A. The governing body, at its option, may authorize the appointment of a separate district board. In the case of an appointed district board, three of the appointed directors shall serve an initial term to expire following a regular local election and not to exceed six years. Two of the appointed directors shall serve an initial term to expire following a regular local election and not to exceed four years. The resolution forming the district shall state which directors shall serve the longer terms and which shall serve the shorter terms. If a vacancy occurs on the district board because of death, resignation or inability of the director to discharge the duties of director, the governing body shall appoint a director to fill the vacancy, who shall hold office for the remainder of the unexpired term until a successor is appointed or elected.

B. At the end of the appointed directors' terms, the governing body shall resume governance of the district as its board either directly or through the governing body's designees or, at the governing body's option, shall hold an election of new directors by majority vote of the qualified electors or if the election is canceled pursuant to Subsection G of Section 5-11-7 NMSA 1978, an owner's determination conducted by ballot shall decide the new directors.

History: Laws 2001, ch. 305, § 9; 2009, ch. 46, § 2; 2013, ch. 45, § 5; 2019, ch. 212, § 195.

The 2019 amendment, effective April 3, 2019, revised the provisions related to staggered terms of appointed district board directors, and provided for the governance of the district during vacancies on the board; in Subsection A, after "initial term", deleted "of" and added "to expire following a regular local election and not to exceed", after "initial term", deleted "of" and added "to expire following a regular local election and not to exceed", after "directors shall serve", deleted "four-year" and added "the longer", and after "which shall serve", deleted "six-year" and added "the shorter"; deleted former Subsection B and redesignated former Subsection C as Subsection B; and in Subsection B, after "qualified electors", deleted "and owners" and added "or if the election is canceled pursuant to Subsection G of Section 5-11-7 NMSA 1978, an owner's determination conducted by ballot shall decide the new directors".

The 2013 amendment, effective July 1, 2013, provided for the resumption of governance of a public improvement district by the governing body at the end of the appointed directors' terms; and in Subsection C, after "the governing body shall", added "resume governance of the district as its board either directly or through the governing body's designees or, at the governing body's option, shall".

The 2009 amendment, effective June 19, 2009, deleted former Subsection C which provided that at the end of the appointed director's initial term, the governing body could either resume governance of the district as its board or hold an election of new directors and added a new Subsection C.