Arizona Constitution|Section 12 - Land exchanges; purposes; notice; hearings; submission to the voters

                                                




 12.  Land exchanges; purposes; notice; hearings;
                   submission to the voters

      Section 12.  A.  The legislature shall provide a process by law for
      exchanging lands granted or confirmed by the enabling act for public lands in
      this state under the terms and conditions prescribed by this section.

      B.  The purpose of the exchange must be either:

      1.  To assist in preserving and protecting military facilities in this
      state from encroaching development.

      2.  To improve the management of state lands for the purpose of sale or
      lease or conversion to public use of state lands.

      C.  Before the public hearings are held pursuant to subsection D,
      paragraph 3 of this section:

      1.  At least two independent appraisals must be made available to the
      public showing that the true value of any lands the state receives in the
      exchange equals or exceeds the true value of the lands the state conveys.

      2.  At least two independent analyses of the proposed exchange must be
      made available to the public showing:

      (a)  The income to the trust before the exchange from all lands the
      state conveys and the projected income to the trust after the exchange from
      all lands the state receives.

      (b)  The fiscal impact of the exchange on each county, city, town and
      school district in which all the lands involved in the exchange are located.

      (c)  The physical, economic and natural resource impacts of the proposed
      exchange on the surrounding or directly adjacent local community and the
      impacts on local land uses and land use plans.

      D.  Land may not be exchanged unless:

      1.  The exchange is in the best interest of the state land trust.

      2.  Public notice of the proposed exchange includes full disclosure of
      all details of the transaction, the ownership of all parcels of the lands
      involved in the exchange, including independent and ancillary parties, a legal
      and general description of the location of all parcels of the lands and the
      appraised value of all parcels of the lands.

      3.  Public hearings are held at the state capital and in a location of
      general accessibility in the vicinity of the state lands being
      exchanged.  Notice of the time and place of the hearings must be given
      beginning at least six weeks before each hearing in a manner prescribed by
      law. During this period, a process shall be provided for public comment on the
      proposed exchange.

      4.  The exchange is approved by the qualified electors of this state in
      the manner of a referendum pursuant to article IV, part 1, section 1 at the
      next regular general election. To be approved, the proposition must receive an
      affirmative vote of a majority of the qualified electors voting on the
      measure.

      E.  Land exchanges are not considered to be sales for the purposes of
      this article.