Limiting city and village authority to annex town territory. (FE)

Three of the methods of annexation include the following: 1) direct annexation, under which a petition for annexation that was signed by the required number of electors and landowners is filed with the city or village clerk; 2) annexation by referendum, under which a petition for referendum that was signed by the required number of electors and landowners is filed with the city or village clerk, and a referendum is held and passes in the town; and 3) annexation by court order and referendum, under which the governing body of a city or village adopts a resolution declaring its intention to apply to the circuit court for an order for an annexation referendum.

Another method of annexation is direct annexation by unanimous approval. If a petition for direct annexation by unanimous approval signed by all of the electors residing in the territory and the owners of all of the real property in the territory is filed with the city or village clerk and the town clerk of all of the involved towns, along with a scale map and legal description of the property to be annexed, the governing body of the city or village may, generally, annex the property by a two-thirds vote of the body. Such an annexation, however, is subject to Department of Administration advisory review as if the annexation petition were for direct, but not unanimous, annexation or annexation by referendum.

Generally, cities and villages may also annex territory that is owned by the city or village and that lies near but not necessarily contiguous to the city or village by enacting an ordinance to annex such territory.

Subject to some exceptions, this bill imposes new conditions on a city or village that wishes to annex a parcel of town land that is contiguous to the city or village.

Under the bill, such a parcel of town land may not be considered to be contiguous to the city or village unless two conditions apply: 1) the parcel must include a continuous border with the city or village that is at least as long as a distance equal to 25 percent of the perimeter of the parcel that is proposed to be annexed; and 2) the minimum width of the parcel that may be annexed must be a distance equal to 25 percent of the perimeter of the parcel that is proposed to be annexed.

Under one of the exceptions to the provisions created in the bill, an annexation may occur if it does not meet the contiguity provisions if the proposed annexation is associated with a cooperative plan, or boundary agreement, entered into between the town and the city or village that proposes to annex town territory.

Another new condition created in the bill also relates to contiguity. Under the bill, a city or village may not complete an annexation under which 50 percent or more of the territory to be annexed is located 0.25 miles or more from the city's or village's border (a noncontiguous annexation) unless the town board of the town in which the territory to be annexed is located adopts a resolution approving the annexation.

Also under the bill, if over a consecutive three-year period a city or village completes a number of annexations under any of the allowable methods of annexation which, if the series of annexations were attempted as a single annexation, would have resulted in a noncontiguous annexation, the final annexation in the series may not occur unless the town board of the town in which the territory to be annexed is located adopts a resolution approving the annexation.

The bill also creates two other new conditions that apply to city or village annexations. To be able to annex town territory, the bill requires that during the ten years preceding the proposed annexation, a city's or village's population had to have grown by a total of at least 5 percent. In addition, the bill provides that to annex town territory, a city or village must have less than 10 percent of its total land area available for development due to such land being unoccupied or dilapidated, meaning that the fair market value or replacement cost value of structural improvements on the property is less than the fair market value of the land.