§ 779 — Initiative of electors seeking dissolution

§ 779. Initiative of electors seeking dissolution. 1. The electors of\na local government entity may commence a dissolution proceeding by\nfiling an original petition, containing not less than the number of\nsignatures provided for in subdivision two of this section and in the\nform provided for in subdivision three of this section, with the clerk\nof the town in which the entity or the greater portion of its territory\nis located, except that if the entity is a village the original petition\nof electors from the village shall be filed with the clerk of the\nvillage. Accompanying the filed petition shall be a cover sheet\ncontaining the name, address and telephone number of an individual who\nsigned the petition and who will serve as a contact person.\n 2. The petition shall contain the signatures of at least ten percent\nof the number of electors or five thousand electors, whichever is less,\nin the local government entity to be dissolved; provided, however, that\nwhere the local government entity to be dissolved contains five hundred\nor fewer electors, the petition shall contain the signatures of at least\ntwenty percent of the number of electors. No signature on a petition is\nvalid unless it is an original signature of an elector.\n 3. The petition shall substantially comply with, and be circulated in,\nthe following form:\n PETITION FOR LOCAL GOVERNMENT DISSOLUTION\n We, the undersigned, electors and legal voters of (insert type of\nlocal government entity -- e.g., town, village or district) of (insert\nname of local government entity), New York, qualified to vote at the\nnext general or special election, respectfully petition that there be\nsubmitted to the electors of (insert type and name of local government\nentity proposed to be dissolved), for their approval or rejection at a\nreferendum held for that purpose, a proposal to dissolve and terminate\n(insert type and name of local government entity).\n In witness whereof, we have signed our names on the dates indicated\nnext to our signatures.\n Date Name - print name under signature Home Address\n 1. ________ _________________________________ ____________\n 2. ________ _________________________________ ____________\n 3. ________ _________________________________ ____________\n (On the bottom of each page of the petition, after all of the numbered\nsignatures, insert a signed statement of a witness who is a duly\nqualified elector of the state of New York. Such a statement shall be\naccepted for all purposes as the equivalent of an affidavit, and if it\ncontains a material false statement, shall subject the person signing it\nto the same penalties as if he or she has been duly sworn. The form of\nsuch statement shall be substantially as follows:\n I, (insert name of witness), state that I am a duly qualified voter of\nthe state of New York. Each of the persons that have signed this\npetition sheet containing (insert number) signatures, have signed their\nnames in my presence on the dates indicated above and identified\nthemselves to be the same person who signed the sheet. I understand that\nthis statement will be accepted for all purposes as the equivalent of an\naffidavit, and if it contains a materially false statement, shall\nsubject me to the penalties of perjury.\n_________________ _________________________________\n Date Signature of Witness)\n (In lieu of the signed statement of a witness who is a duly qualified\nvoter of the state of New York, the following statement signed by a\nnotary public or a commissioner of deeds shall be accepted:\n On the date indicated above before me personally came each of the\nelectors and legal voters whose signatures appear on this petition sheet\ncontaining (insert number) signatures, who signed the petition in my\npresence and who, being by me duly sworn, each for himself or herself,\nidentified himself or herself as the one and same person who signed the\npetition and that the foregoing information they provided was true.\n_____________________ _________________________________\n Date Notary Public or Commissioner of Deeds)\n 4. An alteration or correction of information appearing on a\npetition's signature line, other than an un-initialed signature and\ndate, shall not invalidate such signature.\n 5. In matters of form, this section shall be liberally construed, not\ninconsistent with substantial compliance thereto and the prevention of\nfraud.\n 6. Within ten days of the filing of the petition seeking dissolution\npursuant to subdivision one of this section, the clerk with whom the\npetition was filed shall make a final determination regarding the\nsufficiency of the signatures on the petition and provide timely written\nnotice of such determination to the contact person named in the cover\nsheet accompanying the petition. The contact person or any individual\nwho signed the petition may seek judicial review of such determination\nin a proceeding pursuant to article seventy-eight of the civil practice\nlaw and rules.\n 7. Upon the clerk's determination that the petition contains not less\nthan the number of signatures of electors required in subdivision two of\nthis section, the governing body of the local government entity to be\ndissolved shall, no later than thirty days thereafter, enact a\nresolution in accordance with subdivision two of section seven hundred\nseventy-seven of this title calling for a referendum on the proposed\ndissolution by the electors in the entity and set a date for such\nreferendum.\n