72nd OREGON LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY--2003 Regular Session
Enrolled
House Bill 2475
Sponsored by Representative NELSON (at the request of Oregon
Association of County Clerks)
CHAPTER ................
AN ACT
Relating to irrigation district elections; creating new
provisions; and amending ORS 198.430 and 545.041.
Be It Enacted by the People of the State of Oregon:
SECTION 1. ORS 545.041 is amended to read:
545.041. (1) The election shall be conducted, as nearly as
practicable, in accordance with the general election laws of the
state, except that the provisions of the election laws as to the
form of ballot and as to the nomination of candidates shall not
apply. No particular form of ballot shall be required. An absent
elector may obtain an absentee ballot and vote, as nearly as
practicable, in the manner provided for absentee electors in ORS
chapter 253.
(2) { + (a) + } Nominations for candidates for the board of
directors may be made by petition, signed by at least 10 electors
in the proposed district or division { - , - } who are
qualified to vote for the directors nominated by them.
Nominations may also be made at an assembly of not less than 25
electors. { - Nominations by petition or by assembly shall be
filed with the county clerk at least 35 days next preceding the
date of election. - }
{ + (b) + } Not more than one of the electors of a multiple
ownership as described in ORS 545.007 (1)(a) may sign a
nominating petition or vote at an assembly. { + Nominations by
petition or by assembly shall be filed with the county assessor
before they are filed with the county clerk under this
subsection. If a nomination is made at an assembly, the
nomination shall be filed under this paragraph with a list of the
names and addresses of the electors who voted at the assembly.
The county assessor shall verify that not more than one of the
electors of a multiple ownership as described in ORS 545.007
(1)(a) has signed a nominating petition or voted at an assembly.
The county assessor shall provide written confirmation of the
assessor's verification to the person filing the nomination.
(c) Nominations by petition or by assembly shall be filed with
the county clerk at least 35 days next preceding the date of
election. The nomination shall be accompanied by a copy of the
written confirmation of verification provided by the county
assessor under this subsection.
(d) + } The county clerk shall have the names of all persons
nominated placed on the ballots as candidates for the offices for
which they have been nominated. The ballots shall have a blank
Enrolled House Bill 2475 (HB 2475-INTRO) Page 1
line under the printed names, on which may be written the name of
any candidate voted for.
(3) A nominating petition shall contain:
(a) The name by which a candidate is commonly known. The
candidate may use a nickname in parentheses in connection with
the candidate's full name;
(b) The address information of the candidate;
(c) The office for which the candidate seeks nomination;
(d) The term of office for which the candidate seeks
nomination;
(e) A statement that the candidate is qualified for the office;
(f) A statement that the candidate is willing to accept the
nomination and, if elected, the office;
(g) The signature of the candidate;
(h) The printed name and address of each elector who signed the
petition; and
(i) A statement by the circulator of the petition that the
circulator is personally acquainted with the electors who signed
the petition and affirms that the signatures are genuine.
(4) If an elector is not shown as an owner of land on the last
equalized assessment roll or is not shown as having authority to
vote on behalf of an owner of land, the elector shall furnish the
county clerk with written evidence, satisfactory to the county
clerk, that the elector:
(a) Is a legal representative of the owner;
(b) Is entitled to be shown as the owner of land on the next
assessment roll;
(c) Is a purchaser of land under a written agreement of sale;
or
(d) Is authorized to sign for and on behalf of any public
agency owning land.
(5) The county court shall meet on the first Monday that is at
least 10 days after the election, canvass the votes cast, and
enter an order declaring the result of the election. If upon the
canvass it appears that at least three-fifths of the votes cast
are 'Irrigation District - Yes,' the court shall, by an order
entered on its minutes, declare the territory organized as an
irrigation district under the name designated by the county court
under ORS 545.033 (1), and shall declare the persons receiving,
respectively, the highest number of votes for the several
available director positions to be elected to those positions.
The court shall cause a copy of the order, duly certified, to be
immediately filed for record in the office of the county clerk of
each county in which any portion of the district is situated.
(6) After the date of organization of an irrigation district,
the county court of any county including any portion of the
district shall not allow another district to be formed that
includes any lands in the existing district, without first
securing consent for the formation from the existing district.
(7) From and after the date of the filing of the order under
subsection (1) of this section, the organization of the district
is complete, and the directors may enter upon the duties of their
offices upon qualifying as provided by law. They shall hold
office until their successors are elected and qualified.
SECTION 2. ORS 198.430 is amended to read:
198.430. (1) A petition for recall of a district officer of a
district other than a district defined in ORS 255.012 shall be
filed with the officer with whom a petition for nomination to
such office should be filed. { + Except as provided in this
subsection, + } if there is no such officer or if the officer is
Enrolled House Bill 2475 (HB 2475-INTRO) Page 2
the district officer against whom the petition is being filed,
the petition shall be filed with the county clerk of the county
in which the administrative office of the district is located.
{ + In the case of an irrigation district organized under ORS
chapter 545, if there is no such officer or if the officer is the
district officer against whom the petition is being filed, the
petition shall be filed with the board of directors of the
irrigation district. + }
(2) The petition shall be signed by a number of persons who are
qualified to vote in the district, that is equal to but not less
than the lesser of:
(a) Fifteen percent of the persons who are qualified to vote in
the district, or subdivision of the district from which the
district officer was elected; or
(b) Fifteen percent of the total votes cast in the electoral
district for all candidates for Governor at the most recent
election at which a candidate for Governor was elected to a full
term.
(3) The person circulating the signature sheet shall certify on
each sheet that every person who signed the sheet did so in the
presence of the person circulating the sheet and that the person
circulating the sheet believes that each signer stated the
correct residence address of the signer and is a person qualified
to vote in the district.
(4) In those districts where a person qualified to vote must be
an elector, the petition, before filing, shall be submitted to
the county clerk who shall compare the signatures of the persons
signing the petition with the signatures of electors on the
register of electors and, on the face of each signature sheet,
shall make a certificate of the number of signatures the county
clerk believes to be genuine. In other districts, the officer who
receives the petition for filing, before filing the petition,
shall verify the signatures and make a certificate of the number
of signatures the officer believes to be genuine.
(5) The district shall pay the expense of verifying the
signatures and of calling and conducting the election. The
election shall be conducted in the district, or in the
subdivision of the district from which the district officer was
elected, in accordance with the law governing election of
district officers.
(6) A person who is qualified to vote in a district under this
section is a person who is qualified, under the law applicable to
the district, to vote in an election at which members of the
governing body of the district are elected.
(7) A recall petition is void unless the petition is filed not
later than the 100th day after the date of the first signature on
the petition. Not later than the 90th day after the date of the
first signature, the petition shall be submitted for signature
verification to the county clerk or other officer described in
subsection (4) of this section who shall make the certificate of
the number of genuine signatures not later than the 10th day
after the date of submission. The petition must contain only
original signatures. A recall petition shall not be accepted for
signature verification if the petition contains less than 100
percent of the required number of signatures. A recall petition
shall not be accepted for filing until 100 percent of the
required number of signatures have been verified.
SECTION 3. { + (1) The amendments to ORS 545.041 by section 1
of this 2003 Act apply to nominations for candidates for the
Enrolled House Bill 2475 (HB 2475-INTRO) Page 3
board of directors of an irrigation district that are filed on or
after the effective date of this 2003 Act.
(2) The amendments to ORS 198.430 by section 2 of this 2003 Act
apply to recall petitions for irrigation district directors filed
on or after the effective date of this 2003 Act. + }
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Passed by House March 31, 2003
...........................................................
Chief Clerk of House
...........................................................
Speaker of House
Passed by Senate May 1, 2003
...........................................................
President of Senate
Enrolled House Bill 2475 (HB 2475-INTRO) Page 4
Received by Governor:
......M.,............., 2003
Approved:
......M.,............., 2003
...........................................................
Governor
Filed in Office of Secretary of State:
......M.,............., 2003
...........................................................
Secretary of State
Enrolled House Bill 2475 (HB 2475-INTRO) Page 5