Colorado county surveyors
County surveyor is an elected position in the state of Colorado according to the state's constitution.
Election
A county surveyor is elected for a four year term. The surveyor files a $1,000 official bond in the office of the county clerk and recorder, which the board of county commissioners approves. The bond is for the faithful discharge of his or her duties.[1]
The county surveyor appoints as many deputies as he or she thinks proper.[1]
Government roles
The county surveyor:
- Represents the county in boundary disputes
- Notifies the county attorney of any unsettled boundary disputes or boundary discrepancies within the county
- Files all surveys, field notes, calculations, maps, and any other records pertaining to work authorized and financed by the board of county commissioners (in the office of the county surveyor, or in the office of the county clerk and recorder if there is no office for the county surveyor in the county). The surveyor must number consecutively all surveys and all field notes and calculations pertaining to the surveys. The surveyor then endorses them with the number of the survey to which they pertain.
When authorized by the board of county commissioners, the surveyor can:
- Conduct surveys to establish county property boundaries, including road rights-of-way, or any other surveys necessary to the county
- Accept maps of surveys that establish monuments and keep a current record of all survey monuments within the county in order to file them
- Examine all survey maps and plats before the county clerk and recorder records them to insure proper content and form
- Conduct geodetic control surveys, vertical control surveys, or any surveys for geographic information systems
- Conduct or supervise construction surveys necessary to the county
- Provide reference monuments for or the remonumentation or monument upgrades of public land survey system monuments that county construction destroys.[1]
Whenever the proper location of any section corner or quarter section corner is in dispute, the county surveyor establishes the corner as county property.
When the surveyor receives an application from any party in interest and receives the required fee, the county surveyor gathers evidence and conduct any necessary surveys to establish the location of a monument. Within two weeks, the county surveyor gives notice that must include the date when such surveyor will be in the vicinity of the disputed corner in the following manner:
- When someone's property rights might be affected by the establishment of the location of a monument, by written notice
- For parties to whom written notice cannot be given because of an incorrect address or because there are more than fifty known affected landowners, by publishing for four consecutive weeks in a newspaper of general circulation in the applicable county or, if there is no newspaper published in such county, in some newspaper of general circulation published in the nearest county;
- For all professional land surveyors who have filed a monument record on the disputed corner or on any aliquot corner within one mile thereof and all professional land surveyors known to have performed land surveys in the vicinity of the disputed corner, by written notice to the extent practicable.
The county surveyor must establish the corner monument lawfully and with the field notes of original surveys made by the United States by firmly planting a monument at the points found. The county surveyor takes and notes courses and distances from such established monument to one or more prominent, permanent objects if there are any in the vicinity and make a plat or map of the survey. The county surveyor records the survey and a statement of the proceedings, including the application, notice, and names of the parties in interest, in the county surveyor's office records. Any corner monument is the true and legal monument defining the boundary corner, except that any affected party may appeal the result within six months after the date the corner monument is established.
The party applying for this will take on the fees and expenses the county surveyor incurs. The county surveyor must give the person an estimate of these costs at the time of the application and collect the money from the applicant.
If the estimated amount exceeds the actual fees and expenses, the excess shall be refunded after the monument is completed. If the fees and expenses exceed the estimated amount, the applicant will pay the difference to the county surveyor.[1]
County surveyors have the authority to administer an oath or affirmation to deputies and assistants acting under them faithfully and impartially to discharge their duties as deputies and assistants.[1]
Position overview
Colorado county surveyors are the official land surveyors of the county.
Government sector lobbying
Colorado county surveyors can be members of Professional Land Surveyors of Colorado, a government sector lobbying organization.
External links
Footnotes
