Opinion ID: 1837237
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 3

Heading: Whether the Chancellor's Ruling and Judgment were Sufficient

Text: ¶ 13. Those opposed to the annexation seek reversal because, in reaching his ruling and judgment, the chancellor failed to consider and weigh the twelve indicia of reasonableness, a requirement essential to any decision regarding a proposed annexation. City of Batesville, 760 So.2d at 699-700. In City of Batesville, we reviewed these twelve factors: (1) the municipality's need for expansion, (2) whether the area sought to be annexed is reasonably within a path of growth of the city, (3) the potential health hazards from sewage and waste disposal in the annexed areas, (4) the municipality's financial ability to make the improvements and furnish municipal services promised, (5) the need for zoning and overall planning in the area, (6) the need for municipal services in the area sought to be annexed, (7) whether there are natural barriers between the city and the [proposed annexation area], (8) the past performance and time element involved in the city's provision of services to its present residents, (9) the impact (economic or otherwise) of the annexation upon those who live in or own in the city or proposed annexation area, (10) the impact of the annexation upon the voting strength of protected minority groups, (11) whether the property owners and other inhabitants of the areas sought to be annexed have in the past, and for the foreseeable future unless annexed will, because of their reasonable proximity to the corporate limits of the municipality, enjoy the (economic and social) benefits of proximity to the municipality without paying their fair share of the taxes, and (12) any other factors that may suggest reasonableness vel non. Id. ¶ 14. We have stated that a chancellor must consider all twelve of the factors in order to determine whether the annexation is reasonable under the totality of the circumstances. City of Laurel v. Sharon Waterworks Ass'n, 918 So.2d 1269, 1271, 1273 (Miss.2005); In re Enlargement and Extension of Municipal Boundaries of City of Biloxi, 744 So.2d 270, 276-77 (Miss. 1999). In the instant case, the chancellor's verbal ruling and written judgment contain no reference to the twelve indicia of reasonableness in his decision to allow the annexation. Accordingly, the chancellor's failure to weigh and apply each of the twelve factors in some form for the record renders this Court unable to determine whether substantial evidence supports the chancellor's reasoning and ruling that the annexation should have been granted. See City of Laurel, 918 So.2d at 1271.