NOTICE is hereby given to all interested persons that on October 20, 2020, the Board of Commissioners of Emery County adopted a resolution declaring that the public health, convenience, and necessity require the establishment of a special service district, to be known as the Emery Mitigation Special Service District (the “District”) to provide the following services: receiving federal mineral lease funds as a means for mitigating impacts from extractive mineral industries, and also an energy efficiency upgrade, a renewable energy system, or electric vehicle charging infrastructure, together with all services and functions ancillary thereto and/or necessary and proper to carry out and provide the named services, including, but not limited to, energy research within the District’s boundaries, and providing for the holding of a public hearing on the proposed establishment of the District.
In the event the District is created, then it is possible that an election may be called and if a majority of qualified electors voting at an election grant approval, then and only then, taxes may be annually levied upon all taxable property within the District. However, at this time the Board of County Commissioners does not intend to call an election. For services provided by the District, receiving federal mineral lease funds as a means for mitigating impacts from extractive mineral industries, and also an energy efficiency upgrade, a renewable energy system, or electric vehicle charging infrastructure, fees and charges may be imposed to pay for all or part of the services to be provided by the District. It is the intent of the Board of County Commissioners to fund this proposed District with revenues generated by service to be provided by the District including, but not limited to energy research and also potentially by Mineral Lease Funds.
The boundaries and service area of the proposed District shall include all unincorporated property in Emery County, the boundaries of which are as shown on the official boundary map kept by the Utah Lieutenant Governor’s Office, which may be found at municert.utah.gov online.
The public hearing to determine whether the District will be created shall be held on December 15, 2020, at 3:00 p.m., or as soon thereafter as feasible, in the Commission Chambers of Emery County in the Administration Building located at 75 E. Main Street, Castle Dale, Utah. Any interested person may protest the establishment of the District either orally at said public hearing, or in a written protest filed with the County Clerk/Auditor. A protest must be in writing to preserve the protestor’s ability to contest the creation of the District in court. All written protests must be filed within 60 days after the conclusion of said public hearing, and all withdrawals of a protest or cancellations of withdrawals must likewise be filed within 60 days after the conclusion of said public hearing. The Board of Commissioners of Emery County will hear all interested persons desiring to be heard and will give full consideration to all protests at the public hearing. If special accommodations are required, please call (435) 381-3550 with reasonable advance notice.
Any written protest made by an individual signing in a representative capacity on behalf of a property owner is only valid where the individual’s representative capacity and the name of the owner represented by the individual are indicated on the protest signed by the individual and the individual provides documentation accompanying the protest that reasonably substantiates the individual’s representative capacity. Where property within the proposed District is owned by more than one person or entity, a majority of owners (or in the case of a joint tenancy or tenancy by the entirety, 50% of the owners) must sign the protest for the protest to be valid.
By law, the Board of Commissioners may not create the proposed District if, within 60 days after the conclusion of said public hearing, either at least twenty-five percent (25%) of registered voters within the proposed District based on the most recent presidential election file protests or the owners of at least twenty-five percent (25%) of the private land area within the proposed District, which amounts to at least fifteen percent (15%) of the value of all private real property within the District, file protests.
After the public hearing and 60-day protest period closes, the Board of Commissioners will adopt a resolution either establishing the District, amending the District or abandoning the establishment of the District. A resolution approving the establishment of the District may contain any changes from the initial resolution or this notice of intention the Board of Commissioners determines to be appropriate, including reduction of boundaries of the District and elimination of one or more of the types of services proposed. The boundaries of the District may not be increased nor additional types of services added, unless the Board of Commissioners gives a new notice of intention and holds a new public hearing.
Any person who shall have timely filed a written protest and who is a qualified voter residing within, or owning property within, the District, may petition the district court within 30 days after the adoption of said creation resolution for a writ of review. The grounds for such a petition are limited to: (1) a claim that the petitioner’s property will not be benefited by the services to be provided by the District; and (2) a claim that the procedures used to establish the District violated the law.
FAILURE TO TIMELY FILE A WRITTEN PROTEST PRECLUDES THE PROTEST FROM BEING INCLUDED IN THE 25% CALCULATION DISCUSSED ABOVE AND THE PROTESTOR FROM FILING A PETITION FOR A WRIT OF REVIEW. FAILURE TO TIMELY FILE A PETITION FOR WRIT OF REVIEW FORECLOSES ANY RIGHTS TO THEREAFTER OBJECT TO THE ESTABLISHMENT OF THE DISTRICT.
DATED: NOVEMBER 5, 2020
/s/ Brenda Tuttle
County Clerk/Auditor
Published in the ETV Newspaper on November 11, November 18, November 25 and December 2, 2020.