A.R.S. tit. 48 ch. 3 — Arizona Revised Statutes Title 48 Chapter 3 — Pest Control Districts

48-401. Definitions In this article, unless the context otherwise requires: 1. "Appliance" means any article, thing or conveyance used in growing, handling or processing of crops. 2. "Crop" means any similar forage crop, tree fruit crop, vegetable crop or field and includes any appliance used in the handling thereof. 3. "Director" means one or all the board of directors of a pest control district established pursuant to this article. 4. "District" means a pest control district established pursuant to the provisions of this article and includes the governing body of the district and all its authorized personnel. 5. "Pest" means any form of animal or plant life detrimental to agriculture. 6. "Petition" means the petition to the board of supervisors made pursuant to this article for formation or dissolution of a pest control district. 48-402. Petition to form district; contents of petition A. Any group of fifteen or more persons or any number of persons who own at least seventy-five per cent of the acreage of the proposed district, who are the owners of any crop being grown within this state may petition to the board of supervisors of the county in which the crop is being grown for the formation of a pest control district for the purpose of preventing the establishment or eradicating any pest not of common occurrence on the crop within the district. The petition may consist of any number of separate instruments which shall be duplicates, except for the signature, address, and acreages of the crop of the signers. B. The petition shall include: 1. The name of the crop for which the district is requested. 2. The name of the pest, the establishment of which is to be prevented, or eradication of which is sought. 3. The boundaries of the district requested. 4. The name and address of each signer of the petition; acreage and varieties of the crop enumerated in the petition owned by him, together with the owner's valid signature. 5. A list of the proposed directors of the district. 48-403. Notice of hearing on petition; certification of enumerated pest by state entomologist A. Upon receipt of the petition, the board of supervisors shall set a date for the hearing thereof not less than sixty nor more than one hundred twenty days from the date of receipt thereof and shall have published the notice of purpose, date, time and place of the hearing in the same manner in which other public hearings before the board are published. B. The clerk of the board of supervisors shall compare the signatures, addresses and acreage of the crop set forth in the petition with the county assessment roll and shall certify to the board of supervisors its adequacy. C. The board of supervisors may request a certification from the Arizona department of agriculture that the pest enumerated in the petition is not of common occurrence within the boundaries of the district requested, and the receipt of such certification by the board of supervisors shall be prima facie evidence that the pest is not of common occurrence within the boundaries of the district. 48-404. Hearing; election; form of ballot; qualifications of electors A. The board of supervisors shall hear the petition in accordance with the notice, hearing all persons in favor of or against the formation of the district and shall determine the adequacy of the petition. B. If the board of supervisors determines that the petition is adequate they shall call an election within ninety days, which election shall be held in the same manner as other county elections and may be held with or in conjunction with another county election. C. The board of directors of a corporation shall, by resolution entered upon its minutes, designate a member of the board who may vote for the corporation. Written notice of the name of the person authorized to vote for the corporation shall forthwith be given to the board of supervisors by the corporation. D. Only those electors who make affidavit at the time of voting that they are of record the owner of one or more acres of the crop enumerated in the petition shall be entitled to vote or to hold office as director. Nonresident owners may vote and hold office as director. E. The ballot shall be substantially as follows: "In favor of the formation of Pest Control District ( ) Against the formation of Pest Control District ( ) Acres of enumerated crop I own ( ) Names of proposed directors: ( ) __________________________________________ ( ) __________________________________________ ( ) __________________________________________ ( ) __________________________________________ ( ) __________________________________________ ( ) Signature _____________________" F. There shall be not less than five proposed directors and additional spaces shall be provided for additional names to be entered by the voter should he choose. 48-405. Canvass of election; order declaring formation of district A. The canvass of election shall be conducted by the board of supervisors at its next regular meeting after the election has been held, and if a majority or more of the owners of the crop mentioned voting are in favor of the formation of the district and they own sixty per cent or more of the acreage of the crop voting within the proposed district, then the board of supervisors shall proclaim the district formed and five directors elected and shall notify the five candidates for director receiving the greatest number of votes that they have been elected directors of the "(name of district) pest control district". B. The clerk of the board of supervisors shall file a certified copy of the order of the board of supervisors' proclamation forming the district with the county recorder and with the secretary of state. 48-406. Amendment of district boundaries A. At any time after the district has been proclaimed, the owner of any crop for which the district has been proclaimed whose land is contiguous to the exterior boundaries of the district may request the board of supervisors to amend the boundaries of the district to include such owner's property. B. If the board of supervisors determines that the inclusion of such land will benefit both the owner and the district, the inclusion shall be made by order of the board of supervisors. 48-407. Directors; term; qualifications; first meeting A. The term of office of director shall be for two years after election and until his successor has qualified, provided that, if during his term of office he sells or otherwise disposes of the crop mentioned in the proclaimed district, his term shall automatically expire and a vacancy shall exist in the directors. If for any reason a vacancy exists in the directors, the board of supervisors shall appoint a director who is the owner of the crop mentioned in the proclaimed district to fill the unexpired term. B. To qualify as director every person so elected or appointed shall file an oath of office with the clerk of the board of supervisors in the same manner as all other county officers. C. Within ten days after their election and qualification, the directors shall meet and elect one of their number chairman and one of their number vice chairman and one of their number secretary whose duties shall be those commonly performed by such officers. 48-408. Powers and duties of directors; compensation A. The directors shall hold an annual meeting and such other meetings as they may determine are necessary from time to time. They shall make an annual report pursuant to section 48-251 showing the receipts and disbursements of all funds and property belonging to the district. They shall prepare an annual budget of the proposed expenditures to be made during the succeeding year. Any monies that may accrue to the district that are in excess of the budgetary requirements for the succeeding year may be invested by the directors in public bonds or deposited in a federal reserve bank or other federally insured depository. B. A director shall serve without compensation, except that he shall be paid ten dollars per diem and expenses of not to exceed ten dollars for each day the directors meet to transact district business. Any director who may be designated so to do may travel within and without the state and may use vehicles owned by the district or public transportation for such travel when on district business, and shall be paid ten dollars per diem and actual travel expenses when so engaged. C. The directors shall determine the number and compensation of all district employees and shall hire and discharge such employees as they see fit. D. The directors may expend district funds for the purchase of any property, real or otherwise, equipment, supplies, services and all manner of things that may be required to carry out the intent and purpose of the district and may acquire by purchase, condemnation or otherwise in the name of the district any lands, right-of-ways, easements, or other real property necessary for the district. The directors may sell or lease any lands, right-of-ways, easements, material or other property, real or personal, acquired by the district, and may sue and be sued. E. All district property and equipment shall be exempt from state and county taxes of any kind. F. The directors may assign such district business as they may determine to a manager appointed by them and paid by the district. The manager shall have such powers as the directors may authorize. G. The directors shall annually set the assessment for each acre of the crop to be protected by the district, and shall so notify the county assessor prior to March 1 of each year. H. The directors may ask for amendments to the district either adding or removing pests from the list of those to be controlled or extending or contracting the boundaries of the district. The amendments shall be made in the same manner as the original district was formed. I. The directors may contract and cooperate with agencies, instrumentalities and departments of the state, the county and the United States interested in the control, extermination and eradication of the pest sought to be controlled or eradicated and may in addition thereto do those things required in order to secure financial assistance from said agencies, instrumentalities and departments. J. The directors shall establish minimum requirements to control pests by landowners in the district before the directors expend district funds on infested lands. 48-409. Powers of district A. The district under the police powers of the state shall have the right of entry and egress as to any property within the district for the purpose of inspecting or treating any plant, article or thing for the presence of any of the pests enumerated in the proclaimed district, and may enter upon any property adjacent to the district which might be a breeding place for the pest sought to be controlled or eradicated. B. The district may in a summary manner destroy any plant, article or thing within the district found to be infested with a pest enumerated in the proclaimed district, and shall recompense the owner of any such plant, article or thing in the amount of its market value, which value is to be established by an appraisal board of three disinterested persons prior to its destruction. The board of supervisors shall appoint such an appraisal board upon request of the district. C. The district may fumigate, disinfect, spray or otherwise treat any plant, appliance, article or thing which might cause the introduction of any enumerated pest into the district. The expense of fumigation or treatment shall be paid from district funds when the article or thing is within the district. Otherwise the expense shall be paid by the person desiring to bring the article or thing into the district. D. The district may levy an assessment of not more than twenty-five dollars per acre to carry out the purposes of this article, which assessment shall be collected by the county tax collector in the same manner and at the same time as other county taxes are collected, provided that the district has notified the county assessor by March 1 of each year of the amount of the assessment. Delinquent assessments shall become a lien on the property of the owner thereof ninety days after the due date and shall be collected in the same manner as other county tax liens. E. All funds collected by the tax collector under this article shall be paid into the county treasury to the credit of the district. F. All funds shall be withdrawn by warrant of the district, signed by the president and secretary of the board of directors of the district. 48-410. Dissolution of district A. Districts may be dissolved by an order of the board of directors of the district or dissolved in the same manner as they were initiated. After an order of the board has been made dissolving a district, the board of supervisors shall succeed to all the powers of the district until the obligations and disposal of district assets have been fully satisfied. B. If any funds remain in the district fund after dissolution and satisfaction of all outstanding obligations and sale of district property, the remainder shall be credited to each owner of property in the former district in proportion to the assessment last paid by him. 48-411. Non-agriculture lands exempt No non-agriculture lands shall be subject to the provisions of this article. 48-412. Reimbursement for county services Services provided by a county to a pest control district are subject to reimbursement pursuant to section 11-251.06.