17-35b-303 - Community council form of county government.
17-35b-303. Community council form of county government.
(1) The structural form of county government known as the "community council" formunites in a single consolidated city and county government the powers, duties, and functionswhich, immediately prior to its effective date, are vested in the county, the largest city in thecounty, such other cities and towns as elect to merge in it, and all special taxing districts, publicauthorities, service areas, and other local public entities functioning within the boundaries of thecounty, except school districts. The consolidated government shall have power to extend on acountywide basis any governmental service or function which is authorized by law or which theprevious county, cities, and other local public agencies included therein were empowered toprovide for their residents, but no such service shall be provided within an incorporatedmunicipality which continues to provide that service for its own inhabitants, except upon acontract basis for the municipality, and no taxes, assessments, fees, or other charges shall beextended or collected within the municipality for the purpose of financing any service which isnot provided by the consolidated government within the municipality. "Largest city," as used inthis section, means a city or cities the population of which, as shown by the most recentdecennial or special census, exceeds 35% of the total county population.
(2) The incorporated cities and towns, other than the largest city, in the county shallretain independent corporate existence and shall continue to provide local services to theirinhabitants of the type and to the extent provided in the plan, but any such city or town, bymajority vote of its qualified voters, cast either concurrently with the election at which the plan isapproved or subsequently to it, as provided by the governing body of the city or town, may causethe city or town to be dissolved and its powers, duties, and functions vested in the countywidegovernment.
(3) The county legislative body of the countywide government shall be a councilcomposed of not less than five persons as specified in the plan, elected respectively fromcommunities, which collectively include all of the territory within the county, having boundariesdescribed in the plan embracing substantially equal populations. In addition to other powersvested in the countywide government by law or pursuant to this act, the county council shall haveall of the legislative and policymaking powers which it is possible for the governing body of acounty or a city to possess and which are not expressly denied by the constitution, by a generallaw applicable to all cities or all counties, or by a specific restriction in the plan itself.
(4) The voters of each community shall elect a community council composed of thecommunity's elected member of the county council, who shall be chairman of the communitycouncil, and not less than two nor more than four additional members elected either from districtsof substantially equal population within the community, or at large therein, as may be provided inthe plan. A community council shall have the power and duty, in conformity with guidelinesprescribed by the county council, to adopt policies and formulate specific programs relating toand defining the kinds and levels of local governmental services necessary to satisfy the needsand desires of the citizens within the community, but a community council shall have no powerto engage personnel or to acquire facilities, property, or equipment for the administration orperformance of such services. Authorized programs for local governmental services which havebeen approved by a community council shall be submitted to the county council forimplementation and shall be carried into effect by the county council and county executiveunless, by a vote of not less than 3/4 of its entire membership, the county council determines thata particular program, in whole or in part, should be rejected as contrary to the general welfare of
the county. A community council program for local governmental services within a community:
(a) shall include a method or methods for financing such services;
(b) may provide for supplying of such services by contract or by joint or cooperativeaction pursuant to Title 11, Chapter 13, Interlocal Cooperation Act, in which case the communitycouncil shall be considered a "public agency" within the meaning of said act; and
(c) may provide for supplying of such services through the creation of service areaspursuant to Title 17B, Chapter 2a, Part 9, Service Area Act.
(5) Notwithstanding Subsection (4), in any community which includes, in whole or inpart, the territory of a city or town, no community council program for local government servicesabove the minimum level of area-wide services provided countywide may be submitted to thecounty council for implementation unless it first is submitted to the governing body of each suchcity or town for review. Within 30 days after such submission, the governing body of the city ortown:
(a) may file with the community council a written statement of its comments,suggestions, and recommendations relating to the program, and the community council shall givedue consideration thereto; or
(b) may, by resolution or ordinance, provide that any designated part of the communitycouncil program relating to a service to be provided within the city or town shall be submitted tothe voters thereof at a general or special election to be held therein within 60 days after the dateof the resolution or ordinance. Any part of the program submitted to the voters of a city or townunder this Subsection (5) shall not be included in the program as submitted to the county councilunless it receives an approving vote at such election by majority of all votes cast on the question.
(6) Except as provided herein, the qualifications, mode of election, term of office,method of removal, procedure to fill vacancies, compensation, and other appropriate provisionsrelating to membership on the county council or community councils shall be provided in theplan.
(7) Upon the effective date of the plan and as provided in it, all properties and assets,whether tangible or intangible, and all obligations, debts, and liabilities, of those governmentalentities which are merged into the new countywide government shall become vested andtransferred by operation of law in and to the new countywide government. The properties, assets,obligations, debts, and liabilities of any city or town not merged into the new countywidegovernment, so far as allocated, used, or incurred primarily to discharge a function which underthe plan will no longer be a responsibility of the city or town, shall likewise be vested in andtransferred to the new countywide government. All transfers under this Subsection (7) shall besubject to equitable adjustments, conditions, and limitations provided in the plan and determinedby procedures specified in the plan, but the contractual rights of any bondholder or creditor shallnot be impaired.
(8) Upon the effective date of the plan and as provided in it, nonelective officers andemployees of governmental entities which are merged into the new countywide government andsuch officers and employees of nonmerged cities or towns whose qualifications and duties relateprimarily to functions which under the plan will no longer be a responsibility of those cities ortowns, shall be blanketed in and transferred to the new countywide government as officers andemployees of it. Standards and procedures relating to such personnel transfers, and for resolvingdisputes or grievances relating thereto, shall be provided in the plan.
Amended by Chapter 329, 2007 General Session