(1) Upon final approval
by the court for the organization of the special district, the facilities, services, and
financial arrangements of the special district shall conform so far as practicable to
the approved service plan.
(2) (a) After the organization of a special district pursuant to the provisions
of this part 2 and part 3 of this article, material modifications of the service plan as
originally approved may be made by the governing body of such special district
only by petition to and approval by the board of county commissioners or the
governing body of the municipality that has adopted a resolution of approval of the
special district pursuant to section 32-1-204.5 or 32-1-204.7 in substantially the
same manner as is provided for the approval of an original service plan; but the
processing fee for such modification procedure shall not exceed two hundred fifty
dollars. Such approval of modifications shall be required only with regard to
changes of a basic or essential nature, including but not limited to the following:
Any addition to the types of services provided by the special district; a decrease in
the level of services; a decrease in the financial ability of the district to discharge
the existing or proposed indebtedness; or a decrease in the existing or projected
need for organized service in the area. Approval for modification shall not be
required for changes necessary only for the execution of the original service plan or
for changes in the boundary of the special district; except that the inclusion of
property that is located in a county or municipality with no other territory within the
special district may constitute a material modification of the service plan or the
statement of purposes of the special district as set forth in section 32-1-208. In the
event that a special district changes its boundaries to include territory located in a
county or municipality with no other territory within the special district, the special
district shall notify the board of county commissioners of such county or the
governing body of the municipality of such inclusion. The board of county
commissioners or the governing body of the municipality may review such inclusion
and, if it determines that the inclusion constitutes a material modification, may
require the governing body of such special district to file a modification of its
service plan in accordance with the provisions of this subsection (2).
(b) Except as otherwise described in paragraph (d) of this subsection (2), a
special district shall not furnish domestic water or sanitary sewer service directly to
residents and property owners in unincorporated territory located in a county that
has not approved the special district's service plan unless the special district
notifies the board of county commissioners of the county of its plan to furnish
domestic water or sanitary sewer service directly to residents and property owners
in the county and receives approval from the board to do so. Within forty-five days
of receiving the notification, the board may review the special district's planned
action and may, in its own discretion and following notice by the board, require a
public hearing prior to giving approval of the planned action, prior to which hearing
the governing body of the special district shall provide such information and data as
the board reasonably requests. Failure to provide information as requested by the
board is grounds for the board to delay the public hearing until the board receives
the information. The board shall either approve or deny the proposed action within
one hundred twenty days of the public hearing.
(c) Before approving a planned special district action described in paragraph
(b) of this subsection (2), the board of county commissioners of a county shall, not
less than forty-five days prior to the first meeting of the board at which the
approval specified in paragraph (b) of this subsection (2) may be given, provide
public notice in the manner that the county requires of the possible approval within
the newly described area to be served. The notice is required to include specific
notification that any property owner wishing to have his or her property excluded
from the proposed area to be served shall, not later than forty days from the first
public notice, request that his or her property be excluded from the proposed area
to be served by the special district. The board is not limited in its action with
respect to exclusion of territory based on the request. A request for exclusion shall
include a legal description of the property subject to the request, and the board
shall act upon the request before taking final action on the request for approval
pursuant to paragraph (b) of this subsection (2).
(d) The requirements detailed in paragraphs (b) and (c) of this subsection (2)
do not apply in the following circumstances:
(I) A special district provides domestic water or sanitary sewer service only
to private property owners pursuant to written agreement between the special
district and the property owners;
(II) A special district provides domestic water or sanitary sewer service
within the boundaries of another governmental entity, including, without limitation,
a city, a municipality, or another special district, pursuant to an intergovernmental
agreement;
(III) A special district provides any storm drainage or storm sewer services or
facilities within the county; or
(IV) Domestic water service and sanitary sewer service is being provided, or a
water or sanitary sewer service area extension has been approved by the county
into which the service area is to be expanded, within unincorporated territory
located in the county as of May 11, 2012.
(3) (a) Any material departure from the service plan as originally approved or,
if the same has been modified, from the service plan as modified, which constitutes
a material modification thereof as set forth in subsection (2) of this section, may be
enjoined by the court approving the organization of such special district upon its
own motion, upon the motion of the board of county commissioners or governing
body of a municipality from which a resolution of approval is required by this part 2,
or upon the motion of any interested party as defined in section 32-1-204 (1).
(b) No action may be brought to enjoin the construction of any facility, the
issuance of bonds or other financial obligations, the levy of taxes, the imposition of
rates, fees, tolls and charges, or any other proposed activity of the special district
unless such action is commenced within forty-five days after the special district has
published notice of its intention to undertake such activity. Such notice shall
describe the activity proposed to be undertaken by the special district and provide
that any action to enjoin such activity as a material departure from the service plan
must be brought within forty-five days from publication of the notice. The notice
shall be published one time in a newspaper of general circulation in the district. The
district shall also provide notice to the district court. On or before the date of
publication of the notice, the district shall also mail notice to the board of county
commissioners or governing body of a municipality from which a resolution is
required by this part 2.
(c) (I) Any special district created after July 1, 2000, shall file not more than
once a year a special district annual report for the preceding calendar year. Unless
the requirement is waived or otherwise requested by an earlier date by the board of
county commissioners or by the governing body of the municipality in which a
special district is wholly or partially located, commencing in 2023 for the 2022
calendar year, the annual report must be provided in accordance with this
subsection (3)(c) by October 1 of each year. The annual report must be
electronically filed with the governing body that approved the service plan or, if the
jurisdiction has changed due to annexation into a municipality, the current
governing body with jurisdiction over the special district, the division, and the state
auditor, and such report must be electronically filed with the county clerk and
recorder for public inspection, and a copy of the report must be made available by
the special district on the special district's website pursuant to section 32-1-104.5
(3).
(II) The report required by this subsection (3)(c) must include, as applicable
for the reporting year, but shall not be limited to:
(A) Boundary changes made;
(B) Intergovernmental agreements entered into or terminated with other
governmental entities;
(C) Access information to obtain a copy of rules and regulations adopted by
the board;
(D) A summary of litigation involving public improvements owned by the
special district;
(E) The status of the construction of public improvements by the special
district;
(F) A list of facilities or improvements constructed by the special district that
were conveyed or dedicated to the county or municipality;
(G) The final assessed valuation of the special district as of December 31 of
the reporting year;
(H) A copy of the current year's budget;
(I) A copy of the audited financial statements, if required by the Colorado
Local Government Audit Law, part 6 of article 1 of title 29, or the application for
exemption from audit, as applicable;
(J) Notice of any uncured defaults existing for more than ninety days under
any debt instrument of the special district; and
(K) Any inability of the special district to pay its obligations as they come due
under any obligation which continues beyond a ninety-day period.
(III) Special districts operating under a consolidated service plan or serving
the same community may file a consolidated annual report setting forth the
information contained in this subsection (3)(c) for each of the special districts. The
board of county commissioners or the governing body of the municipality may
review the annual reports in a regularly scheduled public meeting, and such review
must be included as an agenda item in the public notice for such meeting. A special
district is not required to file an annual report for any year in which the special
district was in inactive status for the entire year pursuant to section 32-1-104 (3).
(d) The state auditor shall review the annual report and report any apparent
decrease in the financial ability of the district to discharge its existing or proposed
indebtedness in accordance with the service plan to the division. In such event, the
division shall confer with the board of the special district and the board of county
commissioners or the governing body of the municipality regarding such condition.
The division may establish a standard form for the annual report that the board of a
special district may elect to use.
(4) In the case of a health service district, a change in service by the district
is not deemed material unless the change affects the license or certificate of
compliance issued by the department of public health and environment. A health
service district is exempt from subsection (3)(b) and (3)(c) of this section.