§ 1524. Consolidation with city school district. 1. Notwithstanding
the provisions of this chapter or any other general, special, or local
law to the contrary, whenever the qualified voters of a school district
which is contiguous to the city school district of a city with less than
one hundred twenty-five thousand inhabitants, according to the latest
federal census, by a majority vote taken at an annual or special meeting
of such district shall adopt a proposition to consolidate such school
district with such city school district, and the board of education of
such city school district shall by resolution duly adopted consent
thereto, the commissioner of education may by order consolidate such
school district with such city school district; provided, however, that
where several school districts are contiguous to each other and at least
one of such school districts is contiguous to such city school district,
such vote may be taken in each of such school districts at the same
time, and if the proposition to consolidate is adopted by a majority
vote in each such district, including any votes cast by absentee ballot
as provided under section two thousand eighteen-a or two thousand
eighteen-b of this title, whichever shall apply, and any votes cast by
early mail ballots as provided in section two thousand eighteen-e or two
thousand eighteen-f of this title, whichever shall apply, and upon the
consent of the city school district board of education, the commissioner
of education may include each such district in one order of
consolidation; provided, further, however, that if the proposition to
consolidate is not adopted by a majority vote in each such district, but
is so adopted in one or more of such districts, upon the consent of the
city school district board of education, the commissioner may include in
one order of consolidation only such district or districts as, either
singly or as a group, are contiguous to such city school district. Such
order shall specify a date on which the same shall take effect, and
shall have the same effect as an order made by a district superintendent
dissolving two or more common school districts and forming a new
district therefrom, or dissolving one or more common school districts
and uniting the territory thereof to a union free school district under
the provisions of article thirty-one of this title. A copy of such order
shall be filed with the clerk of each school district affected thereby.

2. Unless the effective date of such order of consolidation shall
coincide with the beginning of the fiscal year of the city school
district, the board of education of the city school district upon the
effective date of the order of consolidation, shall levy a tax upon the
area so consolidated with the city school district, to defray the
expenses of educating the pupils of such area from the effective date of
the consolidation to the beginning of the next ensuing fiscal year of
the city school district. For this purpose, the school tax rate used for
the fiscal year of the city school district in progress on the effective
date of such order shall be used, except that such rate shall be divided
by twelve and multiplied by the number of months intervening between the
effective date of such order and the beginning of the next ensuing
fiscal year of the city school district. The tax list for this purpose
shall be prepared and confirmed within thirty days after the effective
date of such consolidation.

3. In any city school district with which one or more school districts
shall have been consolidated under the provisions of this section, the
proper equalization rate shall be fixed and determined annually pursuant
to the provisions of section thirty-five hundred five of this chapter.