§ 43-101. Who may propose organization.

Whenever fifty (50), or a majority, of the holders of title, or evidence of title, to lands susceptible of one or more modes of irrigation from the same or different sources and by the same or different systems of works, desire to provide for the irrigation of the same, or when for other reasons they desire to organize the proposed territory into one district, they may propose the organization of an irrigation district under this title: provided, said formation into one (1) district meets with the approval of fifty (50), or a majority of the holders of title, or evidence of title, to lands in each of the communities affected: provided, further, said holders of title or evidence of title shall hold such title or evidence of title to at least one-fourth (¼) part of the total area of the land in the proposed district, exclusive of state and government land which will be assessable for the purposes of the district. The equalized county assessment roll next preceding the presentation of a petition for the organization of an irrigation district shall be sufficient evidence of title for the purpose of this title, but other evidence may be received, including receipts or other evidence of the rights of entrymen on lands under any law of the United States or of this state, and such entrymen shall be competent signers of such petition, and the lands on which they have made such entries shall, for the purposes of said petition, be considered as owned by them.

§ 43-102. Petition for organization.

A petition shall be first presented to the board of county commissioners of the county in which the greatest proportion of the proposed district is situated, signed by the required number of holders of title or evidence of title to the required area of such proposed district, evidenced as above provided, which petition shall set forth and describe, with the degree of certainty required by law in a tax roll, all the lands proposed to be included in said district, and shall state whether it is proposed to purchase irrigation works already in operation or to construct new works, or as the case may be, and shall pray that the same be organized into an irrigation district. The petition, together with all maps, cross sections and papers filed therewith, shall, at all proper hours, be open to public inspection at the office of the clerk of the board of county commissioners between the date of their said filing and the date of the final hearing thereon.

§ 43-103. Maps and water supply data.

If it be proposed by said petition to construct new works for the irrigation of said lands, or to purchase works only partially completed and not yet in operation, the petitioners must accompany the petition with a map of the proposed district. Said map shall show the location of the proposed canal or other works by means of which it is intended to irrigate the proposed district, and all the canals situated within the boundaries of the proposed district: provided, that canals that only pass through said lands and which do not in fact irrigate any of the same need not be shown. If said water supply be from natural streams, the flow of said stream or streams shall be stated in terms of cubic feet per second. If the water supply for said district is to be gathered by storage reservoirs, said map shall show the location of said proposed reservoirs, and shall give their capacity in acre feet. Said map shall be drawn to a scale of two (2) inches to the mile. Cross sections of the proposed canal, and all canals existing within the boundaries of said proposed district and shown on said map, and all proposed dams and embankments, shall be given in sufficient number to show the contemplated mode of construction, and the capacity shall be given in cubic feet per second of the proposed and said existing canals. Such cross sections shall be drawn to a scale of ten (10) feet to the inch, and said map and cross sections, together with an estimate of the cost of such works, shall be certified to by a well known and competent irrigation engineer.

§ 43-104. Bond.

The petitioners must also accompany the petition with a bond, to be approved by the said board of county commissioners, in double the amount of the probable cost to the county of organizing such district, conditioned that the bondsmen will pay all said costs, in case said organization be not effected.

§ 43-105. Notice of presentation to commissioners.

Such petition may be filed with the clerk of the board of county commissioners at any time, and on such filing said clerk shall publish a general notice that (giving the first name on the petition) and others have filed a petition for the organization of an irrigation district. If it be proposed in said petition to construct a new canal system, such notice shall state that fact and give the numbers of the sections in which the lands are situated which it is proposed to include in said district, but if it is proposed to purchase a canal already in operation, the notice shall state that fact and give the name by which such canal system is generally known, and shall state that the lands covered by said canal system are the lands proposed to be included in such district. The notice shall further state the time at which such petition will be presented to the board of county commissioners, which time shall be during a regular meeting of said board or a special meeting called for that purpose, and such notice shall be published two (2) weeks before the day on which the same is to be presented, and if any portion of such proposed district be within another county or counties, then said notice shall be published in a newspaper published in each of said counties.

§ 43-106. Notice of hearing.

When such petition is presented, the said board shall set a time for a hearing upon the same, which time shall not be less than four (4) nor more than eight (8) weeks from the date of presentation. A notice of the time of such hearing shall be published by said board, at least three (3) weeks before the time of such hearing, in a newspaper published within each of the counties in which any part of said district is situated.

§ 43-107. Examination by department of water resources — Report to county commissioners — Amendment of plan.

A copy of such petition and all maps and other papers filed with the same shall be filed in the office of the department of water resources at least four (4) weeks before the date set for such hearing. It shall be the duty of the department to examine such petition, maps and other papers, and, if it deem it necessary, to further examine the proposed district, the works proposed to be purchased, or the location of the works to be constructed, and it shall prepare a report upon the matter in such form as it deems advisable, and submit the same to the board of county commissioners at the meeting set for the hearing of said petition. Whenever the department of water resources shall report to the board of county commissioners against the organization of such district, said board of county commissioners shall refuse to further consider such petition unless it be requested in writing so to do by three-fourths (¾) of the landowners in said proposed district, such ownership to be determined as provided in section 43-101[, Idaho Code]. At the time set for hearing the board may, on receiving an adverse report from the department, adjourn the proceedings for two (2) weeks for the purpose of enabling the petitioners to file a request for such further proceedings. In any case, the petitioners may amend such plan of irrigation at such hearing to meet the approval of the department, or as they may find advisable. It shall be the duty of the county commissioners to notify the department of water resources of the final action, either favorable or unfavorable, taken upon a petition for the formation of an irrigation district.

§ 43-108. Order of board.

When they shall have determined to proceed with the matter, said board may adjourn such hearing from time to time, not exceeding four (4) weeks in all, and on final hearing may make such changes in the proposed boundaries as they may find proper, and shall make an order on their records describing the lands which they shall have determined to include in said district, and stating that such lands will be organized into an irrigation district if the vote of the electors thereafter to be taken on the proposition shall be favorable to such organization: provided, that any person whose lands are susceptible of irrigation from the same source may, in the discretion of the board, upon application by him, have such lands included in said district.

§ 43-109. Divisions of district for election of directors.

Such board shall also make an order dividing the district into not less than three (3) nor more than seven (7) divisions of as nearly equal size as practicable, which shall be numbered first, second, third, etc., and one (1) director, who shall be an elector and resident in the division, shall be elected from each division of the district at large, except that in districts of three thousand (3,000) acres or less the directors may be elected from qualified electors, holding title or evidence of title to land in the district and residing in the county in which some portion of the district is located. The number of divisions into which said district shall be divided shall be specified in the petition for the organization of the district, and if not otherwise specified shall be three.

§ 43-110. Notice of election. — Said board shall then give notice of an election to be held in such proposed district for the purpose of determining whether or not the same shall be organized under the provisions of this title. Such notice shall describe the lands in said district with the certainty required in an ordinary deed and shall state the name of the proposed district as designated by the board of commissioners, and shall state that a map showing the lands in said district is on file in the office of the board of county commissioners, which map, if not previously made as required herein, shall be made by the petitioners after the determination of said commissioners of the question of what lands shall be included in the proposed district, and if previously made, lands added to said district or deducted therefrom by the board may be indicated thereon. Said notice shall be published for four (4) weeks prior to such election, in a newspaper published within each of said counties as aforesaid. Such notice shall require the electors to cast ballots which shall contain the words “Irrigation district — yes,” or “Irrigation district

no,” or words equivalent thereto, and also the name of one (1) person from each such division for director of said district.

§ 43-111. Qualifications of voters — Votes based on assessed acres.

1. No person shall be entitled to vote at any election held under the provisions of this title for the purpose of electing directors, for the purpose of determining whether indebtedness shall be created or bonds issued by the district, or for any other purpose, unless he shall possess all the qualifications required of electors under the general laws of the state, and own land within the district, or the proposed district, and be a resident of the county in which the district, or a portion thereof, is located for a period of thirty (30) or more days next preceding the election; provided that the bylaws may, by resolution of two-thirds (2/3) of the board and adoption by two-thirds (2/3) of the electors voting in a district election conducted in accordance with the general election laws of the state applicable to irrigation districts, set forth a provision allowing a district landowner to vote, if the landowner possesses all the qualifications required of electors under the general laws of the state and has resided within fifteen (15) miles of the district for a period of at least thirty (30) days prior to the election.
2. After approval by a majority of the electors voting upon the issue in a district election conducted using the elector criteria of subsection (1) of this section, in subsequent district elections, a person having the qualifications described in subsection (1) of this section shall have the right to cast one (1) vote for each acre of assessed land and a proportionate vote for each fraction of an acre of assessed land owned by him within the district. Co-owners or multiple owners of parcels of land shall cast no more than the total number of votes represented by the acres or fraction of acres of assessed land within the district.

§ 43-112. Conduct of elections.

1. Such election shall be conducted as nearly as practicable in accordance with the general laws of the state: provided, no particular form of ballot shall be required, and that the provisions of the election laws as to the form and distribution of ballots shall not apply.
2. When an irrigation district has duly adopted the voting system set forth in subsection (2) of section 43-111, Idaho Code, and a person seeks to vote at any district election, following completion of an electors oath as required by section 43-113, Idaho Code, one (1) of the judges of election shall deliver to the elector the number of ballots for the votes the elector is entitled to cast, as shown by the registrar’s list of assessed lands within the district.

Said board of county commissioners shall establish one (1) or more election precincts, not exceeding seven (7), as may be necessary, and define the boundaries thereof, which boundaries, when the district is divided into precincts, shall be the same as the division boundaries above-provided for and which said precincts may thereafter be changed by the board of directors of such district as may be necessary: provided, that districts containing more than ten thousand (10,000) acres shall have not less than three (3), nor more than seven (7) voting precincts.

Said board shall also appoint three (3) judges of election for each such election precinct, who shall perform the same duties as near as may be as judges of election, under the general laws of the state.

§ 43-113. Registration not required.

No registration shall be required in any irrigation district election, but in lieu thereof the judges of election shall require every elector to subscribe to an elector’s oath as prerequisite to casting his vote, and such oath shall be the usual elector’s oath with the following words added thereto, “and I own land within the .... irrigation district, and am a resident of the county within which the district, or a portion thereof, is located.”

§ 43-114. Canvass of votes — Completion of organization. — Immediately after any election for voting upon the organization of an irrigation district, the judges of such election shall forward the official results of said election to the clerk of said board of county commissioners. The said board of county commissioners shall meet within ten (10) days after said returns are received, and shall proceed to canvass the votes cast thereat, and if upon such canvass it appears that two-thirds (2/3) of the votes cast are “Irrigation district

yes,” the said board shall, by order entered on its minutes, declare such territory duly organized as an irrigation district, under the name and style theretofore designated, and shall declare the persons receiving respectively the highest number of votes for such several offices to be duly elected to such offices.

§ 43-115. Limitation on proceedings affecting validity.

No action shall be commenced or maintained, or defense made affecting the validity of such organization after two (2) years from and after the making and entering of said order on its minutes by the board of county commissioners.

§ 43-116. Organization meeting of board.

Said board shall cause a copy of such order, duly certified, to be immediately filed for record in the office of the county recorder of each county in which any portion of such lands are situated.

If it shall appear, however, that more than one-third (1/3) of said votes are “Irrigation district—no,” then a record of that fact shall be duly entered upon the minutes of said board, and all proceedings in regard to the organization of said district shall be void, and the expenses properly incurred thereunder may be collected on the bond provided for in section 43-104, Idaho Code.

From and after the date of such filing of said order of the board of county commissioners, the organization of such district shall be complete. The directors of the district shall be entitled to enter immediately upon the duties of their respective offices, upon qualifying according to law, and shall hold such offices respectively, until their successors are elected and qualified. The board of directors so elected shall meet within thirty (30) days after their election and elect a director to hold the office of president, and shall appoint a secretary and treasurer, who shall perform the duties imposed upon such officers under this title.

§ 43-117. Treasurer’s official bonds.

The treasurer shall on his appointment execute and file with the secretary an official bond in such amount as may be fixed by the board of directors of the district, which shall not be less than $5000; and shall thereafter from time to time execute and file such further bonds as may be required by said board in amounts fixed by it, which amounts shall be of at least fifty per cent (50%) of the maximum probable amount of money in the treasurer’s hands at any one time. All such official bonds shall be executed by a lawfully qualified surety company.

§ 43-118. Districts including lands under existing canals — Decree of confirmation — Rights of landowners — Powers of districts.

Where the petition or petitions for the organization of any irrigation district now or hereafter organized under the laws of the state of Idaho, includes lands lying under any existing irrigation canal or canals, and entitled to receive water therefrom for irrigation purposes, and such petition or petitions recite that it is proposed to construct or purchase or acquire an interest in any reservoir, or reservoirs constructed, or to be constructed by or in cooperation with the United States or under contract with the United States, the decree of the district court confirming the organization of such irrigation district shall recite such provision of said petition, or petitions, and the landowners of said district who by reason of stock ownership (in the canal company or companies owning or operating any of such existing canal), or otherwise, own or are entitled to the use of canal capacity or a proportionate interest in any such canal, shall be entitled to have delivered into such canal for the use and benefit of such landowners their proportionate share of the district’s share of the stored water from such reservoir in the proportion that their lands are assessed for such reservoir, in such amounts, or at such rate of delivery as may be needed by the landowners not in excess of the amount which can be safely carried through such landowners’ proportionate share of such canal, whenever such canal is not being utilized to its full capacity in carrying the natural flow or other water owned or controlled by the canal company operating said canal and the board of directors of such district shall have power to provide by contract for the carriage and distribution of the stored water from such reservoir to the landowners of the district through such existing canals, but such district shall be without power to purchase or condemn or otherwise acquire, or to operate or control any such canal, unless such petition for the organization of such district shall also recite the purpose to acquire such canal or canals.

§ 43-119. Rights and privileges of corporations — Limited liability companies — Partnerships — Trusts.

A corporation, the stock of which is owned entirely by natural persons related by blood or affinity, a limited liability company, in which all the members are natural persons related by blood or affinity, a partnership, in which all the partners are natural persons related by blood or affinity, and a trust, in which all of the beneficiaries are natural persons related by blood or affinity, shall have the same rights and privileges in the conduct of irrigation district business as do natural persons, including, but not limited to, voting in elections and signing petitions. A corporation shall vote or otherwise act through its majority shareholder; a limited liability company shall vote or otherwise act, if member-managed, through its member and, if manager-managed, through its manager; a partnership shall vote or otherwise act through its majority partner; a trust shall vote or otherwise act through its trustee. For voting purposes the residence of such person shall establish the residence of the corporation, limited liability company, partnership or trust. If there is no single majority stockholder, no single majority member, no single manager, no single majority partner or no single trustee, then the corporation, limited liability company, partnership or trust must furnish the irrigation district a written designation stating the name of the stockholder, manager or member, partner or trustee who is authorized to vote and otherwise act for the corporation, limited liability company, partnership or trust, respectively. If the majority or designated stockholder, manager or member, partner or trustee is married, his or her spouse shall have the same rights and privileges in the conduct of irrigation district business as do the spouses of individual land owners in the district. A person, or the spouse of a person, voting for a corporation, limited liability company, partnership or trust shall not be entitled to vote again as an individual.

§ 43-201. Election, term of office, nominations and qualifications.

1. Following the organization of any district, an election shall be held in accordance with section 34-106, Idaho Code, at which shall be elected one (1) director for each division of said district by the electors of the district at large.
2. The term of office of the directors shall, immediately after the first election following such organization, be selected by lot so that as nearly as may be, one-third (1/3) of the number shall hold office for the term of one (1) year; one-third (1/3) for the term of two (2) years, and the balance for the term of three (3) years. An election shall be held in the district each year thereafter in accordance with section 34-106, Idaho Code, to elect directors to succeed those whose terms expire. Each director’s term of office shall commence on the regularly scheduled board meeting closest to the date specified for taking office in section 34-106, Idaho Code, and shall continue for a term of three (3) years and until their successors are elected and qualified. If no director is elected and qualified at the end of an incumbent director’s three (3) year term, an election shall be held at the next regular election of the irrigation district for the incumbent director’s successor to hold office for the remainder of the unexpired term. This election requirement shall apply retroactively where an incumbent director remains in office on the date of the effective date of this act because the incumbent’s successor was not elected and qualified in the 2012 election.
3. Every director must be a qualified elector and a resident of the division of the director whom he is to succeed in office; provided that the bylaws may, by resolution of two-thirds (2/3) of the board and adoption by two-thirds (2/3) of the electors voting in a district election conducted in accordance with the general election laws of the state applicable to irrigation districts, set forth a provision allowing a district landowner to serve as the director from the division in which the landowner owns land, if the landowner possesses all the qualifications required of electors under the general laws of the state and has resided within fifteen (15) miles of the district for a period of at least thirty (30) days prior to the election; provided further that any landowner who owns land in more than one (1) division may serve as the director only from the division nearest which he resides.
4. Candidates for election to the office of director of an irrigation district shall be nominated by nominating petitions on forms provided by the district. Each nominating petition shall:
   1. Identify the name of the nominee;
   2. Identify the office for which the nomination is made;
   3. Identify the term for which nomination is made;
   4. Be signed by at least six (6) electors in districts having less than one hundred (100) resident electors and by at least twelve (12) electors in districts having more than one hundred (100) resident electors; and
   5. Be filed with the secretary of the district not less than forty (40) days nor more than sixty (60) days before the date of election; and the names of the persons so nominated shall be placed upon official ballot to be furnished by the district.
5. Each nominee shall subscribe to a nominee’s oath on a form provided by the irrigation district, and shall submit the oath to the secretary of the district with the written nomination. The oath shall: (a) Identify the land the nominee owns within the district;

(b) Provide the address of the nominee’s residence;

(c) Certify that the nominee meets the qualification requirements of section 43-111, Idaho Code; and

(d) Certify that the nominee will meet such requirements on the date of election.

The secretary of the district shall verify the qualifications of each nominee and shall, no more than seven (7) days after the close of filing, certify the qualified nominees for inclusion on the election ballot. If at any time prior to the election, circumstances change so that a nominee no longer meets the qualification requirements of section 43-111, Idaho Code, the nominee shall be disqualified, shall not take office if elected and shall immediately file with the secretary of the district a written withdrawal of his nomination for the office of director. The secretary shall not place on the election ballot the name of any candidate that does not meet the qualification requirements of section 43-111, Idaho Code.

§ 43-202. Director’s Oath and bond.

On the date a director’s term of office is to begin, at the meeting of the irrigation district’s board of directors as provided in section 43-201(2), Idaho Code, the person that has been elected shall: (1) take and subscribe the official oath required by section 59-401, Idaho Code, in which the person shall verify that he or she meets the qualification requirements of section 43-111, Idaho Code; (2) be presented a certificate of election; (3) execute a bond if one (1) is hereinafter required; and (4) assume the duties of the office of director. The incumbent director’s term of office shall be terminated upon the next director’s assumption of office as provided in this section. Each director shall file the same in the office of the board of directors, and execute the bond hereinafter provided for. Each member of said board of directors shall execute an official bond in the sum of not less than five hundred dollars ($500) nor more than five thousand dollars ($5,000), the amount to be determined and approved by the judge of the probate court of said county where such organization was effected and shall be recorded in the office of the county recorder thereof and filed with the secretary of said board. All official bonds provided for in this title shall be in the form prescribed by law for the official bond of county officers. If the district obtains a surety bond, blanket surety bond or crime insurance coverage pursuant to the applicable provisions of chapter 8, title 59, Idaho Code, the directors shall not be required to post a bond under the provisions of this section.

§ 43-203. Increasing or decreasing number of directors — Petition.

In any irrigation district, organized under the laws of the state of Idaho, having three (3), five (5) or seven (7) directors, whenever a petition amounting to fifty per cent (50%) of the votes cast at the last annual election within the district, shall be filed with the board of directors of such district asking for an election within the district, for the purpose of increasing or decreasing the number of directors of such district, such board of directors shall thereafter immediately call an election for the purpose of deciding the question: provided, that the petition shall recite that each signer thereof is a legal voter, or land holder within such district and the signatures thereupon are verified by the person or persons circulating the same: provided, that the petition shall specify the number of directors demanded, which shall be three (3), five (5) or seven (7): provided, that such petition shall represent not less than twenty-five per cent (25%) of the area of the lands within such district as shown by the records of the district.

§ 43-204. Increasing or decreasing number of directors — Hearing and election.

Upon the filing of a petition with the board of directors of any irrigation district as provided in section 43-203[, Idaho Code,] the board of directors of such district shall set a date for hearing the said petition, not less than two (2) weeks and not more than sixty (60) days after the first regular monthly meeting following the filing of such petition, and if the petition does comply with the requirements of section 43-203[, Idaho Code,] then the directors shall immediately thereafter order an election upon the question, and proceed according to the laws governing elections within irrigation districts for the submission of questions of creating indebtedness.

§ 43-204A. Indemnification of officers, directors, employees and agents.

1. A district shall have power to indemnify any person who was or is a party or is threatened to be made a party to any threatened, pending or completed action, suit or proceeding, whether civil, criminal, administrative or investigative (other than an action by or in the right of the district) by reason of the fact that he is or was a director, officer, employee or agent of the district, or is or was serving at the request of the district as a director, officer, employee or agent of another corporation, partnership, joint venture, trust or other enterprise, against expenses (including attorneys’ fees), judgments, fines and amounts paid in settlement actually and reasonably incurred by him in connection with such action, suit or proceeding if he acted in good faith and in a manner he reasonably believed to be in or not opposed to the best interests of the district, and, with respect to any criminal action or proceeding, had no reasonable cause to believe his conduct was unlawful. The termination of any action, suit or proceeding by judgment, order, settlement, conviction, or upon a plea of nolo contendere or its equivalent, shall not, of itself, create a presumption that the person did not act in good faith and in a manner which he reasonably believed to be in or not opposed to the best interests of the district, and, with respect to any criminal action or proceeding, had reasonable cause to believe that his conduct was unlawful.
2. A district shall have power to indemnify any person who was or is a party or is threatened to be made a party to any threatened, pending or completed action or suit by or in the right of the district to procure a judgment in its favor by reason of the fact that he is or was a director, officer, employee or agent of the district, or is or was serving at the request of the district as a director, officer, employee or agent of another corporation, partnership, joint venture, trust or other enterprise against expenses (including attorneys’ fees) actually and reasonably incurred by him in connection with the defense or settlement of such action or suit if he acted in good faith and in a manner he reasonably believed to be in or not opposed to the best interests of the district and except that no indemnification shall be made in respect of any claim, issue or matter as to which such person shall have been adjudged to be liable for negligence or misconduct in the performance of his duty to the district unless and only to the extent that the court in which such action or suit was brought shall determine upon application that, despite the adjudication of liability but in view of all circumstances of the case, such person is fairly and reasonably entitled to indemnity for such expenses which such court shall deem proper.
3. To the extent that a director, officer, employee or agent of a district has been successful on the merits or otherwise in defense of any action, suit or proceeding referred to in subsection (a) or (b) hereof, or in defense of any claim, issue or matter therein, he shall be indemnified against expenses (including attorneys’ fees) actually and reasonably incurred by him in connection therewith.
4. Any indemnification under subsection (a) or (b) of this section (unless ordered by a court) shall be made by the district only as authorized in the specific case upon a determination that indemnification of the director, officer, employee or agent is proper in the circumstances because he has met the applicable standard of conduct set forth in subsection (a) or (b). Such determination shall be made (1) by the board of directors by a majority vote of a quorum consisting of directors who were not parties to such action, suit or proceeding, or (2) if such a quorum is not obtainable, or, even if obtainable a quorum of disinterested directors so directs, by independent legal counsel in a written opinion, or (3) by the qualified electors of the district.
5. Expenses (including attorneys’ fees) incurred in defending a civil or criminal action, suit or proceeding may be paid by the district in advance of the final disposition of such action, suit or proceeding upon receipt of an undertaking by or on behalf of the director, officer, employee or agent to repay such amount if it shall ultimately be determined that he is not entitled to be indemnified by the district as authorized in this section.
6. The indemnification and advancement of expenses provided by, or granted pursuant to the other subsections of this section shall not be deemed exclusive of any other rights to which those seeking indemnification or advancement of expenses may be entitled under any bylaw, agreement, vote of qualified electors of the district or disinterested directors or otherwise, both as to action in his official capacity and as to action in another capacity while holding such office.
7. A district shall have power to purchase and maintain insurance on behalf of any person who is or was a director, officer, employee or agent of the district, or is or was serving at the request of the district as a director, officer, employee or agent of another corporation, partnership, joint venture, trust or other enterprise against any liability asserted against him and incurred by him in any capacity or arising out of his status as such, whether or not the district would have the power to indemnify him against such liability under the provisions of this section.
8. The indemnification and advancement of expenses provided by, or granted pursuant to, this section shall, unless otherwise provided when authorized or ratified, continue as to a person who has ceased to be a director, officer, employee or agent and shall inure to the benefit of the heirs, and personal representatives of such a person.

§ 43-204B. Bylaw limiting director liability authorized.

The bylaws of the district may set forth a provision eliminating or limiting the personal liability of a director to the district or its qualified electors for monetary damages for breach of fiduciary duty as a director, provided that such provision shall not eliminate or limit the liability of a director:

1. For any breach of the director’s duty of loyalty to the district or its qualified electors.
2. For acts or omissions not in good faith or which involve intentional misconduct or a knowing violation of law.
3. For any transaction from which the director derived an improper personal benefit.

No such provision shall eliminate or limit the liability of a director for any act or omission occurring prior to the date when such provision becomes effective.

§ 43-205. Increasing or decreasing number of directors — Procedure following election.

Upon the canvass of the returns, as provided by section 43-208[, Idaho Code], of any election for determining the number of the directors for any irrigation district, and if there be any change voted, then the board shall immediately proceed to redivide the said district into directors’ divisions of convenient boundaries and as nearly as possible of equal area, and appoint a qualified person from each division as a director whose term of office shall expire with the next regular election, and the first succeeding directors elected under the new arrangement shall determine their terms of office as contemplated by this chapter, and in case the number of directors shall have been decreased the old members of the board of directors shall continue in office until the expiration or sooner determination of their terms, successors being appointed or elected only in divisions where representation will terminate with the term of such director.

§ 43-206. Notice of election — Appointment of judges.

1. The secretary of the district shall give notice of all elections in said district subsequent to the organization thereof, by posting the same in three (3) public places in each such precinct and in the office of said board, at least four (4) weeks before the day of such election, or by publication of the same once a week for two (2) successive weeks in a newspaper having general circulation within said district. If notice be given by publication in a weekly newspaper, the same shall be published in two (2) successive issues thereof, or, if in a daily newspaper, at least six (6) days shall elapse between the first and last dates of publication, and, in either case, publication shall be completed not less than fifteen (15) days before such election. Notices shall state the time of said election and the polling place for each precinct and the director to be elected or other question to be voted upon, as the case may be. At least ten (10) days before the holding of any such election, the board of directors shall appoint three (3) electors of each precinct to serve as judges of election for such precinct, and such judges shall constitute a board of election for such precinct.
2. A polling place for a precinct need not be located in the precinct, but shall be located within the district. Polling places for two (2) or more precincts may be combined at one (1) location, as long as the physical arrangements of the polling place are sufficient to guarantee all voters the right to cast a secret ballot. Any combined polling place thus created shall be no farther than ten (10) miles outside of the precinct which is losing its polling place. In cases of combined polling places, the board of directors shall name one (1) elector from each of the combined precincts to serve as judges of election for that polling place.
3. Notwithstanding other provisions of this section, irrigation districts comprising fifteen thousand (15,000) or fewer irrigated acres within their boundary may, upon resolution of the board of directors, combine all precincts into one (1) polling place. In cases where such a district resolves to combine precincts into a single polling place, the polling place shall be the irrigation district office, and the board of directors shall name one (1) elector from each precinct to serve as judges of election at the combined polling place.

§ 43-207. Conduct of election.

Said judges shall elect a chairman, who may administer any oath required in the progress of an election, and may appoint additional judges if, during the progress of election, any judges cease to act. Said judges of election shall not appoint clerks of election unless they deem it necessary to have the assistance of clerks in order to accommodate the number of electors who desire to vote. Any member of the board of election, or any clerk thereof, may administer and certify oaths required to be administered during the progress of the election. Before opening the polls, each member of the board of election and each clerk, in case clerks are appointed, must take and subscribe an oath to faithfully perform the duties imposed upon them by law. Any elector of the precinct may administer and certify such oath. The time of opening and closing the polls, the manner of conducting the election, canvassing and announcing the result, the keeping of tally lists, and the making and certifying said result, and the disposition of the ballots after the election, shall be the same as near as may be, as provided for election under the general election laws of the state: provided, that the returns shall be delivered to the secretary of the district, and the election oaths shall be included with such returns; provided further, that by resolution of the board of directors duly entered on the minutes, at any regular meeting, and notice thereof given in the notices of election, any irrigation district may provide for the opening of the polls at 1 o’clock P.M. and closing at 7 P.M.

§ 43-208. Canvass of returns.

The board of directors must meet at its usual place of meeting on or before the next regularly scheduled board meeting following each election to canvass the returns, and they shall proceed in the same manner and with like effect, as near as may be, as the board of county commissioners in canvassing the returns of general elections, and when they shall have declared the result, the secretary shall enter a statement of the result on the records of the board of directors as required by section 43-213, Idaho Code. The board of directors must declare elected the person or persons having the highest number of votes for each office.

§ 43-209. Vacancies.

1. Each director shall meet the qualification requirements of section 43-201(3), Idaho Code, during his term of office. Each director shall notify the other directors if circumstances change so that he will no longer meet those requirements during his term of office, or if any of the events specified in section 59-901, Idaho Code, are occurring or have occurred. The remaining directors shall have the authority to determine whether a vacancy in the office of director has occurred upon the director no longer qualifying to serve as a director as provided in section 43-201(3), Idaho Code, or upon the occurrence of any of the events specified in section 59-901, Idaho Code.
2. If the remaining directors determine that a vacancy in the office of director has occurred as provided in subsection (1) of this section, the remaining directors shall, by resolution, declare that the vacancy shall be filled as herein provided. The remaining directors may allow the disqualified director to remain in office temporarily until his successor is appointed or elected if they determine that they will be unable to conduct the district’s affairs without a director serving in that office. The disqualified director shall not remain in office after the district’s next regular election.
3. After declaring a vacancy, the remaining directors shall fill such vacancy by appointing thereto a qualified elector residing within the division in which the vacancy occurred. A director appointed to fill a vacancy shall take and subscribe the official oath and execute a bond if one is required in the case of an elected director under section 43-202, Idaho Code, and shall hold his office until the next regular election of said district, at which election a director shall be elected for the remainder of the unexpired term.
4. Any person filling a vacancy as herein provided shall possess all the rights and powers and is subject to all the liabilities, duties and obligations of the office filled.

§ 43-210. Voting and count of ballots.

Voting may commence as soon as the polls are open and may continue during all the time the polls remain open, and shall be conducted as nearly as practicable in accordance with the provisions of title 34 of this code relating to elections. As soon as the polls are closed the judges shall open the ballot box and shall commence counting the votes; and in no case shall the ballot box be removed from the room in which the election is held until all the ballots have been counted. The counting of ballots shall in all cases be public. The ballots shall be taken out, one by one by the chairman of the board of election or one (1) of the judges, who shall open them and read aloud the name of each person contained thereon, and the office for which every such person is voted for. Each clerk shall write down each office to be filled, and the name of each person voted for such office, and shall keep the number of votes by tallies as they are read by such chairman or judge. The counting of the votes shall continue without adjournment until all the votes have been counted.

§ 43-211. Disposal of ballots.

As soon as all the votes are read off and counted, a certificate shall be drawn up on each of the papers containing the poll list and tallies, or attached thereto, stating the number of votes each one voted for has received, and designating the office to fill which he was voted for, which number shall be written in words and figures at full length. Each certificate shall be signed by all members of the board of election and by both clerks. One (1) of said certificates, with the poll list and tally paper to which it is attached, shall be retained by the chairman of the board of election, and preserved by him for at least six (6) months. The ballots shall be strung on a cord or thread by the said chairman, during the counting thereof, in the order in which they are entered upon the tally list by the clerks; and said ballots, together with the other of said certificates with the poll list and tally paper to which it is attached, shall be sealed by the said chairman in the presence of the other of said judges and clerks, and indorsed “Election returns of (naming precinct) precinct,” and be directed to the secretary of the board of directors, and shall be immediately delivered by said chairman, or by other safe and responsible carrier designated by him, to said secretary, and the ballots shall be kept unopened for at least six (6) months, and if any person be of the opinion that the vote of any precinct has not been correctly counted he may appear on the day appointed for the board of directors to open and canvass the returns, and demand a recount of the precinct that is claimed to have been incorrectly counted.

§ 43-212. Informalities disregarded — Postponement of canvass.

No list, tally paper or certificate returned from any election shall be set aside or rejected for want of form if it can be satisfactorily understood. If, at the time of the meeting, the returns of each precinct in which polls have been opened have been received, the board of directors must then and there proceed to canvass the returns; but if all the returns have not been received, the canvass must be postponed from day to day until all the returns have been received, or until six (6) postponements have been had. The canvass must be made in public and by opening the returns and counting the vote of the district for each person voted for and declaring the result thereof.

§ 43-213. Statement of result.

The secretary of the board of directors must, as soon as the result is declared, enter on the records of such board a statement of such result, which statement must show:

1. The whole number of votes cast in the district and in each voting precinct thereof.
2. The names of the person or persons voted for.
3. The office to fill which each person was voted for.
4. The number of votes given in each precinct to such person or persons.
5. The number of votes given in the district for such person or persons.

The board of directors must declare elected the person or persons having the highest number of votes given for each office.

§ 43-214. Initiating recall proceedings — Statement — Contents — Verification — Definitions.

Whenever any legal voter of the irrigation district, either individually or on behalf of an organization, desires to demand the recall and discharge of a director of an irrigation district, under the provisions of article VI, section 6, of the constitution of the state of Idaho, he shall prepare a typewritten petition. The petition may recite that the director has wilfully neglected or failed to perform faithfully a duty imposed by law; or acted in an arbitrary and capricious manner; or has committed an unlawful act; or has wrongfully acted so as to interfere with, interrupt, or adversely affect the performance of his official duty; or has violated his oath of office. The petition may describe the act or acts complained of, if applicable, in concise language, give a detailed description including the approximate date, location and nature of each act complained of, be signed by the person making the charge, give his respective post office address and be verified, under oath, that he believes the charge or charges to be true and that he has knowledge of the alleged facts relating to the charges if any have been alleged in the recall petition.

§ 43-215. Petition — Where filed.

Any person making a charge shall file it with the secretary of the district, whose duty it is to receive and to promptly serve a copy of the charge upon the director whose recall is demanded.

§ 43-216. Ballot synopsis.

1. Within fifteen (15) days after receiving a petition, the secretary of the district shall formulate a ballot synopsis of not more than two hundred (200) words.
2. The synopsis shall set forth the name of the person seeking to be recalled and if any charges have been filed in the petition, a concise statement of the elements of the charge. Upon completion of the ballot synopsis, the secretary shall certify and transmit the exact language of the ballot synopsis to the person filing the petition and the director subject to recall. The secretary shall additionally certify and transmit the charges, if any, and the ballot synopsis to the magistrate court of the county in which the director subject to recall resides and shall petition the magistrate court to approve the synopsis and to determine the sufficiency of the charges, if any.

§ 43-217. Determination by magistrate court — Correction of ballot synopsis.

Within fifteen (15) days after receiving the petition, the magistrate court shall have conducted a hearing on and shall have determined, without cost to any party the adequacy of the ballot synopsis. If any charges have been included in the petition and ballot synopsis, the magistrate court shall dismiss those charges that are frivolous and designed to harass the director. The clerk of the magistrate court shall notify the person subject to recall and the person demanding recall of the hearing date. Both persons may appear with counsel. The court may hear arguments as to the adequacy of the ballot synopsis and if any charges have been included in the petition and ballot synopsis, the sufficiency of the charges. The court shall not consider the truth of the charges if any have been included, but only their sufficiency. Any decision regarding the ballot synopsis by the magistrate court is final. The court shall certify and transmit the ballot synopsis to the director subject to recall, the person demanding the recall, and the secretary of the irrigation district.

§ 43-218. Filing supporting signatures — Time limitations.

1. The sponsors of a recall demanded of any director of an irrigation district shall stop circulation and file all petitions with the appropriate irrigation district secretary not less than six (6) months before the next regular election in which any director is subject to reelection.
2. The sponsors of a recall demanded of any director shall have a maximum of thirty (30) days in which to obtain and file supporting signatures after the approval of a ballot synopsis by the magistrate court.

§ 43-219. Petition — Form.

Recall petitions shall be printed on single sheets of paper of good writing quality including, but not limited to, newsprint not less than eight and one-half (8 ½) inches in width and not less than fourteen (14) inches in length. No petition may be circulated or signed prior to the approval of a ballot synopsis by the magistrate court. Such petitions shall be substantially in the following form:

§ 43-220. Petition — Size.

Each recall petition at the time of circulating, signing and filing with the secretary of the irrigation district with whom it is to be filed, shall consist of not more than five (5) sheets with numbered lines for not more than twenty (20) signatures on each sheet, with the prescribed warning, title and form of petition on each sheet, and a full, true and correct copy of the original statement of the charges against the director referred to therein, printed on sheets of paper of like size and quality as the petition, firmly fastened together.

§ 43-221. Number of signatures required.

When the person, demanding the recall of a director has secured sufficient signatures upon the recall petition he may submit the same to the secretary of the irrigation district for filing in his office. The number of signatures required shall be equal to twenty percent (20%) of the total number of eligible voters residing in the district as compiled by the secretary.

§ 43-222. Canvassing petition for sufficiency of signatures — Notice.

Upon the filing of a recall petition in his office, the secretary of the irrigation district with whom the charge was filed shall stamp on each petition the date of filing, and shall notify the person filing them and the director whose recall is demanded of the date when the petitions will be canvassed, which date shall be not less than five (5) nor more than ten (10) days from the date of its filing.

§ 43-223. Verification and canvass of signatures — Procedure.

1. Upon the filing of a recall petition, the secretary of the irrigation district shall proceed to verify and canvass the names of legal voters on the petition.
2. The verification and canvass of signatures on the petition may be observed by persons representing the advocates and opponents of the proposed recall so long as they make no record of the names, addresses, or other information on the petitions or related records during the verification process except upon the order of the magistrate court. The secretary of the irrigation district may limit the number of observers if in his opinion a greater number would cause undue delay or disruption of the verification process. Any such limitation shall apply equally to both sides, but in no case shall fewer than two (2) observers on each side be allowed. If the secretary of the irrigation district finds the same name signed to more than one (1) petition, he shall reject all but one (1) such valid signature.

§ 43-224. Fixing date for recall election — Notice.

If, at the conclusion of the verification and canvass, it is found that a petition for recall bears the required number of signatures of certified legal voters, the secretary of the irrigation district shall promptly certify the petitions as sufficient and fix a date for the special election to determine whether or not the director charged shall be recalled and discharged from office. The special election shall be held not less than fourteen (14) days nor more than forty-five (45) days from the certification. Notice shall be given in the manner as required by law for all other irrigation district elections as provided in section 43-206, Idaho Code.

§ 43-225. Response to petition charges.

When a date for a special election is set, the secretary of the irrigation district shall serve a notice of the date of the election to the director whose recall is demanded and the person demanding recall. Such notice may be made only in person or by certified mail, return receipt requested. After having been served a notice of the date of the election and the ballot synopsis, the director whose recall is demanded may submit to the secretary of the irrigation district a response, not to exceed two hundred (200) words in length, to the charge contained in the ballot synopsis. Such response shall be submitted by the seventh consecutive day after service of the notice. The secretary of the irrigation district shall promptly send a copy of the response to the person who filed the petition.

§ 43-226. Destruction of insufficient recall petition.

If it is found that the recall petition does not contain the requisite number of signatures of certified legal voters, the secretary of the irrigation district shall so notify the person filing the petition, and specify the number of additional signatures required to make the petition valid. The petition must be perfected within thirty (30) days of the date that the secretary finds the petition defective for lack of certified signatures. If the petition is not perfected within the thirty (30) day period, the secretary shall declare the petition null and void ab initio in its entirety.

§ 43-227. Invalid names — Record of.

The secretary of the irrigation district shall keep a record of all names appearing thereon which are not certified to be legal residents of the district, and of all names appearing more than once thereon, and he may report the same to the prosecuting attorneys of the respective counties where such names appear to have been signed, to the end that prosecutions may be had for such violation of the provisions of this chapter.

§ 43-228. Conduct of election — Form of ballot.

The special election to be called for the recall of directors of irrigation districts shall be conducted in the same manner as regular irrigation district elections are conducted. The secretary of the irrigation district shall provide for the holding of recall elections and the necessary places and officers, ballot boxes, ballots, poll books, voting machines, supplies, and returns as are required by law for holding regular irrigation district elections. The ballots at any recall election shall contain a full, true, and correct copy of the ballot synopsis of the charge, the director’s response to the charge if such has been filed, and shall be so arranged that any voter can, by making one cross (X), express his desire to have the director charged recalled from his office, or retained therein. The following form shall substantially comply with the provisions of this section:

§ 43-229. Ascertaining the result — When recall effective.

The votes on a recall election shall be counted, canvassed, and the results certified in the manner provided by law for counting, canvassing, and certifying the results of an election for directors. If a majority of all votes cast at the recall election is for the recall of the director charged, he shall thereupon be recalled and discharged from his office and there shall be declared a vacancy in the office.

§ 43-230. Enforcement provisions — Mandamus — Appeals.

The magistrate court of the county in which the director subject to recall resides has original jurisdiction to compel the performance of any act required of any public officer or to prevent the performance by any such officer of any act in relation to the recall not in compliance with law.

§ 43-231. Violations by signers.

Every person who signs a recall petition with any other than his true name is guilty of a felony. Every person who knowingly (1) signs more than one (1) petition for the same recall, (2) signs a recall petition when he is not a legal voter, or (3) makes a false statement as to his residence on any recall petition is guilty of a misdemeanor.

§ 43-232. Violations — Corrupt practices.

1. Every person is guilty of a misdemeanor, who:
   1. Wilfully or knowingly circulates, publishes or exhibits any false statement or representation concerning the contents, purpose or effect of any recall petition for the purpose of obtaining any signature to any such petition, or for the purpose of persuading any person to sign any such recall petition;
   2. Presents to any officer for filing any recall petition to which is attached, appended or subscribed any signature which the person so filing the petition knows to be false or fraudulent, or not the genuine signature of the person purporting to sign such petition, or whose name is attached, appended or subscribed thereto;
   3. Circulates or causes to circulate any recall petition, knowing the same to contain false, forged or fictitious names;
   4. Makes any false affidavit concerning any recall petition or the signatures appended thereto;
   5. Offers, proposes or threatens for any pecuniary reward or consideration:
      1. To offer, propose, threaten or attempt to sell, hinder or delay any recall petition or any part thereof or any signatures thereon;
      2. To offer, propose or threaten to desist from beginning, promoting or circulating any recall petition;
      3. To offer, propose, attempt or threaten in any manner or form to use any recall petition or any power of promotion or opposition in any manner or form for extortion, blackmail or secret or private intimidation of any person or business interest.
2. A public officer is guilty of a felony, who knowingly makes any false return, certification or affidavit concerning any recall petition, or the signatures appended thereto.

§ 43-301. Election of officers.

On the first Tuesday of January next following their election, the board of directors shall meet and organize as a board, elect a president from their number and appoint a secretary and treasurer, who shall each hold office during the pleasure of the board. At any regular or special meeting the board of directors may appoint an assistant secretary or an assistant treasurer, or both, and fix the duties, the length of term, and the amount of bond, of each of them.

§ 43-303. Meetings of board.

The board of directors shall hold a regular monthly meeting in its office, or in any other location the board deems more convenient and suitable within the boundary of the district, on the first Tuesday in every month or such date each month as it shall fix by resolution and such special meetings as may be required for the proper transaction of business. All meetings of the board shall be held in compliance with Idaho’s open meetings law as provided in chapter 2, title 74, Idaho Code.

All meetings of the board must be public, and a majority shall constitute a quorum for the transaction of business. Unless otherwise provided by law, a question before the board shall be decided by a majority of the board members present. All records of the board shall be open to the inspection of any elector during business hours. Notwithstanding any other provision of law, this section and section 43-325, Idaho Code, shall be the exclusive method for inspection of records of the board.

§ 43-304. General powers of board — By-laws — Right of entry — Acquisition of property.

Said board shall have the power to manage and conduct the business and affairs of the district, make and execute all necessary contracts, employ and appoint such agents, officers and employees as may be required and prescribe their duties, to establish equitable by-laws, rules and regulations for the distribution and use of water among the owners of such land, as may be necessary and just to secure the just and proper distribution of the same, which said by-laws, among other things, shall establish a fiscal year, and in case the by-laws do not provide for the establishment of a fiscal year, the fiscal year shall commence the first day of November and end the thirty-first day of October of each and every year. Said by-laws, rules and regulations must be printed in convenient form for distribution throughout the district.

The board and its agents and employees shall have the right to enter upon any land and to make surveys, and may locate the necessary irrigation works and the line of any canal or canals, and the necessary branches for the same on any lands which may be deemed best for such location.

Said board shall also have the right to acquire, either by purchase, condemnation or other legal means, all lands and water rights, and other property necessary for the construction, use and supply, maintenance, repair and improvement of said canal or canals and works, including canals and works constructed and being constructed by private owners, lands for reservoirs for the storage of needful waters, lands and water rights for ground water recharge projects initiated pursuant to chapter 42, title 42, Idaho Code, and all necessary appurtenances. In case of purchase, the bonds of the district hereinafter provided for may be used to their par value in payment. Said board may also construct the necessary dams, reservoirs, ground water recharge facilities and works for the collection of water for said district, and do any and every lawful act necessary to be done that sufficient water may be furnished to each landowner in said district for irrigation purposes. The use of all water required for the irrigation of the lands of any district formed under the provisions of this title, together with the rights of way for canals and ditches, sites for reservoirs, ground water recharge projects and all other property required in fully carrying out the provisions of this title, is hereby declared to be a public use, subject to the regulation and control of the state, in the manner prescribed by law.

The board of directors of an irrigation district organized under the laws of the state of Idaho may enter into contracts for a water supply to be delivered to the canals and works of the district, and do any and every lawful act necessary to be done that sufficient water may be furnished to the lands in the district for irrigation purposes.

§ 43-306. Levy authorized for purpose of draining lands within district.

Any irrigation district now organized, or which may hereafter be organized, under the laws of the state of Idaho, shall have authority to construct drainage works for the purpose of draining, or reclaiming, any land, or lands, within such irrigation district, which authority shall be exercised by the board of directors in its discretion.

The board of directors before levy as hereinafter provided, shall determine by resolution spread on the minutes thereof if any of the lands within an irrigation district are in need of drainage, and should be drained to protect said land or other lands within said district from damage from seepage or other waters, subterranean or otherwise, then the board of directors of such district shall have the power and authority, at the time provided by law for levying assessments for the operation and maintenance of said irrigation district in addition to such assessments, to also levy an assessment against the lands of said irrigation district for drainage purposes, said levy not to exceed in any one (1) year forty per cent (40%) of the total amount levied for operation and maintenance purposes. Such assessment for drainage shall in all respects be levied and collected at the same time and in the same manner as assessments for operation and maintenance.

All funds collected for drainage purposes under the provisions hereof shall be kept in a separate fund to be known as “Drainage Fund” of said irrigation district, and the moneys in said “Drainage Fund” from time to time may be expended by the board of directors of said irrigation district.

§ 43-307. Authority to exercise functions of drainage districts.

Any irrigation district heretofore or hereafter organized under the laws of this state desiring so to do, and having received the petition required by and complied with the provisions of section 43-308[, Idaho Code,] as amended, and sections 43-309, 43-310, 43-311, 43-312[, Idaho Code], may exercise, and it is hereby given, all the functions, powers and authority of a drainage district and of its board of commissioners under the laws of this state relating to drainage districts. The functions, powers and authority granted by this act shall be exercised by such irrigation district through its board of directors and, so far as may be, in the manner provided in the drainage district laws of the state.

§ 43-308. Authority to exercise functions of drainage districts — Petition and resolution.

After receiving a petition signed by the holders of title or evidence of title to one-fifth (1/5) of the lands within the district praying it shall do so, any irrigation district desiring to accept the provisions of this act shall so declare by resolution adopted by majority vote of its directors and spread upon its minutes, and thereupon said district shall cause to be filed with the clerk of the district court of the county in which a greater portion of the lands of said irrigation district are located, its petition praying that the court shall set a day for hearing said petition and on and after said hearing make and enter its order and decree authorizing such irrigation district to perform all of the functions of a drainage district under the laws of the state of Idaho, and that there are lands within said district which need drainage: that there shall be attached to said petition so filed with the clerk of said court a true and correct copy of the petition of the said land owners in this section provided, together with a copy of said resolution of the board of directors of said district.

§ 43-309. Notice of hearing of petition.

After the filing of said petition the judge of said court shall fix the time for hearing said petition by order by him made, which order shall provide that said petition shall be published for at least three (3) successive weeks in some newspaper or newspapers printed and published in said county or counties in which the lands are situated, or in case no such paper is published in said county, then in some paper of general circulation therein; together with a notice of the time and place when said judge shall consider said petition.

§ 43-310. Hearing — Objections — Findings.

Upon the day fixed for the hearing of said petition, any person or corporation interest [interested] therein, may appear before said court and make objections in writing to the granting of said petition but said objections shall be limited to determining whether or not the granting of authority to said irrigation district to perform the duties and functions of a drainage district and as such perform such functions is a proper and advantageous method of accomplishing the reclamation and protection of swamped, bogged or water-logged lands and lands subject to overflow therein, and whether or not there is a reasonable probability that the object sought by granting such powers to said irrigation district may be accomplished, and whether or not the drainage of lands in said district will be conducive either to the public health, welfare or convenience or increase the public revenue; and at the hearing the court shall hear and consider such evidence only as may be presented for or against the petition or objections thereto. Thereupon the court shall make its findings upon the facts alleged in the petition and objections and any other facts necessary and proper for the determination of the propriety of granting such powers to said irrigation district; and if such petition be granted the judge of said court shall make findings of fact setting forth the facts found by the said judge upon the hearing of said petition.

§ 43-311. Decree granting petition — Vesting of powers and authority in district.

Upon the filing of the findings of fact at the final hearing of said petition, as set forth in the last preceding section, said judge, if he finds that the granting of said petition and the drainage of the lands in said irrigation district will be conducive either to the public health, welfare or convenience, or will increase the public revenue, or will be of special benefit to the majority of the acreage of the lands in said irrigation district, shall enter the decree of said court granting said petition. Thereupon a certified copy of same shall be filed in the office of the secretary of state: and from and after the date of said filing of said decree, said irrigation district shall be vested with all of such functions, powers and authority of a drainage district and its board of commissioners under the laws of this state relating to drainage districts. The function, powers and authority granted by this act shall be exercised by such irrigation district through its board of directors and so far as may be in the manner provided by the drainage district laws of this state.

§ 43-312. Appeals.

Appeal may be taken by any interested person from said decree of the district court to the Supreme Court by serving a written notice of such appeal upon the secretary of said board of the irrigation district, within thirty (30) days after the rendition of said decree by said court.

§ 43-313. Electric power plants — Construction and operation.

The board of directors of any irrigation district, organized under the laws of the state of Idaho, shall have the power to construct and operate, or to contract for the construction and operation, of electric power plants, power transmission lines, and all other works in connection therewith necessary or proper for generating and transmitting electric power, and for pumping water for irrigation and domestic use; and to contract to sell surplus power generated at such power plants.

§ 43-314. Electrical power plants — Sale of surplus power — Ratification of contract.

The question of the ratification of contracts for the sale of surplus power as provided in the preceding section shall be submitted in the same manner, and shall be governed by the same limitations and provisions as questions creating indebtedness: provided, that the form for the notices, and the form upon the prepared ballots, and the form for the returns, shall be so changed as to conform to the purposes of this and the preceding section. Notwithstanding any provisions of chapter 23, title 43, Idaho Code, or the provisions of this chapter, no election and no confirmation proceedings shall be required when the contract for construction of a hydroelectric plant by the district does not involve questions of indebtedness incurred by the district.

§ 43-315. Assessment for extermination of rodents.

The board of directors of an irrigation district may levy an assessment upon the lands within the district, not to exceed ten (10) cents per acre for the purpose of raising funds to be used for the extermination of gophers and other rodents. Said assessment shall be levied at the same time and in the same manner and with a like effect, as assessments levied for maintaining and operating the property of the district. Said assessments shall constitute a lien upon the property assessed and shall be collected, in like manner as assessments for maintenance and operation.

The funds realized from such assessment shall be used for the extermination of gophers and other rodents within the irrigation district, in such manner and by such means as the said board of directors may direct.

§ 43-316. Legal title to property.

The legal title to all property acquired under the provisions of this title shall immediately and by operation of law vest in such irrigation district, and shall be held by such district in trust for, and is hereby dedicated and set apart to, the uses and purposes set forth in this title. Said board is hereby authorized and empowered to hold, use, acquire, manage, occupy and possess said property as herein provided.

§ 43-317. Conveyance of property — Actions.

The said board is hereby authorized and empowered to take conveyance or other assurances for all property acquired by it under the uses and provisions of this title, in the name of such irrigation district, to and for the purposes herein expressed; and to institute and maintain any and all actions and proceedings, suits at law and in equity, necessary or proper in order to fully carry out the provisions of this title, or to enforce, maintain, protect or preserve any and all rights, privileges and immunities created by this title, or acquired in pursuance thereof. In all courts, actions, suits or proceedings the said board may sue, appear and defend, in person or by attorneys, and in the name of such irrigation district.

§ 43-318. Sale of personal or real property — Procedure — Sale of federal or state license or permit.

1. Personal or real property of an irrigation district including a federal or state license or permit may be sold or transferred by its board of directors whenever the board finds and by resolution declares that the district no longer has use therefor. This procedure shall not be applicable to sales of real property acquired in compliance with the provisions of chapter 7, title 43, Idaho Code, because of the failure to pay irrigation district assessments.
2. Whenever the board, by resolution, shall determine that the interest of the district in any federal or state license or permit is no longer required, it may, without independent appraisal or competitive bid, sell or transfer such federal license or permit upon such terms as may be fixed by the board; provided, that such resolution sets forth the license or permit to be sold or transferred and terms and conditions for sale or transfer, and provided further, that said resolution shall be published in a newspaper having general circulation in the district at least once a week for four (4) consecutive weeks preceding the date of sale; provided, however, that if within fifteen (15) days after the first publication of the resolution a referendum petition signed by qualified electors of the district equal in number to not less than ten percent (10%) of the electors of the district, based upon the aggregate vote cast at the general election of the directors of the district next preceding the filing of such petition, and at which election votes were cast in the election of directors, shall be filed with the secretary of the district requesting that an election be held upon the sale or transfer of such license or permit. Any election required to be held pursuant to a referendum petition filed in accordance with the provisions of this section, may be held separately or may be held concurrently with any other election authorized by law, pursuant to notice as provided in section 43-206, Idaho Code. Any such election required to be held hereunder shall be called by resolution, which resolution shall also fix the date upon which such election shall be held, which shall be not more than forty-five (45) days following the receipt of petition requesting the election, the manner of holding the same and the method of voting for or against the sale or transfer. Such resolution shall also fix the compensation to be paid the officers of the election and shall designate the precincts and polling places and shall appoint for each polling place, from each precinct from the electors thereof, the officers of such election who shall constitute a board of election for each polling place, which officers shall consist of three (3) judges, one (1) of whom shall act as clerk. The description of precincts may be made by reference to any order or orders of the board of county commissioners of the county or counties in which the district or any part thereof is situated, or by reference to any previous order or resolution of the board or by detailed description of such precincts. Precincts established by the boards of the various counties may be consolidated for special elections held hereunder. In the event any such election shall be called to be held concurrently with any other election or shall be consolidated therewith, the resolution calling the election hereunder need not designate precincts or polling places or the names of officers of election, but shall contain reference to the act or order calling such other election and fixing the precincts and polling places and appointing election officers therefrom. The resolution calling the election shall prescribe an official notice of election, which notice shall be published once a week for two (2) consecutive weeks, the last publication of which shall be at least ten (10) days prior to the date set for said election, in a newspaper of general circulation printed and published within the district, and no other or further notice of such election or publication of the names of election officers or of the precincts or polling places need be given or made. At such election the ballots shall contain the words “Sale—Yes” or “Sale—No.”

1. If, in the opinion of the board, such property does not exceed fifty thousand dollars ($50,000) in value, it may sell the same without independent appraisal, notice or competitive bids.
2. Personal or real property, but not including a federal or state license or permit, exceeding fifty thousand dollars ($50,000) in estimated value shall first be appraised by three (3) disinterested freeholders of the district, who shall be selected by the board. It may then be sold at public or private sale to the highest bidder for cash at not less than its appraised value, after due notice.
3. Notice of sale shall describe the property, the appraised value thereof (by separate items, if so appraised), and the time, place and condition of sale.
4. If the appraised value exceeds fifty thousand dollars ($50,000), notice of sale shall be posted in three (3) public places in each of the election precincts in the district (one of which shall be the office of the board) at least ten (10) days before the date of sale. The board, in its discretion, may order that, in addition to such posting of notice, the notice shall be published in a daily or weekly newspaper, published or having a general circulation in the district, for the number of times, not to exceed three (3), and on the dates that the board shall specify in its order.
5. If, at the time set for closing the bids, no bidder offers the appraised price, or more, the board may sell the property for such price, and upon such terms, as the board by resolution declares to be reasonable, without further appraisal, notice or competitive bids.

The respective election boards shall conduct the election in their respective precincts in the manner prescribed by law for the holding of district elections to the extent the same shall apply and shall make their returns to the secretary of the district.

In the event that no referendum petition is filed, or if so filed, and if it shall appear from the election returns that a majority of the qualified electors of the district who shall have voted on the proposition submitted hereunder at such election voted in favor of such proposition, the directors of the district shall, by resolution, authorize the sale or transfer under the terms prescribed and effective as of the end of the notice period hereinafter provided, and shall cause notice thereof to be published one (1) time in a newspaper of general circulation within the district. For a period of thirty (30) days from the date of such publication, any person in interest may file suit in any court of competent jurisdiction to test the regularity, formality or legality of the proceedings authorizing the sale or transfer and the provisions of the contract of sale or transfer. After the expiration of such thirty (30) day period, no one shall have any right of action to contest the validity of the sale or transfer, or of the contract, or of the proceedings, or of any resolution of the board of directors regarding such sale or transfer, and said sale or transfer shall be conclusively presumed to be legal and no court shall thereafter have authority to inquire into such matter.

§ 43-318A. Trade-in or exchange of district property.

Whenever the board of directors of an irrigation district finds and by resolution declares that the district no longer has use for any personal property of the district, or finds and declares that such property is no longer economical to use, the district may, in lieu of the sale of said property as provided in section 43-318, Idaho Code, dispose of the property by exchanging the same in part payment for new or replacement property.

If the acquisition of the new or replacement property is required to be let to bid under the provisions of chapter 28, title 67, Idaho Code, the district shall include in its request for bids, a full description of the property to be exchanged as part payment, and shall permit any interested bidder to examine the same, and any contract let as a result of said bid shall be awarded on the basis of net cost to the district after allowance for the property to be exchanged in part payment.

Exchange of property will be permitted only when, in the opinion of the board of directors of the district, the sale of the property under the provisions of section 43-318, Idaho Code, will yield a lesser monetary return to the district than the exchange thereof as herein provided.

§ 43-319. Compensation of directors and officers.

The members of the board of directors shall fix the compensation board members shall receive for each day spent attending the meetings, or while engaged in official business under the order of the board and actual and necessary expenses. The term “actual and necessary expenses,” shall be deemed to include all traveling expenses and hotel expenses necessarily incurred by any director when absent from his residence in the performance of the duties of his office. The board shall fix the compensation to be paid to the other officers named in this title, to be paid out of the treasury of the district: provided, that such board shall, upon the petition of fifty (50) or a majority of the freeholders within such district, submit to the electors, at any general election, a schedule of salaries and fees to be paid hereunder. Such petition must be presented to the board twenty (20) days prior to a general election, and the result of the election shall be determined and declared in all respects as other elections are determined and declared under this title.

§ 43-320. Officers must not be interested in contracts.

No director or any other officer named in this title shall in any manner be interested, directly or indirectly, in any contract awarded or to be awarded by the board, or in the profits to be derived therefrom; and for any violation of this provision such officers shall be deemed guilty of a misdemeanor, and such conviction shall work a forfeiture of his office, and he shall be punished by a fine not exceeding $500, or by imprisonment in the county jail not to exceed six (6) months, or by both such fine and imprisonment.

§ 43-321. Special assessments — Elections — Collection of assessments — Delinquent list.

The board of directors may, at any time when in their judgment it may be advisable, call a special election and submit to the qualified electors of the district the question whether or not a special assessment shall be levied for the purpose of raising money to be applied to any of the purposes provided in this title, and shall, at the same time, fix a date upon which such assessment shall become delinquent, which date shall be not less than sixty (60) days nor more than ninety (90) days from the date of said meeting of said board. Such election must be called upon the notice prescribed, and the same shall be held, and the result thereof determined and declared, in all respects in conformity with the provisions of section 43-401[, Idaho Code]. The notice must specify the amount of money proposed to be raised, and the purpose for which it is intended to be used. At such elections the ballots shall contain the words “Assessment . . . . yes” or “Assessment . . . . no.” If two-thirds (2/3) or more of the votes cast are “Assessment . . . . yes,” the board shall immediately levy an assessment sufficient to raise the amount voted.

The assessment so levied shall be computed and entered on the assessment roll by the secretary of the board, and within ten (10) days after such assessment, the secretary must deliver the assessment book to the treasurer of the district who shall, within ten (10) days after receipt of such book, publish a notice in a newspaper published in each county in which any portion of the district may lie, that said assessments are due and payable and will become delinquent at six o’clock p.m. of the day fixed by the board of directors, naming such day and date, and also the times and places at which the payment of the assessment may be made; which notice shall be published for a period of two (2) weeks.

The treasurer must attend at the times and places specified in the notice to receive assessments which must be paid in lawful money of the United States. Within fifteen (15) days after the delinquent date as fixed by the board of directors, said treasurer shall begin the preparation of the delinquent list, which delinquent list shall contain a description of all the tracts of land upon which such special assessments are delinquent, and the amount of such assessment against each of the said tracts, and the name of the owner as shown on the assessment book. And on or before thirty (30) days thereafter, the treasurer shall complete said delinquent list, shall properly certify the same, and prepare a duplicate thereof; and deliver the delinquent list to the secretary of the district. At the same time the treasurer must commence to publish the delinquent list and publication shall continue three (3) weeks and must contain the names of the owners, a description of the property delinquent at that time, the amount of assessments and penalties and the costs due, opposite each name and description. After said publication shall have been made for the first time the treasurer shall collect twenty-five (25) cents in addition to the assessment and penalties on each description of lands published. The treasurer must append and publish with the delinquent list a notice that unless the assessments delinquent, together with penalties and costs, are paid, the real property upon which said assessments are made will be sold at public auction on the first Tuesday in September following date of notice. The publication must be made in some newspaper published in the district, if it can be so published, and if it cannot be so published, then in some newspaper published in the county in which the office of the board of directors is situated; and if it cannot be so published, then by posting in not less than three (3) places in said district, one (1) of which shall be at the door of the office of said board of directors. The place of such sale shall be at the office of said board of directors. The treasurer, as soon as he has made the publication required, must file with the secretary proof of such publication by affidavit, or like proof of posting in case such notice was posted as herein required. Such sales and all proceedings thereafter shall be in accordance with the provisions of sections 4392 to 4401, both inclusive, of Idaho Compiled Statutes, where not in conflict herewith.

When collected such assessments shall be paid into the district treasury for the purposes provided in the notice of such special election.

§ 43-322. Power to incur debts — Warrants.

The board of directors, or other officers of the district, shall have no power to incur any debt or liability whatever, either by issuing bonds or otherwise, in excess of the express provisions of this section; and any debt or liability incurred in excess of such express provisions shall be and remain absolutely void: provided, that for the purpose of organization, or for any of the purposes of this title, the board of directors may, before the collection of the first assessment, incur indebtedness and cause warrants of the district to issue therefor according to the following limitations: Districts embracing fifty thousand (50,000) acres, or more, of irrigable land, not in excess of fifteen thousand dollars ($15,000) of warrants; districts embracing forty thousand (40,000) acres, or more, and less than fifty thousand (50,000) acres of irrigable land, up to twelve thousand dollars ($12,000) of warrants; districts embracing thirty thousand (30,000) acres, or more, and less than forty thousand (40,000) acres of irrigable land, up to nine thousand dollars ($9,000) of warrants; districts embracing twenty thousand (20,000) acres, or more, and less than thirty thousand (30,000) acres of irrigable land, up to six thousand dollars ($6,000) of warrants; districts embracing ten thousand (10,000) acres, or more, and less than twenty thousand (20,000) acres of irrigable land, up to four thousand dollars ($4,000) of warrants; districts embracing more than two thousand (2,000) acres, or more, and less than ten thousand (10,000) acres of irrigable land up to three thousand dollars ($3,000) of warrants, and districts embracing less than two thousand (2,000) acres of irrigable land up to two thousand dollars ($2,000) of warrants.

Provided, further, that for the purpose of defraying the expenses in the care, operation, repair and improvement of such portion of the irrigation works of the district as are completed and in use, including salaries of officers and employees, the board of directors of an irrigation district may at any time issue warrants of such district in payment of claims of indebtedness against the district, not to exceed the district’s anticipated revenue.

The warrants herein authorized shall be in form and substance the same as county warrants or as near the same as may be practicable and shall be signed by the chairman and attested by the secretary of said board. All such warrants shall be presented by the holder thereof to the treasurer of the district for payment who shall indorse thereon the day of presentation for payment with the additional indorsement thereon, in case of nonpayment, that they are not paid for want of funds, and such warrants shall draw interest at a rate to be established by the board of directors from the date of their presentation to the treasurer for payment as aforesaid until such warrants are paid. No warrants shall be issued in payment of any indebtedness of such district for less than face or par value. It shall be the duty of the treasurer from time to time when he has sufficient funds in his hands for that purpose to advertise in some newspaper in the county in which the district is situated requiring the presentation to him for payment of as many of the outstanding warrants as he may be able to pay. Ten (10) days after the first publication of said notice by the treasurer calling in any of said outstanding warrants, said warrants shall cease to bear interest, which shall be stated in the notice. Said notice shall be published two (2) weeks consecutively and said warrants shall be called in and paid in the order of their indorsement. Provided, further, after an irrigation district has organized and has no warrants outstanding, the district may maintain its operation on a cash basis and pay by check the expenses of operation and maintenance, repair, improvement, obligations on contractual or bonded indebtedness, and all other general necessary expenses incurred by the district.

The board of directors, or other officers of the district, may incur debt by contracting indebtedness with a money-lending institution, subject to the election requirements contained in section 43-401, Idaho Code, or as described in section 42-322A, Idaho Code, but the term of such indebtedness shall not exceed thirty (30) years.

§ 43-322A. Power to incur debts — Mitigation plans and recharge projects — Judicial examination.

1. The board may by resolution adopted by a two-thirds (2/3) majority of the board, determine that the interest of the district and the public interest and necessity demand the development and operation of a mitigation plan or recharge project and shall set forth the amount of obligation or contract indebtedness proposed to be issued by the district under the provisions of this chapter for the development of such mitigation plan or recharge project. The board shall submit the contract indebtedness in the proposed resolution to a vote of the qualified electors of the district as defined in section 43-111, Idaho Code, at an election to be held only if within fifteen (15) days after the passage of such resolution a referendum petition signed by qualified electors of the district whose aggregate water rights equal not less than ten percent (10%), calculated on a per acre basis, of the aggregate water rights of all qualified electors of the district, shall be filed with the secretary of the district requesting that an election upon the issuance of the contract indebtedness be held and conducted under the provisions of this section. Any election required to be held pursuant to a referendum petition filed in accordance with this section for the purpose of submitting any proposition or propositions of incurring such obligation or indebtedness shall be held in accordance with section 34-106, Idaho Code. The resolution, in addition to such declaration of public interest or necessity, shall recite the objects and purposes for which the indebtedness is proposed to be incurred, the estimated cost of the mitigation plan or recharge plan, the amount of principal of the indebtedness to be incurred therefor, and the sources of the revenues and assessments pledged to the payment of the indebtedness. The separate election upon the assessments shall be held at the same time as and shall be combined with any such election required to be held upon the indebtedness question pursuant to a referendum petition. If no referendum petition is filed, or if so filed, if it shall appear from the returns that the qualified electors of the district representing two-thirds (2/3) of the aggregate water rights of the district, calculated on a per acre basis, have voted in favor of the proposition, the district thereupon shall be authorized to incur such indebtedness or obligations, or enter into such contracts, all for the purposes provided for in the proposition submitted in the resolution, and in the amount so provided subject to judicial examination as provided in subsection (2) of this section. Submission of the proposition of incurring such obligation or other indebtedness at such an election shall not prevent or prohibit submission of the same or other propositions at subsequent election or elections called for such purpose.
2. Prior to the incurring of indebtedness, the board of directors of the irrigation district shall file in the district court of the county in which their office is situated a petition, praying in effect that the proceedings aforesaid may be examined, approved and confirmed by the court. The petition shall state generally that the irrigation district was duly organized and the first board of directors elected, that due and lawful proceedings were taken to authorize the incurrence of indebtedness by the issuance of bonds or otherwise for mitigation plans or recharge projects in an amount to be stated, and that said assessment, list and apportionment were duly made and a copy of said assessment, list and apportionment shall be attached to said petition. Whenever any district that is required to file a petition hereunder has or proposes to enter into a contract or contracts with one (1) or more districts or ground water district, the boards of such other districts or ground water districts may join in the filing of such petition, and the district court in which such petition is filed shall have jurisdiction to hear the petition and to grant the relief prayed for therein. Each such petition shall pray for a judicial examination and determination of any power conferred hereby or by any amendment hereto or of any assessment levied or of any apportionment of costs or of any act, proceeding or contract of the district or districts, whether or not said contracts shall have been executed, including, without limitation, proposed contracts for the reconstruction, rehabilitation, replacement and improvement of any well and other related structures and works and appurtenances, falling water contracts, contracts with other districts and contracts with other public and private persons, firms, corporations and associations associated with mitigation plans or recharge projects. Such petition shall set forth the facts whereon the validity of such powers, assessments, apportionments, acts, proceedings or contracts is founded. Notice of the filing of said petition shall be given by the clerk of the court in accordance with the requirements of section 43-407, Idaho Code, stating in brief outline the contents of the petition and showing where a full copy of any contract or contracts, therein mentioned, may be examined.
3. Any water user in any district joining in the petition or any other person interested in the contracts or proposed contracts may appear and answer the petition at any time prior to the date fixed for the hearing or within such further time as may be allowed by the court; and the petition shall be taken as confessed by all persons who fail so to appear. The said petition and notice shall be sufficient to give the court jurisdiction and, upon hearing, the court: shall examine into and determine all matters and things affecting the question submitted; shall examine all of the proceedings of all of the districts as set forth in the petition; shall hear all objections either filed in the proceeding or brought up from the hearings before any of the boards; shall correct all errors in the assessments and apportionments of costs; shall ratify, approve and confirm all apportionments of costs and assessments levied; shall make such findings with reference thereto and render a judgment and decree thereon approving and confirming all of the powers, assessments, apportionments, acts, proceedings and contracts of each of the districts as set forth in the petition as the case warrants. Costs may be divided or apportioned among the contesting parties in the discretion of the trial court. Review of the judgment of the court may be had as in other similar cases. The court shall disregard any error, irregularity or omission which does not affect the substantial rights of the parties.

§ 43-323. Place of use.

A change in the generally described place of use for a water right held by an irrigation district may be made without applying for a change under the provisions of section 42-222, Idaho Code, provided the district files with the department of water resources a map portraying the changes to the generally described place of use within which the district’s water rights shall be exercised. For this filing requirement, it shall be sufficient to provide a drawing on a seven-and-one-half-minute (7-½) quadrangle map having a scale of one to twenty-four thousand (1:24,000) which shows the changes to the outer limits of the boundaries of the irrigation district to include each quarter-quarter section within which irrigation occurs. This map showing changes to the generally described place of use shall be filed with the department no later than April 1 of the year following the changes. Notwithstanding the filing of such map, only the legal description of an irrigation district’s boundaries recorded in compliance with title 43, Idaho Code, shall constitute conclusive proof of the district’s boundaries for purposes other than defining the generally described place of use for a water right held by the district.

§ 43-324. Statement of financial condition.

On or before the second Tuesday of February of each year the board of directors of each irrigation district organized under this title shall publish in at least one (1) issue of some newspaper published in the county or counties in which such district is situated, a full, true and correct statement of the financial condition of said district, at the end of the last preceding fiscal year, giving all liabilities and assets of the said district, in a form to be prescribed by the bureau of public accounts of the state of Idaho.

§ 43-325. County commissioners to have access to books.

Any board of directors of any such irrigation district, or the secretary thereof, shall at any time allow any member of the board of county commissioners, when acting under the order of such board, to have access to all books, records and vouchers of the district which are in possession or control of said board of directors or said secretary of said board.

§ 43-326. Power to maintain parks.

The board of directors of any irrigation district shall have the power to maintain public parks and recreation grounds for the benefit of the people of the district and may set aside for this purpose, land belonging to the district, including land acquired by the district from sale for delinquent water assessments. The district shall have the power to purchase land, or to acquire land by lease, within the district for public parks and recreation ground. In the maintenance of said grounds, the board of directors may construct buildings and provide facilities for recreation purposes and may receive gifts and donations of either real or personal property for the purposes hereinbefore enumerated.

§ 43-327. Delinquent assessments — Shutting off of water.

The board of directors of any irrigation district shall have the power to refuse to deliver water for the use on any lands upon which any assessments, tolls or charges levied, assessed or charged against said lands or the owner, lessee, occupant or contract purchaser thereof, under any section of this title, whether for irrigation or domestic water service, are unpaid for more than ninety (90) days after delinquency until such assessments, tolls or charges, together with any lawful penalties and additional charges are paid.

Provided, that, in irrigation districts having a contract with the United States under the provisions of this title, for the construction, or operation, or maintenance of a domestic water system or for the repayment to the United States of a loan for any such purpose, the board of directors of such district may, by resolution, from time to time, fix a date or dates after which any or all lawful tolls and/or charges of the district, including without limitation domestic water tolls and charges, and excepting only assessments provided for in this title against real property within the district, shall be deemed delinquent. Such district shall have the right, in addition to and supplemental to all other legal rights now in effect, or hereafter acquired for the collection of any such sums, to cease delivery of domestic and irrigation water to all lands in connection with which such tolls or charges have been incurred and, at the district’s option, also to all other lands within the district belonging to the person or persons, firm, corporation or other legal entity incurring any such tolls or charges. Such delivery may be ceased at any time after the tenth day following the date any such sums become delinquent, and until all such sums together with any lawful penalties, additional charges and/or interest at the legal rate are paid.

§ 43-328. Petition to construct improvements for irrigation — Assent of petitioners to assessment of cost of improvement.

The holders of title, or evidence of title, representing a majority of the acreage of any body of land within any irrigation district, may file with the board of directors of the district a petition in writing, praying for the construction of any improvement necessary or expedient for the efficient irrigation of the lands, including facilities for the recharge of ground water basins. The petition shall in a general way describe the proposed improvement and shall describe the tracts, or body of land, owned by the petitioners, and shall contain a description of the exterior boundaries of the land for which the proposed improvement is to be constructed, and describing therein any lands that are to be excepted from the benefit or use of the proposed improvement. The petition shall also contain an agreement on the part of the petitioners that the cost of construction of the improvement shall constitute a lien upon the lands within the exterior boundaries of the land described in the petition, except the lands that are therein excepted from the benefit or use of the proposed improvement, and that the lands shall be assessed for and pay the cost of the improvement. The petition shall be deemed to give assent of the petitioners to construction of the improvement and shall authorize the assessment of the cost of such improvement upon and against the lands described in the petition and not specifically therein excepted. The petition shall be acknowledged in the same manner that conveyances of land are required to be acknowledged.

§ 43-329. Elections to determine question as to construction of improvement — Resolution of directors.

1. The board of directors, if they deem it for the best interest of the district that the proposed improvement be constructed, may by resolution call an election to be held within the boundaries of the land described in the petition for the purpose of submitting the question as to whether or not the proposed improvement shall be constructed. The board shall in the resolution fix the time and place of holding the election, and specify the polling place, and shall also appoint three (3) judges who shall constitute a board of election. The resolution shall also contain the ballot title to be used at the election, which title shall contain such information as in the judgment of the board will advise the owners of the land to be charged with the cost of the proposed improvement as to the general nature of the improvement and the estimated cost.
2. The board at the time of calling the election within the land described in the petition shall also by resolution call an election to be held within the district at large for the purpose of submitting the question as to whether or not the proposed improvement shall be constructed. This resolution shall contain provisions identical with those provided for in subsection (1) of this section. The election in the district at large shall be held on the same day that the election within the territory described in the petition is held. The election shall be conducted, as nearly as practicable, in accordance with the general election laws of the state applicable to irrigation districts.

§ 43-330. Majority of votes as determinative — Construction of improvement — Cost — Apportionment — Assessment. — If a majority of the votes cast by the electors within the boundaries of the land described in the petition are “Improvement — Yes,” and if a majority of the votes cast by the electors in the district at large are “Improvement

Yes,” then, but not otherwise, the board shall construct the improvement. The cost of construction shall be apportioned by the board to the lands within the boundaries described in the petition, so that each acre of irrigable land therein shall be assessed and required to pay the same amount. In all other respects the assessment and its levy and collection shall be, as nearly as practicable, in accordance with the assessment, levy and collection of other assessments and taxes levied upon lands within the district.

§ 43-330A. Contracts with landowners for construction of improvements.

When a parcel of land lying within an irrigation district has been subdivided and the owner or owners of the entire parcel propose to develop that parcel or any of the tracts therein for residential, commercial, industrial or municipal use, the board of directors of the district may enter into a contract with the owner or owners of the entire parcel, or of any tract therein, for the construction of a pressurized system for the proper distribution of irrigation water to the parcel or to the designated tracts within the parcel.

§ 43-330B. Contract provisions.

Any contract entered into under the authority of section 43-330A, Idaho Code, shall include the following provisions:

1. An apportionment of the cost of the construction of the distribution system against the parcel or against the tract or tracts which are included in the contract;
2. The cost of construction of the distribution system shall constitute a lien against the parcel, tract or tracts included in the contract, to secure payment of any portion of the cost of construction that is not paid upon completion of construction by the owner or owners, or by a third party on their behalf, and securing payment of interest on any deferred installments of the construction costs;
3. A schedule of annual installment payments, with accrued interest, for the portion, if any, of the construction costs that are not paid upon completion of construction;
4. The annual installment payment against the parcel or against the tract or tracts included in the contract shall be included in the annual assessments levied by the district against the parcel, tract or tracts and any such assessment and its levy and collection shall be, as nearly as practicable, in accordance with the assessment, levy and collection of other assessments levied upon lands in the district;
5. The deferred annual installment payments of principal and accrued interest may be prepaid in whole or in part at any time without penalty, but any prepayment of principal shall not be less that [than] one-half (½) the amount of the annual installment payment of principal next coming due, but the prepayment privilege authorized in this subsection shall not be applicable where the construction costs have been financed through a local improvement district;
6. If the district has constructed or proposes to construct a pumping station and pipeline to serve the parcel, tract or tracts included in the contract and other lands, the cost of the pumping station and pipeline shall be apportioned by the board to all lands which are planned to be served by the pumping station, so that each acre of irrigable land to be served by the pumping station shall be assessed and required to pay the same amount;
7. A grant of an easement to the district for the installation, operation, maintenance, repair and replacement of the portion of the distribution system located on the parcel, tract or tracts included in the contract. The easement shall be of sufficient width to allow construction, installation, operation, maintenance, repair and replacement by the use of ordinary mechanized equipment designed to perform those functions.

§ 43-330C. Compliance.

If the contract provides for construction of any portion of the distribution system by the owner or owners, chapter 9, title 43, Idaho Code, shall not be applicable to that portion of the construction. If any portion of the distribution system is to be constructed by the district, the district shall comply with the provisions of chapter 9, title 43, Idaho Code, insofar as applicable to the construction to be performed by the district or by a contractor under a separate contract with the district, unless the owner or owners furnish a written waiver of such compliance.

§ 43-330D. Contract to be recorded.

Any contract entered into by an irrigation district under the authority of section 43-330A, Idaho Code, shall be recorded in the office of the county recorder of each county in which any portion of the land covered by the contract is located, and the owner or owners named in the contract shall remain personally liable, jointly and severally, for the cost of construction until the contract has been properly recorded.

§ 43-330E. District to own distribution system.

Any pressurized distribution system constructed under the authority of section 43-330A, Idaho Code, shall be the property of, and shall be owned by, the district.

§ 43-330F. Operation and maintenance of pressurized distribution systems.

Any pressurized distribution system constructed under the authority of section 43-330A, Idaho Code, shall be operated, maintained, repaired and replaced by the district, and the district may levy and collect an assessment against each tract of land served by the distribution system to defray the cost and expense of such operation, maintenance, repair or replacement. The board shall apportion to each tract of land included in the contract a portion of the cost of operation, maintenance, repair and replacement of the distribution system, on the same basis as the cost of construction of the distribution system is apportioned.

§ 43-330G. Distribution systems for land in more than one irrigation district — Joint contract — Division of management — Assessments.

Where the interests of two (2) or more irrigation districts and the interests of the contracting landowners will be served thereby, lands in two (2) or more irrigation districts may be included in a contract entered into by the districts and the landowners under the authority of section 43-330A, Idaho Code, and the contract shall specify how the ownership, management, operation, maintenance, repair and replacement of the distribution system shall be divided between or among the districts, and shall provide that all assessments for construction costs and for costs of operation, maintenance, repair and replacement against any tract of land included in the contract shall be levied and collected by the district in which that tract is located.

§ 43-331. Directors may construct or maintain improvements, levy assessments.

1. This section applies: (a) When a parcel of land lying within an irrigation district is subdivided and the owner has made no provisions which in the opinion of the board of directors is adequate for the proper distribution of water thereto; or (b) when improvements for the distribution or delivery of water to any tract of land are not owned by the district and the owner or person in control of the improvement fails to maintain, repair or replace the improvement as required for the proper and efficient distribution or delivery of water to any tract; or (c) when fifty percent (50%) or more of the owners of the tracts in any such subdivided parcel request that the board provide for the proper distribution of water thereto or request that the board maintain, repair or replace the improvement as required for the proper and efficient distribution or delivery of water to any tract.
2. Whenever the interest or convenience of such tracts requires the construction, repair or maintenance of any ditch, flume, dike, aqueduct or other improvement, the board may construct, repair or maintain such improvement, and levy and collect an assessment upon all tracts specially benefited thereby, to defray the whole or any portion of the cost and expense thereof. The board may determine what lands are specially benefited by such construction, repair or maintenance, and the amount to which each tract is benefited.

§ 43-332. Apportionment of water to tracts — Employment of person to distribute water — Assessment of cost — Lien on land.

Whenever a parcel of land lying within an irrigation district is subdivided and plats of such subdivision are filed as provided by law, and the owners fail to properly apportion the water to their various tracts in the subdivision, or upon request made by fifty percent (50%) or more of the owners of the tracts in the subdivision the board of directors may employ some competent person to distribute and apportion water for such tracts. The reasonable cost of such services shall be apportioned each year by the board to such tracts. The cost of such services shall be assessed by the board as a special charge to the tracts in the same manner as other assessments are made by the board. The assessment so levied and apportioned shall be a lien upon the tracts, and shall be collected in the same manner as all other assessments are levied and collected by the board.

§ 43-333. Resolution for water distribution works or services — Hearing of objections — Construction, repair or maintenance of improvement — Apportionment of costs — Assessment.

1. Whenever the board of directors shall deem it expedient or necessary to construct, repair or maintain ditches, flumes, dikes, aqueducts or other improvements as provided in section 43-331, Idaho Code, or to employ the services of some competent person to distribute and apportion water for any subdivision, as provided in section 43-332, Idaho Code, it shall declare such necessity by resolution.
2. A resolution shall be posted in three (3) public places in the subdivision for five (5) days. Within ten (10) days from the date when the resolution is posted, the owner of any property within the tract may file with the secretary a written remonstrance against the proposed improvement or employment. The board hearing such remonstrances may, in its discretion, overrule any remonstrance and by a resolution order construction, repair or maintenance of the improvements. The board may either enter into a contract to complete the improvement or, in its discretion, complete the improvement under its own supervision. After the work on the improvement is completed the board shall, by resolution, apportion the costs and shall declare an assessment upon each tract benefited, which assessments shall be final and conclusive.

§ 43-334. Procedure for levy and collection of special assessment — Appeal.

Whenever the board of directors levies a special assessment against the various tracts of land as provided in section 43-331 and section 43-332, Idaho Code, it shall be extended against the tracts of land in the same manner as other assessments are levied and extended upon the assessment rolls of the irrigation district or county. The assessments shall be collected in the same manner as other assessments are collected. An appeal may be taken from the action of the board to the district court of the county in which the land is situated. The appeal shall be taken, perfected and prosecuted in the same manner and within the same period of time as an appeal from the board of county commissioners.

§ 43-335. Leasing of water rights by irrigation district within the district by district’s where landowner can receive water through the district’s irrigation system.

Any irrigation district which has within its boundaries residential, commercial or industrial lands, or any combination of those lands, and which holds water rights for those lands, shall have the right to lease, to any municipality, municipal provider, public utility, domestic water users organization which furnishes water service to those lands, or to any other entity for the distribution of water to those lands for uses other than culinary purposes, those water rights which are held for any residential, commercial or industrial lands for which the owner has elected not to receive his proportionate share of the irrigation district’s water through the irrigation system of the district; provided, however, that no water right under which water is delivered through a community ditch shall be leased without the written consent of the ditch users who do not elect not to receive water from the district. For purposes of this chapter, the terms “municipality” and [“]municipal provider” shall be defined as provided in section 42-202B, Idaho Code; “culinary purposes” shall mean the use of water for direct human consumption, cooking, sanitary purposes, and other such uses. Nothing in this chapter shall be construed as amending or affecting the laws of Idaho pertaining to the control and regulation of public utilities, municipal providers or water corporations.

§ 43-336. Notification of landowners regarding lease.

Whenever the board of directors of an irrigation district resolves to lease all or any portion of any water right or water rights as authorized by section 43-335, Idaho Code, the district shall notify its landowners, by such method as the board shall order, that (1) the district intends to lease the water right or water rights identified by priority date, quantity and source in the notice, (2) owners of residential, commercial or industrial lands for which the district holds water rights may elect not to receive water from the district for their lands, and (3) consent of other ditch owners who will continue receiving water is required for leasing water rights delivered through community ditches.

§ 43-337. Requirements of election for landowners.

The election under section 43-335, Idaho Code, not to receive water shall be made in writing and shall state:

1. The name and address of the landowner;
2. The legal description of the land as to which the election is made;
3. The date of the notification from the district pursuant to which the election is made;
4. That the owner elects not to receive water from the irrigation system of the district under the water right held for the land described in the notification of election;
5. That this landowner’s election not to receive water from the district shall remain in effect so long as the lease under section 43-335, Idaho Code, has not been terminated.

The written notification of election shall be signed by the landowner and shall be delivered to the district at its office. Signature by each surviving spouse shall be required for a valid election as to land which is community property.

§ 43-338. Leasing of water rights inside the district by an irrigation district where the landowner cannot receive water through the irrigation system.

An irrigation district shall have the right to lease, to any municipality, municipal provider, public utility or domestic water users organization which furnishes water service to lands lying within the district, or to any other entity providing water service for uses other than culinary purposes those water rights which the landowner does not receive through the irrigation system of the district because the landowner has no ditch, pipeline or other transmission facility for carrying water from the district’s system to his land.

§ 43-339. No levy against lands where water rights are leased.

After the effective date of a lease by which a water right or any portion thereof is leased by an irrigation district under the authority granted by section 43-335 or 43-338, Idaho Code, the district shall not levy tolls or assessments for any purpose against the lands for which that water right is held by the district, so long as the lease remains in effect, and any toll or assessment levied in violation of this section shall be void and of no effect whatsoever.

§ 43-340. Use of moneys received for leased water rights.

All payments of rent received by an irrigation district under a lease of water rights authorized by section 43-335 or 43-338, Idaho Code, shall belong to the district, and it shall not be obligated to reimburse electing landowners for any such rental payments, and such payments shall be deemed to have been received by the district in lieu of tolls or assessments which otherwise would have been levied against the lands for which landowners have elected not to receive water or against the lands to which water cannot be delivered.

§ 43-341. Effect on water rights by leasing.

Use of water under a lease authorized by this act shall not constitute abandonment, or be grounds for forfeiture, of the water right, and shall not be deemed a change in the place of use or in the nature of the use of the water. Any change in the point or points of diversion of water shall require approval of the director of the department of water resources as provided in section 42-222, Idaho Code, but the director shall not be required to determine whether a water right has been abandoned or forfeited, in whole or in part, before approving any change in the point of diversion.

§ 43-342. Landowner may not receive water from the district after agreeing to lease water rights.

After the effective date of any lease by an irrigation district under the authority granted by section 43-335, Idaho Code, no landowner who has elected not to receive water from the district and who owns land from which the water right has been leased and who has actual knowledge of the lease, shall use water from the community ditch, if any, by which water is carried from the district’s system to his land. Any landowner violating this section shall be liable for all costs reasonably incurred by the district in enforcing the provisions of this section.

§ 43-343. Authority to construct and operate ground water recharge project.

Any irrigation district heretofore or hereafter organized under the laws of this state, having received and affirmatively acted upon a petition to construct a ground water recharge improvement project in the manner provided by sections 43-328, 43-329 and 43-330, Idaho Code, is authorized by section 42-234, Idaho Code, to file an application with the department of water resources to appropriate the unappropriated waters of the state for the purpose of recharging ground water basins within the district to aid in the efficient irrigation of district lands. Upon approval of the application for permit by the director of the department of water resources, the district shall proceed in the manner provided by the irrigation district laws of the state to construct and operate the recharge project. The construction and operation of the project shall be subject to such additional conditions and limitations as shall be imposed by the director of the department of water resources pursuant to sections 42-203A and 42-234, Idaho Code.

§ 43-401. Plan of construction — Issuance of bonds — Indebtedness — Election.

As soon as practicable after the organization of any such district the board of directors shall, by a resolution entered on its records, formulate a general plan of its proposed operations, in which it shall state what constructed works or other property it proposes to purchase and the cost of purchasing the same; and further what construction work it proposes to do and how it proposes to raise the funds for carrying out said plan. For the purpose of ascertaining the cost of any such construction work, said board shall cause such surveys, examinations and plans to be made as shall demonstrate the practicability of such plan, and furnish the proper basis for an estimate of the cost of carrying out the same. All such surveys, examinations, maps, plans and estimates, shall be made under the direction of a competent irrigation engineer and certified by him. Said board shall then submit a copy of the same to the department of water resources, and within ninety (90) days thereafter the department shall file a report upon the same with said board, which report shall contain such matters as, in the judgment of the department may be desirable.

Upon receiving said report said board of directors shall proceed to determine the amount of money necessary to be raised, and shall immediately thereafter call a special election, at which shall be submitted to the electors of said district possessing the qualifications hereinafter prescribed the question whether or not the bonds of said district, or the right to enter into an obligation with the United States in the manner hereinafter in this title provided, or whether a contractual arrangement with a money-lending institution in the amount as determined, shall be authorized.

Notice of such election must be given by posting notices in three (3) public places in each election precinct in said district at least four (4) weeks before the date of said election, and by publication of the same once a week for four (4) consecutive weeks in a newspaper having general circulation within the district. Notice given by publication in a weekly newspaper shall be published in four (4) consecutive issues thereof, or if in a daily newspaper, at least six (6) days shall elapse between the first and last dates of publication, and in either case, publication shall be completed not less than fifteen (15) days before the election. Such notice must specify the time of holding the election, the qualifications of voters, the amount of bonds proposed to be issued, and, in case such maps and estimates have been made, it shall further state that copies thereof, and in all cases it shall state that said report of the department of water resources, are on file and open to public inspection by the people of the district, at the office of said board and at the office of the department of water resources.

No person who is not a resident holder of title or evidence of title to lands located and subject to assessment within such district, or the wife or husband of such holder of title or evidence of title, shall be entitled to vote at such election. Otherwise said election must be held and the results thereof determined and declared in all respects as nearly as practicable in conformity with the provisions of this title governing the election of directors: provided, that no informalities in conducting such an election shall invalidate the same if the election shall have been otherwise fairly conducted. At such election the ballots shall contain the words “bonds—yes” or “bonds—no,” or other words equivalent thereto. If two-thirds (2/3) of the votes cast are “bonds—yes” the board of directors shall cause bonds in said amount to be issued; if more than one-third (1/3) of the votes cast at any bond election are “bonds—no” the result of such election shall be so declared and entered of record. And whenever thereafter said board in its judgment deems it for the best interest of the district that the question of the issuance of bonds in said amount, or any other amount, shall be submitted to the electors, it shall so declare of record in its minutes, and may thereupon submit such questions to said electors in the same manner and with like effect as at such previous election.

§ 43-402. Form of bonds.

The bonds authorized by any vote shall be designated as a series and the series shall be numbered consecutively as authorized. The portion of the bonds of a series sold at any time shall be designated as an issue, and each issue shall be numbered in its order. The bonds of each issue shall be numbered consecutively, commencing with those earliest falling due. All bonds shall be negotiable in form and payable in money of the United States.

Interest coupons shall be attached thereto, and all bonds and coupons shall be dated on January 1, or July 1 next following the date of their authorization and they shall bear interest, payable semiannually on the first days of January and July of each year. The principal and interest shall be payable at the place designated therein. Said bonds shall be each of the denomination of not less than $100 nor more than $5000, and shall be signed by the president and secretary, and the seal of the board of directors shall be affixed thereto. Coupons attached to each bond shall be signed by the secretary. Said bonds shall express on their face that they were issued by the authority of this title, naming it, and shall also state the number of the issue of which such bonds are a part. The secretary and treasurer shall each keep a record of the bonds sold, their number, the date of sale, the price received, and the name of the purchaser. In case the money raised by the sale of all the bonds be insufficient for the completion of the plans and works adopted, and additional bonds be not voted, it shall be the duty of the board of directors to provide for the completion of said plan by a levy of assessment therefor, in the manner hereinafter provided.

Bonds may be issued with maturities under any one (1) of the following plans:

Plan No. 1, Eleven-Twenty (11-20) Year Bonds. At the expiration of eleven (11) years from each issue, five per cent (5%) of the whole number of bonds of such issue; at the expiration of twelve (12) years, six per cent (6%); at the expiration of thirteen (13) years, seven per cent (7%); at the expiration of fourteen (14) years, eight per cent (8%); at the expiration of fifteen (15) years, nine per cent (9%); at the expiration of sixteen (16) years, ten per cent (10%); at the expiration of seventeen (17) years, eleven per cent (11%); at the expiration of eighteen (18) years, thirteen per cent (13%); at the expiration of nineteen (19) years, fifteen per cent (15%); at the expiration of twenty (20) years, sixteen per cent (16%); provided, that such percentages may be changed sufficiently so that every bond shall be in an amount of $100 or a multiple thereof, and the above provisions shall not be construed to require any single bond to fall due in partial payments.

Plan No. 2, Amortization Plan. Bonds may be issued on the amortization plan covering a period of forty (40) years or less, at the discretion of the board of directors, with the principal payable in annual or semiannual instalments, so arranged as to maturities that the combined principal and interest payments during the entire period shall be approximately the same each year during the life of the issue.

§ 43-403. Form of bonds — Statements enhancing security of bonds.

In case the works of any irrigation district shall have been constructed by the reclamation service of the United States of America, or in case the general plan and estimates of the works have been examined by the reclamation service of the United States of America and declared feasible and practicable by such reclamation service and the works and the lands within such district good security for the payment of the interest and principal of the bonds of such district, such fact shall be stated in said bonds, and in case the sale of such bonds has been approved by the courts, as provided by section 43-406[, Idaho Code], such confirmation and approval may be stated on said bonds by the clerk of the district court, under the seal of said court.

§ 43-404. Apportionment of benefits.

Whenever the electors shall have authorized an issue of bonds as hereinbefore provided, the board of directors shall examine each tract or legal subdivision of land in said district, and shall determine the benefits which will accrue to each of such tracts or subdivisions from the construction or purchase of such irrigation works; and the cost of such works shall be apportioned or distributed over such tracts or subdivisions of land in proportion to such benefits; and the amount so apportioned or distributed to each of said tracts or subdivisions shall be and remain the basis for fixing the annual assessments levied against such tracts or subdivisions in carrying out the purpose of this chapter.

Such board of directors shall make, or cause to be made, a list of such apportionments or distribution, which list shall contain a complete description of each subdivision or tract of land of such district, with the amount and rate per acre of such apportionment or distribution of cost, and the name of the owner thereof; or they may prepare a map on a convenient scale showing each of said subdivisions or tracts with the rate per acre of such apportionment entered thereon: provided, that where all lands on any map or section of a map are assessed at the same rate, a general statement to that effect shall be sufficient.

Said list or map shall be made in duplicate and one (1) copy of each shall be filed in the office of the department of water resources and one (1) copy shall remain in the office of said board of directors for public inspection.

Whenever thereafter any assessment is made either in lieu of bonds, or any annual assessment for raising the interest on bonds, or any portion of the principal, it shall be spread upon the lands in the same proportion as the assessment of benefits, and the whole amount of the assessment of benefits shall equal the amount of bonds or other obligations authorized at the election last above-mentioned.

§ 43-404A. Contracts of payment for rehabilitation.

If the reconstruction, rehabilitation or replacement of dams, structures or works determined necessary in accordance with section 43-401A, Idaho Code, involves a dam, structure or works which also provide water storage, diversion or delivery of water to water users or water user organizations for the use of said water on lands not within the boundaries of the district proposing the improvements, the district (hereinafter referred to as constructing district) may contract with such water users or water user organizations for payment by them, over a period of time not to exceed the period of any bonded indebtedness incurred by the constructing district to finance construction of the improvements, of a proportionate share of the cost of such improvements, including design, construction, land acquisition and other related costs, to include interest on the unpaid balance of said proportionate share of such water users or water user organization at a rate equal to the average rate of interest payable by the constructing district on any bonded indebtedness incurred by it in financing the improvements.

If the water user organization contracting for payment of a proportionate share of the costs of the improvements is an irrigation district (hereinafter referred to as contracting district) organized pursuant to title 43, Idaho Code, the board of directors of such district shall negotiate a proposed contract with the constructing district. Thereafter, the question of entering into the proposed contract shall be submitted to the electors of such contracting district in a manner substantially in conformance with the provisions of section 43-401, Idaho Code. If at least two-thirds (2/3) of the electors approve the execution of the contract, the board shall confirm the proceeding as provided in connection with a bond issue, and following confirmation, the board shall execute the contract and thereafter an annual assessment to provide revenue for payment of the obligation and interest thereon shall be levied and collected on lands within the contracting district in the manner provided for assessment for payment of bonds and interest thereon. The provisions of section 43-404, Idaho Code, shall be applicable to apportionment of benefits accruing under the terms of said contract.

If the water user organization contracting for payment of a proportionate share of the costs of improvements is an operating company entitled to a lien for maintenance charges under chapter 22, title 42, Idaho Code, it shall annually assess and collect the costs of meeting its obligations under the contract as a toll, assessment or charge under chapter 22, title 42, Idaho Code.

If the water user organization contracting for payment of a proportionate share of the costs of the improvements is a lateral ditch water user association organized and operating under chapter 13, title 42, Idaho Code, the annual cost of meeting the association’s obligation under the contract shall be included in the assessment made under section 42-1303, Idaho Code, and chapter 13, title 42, Idaho Code, shall apply to the collection and disbursement of said assessment.

§ 43-405. Apportionment of benefits — Notice and hearing — Appeal.

After the board shall have examined the lands in said district, and before proceeding to make the assessment of benefits and the list and apportionment as provided in the last preceding section, the secretary shall give notice to the owners of said lands that the board will meet at its office on a day to be stated in said notice for the purpose of making such assessment and list and apportionment, and will at such meeting provide a hearing for all parties interested in such proceedings. The secretary shall give such notice by publication in a newspaper published in the county where said office is located in three (3) successive issues if published in a daily newspaper, or by publication in one (1) issue if published in a weekly newspaper, the first of which publications shall be at least fifteen (15) days before the date fixed for said hearing. Additionally, the secretary shall, not less than fifteen (15) days before the date fixed for said hearing, mail notice of the hearing to each owner of such land, if known, or his agent if known, addressed to such person at his post-office address if known, or if unknown, to the post office serving the area wherein his land lies.

At such meeting the board shall proceed to hear all parties interested who may appear, and they shall continue in session from day to day until the assessment is completed. They shall hear all evidence offered, including any maps or surveys which any owners of lands may produce, and they may classify the lands in such way that the assessment when completed shall be just and equitable. Any person interested who shall fail to appear before the board shall not be permitted thereafter to contest said assessment or any part thereof except upon a special application to the court in the proceedings for confirmation of said assessment, showing reasonable excuse for failing to appear before said board of directors. In case any landowner makes objection to said assessment or any part thereof before said board, and said objection is overruled by the said board, and the landowner does not consent to the assessment as finally determined, such objection shall, without further proceedings, be regarded as appealed to the district court and to be heard at the said proceedings to confirm as aforesaid.

§ 43-406. Confirmation of proceedings.

The board of directors of the irrigation district shall file in the district court of the county in which their office is situated a petition, praying in effect that the proceedings aforesaid may be examined, approved and confirmed by the court. The petition shall state generally that the irrigation district was duly organized and the first board of directors elected, that due and lawful proceedings were taken to issue bonds in an amount to be stated, and that said assessment, list and apportionment were duly made and a copy of said assessment, list and apportionment shall be attached to said petition, and that such bonds or a certain amount of such bonds have been legally sold or exchanged, as the case may be, but the petition need not state other facts showing such proceedings: provided, that after the organization of the district is complete, a petition may be filed for the confirmation of the proceedings so far, or after the authorization of any issue of bonds such petition may be so filed or after the sale or exchange of any issue or any portion of an issue of bonds such petition may be so filed, and where the procedure is by separate petitions for the confirmation of different portions of said proceedings, subsequent proceedings may be in the name of reopening of the same case, but shall not be considered as authorizing any rehearing of the matter theretofore heard and decided.

§ 43-407. Confirmation of proceedings — Notice — Rules of procedure.

The court or judge shall fix the time for the hearing of said petition, and shall order the clerk of the court to give a notice of the filing of said petition. Such notice shall be given by publication in a newspaper published in the same county in three (3) successive issues if published in a daily newspaper, or by publication in one (1) issue if published in a weekly newspaper, the first of which publications shall be at least fifteen (15) days before the date fixed for said hearing. Additionally, the notice shall, not less than fifteen (15) days before the date fixed for said hearing, be mailed to each owner of such land, if known, or his agent if known, addressed to such person at his post-office address if known, or if unknown, to the post office serving the area wherein his land lies. The notice shall state the time and place fixed for the hearing of the petition, and the prayer of the petition, and that any person interested in the subject matter of said petition may, on or before the day fixed for the hearing thereof, demur to or answer said petition. None of the pleadings in said matter need be sworn to. Every material statement of the petition not controverted by answer must be taken as true, and every person or party failing to answer the petition shall be deemed to have admitted all the material allegations of the petition. The rules of pleading and practice provided by the Code of Civil Procedure which are not inconsistent with this title are applicable to the special proceedings herein provided for. A motion for a new trial, and all proceedings in the nature of appeals or rehearing, may be had as in any ordinary suit at law.

§ 43-408. Confirmation of proceedings — Hearing and order.

Upon the hearing of such special proceedings, the court shall examine all of the proceedings set up in the petition, and may ratify, approve and confirm said assessment, list, apportionment and distribution, the court shall hear all objections either filed in said proceedings or brought up from the hearing before the board of directors as aforesaid, and for that purpose any person desiring to be heard upon objections overruled by the board of directors, shall state the substance of said objections and the ruling of the board in his answer. The court shall disregard every error, irregularity or omission which does not affect the substantial rights of any party, and if the court shall find that said assessment, list and apportionment are in any substantial matter erroneous or unjust, the same shall not be returned to said board, but the court shall proceed to correct the same so as to conform to this title and the rights of all parties in the premises, and the final order or decree of the court may approve and confirm such proceedings in part, and disapprove other parts of said proceedings; and in case the proceedings for the organization of the district and the issue of bonds are approved, the court shall correct all the errors in the assessment, apportionment and distribution of costs as above provided, and render a final decree approving and confirming all of the said proceedings. In case of the approval of the organization of the district and the disapproval of the proceedings for issuing bonds, the district shall have the right to institute further proceedings for the issue of bonds de novo. The costs of the special proceedings may be allowed and apportioned among the parties thereto in the discretion of the court.

§ 43-409. Sale of bonds — Assessments in lieu of bonds canceled.

The board may sell said bonds from time to time, in such quantities as may be necessary and most advantageous, to raise money for the construction of said canals and works, the acquisition of said property and rights, and otherwise to carry out the object and purposes of this title.

Before making any sale the board shall, by resolution, declare its intention to sell a specified amount of the bonds, and if said bonds can then be sold at their face value and accrued interest, they may be sold without advertisement, otherwise said resolution shall state the day and hour and place of such sale, and shall cause such resolutions to be entered on the minutes, and notice of sale to be given by publication thereof at least four (4) weeks in three (3) newspapers published in the state of Idaho, one (1) of which shall be a newspaper published in the county in which the office of the board of directors is situated, if there be a newspaper published in said county, and in other newspapers at their discretion. Said notice shall state that sealed proposals will be received by the board at their office for the purchase of bonds until the day and hour named in the resolution.

At the time appointed the board shall open the proposals and award the purchase of the bonds to the highest responsible bidder, or may reject all bids; but in case no bids are received, or all bids are rejected, at the time stated in the advertisement, it shall not be again necessary to advertise the sale of the same bonds, but they may be sold at any time until canceled: provided, said board shall in no event sell any of the said bonds for less than the par or face value thereof and accrued interest.

If, for any reason, the duly authorized bonds of a district cannot be sold, or if at any time it shall be deemed for the best interests of the district to withdraw from sale all or any portion of an authorized bond issue, the board of directors may, in their discretion, cancel the same and they may levy assessments to the amount of the bonds canceled: provided, that the revenue derived from said assessments must be employed for the same purpose as was contemplated by the bond authorization; but no levy shall be made to pay for work or material, payment for which was contemplated by bonds which have been authorized, until bonds to the amount of said assessment have been canceled. Assessments made in lieu of bonds canceled shall be collected in the manner, and shall have the same force and effect, as assessments levied under any provision of this title: provided, that such assessment shall not, during any one (1) year, exceed ten per cent (10%) of the total bond issue authorized by such district, unless a greater assessment shall be authorized by a majority vote of the qualified electors of the district voting at a general election or a special election called for that purpose, said special election to be held in the manner provided in section 43-321[, Idaho Code].

§ 43-410. Payment of contractor with bonds.

In lieu of the sale of bonds as provided in section 43-409[, Idaho Code], and the payment for construction work in cash, as provided in section 43-901[, Idaho Code], bonds authorized by the vote of the district for the purpose of acquiring or constructing irrigation works may be issued and delivered by the board of directors directly to the contractor in payment for such construction work.

§ 43-411. Payment of bonds and interest.

Said bonds and the interest thereon shall be paid by revenue derived from the assessment upon the land in the district; and all the land in the district shall be and remain liable to be assessed for such payment: provided, that payment of interest may be made in accordance with the provisions of chapter 5 of this title; and provided also that the board of directors may fix rates of tolls and charges for use of water from the canals and irrigation system of the district, proportionate to the assessment and apportionment of benefits, for the purpose of paying the whole or any part of the principal or interest or both then due or next thereafter to become due. Where a toll is fixed for the payment of bond principal or interest, any portion of such toll remaining unpaid at the time fixed for levying the next annual assessment for payment of bond principal or interest, shall be added to and become part of the assessment against the land delinquent in the payment of such toll. The board in its order fixing or levying such tolls may fix the date or dates on or before which the same must be paid, may make the same payable in advance of the delivery of any water during the year for which the same are fixed, and may make provision for the collection thereof and the keeping of a toll book by the district treasurer.

§ 43-412. Redemption of bonds.

Upon the presentation of the coupons due to the treasurer, he shall pay the same from the bond fund. Whenever, after ten (10) years from the issuance of said bonds, said fund shall amount to the sum of $10,000, the board of directors may direct the treasurer to pay such an amount of said bonds not due as the money in said fund will redeem, at the lowest value at which they may be offered for liquidation, after advertising for at least four (4) weeks in some newspaper published in the county, and in other newspapers which said board may deem advisable, for sealed proposals for the redemption of said bonds. Said proposals shall be opened by the board in open meeting, at a time to be named in the notice, and the lowest bids for said bonds must be accepted: provided, that no bond shall be redeemed at a rate above par. In case the bids are equal, the lowest numbered bond shall have the preference. In case none of the holders of said bonds shall desire to have the same redeemed, as herein provided for, said money shall be invested by the treasurer under the direction of the board, in United States bonds or the bonds or warrants of the state, or municipal or school bonds, which shall be kept in said bond fund and may be used to redeem said district bonds whenever the holders thereof may desire.

§ 43-413. Safety fund for payment of bonds and contract obligations.

The board of directors of any irrigation district organized under the laws of this state, may, when in the opinion of the board it will improve the credit of the district, or the marketability of the district bonds, or tend to reduce the rate of interest necessary to be paid thereon, or in any other way be to the benefit of the district, provide by the adoption of a suitable resolution of the board of directors for inserting in the bonds of the district or the district contract of the United States, an agreement to the effect that a safety fund will be provided to insure the payment of the district’s obligations under the bonds or contract. Said resolution shall provide that the safety fund provided for in this section may be funded through either or both of the following methods:

1. by making all annual levies for payment of the principal or interest of such bonds or the obligation of such contract (until a safety fund of at least ten per cent (10%) of the unpaid bonded indebtedness or contract indebtedness of the district has been created), fifteen per cent (15%) in excess of the amount which would be required to meet such obligations if all district taxes were paid without delinquency,
2. by depositing in said safety fund from the proceeds of sale of such bonds an amount equal to at least ten per cent (10%) of the original principal amount of the issue of bonds.

Said safety fund shall be used to meet any deficiency which might otherwise occur in the payment of the principal and interest of said bonds or contract obligations as set forth in the resolution providing for the safety fund and said safety fund shall be kept intact by initiating or renewing such fifteen per cent (15%) excess levies whenever such safety fund is reduced below ten per cent (10%) of the unpaid bonded indebtedness or United States contract indebtedness of the district and continuing the same until such safety fund is again brought up to at least ten per cent (10%) of such unpaid bond or contract indebtedness.

Whenever such agreement shall have been inserted in the bonds or contract of any irrigation district, all levies thereafter made in such district shall be made in full compliance with such agreement until such bonds or contracts have been fully paid.

§ 43-414. Interim notes.

In addition to the permanent financing contemplated in this chapter, the board of any district may borrow money and issue interim notes in evidence thereof whenever it is deemed advisable and in the interests of the district to borrow funds temporarily for any of the purposes herein provided in advance of permanent financing. No election shall be required on the issuance of interim notes. The board may, from time to time and pursuant to appropriate resolution, borrow money and issue interim notes to evidence borrowing for the purpose of obtaining funds for any of the purposes authorized in this chapter. Any resolution authorizing the issuance of interim notes shall describe generally the purpose for which such notes are to be issued and shall specify the principal amount, rate of interest and maturity date, which shall be the same for all interim notes and which shall be not to exceed five (5) years from the date of issue of such notes, and such other pertinent terms as may be specified in such resolution. The interim notes shall be issued from time to time by the board as funds are borrowed in the manner the board may determine. Interest on the interim notes may be made payable semiannually, annually or at maturity. The interim notes may be made redeemable prior to maturity at the option of the board in the manner and upon the terms fixed by the resolution authorizing their issuance. Such interim notes shall be sold at such price or prices as may be determined by resolution of the board. All such interim notes and the interest thereon may be secured by a pledge of the proceeds of assessments to be levied and collected by the board pursuant to the provisions of section 43-404, Idaho Code, representing the amount of benefits which will accrue to each tract or legal subdivision of land in the district based upon the allocation of the cost of the project for which permanent financing has been authorized to each such tract or legal subdivision of land, but only when there shall have been held, in said district, an election on the right of the district to issue bonds for said project, which bonds shall have been approved at said election, and which election shall have been called, held and conducted in the manner now or hereafter provided in this chapter. Said interim notes and the interest thereon shall be payable solely from such assessments and from the proceeds to be derived from the sale of any bonds for permanent financing authorized to be issued pursuant to this chapter, provided, however, that none of the provisions of this title requiring the filing of a petition for confirmation of proceedings taken in connection with a bond issue of any district shall apply to interim notes of said district. Contemporaneously, with the issuance of the bonds as provided by this chapter, all interim notes, even though they may not have then matured, shall be paid, both principal and interest and applicable premium, if any, to date of payment, from the funds derived from the sale of bonds authorized hereunder for the permanent financing, and such interim notes shall thereupon be surrendered and canceled.

§ 43-501. Issuance and sale authorized.

In any irrigation district now organized or hereafter to be organized, for any portion of the time from the time said bonds begin to bear interest until five (5) years after the irrigation works of such district have been completed and water used in the irrigation of the lands in such district, in lieu of paying the interest on said bonds by revenues derived from the assessments on the lands in the district, the board of directors may pay any part of such interest with the proceeds of the sale of coupon bonds of such district to be issued and sold by them for said purpose.

§ 43-503. Form of bonds.

Any bonds authorized by any vote of any special election held under the provisions of section 43-502[, Idaho Code,] shall be in the form and in all respects conform to all the provisions of chapter 4 of this title, governing and describing the form and contents of the bonds of irrigation districts.

§ 43-504. Lien of bonds.

Any bonds issued and sold under the provisions of this chapter shall have the same lien and priority of lien upon the lands embraced in said irrigation district as any bonds of the district issued under chapter 4 of this title.

§ 43-601. Refunding bonds authorized.

The board of directors of any irrigation district organized under the laws of the state of Idaho may issue negotiable coupon bonds, to be denominated refunding bonds, for the purpose of refunding any of the bonded indebtedness of the district, whether due or not due, or which has or may hereafter become payable at the option of the district or by consent of the bondholders, or by any lawful means, whether such bonded indebtedness be now existing or may hereafter be created, and there shall not be funds in the treasury of such district available for the payment or redemption of such bonds and the accrued and unpaid interest thereon; but the amount of such refunding bonds to be issued under the provisions of this chapter shall first be determined by such directors, and a certificate of such determination shall be made and entered in and upon the records of said district prior to the issuance of said refunding bonds.

§ 43-603. Amount — Dates of maturity — Rate of interest.

If upon canvassing the vote cast at any election held under the provisions of this chapter it shall be determined by the board of directors that a majority of the legal votes cast upon the question submitted are in favor of refunding, the board of directors shall make such determination a part of the official records of the district, and shall immediately thereafter adopt and make a part of the records of said district a resolution providing for the issue of said refunding bonds in accordance with the provisions of this chapter. Such resolution may provide that the refunding bonds so authorized will be issued in one or more series, shall designate the denomination or denominations thereof, fix the date or dates of said refunding bonds, the rate or rates of interest, the maturity date or dates, the place or places, within or without the state of Idaho, for payment of both principal and interest and shall prescribe the form of said refunding bonds. Such refunding bonds shall be negotiable in form, shall recite the title of the act under which they are issued, shall be executed in the name of the district and signed by the president, with the seal of the district affixed thereto, and attested by the secretary. The interest accruing on such refunding bonds shall be evidenced by interest coupons thereto attached, bearing the engraved facsimile signature of the treasurer of the district and when so executed such coupons shall be the binding obligations of the district according to their import. In the adoption of said resolution providing for the issue of such refunding bonds, the directors may, in their discretion, within the limits of the authority granted by the voters at the refunding bond election, make the principal of the debt or of each instalment of the debt, as the case may be, payable in certain specified sums, at certain specified times during the currency of the period (not exceeding forty (40) years) within which the debt or each instalment of the debt, as the case may be, is to be discharged: provided, that the first instalment of the debt evidenced by said refunding bonds shall be payable not more than ten (10) years from the date of said refunding bonds, and the instalments thereafter shall be of such amounts that the total thereof shall equal the aggregate principal indebtedness; and the directors may issue the refunding bonds of the district for the amounts and payable at the times corresponding with such specified sums, together with interest, payable semiannually, as may be set forth and provided by such resolution.

§ 43-604. Sale, exchange and registration.

All or any part of such refunding bonds may be exchanged, dollar for dollar, for the bonds to be refunded, or they may be sold, at not less than their par value, as directed by the board of directors, and the proceeds thereof shall be applied only to the purposes for which said refunding bonds are issued. The authority vested in the board of directors by any election held pursuant to the provisions of this chapter shall be and remain effective until all of the bonded indebtedness so authorized to be refunded has been paid, redeemed or refunded. At the time of the issue, by exchange or sale, of refunding bonds authorized under the provisions of this chapter, each bond shall be registered by the treasurer of the district, in a book to be kept by him for such purpose, and interest thereon shall begin to run only from the date of such registration. Coupons evidencing unearned interest shall be detached and canceled. Each bond, so registered, shall bear thereon indorsed the treasurer’s certificate of such registration, and only such bonds as shall bear such certificate shall be valid; but such certificate shall be conclusive evidence that the bond so certified has been duly issued in full conformity with the provisions of this chapter. All district bonds redeemed under the provisions of this chapter shall thereupon be canceled by the district treasurer, and a record of such cancellation made and preserved in the records of his office.

§ 43-605. Nonpayment when due.

Whenever any coupon or coupons detached from any refunding bonds issued in conformity with the provisions of this chapter are presented for payment on or after the due date or dates thereof, and there shall not be funds available for the payment of such coupon or coupons, the district treasurer shall indorse on the back thereof: “Presented for payment . . . . (here insert date). Not paid for want of funds,” keeping a record of such presentation for payment and such nonpayment; and all coupons so indorsed shall bear interest from that date until paid at the rate specified in the refunding bonds, which interest shall be paid out of the moneys arising from penalties and interest collected upon delinquent assessments for bond interest upon redemption from such delinquent assessments, and, if such moneys so arising shall not be sufficient for such purpose, then the deficiency shall be raised by an increase in the next annual interest levy to be made as provided in section 43-608[, Idaho Code].

§ 43-606. Payment — Apportionment of benefits.

Whenever the electors shall have authorized an issue of refunding bonds as herein provided, the board of directors shall, as soon thereafter as practicable and before the issuance or sale of any such refunding bonds, determine the benefits which will accrue to each of the several tracts or subdivisions of land within such irrigation district from the issuance of such refunding bonds; and the amount of such refunding bond issue shall be apportioned or distributed over such tracts or subdivisions of land in proportion to such benefits; and the amount so apportioned or distributed to each of said tracts or subdivisions shall be and remain the basis for levying all taxes for the payment of the principal and interest of such refunding bonds. The board of directors shall make, or cause to be made, a list of such apportionment or distribution of benefits, which list shall contain a complete description of each tract or subdivision of land within such district, with the amount and rate per acre of such apportionment or distribution of benefits, and the name of the owner thereof, if known; or the same may be shown on the map of the district with the rate per acre of such apportionment entered or designated thereon: provided, that where all lands on any map or sections of a map are assessed at the same rate a general statement to that effect shall be sufficient. Said list or map shall be made in duplicate, and one (1) copy shall be filed in the office of the department of water resources and one (1) copy shall remain in the office of the board of directors for public inspection. Whenever thereafter any assessment is made or tax levied for the payment of interest or principal of such refunding bonds, it shall be spread upon the lands in the same proportion as the assessment of benefits, and the whole amount of the assessment of benefits shall equal the amount of such refunding bonds.

§ 43-607. Hearings — Confirmation of proceedings.

The proceedings of the board of directors for apportioning such benefits and the giving of notice of hearings for such purposes shall be substantially the same as may be provided by law for the apportionment of benefits in the case of original bond issues; and all proceedings of the board of directors relative to the authorization and sale of such refunding bonds and the holding of said election and the apportionment of such benefits shall, before the issuance and sale of any of said bonds, be examined, approved and confirmed by the district court of the county in which the office of the district is situated, substantially in the manner provided by law for the confirmation of proceedings of the board of directors relative to original bond issues; and all the provisions of the statutes relative to the confirmation of the proceedings relative to original bond issues of irrigation districts shall apply to the confirmation of proceedings under this chapter.

§ 43-608. Levy and collection of taxes.

The board of directors of the district shall annually at the time provided by law for making tax levies for original bond issues, or as soon thereafter as practicable, levy a separate tax for the purpose of discharging the interest upon and the principal of any refunding bonds issued, registered and outstanding pursuant to the provisions of this chapter. Such taxes shall be levied and collected in the manner provided by law for the levy and collection of taxes for the payment of interest and principal of original bond issues, and such refunding bonds and the interest thereon shall be paid from the revenue derived from the annual assessment on the land in the district and all the land in the district shall be and remain liable to be assessed for such payment.

§ 43-609. Lien of taxes.

All taxes for interest on and for the redemption of such refunding bonds shall be a lien on the taxable property of the district prior to all other liens, except the lien of general, state, county and school district taxes. Taxes levied for the payment of interest shall be payable in cash only, or by means of interest coupons detached from the refunding bonds issued under the provisions of this chapter, and maturing during the year in which such taxes are by law made payable; taxes levied for the payment of principal indebtedness shall be payable in cash only, or by means of refunding bonds issued under the provisions of this chapter, and maturing during the year in which such taxes are by law made payable. All taxes for interest shall be kept by the treasurer of the district as a special fund, to be used in payment of interest only; and all taxes for the redemption of such refunding bonds shall be kept by such district treasurer as a special fund, to be used for the redemption only of the principal of such refunding bonds.

§ 43-610. Refunding bonds — Issuance upon resolution of board.

Whenever the board of directors of an irrigation district deems it for the best interests of the district to issue refunding bonds under this chapter without holding an election, a resolution may be adopted by the unanimous vote of the board of directors and made a part of the records of said district, dispensing with the calling and holding of an election as provided by this chapter. Such resolution shall specify the amount, date and maturities and amount of interest due on the bonds to be refunded, the amount and date of the refunding bonds proposed to be issued, whether the same will comprise one or more issues, the denomination or denominations thereof, the rate of interest they shall bear, which shall not exceed the rate of interest provided for in the bonds to be refunded, the place or places within or without the state of Idaho for payment of both principal and interest thereon, and the time or times when the debt evidenced by such refunding bonds shall be paid and such resolution shall prescribe the form of said refunding bonds; provided, that the said time or times of payment shall not extend beyond a date forty (40) years from the date of such issue of such refunding bonds; and provided further, that provisions shall be made by the board of directors for the payment of the principal of such refunding bonds in suitable annual or semi-annual installments commencing such number of years after the date of the bonds as the board of directors may deem best suited to the needs of the district, with semi-annual interest payments throughout the term such bonds shall run, conforming as nearly as may be practicable to the amortization plan, so called, so that the combined payments of principal and interest shall be approximately the same each year in which any of the refunding bonds authorized by said resolution mature. All of the provisions of this chapter, except as herein otherwise specifically provided, shall apply to refunding bonds issued under the provisions of this section.

§ 43-611. Resolution authorizing bond issue to state issued under this act. — Whenever an irrigation district desires to issue refunding bonds under the authority conferred by sections 43-601

43-610[, Idaho Code], the board of directors of such district shall determine whether the taxes and assessments levied for the payment of such bonds shall be limited as provided in this act, and if the board determines to issue such refunding bonds subject to the provisions of this act, the resolution of the board of directors authorizing the issuance of such refunding bonds, or calling the election for authorizing the issuance thereof, and the bonds so issued, shall expressly state that such bonds are issued under the provisions of this act.

§ 43-612. Liability of tracts of land limited.

When refunding bonds are issued under this act no tract or parcel of land against which benefits have been apportioned or assessed for the payment thereof shall be liable for the payment of more than the amount of the benefits so apportioned and assessed, together with interest thereon at the rate specified in such refunding bonds on the amount of the apportionment of benefits remaining unpaid, and in addition thereto to an assessment not exceeding fifty cents (50¢) per acre per annum for each irrigable acre for an emergency fund as hereinafter provided.

§ 43-613. Payment of assessment a bar to further assessments.

Upon payment of the full amount of benefits apportioned or assessed against any parcel of land, with interest as aforesaid, such land shall thereafter be forever relieved from the payment of any taxes or assessments levied on account of such refunding bonds, except taxes levied for the emergency fund as herein provided.

§ 43-614. Emergency fund — Levy and collection — Disbursement.

The board of directors shall provide an emergency fund which may be used for both or either of the following purposes, to-wit: For temporarily supplementing the bond fund in case of deficiencies due to accidents, delinquencies or other contingencies, or for the purpose of protecting any tax title which the district may acquire on account of taxes levied for the payment of such refunding bonds, by paying and discharging any state and county, or other taxes, the lien of which may be prior or superior to the taxes levied by the district. This emergency fund shall consist of a levy of not to exceed fifty cents (50¢) per acre per annum upon each irrigable acre in the district, and shall be at the same rate per acre for all lands; such levy shall be made annually and at the rate of fifty cents (50¢) per acre during the first five (5) years after the issuance of such refunding bonds, and thereafter, whenever the amount in such emergency fund is less than one dollar and fifty cents ($1.50) per acre for each irrigable acre in the district, the board shall levy an assessment of not to exceed fifty cents (50¢) per acre during any one (1) year. The taxes levied for such emergency fund shall be levied and collected as other taxes and assessments for the payment of the interest and principal of such refunding bonds. All moneys in the emergency fund shall be disbursed by the treasurer of the district upon order of the board of directors.

§ 43-615. Payment of assessments in cash, coupons or bonds.

Any taxes levied for the payment of refunding bonds issued under the provisions of this act, except taxes levied for the emergency fund, may be paid in matured coupons or matured or unmatured bonds for the payment of which such taxes were levied, and the unpaid portion of any benefits apportioned or assessed against any parcel or tract of land, with interest thereon to the next interest paying date on such refunding bonds, may be paid, without any tax having first been levied for the payment thereof, to the treasurer of the district either in lawful money of the United States or by surrendering for cancellation such matured coupons or matured or unmatured bonds, which shall be accepted at their par or face value and when so received such coupons and bonds shall be cancelled.

§ 43-616. Certificate issued upon payment of benefits apportioned against land and recorded.

Whenever the full amount of benefits apportioned against any parcel of land, with interest as herein provided, has been paid, the district shall issue to the owner or person making such payment, a certificate showing payment in full of the benefits so apportioned against such parcel; such certificate shall describe the land on which such apportionment of benefits or assessment has been paid, and shall identify or describe by appropriate reference the bond issue and apportionment of benefits from the payment of which the land so described has been released. Said certificate shall be issued in the name of the district, be signed by the president and secretary thereof and the corporate seal of the district shall be affixed thereto, and shall be acknowledged as conveyances of real property. All such certificates shall be entitled to record in the office of the county recorder of the county where the land is situated. After the apportionment of benefits or assessments against any parcel of land has been paid in full, no taxes or assessments shall be levied against such parcel for the payment of any outstanding bonds of the refunding issue described in such certificate or for the payment of which such assessment of benefits was made; provided, however, that such parcels shall be subject to taxes at not to exceed fifty cents (50¢) per irrigable acre per annum, levied as aforesaid for the emergency fund, until all such refunding bonds have been paid and discharged, with interest thereon as provided by such bonds.

§ 43-617. Maintenance fund repository of unexpended moneys.

Any money remaining in the emergency fund after all such refunding bonds have been paid with interest, and all lands and the proceeds from the sale of lands acquired by the district under taxes levied for the payment of such refunding bonds, shall be converted into the maintenance fund of the district.

§ 43-701. Preparation of assessment book — Levy of assessments.

1. The secretary of the board of directors shall be the assessor of the district, and on or before August 1 of each year shall prepare an assessment book containing a full and accurate list and description of all of the land of the district, and a list of the persons who own, claim or have in possession or control thereof during said year, giving the number of acres listed to each person: provided, that where the property to be listed is described by metes and bounds description, the assessor of the district may give to each tract of land within the district which is described by metes and bounds description an irrigation district assessment number, which number shall be placed on the assessment roll to indicate the certain piece of land bearing such number, and entered on a plat book to indicate what tract is designated by such irrigation district assessment number, and no further description of such land shall be necessary upon the irrigation district assessment roll. The assessor of the district must, in the event irrigation district assessment numbers are used in lieu of the metes and bounds description, on or before the first day of August of each year, file with the board of directors of the district an accurate and complete list of all irrigation district assessment numbers entered on the assessment rolls for the year, showing opposite each number an accurate description of the tract of land designated by such number. Thereafter, in all cases where an irrigation district assessment number is used to designate the same tract of land in the assessment of succeeding year, the assessor of the district shall not include such number in his list of the irrigation district assessment numbers filed with the board of directors of the district.
2. Whenever a tract of land which has been given an irrigation district assessment number is subdivided, the assessor of the district shall give each subdivision a new irrigation district assessment number, which number with an accurate description of the tract of land designated by such new number, shall be included in his list of irrigation district assessment numbers filed with the board of directors; provided, that the owners of two (2) or more lots each of which is less than five (5) acres in size in any subdivision which has been given new assessment numbers may request of the assessor in writing that those lots be combined for assessment purposes, whereupon the assessor shall combine those lots into a single assessment number, which may be the same as the number previously assigned to one (1) of the lots, which number with an accurate description of the lots designated by such number shall be included in his list of irrigation district assessment numbers filed with the board of directors; thereafter, such combined area shall be deemed to be a single parcel for all purposes related to the levy and collection of assessments and all subsequent assessments shall constitute a single lien against the entire combined area. The request to combine the parcels for assessment purposes shall include the name and mailing address of the person designated by the requesting landowners to receive notices from the district. All assessment notices which otherwise would be sent to the individual landowners, shall be sent to the person thus designated, and shall be deemed to have been sent to the owner of each parcel included in the combined area. (3) In all irrigation districts where the collection of assessments is made by county officers as provided for by sections 43-727, 43-728 and 43-729, Idaho Code, said assessment book shall be prepared on or before June fifteenth of each year and the provisions of this section with reference to assessment numbers shall not apply. If the name of the person owning, claiming, possessing or controlling any tract of said land is not known, it shall be listed to unknown owners.

In all districts in which an assessment is levied for the purpose of maintaining and operating the works of said district, at a regular meeting of the board between August 1 and November 8 of each year, the board of directors shall levy an assessment upon all the lands of the district for the expense of maintaining and operating the property of the district; provided, that in all districts where the collection of assessments is made by county officers as provided by sections 43-727, 43-729, Idaho Code, said levy shall be made on or before the third Tuesday of July of each year.

(4) At the time of meeting of the board of directors to levy assessments as in this section provided, the board of directors of the irrigation district are authorized to determine the aggregate amount necessary to be raised for all purposes connected with the maintaining and operating of the works of said district, and may determine the total amount of said sum necessary and required to pay the expense of making the assessment book and extension of the assessments thereon, giving notice of assessments and making collections of assessments, which shall be designated as assessment expense fund. If the district has adopted a flat rate method of assessing residential lots of one (1) acre or less as authorized by section 43-701B, Idaho Code, the share of the assessment expense to be apportioned against the residential lots and the share to be apportioned against the tracts of land assessed by the regular method shall be determined separately so as to allocate as accurately as reasonably possible, between (1) such residential lots and (2) all other parcels, the assessment expenses specified above. The balance of said amount necessary to be raised shall be designated as operation and maintenance fund. The board of directors are authorized to apportion the total amount of assessment expense fund against the several tracts of land as shown on the assessment book, so that each tract shall pay its proportionate share of the cost of making assessments and collections thereof. The amount of said assessment designated operation and maintenance fund shall be spread upon all the lands in the district and shall be proportionate to the benefits received by such lands growing out of the maintenance and operation of the said works of said district. Such assessments shall be carried out by the secretary and entered into an appropriate column on the assessment roll immediately and shall be subject to review by the board of correction hereinafter provided for.

§ 43-701A. Rehabilitation of irrigation works — Levy for preliminary study costs.

If the rehabilitation, reconstruction or replacement of irrigation works is determined necessary by the board of directors and a bond issue authorized by section 43-401A, Idaho Code, or other financing arrangement will be required for the project, the board of a district constructing the works or a district which will pay a proportionate share of the cost of the project may include in its assessment levy under section 43-701, Idaho Code, an amount sufficient to obtain surveys, examinations, plans and professional services necessary to determine the cost or feasibility of the project, or obtain its authorization. If other water user organizations contract with the constructing district for payment of a share of the costs of the project, sums expended by the constructing district or others as herein authorized may be included in total project cost; provided that if the monies so assessed and expended by the constructing district or other participating district are repaid, the district may (i) use the money to meet and offset future expenses or assessments of the district, and/or (ii) refund part or all of said money as an adjustment to the original assessment to the present landowners of the district in proportion to the previous assessments from which said money was obtained; provided further that in the event a district is a nonoperating entity, said district may refund part or all as above provided to the irrigation entities that comprise said district in proportion to the previous assessments to landowners within such irrigation entities levied against the lands of said irrigation entities.

§ 43-701B. Flat rate assessments for tracts of one acre or less.

Notwithstanding the provisions of section 43-701, Idaho Code, whenever the cost of making and collecting assessments against residential tracts, one (1) acre or less in size, is determined by the board of directors to be burdensome on the district and on the owners of such lots, the board may assess all such tracts at a flat rate, to be determined by dividing the total amount assessable against all such tracts by the total number of such tracts, and the flat rate assessments thus determined may be certified to the county officers as specified in section 43-701C, Idaho Code, for collection or may be collected by the district in substantially the same manner that other assessments are collected pursuant to this chapter. The board, in the reasonable exercise of its discretion, may establish the maximum lot size for flat rate assessments at any size within the range between one-fourth (¼) acre and one (1) acre. Tracts included or retained in an irrigation district for drainage purposes only shall be assessed only for drainage costs and may be certified to the county officers on a separate list. The board may, in its discretion, exclude from the flat rate assessment procedure any tracts upon which liens for construction costs exist under the provisions of sections 43-328 through and including 43-330, Idaho Code.

§ 43-701C. Flat rate assessments — Preparation and certification of lists — Changes in legal descriptions.

As soon as possible after the board of directors determines to make flat rate assessments as provided in section 43-701B, Idaho Code, the treasurer of the district shall prepare a list containing the legal description, the assessor’s parcel number and the name and last known address of the owner of record of each residential tract, one (1) acre or less in size, assessed by the district for all purposes, and a separate list in like manner for such tracts assessed only for drainage. The list or lists may be certified by the treasurer to the county auditor of the county in which the lands are situate. When an irrigation district includes lands in more than one (1) county, separate lists may be prepared for each county. When a tract lies partly in one (1) county and partly in one or more other counties, only the portion in any county shall be included in the list for that county if the treasurer is certifying a list or lists to the county auditor. If the legal description of any tract or tracts on any such list differs from the legal description as shown by the assessor’s records, the auditor shall notify the irrigation district treasurer of the discrepancy and the description in the list shall be changed by the irrigation district treasurer, by an addendum, to conform with the assessor’s records; provided, however, that where the discrepancy between the descriptions occurs because a portion of the parcel lies outside the boundaries of the irrigation district, no change in description shall be required, and the irrigation district assessments shall be effective only as to the portions of any such parcel that are within the boundaries of the irrigation district.

§ 43-701D. Flat rate assessments — Collection by county officers.

After any list of tracts has been certified and conformed as provided for in section 43-701C, Idaho Code, the treasurer of the district may notify the appropriate county officers, on or before the third Tuesday of July of each year, of the amount assessed against the tracts identified on each such list, and the amount assessed shall be uniform for all tracts on the same list. After the receipt of any such notification from the treasurer of any irrigation district, the appropriate county officer shall each year enter upon the county assessment roll against the property therein described the levy so made by the board of directors of said district as shown upon the notification furnished to the said county officer as above provided, in manner similar to that in which other municipal, school or highway district assessments are entered by him on said assessment roll, except that the sum assessed and charged against each description of land therein contained for such irrigation district purposes shall be entered by the officer as the operation and maintenance assessment or the drainage assessment of the (name of district) irrigation district against the same. Such district operation and maintenance tax shall be collected and accounted for by the county officers in the same manner as other municipal taxes and paid over to the district treasurer together with any penalties or interest collected thereon, and the collection thereof shall be enforced in the same manner, and neglect to pay the same shall be subject to the same penalties as the other taxes of the county; provided, however, that the collection of such district assessments by such county officers, as herein provided, shall not make the bonds, contracts and interest due from such irrigation districts the obligation of such county or counties.

§ 43-701E. Flat rate assessments — Special handling of unpaid assessments on property exempt from general taxation.

Any irrigation district assessment certified by the treasurer to the county officers which is placed on property exempt from general ad valorem taxation may be returned to the irrigation district if the assessment is not paid within three (3) years of the date on which it is due, and upon return of any such assessment the district shall be responsible for collection thereof, and the county officers shall be relieved of any further responsibility for collection of that assessment. Entry of delinquent assessments and the penalties thereon by the tax collector in accordance with chapter 10, title 63, Idaho Code, shall constitute compliance with the provisions of sections 43-710 and 43-711, Idaho Code, and the treasurer of the district shall not be required to make any separate delinquency entry with respect to any parcel of property to which this section applies.

§ 43-701F. Flat rate assessments — Assessment and collection expenses.

The costs incurred by the irrigation district in preparing and certifying any list of tracts as provided for in section 43-701C, Idaho Code, shall be assessed against the tracts described in that list, at the same amount for each tract, and the amount so assessed shall be included in the first notification made by the irrigation district treasurer to the county as provided for in section 43-701D, Idaho Code, if the district is utilizing the county for collecting the assessment. Thereafter all tracts on any one list shall be regarded as a single tract for determining assessment expense as provided for in section 43-701, Idaho Code. The county commissioners initially shall levy an additional fee against the tracts described in any such list for the cost of transferring and conforming the list and initiating the collection process, at a uniform amount for each tract, and may levy annually an additional assessment for the current cost of collection and remittance to the district, at a uniform amount for each tract.

§ 43-701G. Flat rate assessments — Accelerated collection of indebtedness.

In order to implement the flat rate assessments authorized in section 43-701B, Idaho Code, the board of directors, before any list of tracts is certified to the county officers as provided for in section 43-701C, Idaho Code, or before the list is used by the district for collection of flat rate assessments utilizing its own personnel and procedures, shall assess, against all tracts it has determined to assess at a flat rate as in this chapter provided, the entire unpaid balance of principal and any accrued interest on any contract or bonded indebtedness apportioned to each such tract. If any landowner shall object to such assessment, his tract of land shall not be included in the list certified to the county officers, and that tract shall be assessed by the district in the regular manner for all purposes, instead of under the flat rate procedure authorized in this chapter.

§ 43-701H. Flat rate assessments — Water rights not affected.

Conversion by an irrigation district to the flat rate assessment procedure authorized in this chapter shall not affect in any manner the water rights appurtenant to or allocated to any tract of land in the irrigation district.

§ 43-701I. Recharge projects — Levy for preliminary study costs — Purchase or lease of water.

If a ground water recharge project within all or part of the district is or may be deemed necessary by the board of directors of an irrigation district and a bond issue or other method of financing the project will be required, the board of directors may levy an assessment pursuant to section 43-701, Idaho Code, proportionate to the benefits received by the various tracts of land within all or part of the district, in an amount sufficient to obtain data, surveys, examinations, plans and professional services necessary to determine the cost or feasibility of the project, to purchase or lease water necessary for the project under such terms as are in compliance with section 42-222, Idaho Code, or to obtain authorization for the project. The board of directors may contract with any state or federal agency as well as any individual, firm, partnership, association, corporation or other recognized legal entity in order to obtain the data, surveys, examinations, plans or professional services that are required pursuant to this section.

§ 43-701DD. Flat rate assessments — Collection by district. — If the district has adopted a flat rate method of assessing residential lots of one (1) acre or less as authorized by section 43-701B, Idaho Code, and if the district has elected not to have that assessment collected by county officers pursuant to section 43-701D, Idaho Code, the assessment shall be collected by the district in substantially the same manner that other assessments are collected pursuant to this chapter.

§ 43-702. Notice of correction of assessments.

Within ten (10) days after the date of levying the assessment as provided in section 43-701[, Idaho Code], the secretary of the board must give notice of the time the board of directors will meet to correct assessments, by publication in a newspaper published in each of the counties comprising the district, which notice shall be published weekly for a period of two (2) weeks. The time fixed for the meeting shall not be less than two (2) weeks, nor more than five (5) weeks from the first publication of the notice. In the meantime the assessment books must remain in the office of the secretary for the inspection of all persons interested.

§ 43-703. Board of correction.

Upon the day specified in the notice required by the preceding section of the meeting, the board of directors, which is hereby constituted a board of corrections for that purpose, shall meet and continue in session, from day to day, as long as may be necessary not to exceed five (5) days, exclusive of holidays, and may make such changes in said assessment book as may be necessary to make it conform to the facts. In the event that the time set for the board of directors to meet to correct assessments should coincide with the time of the regular meeting of the board, the board of directors will in addition to their regular duties be regarded as sitting as a board of correction as above provided. Assessments levied for maintenance and operation of the district as provided in section 43-701[, Idaho Code,] may be reviewed by the board of correction upon the request of any person interested. Within five (5) days after the close of said session the secretary of the board shall have the corrected assessment book complete.

§ 43-704. Levy of assessments.

At a regular meeting between August 1 and November 8 of each year the board of directors shall levy an assessment upon the lands in said district upon the basis, and in the proportion, of the list and apportionment of benefits approved by the court as hereinbefore provided, which assessment shall be sufficient to pay principal of and interest on the outstanding bonds of the district as the same fall due. The secretary of the board must compute and enter in a separate column of the assessment book the respective sums, in dollars and cents, to be paid as an assessment on the property therein enumerated. When collected, the assessment shall be paid into the district treasury and shall constitute a special fund to be called “Bond fund of . . . . irrigation district.”

In case any assessment should be made for the purpose contemplated by a bond authorization, it shall be entered in a separate column of the assessment book in the same manner as the bond fund; and when collected shall constitute the “Construction fund of . . . . irrigation district.”

§ 43-706. Lien of assessment.

All assessments shall be liens against the property assessed from and after the first Monday in March of any year, the lien for the bonds of any series shall be a preferred lien to that of any subsequent series, except as in this title otherwise provided, and such lien shall not be removed until the assessments are paid or the property sold for the payment thereof.

§ 43-707. Payment of assessments — When delinquent.

Except in districts which have prior to such assessment entered into contracts with the United States requiring payments to the United States on or before December first of that year, on or before the first day of November the secretary must deliver the assessment book to the treasurer of the district, who shall within ten (10) days publish a notice in a newspaper published in each county in which any portion of the district may lie, that said assessments are due and payable and will become delinquent if not postmarked by or received by five o’clock p.m. on the twentieth day of December next thereafter, and also the times and places at which the payment of the assessments may be made, which notice shall be published for the period of two (2) weeks. If the twentieth day of December falls on a Saturday or Sunday, the assessment postmark or receipt deadline shall be the following Monday. The treasurer must attend at the times and places specified in the notice to receive assessments, which must be paid in lawful money of the United States: provided, that maintenance warrants of the district may be accepted as cash in the hands of the original owner for the payment of the maintenance assessments; and that matured bonds of the district and the accrued interest coupons detached from any of the bonds of the district, when presented by landowners within the irrigation district, may be accepted as cash in payment of assessments levied for bond interest and principal, and in the event that the said bonds so used are of a greater denomination than the said assessments the treasurer shall indorse upon said bond or bonds the amount necessary to pay said assessment or assessments and the date of said payment, and take a receipt from such bond holder for the amount so credited, and either such receipt describing the bond so indorsed or such indorsement shall be prima facie evidence that the said sum so indorsed has been paid on said bond or bonds. He must mark the date of payment of any assessment in the assessment book opposite the name of the person paying and give a receipt to such person, specifying the amount of the assessment and the amount paid with a description of the property assessed. Unpaid assessments for the current year are delinquent if not postmarked by or received by five o’clock p.m. on the twentieth day of December or the following Monday should the twentieth day of December fall on a Saturday or Sunday; provided, that if any person pays one-half (½) of his assessment before it becomes delinquent as aforesaid, the remaining one-half (½) shall not become delinquent until the twentieth day of June at five o’clock p.m. of each year if not received or postmarked by the same, or the following Monday should the twentieth day of June fall on a Saturday or Sunday.

Where subdivided parcels have been combined for assessment purposes as permitted by section 43-701, Idaho Code, payment of any assessment against the parcels in the combined area shall be made by the designated person or by someone acting under his authority, by a single remittance or, if payment is made in two (2) installments, then by two (2) remittances. It shall be the responsibility of the owners of the parcels within the combined area to determine their respective shares of the assessment and to provide funds to the designated person for payment of their respective shares thereof.

The treasurer of the district shall not be required to accept partial payments of any installment of an assessment.

§ 43-707A. Acceptance of personal or other nonguaranteed forms of payment.

1. Notwithstanding any other provisions of title 43, Idaho Code, irrigation district treasurers may accept personal or other nonguaranteed forms of payment including, but not limited to, drafts, checks, or credit or debit cards if:
   1. The remitter identifies by legal description or assessment number the parcel for which the payment is tendered.
   2. The amount for which the personal or other nonguaranteed form of payment is presented is the exact amount of the assessment due, including, where a delinquency exists and a tax deed has not been issued, penalties, interest and county redemption fees.
2. The following procedures shall be followed in processing payments by personal or other nonguaranteed forms of payment:
   1. The assessment number of the identified parcel shall be entered on the transaction receipt.
   2. The treasurer shall, upon request, prepare the current tax receipt or redemption certificate or both, and deliver them to the remitter. Such receipts shall be invalid, and shall so state, if payment is refused by the bank, financial institution or other entity on which it is drawn. Any personal or other nonguaranteed forms of payment upon which payment is refused will be noted in the records of the treasurer and notice of nonpayment shall be delivered to the county recorder. The notation and notice of nonpayment shall be sufficient reversal of any entries made upon the books of the district treasurer and upon the lien records of the county recorder.
   3. Notice shall be sent to the remitter that payment has not been received, that the receipts and releases are therefore invalid and withdrawn, and that the failed payment can be redeemed by payment with United States currency or a guaranteed draft or money order in the amount of the original payment plus the additional interest accrued, plus a repetition of the county filing fees, and plus a handling charge not to exceed twenty-five dollars ($25.00).
   4. Remitters choosing to pay assessments by personal or other nonguaranteed forms of payment may be responsible for any additional transaction, processing or convenience fees incurred by the irrigation district.
3. Full compliance with the procedures enumerated in this section shall exempt the treasurer from any personal liability for the acceptance of personal or other nonguaranteed forms of payment.

§ 43-708. Delinquent assessments — Entry on roll — Effect — Penalties for delinquencies.

On or before the second Monday of January of each year succeeding the year in which the assessments are levied the treasurer shall carry out and enter all delinquent assessments, with the penalties thereon, on the assessment roll, which entry shall be considered to be dated as of the first day of January in such succeeding year, and shall have the force and effect of a sale to the treasurer of the district as grantee in trust for the district for all lands entered upon the assessment roll upon which one-half (½) or more of the original amount of such assessments have not been paid before delinquency.

On or before the second Monday of July of such succeeding year the treasurer shall make delinquency entries as hereinbefore described for all lands entered on the assessment roll on which the remaining one-half (½) of the original amount of such assessment has not been paid before delinquency, which entries shall also be considered to be dated as of January first of such year.

The penalties required to be added on delinquent assessments shall be two per cent (2%) of the amount remaining unpaid and the treasurer shall collect such delinquent assessments with such penalty added, together with interest on the amount of such delinquent assessments at the rate of one per cent (1%) per month from said first day of January until redemption, provided that where such penalties and interest do not aggregate the sum of one dollar ($1.00) on any one assessment number, the treasurer shall not be required to collect such penalty and interest.

Provided, that if the first half (½) of such taxes be not paid prior to the said twentieth day of December, the amount of such one-half (½), plus a penalty of two per cent (2%) thereof with interest on the total at the rate of one per cent (1%) per month from the date of delinquency may be paid at any time between the third Monday of January in the year succeeding the year in which such taxes are levied and the twentieth day of June next thereafter, and, in the event of such payment, the second one-half (½) of such taxes may be paid thereafter, without penalty, at any time between the two (2) dates last above-mentioned.

§ 43-709. Delinquent assessments — Certificate of amount collected.

On or before the third Monday of January of each year succeeding the year in which the assessments were levied, the treasurer shall make his certificate to the secretary of the district showing the amount of such assessments collected into the several funds before date of delinquency and the amounts of such assessments which have become delinquent, and on or before the third Monday of July of such year the treasurer shall make a certificate to the secretary of the district showing the amounts of the second installments of such assessment which have been collected into the several funds before date of delinquency and the amounts of such second installments which have become delinquent.

§ 43-710. List of delinquency entries where redemptions not made.

On or before the fourth Monday of July of the year succeeding the year in which such assessments were levied, the treasurer shall compile a list of such delinquency entries in cases where redemptions have not been made, which list shall contain the description of the lands covered by such delinquency entries, the name of the person to whom they were assessed, together with the amount of such delinquent assessments with said penalty, numbering each entry on such list consecutively in the order such entries appear on the assessment roll, and in case such list is not in the alphabetical order of the names of the persons to whom the property was assessed, he shall supplement such list with such alphabetical index.

§ 43-711. Delinquency list — Filing of certified copy.

On or before the fourth Monday of July of the year succeeding the year in which such assessments were levied, the treasurer shall file a certified copy of the delinquency list as provided in the preceding section with the county recorder of the county in which the lands covered by the various delinquent assessments are located, which list shall be kept with the records of said county recorder in a book to be furnished by the district designated, “Record of Delinquent Assessments . . . . . Irrigation District.” Upon receiving such certified list, the recorder shall enter the same on his reception book and be entitled to a filing fee of twenty-five dollars ($25.00) therefor.

§ 43-712. Delinquent assessments — Redemption of land.

After delinquency and prior to three (3) years from the date of entry of such delinquency, and thereafter until assessment deed is issued by the treasurer, redemption of lands may be made by paying to the treasurer an amount equal to the delinquent assessments thereon, plus the penalty of two percent (2%) thereon, together with interest at the rate of one percent (1%) per month from the date of delinquency entry until paid. Upon redemption, the treasurer shall note the redemption on the delinquent list and shall issue a redemption certificate in triplicate, showing the name of the redemptioner, the amount paid in redemption, description of lands redeemed, year in which assessment was levied, and the delinquency entry number, delivering one (1) copy to the redemptioner, and in case the land being redeemed has been included in a list filed with the county recorder, he shall file one (1) copy with the county recorder of the county in which the land is located, and thereupon the county recorder shall enter the redemption opposite the corresponding entry in his record of delinquent assessments, for which service he shall be entitled to charge a fee as provided by section 31-3205, Idaho Code, which fee shall be added to the amount necessary for redemption paid by the redemptioner, and be transmitted to the county recorder by the district treasurer.

If the property on which the assessments are delinquent is not redeemed within the time hereinbefore limited, and if the assessment deed for the delinquency is made by the treasurer to the district, such property may nevertheless be redeemed by the owner thereof, or by any party in interest, up to the time a sale of the property is made by the board of directors and deed or contract for sale is delivered to the purchaser, by paying to the district treasurer the amount of all unpaid assessments levied or assessed against the said property to the time of redemption together with penalty and interest thereon and also by paying assessments for the year or years since the date of issuance of assessment deed to the district together with penalty and interest thereon, and all costs incurred for a sale of the property by the district, and the sum of two dollars ($2.00) for redemption deed from the district, and all other fees and charges for redemption otherwise prescribed by law. All assessments accruing against such property subsequent to the issuance of deed to the district shall be extended by the treasurer and be computed according to the authorized levies for the year or years to be extended. Upon payment to the district treasurer of the amounts required to be paid as herein provided, the district treasurer must issue a redemption deed to the redemptioner.

§ 43-713. Alternate system of payment in instalments of delinquent assessments of districts.

Notwithstanding the provisions of 43-712 as amended, 43-715, and 43-716[, Idaho Code,] as amended, redemption of the assessments levied for the years 1935 to 1940, inclusive, or any of them, may be made in accordance with the following formula:

If a redemptioner shall, on or before the third Monday of December, 1941, pay the oldest half year’s delinquency, plus the penalty and interest thereon, and shall also pay the first half of the assessment levied for the year 1939, the period of redemption on the remaining delinquency shall be automatically extended to the third Monday of June, 1942, and if, before the third Monday of June, 1942 he shall pay the next oldest half year’s delinquency, plus the penalty and interest thereon, and shall also pay the second half of the assessment levied for the year 1941, the period of redemption on the remaining delinquency shall be automatically extended to the third Monday of December, 1942; and thereafter, so long as the redemptioner continues to pay one-half (½) year’s delinquency and one-half (½) year’s current undelinquent assessment before the next semiannual tax delinquency date, the period of redemption on the remaining delinquency shall be automatically extended to the next following semiannual tax delinquency date. In all cases where the district treasurer has heretofore complied with the provisions of sections 43-717 and 43-718[, Idaho Code,] by giving the notice therein required, such notice need not again be given, mailed or published. This act shall not be construed to reduce the period of redemption of three (3) years now provided by sections 43-712 as amended, 43-715 and 43-716[, Idaho Code,] as amended.

§ 43-714. Restricting application of alternate system of payment.

The provisions of this act shall not apply to irrigation districts which have arranged for the collection of the district assessments by county officers under the provisions of sections 43-728 to 43-730[, Idaho Code,] inclusive.

§ 43-714A. Definitions.

Words and terms used in this chapter, unless the context otherwise requires, are defined as follows:

1. “District” means an irrigation district organized under the provisions of title 43, Idaho Code.
2. “Board” means the board of directors of a district.
3. “Treasurer” means the duly appointed officer of an irrigation district, and his or her deputies or employees. Such treasurer acts as ex officio tax collector for the purposes of this chapter.
4. The term “delinquent assessments” as herein used shall be deemed and construed to include all general and special assessments and charges for operation and maintenance, bond or loan contract payments, or other authorized expenditures, entered in irrigation district assessment rolls, not paid when due, and collectible in the manner provided in chapter 7, title 43, Idaho Code.
5. “Facsimile” means the reproduction or supplying of an exact copy from an original document.
6. “Party in interest” means a person or persons, partnership, corporation, business venture, or other entity that holds a recorded purchase contract, mortgage, deed of trust, or lease in and for the property for which a delinquency entry has been made. For purposes of notice requirements in this chapter, recording includes documents recorded in full or by memorandum providing notice thereof.
7. “Record owner or owners” means the person or entity in whose name or names the property stands upon the records in the county recorder’s office. Where the record owners are husband and wife at the time the notice described in section 43-717, Idaho Code, shall issue, notice to one (1) spouse shall be deemed and imputed as notice to the other spouse.
8. “Tax certificate” means a written assignment of a district’s right to a tax deed as provided in section 43-715, Idaho Code.

§ 43-715. Delinquent assessments — Sale of rights to tax deed — Purchaser’s rights after redemption period.

1. After the delinquency list has been filed with the county recorder and prior to the expiration of the period of redemption, the board may by written assignment convey its right to tax deed on any delinquency entry to any person paying to the treasurer the amount of such delinquency entry, together with the penalty and interest to the date of assignment as required in case of redemption. Whereupon, the treasurer shall note such assignment opposite the entry on his list of delinquency entries and in case of subsequent redemption thereof, he shall pay the amount so received in redemption to the assignee upon surrender of the tax certificate reassigned to the district; provided, however, that no assignment shall be made unless all prior assessments against the lands covered by such delinquency entry be first fully paid.
2. When the board exercises its discretionary assignment rights under subsection (1) of this section, any person shall be entitled to become a purchaser of the rights of the district in any unredeemed delinquency entry and the board shall make to the purchaser a proper tax certificate therefor upon receipt of said sums in cash.
3. After the expiration of the period of redemption, the owner of any tax certificate shall be entitled to tax deed thereon upon delivering to the treasurer his tax certificate from the district, with proper assignments from any previous owner; or, in case of the loss of the tax certificate, of satisfactory proof that he is the owner of the tax certificate; provided, that notice of the pending issuance of tax deed has been served as required by section 43-717, Idaho Code, and that, after compliance with section 43-719(1) or (2), Idaho Code, the board has directed the treasurer to issue the tax deed. Any tax certificate upon which tax deed has not been claimed by the owner of the tax certificate within two (2) years from the expiration of the period of redemption shall become null and void.

§ 43-716. Delinquent assessments — Issuance of tax deed — General provisions.

If the property is not redeemed within three (3) years from the date of delinquency entry, the treasurer of the district or his successor in office must make to the district or to the owner of the tax certificate, a tax deed to the property. However, the district or the owner of the tax certificate shall not be entitled to a tax deed for such property until;[:] (1) a notice of pending issuance of tax deed be served, as required in section 43-717, Idaho Code; and (2) an affidavit of compliance be filed, as required in section 43-718, Idaho Code.

§ 43-717. Delinquency entries — Service of notice of pending issuance of tax deed — Exclusive procedure for judicial review.

1. The treasurer of the district wherein the property for which a tax deed may issue, or the owner of the tax certificate, shall serve or cause to be served written notice of pending issuance of tax deed upon the record owner or owners and parties in interest of record in the following exclusive manner:
   1. By serving or causing to be served a copy of such notice by certified mail with return receipt demanded upon the record owner or owners and parties in interest of record at their last known address, such service of notice to be made no more than five (5) months nor less than two (2) months before the time set for the tax deed to issue;
   2. In the event that such notice is served as above described and returned undelivered and after reasonable and diligent search and inquiry in attempting to locate and serve the record owner or owners and parties in interest of record, then by publishing a summary of such notice in a newspaper having general circulation in the county wherein the property is situated. Such publication must be made at least once a week for four (4) consecutive weeks, the last publication of which is to be no more than two (2) months nor less than fourteen (14) days before the time set for the tax deed to issue.
   3. For purposes of paragraph (b) of this section, an examination of the ownership records maintained by the assessor of the county in which the property is located in accordance with section 63-307, Idaho Code, and an examination of the current telephone directory for the area where the property is located, shall be deemed a reasonable and diligent search and inquiry in attempting to locate and serve the record owner or owners and parties in interest of record.
2. The record owner or owners and parties in interest of record shall be liable for and shall pay to the treasurer or to the owner of the tax certificate all reasonable costs and fees in the preparation, service and publication of such notice and such reasonable costs shall become a lien upon the property in favor of the district or the owner of the tax certificate and shall be added to the delinquent assessment.
3. Such notice and summary thereof must contain the following items:
   1. The name and last known address of the record owner or owners;
   2. An accurate description of the property for which the delinquency entry has been made, or, in lieu thereof, the irrigation district assessment number assigned to the property in the assessment roll of the district, and either:
   3. The year for which the assessment was levied and for which the assessment is delinquent;
   4. An itemized statement showing assessment, penalty, interest and all costs and fees incident to the delinquency entry and such notice up to and including the date of the making of such notice;
   5. The date the delinquency entry was made;
   6. The time, date, place at which, and by whom the tax deed will issue; and
   7. A statement that the record owner or owners or any party in interest shall have adequate opportunity to be heard by the board, to confront and cross-examine any evidence or witness against the record owner or owners, and obtain and present evidence on behalf of the record owner or owners or any party in interest. Such statement shall also contain notice of to whom written inquiries and objections shall be directed concerning the notice and information contained therein and by what date such inquiries and objections must be received. Verbal inquiries and objections shall not be considered for any purpose.
   8. A statement that a hearing before the board and judicial review of the board’s decision are the exclusive remedies for challenging the issuance of the tax deed and that no other action can be taken to determine the validity of a properly executed tax deed and that the tax deed conveys complete title to the described land to the grantee named in the tax deed.
4. Judicial review of a decision of the board as provided in section 43-719(2), Idaho Code, shall be the exclusive method for judicial determination of the regularity of all proceedings from the assessment by the board, inclusive, up to the execution of the tax deed, and no separate or independent action shall lie for the determination of the regularity of those proceedings.
5. Any party in interest may file a written request for such notice in the office of the treasurer of the district wherein the property for which the delinquency entry has been made is situated. Such request shall contain the following items:
   1. The name and address of the record owner or owners;
   2. An accurate description of the property covered by the interest, or, in lieu thereof, the irrigation district assessment number used in assessing the same;
   3. The name and address of the party in interest;
   4. An accurate description of the interest held; and
   5. The date of termination of the interest held.
6. If a record owner or owners or a party in interest shall have actual knowledge of the notice of pending issuance of a tax deed or that issuance of a tax deed is pending, it shall be deemed sufficient notice under this section.
7. Service shall be deemed completed upon depositing the certified mailing containing the original or a copy of the notice of pending issuance of tax deed with return receipt demanded in any United States post office mail box, or upon physical delivery of such notice or copy thereof by the treasurer or by the owner of the tax certificate or by appointed agent of either, to the record owner or owners or party in interest, or upon the date of last publication.

i. A street address or other information which would be of assistance to the public in ascertaining the location of the property; or

ii. The name and telephone number of a person, firm or business office from whom information concerning the location of the property may be obtained;

§ 43-718. Affidavit of compliance.

1. At least five (5) days before the tax deed is to be issued, the treasurer or the owner of the tax certificate shall make an affidavit of compliance stating that he or she has complied with the conditions of issuance of notice of pending issuance of tax deed described in section 43-717, Idaho Code, and stating particularly the facts relied on as constituting such compliance.
2. Such affidavit shall be delivered to the secretary of the district to be by such officer entered on the records of his or her office and carefully preserved among the files of such office. The treasurer or the owner of the tax certificate shall also cause to be filed with the secretary of the district an affidavit by the publisher of each newspaper in which notice of the pending issuance of the tax deed was printed and published, which affidavits of publication shall be filed and preserved among the files of the office of such secretary. Such record or affidavit shall be prima facie evidence that such notice has been given.
3. Any person who knowingly and intentionally swears falsely to facts averred in such affidavit shall be guilty of perjury and be punished by [a] fine of not more than three hundred dollars ($300).

§ 43-719. Delinquent assessments — Hearing and issuance of tax deed.

1. When a record owner or owners or any party in interest upon whom a notice of pending issuance of tax deed is served or who has actual knowledge of such notice or its contents fails to appear or otherwise defend and answer at the time set for hearing in such notice and it is made to appear to the board that the owner of the tax certificate or the treasurer has fulfilled the requirements of sections 43-717 and 43-718, Idaho Code, the board shall, without further notice to the record owner or owners or any party in interest upon whom such notice has been served or who has actual knowledge of such notice and its contents, immediately direct that the treasurer shall issue a tax deed in favor of the district or the owner of the tax certificate, as the case may be.
2. When a record owner or owners or any party in interest upon whom such notice is served or who has actual knowledge of such notice or its contents appears or answers at the date specified in such notice, the board shall consider documentary evidence and hear testimony and make a final decision in writing. Such final decision shall be mailed by certified mail, return receipt demanded, to all parties shown by the record of the proceedings to be affected by the board’s action. If the board shall find that the owner of the tax certificate or the treasurer has conformed to the requirements of sections 43-717 and 43-718, Idaho Code, and that a delinquent assessment was owing on the property described and that such delinquency has not been paid, the board shall immediately direct that the treasurer issue a tax deed in favor of the district or the owner of the tax certificate, as the case may be. Such final decision shall include findings of fact and conclusions of law.
3. A record of the proceeding shall be kept and entered into the district’s minute book.
4. Any person who is aggrieved by a final decision of the board concerning the issuance of a tax deed is entitled to have that decision reviewed by the district court of the judicial district wherein the property described is located by filing a petition in the district court within thirty (30) days after receipt of the final decision of the board. Such filing does not itself stay enforcement of the board’s decision; however, the board may grant, or the reviewing court may order, a stay upon appropriate terms. Review shall be conducted by the court without a jury and shall be confined to the record in the district’s minute book. The court may reverse or modify the decision of the board if substantial rights of the appellant have been prejudiced because the board’s finding, conclusions or decisions are:
   1. Made upon unlawful procedure;
   2. Clearly erroneous in view of reliable, probative, and substantial evidence on the whole record;
   3. In violation of constitutional or statutory provisions; or
   4. In excess of the statutory authority of the district.

§ 43-720. Tax deed — Recitals — Effect as evidence — Title conveyed.

The matters recited in the delinquency entry must be recited in the deed, and such deed duly acknowledged or proved is prima facie evidence that:

1. Benefits were apportioned to the property as required by law or water rights were properly allocated to the property.
2. The assessment was levied in accordance with law.
3. The assessment was equalized as required by law.
4. The assessment, together with statutory penalties, interest and any other charges, was unpaid.
5. At the proper time the delinquency entry was made as prescribed by law and by the proper officer.
6. The property was unredeemed within the time allowed by the first paragraph of section 43-712, Idaho Code.
7. The person who executed the tax deed was the proper officer. Such deed duly acknowledged and proved is prima facie evidence of the regularity of all other proceedings for the assessment, inclusive, up to the execution of the deed. The deed conveys to the grantee the absolute title to the lands described therein, free of all encumbrances, except purchase contracts, mortgages, deeds of trust or leases of record to the holders of which notice as has not been sent as in this chapter provided, any lien for assessments that have attached subsequent to the assessment resulting in the issuance of the tax deed, and any lien for state and county taxes. For purposes of this section, the term “encumbrances” does not include any easements, highways or rights-of-way of any type, whether public or private.

Any number of descriptions of land in the same district may be included in one (1) deed where the certificates are held by one (1) person, or the district.

§ 43-721. Tax deed as evidence.

Such deed duly acknowledged and proved, is prima facie evidence of the regularity of all other proceedings, from the assessment by the secretary inclusive, up to the execution of the deed.

§ 43-722. Application of preceding sections.

The provisions of sections 43-708 to 43-718[, Idaho Code], inclusive, shall apply to all assessments of irrigation districts organized and existing under chapters 1 to 15, inclusive, of this title, which are levied in the year 1925 and subsequent years.

Provided that the provisions of sections 43-708 to 43-718[, Idaho Code], inclusive, shall not apply to irrigation districts which have arranged for the collection of the district assessments by county officers under the provisions of sections 43-727 to 43-729[, Idaho Code], inclusive.

§ 43-723. Application of sections replaced.

Sections 4391, 4395, 4396, 4397, 4398, and 4400 of the Compiled Statutes of Idaho, section 4390 as amended by House Bill 29; passed at this session of the legislature, and sections 4392, 4393, 4394 and 4401, as amended by this act, shall not apply to assessments levied in the year 1925 and subsequent years, but shall be continued in force and effect for the purpose of proceedings under any assessments levied prior to the year 1925.

§ 43-724. Tax deed — Short form.

Upon the expiration of the period of redemption, the treasurer shall execute to the district or the holder and owner of any tax certificate a deed to the property described in said certificate, which deed shall recite that in consideration of the amount of tax (specifying the amount) for the year (naming the year) the treasurer transfers to the holder of said certificate the property therein described. Such deed shall be duly acknowledged by the treasurer and shall be bona fide evidence of the full compliance by the district and of all its officers with every act and thing required to be done as a condition to the issuance of said deed and of the full compliance with the law prerequisite to the execution of a valid tax deed and that the property has not been redeemed. Any number of descriptions of land in the same district may be included in one deed where the certificates are held by one person, or the district.

§ 43-725. State lands subject to assessment.

Lands belonging to the state to which an irrigation district has apportioned benefits pursuant to the provisions of this title shall be subject to the applicable provisions of this title for the levy and collection of assessments for such benefits.

§ 43-726. Sale for assessments — Limitation of actions to determine validity — Tender.

Every action, suit or proceeding which may be commenced for the purpose of determining the validity of a tax deed, brought by the original owner of the land or his assigns against the grantee named in the tax deed or his assigns, or to quiet title against him or them, or to remove the cloud of the tax deed, or to recover the possession from the tax deed grantee in possession, in cases where the assessment for which the land was sold had been paid before the issuance of the tax deed or the land redeemed after the issuance of the tax deed, or the lands were not subject to taxation at the time of assessment shall be commenced within two (2) years from the date of the issuance of the tax deed; and in every such action, suit or proceeding, whether before or after the issuance of tax deed, the party claiming to be the owner as against the district or against a party claiming under the tax certificate or under the tax deed shall tender with the first pleading in such action, suit or proceeding, and pay into court at the time of filing the same, the amount of the purchase price for which such lands were sold, or the amount of the assessment, penalties and interest for which a tax deed was issued to the district, together with all taxes and assessments which have been paid by the purchaser or paid or assessed by the district on said land after issuance of the tax deed, together with interest thereon at the rate of ten per cent (10%) per annum from the respective time of payment of such sums up to the time of filing of such pleading, the same, or such portion thereof as the court shall find to be just, to be paid to the district or said purchaser, his heirs or assigns, in case the right or title of the district or said purchaser shall fail in such suit, action or proceeding.

§ 43-727. County officers — Collection of district assessments.

The board of directors of any irrigation district organized under the laws of this state desiring to provide for the collection of district assessments by the county officers instead of the district treasurer, may do so by adopting a resolution providing for such collection by the county officers, and furnishing a copy thereof to the county auditor of each county in which any of the district lands are located:[;] provided, that the county commissioners of said county or counties, must first by unanimous vote concur in and agree to such resolution by a proper resolution made and entered upon the minutes of such board or boards of county commissioners. Such resolution may provide that only assessments against lands subdivided into tracts of four (4) acres or less shall be collected by the county officers. In addition to collection fees otherwise provided by law, the county commissioners may levy an additional fee against the irrigation district for the cost of transferring records and initiating the collection process. After the adoption of such resolution the board of directors of such district shall furnish the county auditor of each county in which any part of the district lands are located a duplicate or certified copy of any apportionment of benefits which has been made, and copy of the list or map showing said apportionment theretofore made in such district, and a notice of any district bond issue or district contract with the United States, stating clearly the amount thereof, the rate of interest, and the conditions of payment, and each year thereafter shall furnish the said auditor or auditors a certified copy, or duplicate, of any additional apportionment, including any annual apportionment for operation and maintenance purposes, and shall each year furnish such auditor or auditors a certified copy, or duplicate of the levy or assessment made by the order of said board of directors for operation and maintenance purposes, including organization expenses and maintenance of the district organization. All tracts benefited to the same extent, on a proportionate basis, by the water rights and irrigation system of the district, and by the operation and maintenance thereof, shall be included in a separate category plainly identified in the list showing said apportionment of benefits. After the receipt of said copy of such resolution of the board of directors of any irrigation district, the county auditor shall each year enter upon the county assessment roll against the property therein described the levy so made by the board of directors of said district as shown upon the copy or duplicate thereof furnished to the said auditor as above provided, in manner similar to that in which other municipal school or road district assessments are entered by him on said assessment roll, except that the sum assessed and charged against each description of land therein contained for such irrigation district purposes shall be entered by the auditor as the operation and maintenance assessment of the . . . . irrigation district against the same. Such district operation and maintenance tax shall be collected and accounted for by the county officers in the same manner as other municipal taxes and paid over to the district treasurer together with any penalties or interest collected thereon, and the collection thereof shall be enforced in the same manner, and neglect to pay the same shall be subject to the same penalties as the other taxes of the county:[;] provided, however, that the collection of such district assessments by such county officers, as herein provided, shall not make the bonds, contracts and interests due from such irrigation districts the obligation of such county or counties.

§ 43-728. County officers — District bond and contract obligations — Levy and collection of assessments.

After receipt of said notice of bond issues and contracts with the United States it shall be the duty of the county auditors of each county in which any of such district lands are located to furnish the board of county commissioners at or before its meeting on the second Monday in September, a statement showing the amount of the annual payment on said bonds or contract and the amount of interest thereon which will fall due during the next ensuing year should the board of directors adopt such a resolution. It shall be the duty of the board of county commissioners, or boards of county commissioners of the county or counties in which such district lands are located to levy on the lands in said district the tax necessary to meet the annual payment on said bonds or contracts and the interest thereon as they become due. If said district includes lands in more than one county, the board of county commissioners of each county shall levy upon the district lands in that county the proportionate part of the total tax necessary to meet the annual payment on said bonds or contract and the interest thereon as they become due, in the proportion that the benefits apportioned to the district lands in such county are of the total benefits of such bond issue or contract apportioned to all the lands of the district, and whether the district be one or more than one county, the levy upon each of the several tracts of district lands for the payment of the annual instalments on said bonds or contract and the interest thereon shall be in proportion to the apportionment of benefits of such bond issue or contract and apportioned among the several tracts of land in the district in like manner as provided by law with reference to similar levies made by the boards of directors of irrigation districts. The county auditor of each county in which such district lands are located shall each year enter upon the county assessment roll against the property therein described the levy so made by the board of county commissioners, in manner similar to that in which school or other municipal or road district assessments are entered by him on said assessment roll, except that the sum assessed and charged against each description of land therein contained for such irrigation district purposes shall be entered by the auditor as the bond or contract assessment of the . . . . irrigation district against the same. Such district bond or contract tax shall be collected and accounted for by the county officers in the same manner as other municipal taxes and the collection thereof shall be enforced in the same manner, and neglect to pay the same shall be subject to the same penalties as the other taxes of the county and the same shall be paid over to the state treasurer who shall act as treasurer of the district for the purpose of receiving and depositing such funds and disbursing the same in payment of the district’s bond and United States contract obligations and the interest thereon.

§ 43-729. Collection by county officers — Reversion to plan of collection by district treasurer.

Any district having made provision for such collection of district taxes by the county officers, and desiring to revert to the plan of collection of district taxes by the district treasurer, may do so by adopting a resolution revoking such former resolution providing for collection by the county officers and furnishing copy thereof to the county auditors of each county in which any part of the district lands are located, except that in the case of any district which may have entered into contract with any of the purchasers of its bonds or obligations, or their representatives, or with the United States, providing for collection by the county officers, or have caused to be printed or indorsed upon any of its bonds a statement that the collection of the funds for the payment of the principal or interest thereof, will be made by the county officers, then such resolution providing for collection by the county officers shall be irrevocable until such obligations of the district have been paid.

§ 43-730. Contracts with cities, irrigation lateral districts or other entities in lieu of charges, levies and assessments.

The board of directors of an irrigation district shall have the power to enter into a contract in writing with any city, irrigation lateral district or other entity whose boundaries or service area is situated within the boundaries of any irrigation district where water has been purchased, or is being furnished, or shall be furnished, for lands, property or use within the boundaries or service area of such city, irrigation lateral district or other entity by an irrigation district, whereby such city, irrigation lateral district or other entity shall become obligated to pay charges, levies and assessments now provided to be made pursuant to chapter 7, title 43, sections 43-701 through 43-729, Idaho Code, and amendments thereto in lieu of the directors of the irrigation district making said charges, levies and assessments.

§ 43-731. Water held in trust.

Upon entering into any such contract, the city, irrigation lateral district or other entity obligated to make the payments as aforesaid shall hold said water in trust for the purpose for which the same was, or shall be, purchased or furnished.

§ 43-732. Certain lands may be assessed at different amounts — Additional service charge.

1. Notwithstanding any provision of sections 43-701 and 43-1824, Idaho Code, to the contrary, an irrigation district that assesses land in the district under the provisions of chapters 7 and 18, title 43, Idaho Code, may assess any land within the district to which the district furnishes or supplies water for irrigation purposes that:
   1. Lies above the level of the canals or ditches of the district and is irrigated by pumping by the landowner;
   2. Is irrigated by a partial, supplemental or intermittent supply of water from the district; or
   3. Is irrigated by water of the district that is subject to prior use by other lands within the district;
2. Notwithstanding any provisions of sections 43-701 and 43-1824, Idaho Code, to the contrary, an irrigation district that assesses land in the district under the provisions of chapters 7 and 18, title 43, Idaho Code, may, at the discretion of the board of directors, assess a service charge in addition to the regular assessment, against subdivided and small-tract lands that have appurtenant water rights and to which irrigation water is furnished or is available for delivery, when delivery of water to these lands requires operation, construction and maintenance costs substantially greater than operation, construction and maintenance costs involved in delivering water to the majority of other lands in the district. All such small-tract or subdivided lands shall be placed in groupings of one (1) acre or less, or more than one (1) acre but not more than ten (10) acres, and each grouping shall be assessed as a single class.

in such amount as the board determines to be just, taking into consideration the benefit to the land assessed and extra expenses, if any, of the landowner or holder in using such water, but such amount may not exceed the amount assessed against irrigable acres lying below the level of the canals or ditches of the district.

§ 43-733. Assessments for measures to protect district facilities.

Notwithstanding any provision of title 43, Idaho Code, to the contrary, an irrigation district may determine that it is necessary to impose a special assessment to pay for physical structures or other work necessary to protect its facilities from harm caused by irrigation runoff or drainage from individual lands within the district that are on the district’s assessment book prepared under section 43-701, Idaho Code. The district may issue a special assessment on such lands to perform such protective work only if the district has adopted a bylaw or resolution authorizing a special assessment for protection of district facilities from irrigation runoff or drainage from such individual lands, after notice to the landowner. When an assessment for such protective work has been authorized, the district shall assess such individual lands that are the source of irrigation runoff or drainage, the cost of such protective measures, including the annual cost of maintenance of any necessary repairs or maintenance of such protective measures, in addition to the assessments that are levied for the delivery of water to the individual landowners, and the same provisions shall apply with regard to delinquent assessments, as in the case of assessments levied for the delivery of water. The special assessments authorized under this section are subject to review by the board of corrections under section 43-703, Idaho Code.

§ 43-801. Tax deed — Title to water rights — Election of district.

Whenever a tax deed shall issue under the laws of Idaho transferring title to land within an irrigation district organized under sections 43-727, 43-728, and 43-729[, Idaho Code], which shall be based upon delinquent taxes, including assessments on behalf of said irrigation district for the purchase of a water right for said land, and which was to become appurtenant to said land, title to said water right shall not pass upon the issuance of said deed: provided, the irrigation district shall so elect.

§ 43-803. Notice of election by district — Reservation of title to water right.

To constitute an election as provided in section 43-801, Idaho Code, the irrigation district shall, at least ten (10) days prior to the date of the issuance of tax deed to the county treasurer on behalf of any taxing unit, or at least ten (10) days prior to the date of any sale of real property acquired by a county on account of delinquent taxes, file with the county treasurer and the clerk of the board of county commissioners of the county a notice in writing, in substantially the following form:

“Notice is hereby given that .... irrigation district has elected to accept a cancellation of taxes in favor of said irrigation district and constituting part of the taxes delinquent upon which tax deed may or has issued and in lieu thereof to retain title to the water right for the purchase of which the assessments in favor of the irrigation district were levied. The property affected by this notice is described as follows, to wit:

(....)”

Upon the issuance of a tax deed to any lands within an irrigation district organized as aforesaid for delinquent taxes or a sale of any lands acquired by a county on account of delinquent taxes, the receipt of this notice by the county treasurer or the clerk of the board of county commissioners of the county, substantially in form as herein provided, shall be recorded in the chain of title of the subject real property and shall obligate the officer accepting a deed on behalf of a taxing unit and/or the officers executing a deed to lands acquired by the county for delinquent taxes, to reserve title to the water right and title to said water right shall thereupon vest in the irrigation district subject to redemption as hereinafter provided; provided, however, said irrigation district shall as a prerequisite to withdrawal of said water right from the lands and revesting thereof in said district, pay to the county the amount paid by the county to the state as state taxes levied against said lands from which said water right is to be withdrawn.

§ 43-804. Redemption or repurchase of water rights.

The purchaser of any lands within an irrigation district at a sale of lands acquired by a county on account of delinquent taxes, or the holder of a tax deed to any lands within an irrigation district, or the then owner of said lands, the water right to which has vested in said irrigation district under the provisions of this chapter, may, within six (6) months from the date of the issuance of the tax deed, or of the sale of said lands by the county, whichever is earlier, appear before the board of directors of said irrigation district at a regular or special meeting of said board and make application to redeem or repurchase the water right originally bought for use and to be made appurtenant to said land, and the said board of directors shall, upon receipt of payment of all taxes formerly delinquent against said land in favor of the irrigation district and expenses incurred by the district in connection therewith, reinstate said water right and thereafter said land and water shall be subject to all of the charges required to be paid by lands within the district: provided, however, that during the interim between the issuance of the tax deed to the land, or the sale of said land by the county as herein referred to, and the date of the application to redeem, water represented by said water right shall not be delivered to the land except upon the express consent of the board of directors of the irrigation district.

Should no redemption be made as herein provided within the period herein stated, title to the water right shall vest absolutely in the irrigation district.

§ 43-805. Outstanding bonds not affected — Duty of directors.

The election of an irrigation district to cancel delinquent taxes in favor of the irrigation district and accept in lieu thereof title to the water right for the payment of which said taxes were levied, shall in nowise impair outstanding bonds or obligations of the irrigation district, and upon such an election by an irrigation district as herein provided, the board of directors shall:

1. Either set aside in a sinking fund with the state treasurer as the acting treasurer of the irrigation district an amount sufficient to pay the unpaid balance of the taxes to be levied upon the land for which the water right was purchased, based upon the assessments of benefits as confirmed by the court in the proceedings confirming the sale of bonds of said irrigation district;
2. Or shall provide an equivalent assessment of benefits against other lands of equal value.

§ 43-806. Purpose of chapter.

The purpose of the procedure herein provided is to permit an irrigation district to repossess a water right not paid for and to exclude the land from the benefits theretofore assessed on account of said water right.

§ 43-901. Contracts for construction work and purchasing.

The provisions relative to competitive bidding set forth in chapter 28, title 67, Idaho Code, apply to all irrigation districts of the state of Idaho, but shall be subject to the provisions of any specific statute pertaining to the letting of any contract, purchase or acquisition of any commodity or thing by soliciting and receiving competitive bids therefor, and shall not be construed as modifying or amending the provisions of any such statute, nor preventing the irrigation district from doing any work by its own employees.

§ 43-902. Construction work — Additional items.

The term construction work as herein used, shall be deemed to include the erection of pump houses and electrical and other pumps or appliances for raising water onto the lands, as well as dams, headgates, ditches, laterals and other irrigation works. There may be included in any contract for construction, maintenance, interest and power charges for such period as the directors and the contractor may agree, not to exceed three (3) years, and when so included, interest, electrical, or other power and maintenance charges for the term agreed upon may be paid in bonds of the district to the amount agreed upon.

§ 43-903. Notice for bids dispensed with.

On the petition of fifty (50) or a majority of the owners of land in said district, to be determined as provided by section 43-101, Idaho Code, the board of directors may do any work mentioned in the preceding section on behalf of the district, and it may use the construction fund therefor; in such case they need not publish notice for bids as provided in section 43-901, Idaho Code.

§ 43-904. Payment of claims.

No claim shall be paid by the district until allowed by the board of directors, and only upon a warrant or check signed by two (2) officers authorized by the board.

§ 43-905. Payment of expenses — Maintenance tolls — Accounts of officers.

The cost and expense of purchasing and acquiring property and constructing works and improvements to carry out the formulated plan, shall be paid out of the construction fund.

For the purpose of defraying the expenses of the organization of the district, and of the care, operation, management, repair and improvement of such portion of said canal and works as are completed and in use, including salaries of officers and employees, the board may fix rates of tolls and charges for use of water from the canals and irrigation works and plants or equipment of the district, and in addition thereto may provide for the payment of such expenses, either in whole or in part, by levy of assessments therefor, as provided in section 43-701[, Idaho Code]. Where a toll is fixed for the payment of part of such expenditures and an assessment levied for the remainder, any portion of such toll, remaining unpaid at the time fixed for levying the next annual assessment, in the discretion of the board may be added to and become part of the assessment against the land delinquent in the payment of such toll; and where both a toll is fixed and assessment levied for the same expenditures, the amount paid as toll may be applied as credit upon such assessment. The board in its order fixing or levying such tolls may fix the date or dates on or before which the same must be paid, may make the same payable in advance of the delivery of any water during the year for which the same are fixed, and may make provision for the collection thereof and the keeping of a toll book by the district treasurer. The procedure for levying and collection of assessments, where not provided for in sections 43-701 and 43-703[, Idaho Code], shall conform to the provisions of this title relating to the payment of principal and interest of bonds. All assessments shall be listed and carried out in the regular assessment book and collected by the treasurer at the time and in the manner of the regular annual assessment. All special assessments are a lien on the lands assessed from the time when they are ordered.

Whenever an assessment book or toll book shall be delivered to the treasurer, the secretary shall charge the treasurer with the total amount of the various amounts as carried out in said books. On the second Monday of January in each year, the treasurer shall make a semiannual statement with the secretary and deliver to the secretary a statement in brief of all assessments delinquent at that time, and account for all sums therefor collected. The treasurer shall make such settlements for tolls at such times as may be ordered by the board. On the second Monday of July the treasurer shall make final settlement with the secretary and deliver to the secretary a duplicate delinquent list and account for all sums not shown on said delinquent list. The secretary shall then charge the treasurer with the amount of said list and penalties added, and upon receiving the affidavit of publication thereof, he shall charge the treasurer with twenty-five cents (25¢) additional for each description published. On the first Monday after the sale, the treasurer shall make final settlement for assessments by receiving credit for the property sold to the district and accounting for all the balance.

§ 43-906. Intersections with streets, railroads, watercourses.

The board of directors shall have power to construct the said works across any stream of water, watercourse, street, avenue, highway, railway, canal, ditch or flume which the route of said canal or canals may intersect or cross, in such manner as to afford security for life and property; but said board shall restore the same when so crossed or intersected, to its former state as near as may be, or in a sufficient manner not to have impaired unnecessarily its usefulness; and every company whose railroad shall be intersected or crossed by said work shall unite with said board in forming said intersections and crossings and grant the privileges aforesaid; and if such railroad company and said board, or the owners and controllers of said property, thing or franchise to be crossed, cannot agree upon the amount to be paid therefor, or upon the points or the manner of said crossings or intersections, the same shall be ascertained and determined in all respects as herein provided in respect to the taking of land.

§ 43-907. Right of way over state lands.

The right of way is hereby given, dedicated and set apart, to locate, construct and maintain said works over and through any of the lands which are now or may be the property of the state.

§ 43-908. Right of eminent domain.

All irrigation districts organized under the laws of the state of Idaho shall have the right of eminent domain, with the power by and through their boards of directors, to cause to be condemned and appropriated in the name of and for the use of said districts, all lands, water rights, reservoirs, canals and works constructed or being constructed by private owners, and lands for reservoirs for the storage of needful waters, and all necessary appurtenances and other property necessary for the construction, use and supply, maintenance, repair and improvement of said canal or canals and works. Said irrigation districts shall have the right by and through their boards of directors to acquire by purchase or other legal means, any or all of the property mentioned and referred to in this section. In any action or proceeding for the condemnation of any property mentioned and referred to in this section, wherein said irrigation district is a party, the plaintiff must, within six (6) months after final judgment, pay the sum of money assessed, or said judgment will be annulled. Except as otherwise provided in this section, the provisions of the laws of Idaho relative to the right of eminent domain, civil actions and new trials and appeals, shall be applicable to, and constitute the rules of practice in, condemnation proceedings by said irrigation districts.

§ 43-1001. Petition for annexation of land.

The holder or holders of any title, or evidence of title, representing any body of lands, may file with the board of directors of an irrigation district a petition in writing praying that said land may be annexed. The petition shall contain a legal description of the lands, the proposed method by which water will be delivered and any other information the district may require, and the petitioners shall state under oath that petitioners hold the title of one-half (½) or more of said lands.

§ 43-1003. Notice of petition.

The secretary must cause a notice of the filing of such petition to be published three (3) weeks in the manner of notices of special elections. The notice shall state the filing of such petition, and the names of the petitioners, a description of the lands mentioned in the said petition, and it shall notify all persons interested in or that may be affected by such change of boundaries of the district, to appear at the office of said board, at a time named in said notice, and show cause in writing, if any they have, why the lands mentioned should not be annexed to said district. The petitioners shall advance to the secretary sufficient money to pay the estimated costs of all proceedings under this chapter.

§ 43-1004. Hearing of petition.

The board of directors, at the time mentioned in said notice or at such other time to which the hearing may be adjourned, shall hear the petition and all the objections thereto. The failure of any person to appear and object shall be taken as an assent on his part to a change of the boundaries of the district as prayed for in said petition, or to such a change thereof as will include a part of said lands.

§ 43-1005. Assessments against petitioners.

The board of directors may require, as a condition to the granting of said petition, that the petitioners shall severally pay to such district such respective sums, as nearly as the same can be estimated, as said petitioners, or their grantors, would have been required to pay such district, had such lands been included in such district, at the time the same was originally formed.

§ 43-1006. Order accepting or rejecting petition.

The board of directors, if they deem it not for the best interest of the district to include therein the lands mentioned in the petition, shall order that the petition be rejected. But if they deem it for the best interest of the district, the board may order the lands mentioned in said petition or some part thereof be annexed to said district. The order shall describe the lands to be annexed to said district and the board may cause a survey thereof to be made if deemed necessary, and said order will not become effective until the ninety (90) day period for presentation of an election petition shall have expired without such petition being presented or until approval of the annexation at an election.

§ 43-1007. Objections not withdrawn

Resolution of board. [Repealed.]

§ 43-1008. Election to determine change.

If within ninety (90) days of board approval of an order allowing annexation a petition signed by either ten (10) landowners or by two percent (2%) of the landowners, whichever number is greater, of the district is presented to the board which petition states that those signing request an election to approve or disapprove said annexation, then the board shall order an election be held within said district to determine whether the boundaries of the district shall be changed as mentioned in said order; and shall fix the time at which such election shall be held. Notice thereof shall be given and published, and such election shall be held, and all things pertaining thereto conducted, in the manner prescribed by this title in case of an election to determine whether bonds of the district shall be issued. The ballots cast at said election shall contain the words “For change of boundary,” or “Against change of boundary,” or words equivalent thereto. The notice of election shall describe the lands to be annexed to said district.

§ 43-1009. Order changing boundaries.

If at such election a majority of all the votes cast at said election shall be against such change of the boundaries of the district, the board shall rescind its order and it shall be of no force or effect. But if a majority of such votes be in favor of such change, the order shall have full force and effect. Thereafter such land so annexed shall be subject to such assessments from time to time as the board of directors shall deem right under the circumstances, and such assessments shall be deemed to be assessments for benefits to said lands by reason of their annexation to said district. The directors shall state on their minutes at their next regular meeting which division and election precinct in said district the said lands so annexed shall be attached, and, if necessary, the board shall make an order redividing the district into divisions and election precincts, in the same manner and to like effect, as near as may be, as provided for that purpose on the formation of a district.

§ 43-1010. Order to be recorded.

Upon a change of the boundaries of a district becoming effective, a copy of the order of the board of directors ordering such change, certified by the president and secretary of the board, shall be filed for record in the recorder’s office of the county within which the annexed lands are situated, and thereupon the district shall be and remain an irrigation district, as fully and to every intent and purpose, as if the lands which are included in the district by the change of the boundaries as aforesaid, had been included therein at the original organization of the district.

§ 43-1011. Order recorded in minutes — Minutes as evidence.

Upon the filing of the copies of the order, as in the last preceding section mentioned, the secretary of the board shall record in the minutes of the board, the petition aforesaid, and the said minutes, or a certified copy thereof, shall be admissible in evidence, with the same effect as the petition.

§ 43-1101. Petition.

Any person or persons owning land within any irrigation district and forming a part thereof may file with the board of directors of such irrigation district a petition in writing requesting the exclusion of the land or lands owned by them and described in the petition from the irrigation district. As many parties owning separate tracts or parcels of lands in any irrigation district or who are united in interest to which the same state of facts apply, may unite in the same petition. The petition shall be signed by all of the petitioners, but need not be acknowledged. A filing fee in the amount of five dollars ($5.00) for each parcel of land described in the petition shall accompany the filing of each petition, plus an exclusion fee in the amount of twenty-five dollars ($25.00) for each lot containing less than one (1) acre which is in a subdivision as defined in section 50-1301, Idaho Code, or an exclusion fee of fifty dollars ($50.00) for each parcel containing less than one (1) acre that is not in a subdivision, or an exclusion fee of fifty dollars ($50.00) for each acre and additional portion thereof in all other parcels of property, for which the district shall provide a suitable receipt evidencing payment. Any petition not accompanied by the required filing fee and exclusion fee shall be returned to the petitioner. The filing fee and the exclusion fee are borne by the petitioner and are not potentially apportionable costs as provided in sections 43-1105, 43-1106 and 43-1107, Idaho Code.

A person or persons purchasing land under a written contract shall be deemed to be the owners of that land for purposes of this section.

§ 43-1101B. [Amended and Redesignated.]

§ 43-1102. Grounds for exclusion, certain lands may remain in the district for drainage purposes.

1. The grounds and reasons for exclusion of lands from an irrigation district are listed as follows:
   1. The lands are too high to be watered without pumping by the owners of the lands from water owned or controlled by the irrigation district;
   2. The owners of the lands have installed a good and sufficient water system independent of the water system of such irrigation district for the irrigation of the lands because the district does not own a sufficient water right to furnish an adequate water supply for those lands;
   3. The lands in their present condition are not agricultural lands and the irrigation district has not:
      1. Adopted a resolution to construct a distribution system for the lands pursuant to section 43-333, Idaho Code; or
      2. Called an election on the question of constructing a distribution system for the lands under the provisions of section 43-329, Idaho Code; or
      3. Independently or in cooperation with a city or county established a local improvement district to construct a distribution system for the lands; or
      4. Constructed a distribution system for the lands; or
   4. Prior to acquisition of the land by the petitioning owner, and without his knowledge or consent, the ditch or other transmission facility extending from the delivery point of the district to the lands has been rendered permanently incapable of carrying water to the lands, but this ground for exclusion shall only apply to parcels less than five (5) acres in size.
2. If the lands sought to be excluded from an irrigation district under this section or under sections 43-1110 through 43-1117, Idaho Code, are benefited by surface drainage facilities of the irrigation district pursuant to sections 43-306 to 43-312, Idaho Code, but otherwise would qualify for exclusion, the lands shall be excluded for purposes of irrigation but shall remain a part of the district for purposes of drainage and shall continue to be assessable for drainage, but shall not be assessed for irrigation water.

§ 43-1103. Contents of petition — Supporting evidence — Representations, certification and liability.

A petition for exclusion shall set forth all of the following:

1. A description of the land of each petitioner for which exclusion is requested;
2. The reasons why it is claimed the tract or tracts should be excluded and that, except for residential lands for which exclusion is requested under subsection (a)3 or (a)4 of section 43-1102, Idaho Code, the lands sought to be excluded are not benefited by the water rights, or by the irrigation in, or drainage by the district, or by ground water subject to recapture and use by the district and the exclusion will be for the best interests (1) of the owner of the land proposed to be excluded and (2) of the other lands in the district.
3. The petition shall be accompanied by such evidence of ownership of the land as is satisfactory to the board of directors of the district and, except for lands for which exclusion is requested under subsection (a)3 or (a)4 of section 43-1102, Idaho Code, by a deposit for costs in the amount established by the directors of the district as provided in section 43-1105, Idaho Code. The board of directors of the district shall return to the petitioner any petition not accompanied by both such proof of ownership and the filing and exclusion fees set by section 43-1101, Idaho Code, and no further action shall be required of the board with respect to such petition.

A petition for exclusion filed with an irrigation district constitutes representations to the district by the petitioner or petitioners that the facts stated in the petition are true and correct and that no mortgagee or other person holds a lien of record in the county where the land for which exclusion is requested is located, for which the lienholder’s consent to the exclusion is required or that, if such consent is required, the consent has been granted by the lienholder. The petitioner shall be liable for any expenses or damages to lienholders or to other landowners or to the district resulting directly or indirectly from wrongful exclusion of lands by reason of untrue or incorrect statements in the petition.

§ 43-1104. Hearing on petition — Order of exclusion.

The board of directors of the irrigation district may conduct its own investigation of the facts alleged in the petition and, by resolution duly adopted, which may address the allegations of several petitions, accept the facts as alleged and determine that no hearing is required prior to granting the petition or petitions for exclusion. If the allegations are not thus accepted such petition must be heard by the board of directors of such irrigation district within one hundred fifty (150) days of filing of the petition. If no hearing is held within one hundred fifty (150) days, the land described in the petition is excluded from the district. If a hearing is ordered, the petitioner or petitioners must establish by competent evidence the allegations of the petition, and the chairman or presiding member of the board is hereby empowered to administer oaths for the purpose of the hearing.

When (1) the board of directors accepts the facts as alleged without a hearing, or (2) the allegations of the petition are established at a hearing, or (3) the land has been excluded by reason of the board’s failure to hold a hearing within one hundred fifty (150) days of filing of the petition, the board must make an order forthwith changing the boundaries of such district so as to exclude the lands described in the petition which the proof has established to be entitled to exclusion, and thereafter the lands so excluded shall not form a part of the irrigation district for any purpose except as provided in subsection (b) of section 43-1102, Idaho Code; provided however, that the lands so ordered excluded shall not be relieved of their obligation to pay their proportionate share of any existing bonded or contract indebtedness of the irrigation district, and the lands shall remain a part of the irrigation district for the purpose of discharging the existing bonded or contract indebtedness.

No hearing shall be held when, prior to the date set for the hearing, the board issues an order excluding the land described in the petition from the district.

When land is excluded from the district pursuant to a petition filed on or before December 1 in any calendar year, assessments against the land for any calendar year subsequent to the year in which the petition was filed shall not be valid and no lien for any such attempted assessment shall attach under section 43-706, Idaho Code. Petitioners are, however, required to pay any outstanding assessments levied the calendar year and prior in which the petition is filed and said lien shall attach until said assessments are paid.

§ 43-1105. Survey of land to be excluded.

The board of directors may cause any survey to be made it deems necessary for the purpose of determining the change in the district by reason of an exclusion or proposed exclusion. In any case where the land is excluded on the ground that it is too high to receive any benefit from the irrigation works of said district without pumping by the landowner, the cost of all surveys shall be borne by the irrigation district. The board may not, however, require a survey when the land sought to be excluded lies entirely within a subdivision as defined in section 50-1301, Idaho Code. If the land described in the petition is described in accordance with the public survey or in accordance with a plat approved, filed and recorded as provided by law, the cost of survey shall be borne by the district.

§ 43-1106. Appeal.

An appeal shall lie from the decision of the board of directors of such irrigation district denying the petition or any part thereof to the district court of the county where the lands described in the petition are located. The appeal shall be taken in accordance with and shall be subject to the appeal provisions of section 43-719(4) and (5), Idaho Code. If an appeal results in an order of the district court excluding the lands described in the petition, or any of them, the time of segregation shall date from the date of the hearing before the board of directors of the district.

§ 43-1107. Costs.

The costs of excluding any land as provided in this chapter shall be borne by the petitioner or petitioners except in cases where:

1. The lands excluded are found to be too high or not susceptible of irrigation from the water system of the district without pumping by the landowner and the petitioner or previous owners of the land have paid the assessments of the district against that land; or
2. The exclusion is requested under subsection (a)3. or (a)4. of section 43-1102, Idaho Code, and for the five (5) irrigation seasons preceding the filing of the petition (a) there has been no pipe, ditch or other delivery system between the land and the assigned delivery point on the district’s irrigation system, and (b) the petitioner or previous owners of the land have paid the assessments of the district against that land. If the petitioner is required to pay the costs of exclusion hearing proceedings, the board may require a deposit of the estimated costs before they will hear the petition and the one hundred fifty (150) day period in which the petition must be heard as provided in section 43-1104, Idaho Code, shall not begin to run until the estimated costs have been deposited; provided however, that, in case of a successful appeal by the petitioner, the costs taxed by the district to the petitioner or petitioners whose lands are excluded by the district court shall be borne by the irrigation district. If the actual costs of the exclusion proceedings are less than the amount deposited by the petitioner, the excess deposit shall be credited against any amounts which are to be paid by the petitioner prior to entry of the order of exclusion, and the balance, if any, shall be refunded to the petitioner within fourteen (14) days after the hearing; if the actual costs of the exclusion proceedings are more than the deposit, the difference shall be paid to the district by the petitioner within fourteen (14) days after receipt of a statement to that effect from the district, and the board shall not be required to enter an order of exclusion until the difference is paid.

§ 43-1108. Changes to be filed for record.

The decision and order of the board of directors or the district court, in case of appeal, excluding the petitioner’s land and changing the boundaries of such irrigation district shall be filed for record in the recorder’s office of the county within which are situated the excluded lands.

§ 43-1109. Effect of exclusion.

An exclusion of land from any irrigation district shall not impair its existence, nor its rights, including those in its property or its obligations. The land excluded from an irrigation district shall not thereafter be entitled to receive water from the water rights or from the irrigation works and system of the district and shall not thereafter be entitled to any of the benefits of the district and shall be deemed to have fully relinquished all such rights and benefits to the district, provided, that lands retained for drainage purposes shall be entitled to the benefits of the drainage system of the district.

§ 43-1110. Residential land not using water rights — Exclusion — Procedure.

The board of directors of an irrigation district may by resolution, or must, if petitioned by the owners of record of over fifty per cent (50%) of the number of lots in a platted subdivision, declare its proposal to exclude from the district all lots or parcels of residential land in the district described in the petition which have not received water from the water rights of the district or through the irrigation works and system of the district during the period of five (5) years immediately preceding the adoption of the resolution. Lots or parcels of land in contiguous subdivisions may be included in the same resolution. Platted lots which theretofore received water through the same ditch operated by a lateral ditch water users’ association may be included in the same resolution. If the board is petitioned by over fifty per cent (50%) of the lot owners of a subdivision, the board shall conduct the entire proceedings according to sections 43-1110 through 43-1117, Idaho Code.

For purposes of this section, residential land shall mean land on which a house, mobile home, duplex, apartment house or other type of living quarters has been constructed or installed and has been occupied as living quarters by an owner or renter.

§ 43-1111. Resolution — Contents.

The resolution proposing to exclude such lands shall:

1. Describe each lot or parcel proposed to be excluded;
2. Specify the period of time during which each such lot or parcel has not received water from the water rights or through the irrigation works and system of the district;
3. Specify the name and address of each person in possession of each such lot or parcel and of each owner thereof as the ownership appears of record in the assessment rolls of the district and of each owner thereof as the ownership appears of record in the office of the county recorder of the county in which the land is situated and of each mortgagee and other lienholder whose mortgage or lien appears of record in the office of the county recorder of the county in which the land is situated; and,
4. Fix the time and place for hearing of the proposed exclusion, which time shall be not less than twenty-eight (28) days from the date of the adoption of the resolution.

The board may procure any survey which it deems necessary and any title reports which it deems advisable to describe each lot or parcel proposed to be excluded and to determine the names of owners and lienholders of such lands.

§ 43-1112. Notice.

The secretary shall publish notice of such hearing for at least once a week for two (2) weeks before the date of such hearing in a newspaper published in the county in which the land proposed to be excluded is situated. If no newspaper is published in the county containing the land proposed to be excluded, notice shall be posted for the same length of time in at least three (3) public places in the district, one (1) of which notices shall be posted on the land proposed to be excluded. Notice of such hearing on such proposed exclusion shall be given by the secretary of the district by certified or registered mail to each person, firm and corporation named in the resolution.

§ 43-1113. Notice — Contents.

Such notice shall contain:

1. A statement of the date, time and place of the hearing;
2. A description of each lot or parcel proposed to be excluded;
3. The reasons for the exclusion stated in the resolution of intention; and
4. Notice to each person, firm and corporation interested in the proposed exclusion to appear at the district office at the date and time fixed, and file objections in writing showing cause, if any they may have, why the land or any part of it should not be excluded as proposed in the resolution of the board.

§ 43-1114. Hearing.

At the hearing on the proposed exclusion, the board of directors shall hear all of the objections presented to it in writing and all evidence introduced in support of the exclusion and in support of the objections to the exclusion.

§ 43-1115. Order — Determination.

The board after the hearing on its proposal to exclude and the objections thereto shall order the exclusion of all or any part of the land described in the resolution when as to the land to be excluded, the board determines that:

1. The land has not received water from the irrigation works and system of the district during the period of five (5) years immediately preceding the adoption of the resolution of the board declaring its proposal to exclude the land;
2. The land will not be directly and presently benefited by the operations of the district;
3. The ditch rights of other landowners in the same lateral ditch water users’ association in the district will not be injured; and,
4. The exclusion is for the best interests of the owner of the land proposed to be excluded and of the district.

§ 43-1116. Board — Entry of order of exclusion.

If the board determines from the hearing that any lot or parcel included in the proceedings should be excluded from the district, the board shall make and enter an order of exclusion in its proceedings describing each lot or parcel being excluded from the district.

If any lot or parcel proposed to be excluded shall not be excluded by such order of exclusion, the board shall make and enter an order describing each lot or parcel included in the proceedings and not excluded from the district.

§ 43-1117. Order — Filing for record.

A copy of the order or resolution of exclusion, certified by the president and secretary of the district, shall be filed for record in the office of the county recorder of each county wherein any portion of the land is situated.

§ 43-1118. Appeals — Procedure.

An appeal shall lie from the resolution or the order of the board of directors excluding, and from the order of the board of directors not excluding, lands covered by proceedings under sections 43-1110 through 43-1117, Idaho Code, or from any part of any such order. The appeal may be taken by any landowner in the district and by any person, firm or corporation having any interest in any tract of land included in any such order. The appeal shall be to the district court of the county where the lands involved in the appeal are located. The appeal shall be taken in accordance with and shall be subject to the appeal provisions of section 43-719(4) and (5), Idaho Code.

§ 43-1119. Exclusion — Loss of water rights — Obligations outstanding — Effect — Enforcement — Payment — Certificate.

1. Land excluded from any irrigation district shall not thereafter be entitled to receive water from the water rights or from the irrigation works and system of the district and, except as provided in subsection (b) of section 43-1102, Idaho Code, shall not thereafter be entitled to any of the benefits of the district. An exclusion of land from any irrigation district shall not impair the water rights or irrigation works and system of the district nor its rights in or to its property or its obligations.
2. Land excluded from a district shall be subject to assessment and be otherwise chargeable for the payment and discharge of all obligations outstanding at the time of the entry of the order or resolution excluding the land as fully as though the land had not been excluded.
3. All provisions which could be used to compel the payment by excluded land of its portion of the outstanding obligations had the exclusion not occurred, may be used to compel the payment on the part of the land of the portion of the outstanding obligations of the district for which it is liable.
4. When any lot or parcel of land shall be excluded from an irrigation district and there shall be paid to the district all of the debts and obligations of the district assessable, chargeable or allocable to the lot or tract excluded, the district may issue its certificate of full payment executed by the president and secretary of the district, and acknowledged so that the certificate may be recorded in the records of the county wherein the land is situate.

§ 43-1120. Reinstatement of nonagricultural lands — Order — Filing for record.

Where lands have been excluded from an irrigation district under the provisions of this chapter and the owner or owners of the excluded lands desire to receive irrigation water: through an existing distribution system; through a distribution system proposed to be constructed under authority of section 43-329, 43-330A or 43-333, Idaho Code, or under any law authorizing a local improvement district; pursuant to a lease executed under section 43-335 or 43-338, Idaho Code; or pursuant to a contract executed under section 43-730, Idaho Code, the owner or owners may file with the secretary of the irrigation district a written request, signed and acknowledged in the manner required for conveyances of real property, that the lands be reinstated by the irrigation district. Upon receipt of such a request the board of directors of the irrigation district, in its discretion, may enter an order declaring that the lands are reinstated to their former status, including the water rights, and directing the assessor of the irrigation district to enter the lands on the assessment roll. A copy of the order or resolution of reinstatement, certified by the president and secretary of the district, shall be filed for record in the office of the county recorder of each county wherein any portion of the reinstated land is situated. The district may charge a filing fee not to exceed the costs of processing the reinstatement request, and may also charge a reinstatement fee not to exceed the exclusion fee provided in section 43-1101, Idaho Code.

§ 43-1121. Notice of proposed construction of distribution system — Time for filing written request.

Prior to construction of a distribution system under the authority of either section 43-329 or 43-333, Idaho Code, or under any law authorizing a local improvement district, an irrigation district shall mail a notice of the intended construction to the current owner of any lot or parcel within the area to which irrigation water can be delivered by that distribution system, which previously had been excluded from the district as not agricultural. The notice shall state that the lot or parcel may be eligible for reinstatement, with water rights, if the owner so requests in writing, properly signed and acknowledged, and shall specify the date, not less than three (3) weeks after mailing of the notice, after which the irrigation district may decline to consider the request.

§ 43-1122. Transfer of lands between districts.

The boards of directors of two (2) irrigation districts may by resolution declare and act upon their proposal to transfer lands from one (1) district to the other through exclusion and annexation in accordance with sections 43-1122 through 43-1129, Idaho Code. The district from which lands are proposed to be excluded shall be identified as the “excluding district.” The district to which lands are proposed to be annexed shall be identified as the “annexing district.”

§ 43-1123. Resolution — Contents.

The districts proposing to transfer lands as authorized by section 43-1122, Idaho Code, shall adopt a resolution, either separately or jointly, which shall:

1. Identify the excluding district and the annexing district;
2. Provide a legal description of each lot or parcel proposed to be transferred;
3. Specify the name and address of each person in possession of each such lot or parcel and of each owner thereof as the ownership appears of record in the assessment rolls of the district and of each owner thereof as the ownership appears of record in the office of the county recorder of the county in which the land is situated and of each mortgagee and other lienholder whose mortgage or lien appears of record in the office of the county recorder of the county in which the land is situated;
4. Explain the reasons for the transfer including, but not limited to, that the transfer is in the best interests of the owner of the land proposed to be transferred and of the districts;
5. Describe the benefits that will be apportioned and provided to the proposed transferred lands by the annexing district;
6. Provide a statement of applicable levies by the annexing district in the year prior to the proposed transfer;
7. Describe the proposed method of water delivery from the annexing district to the lands proposed to be transferred;
8. Identify obligations of the excluding district that will continue to apply to the lands to be transferred;
9. State whether the lands proposed to be transferred will be retained within the excluding district for drainage purposes;
10. Fix the date, time and place for hearing on the proposed transfer, which time shall be not less than twenty-eight (28) days from the date of the adoption of the resolution(s); and
11. Recite any other information the districts deem to be pertinent to the proposed transfer.

§ 43-1124. Notice.

The secretaries of the excluding and annexing districts shall publish and provide notice of the hearing on the proposed transfer in the manner described in section 43-1112, Idaho Code. The secretaries may publish and provide such notice separately or jointly.

§ 43-1125. Notice — Contents.

The notice required by section 43-1124, Idaho Code, shall contain:

1. The information identified in section 43-1123, Idaho Code; and
2. Notice to each person, firm, corporation and other legal entity interested in the proposed transfer to appear at the district office at the date and time fixed, and file objections in writing showing cause, if any they may have, why the land or any part of it should not be transferred as proposed in the resolution(s) of the boards of directors.

§ 43-1126. Hearing.

The boards of directors of the districts may hold separate hearings or a joint hearing on the proposed transfer. At such hearing(s), the boards of directors shall hear all of the objections presented to them in writing and all evidence introduced in support of the transfer and in support of the objections to the transfer.

§ 43-1127. Orders — Determinations.

After the hearing(s) on the transfer proposal, the boards of directors of the districts shall order the transfer of all or any part of the land described in the resolution when as to the lands to be excluded they determine that:

1. The transfer is in the best interests of the owner of the lands to be transferred and of the district;
2. The annexing district will apportion and provide comparable benefits to the lands to be transferred;
3. There will be no interruption in the delivery of water to the lands to be transferred as a result of the transfer; and
4. The ditch rights of other landowners in the same lateral ditch water users’ association in the excluding district will not be injured.

§ 43-1128. Entry and recording of orders.

If the boards of directors determine from the hearing that all or part of the lands described in the resolution should be transferred from one (1) district to another, the boards shall enter orders as follows:

1. The board of the excluding district shall make and enter an order of exclusion that:
   1. Describes each lot or parcel being transferred;
   2. Changes the boundaries of the district to exclude such lands;
   3. States that the excluded lands shall not be entitled to receive water from the water rights or irrigation system of the excluding district;
   4. States that the excluded lands shall remain part of the excluding district for drainage purposes if the excluded lands will continue to receive drainage benefits from the excluding district;
   5. Identifies the obligations of the excluding district that will continue to apply to the lands to be transferred;
   6. Recites any other information the districts deem to be pertinent to the proposed transfer; and
   7. Provides that the order shall not become effective until the annexing district enters an order annexing the lands described in the exclusion order.
2. The secretary of the excluding district shall deliver a copy of the exclusion order to the annexing district.
3. As soon as practicable after receiving the exclusion order, the annexing district shall make and enter an order that the lands described in the exclusion order be annexed to the annexing district.
4. After the annexing district has entered its order of annexation, copies of the orders of exclusion and annexation, certified by the presidents and secretaries of the districts, shall be recorded in the office(s) of the county recorder(s) of each county wherein any portion of the transferred lands are situated.

§ 43-1129. Effect of orders.

The order excluding the transferred lands from the excluding district shall have the same effect described in sections 43-1109 and 43-1119, Idaho Code. The order annexing the transferred lands to the annexing district shall have the same effect described in section 43-1009, Idaho Code.

§ 43-1130. Appeals — Procedure.

An appeal shall lie from the orders of the boards of directors transferring lands covered by the procedures pursuant to sections 43-1122 through 43-1128, Idaho Code, and from any part of such orders. The appeal may be taken by any landowner in the excluding district or in the annexing district and by any person, firm, corporation or other entity having any interest in any tract of land included in such orders. The appeal shall be to the district court of the county where the lands involved in the appeal are located. The appeal shall be taken and shall be subject to the appeal provisions of section 43-719(4) and (5), Idaho Code.

§ 43-1131. Costs.

All costs incurred by the districts in the transfer process provided by sections 43-1122 through 43-1128, Idaho Code, shall be divided equally between the districts, unless the districts agree upon a different apportionment of costs.

§ 43-1201. Resolution of board of land commissioners — Petition.

The state board of land commissioners may, by resolution duly passed at any meeting of said board and recorded in the minutes thereof, after due consideration in each specific case, authorize the governor of the state of Idaho, as chairman of said board of land commissioners, to sign a petition for the annexation of adjacent state lands of the state of Idaho to a regularly organized irrigation district, or sign a petition to exclude such state lands from an irrigation district. The governor of the state of Idaho, as chairman of the state board of land commissioners, shall be deemed the owner of said lands for the purpose of signing any petition herein authorized, with like effect as the owner of private lands.

§ 43-1301. Petition.

Whenever twenty-five (25) or a majority of the landowners in any irrigation district heretofore organized or hereafter to be organized so desire they may petition the board of directors to call a special election for the purpose of submitting to the qualified electors of such irrigation district a proposal to vote on the modification of such district by the exclusion of land within its boundaries or a proposal to vote on the dissolution of such district, or for the sale or transfer of its water rights, canal system and all or any other property or for dissolution and for sale or transfer, as the case may be. Such petition shall set forth the reasons for such proposal and in case it is proposed to modify said district by the exclusion of lands therein shall set forth particularly the land to be excluded and the reasons therefor. Such petition for modification or dissolution of the district or for such sale or transfer either shall state that all outstanding bonds, warrants and other obligations of every nature whatsoever, legal and enforceable, against said district have been fully satisfied and paid or shall set forth facts showing reasonable ground for the belief that the consent of the holders of all outstanding bonds, warrants and other obligations of the district, legal and enforceable, can be obtained, or that the district is able to satisfy all those not consenting.

§ 43-1302. Election — Call for.

It shall be the duty of the said board of directors, if it approves said petition, to call an election for the purpose of submitting to the qualified electors of the district the proposal specified in said petition: provided, that no sale or transfer shall be made unless to a duly organized irrigation company under the laws of Idaho operating only for the benefit of its stockholders.

§ 43-1303. Election — Notice.

Notice of such election must be given by posting notices in three (3) public places in each election precinct in said district at least four (4) weeks before the date of said election and by the publication thereof for the same length of time in some newspaper published in each county in which the district or any part thereof is located. Such notice must specify the time and place of holding such election and, in case such election involves the exclusion of land from the district, must describe the land proposed to be excluded, and in case of sale or transfer shall set forth briefly the property and rights affected and the terms and basis of participation of district land and water owners in such transfer.

§ 43-1304. Election — Conduct.

Such election must be held in all respects as near as practicable in conformity with the provisions of law governing elections upon the organization of irrigation districts. All persons who possess the qualifications of electors under the general laws of the state and are residents of said district may vote at such election. Upon the ballots used at such elections should be written or printed “For Modification, Yes” and “For Modification, No,” or “For Dissolution, Yes” and “For Dissolution, No,” or “For Sale or Transfer, Yes” and “For Sale or Transfer, No,” depending upon the nature of the proposal to be voted upon.

§ 43-1305. Canvass of returns.

On the first Monday after any such election the board of directors of the district shall meet at its usual place of meeting to canvass the returns, and when they shall have declared the result the secretary shall make full entry in his record.

§ 43-1306. Petition for confirmation by district court.

Immediately after such election, in case the proposal has carried by a majority vote, the board of directors of the irrigation district shall file in the district court of the county in which their office is situated a petition praying in effect that the proceedings aforesaid for the modification or dissolution of the district, or for the sale or transfer of its properties, as the case may be, may be examined, approved and confirmed by the court. The petition shall set forth a full description of the land formerly embraced within said irrigation district which is affected by the proceedings for the modification or dissolution of such district, or of the property and rights proposed to be sold or transferred, as the case may be, shall set forth generally the proceedings taken with reference to the petition and the election specified in the preceding sections of this chapter, and shall set forth fully every item of legal and enforceable indebtedness of the district with the name and residence of the holder thereof so far as known to the secretary of the district. In case any items of indebtedness are in the hands of unknown owners, they shall be so listed.

§ 43-1307. Character of proceedings for confirmation.

Said proceedings shall be in the nature of a suit to quiet title with respect to so much of the land within said district as is affected by the proposal to modify or dissolve the same. And the decree of the court approving a sale or transfer shall be full and complete authority for carrying out the same and such decree shall further set forth the basis and terms of sale or transfer and the basis of participation by the owners in said district in such sale or transfer. In such proceedings the board of directors shall be the parties plaintiff and the holders of any obligations of the district, including obligations which are or might become liens against any of said lands, are parties defendant. The provisions of sections 6658, 6659 and 6660 of Idaho Compiled Statutes [§ 5-326 Idaho Code], so far as they can be made applicable, shall govern generally the pleadings, summons, proceedings and force and effect of the decree: provided, that the petition may be in form against all persons having interest in or claim against the district, without naming them, and the summons, directed in same way, and setting forth briefly the purposes of the petition, shall be by publication in the first instance or order of the court or a judge thereof and service on all parties interested, whether unknown owners, heirs, devisees, claimants or otherwise, shall be deemed complete at the time prescribed by the order for publication; and, unless answer be made by any one interested in or making claim against said district, within twenty (20) days after such last day of publication, default may be entered.

§ 43-1308. Decree of confirmation.

The court or judge shall set a day for the hearing of such petition and if it appears to the court from the proof adduced thereat that there are no such outstanding bonds, warrants or other indebtedness of such district, or in case there is any such indebtedness outstanding that the holders thereof have filed no objections to the proceedings, or have filed their consent thereto, then the court shall enter its decree confirming the said proceedings, or may hear and determine and make decree as to any controversy. Said decree shall describe particularly the lands involved and thereafter such lands shall be considered as unaffected by any of the matters done by such irrigation district while such lands were a part thereof: provided, that the election authorized by the preceding sections of this chapter shall have no force or effect to modify or dissolve any district, or to permit such sale or transfer, until confirmed by the decree of court as herein set forth.

§ 43-1309. Dissolution without election — Petition — Conditions.

An irrigation district may be dissolved without the holding of the election provided for by this chapter upon complaint or petition of parties holding and owning:

1. Fifty per cent (50%) or more of the issued outstanding unpaid bonds of such district; or,
2. Fifty per cent (50%) or more of all the land situate within the boundaries of such district; or,
3. Claims, warrants, liens or other legal obligations of such district in an amount equal to not less than thirty per cent (30%) of the issued outstanding and unpaid bonds of such district.
   1. That the district has been abandoned, or for two (2) or more years last past has ceased to function, and there is little or no probability that it ever will or can function in future;
   2. That no useful purpose exists for the further continuance of the organization of the district;
   3. That there are not sufficient qualified electors residing within the boundaries of such district to hold a legal election.

It must be made to appear to the satisfaction of the court, by such complaint or petition, that any one or more of the following conditions exist in or as to said district:

§ 43-1310. Dissolution without election — Parties.

In such petition the petitioners or complainants shall be named as plaintiffs and the irrigation district, and its directors, if any there are, and all persons having interest in or claim against the district, without naming them, shall be defendants; in the course of the proceedings of said case, and at any time before the final hearing thereof, any person interested may join in said case as a party plaintiff or as a party defendant, or any party interested may intervene in said case without order of the court.

§ 43-1311. Dissolution without election — Appointment of officer to marshal assets — Decree.

In the exercise of the jurisdiction given it by this act, the court shall have the power to appoint such referee, master, auditor, or receiver as may be considered necessary or proper to marshal the assets, and protect or preserve them, or ascertain the true condition of such district; after due hearing and consideration of the evidence submitted, the court shall enter a decree establishing the legal and equitable rights, interests and priorities of all parties and claimants, and may decree and direct the sale of all or any part of the properties of the district, whether real, personal or mixed, and direct the disbursement and application of the proceeds and the payment of the costs of the proceeding, and may dissolve the district, or may approve and confirm any settlement or agreement of settlement made between the parties interested in such district, if a settlement is agreed upon by them, or may direct the payment of the indebtedness of the district in the order of priority determined and established by the decree, through assessments made as in case of the dissolution of villages, or may grant such other or further relief as may be equitable or proper in the premises.

§ 43-1312. Dissolution without election — Application of other code provisions.

The general provisions of this chapter, and the general provisions of sections 5-508, 5-509, and 5-511[, Idaho Code,] relative to issuance, service and publication of process, hearing, entry and execution of judgment and decree, as far as applicable shall apply to the proceedings had under the provisions of this act, the necessary substitutions and changes being considered made.

§ 43-1313. Dissolution without election — Appeal.

Each party to any proceeding under this act shall have the right of appeal as in other civil cases.

§ 43-1314. Petition.

The owners of a majority of the land in an irrigation district that is operated and maintained exclusively to deliver natural flow water rights, who also hold title to the water rights appurtenant to that land, and whose water rights are delivered by an organized irrigation district, may petition to partition the irrigation district into two (2) separate irrigation districts, which shall be known for purposes of this act as the new irrigation district and the remaining irrigation district. For each parcel of land that is proposed to be included in the new irrigation district, the petition shall set forth the following:

1. Irrigation district assessment number;
2. Tax lot or legal description to identify the property;
3. Owner of the property;
4. Individual water rights that are appurtenant to each property;
5. A general characterization of the property as agricultural, residential or commercial; and
6. The number of divisions into which the district shall be divided.

The petition must be signed by each landowner who desires to be included in the new irrigation district and their signature shall constitute consent to the partition and consent to have their water rights delivered and distributed by the new irrigation district.

§ 43-1315. Submission of petition to county.

The petition shall be filed with the clerk of the board of county commissioners of the county in which the greatest proportion of the proposed new irrigation district is situated. The petition, together with all maps and other papers filed therewith, shall at all proper hours be open to public inspection in the office of the clerk of the board between the date of the filing and the date of the hearing thereon.

§ 43-1316. Maps and water supply data.

The petitioners must accompany the petition with a map of the proposed district. The map shall show the location of the canals situated within the boundaries of the proposed partitioned district.

§ 43-1317. Bond.

The petitioners shall accompany the petition with a bond to be approved by the board of county commissioners in double the amount of the probable cost of the county organizing a new irrigation district, conditioning that the bondsman will pay all costs, in the event the new irrigation district is not organized.

§ 43-1318. Notice of presentation to commissioners.

Upon filing of a petition with the clerk of the board of county commissioners, the clerk shall publish a notice that a petition for the partition of an irrigation district has been filed, setting forth the first signature on the petition. The notice shall provide the time at which the petition will be presented to the board, which shall be during a regular meeting of the board or during a special meeting called for that purpose. The notice shall be published at least two (2) weeks prior to the day upon which the petition is to be presented in a newspaper of general circulation in the county. If any portion of the proposed partitioned district be within another county or counties, the notice shall also be published in a newspaper of general circulation in each of those counties.

§ 43-1319. Notice of hearing.

When a petition is presented to the board, the board shall set a time for hearing, which time shall not be less than four (4) nor more than eight (8) weeks from the date of the presentation. Notice of the time of hearing shall be published by the board at least three (3) weeks prior to the time of hearing in a newspaper of general circulation published within each of the counties in which any part of the proposed partitioned district is situated.

§ 43-1320. Examination by department of water resources.

A copy of the petition and all maps and other papers filed with the board of county commissioners shall be filed in the office of the department of water resources by the board at least four (4) weeks prior to the date set for the hearing. The department may examine the petition, maps and other papers and if it deems it necessary, the department may prepare a report upon the matter in such form as it deems advisable. Any report prepared by the department shall be submitted to the board a minimum of seven (7) calendar days before the hearing on the petition and shall be available for public inspection. It shall be the duty of the board to notify the department of water resources of the final action, either favorable or unfavorable, taken on a petition for the partition of an irrigation district.

§ 43-1321. Order of the board.

If it appears to the board of county commissioners that the holders of evidence of title to a majority of the acreage with water rights delivered by the irrigation district within the boundaries of an existing irrigation district have properly signed a petition and approved the partition of the irrigation district, that the holders of evidence of title to such land signing the petition are also holders of title to the water rights appurtenant to the land and it appears that the majority of the acreage with water rights delivered by the irrigation district described in the petition is of an agricultural character, the board shall issue an order partitioning the irrigation district as set forth in the petition. The board shall not modify the boundaries set forth in the original petition. Provided however, the board may permit any holder of evidence of title to land lying within the boundaries of the original district of forty (40) acres or more in size used primarily for agricultural purposes to include such land in the new irrigation district, if such landowner has filed a separate petition with the board establishing that such land meets all the criteria required to have been joined in the original petition, including ownership of water rights appurtenant to the land. Supplemental petitions may be accepted at any time prior to the date of hearing.

§ 43-1322. Divisions of district for election of directors.

The board of county commissioners shall also enter an order dividing the new partitioned irrigation district into not less than three (3) nor more than seven (7) divisions of as nearly equal size as practical, which shall be numbered first, second, third, etc. One (1) director, who shall be an elector and resident in the division, shall be elected from each division of the district. Provided however, that in districts of three thousand (3,000) acres or less, the directors may be elected from qualified electors holding title or evidence of title to land in the district and residing in the county where some portion of the district is located. The number of divisions into which the district shall be divided shall be specified in the petition for the partition of the new irrigation district, and if not otherwise specified, shall be three (3). The board shall also enter an order dividing the remaining irrigation district after partition into the same number of divisions of as nearly equal size as practical as existed in the original irrigation district prior to partition.

§ 43-1323. Effective date of partition — Challenges to partition.

The effective date of the partition of the existing district into two (2) districts shall be as of the date of the order of the board of county commissioners. Following the effective date of the partition order by the board, the newly partitioned irrigation district shall immediately undertake to reorganize, elect officers as set forth in section 43-301, Idaho Code, and exercise all powers and duties of an irrigation district. Any appeal from, or judicial challenge to, the order of the board partitioning the irrigation district must be brought in the county where the board sits within ninety (90) days from the effective date of the order or be forever barred.

§ 43-1324. Joint works — Jointly held property.

The irrigation works and any other real or personal property held by the original irrigation district prior to the partition shall belong to the partitioned irrigation districts jointly as provided in this section. All canals and laterals that deliver water to members of both districts shall be held by each district in proportion to the total quantity of water delivered to members of each district through each individual diversion work, canal and lateral. All other real and personal property shall be held jointly by the two (2) districts in proportion to the total quantity of water rights held by the members of each district that are appurtenant to lands within the newly partitioned district. Any outstanding debts of the district prior to partition shall be joint obligations of the two (2) newly partitioned districts after the partition in proportion to the total quantity of water rights held by members of each district within the newly partitioned districts. All assessments collected from landowners shall be provided to the new districts based upon the location of the land after the partition, less the proportionate share of expenses incurred prior to the effective date of the order of partition.

§ 43-1325. Joint operation.

Whenever the partitioned irrigation districts share irrigation works, canals and laterals after the partition takes effect, a joint board of control, not exceeding seven (7) members, shall be chosen by the board of directors of the respective partitioned irrigation districts, the members of which shall be apportioned to each district as nearly as practicable in accordance with the acreage for which water shall be provided in each respective district. Said board of control shall control, manage and operate such joint works subject to the board of directors of the respective districts and each member of the board of control shall hold office at the will of the board of directors of the district appointing such member.

§ 43-1401. Petition for consolidation.

Whenever the boards of directors of any two (2) or more irrigation districts which are contiguous deem it for the best interests of their respective districts that the same be consolidated into a single district, such boards of directors may petition the board of county commissioners for an order for an election, to vote upon the question of such consolidation, which petition shall state in detail the terms upon which such consolidation is proposed to be made: provided, however, when any two (2) irrigation districts which are contiguous, where one (1) district does not embrace more than one-tenth (1/10) the land in the larger district, and the board of directors deem it for the best interests of the respective districts that the same be consolidated into a single district, the board of directors may arrange by contract upon what terms and conditions the smaller district may be consolidated with the larger district, with the name and officers of the larger district still retained, which contract shall be submitted to the board of directors of the smaller district, together with the question of whether or not said districts shall be consolidated under the terms of the agreement, at a special election held for that purpose in such smaller district. Notice of such election shall be published as required for notices of election for indebtedness. At such election should two-thirds (2/3) of the electors voting, vote in favor of said contract and the consolidation of said districts, the board of directors of the smaller district shall petition the board of directors of the larger district, which notice shall be published in a newspaper published within the county wherein the office of the board of directors of the larger district is situated, for such length of time and covering the same matters as required by a petition of a private owner of land to have same included within the boundaries of an irrigation district. The law applicable to the inclusion of land within the boundaries of an irrigation district, after the petition is filed and notice given, shall apply to the consolidating, including and annexing of a smaller district in and to the boundaries of a larger district. After the board of directors of the larger district has made the order including said smaller district within the boundaries of the larger district, the board of directors of the larger district shall file a petition in the district court within the county wherein the principal office of the larger district is situated, asking for an approval and confirmation of the proceedings thereunder, and the same procedure shall be followed as provided by sections 43-406, 43-407, and 43-408[, Idaho Code,] with reference to the confirmation of the proceedings within irrigation districts. In such petition the prayer shall be that the proceedings, together with the contract, may be examined and approved by the court; that after the confirmation of said proceedings the order of the board of directors admitting the smaller district into the larger district, containing a description of all the land properly certified by the secretary of the district, shall be filed for record in the office of the recorder of the county within which said land lies.

§ 43-1402. Investigation by department of water resources.

Upon receiving such petitions said board of county commissioners shall request the department of water resources to investigate the conditions of such districts, and all questions affecting such proposed consolidation, and it shall make a report of the result of such investigations to the board of county commissioners not more than ninety (90) days after such request is received.

§ 43-1403. Election to determine question of consolidation. — At the time said report upon the matter is made, said board of county commissioners, if deemed advisable, shall make an order fixing the time for an election in the said districts to vote upon the question of such proposed consolidation, which time shall not be less than thirty (30) nor more than sixty (60) days after the date of said report. Notice of said election shall be published as required for notice of election in section 43-110[, Idaho Code]; and the said boards of directors shall make all necessary arrangements for such election in their respective districts as provided in this title for other elections. The ballots shall be substantially as follows: “Consolidation — yes,” “Consolidation

no.” The said boards of directors shall canvass the returns of such election as provided in case of usual district elections, and shall immediately thereafter transmit, by messenger or registered mail, certified abstracts of the result of said election in their respective districts to the clerk of the board of county commissioners. Within ten (10) days after such returns are received by said clerk, the said board of county commissioners shall meet and canvass the same.

§ 43-1404. Procedure upon affirmative vote. — If it appears that a majority of all the votes cast in each of said districts is “Consolidation

yes,” said board shall make an order, and enter the same of record in its minutes, establishing said consolidated district, giving its boundaries and designation, and in detail the terms under which the consolidation has been effected, and dividing said consolidated district into three (3) divisions, and shall appoint some person qualified under this title, to act as director for each of said divisions of said district until the next general election for the election of directors, when a board of directors shall be elected as provided in section 43-201, Idaho Code: provided, however, that the organization of such district shall not take effect until the first Tuesday of the January following said order of its establishment. If the date provided by law for the election of directors shall come between the date of said order of the board of county commissioners and said first Tuesday of January, then in making such order said board shall designate the board of directors of one (1) of the consolidated districts as a board to take charge of said election, and a director shall in that case be elected for each said division of said consolidated district, and in that case no appointment of directors shall be made by said board of county commissioners.

§ 43-1405. Effect of negative vote. — If, however, upon such canvass by said board of county commissioners, it appears that a majority of the votes cast in any district thus proposed to be consolidated is “Consolidation

no,” then a record of that fact shall be entered in the same minutes of said board of county commissioners, and all the proceedings had under the preceding sections of this chapter shall be void.

§ 43-1406. Joint interstate districts.

One or more irrigation districts organized under the laws of this state may unite with one or more adjacent irrigation districts organized under the laws of any adjoining state in the purchase or construction of an irrigation system or works for the irrigation of the land within said respective irrigation districts; and in such case said irrigation districts are hereby jointly granted the same power of condemnation as is now possessed by one (1) district alone; and in such case the cost of purchase, acquisition or construction of such irrigation system shall be apportioned to each district in proportion to the acreage in each district for which water shall be provided and such joint works shall be owned jointly in proportion to such respective acreage; a joint commission not exceeding seven (7) in number shall be chosen by the board of directors of the respective irrigation districts, the members of which shall be apportioned to each district as nearly as practicable in accordance with the acreage for which water shall be provided in each respective district; said commission shall control and manage such joint works subject to the board of directors of the respective districts and each member of such commission shall hold office at the will of the board of directors of the district appointing him.

§ 43-1407. Joint interstate districts — Right to drain lands.

The authority extended to joint interstate districts under the preceding section shall be construed to include the right to drain its lands under section 43-1406[, Idaho Code].

§ 43-1501. Navigation and mining industries not impaired.

Navigation shall never in any wise be impaired by the operation of this title, nor shall any vested interest in or to any mining water rights or ditches, or in or to any water or water rights or reservoirs or dams now used by the owners or possessors thereof in connection with any mining industry, or by persons purchasing or renting the use thereof, or in or to any other property now used directly or indirectly in carrying on or promoting the mining industry, ever be affected by or taken under its provisions, save and except that rights of way may be acquired over the same.

§ 43-1502. Publication of notices.

Whenever in this title any notice is required to be given by publication, it shall be satisfied by publishing the same in a weekly newspaper, the same number of times consecutively as the number of weeks mentioned in the requirement. A ten (10) days’ notice shall be satisfied by two (2) such publications, a twenty (20) days’ notice by three (3), and a thirty (30) days’ notice by five (5) such publications.

§ 43-1504. Existing districts to be governed by this title.

All irrigation districts heretofore organized under any of the laws of this state shall hereafter be governed in all respects by the provisions of this title.

§ 43-1506. Change of name of irrigation districts.

The board of directors of any irrigation district of the state of Idaho may petition the district court of the county in which the lands of said irrigation district or the greater portion thereof are situated for a change of the name of such irrigation district. Such petition must specify the date of organization of the district, its present name, the name proposed, and that the board of directors deems it for the best interests of said district that the name of the district be changed, and must be signed by the directors of the district or by a majority of them. Upon filing such petition the same proceedings shall be had for effecting such change of name as are prescribed in chapter 8 of title 7 of the Idaho Code, and a certified copy of any order of the district court changing the name of such irrigation district shall be forthwith filed with the department of water resources. Any change of name under the provisions of this section shall not affect any of the rights, property or obligations of said irrigation district.

§ 43-1507. Investment of certain funds authorized.

In addition to the authority conferred upon the board of directors of an irrigation district by section 57-127, Idaho Code, such board shall have the authority to invest the surplus funds of such district, in the negotiable, general obligation bonds or other evidences of indebtedness of the United States or of this state or in local improvement district bonds or warrants authorized by chapter 17, title 50, or chapter 25, title 43, Idaho Code, in lieu of depositing the same in designated depositories as provided by the public depository law and to dispose of such bonds, warrants, or evidences of indebtedness as and when said board may direct.

§ 43-1508. Disposition of lands acquired by tax title — Perfection of title by district — Ratification of prior acts.

Any irrigation district, as the purchaser of any lands at any delinquent tax sale or holding tax deed issued in consequence of any delinquency entry for taxes or assessments, or as the owner of lands in any other manner acquired, and which are not necessary for the use of the district, shall be entitled to the same rights as a private purchaser, and the title so acquired by the district may be conveyed by deed executed and acknowledged by the president and secretary of the board of directors, and in like manner the district may also contract to convey or lease the same; provided that authority so to convey, contract or lease must be conferred by resolution of said board entered upon its minutes. Any deeds executed on behalf of a county by its board of county commissioners or the officers thereof, to an irrigation district holding tax title or delinquency entry against lands within its boundaries prior to the date this act goes into effect, and any deeds, contracts, or leases executed by irrigation districts prior to the date this act goes into effect conveying, contracting to convey, or leasing lands acquired under the conditions set forth in this act are hereby declared to be good, valid and legal, and are hereby validated, approved, authorized and confirmed.

§ 43-1509. Right to purchase lands when holding tax title.

Any irrigation district holding tax title to, or a delinquency entry against, lands within its boundaries to which a county has heretofore taken or may hereafter take tax deed, may become the purchaser of such lands when the same are sold by such county, and the district may convey, contract to convey or lease any land so acquired, in the manner provided in section 43-1508[, Idaho Code].

§ 43-1601. Power to purchase.

Any irrigation district organized or hereafter organized under the laws of the state of Idaho is hereby authorized and empowered to purchase state lands within the boundaries of such irrigation district from the state at the state sale of said lands and may sell and dispose of the lands so purchased at a price and upon terms to be determined by the board of directors of such district. Any irrigation district, as a purchaser of any state lands within the boundaries of such district, shall be entitled to the same rights as a private purchaser and a title so acquired by the district may be conveyed by deed executed and acknowledged by the president and secretary of the board of directors: provided, that authority to so convey must be conferred by resolution of the board entered on its minutes: provided further, that in the sale by the state of state lands within an irrigation district under this chapter the lands shall be offered in tracts or parcels of not more than six hundred forty (640) acres.

§ 43-1603. Appraisement — Sale — Construction work defined — Assessment of initial costs.

Before any state lands shall be offered for sale within an irrigation district the state board of land commissioners shall cause said lands to be appraised, showing the value of the lands exclusive of all benefits accruing to such lands by reason of the water rights and irrigation works acquired by the irrigation district, which appraisement shall not be less than ten dollars ($10.00) per acre. And when lands are sold to other purchasers than the irrigation district, the purchasers shall pay to the irrigation district within which said lands are situated the initial cost of all construction work to the same extent as though said lands had been held in private ownership at the time the construction work was done. But no maintenance or other assessments shall accrue against such land until such time as the land is actually sold. The term “construction work” as herein used shall include the erection of pump houses and electrical and other pumps or appliances for raising water to the lands, as well as dams, headgates, ditches, laterals, drainage canals and other irrigation works. These initial costs shall be assessed against purchasers of the land on such terms of payment as may be agreed upon between the state board of land commissioners and the directors of the irrigation district, and such terms shall be stated in the advertisement of such sale. Any adjustments or reductions of such initial construction charges, as may have been granted or that thereafter may be granted to any of the lands within the irrigation district, shall also be granted to the state lands.

§ 43-1604. Appraisal of improvements.

In case an irrigation district shall become the purchaser of any state lands, as in this chapter provided, which lands or any portion thereof are held by a lessee, the district shall take the title to said lands subject to said lease, and the district shall not pay for the surface improvements made by such lessee, but whenever the district shall sell and dispose of said lands the said improvements shall be appraised and paid for in the same manner as provided by law and the rules and regulations governing the state board of land commissioners were the said state board of land commissioners acting instead of the board of directors of said district.

§ 43-1605. Contracts pledged for construction work.

The board of directors of any irrigation district, after a sale and disposal of any lands purchased under this chapter, having contracts or evidence of lien on the lands so sold for the purchase price or any part thereof may use such contracts or evidence of lien and pledge the same to the United States or any contractor for the construction of any works necessary for the operation of the irrigation works of such district. And the board of directors of any irrigation district having such contracts or evidence of lien, may borrow money to be used for the construction of any irrigation or drainage works necessary for the use of said district, and may pledge such contracts or evidence of lien as security for such loan: provided, that no such loan shall exceed the face value exclusive of interest of the contracts or evidences of lien so pledged: and provided further, that any money so borrowed shall be placed in a special fund and used only for the construction of such works.

§ 43-1606. Elections.

All elections held under the provisions of this chapter shall be in accordance with the laws governing elections authorizing the issuing of bonds by an irrigation district.

§ 43-1607. Application of general laws.

All provisions of the law with reference to the sale and disposal of state lands under the general laws of the state not in conflict herewith shall apply to the sale of state lands under the provisions of this chapter.

§ 43-1701. Irrigation districts may submit reclamation proposals under Carey Act.

In case there are within the boundaries of an irrigation district organized under the laws of this state lands which are in a condition to be selected under the Carey Act laws of the United States of America, the board of directors of an irrigation district may, and it is hereby authorized and empowered to file with the department of water resources a request for the selection, on behalf of the state, by the department, of the lands to be reclaimed, designating said lands by legal subdivisions.

This request shall be accompanied by a proposal to construct the ditch, canal or other irrigation works necessary for the complete reclamation of the lands asked to be selected and the lands within the district. The proposal shall be prepared in accordance with the rules of the department of water resources of the state of Idaho and with the regulations of the department of the interior, and shall be accompanied by a certificate that application for permit to appropriate water has been filed, together with the department’s report thereon. It shall state the source of the water supply, the location and dimensions of the proposed works and the estimated cost thereof.

§ 43-1703. Contract for construction.

Upon the withdrawal of the land by the department of the interior it shall be the duty of the department of water resources to enter into a contract for the construction of irrigation works with the district submitting the proposition, which contract shall contain complete specifications of the location, dimensions, character and estimated cost of the proposed canal, ditch or other irrigation works. Said contract shall state the price and terms upon which the state will dispose of the lands to the settlers, but shall not state the cost of the water rights to the settlers; it shall further state that the board of directors of the district shall determine the benefits, and the cost of the proposed works shall be apportioned to the said lands by the said board of directors, as provided by section 43-404[, Idaho Code], and that the procedure with reference to the assessing and the levying of assessments on said lands and the sale for delinquent assessments so levied and assessed and the method of issuing tax deeds by the district shall conform in all particulars to that provided in the irrigation district laws for other lands within said district. The aforesaid contract shall not be entered into on the part of the department of water resources until the withdrawal of such lands by the department of the interior, and the irrigation district shall not at any time be required to file a bond.

§ 43-1704. Application to enter land.

Any citizen of the United States, or any person having declared his intention to become a citizen of the United States (excepting married women), over the age of twenty-one (21) years, may make application under oath to the department of water resources to enter any of said land in an amount not to exceed one hundred sixty (160) acres for any one (1) person; and such application shall set forth that the person desiring to make such entry does so for the purpose of actual reclamation, cultivation and settlement in accordance with the act of congress and the laws of this state relating thereto, and that the applicant has never received the benefit of the provisions of any Carey Act law to an amount greater than one hundred sixty (160) acres, including the number of acres specified in the application under consideration. Such application must be accompanied by a certified copy of a contract for the water rights, made and entered into by the person making the application with the district, which has been authorized by the department to furnish water for the reclamation of said lands; and if said applicant has at any previous time entered lands under the provisions of any Carey Act law, he shall so state in the application, together with description, date of entry and location of said land. The department shall thereupon file in its office the application and papers relating thereto, and, if allowed, issue a certificate of location to the applicant.

All applications for entry shall be accompanied by a payment of twenty-five cents (25¢) per acre, which shall be paid as a partial payment on the land if the application is allowed; and all certificates when issued shall be recorded in a book to be kept for that purpose. If the application is not allowed, the twenty-five cents (25¢) per acre accompanying it shall be refunded to the applicant. The department of water resources shall dispose of all lands accepted by the state under the provisions of this chapter at a uniform price of fifty cents (50¢) per acre, half to be paid at the time of entry and the remainder at the time of making final proof by the settler.

§ 43-1705. Proof of reclamation and settlement — Patent.

Within one (1) year after the district authorized to construct irrigation works under the provisions of this title shall have notified the settlers under such works that it is prepared to furnish water under the terms of the contract with the state, said settlers shall cultivate and reclaim not less than one-sixteenth (1/16) part of the land filed upon, and within two (2) years after said notice, the settler shall have irrigated and cultivated not less than one-eighth (1/8) of the land filed upon, and within three (3) years after the date of said notice the settler shall appear before the director of the department of water resources, a judge or clerk of any court of record within the state, or a commissioner appointed by the department of water resources, and make final proof of the reclamation, settlement and occupation, which proof shall embrace evidence that he has paid all of the assessments levied and assessed against said land by the district, or he shall present a tax deed issued by the treasurer of said district and also prove that all assessments levied and assessed by the district against said land have been paid; that he has been an actual settler thereon and has cultivated and irrigated not less than one-eighth (1/8) part of said tract; and such further proof, if any, as may be required by the regulations of the department of the interior and the department of water resources.

The officer taking this proof shall be entitled to receive a fee of two dollars ($2.00), which fee shall be paid by the settler and shall be in addition to the price paid to the state for the land: provided, that when the director of the department of water resources takes final proof, all fees received by him shall be turned into the state treasury. The commissioners appointed by the department of water resources are hereby authorized to administer oaths.

All proofs so received shall be submitted to the department of water resources accompanied by the final payment for the said land, and upon approval of the same by said department, the settler shall be entitled to his patent. If the land shall not be embraced in any patent theretofore issued to the state by the United States, the proof shall be forwarded to the secretary of the interior with the request that a patent to said lands be issued to the state.

When the works designed for the irrigation of lands under the provisions of this chapter shall be so far completed as to actually furnish an ample supply of water in a substantial ditch or canal to reclaim any particular tract or tracts of such lands, the state of Idaho shall, through the department of water resources, make proof of such fact, and shall apply for a patent to such lands in the manner provided in the regulations of the department of the interior.

§ 43-1706. Issuance of patent.

Upon the issuance of a patent to any lands by the United States to the state, notice shall be forwarded to the settler upon such land. It shall be the duty of the department of water resources to issue a patent to said lands from the state to the settler.

§ 43-1707. Appurtenancy of water rights.

The water rights to all lands acquired under the provisions of this chapter shall attach to and become appurtenant to the land as soon as title passes from the United States to the state.

§ 43-1708. Lien of cost of works and assessments.

The apportionment of the cost of the irrigation works made by the board of directors of the irrigation district under section 43-404[, Idaho Code], and all assessments and taxes levied and assessed against said land by the district shall be a first and prior lien on said water right and land, said lien to be in all respects prior to any and all other liens created or attempted to be created by the owner and holder of said land, and said land shall be sold as other lands in the district are sold for like assessments, and a sale of the lands shall work an assignment of the contract to the purchaser.

§ 43-1709. Effect of tax deed.

A tax deed from the treasurer of the district shall be conclusive proof to the department of water resources that the assessments have been regularly and legally made on said land, and no irregularity with reference to any assessment can be raised after a deed has been issued by the district, except an error in the description of the land in said deed.

§ 43-1710. Reentry and sale.

In case the district is a purchaser at the sale for delinquent assessments levied and assessed against such lands, said district may, and it is hereby authorized and empowered to, after the expiration of the one (1) year’s redemption period, enter into a contract with any party to furnish water to said lands, and the person so entering into a contract with said district may make application for the patent to the lands described in said contract upon his making proof, as hereinbefore required, and said contract, together with the certificate from the irrigation district that all taxes and assessments levied and assessed against said lands have been paid, together with a statement showing the facts whereby said district is authorized to enter into the second contract, certified by the secretary of the district, with the seal of said district attached shall be sufficient evidence to the department of water resources on which to issue to said applicant a patent to said land.

§ 43-1711. Application of Carey Act law.

The state laws with reference to the Carey Act lands and requests for selection, etc., and the procedure with reference to the same shall apply to the applications of an irrigation district where the same are not particularly provided for in this chapter, where said state laws are in accord with the provisions hereof.

§ 43-1712. Application of chapter.

The provisions of this chapter shall apply only to irrigation districts.

§ 43-1801. Cooperation with government under Act of August 11, 1916.

The board of directors of any irrigation district organized under the laws of this state may make such investigations and based thereon, such representations and assurances to the secretary of the interior as may be requisite under the Act of Congress of August 11, 1916, entitled, “An Act to Promote Reclamation of Arid Lands,” 39 U.S. St. L., ch. 319, p. 506.

§ 43-1802. Procedure for inclusion of public land in irrigation district.

The secretary of the interior, or his duly authorized representative, may on behalf of the United States, sign a petition for the annexation of adjacent unentered public lands of the United States to the district, or to annex such lands to or exclude such unentered lands from any irrigation district; the secretary of the interior, or his duly authorized representative shall be deemed to be the owner thereof for the purposes of signing any petition with like effect as the owner of private lands.

§ 43-1803. Contracts with federal government under reclamation act.

The board of directors of an irrigation district organized under the laws of the state of Idaho may enter into any obligation or contract with the United States for the construction, operation and maintenance of the necessary works for the delivery and distribution of water therefrom under the provisions of the federal reclamation act and all acts amendatory thereof or supplementary thereto and the rules and regulations established thereunder; or the board may contract with the United States for a water supply under any act of congress providing for or permitting such contract.

§ 43-1805. Federal government contracts not subject to safeguards required in private contracts.

As to any work or supplies covered by or to be covered by contract between the district and the United States the provisions of section 43-901[, Idaho Code,] shall not apply.

§ 43-1806. Various contractual options — Ratification by electors.

In case the district has its works partially completed and bonds authorized and outstanding, the proceeds of which have been used for the construction of said works, the said district may enter into a contract with the United States for the completion of the works of the district, and shall have power to transfer title to the works already completed, or any portion thereof, to the government, and shall have power to redeem its outstanding bonds on any such terms as may be agreed upon, with funds advanced by the United States, and contract with the United States to repay any such funds, as well as additional cost of construction for the completion of the works, on such terms as may be agreed upon by contract between the district and the United States: provided, that no contract with the United States embodying any of the provisions herein contained shall be binding unless ratified by two-thirds (2/3) of the voters voting at an election to be held for that purpose in the manner provided for the ratification of a bond issue: except, that the board of directors of an irrigation district, on behalf of the district, may make a temporary contract with the United States for a period of not to exceed one (1) year for the purpose of securing a water supply for the district out of the reservoirs or other irrigation works of the United States during said period, or a portion thereof, or providing for the distribution and delivery thereof and may provide for the payment therefor and pay for the same by means of a toll charge or by means of an assessment as a part of the annual operation and maintenance cost of the district.

§ 43-1807. Substitution of district liability for individual liability to government.

Irrigation districts which embrace lands for which works have been constructed by the United States and water right applications or contracts made and accepted under public notice issued by the secretary of the interior, may provide by contract with the United States for the release of mortgages or liens given or reserved to the United States upon district lands and for the assumption by the district as principal or guarantor of the indebtedness to the United States on account of district land and in that event shall apportion the benefits of such contract and release to the lands benefited thereby in the same manner provided by statute for the apportionment of the benefits of a bond issue or other contract: provided, such contract with the United States be authorized by the electors of the district in like manner and by the same majority as required to authorize a bond issue or contract with the United States for construction of works.

§ 43-1808. Election to determine whether district shall contract with government. — (a) At any election under the provisions of section 43-401, Idaho Code, when the question of a contract between the district and the United States is to be voted upon, the notice of such election may state generally the terms of such contract and the ballots may contain the words “Contract—yes” or “Contract—no,” or other words equivalent thereto, instead of the words “Bonds—yes” or “Bonds

no,” and the procedure in connection with such vote upon such contract.

(b) Any election where the question of a contract between an irrigation district and the United States providing for the payment by the United States of the irrigation district’s proportionate share of the capital costs of reconstructing, rehabilitating, replacing or improving dams, structures or works, whether or not legal title thereto is owned by the district, necessary to the storage, diversion or delivery of water necessary and appurtenant to the purposes for which such district was organized is to be voted upon, shall be conducted in accordance with the provisions of section 43-401, Idaho Code, insofar as possible. The question shall be submitted to a vote of all qualified electors of the district as defined in section 43-111, Idaho Code, except that any person residing within the boundaries of the irrigation district and meeting the qualifications of section 34-104, Idaho Code, shall also be permitted to vote. No report need be obtained from the department of water resources and the notice of election need not contain any recital concerning a report from the department of water resources. The contract between an irrigation district and the United States providing for the payment by the United States of the irrigation district’s proportionate share of the capital costs of reconstructing, rehabilitating, replacing or improving dams, structures or works, the election approving the contract and all proceedings taken by an irrigation district in connection with the contract and election need not be confirmed by the district court.

§ 43-1809. Optional procedure following election.

After authorization of indebtedness shall have been made by the voters, evidenced by an election as provided in section 43-401[, Idaho Code], the board of directors may enter into a contract or obligation with the United States as provided in this chapter and issue or not issue bonds, depending on whether bonds shall be deposited with said contract; or the board of directors may issue bonds for a portion of the amount of indebtedness authorized by said bond election and enter into any obligation or contract with the United States as aforesaid to the extent of the remainder of said amount.

§ 43-1810. Deposit of bonds with government.

In case contract has been or may hereafter be made with the United States as herein provided, in lieu of the sale of bonds provided in section 43-409[, Idaho Code], bonds of the district may be deposited with the United States at ninety per cent (90%) of their par value, to the amount to be paid by the district to the United States under any such contract, the interest on said bonds to be provided for by assessment and levy as in the case of other bonds of the district, and regularly paid to the United States to be applied as provided in such contracts.

§ 43-1811. Terms of bonds.

Irrigation district bonds deposited with the United States pursuant to the provisions of this chapter may call for the payment of principal without interest if so provided in the contract with the United States, or for the payment of interest, may be of such denomination and may call for the repayment of the principal at such times as may be agreed upon between the district and the secretary of the interior.

§ 43-1812. District may act as fiscal agent of government.

The board may accept on behalf of the district, appointment of the district as fiscal agent of the United States, or authorization of the district by the United States to make collection of moneys for or on behalf of the United States in connection with any federal reclamation project, whereupon the district shall be authorized to so act and to assume the duties and liabilities incident to such action. But the amounts due the United States for construction shall be carried in separate accounts from the other assessments levied by the said district.

§ 43-1813. District acting as fiscal agent — Government’s remedies preserved.

Such agency on the part of the district shall not in any way impair the lien reserved to the United States on any tract of land for the cost of such construction, or the rights of the United States to any action so reserved by the United States for the enforcement of such lien, and as such agent of the United States the district shall have the right to refuse the delivery of water to any person who has not made the payments and complied with the conditions required by said acts of congress and the public notices and rules and regulations duly issued thereunder.

§ 43-1814. Directors’ additional official bonds.

In case any district organized under the provisions of this title is appointed fiscal agent of the United States or by the United States is authorized to make collections of moneys for and on behalf of the United States in connection with any federal reclamation project, each such director shall execute a further and additional official bond in such sum as the secretary of the interior may require, conditioned for the faithful discharge of the duties of his office and the faithful discharge by the district of its duties as fiscal or other agent of the United States under any such appointment or authorization, and any such bond may be sued upon by the United States or any person injured by the failure of such director or the district to fully, promptly and completely perform their respective duties.

§ 43-1815. Treasurer’s additional official bond.

In case any district organized under this title is appointed fiscal agent of the United States, or by the United States is authorized to make collections of moneys for and on behalf of the United States in connection with any federal reclamation project, the treasurer of the district shall execute a further and additional official bond in such sum as the secretary of the interior may require, conditioned for the faithful discharge of the duties of his office, and the faithful discharge by the district of its duties as fiscal or other agent of the United States under any such appointment or authorization, and such further additional bond may be sued upon by the United States or any person injured by the failure of the said treasurer or of the district to fully, promptly and completely perform their respective duties.

§ 43-1816. Assessments for construction costs — Repayment of money advanced by government.

Whenever any amount of money shall have been advanced by the United States for the construction of irrigation works, contemplated under the provisions of this title, by the authority of act of congress hereinbefore referred to, the taxing powers of the district, as provided in this title, shall be used to repay into the treasury of the United States the amount of money so advanced in the manner contemplated in this title, and as may be provided in such contract between the directors of said district and the United States; and such levies and assessments shall be made each year under the authority of the district as will return to the treasury of the United States the amount or proportion of such money advanced as may have been agreed to in such contract.

§ 43-1817. Levy of assessment to meet payments to government.

If the bonds of the district are not deposited with the United States as authorized in this chapter, it shall be the duty of the board at its regular meeting in September of each year to include as part of any levy or assessment authorized under section 43-704[, Idaho Code,] an amount sufficient for all payments each year due or to become due the ensuing year to the United States under the terms of any such contract with the United States. When collected the assessment shall be paid into the district treasury and shall constitute a special fund to be called “U.S. contract fund of .... irrigation district.”

Provided, however, that the board of directors of any irrigation district which shall have entered into a contract providing for payments to the United States under any of the Federal reclamation laws, at its option, at any meeting of said board of directors held prior to the first day of December of each year, may include such amount as part of any such levy or assessment, instead of at its said regular meeting in September; and, provided further, that said board of directors, at said meeting, at its option, may also adopt and enter a resolution authorizing a discount of not to exceed ten per cent (10%) for payment of such assessments in full on or before the third Monday of December of each year, and authorizing the levy of assessment in such an amount that said discount can be allowed without reducing collections below the required amount, in which case notice of such assessment or levy or resolution as to discount shall be promptly published once a week for two (2) consecutive weeks in a newspaper published in the county or counties in which the district is located.

§ 43-1818. Lien of assessments.

All assessments shall be liens against the property assessed from and after the first Monday in March of any year. The lien for the payments due the United States under any contract between the district and the United States, accompanying which bonds have not been deposited with the United States, shall be a preferred lien to that of any issue of bonds or any series of any issue, subsequent to the date of such contract, and such lien shall not be removed until the assessments are paid or the property sold for the payment thereof.

§ 43-1819. Payment of assessments — When delinquent.

In districts which have prior to such assessment entered into contracts with the United States requiring payments to the United States on or before December first of that year, on or before the first day of November the secretary must deliver the assessment book to the treasurer of the district, who shall within ten (10) days publish a notice in a newspaper published in each county in which any portion of the district may lie, that said assessments are due and payable and will become delinquent at six o’clock p.m. on the last Monday of November next thereafter, and also the time and places at which the payments of the assessments may be made, which notice shall be published for the period of two (2) weeks. The treasurer must attend at the times and places specified in the notice, to receive assessments, which must be paid in lawful money of the United States; he must mark the date of payment of any assessment in the assessment book opposite the name of the person paying and give a receipt to such person specifying the amount of the assessment and the amount paid with a description of the property assessed. On the last Monday of November at six o’clock p.m., of each year, all unpaid assessments for the preceding year are delinquent.

§ 43-1820. Maintenance of constructed works.

The works constructed under the provisions of such contract with the United States shall be controlled and administered by the district in accordance with the provisions of said act of congress and the regulations thereunder.

§ 43-1821. Contract of maintenance — Levy of assessments.

In cases where the United States has constructed irrigation works, canals and laterals under the provision of the Act of Congress of June 17, 1902, known as the reclamation act, or acts amendatory and supplementary thereto, within the boundaries of an irrigation district, or for the irrigation of lands within an irrigation district organized either before or after the construction of said works, the board of directors of said irrigation district may enter into a contract with the United States to care for, operate and maintain the said works, or parts thereof, and may levy assessments for the purpose of such operation and maintenance of said works, and collect the same in the same manner as in this chapter provided.

§ 43-1822. Resolution concerning maintenance assessments.

The board of directors of any irrigation district which shall have entered into a contract or contracts with the United States may, by passing a resolution to that effect and the publication thereof for at least two (2) weeks in a newspaper published in the county in which the greater portion of the lands of the district are located, provide for the levy and collection of assessments for operation and maintenance purposes as hereinafter provided and so fix the dates of such levy, assessment and delinquency that such separate operation and maintenance charge and the assessment therefor will become delinquent on the first day of March next following such levy and assessment.

§ 43-1823. Annual maintenance assessment.

Each year thereafter, unless such resolution be revoked by a later resolution duly passed and published in like manner, the board of directors of such district shall at the regular meeting of such board on the first Tuesday in December levy and apportion the operation and maintenance assessments as hereinafter provided.

§ 43-1824. Basis of assessment.

Such operation and maintenance assessment shall be apportioned pursuant to the provisions of section 5 of the Act of Congress of August 13, 1914, known as the reclamation extension act, upon the basis of the number of acre-feet of water delivered during the preceding irrigation season but with a minimum charge upon each acre of irrigable land whether irrigated or not for delivery of not less than one (1) acre-foot of water.

§ 43-1825. Notice of assessment.

The secretary of the district must, on or before the first day of February, deliver the assessment book or books containing the record of such separate operation and maintenance assessment to the treasurer of the district who shall, within ten (10) days, forward by mail to each landowner or entryman, at his last known post-office address as shown by the records of such district, a notice stating the amount assessed against his lands, and that said assessment is due and payable and will become delinquent at six o’clock p.m., on the first day of the following March and also the times and places when and at which assessments will be received.

§ 43-1826. Payment of assessment.

The treasurer of the district must attend at the times and places specified in the notice to receive assessments which must be paid in lawful money of the United States. He must mark the date of payment of any assessment in the assessment book opposite the name of the person paying and give a receipt to such person specifying the amount of the assessment and the amount paid with a description of the property assessed.

§ 43-1827. Cancellation of operation and maintenance assessments.

The board of directors of any irrigation district which has entered, or may hereafter enter, into a contract with the United States for the operation of the irrigation works of any federal reclamation project, may cancel any operation or maintenance assessment levied against any land where the appurtenant water right has been or may hereafter be canceled by the United States for nonpayment of construction charges.

§ 43-1828. Discount for prompt payment — Penalties for delinquency.

Pursuant to the provisions of section 6 of said reclamation extension act, if said operation and maintenance charge or assessment is paid on or before the date when due there shall be a discount of five per cent (5%) of such charge, but if such charge is unpaid on the first day of the third calendar month thereafter a penalty of one per cent (1%) of the amount unpaid shall be added thereto, and thereafter an additional penalty of one per cent (1%) of the amount unpaid shall be added on the first day of each calendar month if such charge and penalties shall remain unpaid and no water shall be delivered to the land of any landowner or entryman who shall be in arrears for more than one (1) calendar year for the payment of any charge for operation and maintenance, or any annual construction charge and penalties. In districts coming under this act the penalties herein provided shall, in the matter of such district operation and maintenance assessments, be a substitute for and take the place of the penalties and interest provided in section 4401 of Idaho Compiled Statutes.

§ 43-1829. Reservoirs constructed by government — Power of district to acquire and dispose of rights therein.

The board of directors of an irrigation district organized under the laws of the state of Idaho may, when authorized by the qualified electors of the district, who are residents of the district and holders of title, or evidence of title, to the land in the district, at an election held for that purpose, after notice, as provided in section 43-1830[, Idaho Code], acquire, hold and own on behalf of the irrigation district storage rights, capacity, water and water rights in reservoirs constructed by the United States government in cooperation with the district to be disposed of as hereinafter provided.

§ 43-1830. District rights in government reservoir — Allotment or sale — Terms of sale — Election.

The rights referred to in section 43-1829[, Idaho Code,] may be disposed of by the board of directors by pro rata allotment to the lands in the district, or by sale for use within or outside of the district: provided, however, that the price at which such water or water rights are sold shall not exceed the actual cost at which the same was acquired by the vendor district together with interest, at not to exceed seven per cent (7%) per annum, on such cost for the period of time between district’s investment in such water or water rights and the date of sale: and, provided further, that the qualified electors of the district who are residents of the district and holders of title or evidence of title to land in the district shall first authorize the disposal thereof at an election called for that purpose which may be held on the date of the annual election of directors, or on such other date as shall be determined by the board of directors.

Notice of such election must be given by posting a notice in three (3) public places in each election precinct in said district, at least four (4) weeks before the date of said election, and the publication thereof for the same length of time in some newspaper published in the district, and in case no paper is published in the district, then in a paper published in each of the counties in which the district or any part thereof is located. Such notice must specify the time for holding said election and the manner in which it is proposed to dispose of the rights. Said election must be held and the results thereof determined and declared in all respects as nearly as practicable in conformity with chapter 4 of this title, governing bond elections: provided, that no informality in conducting such election shall invalidate the same, if the election shall have been otherwise correctly conducted. At such election the ballot shall contain the words: “Disposal of Rights — Yes”; “Disposal of Rights — No,” or other words equivalent thereto. If a majority of the votes cast are “Disposal of Rights — Yes,” the board of directors shall dispose of said rights according to the proposal submitted. If more than a majority of the votes cast are “Disposal of Rights — No,” the result shall be so declared and entered of record.

§ 43-1831. Districts embracing lands subject to federal liens — New and amended contracts with United States.

Any irrigation district now or hereafter organized under the laws of the state of Idaho and embracing lands subject to liens, charges or assessments for money owing the United States for water made available therefor through the construction of irrigation works, or otherwise, by the United States reclamation service, shall have power, through its board of directors, to extend the time for the payment of such indebtedness and to otherwise change and modify the time and manner of payment and the amount to be paid to the extent permitted under acts of congress and under any rule, regulation or contract of the department of the interior appertaining thereto and to that end the board of directors of any such district may amend or modify any existing contract with the United States or may enter into a new contract and may change, adjust, readjust and otherwise modify the liens, charges and assessments theretofore made against such lands and may cancel taxes theretofore levied by said irrigation district, including delinquent tax certificates still held by the district, and may do any and all things necessary to carry out such amended or new contract in accordance with such acts of congress: provided, that no contract with the United States for any of the purposes herein set forth shall be binding unless ratified by two-thirds (2/3) of the voters voting at an election to be held for that purpose in the manner provided by law for the ratification of contracts between irrigation districts and the United States.

§ 43-1832. Apportionment of benefits under new contract.

The board of directors of any such irrigation district shall apportion the amount owing the United States to the lands of the district under such amended or new contract, and such apportionment of benefits shall be made by the board and such amended or new contract and the apportionment of benefits thereunder shall be confirmed by the district court in the manner provided by statute for the apportionment of benefits under a bond issue and for the confirmation of such contracts and apportionments of benefits.

§ 43-1833. Determination of annual levies under new contract.

Annual levies under such amended or new contract for the purpose of making payments due the United States may be made by the board of directors either before or after judicial confirmation of such apportionment of benefits upon the basis of the gross annual acre income of the lands of the district or divisions thereof, or the classes of lands therein, as such gross average annual acre income is determined by the secretary of the interior, until the amount apportioned against each tract has been fully paid and such annual levies shall include an amount sufficient to meet estimated delinquencies and any deficiency in collections arising from delinquencies in the assessments of the previous year or years for such purpose: provided, that no annual levies in excess of the levies which would have been required under prior contracts and apportionments shall be made prior to judicial confirmation of such new apportionment.

§ 43-1834. Levies or assessments on different classes of land.

Annual levies for the purpose of making payments due or to come due to the United States in irrigation districts for which water is furnished by the United States under a contract or contracts made pursuant to acts of congress which authorize longer terms of payment for one (1) class of lands than for others, may be made by the board of directors in a manner to conform to the terms of payment authorized by such act or acts of congress and the contract or contracts made thereunder, and the annual levies or assessments on different classes of lands having different periods for completion of payment of construction costs in such districts may be on the basis of a different proportion of the list and apportionment of benefits, for each class having a different period for completion of payment and in harmony with the requirements of such acts of congress and the contract or contracts made by the district thereunder.

§ 43-1901. Authority conferred.

In addition to other powers and authorities any irrigation district now or hereafter organized under the laws of Idaho and having a contract or hereafter contracting with the United States under the Federal Reclamation Law (being the act of June 17, 1902 (32 Stat. 388) and acts amendatory thereof or supplemental thereto) may (a) contract with the United States or an agency of the state of Idaho for the construction, operation and maintenance of a domestic or irrigation water system, and (b) enter into such other obligations and do such other things as are incidental to the construction and operation and maintenance of such system and (c) make provisions for the operation and maintenance of a garbage disposal program for the benefit of the residents. The cost of operation and maintenance of such garbage disposal program shall be paid from the district’s current expense fund. Service through such system may be provided both to lands within the district and to other lands that the district’s board of directors determines can be served feasibly and economically. Any irrigation district contracting with an agency of the state of Idaho shall not be required to have a contract with the United States under the Federal Reclamation Law, as cited above.

§ 43-1903. Tolls and charges — Handling of funds.

A district, acting through its board of directors, shall have the power in connection with a domestic water system undertaken under this act: (a) to establish periodic tolls and charges for domestic water service adequate to meet its contract obligations, all other expenses incurred in the construction, operation and maintenance of such a system, and to maintain such reserves as are reasonable to assure continuous and efficient domestic water service; (b) to require the payment of such tolls and charges in advance of the delivery of water; (c) to fix the delinquency dates for tolls and charges and the penalties for failure to pay before delinquency, penalties not to exceed twelve per cent (12%) per annum of the delinquent amounts; and (d) to handle and account for the domestic water system funds in such manner as may be required by contract with the United States.

§ 43-1904. Liens for tolls and charges — Recording — Duration — Enforcement.

1. A district may establish liens for delinquent tolls and charges hereunder and penalties incidental thereto in the following manner: On or after the date of delinquency with respect to tolls or charges established with respect to a given parcel of land, the district may file with the county recorder of the county where the land is situated, a statement of the amounts delinquent and of the penalties accruing thereon. Such statement shall: describe in general terms the service for which the amounts are due, describe in terms sufficient for identification the lands for which the tolls or charges were established, give the name of the owner or reputed owner and name the district to which the amounts are due; and the statement shall be verified by the oath of the district through its attorney or agent to the effect that it is believed to be correct and just. From the filing of such statement the district shall have a lien for the delinquent amounts together with the accruing penalties thereon on the lands on account of which the tolls and charges in question were established.
2. The county recorder must record such statements in a book kept by him for such purpose. The record must be indexed in the manner provided by law for the indexing of deeds and other conveyances. Fees for these services by the recorder shall be the same as are allowed by law for recording deeds and other instruments.
3. No lien hereunder shall continue for two (2) years from the filing of the statement unless proceedings are commenced in a proper court within that time for the enforcement of such lien.
4. District courts shall have jurisdiction of civil actions for the enforcement of the liens herein provided, and such actions may embrace one or more parcels of land and one or more landowners or reputed landowners. Allowable costs shall include the amounts paid for filing and recording the claim and reasonable attorney’s fees. Except as otherwise provided in this act, the provisions of the Idaho laws relating to civil actions, new trials and appeals are applicable to and constitute the rules of practice in proceedings under this act.
5. Nothing in this section 4 shall be construed to affect the right of a district to any other remedy available to it.

§ 43-1905. Assessments and charges against benefited lands.

In addition to all other powers and authorities of any irrigation district now or hereafter organized under the laws of the state of Idaho, such irrigation district may, in connection with any contract with the United States under the Federal Reclamation Law (being the act of June 17, 1902 (32 Stat. 388) and acts amendatory thereof or supplemental thereto) for the construction, operation or maintenance of a domestic water system, together with an irrigation system, provide for the apportionment of benefits and make charges for either or both, including the levy of an annual assessment, on any bases permitted or required by the Federal Reclamation Law and by such contract, including, without limitation by reason of this enumeration, a plan in the case of a district embracing substantial areas devoted to suburban residences, under which such district is required to establish total annual assessments and charges against benefited lands for both construction payments and operation and maintenance costs, which are to be proportional, as nearly as practicable, to the relative repayment ability of the various sized operating units in single ownership, to which irrigation service is provided.

§ 43-1906. Short title.

Sections 43-1907 through 43-1920, Idaho Code, may be cited as the “Irrigation District Domestic Water System Revenue Bond Act.”

§ 43-1907. Grant of authority.

Any irrigation district acquiring, constructing, reconstructing, improving, bettering or extending any works pursuant to this act, shall manage the works in the most efficient manner consistent with sound economy and public advantage, to the end that the services of the works shall be furnished at the lowest possible cost. No irrigation district shall operate any works primarily as a source of revenue to the district, but shall operate all such works for the use and benefit of those served by the works and for the promotion of the welfare and for the improvement of the health, safety, comfort and convenience of the inhabitants of the irrigation district.

§ 43-1908. Definitions.

For the purpose of sections 43-1907 through 43-1920, Idaho Code:

1. “District” means irrigation districts.
2. “Qualified elector” means any person, eighteen (18) years of age or older, possessing the qualifications required of electors under the general laws of this state, who at the time of the election has resided within the district for at least thirty (30) days.
3. “Water system” includes reservoirs, storage facilities, water mains, conduits, aqueducts, pipelines, pumping stations, filtration plants, and all appurtenances and machinery necessary or useful for obtaining, storing, treating, purifying or transporting water for domestic uses or purposes.
4. “Works” include water systems.

§ 43-1909. Powers.

In addition to the powers which it may now have, any district shall have power under and subject to the following provisions:

1. To acquire by gift or purchase and to construct, reconstruct, improve, better or extend any works within or without the district, or partially within or partially without the district, or within any part of the district, and acquire by gift or purchase lands or rights in lands or water rights in connection therewith, including easements, rights of way, contract rights, leases, franchises, approaches, dams and reservoirs; to lease any portion of the excess or surplus capacity of any such works to any party located within or without the district, subject to the following conditions: that the capacity shall be returned or replaced by the lessee when and as needed by the district for the purposes set forth in section 43-1907, Idaho Code, as determined by the district; that the district shall not be made subject to any debt or liability thereby; and the district shall not pledge any of its faith or credit in aid to such lessee;
2. To exercise the right of eminent domain for any of the works, purposes or use provided by this act, in like manner and to the same extent as provided in section 7-720, Idaho Code;
3. To operate and maintain any works within or without the boundaries of the district, or partially within or without the boundaries of the district, or within any part of the district;
4. To issue its revenue bonds hereunder to finance, in whole or in part, the cost of the acquisition, construction, reconstruction, improvement, betterment or extension of any works;
5. To prescribe and collect rates, fees, tolls or charges, including the levy or assessment of such rates, fees, tolls or charges against governmental units, departments or agencies, including the state of Idaho and its subdivisions, for the services, facilities and commodities furnished by works, and to provide methods of collections and penalties, including denial of service for nonpayment of the rates, fees, tolls or charges;
6. To pledge an amount of revenue from works (including improvement, betterment or extensions thereto, thereafter constructed or acquired) sufficient to pay bonds and interest as the same shall become due, and to create and maintain reasonable reserves therefor. Such amount may consist of all or any part or portion of the revenues. In determining the cost, there may be included all costs and estimated costs of the issuance of bonds, all engineering, inspection, fiscal and legal expenses and interest which it is estimated will accrue during the construction period and for six (6) months thereafter on money borrowed or which it is estimated will be borrowed pursuant to the irrigation district domestic water system revenue bond act; and
7. To issue bonds for the purpose of refunding any bonds theretofore issued under authority of the irrigation district domestic water system revenue bond act and to pay accrued interest and applicable redemption premiums on the bonds to be refunded, pursuant to and in the manner provided by section 57-504, Idaho Code.

§ 43-1910. Supervision of works.

The construction, acquisition, improvement, equipment, custody, operation and maintenance of any works under the provisions of sections 43-1906 through 43-1920, Idaho Code, and the collection of revenues therefrom for the service rendered thereby shall be under the supervision and control of the governing body of the district.

§ 43-1911. Works to be self-supporting.

The directors of the district issuing bonds pursuant to this act shall prescribe and collect reasonable rates, fees, tolls or charges for the services, facilities and commodities furnished by the works, and shall revise such rates, fees, tolls or charges from time to time, to provide that all works shall be and always remain self-supporting. The rates, fees, tolls or charges prescribed shall be such as will produce revenue at least sufficient (a) to pay when due, all bonds and interest thereon for the payment of which the revenue is or shall have been pledged, charged or otherwise encumbered including reserves therefor, and (b) to provide for all expenses of operation and maintenance of the works, including reserves therefor.

§ 43-1912. Use of works — Revenue.

Any district issuing bonds under this act for the acquisition, construction, reconstruction, improvement, betterment or extension of any works, shall have the right to appropriate, apply or expend the revenue of the works for the following purposes: (a) to pay when due all bonds and interest thereon, for the payment of which the revenue is or shall have been pledged, charged or otherwise encumbered, including reserves therefor; (b) to provide for all expenses of operation, maintenance, replacement and depreciation of the works, including reserves therefor; (c) to pay and discharge notes, bonds or other obligations and interest thereon, not issued under this act for the payment of which the revenue of the works may have been pledged, charged or encumbered; (d) to pay and discharge notes, bonds or other obligations and interest thereon which do not constitute a lien, charge or encumbrance on the revenue of such works, which may have been issued for the purpose of financing the acquisition, construction, reconstruction, improvement, betterment or extension of the works; and (e) provide a reserve for improvements to the works. Unless and until full and adequate provision has been made for the foregoing purposes, no district shall have the right to transfer the revenue of works to its general fund.

§ 43-1913. Preliminary expenses.

The district may provide for the payment of all necessary preliminary expenses actually incurred in the making of surveys, estimates of costs and revenues, employment of engineers and other employees, making of notices, taking of options, legal and clerical help and all other expenses necessary to be made and paid prior to the authorization for the issuance of revenue bonds, provided, that no such expenditures shall be made or paid unless an appropriation has been made therefor in the same manner as is required by law for district funds. Any funds so expended by the district shall be fully reimbursed and repaid to the district out of the sale of the revenue bonds before any other disbursements are made therefrom, and the amount so advanced by the district to pay the preliminary expenses shall be a first charge against the proceeds resulting from the sale of the revenue bonds until the same has been repaid as herein provided.

§ 43-1914. Resolution prior to construction — Election.

Before any district shall construct or acquire any works under this act, the directors of the district shall enact a resolution or resolutions which shall: (a) set forth a brief and general description of the works, and if the same are to be constructed, a reference to the preliminary report or plans and specifications which shall theretofore have been prepared and filed by an engineer chosen for that purpose; (b) set forth the cost thereof estimated by the engineer chosen as aforesaid; (c) order the construction or acquisition of the works; (d) direct that revenue bonds of the district shall be issued pursuant to this act in an amount as may be necessary to pay the cost of the works; and (e) contain other provisions as may be necessary in the proposal.

The resolution shall be passed and approved as provided by law for the enactment of general resolutions, but the district shall not, without the assent of a majority of the qualified electors voting at an election to be held for that purpose, issue revenue bonds for the purpose of providing funds to own, purchase, construct, extend or equip, within and without the corporate limits of the district, any works, the principal and interest of which to be paid solely from the revenue derived from rates and charges for the use of, and the service rendered by the works.

The resolution shall provide for the holding of an election and the giving of notice thereof by publication in the official newspaper of the district, the publication to be once a week for two (2) successive weeks prior to the election. The notice of election shall set forth the purpose of the resolution, the amount of bonds authorized by it, the maturity dates of the bonds, the maximum rate of interest they shall draw, the voting places, the hours between which the polls will be open and the qualifications of voters who may vote thereat. The election shall be conducted as are other district elections, provided, that any qualified elector shall be entitled to vote in the election, the provisions of section 43-111, Idaho Code, notwithstanding. The voting at the election must be by ballot, and the ballots used shall be worded substantially as follows:

In favor of issuing revenue bonds for the purposes provided by Resolution No. . . . . . ..

Against the issuance of revenue bonds for the purposes provided by Resolution No. . . . . . ..

If, at the election, a majority of the qualified electors, voting at the election, vote in favor of issuing the revenue bonds, then the district may issue the bonds and create indebtedness or liability in the manner and for the purpose specified in the resolution.

§ 43-1915. Bonds — Form — Conditions.

All revenue bonds issued under authority of this act shall be sold, executed and delivered in the same manner as provided by the municipal bond law for the sale of general obligation bonds, except that issues of revenue bonds may, in the discretion of the directors, be sold at a private sale without advertising the same at competitive bidding and at a price above, at, or below par. The resolution authorizing the issuance of bonds shall prescribe the form of bonds. The bonds shall bear interest at a rate or rates, payable annually, or at lesser intervals as may be prescribed by resolution; may be in one (1) or more series, bear the date or dates, mature at the time or times, and be redeemable before maturity at the option of the district; may be payable in the medium of payment, at the place or places, may carry registration privileges, may be subject to the terms of redemption, may contain the terms, covenants and conditions, and may be in the form as the resolution may provide. Pending preparation of the bonds, interim certificates in the form and with the provisions as the directors may determine may be issued. Bonds and interim certificates shall be fully negotiable within the meaning of and for all the purposes of the negotiable instruments law.

Notwithstanding the provisions of the municipal bond law, the governing body in any proceedings authorizing bonds under this act may:

1. Provide for the initial issuance of one (1) or more bonds aggregating the amount of the entire issue;
2. Make such provision for installment payments of the principal amount of any bond as it may consider desirable;
3. Further make provision in any proceedings for the manner and circumstances in and under which any bond may in the future, at the request of the holder thereof, be converted into bonds of smaller denominations.

§ 43-1916. Bonds — Issuance — Terms and conditions.

Whenever revenue bonds are authorized to be issued, the district directors shall by resolution provide for the issuance thereof. The resolution authorizing the issuance of revenue bonds, for the purpose authorized, shall contain covenants as to:

1. The purpose or purposes to which the proceeds of the sale of the bonds may be applied and the use and disposition thereof;
2. The use and disposition of the revenue of the works for which the bonds are to be issued, including the creation and maintenance of reserves;
3. The issuance of other or additional bonds payable from the revenue of the works;
4. The operation and maintenance of works;
5. The insurance to be carried thereon, the use and disposition of insurance moneys;
6. Books of account and inspection and audit thereof; and
7. The terms and conditions upon which the holders thereof or any trustee therefor shall be entitled to the appointment of a receiver which receiver may enter and take possession of works, operate and maintain the same, prescribe rates, fees, tolls or charges and collect, receive and apply all revenue thereafter arising therefrom in the same manner as the district itself might do. The provisions of this section and of any resolution shall be a contract with the holder of the bonds and the duties of the district and its commissioners under this section and under the resolution, shall be enforceable by the holder by mandamus or other appropriate suit, action or proceedings at law or in equity.

§ 43-1917. Validity of bonds.

Any resolution authorizing bonds may provide that the bonds shall contain a recital that they are issued pursuant to the irrigation district domestic water system revenue bond act, which recital shall be conclusive evidence of their validity and of the regularity of their issuance.

§ 43-1918. Lien of bonds.

All bonds of the same issue shall, subject to the prior and superior rights of outstanding bonds, claims or obligations, have prior and paramount lien on the revenue of the works for which the bonds have been issued, except that where provision is made in the resolution authorizing any issue or series of bonds for the issuance of additional bonds in the future on a parity therewith pursuant to procedures or restrictions provided in the resolution, additional bonds may be issued in the future on a parity with the issue or series in the manner so provided in the resolution. All bonds of the same issue shall be equally and ratably secured without priority by reason of number, date of bonds, date of sale, date of execution, or date of delivery, by a lien on revenue in accordance with the provisions of the irrigation district domestic water system revenue bond act and the resolution authorizing bonds.

§ 43-1919. District not liable on bonds.

Bonds issued pursuant to the irrigation district domestic water system revenue bond act shall not be a debt of the district and the district shall not be liable thereon, nor shall they be payable out of any funds other than the revenue pledged to the payment thereof. Each bond issued under the irrigation district domestic water system revenue bond act shall recite, in substance, that the bond, including interest thereon, is payable solely from the revenue pledged to the payment thereof. Bonds may be issued under the irrigation district domestic water system revenue bond act notwithstanding and without regard to any limitation or restriction on the amount or percentage of indebtedness, or of outstanding obligations of a district.

§ 43-1920. Works and bonds exempt from taxation.

As long as a district shall own any works, the property and revenue of the works shall be exempt from taxation. Bonds issued under the irrigation district domestic water system revenue bond act and the income therefrom shall be exempt from taxation, except transfer and estate taxes.

§ 43-2001. Release of first mortgages held by state upon dissolution of districts.

The state board of land commissioners is hereby empowered, whenever in its judgment the necessity requires, to release first mortgages on farm lands within the state of Idaho, held as security for loans made by said state, and accept in lieu thereof and as security for the payment of said loans, second mortgages in the full amount due, owing and unpaid on said released mortgages, subject to the following terms and conditions:

1. The lien prior to said second mortgage shall represent only retired general obligation bonds and warrant indebtedness and the interest due thereon of the irrigation or drainage districts within which said lands are located.
2. Said prior lien shall constitute only the pro rata acreage proportion of the total amount necessary to retire said general obligation bonds and warrant indebtedness and the interest due thereon.
3. Said prior lien shall not exceed an amount equal to 75 per cent of the pro rata acreage proportion of the face value of the outstanding general obligation bonds and warrant indebtedness and interest due thereon retired.
4. The interest rate on said prior lien shall not exceed the rate of 6 per cent per annum.
5. The release and acceptance of a second mortgage shall be for the purpose of winding up the affairs and dissolution of the district.

§ 43-2002. Application for release of first mortgage — Contents.

Application for release of first mortgages owned by the state of Idaho shall be filed with the director of the department of finance of the state of Idaho and shall be in such form and shall contain such information as the state board of land commissioners shall by rule provide. Every application shall contain the following information:

1. The name of the irrigation or drainage district, its general location and its officers.
2. The total acreage in the district.
3. The total outstanding obligations of the district including the following:
   1. Bonds.
   2. Warrants.
   3. Interest on bond.
   4. Interest on warrants.
   5. Interest on bond coupons.
   6. Obligations outstanding for which warrants have not been issued.
4. The assessment per acre for three (3) years prior to the date of the application itemized as follows:
   1. Current expense.
   2. Warrant redemption.
   3. Bond interest and sinking fund.
5. The complete plan for refinancing and dissolution of the district.
6. A description and the acreage of the property covered by the mortgage for which application for release is made, and a true and correct valuation thereof.
7. The amount due on the mortgage sought to be released.
8. The total amount and amount per acre required to retire the outstanding indebtedness of the district in which the land is situated.
9. The term for which said prior lien shall extend, the annual rate of interest and the basis for retirement.
10. Any other liens or encumbrances against said property and the amount of each.
11. The name of the applicant, his residence or place of business (if a corporation, its officers and managing agent).
12. Such other information as the board shall desire.
13. Said application shall be verified by the oath of the applicant.

§ 43-2004. Execution of release.

Release of first mortgages shall be signed by the chairman of the state board of land commissioners and countersigned by the secretary thereof.

§ 43-2005. Delinquent district assessments — Canceling, compromising or extending time for payment — Refunding operations.

The board of commissioners of any drainage district, or the board of directors of any irrigation district, in the state of Idaho, shall have the power to cancel, compromise, and/or extend the time for the payment of delinquent district assessments levied on lands within the district, where such district is refunding and reducing its outstanding indebtedness by agreement, through any governmental agency of the United States, or otherwise. Said cancellation, compromise, and/or extension of time for the payment of such delinquent taxes shall take effect if and when the refunding and reduction of said indebtedness is completed, or at least ninety per cent (90%) completed. When the refunding and reduction of said indebtedness is completed, or at least ninety per cent (90%) completed, said board shall cause appropriate notation of said cancellation, compromise and/or extension of time for payment to be noted upon the proper records, and in the event said assessments are collected by county officers, said board shall transmit certified copies of the orders or resolutions providing for such cancellation, compromise, and/or extension of time for payment to the county auditor and the county tax collector, who shall make appropriate notation thereof upon the proper records. Provided, however, that the provisions of this section shall not be applicable in cases where such district has assigned its right to tax deed under the provisions of section 43-715, Idaho Code.

§ 43-2006. Assessments — Canceling, compromising or extending time for payment — Refunding operations.

The board of commissioners of any drainage district, or the board of directors of any irrigation district, in the state of Idaho, shall have the power to cancel, compromise, and/or extend the time for the payment of delinquent assessments heretofore levied by such board on lands within the district, where such district is refunding its outstanding indebtedness through any governmental agency of the United States. Said cancellation, compromise, and/or extension of time for the payment of such delinquent taxes shall not take effect until said refunding of said indebtedness is consummated. When the refunding of said indebtedness is completed said board shall cause appropriate notation of said cancellation, compromise, and/or extension of time for payment to be noted upon the proper records. Provided, however, that the provisions of this section shall not be applicable in such cases where such district has assigned its right to tax deed under the provisions of section 43-715 Idaho Code.

§ 43-2007. Lands mortgaged to secure loan of state endowment funds — Report of assessments and liens — Penalty.

It shall be the duty of the treasurer of every irrigation district, drainage district, or any person or corporation engaged in the business of furnishing water for irrigation and having the power to make assessments for maintenance or for any other purpose, or having a lien for maintenance or otherwise, to report to the state department of finance any such assessments or such claim of lien on any lands mortgaged to the state to secure a loan of state endowment funds such report to be made within sixty (60) days after written request for such report by said department. Said report shall be made for all lands on which there is a loan of state endowment funds whether the assessments thereon are delinquent or not; provided, that such request shall contain a description of all the property upon which a report is desired and shall not be made more than once a year and that forms for such report shall be furnished by said department. A failure to comply with the provisions of this section shall subject the party guilty of such failure to a penalty of three hundred dollars ($300) to be recovered by the state in an appropriate action and to be paid into the general fund in the state treasury.

§ 43-2101. Bankrupt districts — Financial statement — Contents.

Whenever any irrigation district, drainage district or highway district, organized under the laws of the state of Idaho, shall have made default in the payment of either principal or interest on any of its outstanding bonds, and if the board of directors of such district believes that it is impossible for the district to pay its outstanding bonds, warrants and other indebtedness either in full or within the time or in the manner in which such indebtedness becomes due or payable, it shall be the duty of the board to cause to be prepared by a certified public accountant a statement of the financial condition of the district, showing, among other things:

1. The amount of bonds, warrants and other indebtedness outstanding.
2. The amount of such indebtedness that is in default.
3. The total of the receipts and disbursements of the district for each of the three (3) preceding years.
4. The amount for each of such years of the uncollected or delinquent taxes (not including interest or penalty) levied by the district.
5. Such other information and data as the board may deem necessary or desirable to show the financial condition of the district and the amount which the district may be able to pay annually under the economic and other conditions then prevailing.

§ 43-2103. Rehabilitating or refinancing plans.

The board of directors shall thereupon formulate a plan for rehabilitating the financial condition of the district and for refinancing or retiring the indebtedness of the district, which plan may include:

1. The scaling down of any one or more of the various kinds or classes of indebtedness outstanding, whether evidenced by bonds, warrants or otherwise.
2. Extending the time for the payment thereof.
3. Reducing the interest thereon.
4. Whether the same shall be paid in cash or by refunding bonds, or otherwise, and the manner of effecting the exchange or retirement of the outstanding obligations or any of them for the consideration to be paid under such plan.
5. The time within which the plan must be approved by a majority in amount of the creditors of the district directly affected by such plan.

§ 43-2104. Approval of rehabilitation plan by creditors.

The plan so approved by the board of directors shall thereupon be submitted to the known creditors of the district directly affected thereby, in such manner as to the board may seem appropriate and practical under the circumstances. The approval of such plan by creditors shall be in writing filed with the secretary of the board, and such approval shall be irrevocable if approved by a majority in amount of each class of creditors directly affected thereby, within the time specified in such plan.

§ 43-2105. Majority of creditors consenting — Nonconsenting creditors — Constructive consent proceedings.

If the written consent of all creditors directly affected by the proposed plan is not obtained within the time specified in the plan for the approval thereof by the creditors, but if a majority in amount of each class of creditors has approved such plan, the board of directors shall then proceed without delay to obtain the constructive consent of all holders of bonds, coupons and warrants and of other creditors of the district that will be directly affected by such plan, but who have not theretofore filed their consent in writing as hereinbefore provided. For the purpose of obtaining such constructive consent the district shall commence a proceeding in rem in the district court of the county in which the office of the district is situated, by filing a petition in writing which shall be duly verified by the oath of the president or secretary of the district, and shall set forth, among other things:

1. The nature and amount of the indebtedness of the district and of each kind or class thereof.
2. A brief statement of the financial condition of the district. One (1) of the certified copies filed with the secretary of the district, of the report of the certified public accountant, showing the financial condition of the district, shall be filed with the clerk of the court as an exhibit to said petition for the information of the court and the creditors of the district.
3. A brief statement of the plan approved by the board for rehabilitating the financial condition of the district and for readjusting the indebtedness then outstanding. A full, true and correct copy of such plan, certified by the secretary of the district, shall be filed as an exhibit to said petition for the information of the court and the creditors of the district.
4. A statement showing approximately by what percentage, in amount, said plan has been approved in writing by the holders of the indebtedness of the district and of each class and kind of such indebtedness.
5. A statement of the steps that have been taken by the district to obtain the consent of all creditors of the district to the plan so approved and submitted by the board.
6. A prayer that all proceedings had and taken under this act by the district may be examined, approved and confirmed by the court, and that the district may be authorized to publish a notice under this act to all creditors of the district that have not approved in writing said plan of settlement, and for such other relief as the court may be authorized to grant under this act.

§ 43-2106. Nature of proceedings.

Said proceeding shall be in the nature of a proceeding in rem in which the district shall be plaintiff, and all holders of bonds, coupons and warrants, and other creditors of the district, without naming them, shall be defendants, except holders of securities and creditors not directly affected by said plan of settlement and those who have filed their written consent or approval thereof with the secretary of the district.

§ 43-2107. Publication of notice — Contents.

The petition may be presented to the district court or the judge thereof, at chambers, and if it satisfactorily appears from said petition that the proceedings had and taken by the district have been substantially in accordance with the requirements of this act, the court or judge shall direct said district to publish a notice for at least four (4) consecutive weeks in three (3) newspapers published within the state of Idaho and by the court deemed most likely to give notice to the creditors of said district, one (1) of which shall be published in the county in which the office of the board of directors is situated, if there be a newspaper published in such county. The notice shall be directed to the holders (without naming them) of the bonds, coupons and warrants and other creditors (without naming them) of the district directly affected by such plan, and it shall set forth in substance:

1. A description, sufficient for identification, of the bonds, coupons, warrants and other claims that it is proposed to scale down or to pay or refund or otherwise settle or adjust pursuant to such plan.
2. The substance of the plan of settlement and when and how it is proposed to make payment to the various classes of creditors embraced in such plan.
3. A statement showing the approximate amount of each class of indebtedness sought to be readjusted or settled that has by the holders thereof assented to and approved such plan of settlement.
4. And it shall notify all holders of the bonds and warrants and other creditors of the district that will be directly affected by such plan, that have not theretofore filed their written approval of said plan with the secretary of the board, to file in said cause, within ninety (90) days from the first publication of said notice, their written dissent from or objection to said proposed plan of settlement, and that the dissent or objection so filed must be verified under oath, and describe the securities sufficiently for identification held by the creditor filing such objection, and give the address at which he may be reached by mail.

The notice shall further state that if such dissent or objection be not filed with the clerk of said court within ninety (90) days from the date of the first publication of said notice, the owners and holders of such bonds, coupons and warrants, or other creditors of the district, who have failed to file such dissent or objection, will be deemed, adjudged and decreed to have assented to said plan of settlement. The notice so published shall be deemed and held to be notice to all creditors of the proceedings taken by the district and the court under this act.

§ 43-2108. Proof of publication — Default of nondissenting creditors — Notice of hearing to dissenting creditors.

Proof of publication of said notices by affidavit of the publishers shall be filed with the clerk, and upon the expiration of ninety (90) days from the date of the first publication of said notice the default of all creditors which have not filed their dissent as above provided, and which have not filed their written assent or approval of said plan with the secretary, shall be entered as in other cases, and thereupon the court or the judge thereof, at chambers, shall fix a time for hearing said cause, and notice of such hearing shall be given to the dissenting creditors by mailing such notice to the address given by them, respectively, in their objections filed as aforesaid, or such notice may be given to their attorneys of record, at least twenty (20) days before the hearing.

§ 43-2109. Hearing — Procedure — Creditors — Proof of ownership of bonds.

At the hearing of the cause the court shall examine and consider all proceedings had and taken by the district, the financial condition of the district as shown by the report of the certified public accountant, and the proposed plan of settlement, and the objections, if any, filed thereto by creditors of the district. All creditors who have filed objections shall make proof of their ownership of the bonds or other securities held by them and described in their written objections theretofore filed, and for that purpose the court may require them to exhibit the securities so held.

§ 43-2110. Approval of plan by court — Rights of dissenting creditors.

If, in the opinion of the court, the proceedings had and taken by the district are substantially in accordance with the provisions of this act, and the proposed plan of settlement is just and fair to the district and the creditors thereof, the court shall make and enter its decree confirming such proceedings, and adjudging and decreeing that all indebtedness of the district which it is sought to settle and adjust by said proposed plan shall be bound by said plan and settled accordingly, and the owners and holders thereof shall be deemed to have approved and assented to such plan of settlement as effectually and to the same extent as if they had approved such plan in writing filed with the secretary of the board as provided in this act. Provided, however, that any bonds, coupons, warrants or other evidences of indebtedness embraced in such plan of settlement, held by creditors who have filed their dissent or objections with the clerk of the court as hereinbefore provided, and who have sustained their ownership thereof by satisfactory proof, shall not be bound or affected by such plan of settlement, and the owners thereof may retain such securities and enforce the payment thereof according to any remedy available to them under the laws of the state of Idaho.

§ 43-2111. Harmless error — Appeals.

The court in all proceedings under this act shall disregard any error, irregularity or omission which does not substantially affect the rights of the parties. The district, and all parties filing objections to or who dissent from such plan, may appeal to the Supreme Court from any adverse decision within thirty (30) days after the entry of the decree of the district court.

§ 43-2112. Method of raising funds or issuing funds or other securities.

Any funds, bonds or other securities which the district, under the plan of settlement, proposes to pay or deliver in satisfaction of any outstanding indebtedness, however evidenced, shall be raised, authorized and issued in the manner provided by the laws of the state of Idaho relating thereto, and this act shall not be construed as vesting in the board of directors of the district the power to provide money or authorize or issue bonds or securities in any other manner.

§ 43-2201. Reconstruction of dams and related appurtenances — Execution of contracts — Assessments — Terms and conditions.

Any irrigation district organized and existing under the provisions of title 43, Idaho Code, in addition to any other powers which it might enjoy, for the purpose of preserving, restoring, protecting and maintaining rights of storage, diversion and delivery of water necessary and appurtenant to the purposes for which such district and other like similarly situated districts were organized, is hereby granted the following additional powers:

1. The proceeds of the collection of assessments to be levied by the irrigation district issuing the bonds, pursuant to the provisions of section 43-404, Idaho Code, representing the amount of benefits to accrue to each tract or subdivision in such district based upon the cost allocation to such district pursuant to subsection (E) hereof, from the reconstruction, rehabilitation, replacement and improvement of any such dam and other related structures and works and appurtenances, in the proportion that the right to the storage, diversion and delivery of water appurtenant to each such tract or subdivision bears to the total right to the storage, diversion and delivery of water appurtenant to such dam and other related structures and works and appurtenances, but only when there shall have been held in such irrigation district an election on the right of the district to impose such assessments and which assessments shall have been approved at said election, and which election shall have been called, held and conducted in the manner now or hereafter provided in chapter 4, title 43, Idaho Code, the authority for the calling and holding of said election and the levying of such assessments being hereby given.
2. Payments, pursuant to contracts entered into by such district with other irrigation districts, constituting the proceeds of the collection of assessments to be levied by such other districts, pursuant to the provisions of section 43-404, Idaho Code, representing the amount of benefits to accrue to each tract or subdivision in each such district based upon the cost allocation to each such district pursuant to subsection (E) hereof, from the reconstruction, rehabilitation, replacement and improvement of any such dam and other related structures and works and appurtenances, in the proportion that the right to the storage, diversion and delivery of water appurtenant to each such tract or subdivision bears to the total right to the storage, diversion and delivery of water appurtenant to such dam and other related structures and works and appurtenances, but only when there shall have been held in each such irrigation district contracting with the irrigation district issuing such bonds, an election on the right of the district to impose such assessments and to enter into an obligation or contract with the irrigation district issuing the bonds for such purpose, and which assessments and which obligation or contract shall have been approved at said election, and which election shall have been called, held and conducted in the manner now or hereafter provided in chapter 4, title 43, Idaho Code, the authority for the calling and holding of said election and the levying of such assessments and the entering into of such obligation or contract with such irrigation district being hereby given; and
3. Payments pursuant to contracts with other public or private persons, firms, corporations and associations representing the portion of the cost of reconstructing, rehabilitating, replacing and improving any such dam and other related structures and works and appurtenances and allocated to each such public or private person, firm, corporation or association pursuant to subsection (E) hereof, in the proportion that the right to the storage, diversion and delivery of water appurtenant to each tract or subdivision represented by the contracting public or private person, firm, corporation or association bears to the total right to the storage, diversion and delivery of water appurtenant to such dam and other related structures and works and appurtenances;
4. When so authorized by act of congress, the proceeds from the sale or use of falling water appurtenant to the dam and other related structures and works and appurtenances to be so reconstructed, rehabilitated, replaced and improved with the proceeds of bonds of the district, pursuant to falling water contracts for power generation to be entered into by the irrigation district issuing the bonds with a public or private person, firm, corporation or association, and which falling water contracts may contain such provisions as contemplated in the act of congress providing for the reconstruction, rehabilitation, replacement and improvement of any such dam and other related structures and works and appurtenances, the coordination of the construction of hydroelectric power facilities, the conditions under which the contracting party shall make payments to the district issuing the bonds, the rights and remedies of the parties thereto in the event of the failure of the contracting party to make the required payments thereunder and the securing of all necessary permits and licenses required in connection therewith;

(E) To make a determination of the proportion of the cost of the reconstruction, rehabilitation, replacement and improvement of any such dam and other related structures and works and appurtenances which will be repaid pursuant to such falling water contracts entered into pursuant to the provisions of paragraph (4) of subsection (D) hereof, and to determine that only the balance of the cost shall be repaid from the proceeds of assessments and contracts pursuant to the provisions of paragraphs (1), (2) and (3) of subsection (D) hereof and to allocate the balance of the cost so determined in the proportion that the various rights to the storage, diversion and delivery of water bear to the total rights to the storage, diversion and delivery of water appurtenant to such dam and other related structures and works and appurtenances, and in the event that any public or private person, firm, corporation or association shall fail to execute a contract or to levy assessments as contemplated in paragraphs (2) and (3) of subsection (D) hereof, to reallocate the balance of the original cost as in this subsection determined, provided, however, that if the result of any such reallocation increases the obligation of any irrigation district under any contract or increases any assessment, any such increase must be approved in the same manner as hereinabove required for the approval of the original contract or assessment, or both; and (F) To enter into a trust indenture securing the bonds issued pursuant to the provisions hereof with a bank or trust company doing business either within or without the state of Idaho, and to assign the rights of the district to receive the payments provided for in paragraphs (1), (2), (3) and (4) subsection (D) hereof to such bank or trust company as trustee for and on behalf of the bondholders.

§ 43-2203. Election for issuing bonds — Referendum petition.

Whenever the board shall by resolution adopted by a four-fifths (4/5) majority of the said board, determine that the interest of said district and the public interest or necessity demand the reconstruction, rehabilitation, replacement and improvement of any dam and other related structures and works together with all necessary appurtenances related thereto, in order to preserve, restore, protect and maintain rights of storage, diversion and delivery of water necessary and appurtenant to the purposes for which such district and other like similarly situated districts were organized and shall set forth the amount of obligation or bonded or other indebtedness proposed to be issued by the district under the provisions of this chapter, said board shall be required to order the submission of the proposition of issuing such obligation or bonded or other indebtedness for the purposes set forth in said resolution to the vote of the qualified electors of the district as defined in section 34-104, Idaho Code, at an election to be held for that purpose only if within fifteen (15) days after the passage of such resolution a referendum petition signed by legal voters equal in number to not less than ten percent (10%) of the electors of the district, based upon the aggregate vote cast at the general election of directors of the district next preceding the filing of such referendum petition, shall be filed with the secretary of the district requesting that an election upon the issuance of such obligation or bonded or other indebtedness be held and conducted under the provisions of this section. Any election required to be held pursuant to a referendum petition filed in accordance with this section for the purpose of submitting any proposition or propositions of incurring such obligation or indebtedness may be held separately, or may be consolidated or held concurrently with any other election authorized by law. The resolution, in addition to such declaration of public interest or necessity, shall recite the objects and purposes for which the indebtedness is proposed to be incurred, the estimated cost of the reconstruction, rehabilitation, replacement or improvement as the case may be, the amount of principal of the indebtedness to be incurred therefor, and the sources of the revenues and assessments pledged to the payment of said bonds, as enumerated in section 43-2201(D)(1), (2), (3) and (4), Idaho Code. The separate election upon the assessments provided for in section 43-2201(D)(1), Idaho Code, shall be held at the same time as and shall be combined with any such election required to be held upon the issuance of the bonds pursuant to a referendum petition.

Any such election required to be held hereunder shall be called by resolution, which resolution shall also fix the date upon which such election shall be held, the manner of holding the same and the method of voting for or against the incurring of the indebtedness or issuance of the bonds. Such resolution shall also fix the compensation to be paid the officers of the election and shall designate the precincts and polling places and shall appoint for each polling place, from each precinct from the electors thereof, the officers of such election, which officers shall consist of three (3) judges, one (1) of whom shall act as clerk, who shall constitute a board of election for each polling place. The description of precincts may be made by reference to any order or orders of the board of county commissioners of the county or counties in which the district or any part thereof is situated, or by reference to any previous order, or resolution of the board or by detailed description of such precincts. Precincts established by the boards of the various counties may be consolidated for special elections held hereunder. In the event any such election shall be called to be held concurrently with any other election or shall be consolidated therewith, the resolution calling the election hereunder need not designate precincts or polling places or the names of officers of election, but shall contain reference to the act or order calling such other election and fixing the precincts and polling places and appointing election officers therefrom. The resolution calling the election shall prescribe an official notice of election, which notice shall be published once a week for two (2) consecutive weeks, the last publication of which shall be at least ten (10) days prior to the date set for said election, in a newspaper of general circulation printed and published within the district, and no other or further notice of such election or publication of the names of election officers or of the precincts or polling places need be given or made. The respective election boards shall conduct the election in their respective precincts in the manner prescribed by law for the holding of district elections to the extent the same shall apply and shall make their returns to the secretary of the district. At any regular or special meeting of the board held not earlier than five (5) days following the date of such election, the returns thereof shall be canvassed and the results thereof declared.

In the event that no referendum petition is filed, or if so filed, if it shall appear from said returns that a two-thirds (2/3) majority of the qualified electors of the district who shall have voted on any proposition submitted hereunder at such election voted in favor of such proposition, the district shall thereupon be authorized to incur such indebtedness or obligations, enter into such contracts or issue and sell such bonds of the district, all for the purpose or purposes and object or objects provided for in the proposition submitted hereunder or in the resolution therefor, and in the amount so provided. Submission of the proposition of incurring such obligation or bonded or other indebtedness at such an election shall not prevent or prohibit submission of the same or other propositions at subsequent election or elections called for such purpose.

§ 43-2204. Judicial examination.

Except in the instance of bonds issued and sold to refund other bonds for which a confirmation proceeding pursuant to this section has already been held, the board shall file a petition in the district court of the county in which the office of the board is located, pursuant to the provisions of sections 43-406 through 43-408, Idaho Code, prior to the sale and issuance of any bonds under this chapter. Whenever any district which is required to file a petition hereunder has or proposes to enter into a contract or contracts with one or more irrigation districts pursuant to section 43-2201(D)(2), Idaho Code, and such other irrigation district or districts is authorized or required to bring a confirmation proceeding or proceedings pursuant to the provisions of section 43-406 or of section 43-1808, Idaho Code, with respect to such contracts or the levy of assessments or the apportionment of costs, the boards of each of such other irrigation districts shall join in the filing of such petition, and the district court in which such petition is filed shall have jurisdiction to hear the petition and to grant the relief prayed for therein. Each such petition shall pray for a judicial examination and determination of any power conferred hereby or by any amendment hereto or of any assessment levied or of any apportionment of costs or of any act, proceeding or contract of the district or districts, whether or not said contracts shall have been executed, including proposed contracts for the reconstruction, rehabilitation, replacement and improvement of any such dam and other related structures and works and appurtenances, falling water contracts pursuant to section 43-2201(D)(4), Idaho Code, contracts with other irrigation districts pursuant to section 43-2201(D)(2), Idaho Code, and contracts with other public and private persons, firms, corporations and associations pursuant to section 43-2201(D)(3), Idaho Code. Such petition shall set forth the facts whereon the validity of such powers, assessments, apportionments, acts, proceedings or contracts is founded. Notice of the filing of said petition shall be given by the clerk of the court by mailing, and by publication in at least one (1) newspaper published and of general circulation within the boundaries of each irrigation district joining in the petition, or if no newspaper is so published within any district, then in a newspaper published in the same county in which any part of such irrigation district is located which is of general circulation in such irrigation district, pursuant to and in accordance with the requirements of section 43-407, Idaho Code, under the seal thereof, stating in brief outline the contents of the petition and showing where a full copy of any contract or contracts, therein mentioned, may be examined.

Any owner of property in any district joining in the petition or any other person interested in the contracts or proposed contracts may appear and answer said petition at any time prior to the date fixed for said hearing or within such further time as may be allowed by the court; and the petition shall be taken as confessed by all persons who fail so to appear. The said petition and notice shall be sufficient to give the court jurisdiction and, upon hearing, the court shall examine into and determine all matters and things affecting the question submitted, shall examine all of the proceedings of all of the irrigation districts as set forth in the petition, shall hear all objections either filed in said proceeding or brought up from the hearings before any of the boards, shall correct all errors in the assessments and apportionments of costs, shall ratify, approve and confirm all apportionments of costs and assessments levied, shall make such findings with reference thereto and render a judgment and decree thereon approving and confirming all of the powers, assessments, apportionments, acts, proceedings and contracts of each of the irrigation districts as set forth in the petition as the case warrants. Costs may be divided or apportioned among the contesting parties in the discretion of the trial court. Review of the judgment of the court may be had as in other similar cases, except that such review must be applied for within thirty (30) days after the time of the rendition of such judgment, or within such additional time as may be allowed by the court within thirty (30) days. The Idaho Rules of Civil Procedure shall govern in matters of pleading and practice where not otherwise specified herein. The court shall disregard any error, irregularity or omission which does not affect the substantial rights of the parties. Except as provided herein, the provisions of sections 43-406 through 43-408, Idaho Code, shall apply to the proceeding herein authorized.

Except as expressly provided in this section, the provisions of sections 43-406 through 43-408, Idaho Code, shall be inapplicable to refunding bonds issued under this chapter.

§ 43-2205. Judicial proceedings to test validity.

In the event that any official required to participate in any act leading to the calling or holding of the required election, the execution of any required contract or the issuance of such bonds shall refuse to perform such act alleging as his reason illegality of the proposed election, the proposed contract or the bonds proposed to be issued, the board may institute judicial proceedings to compel such steps to be taken and legality of the election, contract or bonds to be determined. All cases in which there may arise a question of the validity of any proceeding under this act shall be advanced as a matter of immediate public interest and concern, and heard at the earliest practicable moment. The courts shall be open at all times for the purposes of this act.

§ 43-2206. Tax exemption.

Bonds and interim notes, and the interest thereon, issued pursuant to the authority contained in this chapter shall be exempt from taxation under the Idaho Income Tax law.

§ 43-2207. Liberal construction.

Any restrictions, limitations or regulations relative to the issuance of such bonds or the execution of such contracts pursuant to the authority herein contained in any other act shall not apply to the bonds issued under this chapter or the execution of such contracts pursuant to the authority herein contained. Any act inconsistent herewith shall be deemed modified to conform with the provisions of this chapter for the purpose of this chapter only. This chapter being necessary to secure and preserve the public health, safety, convenience and welfare, and for the security of public and private property, it shall be liberally construed to effect the purposes of this chapter.

§ 43-2301. Reconstruction of dams, canals and other irrigation district works and related appurtenances — Hydroelectric facilities — Execution of contracts — Revenues — Trusts.

Any irrigation district organized and existing under the provisions of title 43, Idaho Code, in addition to any other powers which it might enjoy, for the purpose of preserving, restoring, protecting and maintaining rights of storage, diversion and delivery of water necessary and appurtenant to the purposes for which such district and other like similarly situated districts were organized, is hereby granted the following additional powers:

1. To provide for or to reconstruct, rehabilitate, replace, modify or improve dams, canals and other irrigation district works, including the construction, enlargement and replacement of outlet and intake tunnels and structures, and other related structures and works together with all necessary appurtenances related thereto, whether located within or without the boundaries of the district and whether or not legal title thereto is owned by the district, including without limitation as a part thereof the reconstruction and relocation of all roads, bridges and highways made necessary by reason of such reconstruction, rehabilitation, replacement, modification or improvement, or the construction of hydroelectric generating facilities as authorized in subsection (b) of this section, and in connection therewith the acquisition of related facilities for flood control, public recreation, and fish and wildlife mitigation and enhancement purposes made necessary in order to comply with applicable state and federal requirements;
2. To provide for or to construct hydroelectric generating facilities, properties and related structures in connection with and as a part of the reconstruction, rehabilitation, replacement, modification or improvement of a dam, a canal or other irrigation district works pursuant to subsection (a) of this section, together with all necessary equipment and appurtenances related thereto, used in or useful for the generation of electricity, including power plants, turbine generators, penstocks, transformers, electrical equipment and other facilities related to hydroelectric production plants;
3. To enter into all necessary agreements, contracts and other legal arrangements with the United States and its agencies, other irrigation districts organized and existing under the provisions of title 43, Idaho Code, and other public and private persons, firms, corporations and associations, and irrigation districts similar to those existing under title 43, Idaho Code, but organized and existing under the laws of another state of the United States, in order to carry out or provide for the reconstruction, rehabilitation, replacement, modification or improvement of any such dam, canal or other irrigation district works and other related structures and works and appurtenances and the construction of any such hydroelectric generating facilities, the financing thereof pursuant to the provisions of this chapter, including provisions relating to the issuance of bonds or contracting indebtedness with a money-lending institution to pay the costs thereof by an irrigation district which is a party to a contract or agreement, the sale of surplus electric energy or the sale or use of rights to falling water in such manner as shall be necessary and desirable and in the best interests of the district, and the operation and maintenance of all or any part of such dam, canal or other irrigation district works so reconstructed, rehabilitated, replaced, modified and improved and of such hydroelectric generating facilities so constructed, which agreements or contracts may provide for the reconstruction, rehabilitation, replacement, modification or improvement of any such dam, canal or other irrigation district works and other related structures and works and appurtenances, the construction of hydroelectric generation facilities, the terms governing the disposition and sale of surplus electric energy or the sale or use of rights to falling water in relation to such dam, canal or other irrigation district works and generating facilities, which terms may include a provision requiring any purchaser of the surplus electric energy or falling water to purchase all the surplus energy generated or all the rights to or use of falling water associated with such dam, canal or other irrigation district works and hydroelectric generating facilities, the conditions under which the purchaser of the surplus electric energy or rights to use of falling water shall make payments to the district issuing the bonds, the rights and remedies of the parties thereto in the event of the failure of the purchaser of the surplus electric energy or rights to or use of falling water to make the required payments thereunder and the securing of all necessary permits and licenses required in connection therewith; the creation of a committee of representatives of the parties to the agreement or contract, which committee shall have such powers not inconsistent with the provisions of this chapter; (d) To issue bonds of the district or to contract indebtedness with a money-lending institution in the manner provided in this chapter, or to consent to the issuance of such bonds or the contracting of indebtedness with a money-lending institution by another contracting irrigation district pursuant to the provisions of subsection (c) of this section, for the purpose of paying all or part of the cost of the reconstruction, rehabilitation, replacement, modification or improvement of any such dam, canal or other irrigation district works and other related structures and works and appurtenances and the construction of hydroelectric generating facilities as further described in subsections (a), (b) and (c) above, and for the purpose of paying all expenses preliminary and incidental thereto, including all engineering, fiscal and legal expenses and costs of issuance or contracting, printing, advertising, establishment of necessary reserves and payment of interest during construction;
   1. Pay such bonds or indebtedness from, or pledge for the payment of such bonds or indebtedness, any other assets, revenue or income of the district; or
   2. Enter into agreements with financial, banking, insurance and other institutions for bond insurance, letters of credit, standby letters of credit, reimbursement agreements and remarketing, indexing and tender agent agreements to secure such bonds or indebtedness, including payment from any legally available source of fees, charges or other amounts coming due under such agreements entered into in connection with the issuance of the bonds or indebtedness.

(e) To provide that any bond issued and sold or any indebtedness contracted pursuant to the provisions of this chapter shall be payable out of a special fund into which the district issuing the bonds shall be obligated to deposit, as from time to time received, all or a designated portion of the proceeds from the sale of electric energy generated by hydroelectric generating facilities to be so constructed or from the sale or use of rights to falling water from the dam, canal or other irrigation district works to be so reconstructed, rehabilitated, replaced, modified or improved, all pursuant to contracts to be entered into as authorized in subsection (c) of this section; and

(f) In addition to the sources of payment for bonds or indebtedness set forth in subsection (e) of this section, the district may also:

§ 43-2302. Issuance of bonds — Terms and conditions.

The board of directors is authorized to issue the bonds of the district in the manner for which provision is made in this chapter, which bonds shall be fully negotiable for all purposes of the uniform commercial code of the state of Idaho as the same may be in force from time to time.

Bonds issued hereunder shall be authorized by resolution or resolutions of the board. They shall be in coupon form but may be made registrable as to principal only or as to both principal and interest. Such bonds shall be in denominations of one hundred dollars ($100) or a multiple thereof, shall bear interest at such rate or rates, payable annually or semiannually as the board shall elect, shall mature serially or otherwise at any time or times, shall be payable at such place or places within or without the state, may be made redeemable prior to maturity in such manner and at such premiums, shall be executed in such manner, and shall be sold in such manner and at such price or prices as may be determined by the board.

Bonds may be issued hereunder at one time or from time to time. If more than one issue or series of bonds is delivered hereunder the bonds or the respective issues or series shall have such priorities of payment as may be provided in the proceedings authorizing the bonds.

Any resolution or indenture providing for the issuance of bonds hereunder shall provide for the creation of a sinking fund into which shall be paid from the revenues pledged to such payment sums fully sufficient to pay the principal of and interest on the bonds and to create such reserves as may be required therein. Any resolution or indenture may contain such covenants with the future holders of the bonds as to the disposition of such revenues, the issuance of future bonds and the creation of future liens and encumbrances against the revenues and other pertinent matters deemed necessary or proper by the board to assure the merchantability of the bonds, provided such covenants and agreements are not inconsistent with the provisions of this chapter.

It may be provided in any such resolution or indenture that any holder of the bonds or of any of the coupons thereto attached may by appropriate legal action compel performance of all duties required of the board and the officials of the district by the provisions of title 43, Idaho Code, and the provisions of the resolution or indenture. If any bond issued hereunder is permitted to go into default, as to principal or interest, any court of competent jurisdiction may, pursuant to the application of the holder of any bond, or if applicable the trustee pursuant to a trust indenture, appoint a receiver to collect and distribute the revenues pledged to the repayment of the bonds pursuant to the provisions and requirements of the resolution or indenture and of this act and as the court may direct.

The board of any district which shall have issued any bonds under the provisions of this chapter may authorize the issuance of bonds hereunder for the purpose of refunding all or any part of such outstanding bonds. Refunding bonds may be either sold and the proceeds thereof applied to or deposited in an escrow for the retirement of the outstanding bonds or may be delivered in exchange for the outstanding bonds. The refunding bonds shall be authorized and secured in the manner herein provided for the issuance and securing of other bonds and may but shall not be required to have the same source of security and payment as the bonds refunded.

§ 43-2303. Interim notes.

In addition to the permanent financing contemplated in this chapter the board of any district may borrow money and issue interim notes in evidence thereof whenever it is deemed advisable and in the interests of the district to borrow funds temporarily for any of the purposes herein provided in advance of permanent financing. The board may from time to time and pursuant to appropriate resolution borrow money and issue interim notes to evidence borrowing for the purpose of obtaining funds for any of the purposes authorized in section 43-2301, Idaho Code. Any resolution authorizing the issuance of interim notes shall describe generally the purpose for which such notes are to be issued and shall specify the principal amount, rate of interest and maturity date, which shall be the same for all interim notes and which shall be not to exceed five (5) years from the date of issue of such notes, and such other pertinent terms as may be specified in such resolution. The interim notes shall be issued from time to time by the board as funds are borrowed, in the manner the board may determine. Interest on the interim notes may be made payable semiannually, annually or at maturity. The interim notes may be made redeemable prior to maturity at the option of the board in the manner and upon the terms fixed by the resolution authorizing their issuance. Such interim notes shall be sold at such price or prices as may be determined by resolution of the board. All such interim notes and the interest thereon may be secured by a pledge of the proceeds of the revenues provided in subsection (e) of section 43-2301, Idaho Code, and shall be payable solely from such revenues and from the proceeds to be derived from the sale of any bonds for permanent financing authorized to be issued pursuant to this chapter. Contemporaneously with the issuance of the bonds as provided by this chapter, all interim notes, even though they may not have then matured, shall be paid, both principal and interest and applicable premium, if any, to date of payment, from the funds derived from the sale of bonds authorized hereunder for the permanent financing, and such interim notes shall thereupon be surrendered and canceled.

§ 43-2304. Publication — Legal remedies.

The resolution authorizing the issuance of any bonds or interim notes hereunder or any resolution authorizing the execution of any contract hereunder may be published one time in a newspaper of general circulation in the district. For a period of thirty (30) days from the date of such publication, any person in interest may file suit in any court of competent jurisdiction to contest the regularity, formality or legality of the proceedings authorizing the bonds, the interim notes, the execution of such contract or the legality of such resolution and its provisions or of the contract or of the bonds or interim notes to be issued pursuant thereto and the provisions securing the bonds or interim notes. After the expiration of such thirty (30) day period no one shall have any right of action to contest the validity of the contract or of the bonds or interim notes or of such proceedings or of such resolution or the validity of the pledges and covenants made in such proceedings and resolution and the contract and the bonds and interim notes and the provisions for their payment shall be conclusively presumed to be legal and no court shall thereafter have authority to inquire into such matters.

§ 43-2305. Election on contracts.

Whenever the board of an irrigation district shall by resolution determine that the interest of said district and the public interest or necessity demand the reconstruction, rehabilitation, replacement, modification or improvement of any dam, canal or other irrigation district works and the construction of hydroelectric generating facilities, properties and related structures in connection and as an improvement to such dam, canal or other irrigation district works and the entering into of a contract as authorized in section 43-2301(c), Idaho Code, making provision therefor, said board shall be required to order the submission of the proposition of entering into a contract as provided in section 43-2301(c), Idaho Code, to the vote of the qualified electors of the district as defined in section 34-104, Idaho Code, at an election to be held for that purpose. The resolution, in addition to such declaration of public interest or necessity, shall recite the objects and purposes for which the contract is proposed to be entered into by the irrigation district; the estimated cost of the reconstruction, rehabilitation, replacement, modification or improvement of the dam, canal or other irrigation district works and/or construction of hydroelectric generating facilities as the case may be; the method of financing the reconstruction, rehabilitation, replacement, modification or improvement of the dam, canal or other irrigation district works and construction of hydroelectric generating facilities, including the maximum amount of bonds which may be issued or of indebtedness which may be contracted by a contracting irrigation district pursuant to such election and pursuant to the provisions of section 43-2301(d), Idaho Code.

Any election required to be held hereunder shall be called by resolution, which resolution shall also fix the date upon which such election shall be held, the manner of holding the same and the method of voting for or against the execution of the contract. Such resolution shall also fix the compensation to be paid the officers of the election and shall designate the precincts and polling places and shall appoint for each polling place, from each precinct from the electors thereof, the officers of such election, which officers shall consist of three (3) judges, one (1) of whom shall act as clerk, who shall constitute a board of election for each polling place. Description of precincts may be made by reference to any order or orders of the board of county commissioners of the county or counties in which the district or any part thereof is situated, or by reference to any previous order, or resolution of the board or by detailed description of such precincts. The resolution calling the election shall prescribe an official notice of election, which notice shall be published once a week for two (2) consecutive weeks, the last publication of which shall be at least ten (10) days prior to the date set for said election, in a newspaper of general circulation printed and published in the district, and no other or further notice of such election or publication of the names of election officers or of the precincts or polling places need be given or made. The notice of election shall state that a copy or copies of the contract or contracts, in substantially the form contemplated to be entered into by the district are on file in the office of the secretary of the district for public inspection by any interested person during regular business hours. The respective election boards shall conduct the election in their respective precincts in a manner prescribed by law for the holding of district elections to the extent the same shall apply and shall make their returns to the secretary of the district. At any regular or special meeting of the board held not earlier than five (5) days following the date of such election, the returns thereof shall be canvassed and the results thereof declared.

If it shall appear from said returns that a two-thirds (2/3) majority of the qualified electors of the district who shall have voted on any proposition submitted hereunder at such election voted in favor of such proposition, the district shall thereupon be authorized to enter into such contracts, all for the purpose or purposes and object or objects provided for in the proposition submitted hereunder or in the resolution therefor. Submission of the proposition of entering into such contract at such an election shall not prevent or prohibit submission of the same or other propositions at subsequent election or elections called for such purpose.

§ 43-2306. Acts required.

In the event that any official required to participate in any act leading to the execution of any required contract or the issuance of such bonds shall refuse to perform such act alleging as his reason illegality of the proposed contract or the bonds proposed to be issued, the board may institute judicial proceedings to compel such steps to be taken and legality of the contract or bonds to be determined. All cases in which there may arise a question of the validity of any proceeding under this act shall be advanced as a matter of immediate public interest and concern, and heard at the earliest practicable moment. The courts shall be open at all times for the purposes of this act.

§ 43-2307. Bonds tax exempt.

Bonds and interim notes, and the interest thereon, issued pursuant to the authority contained in this chapter shall be exempt from taxation under the Idaho income tax law.

§ 43-2308. Construction.

Any restrictions, limitations or regulations relative to the issuance of such bond or the execution of such contracts pursuant to the authority herein contained in any other act shall not apply to the bonds issued under this chapter or the execution of such contracts pursuant to the authority herein contained, it being intended that this chapter is full authority for the issuance of such bonds and the execution of such contracts. The provisions of sections 43-314, 43-406, 43-407 and 43-408, Idaho Code, shall not apply to any contract or agreement entered into by an irrigation district pursuant to the provisions of section 43-2301, Idaho Code, nor to the issuance of any bonds by an irrigation district pursuant to the provisions of section 43-2301, Idaho Code. This chapter being necessary to secure and preserve the public health, safety, convenience and welfare, and for the security of public and private property, it shall be liberally construed to effect the purposes of this chapter.

§ 43-2401. Application.

The provisions of this chapter shall apply only to irrigation districts having a system of works and piping for the distribution of treated domestic water separate from its works and piping for the distribution of irrigation water.

§ 43-2402. Domestic annexation.

In such districts, the holder or holders of any title, or evidence of title, representing one-half (½) or more of any body of lands adjacent to the boundary of the irrigation district, may, in lieu of proceeding for annexation under chapter 10, title 43, Idaho Code, file with the board of directors of such district a petition in writing praying that said lands may be annexed to the district for the sole purpose of receiving domestic water therefrom. Such annexation is herein referred to as “domestic annexation.” The petition shall describe the lands, and shall also describe the several parcels owned by the petitioners.

§ 43-2403. Conservators and personal representatives may sign petition.

A conservator or personal representative of an estate who was appointed as such under the laws of this state may, on behalf of his ward or the estate which he represents, sign the petition mentioned in the next preceding section for domestic annexation.

§ 43-2404. Notice of petition.

The secretary must cause the notice of the filing of such petition to be published three (3) weeks in the manner of notices of special elections. The notice shall state the filing of such petition, the names of the petitioners, a description of the lands mentioned in said petition, and that domestic annexation thereof has been requested, and it shall notify all persons interested in or that may be affected by such domestic annexation to appear at the office of said board, at a time named in said notice, and show cause in writing, if any they have, why the petition for domestic annexation should not be granted. The petitioners shall advance to the secretary sufficient money to pay the estimated cost of all proceedings in connection with all such domestic annexations.

§ 43-2405. Hearing of petition.

The board of directors, at the time mentioned in such notice, or at such other time to which the hearing may be adjourned, shall hear the petition and all objections thereto, showing cause as aforesaid. The failure of any person to show cause as aforesaid shall be taken as an assent on his part to such domestic annexation as to the lands mentioned in the petition, or such part thereof as the board of directors shall determine.

§ 43-2406. Domestic annexation fee.

The board of directors may require, as a condition to the granting of such petition, that the petitioners shall severally pay to such district such sum as the board of directors shall determine, as a fee for such domestic annexation.

§ 43-2407. Order accepting or rejecting petition.

The board of directors, if they deem it not for the best interest of the district to grant such domestic annexation, shall order that the petition be rejected. But if they deem it for the best interest of the district, and if no person interested shall show cause why such domestic annexation should not be granted, or if having shown cause, withdraws the same, the board may order, without any election, that domestic annexation be granted as to the lands mentioned in the petition, or some part thereof. The order shall describe the lands to which domestic annexation shall be granted, and the board may cause a survey thereof to be made if deemed necessary.

§ 43-2408. Objections not withdrawn — Resolution of board.

If any person interested shall show cause as aforesaid and shall not withdraw the same, and if the board of directors shall deem it in the best interest of the district that domestic annexation be granted as to the lands described in such petition, or some part thereof, the board shall adopt a resolution to that effect. The resolution shall describe the lands for which, in the opinion of the board, domestic annexation should be granted.

§ 43-2409. Election to determine change. — Upon adoption of the resolution mentioned in the last preceding section, the board shall order that an election be held within said district to determine whether such domestic annexation shall be granted, as mentioned in said resolution, and it shall fix the time at which such election shall be held. Notice thereof shall be given and published, and the said election shall be held, and all things pertaining thereto conducted, as nearly as may be, in the manner prescribed by title 43, Idaho Code, in case of an election to determine whether bonds of the district shall be issued. The question submitted to the voters shall be in the words “Domestic Annexation — Yes” or “Domestic Annexation

No”, or words equivalent thereto. The notice of election shall describe the lands for which domestic annexation is proposed.

§ 43-2410. Order changing boundaries.

If the majority of all votes cast at such election shall be against the granting of such domestic annexation, the board shall proceed no further in the matter. But if a majority of such votes be in favor of the granting of such domestic annexation, the board shall thereupon order the domestic annexation of the lands described in the notice of election. Any order granting such domestic annexation shall specify to which director’s division such lands shall be attached.

§ 43-2411. Order to be recorded — Effect.

Upon an order of domestic annexation being made a copy thereof, certified by the president and secretary of the board shall be filed for record in the recorder’s office of each county within which are situated any of the lands of the district. Thereupon such lands shall be entitled to receive domestic water from the district, and shall pay therefore [therefor] upon such basis as the board of directors shall direct. Such lands shall be subject to all laws, and rules and regulations of the district relating to domestic water. Such lands shall not be entitled to receive irrigation water from the district, and shall not be subject to assessment by the district. The owners of and/or residents on such lands shall be subject to the same voter qualifications and shall have the same voting rights in district elections as the owners of and/or residents on other lands within the district.

§ 43-2412. Subsequent annexation.

The making and filing of an order of domestic annexation shall not preclude the owners of any such lands from thereafter petitioning for annexation of such lands, or some part thereof, under the provisions of chapter 10, title 43[, Idaho Code]. Any annexation of such lands made under the provisions of such chapter 10, title 43[, Idaho Code], shall supersede any prior domestic annexation of such lands.

§ 43-2501. Short title.

Chapter 25, title 43, Idaho Code, shall be known and cited as the “Local Improvement District Code for Irrigation Districts.”

§ 43-2502. Definitions.

The following words and phrases when used in this chapter shall, for the purposes of this chapter, have the meanings respectively given herein.

1. “Board” means the board of directors of an irrigation district.
2. “Costs and expenses” mean the contract price of all improvements, including any costs or expenses incurred for engineering, clerical, printing and legal services as well as for advertising, surveying, inspection of work, collection of assessments, interest upon bonds or warrants, and an amount for contingencies as shall be considered necessary by the board.
3. “District or irrigation district” means irrigation districts organized pursuant to the provisions of chapter 1, title 43, Idaho Code.
4. “Engineer” means the official engineer of the irrigation district or one specially retained for purposes of operating under the provisions of this chapter.
5. “Local improvement district” means a local improvement district created within the boundaries of an irrigation district or irrigation districts under the authority of this chapter.
6. “Owner” or “owners” mean the owner of property within the limits of a local improvement district, or a proposed local improvement district; and a corporation, joint stock association, partnership, individual proprietor or other form of business enterprise owning real property, within any such district or proposed district.
7. “Secretary,” “treasurer” or “other irrigation district officer” means the appropriate irrigation district officers with regard to irrigation district local improvement districts.

§ 43-2503. Powers conferred.

1. The board shall have the power to make or cause to be made any one (1) or more, or combination of, the following improvements:
   1. To acquire, construct, operate, maintain, repair and replace pumping stations and pipelines and all necessary fittings, controls, components and equipment and other water facilities for the purpose of supplying water under pressure or by gravity flow for the irrigation of a described area within the boundaries of the district.
   2. To acquire, construct, reconstruct, extend, maintain or repair parks and other recreational facilities;
   3. To remove any nonconforming existing facility or structure in the areas to be improved;
   4. To construct, reconstruct, extend, maintain or repair optional improvements;
   5. To acquire by purchase, gift, condemnation, or otherwise, any real or personal property within the limits of the district as in the judgment of the board may be necessary or convenient in order to make any of such improvements;
   6. To make any other improvements now or hereafter authorized by any other law, the cost of which in whole or in part can properly be determined to be of particular benefit to a particular area within the district;
   7. To construct and install all such structures, equipment and other items and to do all such other work and to incur any such costs and expenses as may be necessary or appropriate to complete any of such improvements in a proper manner.
2. For the purpose of making and paying for all or a part of the cost of any of such improvements, including optional improvements, the board may create local improvement districts pursuant to this chapter within the boundaries of the irrigation district, levy assessments on the property within such a district which is benefited by the making of the improvements and issue interim or registered warrants and local improvement bonds as provided in this chapter.

§ 43-2504. Initiation of organization of local improvement district.

The organization of any local improvement district herein provided for may be initiated upon a petition signed by not less than sixty percent (60%) of the owners of property subject to assessment within such local improvement district, or by resolution of the board adopted by an affirmative vote of a majority of the members of the full board at a regular or special meeting thereof. The terms of a petition shall include a description of the boundaries of a proposed local improvement district, the improvements to be made and the property to be assessed.

The board may, in its discretion, authorize a preliminary study to determine the feasibility and costs and expenses of a proposed local improvement district and pay for such study out of the general fund of the district. In the event the local improvement district is formed, the cost of the study may be included in the cost of the local improvement district and added to the assessment roll. In the event the local improvement district is not formed, for any reason, the board may authorize the cost of the study to be added to the general assessment rolls of the district as to the property within the proposed local improvement district.

In the alternative, the board may, in its discretion, as a condition of the board proceeding further with the formation of the local improvement district, require the petitioners to provide to the district a deposit in an amount determined in the board’s discretion to pay for a preliminary study of the proposed local improvement district to determine the feasibility and costs and expenses of the project.

The petition shall include an acknowledgment by the petitioners that the district may require the petitioners to provide to the district a deposit in an amount determined in the board’s discretion to pay for a preliminary study or that the board may, in its discretion, authorize the cost of the study to be paid out of the general fund of the district, with the cost of the study to be included in the cost of the local improvement district and added to the assessment roll if one is formed or to be added to the general assessment rolls of the district as to the property within the proposed local improvement district if the local improvement district is not formed.

§ 43-2505. Resolution of intention to create district.

Upon the filing of a petition or upon initiation of a local improvement district by board action, the board shall, at a regular or special meeting, adopt a resolution giving notice of its intention to create the local improvement district, to make the improvements and to levy assessments to pay all or a part thereof. The notice shall contain:

1. A description of the boundaries of the local improvement district to be created and the property to be assessed, sufficient to inform the owners thereof that their property is to be assessed.
2. A general description of the improvements contemplated, together with an estimate of the total cost and expenses of the same, and a statement of the percentage or other calculation of the total cost and expenses of the improvements which will be paid from a levy of assessments on property benefited and the percentage or calculation of the total costs and expenses, if any, which will be paid from the general funds of the district or from such other source specified in the notice.
3. A statement that the costs and expenses of the improvements will be assessed against the lots and lands to which irrigation water shall be delivered from the main system of the district to the lots and lands benefited by such improvements and included in the local improvement district to be created according to a gross acreage method, and the board shall state the method in said notice.
4. A statement that the local improvement district is to be an enlarged local improvement district within the meaning of this act, if the same is true, and the boundaries of such enlarged local improvement district shall be given.
5. A statement of the time within which and the place at which protests shall be filed and of the time and place at which the board will conduct a public hearing to consider such protests.

§ 43-2506. Notice of intention and hearing.

The notice of intention shall be published in the official newspaper of the district. If the district is located in more than one (1) county, the notice of intention may be published only in the county where the property to be assessed in the proposed local improvement district is located. Publication shall be in three (3) consecutive issues if a daily newspaper, or in two (2) issues if a weekly newspaper or in case no newspaper is published in such district then by posting for five (5) days in three (3) public places within the proposed local improvement district. A copy of such notice shall be mailed to each owner of property, if known, or his agent, if known, within the limits of the proposed local improvement district, addressed to such person at his post office address if known, or if unknown, to a post office in the district where the improvement is to be made. Ownership of property shall be determined as of the date of the adoption of the resolution of intent to create. The hearing shall take place not less than ten (10) days from the date of the first of said publications or postings or the date of said mailing, whichever is later.

§ 43-2507. Protests and hearings.

Any owner of property to be assessed in the proposed local improvement district described in the notice of intention shall have the right, in advance of the hearing, to file, in writing, a protest to the creation of the district or making any other objections in relation thereto. At the date, time and place specified in the notice of intention the board shall, in open and public session, consider all protests which have been filed in writing in advance of the hearing, and the hearing may be adjourned one (1) or more times at the discretion of the board to a fixed future time and place for the same, by publicly announcing at the hearing the continued date and time for such hearing, until all such protests have been heard. No further or additional notice of any kind shall be required. At any continued hearing, the board shall not consider any protests that were filed after the original hearing date. The decision of the board as to all protests shall be conclusive and final, and if it should so determine, the board may delete any improvements on any property which had originally been contemplated in the said notice. If owners of more than two-thirds (2/3) of the property to be assessed protest any of the proposed improvements which affect their property, the board shall not proceed further with the work so protested unless a majority of the members of the full board shall vote to proceed with such work. The vote on the hereinafter mentioned resolution creating the local improvement district shall constitute the vote as to whether or not the board will proceed. Any property owner who fails to file a protest within the time specified, or having filed one withdraws said protest, shall be deemed to have waived any objection to the creation of the local improvement district, the making of the improvements, and the inclusion of his property in the local improvement district. Such waiver shall not preclude his right to object to the amount of the assessment at the later hearing provided for such purpose.

In cases where written protests are filed and sixty percent (60%) of the owners or the owners of two-thirds (2/3) of the lots and lands within such proposed local improvement district have signed such protest, the board shall not be allowed to proceed with the creation of the local improvement district for a period of one hundred eighty (180) days.

After expiration of the one hundred eighty (180) day period, the district may recommence the initiation of a local improvement district as originally proposed or as modified as provided in this chapter.

§ 43-2508. Resolution creating local improvement district and procedure for construction bids.

If, after the hearing on the creation of the district, the board finds that the local improvement district will be for the best interest of the property affected and the district; that there is reasonable probability that the obligations of such local improvement district will be paid; and the value of the property within the proposed local improvement district is sufficient; it shall then adopt a resolution providing for such improvements and creating a local improvement district to be called “Local Improvement District No. ... for ............ Irrigation District, Idaho,” which shall include all of the property within said local improvement district in accordance with the findings of the board, and said resolution shall set forth the boundaries of the local improvement district, provide the improvements which shall be made, and state that the total cost and expenses thereof shall be assessed according to the percentage or calculation hereinbefore mentioned on all benefited property in the local improvement district by using the gross acreage method of assessment contemplated in the notice of intention subject to any variation therefrom as a result of the board’s determining that the benefits to be derived by certain lots or parcels of property warrant such variations. The board shall appoint an engineer and shall have prepared the necessary plans and specifications for the construction work ordered. Except as hereinafter otherwise provided, the board shall authorize the advertisement for bids therefor by giving notice calling for sealed bids for the construction of the work in accordance with the provisions of chapter 28, title 67, Idaho Code.

Any contract made by a district for any improvements authorized by this code shall be made by the board in the name of the district upon such terms of payment as shall be fixed by the board. The contract shall be authorized by resolution empowering the authorized officer of the district to execute the contract. The resolution need not set out the contract in full but it shall be sufficient if the resolution refers to a copy of the contract on file in the office of the secretary where it is available for public inspection.

Any provision in this local improvement district for irrigation districts code notwithstanding, if any district shall elect to exercise the powers herein granted jointly with another irrigation district or districts, or with any other public agency or agencies as authorized by the provisions of section 67-2328, Idaho Code, the improvements as contemplated within the local improvement district may be constructed jointly and as part of a larger project with such other agency or agencies upon the letting of a single contract after compliance with the required bidding procedure for any Idaho public agency jointly participating in the work.

§ 43-2509. Limitation on assessments against property.

No district shall order any improvement to be paid for by local assessment where the estimated costs of such improvement, if such costs are to be assessed to the property in the local improvement district, or that portion of the estimated costs to be assessed, if a portion only of said total costs are to be assessed, when added to all other outstanding and unpaid local improvement assessments against the property included in the local improvement district, excluding penalties and interest, shall exceed the actual value of the real property in the local improvement district, including the value of the improvements thereon.

The board shall provide, by resolution, the method of determining the actual value of the real property including the improvements thereon in the local improvement district and when the valuation is so determined, such valuation shall be final and conclusive in the absence of fraud or gross mistake.

§ 43-2510. Preparation of assessment roll and notice of hearing thereon.

After the contract has been awarded and at such time as the board shall determine, the engineer shall prepare a duly certified report to the board showing in detail the total cost and expenses of the improvements and the dollar amounts of the same payable from assessments and from other sources. The report shall also contain a form of assessment roll numbering each assessment, giving the name, if known, of the owner of each lot or parcel of property assessed, and showing the amount chargeable to each lot or parcel of property according to the method of assessment originally contemplated by the board subject to any variations therefrom as a result of the engineer’s recommendation that benefits to be received by any lot or parcel of property warrant such a variation from the method chosen. Each lot or parcel of property shall be described with sufficient clearness to identify it, and if the engineer recommends any variations from the contemplated method of assessment, those variations shall be pointed out and the reasons for the same shall be given in the report.

Upon receipt of the report, the board shall cause the assessment roll contained therein to be filed in the office of the treasurer where it shall be available for public inspection. The board shall thereupon fix a time and place when and where the board will meet in open session and consider the report and the assessment roll and hear all objections to the assessment roll by the property owners of the local improvement district.

§ 43-2511. Notice of hearing on assessment roll.

After the board fixes the time and place for said hearing on the assessment roll, the secretary of the district shall give notice by publication in the official newspaper of such district. If the district is located in more than one (1) county, the notice may be published only in the county where the property to be assessed is located. Publication shall be in three (3) successive issues if published in a daily newspaper, or by publication in two (2) issues if published in a weekly newspaper, the first of which publication shall be at least fifteen (15) days before the date fixed for hearing objections to said assessment roll, that such assessment roll is on file in his office. The notice shall further state the date, time and place at which the board will hear and consider objections to the assessment roll by the parties aggrieved by such assessments. The secretary shall, not less than fifteen (15) days before the date fixed for hearing objections to said assessment roll, mail a substantially similar notice to each owner of property if known, or his agent if known, within the limits of the local improvement district, addressed to such person at his post office address if known, or if unknown, to the post office in such district where the improvement is to be made. The mailed notice shall also state the amount of the individual assessment and that at the specified time and place the board will hold a hearing to hear and determine all objections to the regularity of the proceedings in making such assessment, the correctness of the assessment, and the amount levied on the particular lot or parcel in relation to the benefits accruing thereon and in relation to the proper proportionate share of the total cost of the improvements in the project. It shall further state that each owner of property within the district is given notice that in revising the assessment roll at or after the hearing, the board may increase any assessment or assessments up to twenty percent (20%) of the original amount thereof without giving further notice and holding a new hearing thereon. The owner or owners of any property which is assessed in such assessment roll, whether named or not in such roll, may, before the date and time fixed for the hearing, file with the secretary his objections in writing to said assessment.

§ 43-2512. Hearing objections to assessment roll and confirmation.

At the time appointed for hearing objections to such assessment roll, the board shall consider the engineer’s report and the assessment roll and shall hear and determine all objections which have been filed by any owner of property, or his agent, to the regularity of the proceedings in making such assessment, to the correctness of such assessment, to the amount levied on any particular lot or parcel of land, including the benefits accruing thereon and the proper proportionate share of the total cost of the improvements to be borne thereby and to the inclusion of any lot or parcel of land in the proposed district. The board shall have the power: to adjourn such hearing from time to time and, in its discretion, to revise, correct, conform or set aside any assessment and to order that such assessment be made de novo; and to exclude any lot or parcel of land from an assessment roll which, in the judgment of the board, it finds will not be benefited by improvements to be made. If any assessments are increased in an amount greater than twenty percent (20%) of the amount of the assessments as set out in the notice of the hearing, then a new notice of the hearing shall be given and a new hearing held as aforesaid. No new hearing shall be required in the event that any assessments are decreased in any amount or are increased in an amount up to twenty percent (20%) of the original amount.

§ 43-2513. Confirmation of assessment roll.

After said hearing the board shall pass a resolution confirming the assessment roll as corrected by them in relation to the benefits accruing thereon as a result of the improvements being made. The resolution shall be the final determination of the regularity, validity and correctness of the assessment roll, of each assessment contained therein, and of the amount thereof levied on each lot or parcel of land, which resolution shall contain a finding that each lot or parcel of land is benefited to the amount of assessment levied thereon subject to appeal as provided herein. Upon passage of the resolution, the secretary shall certify and file the confirmed assessment roll with the treasurer of the district and the assessments therein shall be due and payable to the treasurer within thirty (30) days from the date of the adoption of the resolution. The confirmed assessment roll and the assessments made by the confirmed assessment roll shall be a lien upon the property assessed from and after the date the following notice is recorded. Immediately upon passage of the confirming resolution the secretary shall file with the county recorder a notice which shall contain the date of the confirming resolution and a description of the area or boundaries of the local improvement district. If any assessment is not paid in full within said thirty (30) day period, such assessment shall become delinquent and shall be collected in the same manner and with the same penalties and interest added thereto as hereinafter provided for delinquent assessments. The board may, in the alternative, determine to make assessments unpaid at the end of said thirty (30) day period payable in installments and to issue and sell registered warrants or installment bonds payable from such unpaid installments as herein provided. If the board chooses to do so, it shall provide in said resolution that any property owner who has not paid his assessment in full within said thirty (30) day period will be conclusively presumed to have chosen to pay the same in installments, and the resolution shall then establish the number of years said installments shall run, the dates of payment of the same and the rate of interest that the unpaid assessments shall bear, which rate shall not be less than the rate of interest borne by the warrants or bonds payable therefrom, said interest running from the date of the passage of the assessment resolution, irrespective of the date of its official publication, and being payable at the same time and place as the installment payments of assessments. Said installments shall be due and payable in not to exceed thirty (30) years to the treasurer or other proper officer as provided by the board. The resolution shall establish the due date of the first installment payment and that the local or special assessments may be carried on the rolls of the district and collected as hereinafter provided. If any installment is not paid within twenty (20) days from the date it is due, the same shall become delinquent and the treasurer shall add a penalty of two percent (2%) thereto. In addition to any other method of collection provided in this code, the board may certify delinquent installments to the treasurer, and when so certified they shall be extended on the assessment rolls and collected as other assessments levied upon lands in the district. In the event that any property owner should choose to pay his assessment in full after such time as it has been conclusively presumed that he will pay in installments, such payment in full shall include the full amount of the unpaid assessment plus penalties and all interest payable on the same plus additional interest thereon at the rate provided in the bonds from the date of the last installment due to one (1) year after the next interest date of said bonds.

Any errors in description, ownership of property or amounts in any assessment resolution adopted pursuant to this section may be corrected by the passage of an amendatory resolution which need set forth only the corrected descriptions or amounts. The passage of such amendatory resolution shall serve only to postpone the thirty (30) day period for payment in full of the assessments actually affected by such amendatory resolution and the due dates of installments of such affected assessments shall be the same as the due dates of installments not affected. Notice of any assessments so affected shall be given in the same manner as hereinafter provided for the giving of notice of assessments.

§ 43-2514. Notice and payment of assessments.

Upon passage of the assessment roll, the treasurer of the district shall mail a postcard or letter to each property owner assessed at his post-office address if known, or if unknown, to the post office in the district where the improvement is being made, stating the total amount of his assessment, plus the substance of the terms of payments of the same as set out in the resolution confirming the assessment roll.

An affidavit of the mailing of the notice shall be filed, before the date of delinquency, in the office of the treasurer in the file of the local improvement district, but the failure of the treasurer to give any notice required in this section or to do any other act or thing required in this section, shall not affect the validity of the assessments or installments thereof due nor extend the time for payment, but shall subject the district to liability to a property owner for any damage sustained by the latter by reason of such failure.

§ 43-2515. Installment docket.

Whenever any improvement bonds or warrants are issued as herein provided, the treasurer shall immediately thereafter mark on the assessment roll of such local improvement district opposite each assessment which has been paid, the word “paid” together with the date of payment, and shall immediately thereafter enter in a docket to be kept for that purpose, known as “local improvement installment docket” under separate heads for each local improvement district, all unpaid assessments as shown on such assessment roll, said docket to be made up from the assessment roll, and shall contain in separate columns the number of the assessment, the name of the owner, the description of the property, the amount of the total assessment, the amount and date when due of each annual installment with interest added, and a blank column in which shall be marked the date of payment of each installment. Such docket shall stand thereafter as a lien docket for such assessments so shown until paid.

§ 43-2516. Appeal procedure — Exclusive remedy.

Any person who properly has filed objections to the assessment roll or any other person who feels aggrieved by the decision of the board in confirming the same shall have the right to appeal to the district court of any county in which the local improvement district or any portion thereof may be situated. Such appeal shall be made within thirty (30) days from the date of publication of the resolution confirming the assessment roll by filing a written notice of appeal with the secretary of the district and with the clerk of the district court aforesaid describing the property and objections of the appellant. The appellant shall also provide a bond to the district in a sum to be fixed by the court, but not less than two hundred dollars ($200) with sureties to be approved by the court, conditioned to pay all costs to be awarded to the respondent upon such an appeal. After said thirty (30) day appeal period has run, no one shall have any cause or right of action to contest the legality, formality or regularity of said assessments for any reason whatsoever and, thereafter, said assessments and the liens thereon shall be considered valid and incontestable without limitation.

If an appeal is filed within said period, the case shall be docketed by the clerk of said court in the name of the person taking the appeal against the district as “an appeal from assessments.” Said cause shall then be at issue and have precedence over all civil cases pending in said court, except proceedings under the act relating to eminent domain by cities and actions of forcible entry and detainer. Such appeal shall be tried in said court as in the case of equitable causes except that no pleadings shall be necessary. The judgment of the court shall be either to confirm, modify or annul the assessment insofar as the same affects the property of the appellant, from which judgment an appeal may be taken to the supreme court as provided by law. In case the assessment is confirmed, the fees of the secretary of the district for copies of the record shall be taxed against the appellant with other costs.

§ 43-2517. Additional improvements.

Whenever any assessment is levied on any property for further, separate or additional improvement under the provisions of this code or any law of this state, such assessment shall be a subsequent lien upon the property so assessed to the lien of the unpaid assessments theretofore made for the original improvement. Whenever any assessment is made for such further, separate or additional improvement on property on which an existing assessment has been levied for improvements, such further, separate or additional assessment for improvement shall not be construed or considered as for one and the same improvement, or for the same purpose or for the same benefit, or as a double assessment for improvements against the property being assessed for the payment of the cost and expense of such improvement but shall be considered and construed as a separate, distinct, single and independent improvement on and of benefit to the property so assessed. All assessments so levied or bonds or warrants issued payable from the same shall be considered and construed as assessments levied or bonds or warrants issued for separate, distinct, single and independent improvements and benefits on and to the property so assessed.

§ 43-2518. Reassessment of benefits.

In all cases of assessments for local improvements of any kind against any property wherein said assessments have failed to be valid in whole or in part for want of form or sufficiency, informality, irregularity or nonconformance with the bylaws, resolutions or laws governing such assessments, the board shall be and is hereby authorized to reassess such assessments and to enforce their collection in accordance with the provisions of law existing at the time the reassessment is made. No mistake in description of the property or the name of the owner thereof shall affect the validity of any assessment or any lien created thereby under the provisions of this code, or any law of this state, unless such mistake or error renders it impossible to identify the property so assessed.

When for any cause, mistake or inadvertence, the amount assessed on any property is insufficient to pay the cost and expenses of the improvement made and enjoyed by the owner of such property, it shall be lawful, and the board is hereby directed and authorized, to make reassessments on said property sufficient in amount to pay for such improvements, the reassessment to be made and collected in accordance with the provisions of law existing at the time of its levy.

§ 43-2519. Lien of assessment — Foreclosure.

Assessments levied to pay the cost and expense of any improvement authorized by the provisions of this chapter shall constitute a lien upon and against the property upon which such assessment or assessments are made and levied from and after the date upon which the resolution levying such assessment or assessments is passed, which lien shall be superior to the lien of any mortgage or other encumbrance, whether prior in time or not, and shall constitute such lien until paid, and until paid, such lien shall not be subject to extinguishment for any reason whatsoever, including but not limited to the sale of the property assessed on account of the nonpayment of general taxes or the conveyance of such property by any means to the United States of America, or any agency thereof, the state of Idaho, or any county, city, irrigation district, school district, college district or other public body, agency or taxing unit in said state. When bonds have not been issued and said assessments made payable in installments as herein provided, such assessments shall be collected, or the property therein shall be foreclosed and sold for such assessments and costs, in a suit for that purpose by the district.

Such suit shall be in the name of the district as plaintiff and against any one (1) or more owners of property failing to pay such assessment or assessments as defendants. In any such proceedings where the court, trying the same, shall be satisfied that the improvements have been made or have been contracted for, which according to the true intent of this code would be properly chargeable to such property, a recovery shall be permitted and the lien enforced to the extent of the cost and expenses of the improvement which would be chargeable on such property notwithstanding any informality, irregularity or defect in any of the proceedings of such district or any of its officers, and such property shall be ordered sold for the payment of the assessment or assessments against it and the costs and expenses of such suit including reasonable attorney’s fees to be fixed by the court and prorated to each separate piece of property to be sold.

§ 43-2520. Segregation of assessments.

Whenever any land against which there has been levied any special assessment by any district shall have been sold in part or subdivided, the board of that district shall have the power to order a segregation of the assessment.

Any person desiring to have such a special assessment against a tract of land segregated to apply to smaller parts thereof shall apply to the district which levied the assessment. If the board determines that a segregation should be made, it shall by resolution order the treasurer to make segregation on the original assessment roll of the local improvement district as directed in the resolution and in accordance with section 43-701, Idaho Code. The segregation shall be made as nearly as possible on the same basis as the original assessment was levied, and the total of the segregated parts of the assessment shall equal the assessment before segregation. The resolution shall describe the original tract, the amount and date of the original assessment, and shall define the boundaries of the divided parts and the amount of the assessment chargeable to each part. A certified copy of the resolution shall be filed with the county recorder. The board may require, as a condition to the order of segregation, that the person seeking the segregation pay the district the reasonable engineering and clerical costs incident to making the segregation. No segregation need be made if the board shall find that by such segregation the security of the lien for the assessment will be so jeopardized as to reduce the security for any outstanding local improvement district obligations payable from such assessment.

§ 43-2521. Bonds — Registered warrants — Interim warrants — Election not required.

If the board determines to make assessments payable in installments as is provided in section 43-2515, Idaho Code, it shall by resolution authorize to be issued, in the name of the district, improvement bonds of the local improvement district payable from assessments levied against the property within the local improvement district. Such bonds shall be payable each year from and after the date of the bonds and shall be of such denomination and bear interest, payable annually, at such rate as is determined by the board, but in no event shall such rate of interest be greater than the rate of interest borne by the unpaid assessments.

The bonds shall be in such form and denomination as may be provided by the board and they shall mature serially over a period not exceeding thirty (30) years. The board may reserve the right to redeem any of the bonds at its option on any interest payment at such price or prices as determined by the board. The bonds shall be signed by the president of the district, and shall be countersigned by the treasurer and attested by the secretary of the district. No bond or coupon shall be invalid because an officer whose manual or facsimile signature thereon has ceased to hold office at the time of the delivery of the bonds so long as he held the office at the time such signature was placed on the bond or coupon. The coupons attached thereto shall bear the facsimile signatures of said officers and each bond shall have the seal of the district affixed thereto. Each bond shall provide that the principal thereof and the interest thereon are payable solely from the principal of and interest on the unpaid assessments levied in the local improvement district to pay the total cost and expenses of the project concerned.

In lieu of bonds, registered warrants may be issued under the same circumstances and in the same manner as bonds, such warrants to be issued in payment of any or all costs or expenses of the improvements to the amount said costs or expenses were set out in the engineer’s report. The warrants shall be redeemable in numerical order and further shall be subject to all provisions of this code relating to local improvement bonds so far as the same may be applicable.

If the board shall determine to issue and sell bonds, it may for the purpose of meeting any costs and expenses of making the improvements, as the same are installed prior to the sale of the bonds, issue interim warrants of the local improvement district, payable to the contractor or other proper person upon estimates of the engineer, bearing interest at a rate provided by the board, which interim warrants together with the interest due thereon at the date of the issue of the bonds, shall be redeemed and retired from the proceeds of the sale of the bonds or prepayment of assessments.

Bonds issued hereunder shall have all the requisites of negotiable paper under the uniform commercial code, and shall not be invalid for irregularity or defect in the proceedings for their issuance, sale or delivery, and shall be incontestable in the hands of bona fide purchasers or holders for value thereof. Nothing herein contained shall prohibit any district from issuing bonds or warrants in the denomination of one hundred dollars ($100), or an even multiple thereof, except that bond number one (1) of any issue may be of a denomination other than one hundred dollars ($100).

§ 43-2522. Liability of district.

The holder of any bond, issued under the authority of this code, shall have no claim therefor against the district by which the same is issued, except to the extent of the funds created and received by assessments for the applicable bond issue against the property within any local improvement district as herein provided and to the extent of the local improvement guarantee fund for the applicable bond issue which may be established by any such district under the provisions of this code, but the district shall be held responsible for the lawful levy of all special taxes or assessments herein provided and for the faithful accounting of settlements and payments of the special taxes and assessments levied for the payment of the bonds as herein provided. The owners and holders of such bonds shall be entitled to complete enforcement of all assessments made for the payment of such bonds. A copy of this section shall be plainly written, printed or engraved on the face of each bond so issued.

§ 43-2523. Bond and interest funds.

Once bonds are issued as provided herein, any funds paid as installment payments of assessments pledged to the payment of such bonds shall be kept in a fund known as the bond fund of the local improvement district and any funds paid as interest on said installment payments of assessments shall be kept in a fund known as the interest fund of the local improvement district. The funds shall be deposited in such bank or banks as are designated as depositors of public moneys of such irrigation districts under the laws of this state, or invested in bonds or warrants of the district. Interest received on such funds so deposited or invested shall be placed to the credit of the fund from which it is earned. Maturing bonds shall be paid from the bond fund and the interest on the bonds, when due, shall be paid from the interest fund. If there is sufficient money in the bond fund to pay the principal of one (1) or more bonds, the treasurer may call in and pay such bonds as of the next interest payment date in such manner as may be provided by the board at the time of the issuance of the bonds. The bonds to be called shall be selected by lot and shall, in the event less than all of the outstanding bonds are to be redeemed, insofar as can be done taking into consideration the denominations of the outstanding bonds, represent an equal amount of bonds from each maturity outstanding at the time of the redemption.

§ 43-2524. Reissue of bonds.

Where any bonds issued under this code are declared invalid or void by order or decree of court, which may be legally reissued, the board of such district shall, by resolution, provide for the reissuance thereof at the same rate of interest and in such amount as will cover the principal and interest due on said bonds, and the resolution providing for such reissue shall provide for the surrender and cancellation of such bonds upon which there has been a default or which have been declared invalid or void and the lien created by the levy of such assessment or assessments as herein provided shall not be deemed to have been lost or waived by such reissue but shall remain in full force and effect.

§ 43-2525. Rights against assessments.

The said bonds of any local improvement district as herein provided, when sold as hereinbefore provided, shall transfer to the owner or holder of such bonds all the rights and interest of such district in and with respect to every such assessment and the lien thereby created against the property of each owner assessed as shall not have availed himself of the provisions of this chapter, in regard to the redemption of his property as aforesaid, and shall authorize owners and holders of such bonds to receive and have collected the assessment or assessments embraced in any such bonds through any of the methods provided by law for the collection of assessments for local improvements.

Whenever any installment of an assessment or the interest thereon made for the payment of principal, or interest on such bonds so issued, is not paid when due and shall become delinquent, the district may by a resolution duly adopted declare all unpaid installments against any property to pay the cost and expenses of such improvement to be immediately due, payable and delinquent, and may thereupon cause a delinquency certificate to be issued against said property for the whole of the unpaid assessment against it in the manner hereinafter provided for issuance of delinquency certificates upon any installment of such assessment(s) becoming delinquent, and any such board must pass such resolution upon the written request of the holders of one-half (½) of any such bond issue, filed with the secretary.

§ 43-2526. Publication and conclusiveness of proceedings.

The board may provide for the publication of any resolution or other proceeding adopted by it pursuant to this code in the official newspaper of the district. For a period of thirty (30) days after such publication any person in interest shall have the right to contest the legality of such resolution or proceeding or any bonds which may be authorized thereby. No contest or proceeding to question the validity or legality of any resolution or proceeding, or any bonds which may be authorized thereby, passed or adopted under the provisions of this code shall be brought in any court by any person for any cause whatsoever, after the expiration of thirty (30) days from the date when the resolution or proceeding was published, and after such time the validity, legality and regularity of such resolution or proceeding or any bonds authorized thereby shall be conclusively presumed. If the question of validity of any bonds issued pursuant to this code is not raised within thirty (30) days from the date of publication of the resolution or proceeding issuing said bonds and fixing their terms, the authority to issue the bonds, the legality thereof and of the assessments necessary to pay the same shall be conclusively presumed and no court shall thereafter have authority to inquire into such matters.

§ 43-2527. Consolidated local improvement districts authorized.

Solely for the purpose of issuing bonds, registered warrants or interim warrants, the board of any district may authorize the establishment of consolidated local improvement districts. The original local improvement districts so consolidated need not be contiguous. If the board orders the creation of such consolidated local improvement districts, the moneys received from the installment payment of the principal of and interest on assessments levied within the original local improvement districts shall be deposited in a consolidated local improvement district bond fund and interest fund to be used to pay the principal of and interest on the outstanding consolidated local improvement district bonds or warrants.

§ 43-2528. Delinquent installments.

If any installment or payment is not made as provided hereinbefore and is in default, it shall then become delinquent.

§ 43-2529. Delinquent certificates.

As soon as any assessment or installment thereof, of any local improvement district shall become delinquent, the treasurer shall, if such assessment be collected in one (1) payment, mark the same delinquent on the assessment roll, or if for an installment of an assessment, on the local improvement installment docket, and shall add to the amount shown on said assessment roll, or installment docket, a penalty of two percent (2%) thereon. Within ten (10) days thereafter the treasurer shall prepare and issue to the district in which such local improvement district is located, a delinquency certificate to the property included in each such delinquent assessment or installment, which certificate shall have the force and effect of a sale of said property to the district for the amount of the delinquent assessment or installment plus penalty, said certificate shall bear date as of the time such assessment or installment became delinquent and shall be for the amount thereof plus the penalty charged thereon. Such certificate shall contain: the description of the property to be sold; the name of the person assessed, if known, or if unknown, that fact; the amount of the assessment or installment, plus penalty thereon; the number of the assessment and the name of the local improvement district in which assessed; and the date when such certificate will go to deed and shall bear interest from date thereof at the rate of ten percent (10%) per annum. Such certificates shall be made in duplicate, bound together in books in numerical order and filed in the office of the treasurer; provided, that after one (1) such certificate has been issued no further delinquency certificate shall be issued for subsequent installments of the same assessment, except as hereinafter provided, and whenever any subsequent installment shall thereafter become delinquent the treasurer shall so mark the same in the installment docket and add the penalty thereto, as hereinbefore provided, and the same shall draw interest at the rate of ten percent (10%) per annum from date of delinquency until the end of the month in which it is paid.

§ 43-2530. Delinquent certificate register.

Within twenty (20) days after preparing and issuing any delinquency certificate the treasurer shall enter the same in a book to be kept by said treasurer known as “Local Improvement District Delinquency Certificate Register,” which register shall contain, in proper columns: the number of the assessment; the name of the local improvement district in which assessed; name of the person to whom assessed, if known; description of the property sold, corresponding with the description in the certificate and the assessment roll; and the amount of assessment and penalty, and the treasurer must regularly number each entry in said register on the margin of said book and put a corresponding number on each original and duplicate delinquency certificate. Such register must contain blank spaces following each entry of a delinquency certificate therein, in which may be entered the name of an assignee thereof, the date of such assignment and the amount paid the assignee, the name of a redemptioner thereof, the date of such redemption and the amount paid by such redemptioner. Such book or register shall be retained by the treasurer and become a part of the records of his office. From and after entry in such register and until two (2) years from its date, any such certificate, unless redeemed, may be purchased from the treasurer in the manner hereinafter provided.

§ 43-2531. Assignment of delinquent certificates.

Whenever any person shall tender to the treasurer in cash the amount of any such certificate and interest thereon at the rate of ten percent (10%) per annum from date of such certificate to the end of the month in which such purchase is made, together with any subsequent installments then due with penalties and interest thereon, the treasurer shall assign such delinquency certificate to the purchaser by making and executing for and on behalf of the district the blank assignment on both the original and duplicate thereof, and shall deliver the original certificate so assigned to the purchaser. Whenever the purchaser shall be required to pay subsequent assessments in addition to the amount of such delinquency certificate, the fact of such payment and the amount thereof including penalty and interest, shall be endorsed on the original and duplicate certificate so assigned. Thereafter the treasurer shall immediately make the proper entries showing such assignment in the local improvement district delinquency register, and in the installment docket; provided, that past due interest coupons and past due bonds of the local improvement district for which such certificate was issued shall be received by the treasurer, at par and accrued interest in payment of such certificates. Such bonds and coupons shall be forthwith cancelled by the treasurer.

§ 43-2532. Form of assignment — Assignment by purchaser.

The assignment prescribed by the preceding section must be substantially in the following form, and endorsed on the certificate:

§ 43-2533. Redemption.

At any time within two (2) years from the date of any delinquency certificate, the owner of the property described therein, or anyone on his behalf, may redeem such property by paying to the treasurer the amount stated in such certificate together with interest thereon at the rate of ten percent (10%) per annum, from date thereof to the last day of the month in which such redemption is made. Thereupon the treasurer shall issue to the redemptioner a certificate of redemption which shall state the name of the redemptioner, the date of redemption, the number of the certificate so redeemed, the description of the property contained therein, and the name of the local improvement district for which said certificate was issued. In case said certificate has not been assigned, the treasurer shall note such upon the original and duplicate delinquency certificate; if assigned upon the duplicate certificate the fact that the same has been redeemed, the date of redemption and shall note the same upon the local improvement delinquency certificate register and the local improvement installment docket; provided, that no redemption of any such certificate shall be allowed unless all assessments which have become due subsequent to the one for which said delinquency certificate shall have been issued with penalties, and interest at the rate of ten percent (10%) per annum from date of said delinquency to the end of the month in which the same is redeemed, shall be paid, which fact together with the amount paid shall be stated upon the redemption certificate. The money received from the redemption of any property described in a certificate which has been assigned shall be deposited by the treasurer to the credit of the person named in the last assignment of such certificate. The treasurer shall thereupon give notice to such person at the address shown by the record of such deposit, and such person shall thereafter be paid the same by the treasurer, without additional interest, upon surrender of such certificate to the treasurer who shall mark the same “paid” and hold it as a voucher.

§ 43-2534. Deed.

If the property described in any delinquency certificate is not redeemed within two (2) years from the date thereof, the treasurer, after having given notice as hereinafter required, shall issue a deed thereto to the district, or if the same has been assigned as hereinbefore provided, then to the person holding the original delinquency certificate under assignment, upon request therefor, and upon the delivery to the treasurer of such original certificate and filing proof of having given notice as required by the treasurer before making a deed to the district. Such deed shall recite substantially the matter contained in the certificate and that no person redeemed the property within the time allowed, by law, for its redemption. It shall be signed and acknowledged by the treasurer in the manner required, by law, to entitle the same to be recorded under the laws of this state; provided, that such deed shall not be issued to an assignee until he has paid all subsequent installments and assessments of the local improvement district then delinquent or due upon the property described in the delinquency certificate, together with the penalties and interest thereon. Such deed to an assignee shall be made subject to all unpaid installments not then due and subject to all regular or special assessments of the district, not related to the local improvement district.

§ 43-2535. Notice of expiration of time of redemption.

The treasurer shall, at least one (1) month and not more than three (3) months before the expiration of the time of redemption of any property, serve or cause to be served, a written or printed, or partly written and partly printed, notice on the person or persons in the actual possession or occupancy of such land or lots, and shall also, within the same time, serve upon or mail to, the person in whose name the same stands upon the assessment records in the county assessor’s office, a copy of said notice; which notice shall state when the delinquency certificate was made, in whose name the property was assessed, the description of the land or lots, the name of the local improvement district for which assessed, the amount of the assessment or installment, and when the time of redemption will expire. The treasurer shall, at the same time, send a similar notice, by mail, to each mortgagee or other holder of a recorded lien against such land, in each case where such mortgagee or lienholder has previously filed in the office of the treasurer a written request for such notice and paid the fee therefor, which request shall include the name and address of the mortgagee, the name of the reputed owner of the land, a description of the land and the date of the expiration of the mortgage or lien; no notice need be sent after the date of expiration, unless a further request therefor be duly filed. If the mortgagee or lienholder shall furnish a duplicate form of request for that purpose the treasurer shall certify thereon to the filing of the request and deliver the same to the party filing it. If there is no person in actual possession or occupancy of such land or lot and if the persons in whose name it stands, upon diligent inquiry cannot be found in the state, then the treasurer shall, within the same time, post or have posted, a copy of said notice in a conspicuous place upon said land or lots and in a substantial manner.

Whenever any notice is mailed, as herein required, the fact that the addressee does not receive it shall not in any manner invalidate or affect the proceedings herein provided.

§ 43-2536. Proof of notice.

The treasurer shall, before issuing any deed to the district, make and file his affidavit showing a full compliance with the requirements of the preceding section [43-2535, Idaho Code,] as to giving notice of the expiration of the period of redemption; before issuing a deed to the holder of any delinquency certificate, the treasurer shall require that affidavits be filed showing a complete compliance with the provisions of the previous section as to giving such notice. Such proof shall be filed in the office of the treasurer and remain a permanent record in such office. Any person making a false affidavit as to any fact required herein shall be guilty of perjury.

§ 43-2537. Effect of deed as evidence.

The matters recited in the delinquency certificate must be recited in the deed and such deed duly acknowledged or proved shall be prima facie evidence:

1. That the local improvement district was created, the assessment made and the work and improvement done in the manner provided by law;
2. That all notices were given, all hearings were had, orders made and resolutions passed and adopted required by law, and that all the proceedings up to the execution and delivery of such deed were had and done in the manner required by law;
3. That the assessments were not paid, the delinquency entries were properly made and delinquency certificate properly issued, as prescribed by law, and by the proper officer;
4. That the property was not redeemed, that the notice required to be given before deed was taken was properly given as required by law, and that the person who executed the deed was the proper officer.

§ 43-2538. Delinquency certificate for subsequent installments.

Whenever any delinquency certificate has been assigned, as hereinbefore provided, and the time for redemption has expired and there are outstanding, against the property covered by said certificate, any delinquent installments subsequent in time to the installment for which the property was sold, then the treasurer shall issue to the district a delinquency certificate for such past due installments in the same manner, as hereinbefore provided, and shall cancel the previous delinquency certificate and the same shall be of no further force and effect. Such delinquency certificate for subsequent installments may be assigned in the same manner, as hereinbefore provided, and have the same force and effect.

§ 43-2539. Fees of treasurer.

The treasurer shall receive the following fees, which, when paid, shall be credited to the general fund of the district: for issuing any delinquency certificate ten dollars ($10.00) to be included in the amount of the certificate; for making any deed ten dollars ($10.00), to be paid by the person to whom made; for giving notice to a mortgagee or lienholder five dollars ($5.00), to be paid by such person; for giving notice of expiration of period of redemption five dollars ($5.00). In all cases where the property is deeded to the district the fees shall be charged to the amount for which the deed is taken and shall be paid upon the sale of the property, or the sale of the delinquency certificate.

§ 43-2540. Suit to quiet title.

Whenever the necessary costs and attorney’s fees have been advanced by the holders of the bonds of the district or any prospective purchaser or other person, it shall be the duty of the board of such district to cause the attorney for the district to commence suit to quiet title to the property described in said deed in the name of the district and to secure the possession of the property; provided, that the property described in any number of tax deeds so made to the district and against any number of owners of property may be included in the same suit.

§ 43-2541. Sale of property deeded to district.

At any time after acquiring title and possession of any property, as hereinbefore provided, the district may sell such property to any purchaser upon receiving therefor a sum not less than the amount for which the property was sold to the district and by the payment of all installments of assessments subsequent to the one (1) for which such property was sold and then due together with the penalties and interest thereon. The purchaser shall take such property subject to any unpaid general taxes and assessments and to all local improvement district installments not then due, and the district shall thereafter collect such installments in the manner provided by this code. When such purchase is made and the money paid therefor, the district shall issue a deed to the purchaser signed by the president and attested by the secretary, which deed shall be executed and acknowledged in the manner required, by law, to entitle the same to be recorded under the laws of this state.

In selling such property and in conveying title thereto the provisions of sections 43-1508 and 43-1509, Idaho Code, shall not apply and compliance with the procedures set forth in section 43-318, Idaho Code, shall not be required, but no conveyance under this section shall be valid unless it be approved by an affirmative vote of more than one-half (½) of the full board.

§ 43-2542. Sale of property after maturity of bonds.

Within thirty (30) days after the maturity of the last installment of any issue of bonds of a local improvement district, if any such bonds or interest coupons shall remain unpaid, any property remaining unsold, to which the district has taken title by reason of assessment of such local improvement district, shall be appraised and immediately after said appraisement such property shall be offered for sale by giving notice of the time and place of sale thereof by publication of such notice in a newspaper published in the district for ten (10) consecutive issues if a daily paper, or in two (2) consecutive issues if a weekly paper, or if there be no newspaper published in such district then in a newspaper having general circulation therein, the date of sale to be not less than twenty (20) days from the date of the first publication of such notice. At the time and place designated in the notice the treasurer shall offer such property for sale to the highest bidder, but no sale shall be made for less than the appraised value. If no bid be received for a sum equal to or greater than the appraised value, then the sale may be postponed for not to exceed thirty (30) days, and shall be readvertised, and at the time to which such sale was postponed shall again be offered for sale and sold to the highest bidder. Upon the sale of any property and the payment therefor, a deed shall be executed to the purchaser in the same manner, as provided for the execution of deeds in section 43-2541, Idaho Code.

§ 43-2543. Disposition of funds.

All money received by the treasurer on account of the payment of assessments or installments thereof, the assignment or redemption of delinquency certificates, or for rents, issues and profits, or from the sale of any property, title to which is held by the district for the benefit of any local improvement district, less any expenses of securing possession of said property, or for the care and operation and sale of the same, shall be deposited to the credit of the interest fund and bond fund of the local improvement district, in the same proportion as the assessment or installments for which the property was taken. Any money left in a local improvement district interest or bond fund or any money derived from the rental or sale of any real property acquired by the district through the sale for delinquent assessments or installments shall, after all warrants, bonds and coupons of said local improvement district have been paid in full, be credited to the general fund of the district.

§ 43-2544. Delinquent certificate not assignable during pendency of action.

No certificate of delinquency as hereinbefore provided, shall be assigned, or any property sold, to which the district has taken a deed, on account of any assessment, or installment thereof, during the pendency of any proceeding in court challenging the validity of such assessment.

§ 43-2545. Duties of officers.

When the board shall decide that it is to the best interest of the district that the duties in this code designated to be performed by the treasurer should be done and performed by the secretary of such district, they may at their option, by resolution, duly presented and approved by such board assign such duties to the secretary of such district; provided, that the duty of receiving any funds collected by the secretary and the depositing and disbursing of such funds by order of the board shall always be and remain the duty and responsibility of the treasurer. The board shall, in said resolution, devise a proper system or plan whereby the secretary may pay to the treasurer all moneys collected by him and take receipts therefor.

§ 43-2546. Local improvement guarantee fund — Creation of fund.

Any district may by resolution of appropriation or by levy of a tax of not to exceed one (1) mill in any one (1) year upon the lots or lands in the local improvement district, or by appropriation from such other sources of the local improvement district as may be determined by the board, create a fund for the purpose of guaranteeing, to the extent of such fund, the payment of bonds or warrants and interest thereon, hereafter issued against any local improvements therein; provided, that such sum so levied or appropriated in any year shall be more than sufficient to pay the outstanding warrants of said fund and to establish therein a balance, which combined levy and appropriation in any one (1) year shall not exceed five percent (5%) of the outstanding obligations thereby guaranteed; provided further, that the board shall not levy any tax as herein provided when the amount of moneys in the local improvement guarantee fund equals ten percent (10%) of the total outstanding obligations thereby guaranteed. The tax levies herein authorized and directed shall be additional to and, if need be, in excess of any and all statutory limitations. The fund so created shall be designated local improvement guarantee fund.

§ 43-2547. Bonds, warrants and coupons, when paid out of fund — Nonpayment for want of funds — Interest.

Whenever any district has established such local improvement guarantee fund, and any bond, warrant or coupon drawn against any local improvement fund is presented to the district for payment and there is not sufficient amount in said local improvement fund against which to draw to pay the same, unless otherwise requested by the holder, payment therefor shall be made by warrant drawn against the local improvement guarantee fund. Such warrants when presented to the treasurer for payment, if not paid, shall be registered and draw interest at a rate as may be fixed by the board. Neither the holder nor the owner of any bond or warrant issued under the provisions of this act shall have any claim therefor, except for payment from the special assessments made for the improvement for which said bond or warrant was issued, and except as against the local improvement guarantee fund herein provided, and the district shall not be liable to any holder or owner of such bond or warrant for any loss to the guarantee fund occurring in the lawful operation thereof by the district.

§ 43-2548. Subrogation of district to rights of payee — Surplus funds — Payment into fund — Preferences.

Whenever there shall be paid out of the local improvement guarantee fund, any sum on account of principal or interest of a local improvement bond or warrant, the district, as trustee for the fund, shall be subrogated to all the rights of the holder of the bond or interest coupon or warrant so paid, and the policies thereof, or the assessment underlying the same, shall become part of the guarantee fund. There shall be paid into the guarantee fund any surplus remaining in any local improvement fund after the payment of all outstanding bonds or warrants, payable out of such local improvement fund. Bonds or warrants guaranteed by such fund shall have no preference except in the order of presentation for payment.

§ 43-2549. Maintenance and operation and sources of fund.

The board shall prescribe rules and regulations for the maintenance and operation of the guarantee fund not inconsistent herewith. After the creation of such fund, all money derived from the assignment of delinquency certificates, redemptions, sale of property under foreclosure for delinquent local improvement district assessments or from the rent or sale of property, title to which has been obtained by the district pursuant to this code, shall be paid into the local improvement guarantee fund, and all delinquency certificates issued and such property acquired shall be held by the district for the benefit of such guarantee fund. Money from the guarantee fund may be used to redeem property subject to local improvement assessments from general tax delinquencies, underlying bonds or warrants guaranteed by the fund, or to purchase such property at county tax sales or otherwise, from the county for the purpose of protecting the guarantee fund. After so acquiring title to real property, the district may lease or sell and convey the same for such price and on such terms as may be determined by the board, any provision of law or resolution to the contrary notwithstanding, and all proceeds resulting therefrom shall belong to and be paid into the guarantee fund, provided however, that in the event the district purchases such property at tax sale or otherwise it shall not be sold for a lesser sum than the district paid therefor.

§ 43-2550. Replenishment of fund — Warrants — Issuance against fund — Tax levy.

Whenever there is not a sufficient amount of cash in said local improvement guarantee fund, at any time to pay any and all warrants, together with interest thereon, drawn against said fund, the board may replenish said local improvement guarantee fund by transferring or appropriating to it, moneys from the general fund of the district or other available sources, as may be determined by said board, subject however, to the limitations herein prescribed. Warrants drawing interest, as herein provided, may be issued against said local improvement guarantee fund to meet any financial liability against it; but at the time of making its next annual levy upon lots or lands in the local improvement district, the district shall provide for the levy of a sum sufficient with other resources of the guarantee fund to pay warrants so issued and outstanding, the tax for this purpose not to exceed one (1) mill, based on the market value fixed by the county assessor in any one (1) year.

§ 43-2551. Bonds and warrants — Revenues from which payable.

The holder or owner of any local improvement bond or warrant shall have no claim thereon against the district by which the same is issued, except to the extent of the funds created and received by assessments against the property within any local improvement district and to the extent of his pro rata share of any local improvement guarantee fund, authorized and created under the provisions of this chapter.

§ 43-2552. Bonds payable from fund.

Whenever a district has created a local improvement guarantee fund, under the provisions of this act, any local improvement district bonds issued thereafter shall provide that the principal sum of such bonds and the interest thereon shall be payable out of the local improvement fund created for the payment of cost and expenses of the improvement or out of any local improvement guarantee fund, duly authorized and created, and not otherwise.

§ 43-2553. Excess in fund — Disposition.

When a local improvement guarantee fund duly created in any district exceeds in amount of moneys held therein by ten percent (10%) of the total outstanding obligations thereby guaranteed, then the board may, by resolution, authorize the treasurer or appropriate official of said district to return and pay such said excess or any part thereof to the general fund of said district to return and pay from such said excess or any designated part thereof all or any part of local improvement district bonds of said district then issued and outstanding or to be issued. The passage of such resolution shall require the affirmative vote of at least two-thirds (2/3) of the full board.

§ 43-2554. Reserve fund authorized.

For the purpose of securing the payment of the principal of and interest on an issue of local improvement bonds, notes, warrants or other short-term obligations, the board may create a reserve fund for each obligation in addition to or in lieu of a guarantee fund. The reserve fund shall be separate and apart from any guarantee fund and in an amount not exceeding ten percent (10%) of the principal amount of the bonds, notes or warrants issued. The cost of a reserve fund may be included in the cost and expense of any local improvement for assessment against the property in the local improvement district to pay the cost, or any part thereof. The reserve fund may be funded from the proceeds of the bonds, notes, warrants, or other short-term obligations, from special assessment payments, or from any other money legally available therefor. Reserve fund balances in excess of ten per cent [percent] (10%) of the principal amount of the bonds outstanding shall be used to reduce the annual assessments of those participants in the respective local improvement district whose prior assessments have been paid. Whenever the reserve fund is insufficient to meet claims for payment of principal and interest against the reserve fund, the board may appropriate funds from such other legally available sources of the local improvement district as may be determined by the board.