BP BHEAD INT S [atlas:bill]

AN ACT Relating to the administration of irrigation districts; and amending RCW 87.03.560, 87.03.845, and 87.80.130.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF WASHINGTON:

Sec. 1. RCW 87.03.560 and 1889-90 p 694 s 48 are each amended to read as follows:

The holder or holders of title, or evidence of title, representing one-half or more of any body of lands ((~~adjacent to the boundary of an irrigation district, which are contiguous and which, taken together, constitute one tract of land,~~)) may file with the board of directors of ((~~said~~)) an irrigation district a petition in writing, praying that the boundaries of ((~~said~~)) the district may be so changed as to include ((~~therein said~~)) such lands. The petition shall describe the boundaries of ((~~said~~)) the parcel or tract of land, and shall also describe the boundaries of the several parcels owned by the petitioners, if the petitioners be the owners respectively of distinct parcels, but such descriptions need not be more particular than they are required to be when such lands are entered by the county assessor in the assessment book. Such petition must contain the assent of the petitioners to the inclusion within ((~~said~~)) the district of the parcels or tracts of land described in the petition, and of which ((~~said~~)) the petition alleges they are respectively the owners; and it must be acknowledged in the same manner that conveyances of land are required to be acknowledged.

Sec. 2. RCW 87.03.845 and 1993 c 235 s 2 are each amended to read as follows:

This section and RCW 87.03.847 through 87.03.855 provide the procedures by which a minor irrigation district may be merged into a major irrigation district as authorized by RCW 87.03.530(2).

To institute proceedings for such a merger, the board of directors of the minor district shall adopt a resolution requesting the board of directors of the major district to consider the merger, or proceedings for such a merger may be instituted by a petition requesting the board of directors of the major district to consider the merger, signed by ten owners of land within the minor district or five percent of the total number of landowners within the minor district, whichever is greater. However, if there are fewer than twenty owners of land within the minor irrigation district, the petition shall be signed by a majority of the landowners and filed with the board of directors of the major irrigation district.

The board of directors of the major irrigation district shall consider the request at the next regularly scheduled meeting of the board of directors of the major district following its receipt of the minor district's request or at a special meeting called for the purpose of considering the request. If the board of the major district denies the request of the minor district, no further action on the request shall be taken.

If the board of the major district does not deny the request, it shall conduct a public hearing on the request and shall give notice regarding the hearing. The notice shall describe the proposed merger and shall be published once a week for two consecutive weeks preceding the date of the hearing and the last publication shall be not more than seven days before the date of the hearing. The notice shall contain a statement that unless the holders of title or evidence of title to at least twenty percent of the assessed lands within the major district file a protest opposing the merger with the board of the major district at or before the hearing, the board is free to approve the request for the merger without an election being conducted in the major district on the request. If the board of the major district is considering requests from more than one minor district, the hearing shall be conducted on all such requests.

Sec. 3. RCW 87.80.130 and 1996 c 320 s 11 are each amended to read as follows:

(1) A board of joint control created under the provisions of this chapter shall have full authority within its area of jurisdiction to enter into and perform any and all necessary contracts; to accept grants and loans, including, but not limited to, those provided under chapters 43.83B and 43.99E RCW((,)); to acquire, purchase, condemn by power of eminent domain pursuant to chapters 8.08 and 8.25 RCW, or lease in its own name, necessary property, property rights, facilities, and equipment; to sell or exchange surplus property, property rights, facilities, and equipment; to appoint and employ and discharge the necessary officers, agents, and employees; to sue and be sued as a board but without personal liability of the members thereof in any and all matters in which all the irrigation entities represented on the board as a whole have a common interest without making the irrigation entities parties to the suit; to represent the entities in all matters of common interest as a whole within the scope of this chapter; and to do any and all lawful acts required and expedient to carry out the purposes of this chapter.

(2) A board of joint control is authorized and encouraged to pursue conservation and system efficiency improvements to optimize the use of appropriated waters and to either redistribute the saved water within its area of jurisdiction, or, transfer the water to others, or both. A redistribution of saved water as an operational practice internal to the board of joint control's area of jurisdiction, may be authorized if it can be made without detriment or injury to rights existing outside of the board of control's area of jurisdiction, including instream flow water rights established under state or federal law. Prior to undertaking a water conservation or system efficiency improvement project which will result in a redistribution of saved water, the board of joint control must consult with the department of ecology and if the board's jurisdiction is within a United States reclamation project the board must obtain the approval of the bureau of reclamation. The purpose of such consultation is to assure that the proposal will not impair the rights of other water holders or bureau of reclamation contract water users. A board of control does not have the power to authorize a change of any water right that would change the point or points of diversion, purpose of use, or place of use outside the board's area of jurisdiction, without the approval of the department of ecology pursuant to RCW 90.03.380 and if the board's jurisdiction is within a United States reclamation project, the approval of the bureau of reclamation.

(3) A board of joint control is authorized to design, construct, and operate either drainage projects, or water quality enhancement projects, or both.

(4) Where the board of joint control area of jurisdiction is totally within a federal reclamation project, the board is authorized to accept operational responsibility for federal reserved works.

(5) Nothing contained in this chapter gives a board of joint control the authority to abridge the existing rights, responsibilities, and authorities of an individual irrigation entity or others within the area of jurisdiction; nor in a case where the board of joint control consists of representatives of two or more divisions of a federal reclamation project shall the board of joint control abridge any powers of an existing board of control created through federal contract; nor shall a board of joint control have any authority to abridge or modify a water right benefiting lands within its area of jurisdiction without consent of the party holding the ownership interest in the water right.

(6) A board of joint control created under this chapter may not use any authority granted to it by this chapter or by RCW 90.03.380 to authorize a transfer of or change in a water right or to authorize a redistribution of saved water before July 1, 1997.