The list of county secession proposals in the United States includes proposed new
counties to be formed from existing counties within a given state that have not yet been formed. For counties that want to secede from their current state and to join or create another, see
List of U.S. state partition proposals.
Alabama
* Perdido County,
Alabama
Alabama ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern and Deep South, Deep Southern regions of the United States. It borders Tennessee to the north, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia to the east, Florida and the Gu ...
would contain northern
Baldwin County, divided by
a straight line extending westward from the northwestern tip of
Florida
Florida ( ; ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders the Gulf of Mexico to the west, Alabama to the northwest, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia to the north, the Atlantic ...
, and western
Escambia County, west of Big Escambia Creek. (The
Flomaton area is excluded via a prominent power line easement, from Big Escambia Creek to the Florida state line.) The southwestern tip of
Conecuh County, also west of Big Escambia Creek, may be included as well. The headwaters of the
Perdido River rise near the center of this proposed county. The Perdido County seat would be
Atmore. The county has been proposed by city of Atmore backers, who believe that their growing city of over 10,000 residents should be a county seat. Furthermore, county backers believe that Atmore belongs in the
Mobile-Daphne-Fairhope metropolitan combined statistical area, which would become much more likely within its own exurban-leaning county.
Brewton would remain the county seat of rural-leaning Escambia County. In addition to the incorporated city of Atmore, Perdido County would include the unincorporated communities of Blacksher,
Canoe
A canoe is a lightweight, narrow watercraft, water vessel, typically pointed at both ends and open on top, propelled by one or more seated or kneeling paddlers facing the direction of travel and using paddles.
In British English, the term ' ...
,
Freemanville,
Huxford,
Nokomis,
Perdido and
Tensaw.
Alaska
*
Chugiak and
Eagle River are communities along the
Glenn Highway between
Anchorage and the
Matanuska-Susitna Valley. Originally farming and homesteading communities with a distinct identity, they became better known starting in the 1970s as
bedroom communities of Anchorage, and are currently located within its city limits (see below). In the wake of the
incorporation of the Greater Anchorage Area
Borough
A borough is an administrative division in various English language, English-speaking countries. In principle, the term ''borough'' designates a self-governing walled town, although in practice, official use of the term varies widely.
History
...
(in 1964) and subsequent efforts to merge the GAAB with Anchorage's city government (which began in 1966), Chugiak and Eagle River residents began their own efforts to attempt to secede from the GAAB. The culmination of these efforts, the Chugiak-Eagle River Borough, incorporated on August 27, 1974, with an area of and an estimated population of 5,832, before the incorporation was invalidated by the
Alaska Supreme Court on April 14, 1975. Five months later, the reconstituted GAAB and existing cities within its boundaries
merged to form the Municipality of Anchorage. The population of Eagle River increased greatly during the 1980s and 1990s. This has led to renewed discussion during the 21st century on the part of Chugiak and Eagle River residents to secede from Anchorage.
Arizona
*
Russell Pearce, a state legislator, has proposed a bill which would ease county splits, as part of his effort to split off the
East Valley portion of
Maricopa County. Two such attempts were made: the first one in the early 1990s included the cities and towns of
Mesa (county seat),
Chandler,
Gilbert,
Queen Creek,
Tempe, and
Guadalupe, while a second attempt in the early 2000s included the same cities and towns except for Tempe and Guadalupe. County splitting rules were made more restrictive after the formation of
La Paz County in 1983, which required a significant state investment to keep the county running as the result of its small tax base.
*There is an ongoing movement in
Lake Havasu City to split from
Mohave County.
*In the late 1930s, differences between mining and ranching interests in
Cochise County spurred a proposal to split the county, with the new county's seat at
Willcox, which the state Legislature ultimately rejected.
* Sierra Bonita County: proposed at the
13th Arizona Territorial Legislature in 1885, with
Willcox proposed as the county seat. The proposal died by one vote.
*In the 1980s, a bill was passed in the state legislature to create an all Indian county out of the northern halves of
Navajo and
Apache Counties, and the northeastern half of
Coconino County. Non-Indian communities in the southern region of these counties felt that the Navajo and Hopi Nations do not pay a fair share in local taxes. The bill was vetoed by then governor
Bruce Babbitt, who placed a five-year moratorium on its consideration. Subsequent attempts to revive the bill failed and the issue has not resurfaced in recent years.
*Sitgreaves County, to be formed from the southern portions of
Navajo and
Apache Counties.
*Butte County: In 1897, James C. Goodwin, with the support of
Charles T. Hayden and others, introduced a bill at the Territorial Legislature to split Maricopa County into two, with
Tempe being the county seat.
There have also been proposals, introduced in 1900 and 1913, to divide Maricopa County, with
Mesa as the new county's seat.
*Mogollon County, Hohokam County, and O'odham County, to be formed from parts of
Maricopa County. Proposals were introduced in 2023 by Republicans
Alexander Kolodin and
Jake Hoffman. Proposals to split Maricopa County had previously existed, but gained more support and attention following the
2020 presidential election.
Arkansas
*Red River County, to be formed in 1871 from
Lafayette County.
California
*In
Northern California
Northern California (commonly shortened to NorCal) is a geocultural region that comprises the northern portion of the U.S. state of California, spanning the northernmost 48 of the state's List of counties in California, 58 counties. Northern Ca ...
, four proposed county plans failed in the 1990s: Redwood County (western parts of
Mendocino and
Sonoma counties), Tahoe County (eastern parts of
Nevada
Nevada ( ; ) is a landlocked state in the Western United States. It borders Oregon to the northwest, Idaho to the northeast, California to the west, Arizona to the southeast, and Utah to the east. Nevada is the seventh-most extensive, th ...
,
Placer and
El Dorado counties 1996–1998), Central Valley County (of western
Merced and
Fresno counties), and
Sequoia County (of southern
Humboldt and northern
Mendocino 1992–1994).
*In
Southern California
Southern California (commonly shortened to SoCal) is a geographic and Cultural area, cultural List of regions of California, region that generally comprises the southern portion of the U.S. state of California. Its densely populated coastal reg ...
, there are 6 proposed counties across the
Los Angeles Metropolitan Area, within
Los Angeles County (about 4) and
Orange County (two North/West and East/South halves, its boundary on the Newport Freeway or Laguna Freeway).
*Prior to the formation of
Orange County, residents of
Anaheim in 1870 pushed a bill in the state assembly for the creation of an Anaheim County. The proposal had the support of
San Francisco
San Francisco, officially the City and County of San Francisco, is a commercial, Financial District, San Francisco, financial, and Culture of San Francisco, cultural center of Northern California. With a population of 827,526 residents as of ...
.
*An attempt in the late 19th century (March 1893) to create San Antonio County in present-day Los Angeles and
San Bernardino counties.
*In 1974, a referendum was held in
El Dorado County
El Dorado County (; ''El Dorado'', Spanish language, Spanish for "The Golden ne), officially the County of El Dorado, is a List of counties in California, county located in the U.S. state of California. As of the 2020 United States census, ...
for the secession of South Lake Tahoe County around the
South Lake Tahoe. The referendum failed 46–54. Consequent proposals for a Tahoe County or High Sierra County in El Dorado,
Placer County,
Nevada County, and
Sierra County have occasionally resurfaced when issues in the
Central Valley basin conflict with issues in the more mountainous Lake Tahoe region.
*Mission County, to be formed from the northern portion of
Santa Barbara County. A formal proposal was resoundingly rejected by voters in 2006.
[2006 Primary Election Results](_blank)
Santa Barbara County, California An earlier attempt in 1978 would have produced Los Padres County.
*In 1988, there was a serious effort, including a vote on the subject, to divide
San Bernardino County into its urban southwestern corner, which would have retained the name, and a new
Mojave County to comprise the vast, sparsely populated northern and eastern portions.
*
High Desert County, to be formed largely from northern
Los Angeles County as well as portions of
San Bernardino County and
Kern County
Kern County is a county (United States), county located in the U.S. state of California. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the population was 909,235. Its county seat is Bakersfield, California, Bakersfield.
Kern County compris ...
. Proposed by late state senator
Pete Knight (cf.) in 2002.
*In the late 1980s, some residents of the
Coachella Valley of Riverside County failed to create a new county:
Cahuilla County.
*A writer to the
Los Angeles Times
The ''Los Angeles Times'' is an American Newspaper#Daily, daily newspaper that began publishing in Los Angeles, California, in 1881. Based in the Greater Los Angeles city of El Segundo, California, El Segundo since 2018, it is the List of new ...
in 1997 indicated a sentiment from south
Orange County residents that they would seek to secede from the county if it insisted on building a new airport on the former site of
Marine Corps Air Station El Toro. The airport plan was eventually discarded in favor of the
Orange County Great Park plan.
*In 2002, residents of the city of
Corona proposed Corona County to include the western edge of
Riverside County.
*In 2014, residents of rural
East County San Diego proposed to secede from
San Diego County, with the proposed name of Chaparral County.
Colorado
*Platte County, authorized to be formed from
Weld County in 1872 but never organized and then repealed in 1874.
Delaware
*After 2000, a fourth Appoquinimink County was proposed to be carved out of
New Castle County. The effort intended to end the zoning restrictions of the Unified Development Code on the undeveloped farmland. The proposed boundaries extended beyond the
Appoquinimink Hundred to include all land south of the
C&D Canal, with
Middletown as the proposed seat.
Florida
*Two attempts to form a separate county combining parts of
Levy and
Marion Counties took place. The first one was
Bloxham County, and the second was
Call County.
*Three attempts to form a separate county combining parts of
Dade and
Monroe Counties took place in 1915, 1925 and 1949; the county was to be known as Redland County and
Homestead was selected as its county seat.
*In 1930, an attempt to form a county out of Palm Beach County between the Palm Beach and Hillsboro Canals was proposed with
Lake Worth as its county seat. The county was never named.
*In 1947, Miami Beach attempted to form a separate city-county from parts of
Dade County, with Bal Harbour, Surfside, Bay Harbor Islands, and Indian Creek also being invited to join this new entity.
*In 1960,
Miami Beach and other municipalities along the Atlantic coast, unhappy with the government structure introduced by the 1957 adoption of a charter in
Dade County, unsuccessfully sought to break away as a separate county.
*In 1999, a bill was introduced in the Florida Legislature that would have allowed the City of
Hialeah to vote on seceding from Miami-Dade County to form a new county.
*In the early-1990s, members of the coastal communities of
Duval County that rejected
consolidation with
Jacksonville planned to form Ocean County.
*An attempt was made in 1935 to split off the western half of
Palm Beach County lying west of Twentymile Bend into a new county, due to residents of
Pahokee being dissatisfied with the poor roads and distance to Palm Beach County's seat,
West Palm Beach; the county's name and its seat were never chosen.
*In 1977, the Boca Raton City Council proposed the secession of Southern Palm Beach County into a new county, due to how large, inefficient, and neglegent they felt the county was at the time; the county's name and its seat were never chosen.
*Due to major differences between the south end of the county (the tourist heavy side including the first and third largest communities in the county,
Navarre and
Gulf Breeze) and the north end (the more agriculture-based side, but where the political power is concentrated), some individuals have suggested that the south end of
Santa Rosa County should break off as its own. However, while this has been suggested by some, no major or organized effort has been made to enact such actions. Names like Fairpoint County (after the
peninsula
A peninsula is a landform that extends from a mainland and is only connected to land on one side. Peninsulas exist on each continent. The largest peninsula in the world is the Arabian Peninsula.
Etymology
The word ''peninsula'' derives , . T ...
the county would be focused upon) and Reagan County (for President
Reagan) have been proposed, but no name has been really pushed as part of these suggestions.
*The City of
Ocoee made an attempt in April 1980 to secede from Orange County due to local disdain for the county's behavior towards the city.
*The residents of
Hastings
Hastings ( ) is a seaside town and Borough status in the United Kingdom, borough in East Sussex on the south coast of England,
east of Lewes and south east of London. The town gives its name to the Battle of Hastings, which took place to th ...
tried seceding to form Hastings County, which was to be carven from
Putnam and
Saint John's Counties, in 1917 and 1922.
*In 1887, a bill was introduced in the Florida Legislature that would have created a Perry County from Alachua, Bradford, Clay and Putnam Counties; a second attempt to create a county from this same area - named Santa Fe County - was later proposed in 1913.
*An attempt was brought forward in 1983 to split the northern half of
Lee County lying north of the Caloosahatchee River into a new county called Calusa County, with
Cape Coral selected as the county seat.
*In 2021, a movement attempted to create Springs County from the communities of
Newberry,
High Springs,
Alachua,
Archer,
LaCrosse
Lacrosse is a contact team sport played with a lacrosse stick and a lacrosse ball. It is the oldest organized sport in North America, with its origins with the indigenous people of North America as early as the 12th century. The game w ...
, and parts of
Gainesville from
Alachua County.
Georgia
*
Milton County or New Milton County has been proposed since the early 2000s and calls for separating the northern portion from Atlanta dominated
Fulton County. Residents of north Fulton County have sought to essentially re-create the original Milton County formed in 1857. The proposed plan included some of Georgia's largest cities such as Roswell (7th), Sandy Springs (8th), Johns Creek (12th), Alpharetta (13th), Milton (54th), as well as Mountain Park.
A February 2009 study completed in collaboration between the University of Georgia's Carl Vinson Institute of Government and Georgia State University's Andrew Young School of Policy Studies gave a positive analysis of the financial viability of the proposed Milton County.
Hawaii
*In 2006, residents of unincorporated west
Hawaii County, which currently encompasses all of
Hawaii Island, met to propose the formation of Cook County. The recent movement reportedly has the support of at least one state senator.
Idaho
*Selway County, proposed to be formed from parts of
Idaho County and
Lewis County. It was rejected in a 1917 referendum.
Illinois
*Lincoln County: Southern
Cook County communities, upset at
Chicago
Chicago is the List of municipalities in Illinois, most populous city in the U.S. state of Illinois and in the Midwestern United States. With a population of 2,746,388, as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the List of Unite ...
-centric policies of the county government, petitioned in 2004 to split off the southern portion of the county. The southern communities argue they are in financial ruin due to Cook County policies limiting their ability to attract business, but in reverse, those against the proposal note the split was proposed mainly for the leaders of those communities to evade responsibility to Cook County for persistent
political corruption
Political corruption is the use of powers by government officials or their network contacts for illegitimate private gain. Forms of corruption vary but can include bribery, lobbying, extortion, cronyism, nepotism, parochialism, patronage, influen ...
,
cronyism, and
nepotism
Nepotism is the act of granting an In-group favoritism, advantage, privilege, or position to Kinship, relatives in an occupation or field. These fields can include business, politics, academia, entertainment, sports, religion or health care. In ...
.
*Marquette County: proposed county to be formed from
Hancock County, which made progress in the state legislature in 1844.
Indiana
* In 1979 a group called Citizens for Secession attempted to prompt leaders to move
Cass County, Michigan to Indiana and change the name to Michiana County.
Kansas
*
Garfield County: in 1887, the area around
Ravanna and
Eminence split from
Buffalo County (now split among
Lane,
Finney, and
Gray counties) and organized into Garfield County. Both towns were of equal influence, and contested the award of county seat. An election that year, which involved 20
Dodge City deputies including
Bat Masterson, found Ravanna to have the lead. However, Eminence discovered that illegal votes had been cast for Ravanna, and in 1889 the state supreme court overturned 60 votes, awarding Garfield County seat to Eminence. In a doomsday move, Ravanna countered by hiring surveyors to determine that the new county's land area was under the minimum allowed at the time. In 1893 the Kansas state legislature invalidated the county and annexed it to
Finney. Today, both Ravanna and Eminence are
ghost town
A ghost town, deserted city, extinct town, or abandoned city is an abandoned settlement, usually one that contains substantial visible remaining buildings and infrastructure such as roads. A town often becomes a ghost town because the economi ...
s.
Louisiana
*Dugdemona Parish, to be carven from
Catahoula Parish,
Natchitoches Parish,
Rapides Parish in 1850. It did not have the required number of electors, so it was never organized.
*Troy Parish, proposed in 1890, to be carven from
Catahoula Parish.
Massachusetts
*Throughout the history of
Worcester County, the largest by area in the state stretching north–south and border-to-border between
New Hampshire
New Hampshire ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It borders Massachusetts to the south, Vermont to the west, Maine and the Gulf of Maine to the east, and the Canadian province of Quebec t ...
and
Connecticut
Connecticut ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It borders Rhode Island to the east, Massachusetts to the north, New York (state), New York to the west, and Long Island Sound to the south. ...
and
Rhode Island
Rhode Island ( ) is a state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It borders Connecticut to its west; Massachusetts to its north and east; and the Atlantic Ocean to its south via Rhode Island Sound and Block Is ...
, residents of the northern part of the county have pushed for a split. This never occurred, and is now a moot point, as in Massachusetts and
Connecticut
Connecticut ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It borders Rhode Island to the east, Massachusetts to the north, New York (state), New York to the west, and Long Island Sound to the south. ...
, county governments in those states have been dissolved, with responsibilities assumed by the state and municipalities within those counties, which now exist solely for historical and regional demarcation purposes.
Michigan
* DeTour County: to be formed from portions of
Chippewa and
Mackinac counties, including
Drummond Island.
* Lac Vieux Desert County: to be formed from portions of
Gogebic,
Iron
Iron is a chemical element; it has symbol Fe () and atomic number 26. It is a metal that belongs to the first transition series and group 8 of the periodic table. It is, by mass, the most common element on Earth, forming much of Earth's o ...
and
Ontonagon counties.
* Washington County: to be formed from western
Marquette County.
Minnesota
*Residents of
Florence Township began a petition to secede from
Goodhue County over plans to locate a
nuclear waste disposal site in the area.
*There appears to have been a proposal to split
Pine County in 2000 in an attempt to reintroduce
Buchanan County, which prompted a change in county formation laws
Nevada
*Residents of Nye County, Nevada, Nye County, mainly in Pahrump and Tonopah, have pushed as recently as 2001 for a north–south county split, perhaps with the northern portion merging with Esmeralda County. While laws making it easier to form new counties have passed since then, this split has not occurred. Nye is the largest county in Nevada and the third largest in the entire U.S., although over 90% is federal land.
* Bullfrog County was formed by the state legislature in 1987 to gain control of Yucca Mountain. It was disincorporated when the incorporation act was found to be unconstitutional the next year.
New Jersey
*The municipalities of western Essex County have discussed secession from the county, to create a new West Essex County, spurred mainly by a belief that tax laws benefit the eastern portions of the county at the expense of the western municipalities. Currently, this idea is essentially a dead movement.
* Musconetcong County, to have been formed from parts of Hunterdon and Warren Counties.
New Mexico
*Rio Grande County, proposed in 1927 to be created from parts of Catron County and all of Socorro County. It failed when the proposal was deemed unconstitutional.
*South Valley County, proposed in 1995 to be created from Bernalillo County. It then failed in referendum.
New York
*Adirondack County, to be formed from northern Essex
Essex ( ) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in the East of England, and one of the home counties. It is bordered by Cambridgeshire and Suffolk to the north, the North Sea to the east, Kent across the Thames Estuary to the ...
and southern Franklin counties.
*Brookhaven County, to be formed from the Town of Brookhaven in central Suffolk County.
* Peconic County, to be formed from the rural eastern portion of Suffolk County.
*Salmon County, to be formed from the eastern half of Oswego County.
North Carolina
*Hooper County, to be formed in 1851 from Richmond County and Robeson County. It then failed in referendum.
*Lake County, to be formed from northern Mecklenburg County.
*Lillington County, proposed in 1859, to be formed from New Hanover County. Failed in referendum.
*Providence County, to be formed from southern Mecklenburg County.
Ohio
*In 1818, residents of the Barnesville greater area petitioned the state legislature for a new county seated at the city and formed from parts of Belmont, Guernsey
Guernsey ( ; Guernésiais: ''Guernési''; ) is the second-largest island in the Channel Islands, located west of the Cotentin Peninsula, Normandy. It is the largest island in the Bailiwick of Guernsey, which includes five other inhabited isl ...
, and Monroe counties. The proposal was rejected.
Oklahoma
*Shaffer County, proposed in 1913 by Governor Lee Cruce to be created from Creek County, Payne County, and Lincoln County. A vote held on the proposal on February 7, 1914, but failed to pass.
*Swanson County, proposed in 1910 to be created from Comanche County and Kiowa County. It was declared illegal by the Oklahoma Supreme Court
Oregon
*In 1984, Wilbur Ternyik promoted an effort to form the new McCall County out of the western portions of Lane County and Douglas County. The effort was stopped by its promoter at the request of the governor. Lane County is the size of Connecticut
Connecticut ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It borders Rhode Island to the east, Massachusetts to the north, New York (state), New York to the west, and Long Island Sound to the south. ...
, or of Delaware
Delaware ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic and South Atlantic states, South Atlantic regions of the United States. It borders Maryland to its south and west, Pennsylvania to its north, New Jersey ...
and Rhode Island
Rhode Island ( ) is a state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It borders Connecticut to its west; Massachusetts to its north and east; and the Atlantic Ocean to its south via Rhode Island Sound and Block Is ...
combined; 4,620 square miles. "At the time we were being treated like a bunch of garbage, and we'd had enough of it," said Ternyik in 2005. Though the effort was not successful, Ternyik credited the effort with getting the county to treat their coastal constituents "a lot nicer," in part due to nervousness about losing timber revenue.legislature
A legislature (, ) is a deliberative assembly with the legal authority to make laws for a political entity such as a country, nation or city on behalf of the people therein. They are often contrasted with the executive and judicial power ...
in 1913, at the behest of the timber industry, for reasons similar to those he noted in 2005; and some Mapleton residents revived the idea in 1975, but backed off when the county agreed to improve services.
South Carolina
* Birch County, to be formed from portions of Lexington and Richland counties in the Midlands region of the state. Proposed in 2013, one-third of voters in the proposed county's area would have to petition the South Carolina Legislature to create a referendum on county creation. Two-thirds of voters in the proposed area would then be required to approve the referendum.
Tennessee
*Christian County, to be formed in 1852 from parts of Gibson County, Carroll County, Henderson County, and Madison County. In 1869, there was an attempt to create Grant County out of the same area.
*Etheridge County, to be formed in 1870 from parts of Gibson County, Carroll County, Henderson County, Madison County, and Weakley County.
*Hanes County, to be formed in 1877 from parts of Benton County, Carroll County Decatur County, and McNairy County.
*Hanover County, to be formed in 1844 from parts of Fayette County and Shelby County.
*Hatchee County, to be formed in 1846 from parts of Hardeman County and McNairy County.
*Jones County, to be formed in 1844 from parts of Blount County and Monroe County.
*Neshoba County, to be formed from part of Shelby County. Its formation was threatened in 1990 by rural communities after the city of Memphis proposed that the city's financially struggling school district merge with that of the county. The merger actually took place at the start of the 2013–14 school year, with some of the towns in question forming their own school districts in response.
*Taylor County, to be created in 1852 from parts of Hardin County and Wayne County.
*Webster County, to be created in 1873 from parts of Campbell County, Claiborne County, and Union County
*Wisdom County, to be created in 1875 from parts of Hardeman County, Tennessee, McNairy County, Henderson County, and Madison County.
Virginia
* Catoctin County, to be formed from western Loudoun County
Loudoun County () is in the northern part of the Virginia, Commonwealth of Virginia in the United States. In 2020, the census returned a population of 420,959, making it Virginia's third-most populous county. The county seat is Leesburg, Virgi ...
, in response to the voiding of zoning measures intended to slow growth in the area.
*During the desegregation era, the town of Ivor threatened to secede from Southampton County after a consolidated and integrated county high school was built in the late 1950s.
Washington
*Big Bend County, proposed in 1891.King
King is a royal title given to a male monarch. A king is an Absolute monarchy, absolute monarch if he holds unrestricted Government, governmental power or exercises full sovereignty over a nation. Conversely, he is a Constitutional monarchy, ...
and Pierce counties,
government
A government is the system or group of people governing an organized community, generally a State (polity), state.
In the case of its broad associative definition, government normally consists of legislature, executive (government), execu ...
, on April 23, 1995, the would-be commissioners of Freedom County submitted to the Washington Secretary of State a petition with 12,679 signature
A signature (; from , "to sign") is a depiction of someone's name, nickname, or even a simple "X" or other mark that a person writes on documents as a proof of identity and intent. Signatures are often, but not always, Handwriting, handwritt ...
s calling for the secession of the northern half of Snohomish County, excluding Marysville and the Tulalip Indian reservation
An American Indian reservation is an area of land land tenure, held and governed by a List of federally recognized tribes in the contiguous United States#Description, U.S. federal government-recognized Native American tribal nation, whose gov ...
. The 1998 decision against the proposed Cedar County was described as a "major setback" for this proposal as well.Deming, Washington
Deming is a census-designated place (CDP) in Whatcom County, Washington, United States, along the Nooksack River. It is named for its first postmaster, George Deming. The community population was 339 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census.
...
, organized by Doug Howard, a preacher, retail landowner, and mortgage lender. The Independence movement had ties to the Wise Use Movement, an anti-environmental interest group. The Independence movement also had ties to other county secession movements in Washington including Freedom
Freedom is the power or right to speak, act, and change as one wants without hindrance or restraint. Freedom is often associated with liberty and autonomy in the sense of "giving oneself one's own laws".
In one definition, something is "free" i ...
, Pioneer, and Skykomish county proposals. Petitions to propose that Independence County be created were circulated around the proposed area between 1993 and 1994. Many signatories believed that they were signing an initiative to be placed on an upcoming ballot, but it was only a petition to the legislature. After the Washington State Public Disclosure Commission secured a disclosure hearing into the lobbying actions and finances of the organized Cedar County, Washington movement, the Independence County organized movement (as well as those of other Washington county secession movements) shut down in 1994.
*McKinley County, proposed in 1903.
Wisconsin
*Century County was proposed in 1997 for creation after the year 2000. The name was selected to represent "a new county for a new century."
*Montgomery County, proposed in 1846, to be created from Iowa County.
*Tuskola County was proposed in 1850, which would be split off of Washington County. The proposed borders lie within modern Washington and Ozaukee counties.
Wyoming
*Wind River County, to be formed from eastern Fremont County, with county seat at Riverton. Riverton and Lander, which as county seat would remain in Fremont County, are rival towns.