HB 26-1253

HB 26-1253 is a Colorado bill that changes how landowners can disconnect their agricultural or farm lands from statutory towns or cities. The bill restricts the use of court decrees for disconnection if the land is within an urban renewal area or expected to receive services from special districts, requiring these owners to follow a different process instead. Additionally, it requires landowners seeking disconnection through ordinance to notify county commissioners and boards of affected special districts and urban renewal authorities, allowing these entities to discuss potential negative impacts before the disconnection happens. The bill has been signed into law, meaning its new rules are now in effect for any future requests to disconnect land from statutory municipalities.

Official Summary

Under current law, the owners of certain tracts of agricultural or farm land within and adjacent to the boundary of a statutory town or statutory city may petition the district court for the county to have the land disconnected from the town or city (disconnection by court decree). The bill changes which tracts of land are eligible to be disconnected from a statutory town or statutory city using the disconnection by court decree process, so that this process is not available for any tract of land that is included within the boundaries of an urban renewal area described in an urban renewal plan of an urban renewal authority (affected urban renewal authority) or a special district that, by its service plan or pursuant to an intergovernmental agreement, is or will be expected to provide service to the tract of land (affected special district). Instead of using the disconnection by court decree process, owners of these tracts of land must use the process for applications for disconnection from a statutory municipality.     Under current law, the owner of a tract of land within and adjacent to the boundary of a statutory municipality may apply to the governing body of the municipality for the enactment of an ordinance disconnecting the tract of land from the municipality (disconnection by ordinance). The bill also modifies this disconnection by ordinance process by requiring that, in addition to the existing requirement that an owner provide notice and a copy of the application for disconnection to the board of county commissioners of the county in which the tract of land is located and to the board of directors of any affected special district, the owner seeking disconnection must also provide notice and a copy of the application for disconnection to the commissioners of any affected urban renewal authority. Upon receiving the notice and application, these entities may request a meeting with the owner of the land and the governing body of the municipality to discuss and address any negative impacts that would result from the disconnection, including any change in the level or extent of services being provided to the tract of land that is the subject of the disconnection application or any interference with the implementation of an urban renewal plan of an affected urban renewal authority . The failure of the board of county commissioners, the board of any affected special district, or the commissioners of any affected urban renewal authority to request a meeting constitutes an acknowledgment that the disconnection will not adversely affect the county, the affected special district, or the affected urban renewal authority.(Note: Italicized words indicate new material added to the original summary; dashes through words indicate deletions from the original summary.)(Note: This summary applies to the reengrossed version of this bill as introduced in the second house.)

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