The petition for withdrawal shall be filed with the county auditor of each county in which the district is located, and after the filing no person having signed the petition shall be allowed to withdraw the person’s name therefrom. Within ten days after such filing, each county auditor shall examine and verify the signatures of signers residing in the respective county. The petition shall be transmitted to the auditor of the county in which all or the major geographic portion of the district is located, who shall certify to the sufficiency or insufficiency of the signatures. If the area proposed to be withdrawn is located in more than one county, the auditor of the county in which the largest geographic portion of the area proposed to be withdrawn is located shall be the lead auditor and shall immediately transfer a copy of the petitions to the auditor of each other county in which the area proposed to be withdrawn is located. Within ten days after the lead auditor received the petition, the auditors of these other counties shall certify to the lead auditor: (1) The number of voters of that county residing in the area proposed to be withdrawn who voted at the last municipal general election; and (2) the number of valid signatures on the petition of voters of that county residing in the area proposed to be withdrawn. The lead auditor shall certify the sufficiency of the petition after receiving this information. If such petition be found by such county auditor to contain sufficient signatures, the petition, together with a certificate of sufficiency attached thereto, shall be transmitted to the board of commissioners of the district.

Part headings not law—Effective date—1996 c 230: See notes following RCW 57.02.001.