A. Whenever the owners of sixty-six and two-thirds percent or more of the total assessed valuation of the property to be benefited, exclusive of any land owned by the United States or the state of New Mexico, petition in writing the governing body to create an improvement district and construct the improvement described in the petition, the governing body may:

(1) create the improvement district;

(2) select the type of material and method of construction to be used; and

(3) proceed with the construction of the improvement as authorized in Section 3-33-18 NMSA 1978 after complying with the requirements for a preliminary hearing required in this section. A governing body, board of county commissioners or local board of education may sign a petition seeking the improvement for any land under its control. The submission of separate petitions for any one improvement district within a six-month period shall be considered as a single petition.

B. The governing body may:

(1) pay the cost of the improvement;

(2) assess the cost of the improvement against the benefiting tracts or parcels of land;

(3) pay part of the cost of the improvement and assess part of the cost of the improvement against the benefiting tracts or parcels of land; or

(4) impose an improvement district property tax pursuant to Section 3-33-14.1 NMSA 1978.

C. If any part or all of the cost of the improvement sought to be constructed as authorized in this section is to be assessed against the benefiting tracts or parcels of land or paid for by the imposition of an improvement district property tax, the governing body shall hold a preliminary hearing on the proposed improvement district and give notice of the preliminary hearing.

History: 1953 Comp., § 14-32-7, enacted by Laws 1965, ch. 300; 1991, ch. 199, § 10; 2001, ch. 312, § 4.

The 2001 amendment, effective June 15, 2001, added Paragraph B(4); and inserted "or paid for by the imposition of an improvement district property tax" in Subsection C.

The 1991 amendment, effective April 4, 1991, in Subsection A, substituted "total assessed valuation of the property to be benefited" for "front-feet of any tracts or parcels of land" and deleted "which abuts on a street" following "New Mexico" in the introductory paragraph and, in Paragraph (3), substituted "3-33-18 NMSA 1978" for "14-32-11 New Mexico Statutes Annotated, 1953 Compilation" near the beginning and "for any one improvement district" for "on any one street" in the final sentence; substituted "benefiting tracts or parcels" for "abutting tract or parcel" in Paragraphs (2) and (3) in Subsection B; and substituted "tracts or parcels" for "tract or parcel" in Subsection C.

Am. Jur. 2d, A.L.R. and C.J.S. references. — 70A Am. Jur. 2d Special or Local Assessments § 128 et seq.

"Owner," scope and import of term in statutes relating to petition for public improvements, 2 A.L.R. 789, 95 A.L.R. 1085.

Qualification of owner of property affected by public improvement to act in making assessment, 2 A.L.R. 1207.

Property interest as disqualifying one to participate in proceeding to establish public improvement, 11 A.L.R. 193.

Validity or enforcement of assessment as affected by lack of or defects in petition of property owners, 95 A.L.R. 116.

Property unit for purposes of assessment for street or other local improvement as affected by owner's disregard of original lot lines or creation of new ones, 104 A.L.R. 1049.

Cotenancy as factor in determining representation of property owners in petition for public improvement, 3 A.L.R.2d 127.

63 C.J.S. Municipal Corporations §§ 1094, 1102.