Idaho Bills

Repeals and adds to existing law to provide for the apportionment of mitigation plan obligations and separate mitigation plans by nonirrigators, to provide for delinquent assessments and noncompliance with apportionment of mitigation plan obligations, to provide for action by the director, and to provide for hearings.

Amends existing law to provide for emergency assessments, to provide for mitigation by a district due to noncompliance of a member and for the levy of special assessments, and to provide a procedure associated with certain district assessments.

This bill relates to operation of ground water districts. Ground water districts exist principally to protect their members' water rights from curtailment by developing and implementing mitigation plans, the costs of which are assessed to the district members. This bill meets two operational needs of ground water districts. First, ground water district assessments are levied once per year in accordance with the schedule set forth in Idaho Code sections 42-5232 and 42-5241 to meet projected district expenses. On rare occasions actual expenses occasionally exceed projections, creating a need to levy a special assessment to pay actual expenses. New subsections 42-5232(5) and 42-5241(2) provide this authority. Second, some ground water users have in recent years willfully disregarded their responsibilities under ground water district mitigation plans approved by the Idaho Department of Water Resources. New subsection 42-5232(6) enhances the ability of ground water districts to enforce compliance with mitigation plans approved by the Idaho Department of Water Resources. Revisionstosubsection42-5232(9)removeanambiguityandclarifythemethodofapportioningassessments by irrigated acre.