Ark. Code Ann. § 14-38-101 (2020)
Petition for incorporation
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- When the inhabitants of a part of any county not embraced within the limits of any city or incorporated town shall desire to be organized into a city or incorporated town, they may apply, by a petition in writing, signed by the greater of either two hundred (200) or a majority of the qualified voters residing within the described territory, to the county court of the proper county.
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The petition shall:
- Describe the territory proposed to be embraced in the incorporated town and have annexed to it an accurate map or plat of the territory;
- State the name proposed for the incorporated town; and
- Name the persons authorized to act in behalf of the petitioners in prosecuting the petition.
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Unless the governing body of the municipal corporation has affirmatively consented to the incorporation by written resolution or the area that seeks to be incorporated contains a population of one thousand five hundred (1,500) or more, the court shall not approve the incorporation of a municipality if any portion of the territory proposed to be embraced in the incorporated town lies within:
- Three (3) miles of an existing municipal corporation; or
- The area in which that existing municipal corporation is exercising its planning territorial jurisdiction.
- The planning territorial jurisdiction limitation shall not apply if the area proposed to be incorporated is land upon which a real estate development by a single developer, containing not less than four thousand (4,000) acres, has been or is being developed under a comprehensive plan for a community containing streets and other public services, parks, and other recreational facilities for common use by the residents of the community, churches, schools, and commercial and residential facilities, and which has been subdivided into sufficient lots for residential use to accommodate a projected population of not fewer than one thousand (1,000) persons, and for which a statement of record has been filed with the United States Secretary of Housing and Urban Development under the Interstate Land Sales Full Disclosure Act.
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Unless the governing body of the municipal corporation has affirmatively consented to the incorporation by written resolution or the area that seeks to be incorporated contains a population of one thousand five hundred (1,500) or more, the court shall not approve the incorporation of a municipality if any portion of the territory proposed to be embraced in the incorporated town lies within:
- When any petition shall be presented to the court, it shall be filed in the office of the county clerk, to be kept there, subject to the inspection of any persons interested, until the time appointed for the hearing of it.
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- At or before the time of the filing, the court shall fix and communicate to the petitioners, or their agent, a time and place for the hearing of the petition, which time shall not be less than thirty (30) days after the filing of the petition.
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- Thereupon, the petitioners or their agent shall cause a notice to be published in some newspaper of general circulation in the county for not less than three (3) consecutive weeks.
- If there is no newspaper of general circulation in the county, a notice shall be posted at some public place within the limits of the proposed incorporated town for at least three (3) weeks before the time of the hearing.
- The notice shall contain the substance of the petition and state the time and place appointed for the hearing.
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History. Acts 1875, No. 1, § 35, p. 1; C. & M. Dig., § 7664; Pope's Dig., § 9786; Acts 1975, No. 635, § 1; 1979, No. 606, § 1; 1983, No. 439, § 1; A.S.A. 1947, § 19-101; Acts 2001, No. 1233, §§ 1, 2; 2001, No. 1831, § 1; 2007, No. 118, § 1; 2017, No. 1055, § 1; 2019, No. 932, § 1.
Amendments. The 2017 amendment redesignated former (b)(1) as (b)(1), (b)(1)(A), and (b)(1)(B)(i); in the introductory language of (b)(1), substituted “a” for “any” and “lies within” for “shall lie within”; in (b)(1)(A), substituted “Three (3)” for “five (5)” and “or” for “and within the”; inserted “The” in (b)(1)(B)(i); and added (b)(1)(B)(ii).
The 2019 amendment substituted “Unless the governing body of the municipal corporation has affirmatively consented to the incorporation by written resolution or the area that seeks to be incorporated contains a population of one thousand five hundred (1,500) or more, the court” for “The court” in the introductory language of (b)(1); deleted the (b)(1)(B)(i) designation; deleted “unless the governing body of the municipal corporation has affirmatively consented to the incorporation by written resolution” following “jurisdiction” in (b)(1)(B); deleted (b)(1)(B)(ii); and made stylistic changes.
U.S. Code. The Interstate Land Sales Full Disclosure Act, referred to in this section, is codified as 15 U.S.C. § 1701 et seq.
Research References
Ark. L. Rev.
Handbook to the Interstate Land Sales Full Disclosure Act. 27 Ark. L. Rev. 65.
Case Notes
Agents.
Statutory provisions relating to annexation of territory at the instance of agents of an existing municipal corporation were held intended to afford a right of action to parties claiming to be affected, but such an action was held to be an independent proceeding, as distinguished from appeal. Pike v. City of Stuttgart, 200 Ark. 1010, 142 S.W.2d 233 (1940).
Description of Territory.
Where limits of proposed municipality are unreasonably large, incorporation of the municipality will be denied. Arkansas & O. Ry. v. Busch, 223 Ark. 27, 264 S.W.2d 54 (1954).
Contention that lands to be annexed were not described in petition and that no map or plat was filed as required by law held to have failed. Mahone v. Rogers, 234 Ark. 540, 353 S.W.2d 184 (1962).
A description of property under this section must be sufficient to render possible the ascertainment of the boundaries involved and the territories intended to be included. Parrish v. City of Russellville, 253 Ark. 1000, 490 S.W.2d 126 (1973).
Published description of property required by this section is insufficient where description does not encircle any geographical area nor describe a geographical area to be annexed, but merely describes a line, as such a description fails to comply with requirement that the petition describe “the territory to be embraced.” Parrish v. City of Russellville, 253 Ark. 1000, 490 S.W.2d 126 (1973).
Notice.
Erroneous legal description in published notice does not void incorporation, because this section only requires the published notice to contain substance of petition and the time and place of the hearing. Dunkum v. Moore, 265 Ark. 544, 580 S.W.2d 183 (1979).
Qualified Voters.
While petition of required number of electors can initiate incorporation procedure, concurrence of majority of area inhabitants is required to override challenge to incorporation lodged under § 14-38-107. Town of Wrightsville v. Walton, 255 Ark. 523, 501 S.W.2d 241 (1973).
The term “inhabitants” as used in this section means qualified voters residing within the proposed municipality. Dunkum v. Moore, 265 Ark. 544, 580 S.W.2d 183 (1979).
Cited: Gerrin v. Hickey, 464 F. Supp. 276 (E.D. Ark. 1979); White v. Lorings, 274 Ark. 272, 623 S.W.2d 837 (1981); Brock v. Townsell, 2009 Ark. 224, 309 S.W.3d 179 (2009).