Annexation; alternatives.

Makes the current temporary moratorium on city annexation permanent by removing the expiration date and references to city annexation throughout the Code. Similarly, provisions regarding county immunity to city annexation are repealed. Towns will continue to have annexation authority. Other amendments seek to promote alternatives to city annexation, including granting authority for a city reverting to town status to refer to itself as a dependent city rather than a town. In addition, for certain local government consolidations, localities may seek to hold an advisory referendum prior to undertaking the consolidation process. The bill establishes the Local Government Efficiency Analysis Fund to encourage localities to explore consolidation, city reversion, interlocal agreements, and other local operational efficiencies that may lead to improved economies of scale and more efficient service delivery. The matching grants from the Fund shall be used for the purpose of allowing localities to overcome cost-prohibitive financial barriers in order to investigate, research, and analyze the benefits of such agreements. The bill is based on selected recommendations of the Commission on Local Government's recently completed study of annexation alternatives.