ARIZONA HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

SB 1140: S/E irrigation districts; qualified electors; definitions

PRIME SPONSOR: Senator Griffin, LD 14

BILL STATUS: Land, Agriculture & Rural Affairs

Abstract

Relating to qualifications to vote and hold office in a District.

Provisions

1. Defines land or real property as all real property regardless of use or designation.

a. Applies to instances in which holding ownership or evidence of title is required for:

i. voting or holding office in a District; or

ii. signing a formation, dissolution, boundary change or recall petition or any other District function. (Sec. 1)

o The only District established in a county with a population of greater than 200,000 persons and that has the Colorado River as a boundary is MVIDD.

2. Contains an emergency clause. (Sec. 3)

3. Repeals the definition change on January 1, 2021. (Sec. 2)

Current Law

A District is formed when a majority of resident owners of real property sign and file a petition for the formation with the county BOS (A.R.S. § 48-2905). If, after a hearing on the petition, the county BOS grants the request, an election to organize the District must be held. The county BOS is required to divide the District into three divisions (A.R.S. § 48-2913). A director is elected from each division. A District with more than 10,000 acres of land may also elect two directors at large. Directors representing a division must be qualified electors of that division and directors at large must be qualified electors of the District. Directors serve staggered, three-year terms (A.R.S. § 48-2914.01). Elections are held in the District each year in which the term of office of a director at large expires and in each division in which the term of office of a director of the division expires. Elections are held on the second Tuesday after the first Monday of November (A.R.S. § 48-3011).

Qualifications to vote in a District election require the person to: 1) be a holder of title or evidence of title to land in the District 90 days immediately preceding the election; 2) have resided continuously for six months immediately preceding the election in the county in which the District or a part thereof is located; 3) be at least 18 years old; and 4) be registered with the board of directors if the District is using the personal and individual system of voting (A.R.S. §§ 48-2917, 48-3015). A director elected or appointed is subject to recall by the vote of a majority of qualified electors of the division represented or, for a director at large, the entire District (A.R.S. § 48-3024).

General powers of the District board of directors include, but are not limited to, the following: 1) purchasing or acquiring water rights; 2) making appropriations of water for irrigation and power purposes; 3) exercising exclusive control over laterals, ditches, canals, rights-of-way and other District property, and 4) providing the District with water, electricity and other public conveniences and necessities (A.R.S. § 48-2978).

Additional Information

In 2005, a recall election in all three divisions of MVIDD was held based on the allegation that the newly elected directors were not qualified electors because they did not own agricultural land. In Hancock v. Bisnar, the Arizona Supreme Court held that the challenged directors were not qualified to serve because they did not own agricultural land in the District, and therefore are not qualified electors under the rule in Post v. Wright, 37 Ariz. 105, 289 P. 979 (1930).

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Fifty-third Legislature                  SB 1140

Second Regular Session                               Version 1: Land, Agriculture & Rural Affairs

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