A Special Assessment District (SAD) can begin in two different ways: the Provisional Order Method and the Petition Method. The Provisional Order Method means that the City may initiate a district when it determines that creation of a district is necessary for the health, safety, and welfare of the community. This method does not require any votes or "buy-in" from the property owners. The SAD is created by the Governing Body. The Petition Method means the City may initiate a district if the owners of two-thirds of the benefiting properties petition the City requesting a district to construct improvements and assess the costs of improvements. This method requires the City to send certified mail to every property owner for their signature on the petition. This is very difficult to achieve when a considerable number of property owners do not even live in the United States.
The City is reimbursed for the cost of the SAD improvements by the property owners directly benefiting from the improvements. Assessment payments made by property owners to the City are used to pay for bonds issued for the improvement work and associated issuance costs. The City conducts SADs in accordance with New Mexico State Law, Chapter 3, Article 33 NMSA, 1978 Improvement Districts.