Arizona Laws 41-835.03. Powers and duties
A. The board shall:
Terms Used In Arizona Laws 41-835.03
- Board: means the state board on geographic and historic names. See Arizona Laws 41-835.01
- Geographic features: means mountains, canyons, gulches, streams, streambeds or channels whether flowing or dry, natural bridges, natural lakes, natural monuments, mesas, deserts, forests, springs, water holes, cliffs, chasms and other similar natural objects, places or things. See Arizona Laws 41-835.01
- Historic road: means a highway, street, road or route that is of historical or cultural significance in the settlement and development of this state and that is established or designated as a historic road by the board. See Arizona Laws 41-835.01
- Jurisdiction: (1) The legal authority of a court to hear and decide a case. Concurrent jurisdiction exists when two courts have simultaneous responsibility for the same case. (2) The geographic area over which the court has authority to decide cases.
- Parkway: means an area along either or both sides of a highway, street, road or route that is acquired in fee or by easement by the governmental body having jurisdiction over the highway, street, road or route for the protection of geographic, natural flora or scenic values and that is established or designated as a parkway by the board. See Arizona Laws 41-835.01
- Person: includes a corporation, company, partnership, firm, association or society, as well as a natural person. See Arizona Laws 1-215
- Scenic road: means a highway, street, road or route through a scenic area that is established or designated as a scenic road by the board. See Arizona Laws 41-835.01
- United States: includes the District of Columbia and the territories. See Arizona Laws 1-215
1. Receive and evaluate all proposals for changes in or additions to names of geographic features and places of historical significance in this state and after this evaluation designate the most appropriate and acceptable names and spelling of these names for use in maps and other official governmental documents.
2. Receive and evaluate all proposals for naming geographic features in this state for which no generally accepted name is or has been in use and after this evaluation designate a name for use in maps and other official governmental documents.
3. Cooperate with political subdivisions of this state to eliminate the duplication of the names of geographic features that are not of historical significance.
4. Assist and cooperate with the United States board of geographic names in matters relating to names of geographic features and places in this state.
5. Maintain a list of advisers who have expertise in this state’s history, geography or culture and consult with those advisers in evaluating proposals.
6. Designate one or more members to act as the state representative to the western states geographic names council.
7. Receive and evaluate all proposals to establish or designate a highway or area as a parkway, historic road or scenic road that is of geographic or historical significance in this state and after this evaluation designate the most appropriate and acceptable names and spelling of these names for use in maps and other official governmental documents. If the parkway, historic road or scenic road to be established or designated is not a state highway or route, the establishment or designation is not effective unless the state board on geographic and historic names or governmental body having jurisdiction over the parkway, historic road or scenic road agrees to the establishment or designation. The state board on geographic and historic names shall notify the director of the department of transportation and the state transportation board when a parkway, historic road or scenic road is given a historic designation pursuant to this section.
B. The board may:
1. Adopt rules for the orderly conduct of business.
2. Initiate proposals for changes in or additions to geographic or historic names in this state. Any proposal initiated by the board shall be evaluated in accordance with the procedures prescribed under Section 41-835.04.
C. Notwithstanding any other law, the board may not:
1. Change street and road names for the purpose of uniformity.
2. Designate a name for a geographic feature that commemorates any person until that person has been deceased at least five years.