1. (a) Not more than ten (10) days after a governing body has:

   1. (1) initiated;
   2. (2) approved; or

   3. (3) disapproved;

      a plan initiated by the petition filed with it, the governing body shall publish a notice one (1) time in a newspaper of general circulation in the county of the school corporation. If a newspaper of general circulation is not published in the county of the school corporation, the governing body shall publish a notice one (1) time in a newspaper of general circulation published in a county adjoining the county of the school corporation.

2. (b) The notice must set out the text of a plan initiated by the governing body or another plan filed with the governing body before the preparation of the notice. The notice must also state the right of a voter, as provided in this section, to file a petition for alternative plans or a petition protesting the adoption of a plan or plans to which the notice relates.
3. (c) If the governing body fails to publish a notice required by this section, the governing body shall, not more than five (5) days after the expiration of the ten (10) day period for publication of notice under this section, submit the petition that has been filed with the clerk to the state board, whether or not the plan contained in the petition or the petition meets the requirements of this chapter.

4. (d) Not later than one hundred twenty (120) days after the publication of the notice, voters of the school corporation may file with the clerk a petition protesting a plan initiated or approved by the governing body or a petition submitting an alternative plan as follows:

   1. (1) A petition protesting a plan shall be signed by at least twenty percent (20%) of the voters of the school corporation or five hundred (500) voters of the school corporation, whichever is less.

   2. (2) A petition submitting an alternative plan shall be signed by at least twenty percent (20%) of the voters of the school corporation.

      A petition filed under this subsection shall be certified by the clerk and shall be filed with the governing body in the same manner as is provided for a petition in section 11 of this chapter.

5. (e) The governing body or the voters may not initiate or file additional plans until the plans that were published in the notice or submitted as alternative plans not later than one hundred twenty (120) days after the publication of the notice have been disposed of by:

   1. (1) adoption;
   2. (2) defeat at a special election held under section 16 of this chapter; or

   3. (3) combination with another plan by the state board under section 15 of this chapter.

      [Pre-2005 Elementary and Secondary Education Recodification Citation: 20-4-10.1-8.]

As added by P.L.1-2005, SEC.7.