(1) After the filing of a petition under Section 10-2-502.5 and a response to the petition, the court shall, upon request of a party or upon its own motion, conduct a court hearing.

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Terms Used In Utah Code 10-2-502.7

  • Evidence: Information presented in testimony or in documents that is used to persuade the fact finder (judge or jury) to decide the case for one side or the other.
  • Municipal: means of or relating to a municipality. See Utah Code 10-1-104
  • Municipality: means :
         (5)(a) a city of the first class, city of the second class, city of the third class, city of the fourth class, city of the fifth class;
         (5)(b) a town, as classified in Section 10-2-301; or
         (5)(c) a preliminary municipality incorporated under Chapter 2a, Part 5, Incorporation of a Preliminary Municipality. See Utah Code 10-1-104
  • petitioner: means :
         (1)(a) one or more persons who:
              (1)(a)(i) own title to real property within the area proposed for disconnection; and
              (1)(a)(ii) sign a request for disconnection proposing to disconnect the area proposed for disconnection from the municipality; or
         (1)(b) the mayor of the municipality within which the area proposed for disconnection is located who signs a request for disconnection proposing to disconnect the area proposed for disconnection from the municipality. See Utah Code 10-2-501
  • Property: includes both real and personal property. See Utah Code 68-3-12.5
  • Unincorporated: means not within a municipality. See Utah Code 10-1-104
  • Writing: includes :
         (48)(a) printing;
         (48)(b) handwriting; and
         (48)(c) information stored in an electronic or other medium if the information is retrievable in a perceivable format. See Utah Code 68-3-12.5
(2) At the hearing, the court shall hear evidence regarding the viability of the disconnection proposal.
(3) The burden of proof is on the petitioner to prove, by a preponderance of the evidence:

     (3)(a) the viability of the disconnection;
     (3)(b) that justice and equity require that the territory be disconnected from the municipality;
     (3)(c) that the proposed disconnection will not:

          (3)(c)(i) leave the municipality with an area within its boundaries for which the cost, requirements, or other burdens of providing municipal services would materially increase over previous years;
          (3)(c)(ii) make it economically or practically unfeasible for the municipality to continue to function as a municipality; or
          (3)(c)(iii) leave or create one or more islands or peninsulas of unincorporated territory; and
     (3)(d) that the county in which the area proposed for disconnection is located is capable, in a cost-effective manner and without materially increasing the county’s costs of providing municipal services, of providing to the area the services that the municipality will no longer provide to the area due to the disconnection.
(4) In determining whether the petitioner has met the petitioner’s burden of proof with respect to Subsections (3)(c)(i) and (ii), the court shall consider all relevant factors, including the effect of the proposed disconnection on:

     (4)(a) the municipality or community as a whole;
     (4)(b) adjoining property owners;
     (4)(c) existing or projected streets or public ways;
     (4)(d) water mains and water services;
     (4)(e) sewer mains and sewer services;
     (4)(f) law enforcement;
     (4)(g) zoning; and
     (4)(h) other municipal services.
(5) The court’s order either ordering or rejecting disconnection shall be in writing with findings and reasons.