N.Y. Education Law § 1524: Consolidation with city school district

§ 1524. Consolidation with city school district. 1. Notwithstanding

the provisions of this chapter or any other general, special, or local

law to the contrary, whenever the qualified voters of a school district

which is contiguous to the city school district of a city with less than

one hundred twenty-five thousand inhabitants, according to the latest

federal census, by a majority vote taken at an annual or special meeting

of such district shall adopt a proposition to consolidate such school

district with such city school district, and the board of education of

such city school district shall by resolution duly adopted consent

thereto, the commissioner of education may by order consolidate such

school district with such city school district; provided, however, that

where several school districts are contiguous to each other and at least

one of such school districts is contiguous to such city school district,

such vote may be taken in each of such school districts at the same

time, and if the proposition to consolidate is adopted by a majority

vote in each such district, including any votes cast by absentee ballot

as provided under section two thousand eighteen-a or two thousand

eighteen-b of this title, whichever shall apply, and any votes cast by

early mail ballots as provided in section two thousand eighteen-e or two

thousand eighteen-f of this title, whichever shall apply, and upon the

consent of the city school district board of education, the commissioner

of education may include each such district in one order of

consolidation; provided, further, however, that if the proposition to

consolidate is not adopted by a majority vote in each such district, but

is so adopted in one or more of such districts, upon the consent of the

city school district board of education, the commissioner may include in

one order of consolidation only such district or districts as, either

singly or as a group, are contiguous to such city school district. Such

order shall specify a date on which the same shall take effect, and

shall have the same effect as an order made by a district superintendent

dissolving two or more common school districts and forming a new

district therefrom, or dissolving one or more common school districts

and uniting the territory thereof to a union free school district under

the provisions of article thirty-one of this title. A copy of such order

shall be filed with the clerk of each school district affected thereby.

2. Unless the effective date of such order of consolidation shall

coincide with the beginning of the fiscal year of the city school

district, the board of education of the city school district upon the

effective date of the order of consolidation, shall levy a tax upon the

area so consolidated with the city school district, to defray the

expenses of educating the pupils of such area from the effective date of

the consolidation to the beginning of the next ensuing fiscal year of

the city school district. For this purpose, the school tax rate used for

the fiscal year of the city school district in progress on the effective

date of such order shall be used, except that such rate shall be divided

by twelve and multiplied by the number of months intervening between the

effective date of such order and the beginning of the next ensuing

fiscal year of the city school district. The tax list for this purpose

shall be prepared and confirmed within thirty days after the effective

date of such consolidation.

3. In any city school district with which one or more school districts

shall have been consolidated under the provisions of this section, the

proper equalization rate shall be fixed and determined annually pursuant

to the provisions of section thirty-five hundred five of this chapter.