195:9 Taking Over Property. –
I. Whenever a cooperative school district planning board is formed and it is proposed that a cooperative school district is to be established, the properties belonging to the districts that are to be used by the cooperative district shall be separately appraised by a committee to consist of 3 persons. The commissioner of education shall designate one person on the committee, and the commissioner of revenue administration shall designate 2 persons, one of whom shall be a member of or a qualified appraiser employed by the department of revenue administration. A member who is not in the employ of the state shall be paid $25 per day plus actual expenses in the performance of such member's duties. A member who is in the employ of the state shall not be paid extra compensation other than the state salary, but shall be reimbursed for actual expenses in the performance of such member's duties.
II. All expenses incurred in conducting an appraisal by the persons designated by the commissioner of revenue administration including the salaries and expenses of state employees, shall be paid in the first instance from the appropriation for the department of revenue administration. Likewise, the salary and expenses incurred by the person designated by the commissioner of education, including the salaries and expenses of state employees, shall be paid in the first instance from the appropriation for the department of education. The commissioner of revenue administration and the commissioner of education shall report the amount of money paid by them for the appraisal to the cooperative school district planning board. The planning board shall reimburse the department of revenue administration and the department of education for these expenses. If the planning board does not have sufficient funds to make reimbursement, it shall apportion the expenses among the several districts requesting the appraisal. The reimbursements shall be credited to the appropriations for the department of revenue administration and the department of education.
III. The decision of the committee with respect to the appraisal shall be final. Unless otherwise provided in the articles of agreement, at the next annual assessment a tax equivalent to the total appraised value of the property to be used by the cooperative district shall be levied upon the several districts comprising the cooperative school district in the proportion that the equalized valuation of each bears to the equalized valuation of the whole and there shall be remitted to the taxpayers of each pre-existing district the appraised value of its property. Whenever the cooperative school board decides the foregoing adjustment will work a hardship on any one or all of the pre-existing districts, it may, of its own motion, or upon petition of any of the residents of a pre-existing district provide that such adjustment be made over a period of not exceeding 20 years.