged  or  proved,  or  authenticated  as  required by law and is
otherwise sufficient and that it is in the public interest to grant  the
relief  sought, either in whole or in part, but shall find that any part
or portion of the  property  or  property  owners  within  the  proposed
district or extension are not benefited thereby or that certain property
or property owners benefited thereby have not been included therein, the
town  board shall specify the necessary changes of the boundaries of the
proposed district or extension to be made  in  order  that  all  of  the
property  and property owners and only such property and property owners
as are benefited shall be included  within  such  proposed  district  or
extension,  and  the  board  shall  call a further hearing at a definite
place and time not less than fifteen  nor  more  than  twenty-five  days
after  such  determination.  Notice  of  such  further  hearing shall be
posted, published and mailed in the  manner  provided  in  this  section
except  that  such  notice  shall also specify the manner in which it is
proposed to alter the boundaries of the proposed district or  extension.
Such  further  hearing  shall  be  conducted  in  the  same manner as an
original hearing upon a petition. If  and  when  the  town  board  shall
determine  in  the  affirmative  all  of the questions set forth in this
subdivision,  the  board  may   adopt   a   resolution   approving   the

establishment  or  extension  of the district as the boundaries shall be
finally determined, but no such resolution so approving shall be adopted
unless the petition shall comply with the requirements of  this  section
as  to sufficiency of signers as the boundaries of the proposed district
or extension shall be finally determined.