Section 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 chapter, 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 chapter.  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.