Opinion ID: 3152784
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 4

Heading: h.b. 2534

Text: On February 1, 2011, while the district court proceedings in Gila River Indian Community were pending, the governor of Arizona signed H.B. 2534 into law. The bill was scheduled to take effect on July 20, 2011. A lead sponsor of H.B. 2534 stated that the bill was made necessary by a “power grab by the federal government,” and that the legislature was “fighting an overreaching, intrusive Federal Government.” The bill, codified at A.R.S. § 9-471.04, provides as follows: 10 TOHONO O’ODHAM NATION V. STATE OF ARIZONA
this article:
population of more than three hundred fifty thousand persons may annex any territory within an area that is surrounded by the city or town or that is bordered by the city or town on at least three sides if the landowner has submitted a request to the federal government to take ownership of the territory or hold the territory in trust.
section is valid if approved by a majority vote of the governing body of the city or town. The annexation becomes immediately operative if it is approved by at least two-thirds of the governing body of the city or town.
a request to the federal government” means the landowner has made an application to the federal government as required by a specific federal statute or regulation. A.R.S. § 9-471.04.