New York Laws
Article 35 - Union Free School Districts
1705 - Annexing Territory to a Union Free School District.

§ 1705. Annexing territory to a union free school district. 1.
Territory may be annexed to a union free school district as provided in
this section.

a. The commissioner is authorized and empowered to make and enter in
the commissioner's office orders dissolving one or more common, union
free or central school districts and annexing the territory of such
districts, or portions thereof, to one or more adjoining union free
school districts, subject to approval of the voters of each school
district affected thereby.

b. When an order annexing territory to a union free school district
has been made and entered as provided in this section, the commissioner
shall, within ten days thereafter, cause certified copies of said order
to be filed with the clerk or school authorities of each school district
affected thereby. Within thirty days of filing of such order, the
commissioner shall fix a time and place for a special meeting of the
qualified voters of each school district affected by the proposed
annexation and shall cause notice thereof to be posted at least ten days
before each such meeting in ten conspicuous places in the school
district. In addition to the posting of such notice, a copy thereof
shall be duly published, at least three days before each such meeting,
in a daily or weekly newspaper published within, or in general
circulation in, the school district in which such meeting is to be held.
The expense of posting and publishing such notice shall be a charge upon
the school district conducting such meeting.

2. Except as provided in this subdivision, any special district
meeting held pursuant to paragraph b of subdivision one of this section
shall be conducted in accordance with the procedures specified in
section eighteen hundred three of this chapter.

a. At a meeting held pursuant to paragraph b of subdivision one of
this section, a resolution in substantially the following form shall be
presented for the action and determination of the meeting, viz.:
"Resolved that the...(insert simplified name of district in accordance
with section three hundred fifteen of this chapter) school district be
annexed to the...union free school district (designate union free school
district) as provided in the order of the commissioner of education now
before this meeting."

b. If at any such meeting the resolution described in paragraph a of
this subdivision shall be presented and shall not be adopted, there
shall be no further proceedings at such meeting, except a motion to
reconsider the question. No such meeting shall again be called by the
commissioner within one year after such original meeting. If no meeting
shall be called to reconsider the question within two years after such
original meeting, or if at any such meeting called within two years
after such original meeting the resolution shall again be rejected by
the voters, the order of the commissioner to which the resolution
relates shall be deemed null and void and of no further force or effect.

c. If the resolution submitted to the voters as provided in paragraph
a of this subdivision shall be adopted by the voters of each school
district affected by the order of the commissioner, the territory
described therein shall thereupon be annexed to the existing union free
school district or districts as provided in such order.

3. Whenever a common school district, union free school district or
central school district becomes a part of a union free school district
pursuant to the provisions of this section, the union free school
district of which any such district shall have become a part, shall
succeed to all the property rights of such common, union free or central
school districts and all indebtedness of any such school district
evidenced by bonds or notes or relating to school building construction

shall become a charge upon such union free school district of which such
district shall have become a part, but all other indebtedness of any
such district shall be paid by any such district in accordance with the
provisions of section fifteen hundred eighteen of this chapter and to
that extent any such district shall continue to exist in law for the
purpose of providing for and paying all such indebtedness in accordance
with the provisions of such section.

4. Notwithstanding any other provision of law, whenever a common
school district, union free school district or central school district
is annexed in its entirety to a union free school district pursuant to
this section, all employees of the former school districts at the time
of dissolution shall immediately become employees of the reorganized
union free school district, shall retain their tenure and/or employment
status and the seniority gained in the annexed district, and the
seniority list of the employees of the annexed school district shall be
merged with the seniority list of the employees of the annexing school
district. If the number of teaching positions needed to provide services
in the reorganized union free school district is less than the number of
teachers considered to be employees of the reorganized union free school
district pursuant to this subdivision, the board of education shall
abolish the unneeded positions and place teachers on preferred eligible
lists in accordance with section three thousand thirteen of this
chapter. For salary, sick leave and other purposes, an employee's length
of service with the annexed school district shall be credited as
employment time with the annexing union free school district. This
section shall in no way be construed to limit the rights of any such
employees set forth in this section granted by any other provision of
law.