ARTICLE 11, SECTION 16
SECTION 16 COMBINED CITY-COUNTY. Any county may frame a
"Home Rule" charter subject to the Constitution and laws of this
state to provide for the formation and government of combined
city and county municipal corporations, each of which shall be
known as "city-county". Registered voters equal in number to ten
(10) percent of the voters of any such county voting at the last
preceding general election may at any time propose by a petition
the calling of an election of freeholders. The provisions of
section 4 of this Article with respect to a petition calling for
an election of freeholders to frame a county home rule charter,
the election of freeholders, and the framing and adoption of a
county home rule charter pursuant to such petition shall apply to
a petition proposed under this section for the election of
freeholders to frame a city-county charter, the election of
freeholders, and to the framing and adoption of such city-county
charter pursuant to such petition. Except as otherwise provided
in this section, the provisions of section 4 applicable to a
county home rule charter shall apply to a city-county charter.
If there are not sufficient legal newspapers published in the
county to meet the requirements for publication of a proposed
charter under section 4 of this Article, publication in a legal
newspaper circulated in the county may be substituted for
publication in a legal newspaper published in the county. No
such "city-county" shall be formed except by a majority vote of
the qualified electors voting thereon in the county. The charter
shall designate the respective officers of such city-county who
shall perform the duties imposed by law upon county officers.
Every such city-county shall have and enjoy all rights, powers
and privileges asserted in its charter, and in addition thereto,
such rights, powers and privileges as may be granted to it, or to
any city or county or class or classes of cities and counties.
In the event of a conflict in the constitutional provisions
applying to cities and those applying to counties or of a
conflict in the general laws applying to cities and those
applying to counties, a city-county shall be authorized to
exercise any powers that are granted to either the cities or the
counties.
No legislative enactment which is a prohibition or
restriction shall apply to the rights, powers and privileges of a
city-county unless such prohibition or restriction shall apply
equally to every other city, county, and city-county.
The provisions of sections 2, 3, 5, 6, and 8 and of the
first paragraph of section 4 of this article shall not apply to
any such city-county.
Municipal corporations may be retained or otherwise provided
for within the city-county. The formation, powers and duties of
such municipal corporations shall be prescribed by the charter.
No city-county shall for any purpose become indebted in any
manner to an amount exceeding three per centum of the taxable
property in such city-county without the assent of three-fifths
of the voters therein voting at an election to be held for that
purpose, nor in cases requiring such assent shall the total
indebtedness at any time exceed ten per centum of the value of
the taxable property therein, to be ascertained by the last
assessment for city-county purposes previous to the incurring of
such indebtedness: Provided, That no part of the indebtedness
allowed in this section shall be incurred for any purpose other
than strictly city-county or other municipal purposes: Provided
further, That any city-county, with such assent may be allowed to
become indebted to a larger amount, but not exceeding five per
centum additional for supplying such city-county with water,
artificial light, and sewers, when the works for supplying such
water, light, and sewers shall be owned and controlled by the
city-county.
No municipal corporation which is retained or otherwise
provided for within the city-county shall for any purpose become
indebted in any manner to an amount exceeding one and one-half
per centum of the taxable property in such municipal corporation
without the assent of three-fifths of the voters therein voting
at an election to be held for that purpose, nor shall the total
indebtedness at any time exceed five per centum of the value of
the taxable property therein, to be ascertained by the last
assessment for city-county purposes previous to the incurring of
such indebtedness: Provided, That no part of the indebtedness
allowed in this section shall be incurred for any purpose other
than strictly municipal purposes: Provided further, That any
such municipal corporation, with such assent, may be allowed to
become indebted to a larger amount, but not exceeding five per
centum additional for supplying such municipal corporation with
water, artificial light, and sewers, when the works for supplying
such water, light, and sewers shall be owned and controlled by
the municipal corporation. All taxes which are levied and
collected within a municipal corporation for a specific purpose
shall be expended within that municipal corporation.
The authority conferred on the city-county government shall
not be restricted by the second sentence of Article 7, section 1,
or by Article 8, section 6 of this Constitution. [AMENDMENT 58,
1971 House Joint Resolution No. 21. Approved November, 1972.]