Terms Used In Utah Code 17-27a-103

• Affected entity: means a county, municipality, special district, special service district under Title 17D, Chapter 1, Special Service District Act, school district, interlocal cooperation entity established under Title 11, Chapter 13, Interlocal Cooperation Act, specified property owner, property owner's association, public utility, or the Department of Transportation, if:
       (3)(a) the entity's services or facilities are likely to require expansion or significant modification because of an intended use of land;
       (3)(b) the entity has filed with the county a copy of the entity's general or long-range plan; or
       (3)(c) the entity has filed with the county a request for notice during the same calendar year and before the county provides notice to an affected entity in compliance with a requirement imposed under this chapter. See Utah Code 17-27a-103
• Amendment: A proposal to alter the text of a pending bill or other measure by striking out some of it, by inserting new language, or both. Before an amendment becomes part of the measure, thelegislature must agree to it.
• Appeal: A request made after a trial, asking another court (usually the court of appeals) to decide whether the trial was conducted properly. To make such a request is "to appeal" or "to take an appeal." One who appeals is called the appellant.
• Appeal authority: means the person, board, commission, agency, or other body designated by ordinance to decide an appeal of a decision of a land use application or a variance. See Utah Code 17-27a-103
• Charter school: means :
            (7)(a)(i) an operating charter school;
            (7)(a)(ii) a charter school applicant that a charter school authorizer approves in accordance with Title 53G, Chapter 5, Part 3, Charter School Authorization; or
            (7)(a)(iii) an entity that is working on behalf of a charter school or approved charter applicant to develop or construct a charter school building. See Utah Code 17-27a-103
• Contract: A legal written agreement that becomes binding when signed.
• Corporation: A legal entity owned by the holders of shares of stock that have been issued, and that can own, receive, and transfer property, and carry on business in its own name.
• County legislative body: means :
       (8)(a) the county commission, in the county commission or expanded county commission form of government established under Title 17, Chapter 52a, Changing Forms of County Government;
       (8)(b) the county council, in the county executive-council optional form of government authorized by Section 17-52a-203; and
       (8)(c) the county council, in the council-manager optional form of government authorized by Section 17-52a-204. See Utah Code 68-3-12.5
• County utility easement: means an easement that:
       (11)(a) a plat recorded in a county recorder's office described as a county utility easement or otherwise as a utility easement;
       (11)(b) is not a protected utility easement or a public utility easement as defined in Section 54-3-27;
       (11)(c) the county or the county's affiliated governmental entity owns or creates; and
       (11)(d)

            (11)(d)(i) either:

                 (11)(d)(i)(A) no person uses or occupies; or

                 (11)(d)(i)(B) the county or the county's affiliated governmental entity uses and occupies to provide a utility service, including sanitary sewer, culinary water, electrical, storm water, or communications or data lines; or

            (11)(d)(ii) a person uses or occupies with or without an authorized franchise or other agreement with the county. See Utah Code 17-27a-103
• Deed: The legal instrument used to transfer title in real property from one person to another.
• Development activity: means :
       (13)(a) any construction or expansion of a building, structure, or use that creates additional demand and need for public facilities;
       (13)(b) any change in use of a building or structure that creates additional demand and need for public facilities; or
       (13)(c) any change in the use of land that creates additional demand and need for public facilities. See Utah Code 17-27a-103
• Development agreement: means a written agreement or amendment to a written agreement between a county and one or more parties that regulates or controls the use or development of a specific area of land. See Utah Code 17-27a-103
• Devise: To gift property by will.
• Disability: means a physical or mental impairment that substantially limits one or more of a person's major life activities, including a person having a record of such an impairment or being regarded as having such an impairment. See Utah Code 17-27a-103
• Equal: means , with respect to biological sex, of the same value. See Utah Code 68-3-12.5
• 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.
• Executive: when used to describe the powers, duties, or functions of a person or body elected as the county executive or a person appointed as the county manager or administrative officer, refers to:
       (2)(a) the power and duty to carry laws and ordinances into effect and secure their due observance; and
       (2)(b) those powers, duties, and functions that, under constitutional and statutory provisions and through long usage and accepted practice and custom at the federal and state level, have come to be regarded as belonging to the executive branch of government. See Utah Code 17-50-101
• Flood plain: means land that:
       (18)(a) is within the 100-year flood plain designated by the Federal Emergency Management Agency; or
       (18)(b) has not been studied or designated by the Federal Emergency Management Agency but presents a likelihood of experiencing chronic flooding or a catastrophic flood event because the land has characteristics that are similar to those of a 100-year flood plain designated by the Federal Emergency Management Agency. See Utah Code 17-27a-103
• General plan: means a document that a county adopts that sets forth general guidelines for proposed future development of:
       (20)(a) the unincorporated land within the county; or
       (20)(b) for a mountainous planning district, the land within the mountainous planning district. See Utah Code 17-27a-103
• Geologic hazard: means :
       (21)(a) a surface fault rupture;
       (21)(b) shallow groundwater;
       (21)(c) liquefaction;
       (21)(d) a landslide;
       (21)(e) a debris flow;
       (21)(f) unstable soil;
       (21)(g) a rock fall; or
       (21)(h) any other geologic condition that presents a risk:

            (21)(h)(i) to life;

            (21)(h)(ii) of substantial loss of real property; or

            (21)(h)(iii) of substantial damage to real property. See Utah Code 17-27a-103
• Highway: includes :
       (15)(a) a public bridge;
       (15)(b) a county way;
       (15)(c) a county road;
       (15)(d) a common road; and
       (15)(e) a state road. See Utah Code 68-3-12.5
• Identical plans: means building plans submitted to a county that:
       (24)(a) are clearly marked as "identical plans";
       (24)(b) are substantially identical building plans that were previously submitted to and reviewed and approved by the county; and
       (24)(c) describe a building that:

            (24)(c)(i) is located on land zoned the same as the land on which the building described in the previously approved plans is located;

            (24)(c)(ii) is subject to the same geological and meteorological conditions and the same law as the building described in the previously approved plans;

            (24)(c)(iii) has a floor plan identical to the building plan previously submitted to and reviewed and approved by the county; and

            (24)(c)(iv) does not require any additional engineering or analysis. See Utah Code 17-27a-103
• Improvement completion assurance: means a surety bond, letter of credit, financial institution bond, cash, assignment of rights, lien, or other equivalent security required by a county to guaranty the proper completion of landscaping or an infrastructure improvement required as a condition precedent to:
       (26)(a) recording a subdivision plat; or
       (26)(b) development of a commercial, industrial, mixed use, or multifamily project. See Utah Code 17-27a-103
• Improvement warranty: means an applicant's unconditional warranty that the applicant's installed and accepted landscaping or infrastructure improvement:
       (27)(a) complies with the county's written standards for design, materials, and workmanship; and
       (27)(b) will not fail in any material respect, as a result of poor workmanship or materials, within the improvement warranty period. See Utah Code 17-27a-103
• Infrastructure improvement: means permanent infrastructure that is essential for the public health and safety or that:
       (29)(a) is required for human consumption; and
       (29)(b) an applicant must install:

            (29)(b)(i) in accordance with published installation and inspection specifications for public improvements; and

            (29)(b)(ii) as a condition of:

                 (29)(b)(ii)(A) recording a subdivision plat;

                 (29)(b)(ii)(B) obtaining a building permit; or

                 (29)(b)(ii)(C) developing a commercial, industrial, mixed use, condominium, or multifamily project. See Utah Code 17-27a-103
• 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.
• Land: includes :
       (18)(a) land;
       (18)(b) a tenement;
       (18)(c) a hereditament;
       (18)(d) a water right;
       (18)(e) a possessory right; and
       (18)(f) a claim. See Utah Code 68-3-12.5
• Land use applicant: means a property owner, or the property owner's designee, who submits a land use application regarding the property owner's land. See Utah Code 17-27a-103
• Land use authority: means :
       (35)(a) a person, board, commission, agency, or body, including the local legislative body, designated by the local legislative body to act upon a land use application; or
       (35)(b) if the local legislative body has not designated a person, board, commission, agency, or body, the local legislative body. See Utah Code 17-27a-103
• Land use decision: means an administrative decision of a land use authority or appeal authority regarding:
       (36)(a) a land use permit;
       (36)(b) a land use application; or
       (36)(c) the enforcement of a land use regulation, land use permit, or development agreement. See Utah Code 17-27a-103
• Land use permit: means a permit issued by a land use authority. See Utah Code 17-27a-103
• Lease: A contract transferring the use of property or occupancy of land, space, structures, or equipment in consideration of a payment (e.g., rent). ^{Source: OCC}
• Legislative: when used to describe the powers, duties, or functions of a county commission or council, refers to:
       (3)(a) the power and duty to enact ordinances, levy taxes, and establish budgets; and
       (3)(b) those powers, duties, and functions that, under constitutional and statutory provisions and through long usage and accepted practice and custom at the federal and state level, have come to be regarded as belonging to the legislative branch of government. See Utah Code 17-50-101
• Legislative body: means the county legislative body, or for a county that has adopted an alternative form of government, the body exercising legislative powers. See Utah Code 17-27a-103
• Lien: A claim against real or personal property in satisfaction of a debt.
• Lot: means a tract of land, regardless of any label, that is created by and shown on a subdivision plat that has been recorded in the office of the county recorder. See Utah Code 17-27a-103
• Lot line adjustment: means a relocation of a lot line boundary between adjoining lots or between a lot and adjoining parcels in accordance with Section 17-27a-608:
            (41)(a)(i) whether or not the lots are located in the same subdivision; and
            (41)(a)(ii) with the consent of the owners of record. See Utah Code 17-27a-103
• Moderate income housing: means housing occupied or reserved for occupancy by households with a gross household income equal to or less than 80% of the median gross income for households of the same size in the county in which the housing is located. See Utah Code 17-27a-103
• Mountainous planning district: means an area designated by a county legislative body in accordance with Section 17-27a-901. See Utah Code 17-27a-103
• Noncomplying structure: means a structure that:
       (47)(a) legally existed before the structure's current land use designation; and
       (47)(b) because of one or more subsequent land use ordinance changes, does not conform to the setback, height restrictions, or other regulations, excluding those regulations that govern the use of land. See Utah Code 17-27a-103
• Nonconforming use: means a use of land that:
       (48)(a) legally existed before the current land use designation;
       (48)(b) has been maintained continuously since the time the land use ordinance regulation governing the land changed; and
       (48)(c) because of one or more subsequent land use ordinance changes, does not conform to the regulations that now govern the use of the land. See Utah Code 17-27a-103
• Official map: means a map drawn by county authorities and recorded in the county recorder's office that:
       (49)(a) shows actual and proposed rights-of-way, centerline alignments, and setbacks for highways and other transportation facilities;
       (49)(b) provides a basis for restricting development in designated rights-of-way or between designated setbacks to allow the government authorities time to purchase or otherwise reserve the land; and
       (49)(c) has been adopted as an element of the county's general plan. See Utah Code 17-27a-103
• Parcel: means any real property that is not a lot. See Utah Code 17-27a-103
• Parcel boundary adjustment: means a recorded agreement between owners of adjoining parcels adjusting the mutual boundary, either by deed or by a boundary line agreement in accordance with Section 17-27a-523, if no additional parcel is created and:
            (51)(a)(i) none of the property identified in the agreement is a lot; or
            (51)(a)(ii) the adjustment is to the boundaries of a single person's parcels. See Utah Code 17-27a-103
• Partnership: A voluntary contract between two or more persons to pool some or all of their assets into a business, with the agreement that there will be a proportional sharing of profits and losses.
• Person: means an individual, corporation, partnership, organization, association, trust, governmental agency, or any other legal entity. See Utah Code 17-27a-103
• Plan for moderate income housing: means a written document adopted by a county legislative body that includes:
       (53)(a) an estimate of the existing supply of moderate income housing located within the county;
       (53)(b) an estimate of the need for moderate income housing in the county for the next five years;
       (53)(c) a survey of total residential land use;
       (53)(d) an evaluation of how existing land uses and zones affect opportunities for moderate income housing; and
       (53)(e) a description of the county's program to encourage an adequate supply of moderate income housing. See Utah Code 17-27a-103
• Planning advisory area: means a contiguous, geographically defined portion of the unincorporated area of a county established under this part with planning and zoning functions as exercised through the planning advisory area planning commission, as provided in this chapter, but with no legal or political identity separate from the county and no taxing authority. See Utah Code 17-27a-103
• Plat: means an instrument subdividing property into lots as depicted on a map or other graphical representation of lands that a licensed professional land surveyor makes and prepares in accordance with Section 17-27a-603 or 57-8-13. See Utah Code 17-27a-103
• Potential geologic hazard area: means an area that:
       (56)(a) is designated by a Utah Geological Survey map, county geologist map, or other relevant map or report as needing further study to determine the area's potential for geologic hazard; or
       (56)(b) has not been studied by the Utah Geological Survey or a county geologist but presents the potential of geologic hazard because the area has characteristics similar to those of a designated geologic hazard area. See Utah Code 17-27a-103
• Precedent: A court decision in an earlier case with facts and law similar to a dispute currently before a court. Precedent will ordinarily govern the decision of a later similar case, unless a party can show that it was wrongly decided or that it differed in some significant way.
• Property: includes both real and personal property. See Utah Code 68-3-12.5
• Public agency: means :
       (57)(a) the federal government;
       (57)(b) the state;
       (57)(c) a county, municipality, school district, special district, special service district, or other political subdivision of the state; or
       (57)(d) a charter school. See Utah Code 17-27a-103
• Public hearing: means a hearing at which members of the public are provided a reasonable opportunity to comment on the subject of the hearing. See Utah Code 17-27a-103
• Public meeting: means a meeting that is required to be open to the public under Title 52, Chapter 4, Open and Public Meetings Act. See Utah Code 17-27a-103
• Public street: means a public right-of-way, including a public highway, public avenue, public boulevard, public parkway, public road, public lane, public alley, public viaduct, public subway, public tunnel, public bridge, public byway, other public transportation easement, or other public way. See Utah Code 17-27a-103
• Real property: Land, and all immovable fixtures erected on, growing on, or affixed to the land.
• real property: includes :
       (31)(a) land;
       (31)(b) a tenement;
       (31)(c) a hereditament;
       (31)(d) a water right;
       (31)(e) a possessory right; and
       (31)(f) a claim. See Utah Code 68-3-12.5
• Receiving zone: means an unincorporated area of a county that the county designates, by ordinance, as an area in which an owner of land may receive a transferable development right. See Utah Code 17-27a-103
• Record of survey map: means a map of a survey of land prepared in accordance with Section 10-9a-603, 17-23-17, 17-27a-603, or 57-8-13. See Utah Code 17-27a-103
• Residential facility for persons with a disability: means a residence:
       (63)(a) in which more than one person with a disability resides; and
       (63)(b) which is licensed or certified by the Department of Health and Human Services under:

            (63)(b)(i) Title 26B, Chapter 2, Part 1, Human Services Programs and Facilities; or

            (63)(b)(ii) Title 26B, Chapter 2, Part 2, Health Care Facility Licensing and Inspection. See Utah Code 17-27a-103
• Residential roadway: means a public local residential road that:
       (64)(a) will serve primarily to provide access to adjacent primarily residential areas and property;
       (64)(b) is designed to accommodate minimal traffic volumes or vehicular traffic;
       (64)(c) is not identified as a supplementary to a collector or other higher system classified street in an approved municipal street or transportation master plan;
       (64)(d) has a posted speed limit of 25 miles per hour or less;
       (64)(e) does not have higher traffic volumes resulting from connecting previously separated areas of the municipal road network;
       (64)(f) cannot have a primary access, but can have a secondary access, and does not abut lots intended for high volume traffic or community centers, including schools, recreation centers, sports complexes, or libraries; and
       (64)(g) primarily serves traffic within a neighborhood or limited residential area and is not necessarily continuous through several residential areas. See Utah Code 17-27a-103
• Road: includes :
       (33)(a) a public bridge;
       (33)(b) a county way;
       (33)(c) a county road;
       (33)(d) a common road; and
       (33)(e) a state road. See Utah Code 68-3-12.5
• Rules of order and procedure: means a set of rules that govern and prescribe in a public meeting:
       (65)(a) parliamentary order and procedure;
       (65)(b) ethical behavior; and
       (65)(c) civil discourse. See Utah Code 17-27a-103
• Sanitary sewer authority: means the department, agency, or public entity with responsibility to review and approve the feasibility of sanitary sewer services or onsite wastewater systems. See Utah Code 17-27a-103
• Sending zone: means an unincorporated area of a county that the county designates, by ordinance, as an area from which an owner of land may transfer a transferable development right. See Utah Code 17-27a-103
• Site plan: means a document or map that may be required by a county during a preliminary review preceding the issuance of a building permit to demonstrate that an owner's or developer's proposed development activity meets a land use requirement. See Utah Code 17-27a-103
• Special district: includes a governmental or quasi-governmental entity that is not a county, municipality, school district, or the state. See Utah Code 17-27a-103
• Specified public agency: means :
       (70)(a) the state;
       (70)(b) a school district; or
       (70)(c) a charter school. See Utah Code 17-27a-103
• Specified public utility: means an electrical corporation, gas corporation, or telephone corporation, as those terms are defined in Section 54-2-1. See Utah Code 17-27a-103
• State: includes any department, division, or agency of the state. See Utah Code 17-27a-103
• Subdivision: includes :
            (73)(b)(i) the division or development of land, whether by deed, metes and bounds description, devise and testacy, map, plat, or other recorded instrument, regardless of whether the division includes all or a portion of a parcel or lot; and
            (73)(b)(ii) except as provided in Subsection (73)(c), divisions of land for residential and nonresidential uses, including land used or to be used for commercial, agricultural, and industrial purposes. See Utah Code 17-27a-103
• Subdivision amendment: means an amendment to a recorded subdivision in accordance with Section 17-27a-608 that:
            (74)(a)(i) vacates all or a portion of the subdivision;
            (74)(a)(ii) alters the outside boundary of the subdivision;
            (74)(a)(iii) changes the number of lots within the subdivision;
            (74)(a)(iv) alters a public right-of-way, a public easement, or public infrastructure within the subdivision; or
            (74)(a)(v) alters a common area or other common amenity within the subdivision. See Utah Code 17-27a-103
• Substantial evidence: means evidence that:
       (75)(a) is beyond a scintilla; and
       (75)(b) a reasonable mind would accept as adequate to support a conclusion. See Utah Code 17-27a-103
• Suspect soil: means soil that has:
       (76)(a) a high susceptibility for volumetric change, typically clay rich, having more than a 3% swell potential;
       (76)(b) bedrock units with high shrink or swell susceptibility; or
       (76)(c) gypsiferous silt and clay, gypsum, or bedrock units containing abundant gypsum commonly associated with dissolution and collapse features. See Utah Code 17-27a-103
• Therapeutic school: means a residential group living facility:
       (77)(a) for four or more individuals who are not related to:

            (77)(a)(i) the owner of the facility; or

            (77)(a)(ii) the primary service provider of the facility;
       (77)(b) that serves students who have a history of failing to function:

            (77)(b)(i) at home;

            (77)(b)(ii) in a public school; or

            (77)(b)(iii) in a nonresidential private school; and
       (77)(c) that offers:

            (77)(c)(i) room and board; and

            (77)(c)(ii) an academic education integrated with:

                 (77)(c)(ii)(A) specialized structure and supervision; or

                 (77)(c)(ii)(B) services or treatment related to a disability, an emotional development, a behavioral development, a familial development, or a social development. See Utah Code 17-27a-103
• Transferable development right: means a right to develop and use land that originates by an ordinance that authorizes a land owner in a designated sending zone to transfer land use rights from a designated sending zone to a designated receiving zone. See Utah Code 17-27a-103
• Unincorporated: means the area outside of the incorporated area of a municipality. See Utah Code 17-27a-103
• United States: includes each state, district, and territory of the United States of America. See Utah Code 68-3-12.5
• Water interest: means any right to the beneficial use of water, including:
       (80)(a) each of the rights listed in Section 73-1-11; and
       (80)(b) an ownership interest in the right to the beneficial use of water represented by:

            (80)(b)(i) a contract; or

            (80)(b)(ii) a share in a water company, as defined in Section Utah Code 17-27a-103
• 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
• Zoning map: means a map, adopted as part of a land use ordinance, that depicts land use zones, overlays, or districts. See Utah Code 17-27a-103