Chapter 452 Oregon Laws 1999

Session Law

AN ACT

SB 465

Relating to irrigation districts; creating new provisions; amending ORS 12.270, 545.007, 545.025, 545.033, 545.037, 545.057, 545.071, 545.079, 545.089, 545.099, 545.109, 545.123, 545.137, 545.163, 545.167, 545.171, 545.185, 545.199, 545.207, 545.221, 545.287, 545.291, 545.395, 545.471, 548.105 and 548.115; and repealing ORS 545.117, 545.156 and 545.625.

Be It Enacted by the People of the State of Oregon:

SECTION 1. Sections 2 and 3 of this 1999 Act are added to and made a part of ORS chapter 545.

SECTION 2. The boundaries of a district may for administrative convenience encompass lands that are not subject to the charges and assessments of the district, without regard to whether the lands are susceptible to irrigation. An owner whose land is within the boundaries of a district but is not subject to the charges and assessments of the district does not have the rights or duties of an elector or owner of land under this chapter.

SECTION 3. Section 2 of this 1999 Act applies to an irrigation district without regard to whether formation of the district occurs before, on or after the effective date of this 1999 Act.

SECTION 4. ORS 545.007 is amended to read:

545.007. (1) In any matter requiring or allowing a vote of the owners of land or the electors of a district:

(a) If ownership is in estates by the entirety, tenants in common, or in other cases of multiple ownership, only one vote shall be allowed on behalf of all the owners under each multiple ownership. The vote may be cast by any one of the multiple owners. When two or more persons attempt to cast a vote under this paragraph, only the vote of the person who first casts a vote shall be counted.

(b) Any corporation may vote as a single owner of land through any officer or agent when the officer or agent is authorized to vote by the corporation and the written authorization is filed with the secretary of the board of directors of the district.

(c) Any general partnership, limited partnership or limited liability company may vote as a single owner of land through any general partner, member or agent when the general partner, member or agent is authorized to vote by the entity and written evidence of the authority of the general partner, member or agent is filed with the secretary of the board of directors of the district.

[(c)] (d) Any trustee of a trust, guardian, administrator or executor authorized to act as such of a person or estate owning land within the district shall be considered an owner of land for the purposes of the Irrigation District Law, when the owner in fee is not otherwise entitled to vote.

[(d)] (e) An owner of land or elector may vote according to the total amount of acreage within the district owned by the owner or elector that is subject to the charges or assessments of the district on the basis of:

(A) One vote for up to 40 acres;

(B) Two votes for 40 acres or more but not more than 160 acres; and

[(e)] (f) When a district is divided into divisions under ORS 545.033 or 545.207 and voting is by the qualified electors within a division for a director from that division, an elector who is permitted under ORS 545.207 to vote in that division may cast the number of votes under subsection [(1)(d)] (1)(e) of this section that represents the total amount of eligible acreage owned by the elector within the whole district.

(2) The weighted voting provisions of subsection [(1)(d)] (1)(e) of this section do not apply in an election for the formation of a district and for its initial board of directors under ORS 545.041 and 545.043 (1). In such an election, each owner of land is entitled to cast one vote.

SECTION 5. ORS 545.025 is amended to read:

545.025. (1) When owners of land that is irrigated or susceptible to irrigation desire to provide for the construction of works for irrigation of their land, to provide for the reconstruction, betterment, extension, purchase, operation or maintenance of works already constructed, or to provide for the assumption of indebtedness to the United States incurred under the federal reclamation laws on account of their lands, they may propose the organization of an irrigation district under the Irrigation District Law by signing a petition and filing it with the county court of the principal county, as defined in ORS 198.705. The petition must be signed by a majority of the owners of land or 50 owners of land within the exterior boundaries of the proposed district.

(2) The petition shall set forth:

(a) A statement that the petition is filed for the formation of an irrigation district under the Irrigation District Law;

(b) The name of the proposed district;

(c) A description of the exterior boundaries of the proposed district. The description may be by metes and bounds, quarter quarter section lines or assessor's map and tax lot numbers;

(d) A statement declaring whether the district board of directors shall consist of three or five members and, if three members, whether the district shall be subdivided for the election of directors or whether directors shall be elected at large; and

(e) A request that proceedings be taken for the formation of the district.

(3) ORS 198.760, 198.765, 198.770 and 198.775 apply to petitions for the formation of an irrigation district, except that an economic feasibility statement is not required.

(4) Each signature sheet shall be verified by the affidavit of [the] each person circulating the petition stating that every person who signed the petition did so in the presence of the person circulating the petition.

(5) A description and map of all of the lands that are included within the proposed district and that will be subject to the charges and assessments of the district, together with the names and mailing addresses of all of the owners of the lands, shall be included in the petition or attached to the petition as an exhibit. Reference to the assessor's map and tax lot number is sufficient for the description of lands required under this subsection.

(6) When the petition for formation is filed with the county court of the principal county, the county court shall set a date for a hearing on the petition. The date set for the hearing shall be not less than 30 days nor more than 50 days after the date on which the petition is filed. The county court shall cause notice of the hearing to be posted in at least three public places in the county and published by two insertions in a newspaper. The notice shall state:

(a) The purpose for which the district is to be formed.

(b) The name and boundaries of the proposed district.

(d) That all interested persons may appear and be heard.

(7) If the petition is signed by all of the owners of all of the lands that are included within the proposed district and that will be subject to the charges and assessments of the proposed district, publication of the notice of the hearing on the petition is not required. A petition signed by all of the owners of all of the lands that are included within the proposed district and that will be subject to the charges and assessments of the proposed district may also contain the names of persons desired as the members of the first board of directors of the proposed district, the initial term of office of each director and a written statement from each of those persons in which the person agrees to serve as a director of the proposed district.

(8) If an elector is not a resident of the district or this state, a legal representative of the owner of land, including an individual acting pursuant to a power of attorney, may sign a formation petition for and on behalf of the owner.

SECTION 6. ORS 545.033 is amended to read:

545.033. (1) The order of the county court shall designate the name of the district. The name of the district may be changed by the county court at any time thereafter upon petition of the board of directors of the district accompanied by either the consent, in writing, of a majority of the owners of lands within the district or by the certificate of the secretary of the district certifying that, at a regular or special election called and held in the district for any purpose provided by law, the proposed change of name was approved by a majority of the electors voting upon the question of change of name. The secretary of the district shall cause a certified copy of the order to be recorded in the office of the county clerk of the county or counties in which the district is located.

(2) [If the petition so directs, the county court shall divide the district into three divisions of as nearly equal size as may be practicable. The divisions shall be numbered first, second and third. The county court shall also establish a convenient number of election precincts in the proposed district and define their boundaries. The precincts may thereafter be changed by the board of directors of the district] If the petition provides for a five-member board of directors or provides for a three-member board of directors for a subdivided district, the county court shall divide the district into the required number of divisions. Each division shall be as nearly equal as practicable in the number of acres that will be subject to the charges or assessments of the district. The county court shall define and particularly describe division boundaries and make use, insofar as may be desirable, of any natural boundaries that may exist in the district. The divisions shall be numbered.

SECTION 7. ORS 545.037 is amended to read:

545.037. (1) Except when an election is not required as provided in ORS 545.029 (3), the county court shall give notice of an election to be held in the proposed district for the purpose of determining whether or not the district shall be organized under the Irrigation District Law and for the purpose of electing an initial board of directors. The notice shall describe the boundaries established for the district. However, if the county court, in the order defining the boundaries, orders that they need not be described in the notice, the notice shall refer to and incorporate by reference the boundaries established by the order of the county court under ORS 545.029 and on file in the office of the county clerk of the county in which the district is located. The notice shall designate the name of the proposed district, state the date of the election, the board positions to be voted upon and the latest date on which candidates for election as board members may file petitions for nomination. The notice shall be published once each week, commencing not later than the 50th day before the election, for at least four consecutive weeks in a newspaper of general circulation in the county. If any portion of the district lies within another county, then the notice shall be published in a newspaper of general circulation in each county in the same time and manner. The notice shall require the electors to cast ballots which contain the words "Irrigation District ‑ Yes," and "Irrigation District ‑ No," or equivalent words. During the period in which the notice is published, the county clerk shall send a copy of the notice by registered mail or by certified mail with return receipt to each [landowner not joining] owner of land identified in the petition for formation under ORS 545.025 (5) who has not joined in the petition for organization of the district [in so far as their names and addresses can be reasonably ascertained]. The provisions of this subsection relating to mailing notices are directory and not jurisdictional.

(2) In lieu of including a description of the lands within a district or the boundaries of a district in the notice of election, the county court or board of directors calling an election in an irrigation district may direct that the notice refer to the order calling the election and incorporate by reference the description of the district boundaries contained in the order.

SECTION 8. ORS 545.057 is amended to read:

545.057. The holders of title, or evidence of title, representing a majority of the acreage of any body of land adjacent to the boundaries of any irrigation district may file with the board of directors of the district a written petition requesting that the body of land be included in the district. For purposes of this section, the body of land may include or consist of one or more parcels of less than one acre, without regard to whether or not the parcels are city lots or tracts of a platted subdivision or are chiefly available for residence purposes. When the body of land is located within the boundary of an incorporated city, the petition shall be approved by the governing body of the city before presentation to the board of directors. The petition shall describe the tracts or body of land owned by the petitioners[, and shall be in the form prescribed in this chapter for original petitions for the formation of an irrigation district]. Reference to the assessor's map and tax lot number is sufficient for the description of lands required under this section. The petition shall give assent of the petitioners to the inclusion into the district of the lands described in the petition. The petition must be acknowledged in the same manner that conveyances of land are required to be acknowledged.

SECTION 9. ORS 545.071 is amended to read:

545.071. If the board of directors considers that it is not for the best interest of the district to include in the district the lands mentioned in the petition, the board, by order, shall reject the petition. However, if the board considers that it is for the best interest of the district that the lands or any part of the lands be included, the board may order that the district be changed so as to include the lands or any part of the lands mentioned in the petition. When making the change, the board shall not [include in the district] subject to the charges or assessments of the district the lands of any owner objecting to the inclusion of the lands. However, the board may include such lands within the boundaries of the district solely for administrative convenience [without calling an election in the territory proposed to be included. The question submitted to the electors at the election shall be "Inclusion‑Yes," and "Inclusion‑No." The election shall be conducted in the same manner as the election for organization of an irrigation district is conducted, with the irrigation district having the same powers as are conferred upon the county court with regard to the election. The election shall be decided by three-fifths of the vote cast]. The order shall describe the boundaries of the land included with such exceptions as may be made.

SECTION 10. ORS 545.079 is amended to read:

545.079. (1) Upon the allowance of a petition for inclusion of lands and when [a protest] an appeal has not been filed [with the board] within 30 days after entry of the order, a certified copy of the order of the board of directors including the lands in the district shall be filed for record in the office of the county clerk of each county in which lands of the district are situated. The district as changed and all lands in the district shall be liable for all existing obligations and indebtedness of the district.

(2) An appeal may be taken from the [action on a protest in the same manner as provided for in proceedings affecting the organization of a district. If the protest is not made within 30 days and] order of the board as provided in ORS 548.105 to 548.115. If an appeal is not taken [to the circuit court from action on the protest within 30 days after final hearing], the order of inclusion shall be deemed lawful and conclusive against all persons. The order shall not thereafter be questioned in any manner in any proceedings.

SECTION 11. ORS 545.089 is amended to read:

545.089. (1) When land is included within a district by proceedings under ORS 545.057 to [545.089] 545.085, if the district is subdivided for the election of directors and as a result of the inclusion of the land the deviation in acreage among the divisions is greater than 10 percent, the board of directors, not earlier than 30 days after the final order making the inclusion, shall make an order redividing the district. [into three divisions, as nearly equal in size as may be practicable. If none of the directors is qualified to act as a director from any newly created division, the office of the director having the least time left to serve shall become vacant, and the remaining directors shall appoint some person qualified to act as a director from that division until the next election of officers in the district. When two such vacancies occur, the same procedure shall be followed. One director shall thereafter be elected from each division] Redivision shall be done in the same manner as provided for the initial division of the district in ORS 545.033 (2).

(2) If redivision of the district under subsection (1) of this section results in the creation of a division without a qualified representative on the board of directors, the position of director from that division shall be filled at the next general election of the district. When the newly elected director assumes office, if there are two or more directors from another division, the term of office of the director having the least time left to serve shall expire. The initial term of office of the newly elected director shall be the same as the remaining term of the director whose term expires as provided under this subsection.

SECTION 12. ORS 545.099 is amended to read:

545.099. (1) The owners in fee of one or more tracts of land or the holders of an uncompleted title to government or state lands which constitute a portion of an irrigation district may jointly or severally file with the board of directors a petition requesting that those tracts[, and any other tracts contiguous thereto,] be excluded and taken from the district. The petition shall state the grounds upon which it is requested that the lands be excluded. The petition shall also describe the boundaries of the tracts sought to be excluded and the lands of the petitioners which are included within those boundaries. The description of the lands need not be more particular or certain than is required when the lands are entered in the assessment book by the county assessor.

(2) Upon receipt of a petition for exclusion, the board of directors shall review the petition and shall enter its order approving the petition. The board may approve the petition subject to the requirements of ORS 545.051, 545.097 or 545.126 or may approve the petition without conditions, as the board considers appropriate. The board, as a condition of exclusion, may require the petitioners to pay all costs of exclusion, including but not limited to recording fees, a reasonable administrative fee and all past due charges and assessments of the district attributable to the petitioners and the lands of the petitioners. When any district facilities, including but not limited to ditches, pipelines, headgates or other waterworks, are on the lands of the petitioners, if the petitioners propose to change the use of the land, the district may require the petitioners to provide measures to protect those facilities and may require that appropriate easements be provided if there are none of record.

SECTION 13. ORS 545.109 is amended to read:

545.109. When the board of directors excludes any lands from the district upon petition for exclusion, if the exclusion changes the boundaries of the district, the board shall make an entry in its minutes describing the boundaries of the district. For that purpose the board may have a survey made of such portions of the district as it considers necessary. A certified copy of the entry of the minutes of the board excluding any land, certified by the secretary of the board, shall be filed for record in the county clerk's office of each county within which any land of the district is situated. [Notwithstanding the exclusion, the district shall remain an irrigation district for every intent and purpose as fully as it would have if no change had been made in its boundaries, or if the lands excluded from the district had never constituted a portion of the district.]

SECTION 14. ORS 545.123 is amended to read:

545.123. (1) [At least 30 days before the next general election in a district from which lands have been excluded, the board of directors shall make an order dividing the district into three divisions as nearly equal in size as may be practicable. The divisions shall be numbered first, second and third. One director shall be elected by each division. For the purpose of elections in the district, the board of directors must establish a convenient number of election precincts and define the boundaries of the precincts. The precincts may be changed from time to time as the board considers necessary. This section does not apply to any irrigation district in which the directors, at the time of such exclusion, have been elected by the district at large.] When land is excluded from a district by proceedings under ORS 545.097, 545.099, 545.101, 545.105 or 545.109, if the district is subdivided for the election of directors and as a result of the exclusion of the land the deviation in acreage among the divisions is greater than 10 percent, the board of directors, not earlier than 30 days after the final order making the exclusion, shall make an order redividing the district. Redivision shall be done in the same manner as provided for the initial division of the district in ORS 545.033 (2).

(2) If redivision results in the creation of a division without a qualified representative on the board of directors, the position of director from that division shall be filled at the next general election of the district. When the newly elected director assumes office, if there are two or more directors from another division, the term of office of the director having the least time left to serve shall expire. The initial term of office of the newly elected director shall be the same as the remaining term of the director whose term expires as provided under this subsection.

SECTION 15. ORS 545.137 is amended to read:

545.137. (1) At least 10 days before any election held under the Irrigation District Law, subsequent to the organization of any district, the secretary of the board of directors shall cause the publication of a notice of the time, place and purpose of the election in a newspaper that is published or distributed within every county in which either the district or a division of the district is located. The secretary shall also post a general notice of the election in the office of the board specifying the polling places of each precinct.

(2) Prior to the publishing and posting of the notices required in subsection (1) of this section, the board must appoint for each precinct, from the electors of the precinct, three judges of election, who shall constitute a board of election for the precinct. If the board fails to appoint a board of election, or the members appointed do not attend at the opening of the polls on the morning of election, the electors of the precinct at that hour may appoint a board of election from the group of electors present. In its order appointing the board of election, the board of directors must designate the place within the precinct where the election is to be held. The board may designate the district office or any other location within the district as the place where the election is to be held. If one location serves as the place of election for more than one precinct, the board of directors may appoint from among the electors of the precincts one three-member board of election for the precincts.

(3) Candidates may be nominated for any election in the same manner as candidates may be nominated at the organization election. All nominations shall be filed with the secretary of the board at least [21] 30 days before the date of the election. In districts having more than 25 electors, a person shall not be elected as a member of the board of directors unless the person has been nominated either by petition or at an assembly [21] 30 days prior to the date of the election.

(4) If, after expiration of the date for nomination, only one qualified candidate has been nominated for the office to be filled, it shall not be necessary to hold an election. The board of directors shall [within 15 days after expiration of the time for filing nominating petitions] declare such candidate elected as director at the next regularly scheduled board meeting or at a special meeting called for that purpose. The secretary immediately shall make out and deliver to the nominated person a certificate of election signed by the secretary and authenticated with the seal of the board.

(5) The secretary shall cause the names of all persons nominated to be printed on ballots as candidates for the offices for which they have been nominated.

SECTION 16. ORS 545.163 is amended to read:

545.163. (1) [Except for an election upon formation under ORS 545.041,] An irrigation district may conduct a district election by mail. The board of directors of the district shall designate by resolution, not later than the 50th day before any election, that an election will be conducted by mail.

(2) At an election by mail held for the purpose of electing a person to the board of directors, the qualifications for a director shall be those set forth in ORS 545.043.

(3) An election by mail [subsequent to the organization of a district] shall be conducted within the district or divisions within a district according to, as nearly as is practicable, the general provisions of ORS 545.137, 545.139, 545.141, 545.145, 545.149 and 545.153. However, the judges of election appointed under ORS 545.137 (2) shall not be required to be in attendance until after the poll closing time designated in ORS 254.325.

(4) The secretary of the board of directors for the district shall mail an official ballot with a return identification envelope and a secrecy envelope to an elector, not sooner than the 20th day before the date of the election to be conducted by mail and not later than the 14th day before the election. The secretary shall cause to be placed in or on each return identification envelope a statement to be completed by the elector that says that the elector, under penalty of perjury, swears and affirms that the elector is the sole elector authorized to cast the ballot. In addition, the secretary shall verify that, according to the records of the district as of the 21st day before the election, the elector is entitled to vote.

(5) When a ballot is mailed to a corporate landowner, a person authorized to act in a representative capacity or landowners under multiple ownership, the secretary shall enclose voting instructions advising the elector that the voting rights of electors for corporate, representative or multiple ownerships are as described in ORS 545.002.

(6) The secretary of the board of directors shall not mail voting materials to an elector who actually acquires ownership of land within the district after the 21st day before the date of an election. When an elector has acquired ownership of land within the district after the 21st day before the date of an election, the secretary shall make voting materials available, and the elector shall vote, only at the district office or at another place designated by the board.

(7) When the elector is an elector described in subsection (6) of this section, the secretary of the board of directors shall, before making voting materials available, require that the elector file with the district a copy of a recorded deed or a memorandum of contract demonstrating the acquisition of land by the elector within the district. The secretary shall then allow the elector to mark the ballot, sign the return identification envelope and return the ballot in the return identification envelope to the secretary.

(8) An elector may obtain a replacement ballot if the original ballot is destroyed, spoiled, lost or not received by the elector. The secretary shall keep a record of each replacement ballot provided to an elector. Except as provided in subsection (9) of this section, an elector shall obtain a replacement ballot and vote at the district office or another place within the district designated by the board of directors, on the actual date of the election, during the hours designated in ORS 254.325.

(9) Until the fifth calendar day before the election, an elector may obtain a replacement ballot from the secretary of the board of directors, at a place designated by the board, if the original ballot is destroyed, spoiled, lost or not received by the elector.

(10) When an elector receives vote by mail materials, the elector shall comply with all written instructions provided, mark the ballot, sign both the return identification envelope and the sworn statement of entitlement to vote and return the marked ballot to the district by placing the ballot in the return identification envelope and either depositing the envelope in the United States mail or delivering the sealed envelope to the district office or another place designated by the district. If the elector returns the ballot by mail, the elector shall provide the postage.

(11) A completed ballot must be received by the district, at the proper place designated by the district, no later than the poll closing time designated in ORS 254.325.

(12) A ballot shall be counted only if:

(a) The ballot was returned in the sealed return identification envelope provided by the district;

(b) The elector signed the return identification envelope; and

(c) The secretary of the board of directors has verified the name of the elector and the elector's ownership of land within the district.

(13) Using the records of the district, the secretary shall verify the name and land ownership of each elector. If the secretary determines that an elector to whom a replacement ballot has been issued has voted more than once, the secretary shall not count any ballot cast by that elector.

SECTION 17. ORS 545.167 is amended to read:

545.167. (1) In any irrigation district [having an area in excess of 30,000 irrigable acres, the electors of the district may petition the board of directors of the district to divide the district into divisions. The petition shall be filed with the secretary of the board of directors. When the petition is signed by a number of electors of the district equal in number to 20 percent of the number of votes cast at the last preceding election at which a director of the board was elected, the board of directors shall make an order dividing the district into three divisions, as nearly equal in size as practicable. The order shall be made at least 30 days before the next district election at which a director will be elected and shall describe the boundaries of the three divisions, making use, as far as practicable, of such natural boundaries as may exist in the district] in which the board of directors is elected at large, the district may be subdivided for the election of directors when:

(a) In the judgment of the board it is necessary or beneficial to the welfare of the district; or

(b) There is filed with the board a petition that has been signed by a number of electors of the district equal in number to 20 percent of the votes cast at the last preceding election at which a director of the board was elected.

(2) Upon the determination of the board or upon the filing of a petition requesting division of the district, the board shall submit the question to the district electors at the next regular election or at a special election ordered by the board for such purpose.

(3) If a majority of electors voting on the question approves the division of the district, immediately following the election the board shall divide the district in the manner provided in ORS 545.207. The divisions shall be numbered first, second and third. One director shall be elected to the board of directors of the district from each division. However, nothing in this section or in ORS 545.169 and 545.171 shall be construed to prevent the directors who are serving when the district is divided from serving out the unexpired portion of their terms.

SECTION 18. ORS 545.171 is amended to read:

545.171. For the purpose of elections in such district, the board of directors must establish a convenient number of election precincts in the divisions and define the boundaries of the [divisions] precincts. An entire subdivision of a district may be designated as a single election precinct. For purposes of conducting an election, the board may designate a place that is within a precinct, at the district office or at any other location within the district as the place where the election is to be held. The precincts may be changed from time to time as the board considers necessary.

SECTION 19. ORS 545.185 is amended to read:

545.185. The board of directors shall hold a regular monthly meeting in its office. The time of the regular monthly meeting shall be fixed by resolution of the board at the regular annual meeting required by ORS 545.181. Special meetings required for the proper transaction of business may be held when called by the president or ordered by a majority of the board, by an order entered in the records of the board. Five days' notice of the special meeting must be given by the secretary to each member not joining in the order. The order must specify the business to be transacted, and business other than that specified may not be transacted at the special meeting, unless all the members are present. All meetings of the board must be public, and a majority of the members shall constitute a quorum for the transaction of business. However, on all questions requiring a vote there shall be concurrence of a majority of the board. All records of the board shall be open to public inspection during business hours.

SECTION 20. ORS 545.199 is amended to read:

545.199. (1) An irrigation district may increase the number of its board of directors from three to five members[.] when:

[(2)] (a) [The number of directors may be increased to five when,] In the judgment of the board of directors, it is necessary or beneficial to the welfare of the district[.] ; or

[(3)] (b) [When 50] Fifty or more qualified electors within the district file with the board a petition requesting an election for the purpose of increasing the number of directors.

(2) Upon the determination of the board or upon the filing of a petition requesting the increase, the board shall [immediately order a special election upon the question and proceed according to the provisions of ORS 545.135 to 545.163] submit the question to the district electors at the next regular election or at a special election ordered by the board for such purpose. At the same election, two persons shall be elected to serve as directors if the electors, by a majority of votes cast at the election, increase the number of the board.

SECTION 21. ORS 545.207 is amended to read:

545.207. Upon an increase of the number of directors from three to five, the board shall divide the total acreage of the district that is subject to assessment or charges by the district, into five divisions. Each division shall be as nearly equal in total acreage as may be practicable. In addition, the board shall define and particularly describe division boundaries and make use, in so far as may be desirable, of such natural boundaries as may exist in the district. The divisions shall be numbered first, second, third, fourth and fifth. As the terms of the present members of the board of directors expire, one director who is a resident of Oregon and either a bona fide owner of land or a shareholder of a bona fide corporate owner of land situated in the division, shall be elected from each division as the representative of that division on the board of directors. Voting for director of each division shall be by qualified electors within the division. However, the qualified electors of any district may, by a majority vote, determine that voting for directors shall be by the qualified electors of the entire district. If an elector is an owner in two or more divisions and resides in one of them, the elector shall vote in the division of residence. If an elector is a nonresident of the district, the elector may choose to vote in any one division in which the elector is an owner of land. When a nonresident landowner chooses to vote in any one division, the landowner shall file with the secretary of the board a notice of the choice of division where the nonresident landowner chooses to vote. A nonresident landowner's choice to vote in a certain division is permanent and remains permanent until the nonresident landowner's ownership status changes in any way or until the nonresident landowner becomes a resident owner.

SECTION 22. ORS 545.221 is amended to read:

545.221. (1) The board shall:

(a) Manage and conduct the business and affairs of the district.

(b) Make and execute all necessary contracts, employ and appoint such agents, officers and employees as may be required, and prescribe their duties.

(c) Establish equitable bylaws, rules and regulations for the administration of the district and for the distribution and use of water among the landowners.

(d) Generally perform all acts necessary to fully carry out the purposes of the Irrigation District Law.

(2) The board may make available to any member user of the district, on an actual cost basis, any machinery or equipment required for the normal operation of an irrigation district. This machinery or equipment may be used by the member user only for improvement of water distribution or drainage systems and only at the convenience of the district. However, the machinery or equipment may not be used outside the boundaries of the district.

(3) The bylaws, rules and regulations established under this section may designate, either generally or particularly, the points of delivery within the district to which the district will make water deliveries for the use and benefit of member users at district expense. Water deliveries so made shall be in full and complete discharge of the district's obligation of water deliveries to member users under the Irrigation District Law.

SECTION 23. ORS 545.287 is amended to read:

545.287. (1) This section applies:

(a) When a parcel of land lying within an irrigation district is subdivided or partitioned into tracts [of four acres or less], and the owner has made no provision which in the opinion of the board of directors is adequate for the proper distribution of water to the tracts; 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.

(2) When 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 the improvement. [, and levy and collect an assessment upon all tracts specially benefited by the improvement] In order to defray the whole or any portion of the cost and expense of the improvement, the board may levy and collect an assessment upon all tracts specially benefited by the improvement or provide for a charge against the landowner of any tract specially benefited by the improvement. The board may determine what lands are specially benefited by the construction, repair or maintenance, and the amount to which each tract is benefited.

SECTION 24. ORS 545.291 is amended to read:

545.291. When a parcel of land lying within an irrigation district is subdivided or partitioned into tracts [of four acres or less], and plats of such subdivision are filed as provided by law, if the owners fail properly to apportion the water to their various tracts in the subdivision, the board of directors may employ some competent person to distribute and apportion water for the tracts. The reasonable cost of the distribution and apportionment of water shall be apportioned each year by the board to the tracts. The cost of the distribution and apportionment of water shall be assessed or charged by the board as a special charge to the tracts in the same manner as other assessments or charges are made and extended upon the tax rolls of the county in which the irrigation district lies. The assessments or charges so levied and apportioned shall be a lien upon the tracts and shall be collected in the same manner as all other assessments or charges are levied and collected by the board.

SECTION 25. ORS 545.395 is amended to read:

545.395. An irrigation district may provide for the reclamation, improvement or irrigation of the lands within the district in units. When a district does so, the assessments against the lands in the district may be apportioned by the board of directors to the lands owned or held by each person so that the lands in each unit shall pay the cost of reclaiming, improving, maintaining and operating the lands in the unit. Within the units the assessments shall be apportioned in accordance with ORS 545.381, 545.385, 545.387, 545.389, 545.391 and 545.413. Land noncontiguous to an irrigation district may be included in the district as a unit at the time of the organization of the district or at any subsequent time. Prior to the completion of the works for the reclamation of any units the lands in the units may be assessed as appears equitable to the board, subject to the rights of land owners in the district to have the assessments adjusted by the board of equalization and to appeal therefrom. However, all reclaimed or improved lands, whether irrigated or not, shall be subject to assessment for the payment of any obligation of the district.

SECTION 26. ORS 545.471 is amended to read:

545.471. (1) For the purpose of defraying the expenses of the organization of the district, and of the care, operation and management, repair and improvement of the portions of the canals and works that are completed and in use, including salaries of officers and employees, the board shall fix charges for irrigation and other public uses. The board, by resolution, may provide for collecting the charges from all persons using the canals for irrigation and other purposes, and may require the collection to be made by the secretary of the board and disbursed by the secretary on order of the board.

(2) The board may designate the time and manner of making the collections of charges, may require them to be paid in advance of the delivery of water and may accept short-term interest-bearing notes for any portion of the charges. In establishing its charges, the board may consider the quantity of water to be delivered, the acres of land entitled to benefits from the district, the establishment of uniform or graduated rates and minimum charges, the imposition of additional charges for special services and for small tracts or other properties which require proportionately greater maintenance and operation and other factors the board considers reasonable and appropriate. The board may base its charges upon any or all of the factors set forth in this subsection.

(3) In addition to the charges authorized under subsections (1) and (2) of this section, the board may pass on charges against individual water users when the district incurs charges, fees, fines or similar expenses for extraordinary services performed by the district at the request of the water user or that are incurred by reason of some action or failure to act by the water user.

SECTION 27. ORS 548.105 is amended to read:

548.105. (1) The board of directors of an irrigation district organized under ORS chapter 545, or the board of supervisors of a drainage district organized under the Drainage District Act, as defined in ORS 547.060, may by petition commence special proceedings in the circuit court of the county in which the office of the district is located for the purpose of having a judicial examination and judgment of the court as to the regularity and legality of:

(a) The proceedings in connection with the organization of the district.

(b) The proceedings of the board and of the district, providing for and authorizing the issue and sale of bonds of the district, whether bonds have or have not been sold or disposed of.

(c) Any action or proceeding of the county court declaring the organization of the district, or declaring the result of any election therein.

(d) An order of the governing board of the district including or excluding any lands in or from the district, or declaring the result of any election, general or special.

(e) An order of such board levying any assessment, general or special.

(f) An order of such board ordering the issue of any bonds for any purpose, or determining any bond issue, or providing for the same.

(g) The authorization of contract with the United States, and the validity of the contract, whether or not it has been executed, and whether or not bonds are to be deposited with the United States.

(2) All the proceedings of an irrigation district or drainage district may be judicially examined and determined by the court in one special proceeding, or any part thereof may be separately examined and determined upon by the court. [No bond issue or any part thereof shall be sold or offered for sale unless it has been confirmed under the provisions of this section.]

SECTION 28. ORS 548.115 is amended to read:

548.115. (1) Any [freeholder, legal voter or assessment payer within] qualified elector of an irrigation district or drainage district [may], within 30 days after the entry of any order or the performance of any act mentioned in ORS 548.105, for which a contest is by that section provided, may bring a like proceeding in the circuit court of the county where the lands embraced within such district, or the majority thereof, are situated, to determine the validity of such order or act. In such proceedings the board of directors shall be made parties defendant.

(2) Service of summons shall be made on the members of the board personally if within the county where the district, or any part thereof is situated. As to any directors not within the county, service may be had by publication of summons for a like time, and in like manner, as is provided by ORS 548.110. Service shall be deemed complete within 10 days from the date of personal service, or within 10 days from the date of completion of publication, as the case may be.

(3) The proceedings shall be tried and determined in the same manner as proceedings brought by the irrigation district or drainage district itself.

(4) No contest of any proceeding, matter or thing provided by ORS 548.105 to be had or done by the board of directors or supervisors or by the district, or by the county court, or by any [freeholder, legal voter or assessment payer within] qualified elector of the district, shall be had or maintained at any time or in any matter except as provided in ORS 548.105 to 548.115.

SECTION 29. ORS 12.270 is amended to read:

12.270. On September 13, 1975, any proceeding which establishes or alters the boundaries of a governmental subdivision previously or hereafter initiated and purported to be effected in accordance with applicable legal requirements shall be conclusively presumed valid for all purposes one year after the purported effective date of the action. No direct or collateral attack on the action may thereafter be commenced. This statute of limitations includes but is not limited to the following proceedings:

(1) Formations and change of organizations under ORS 198.705 to 198.955.

(2) Boundary changes under ORS 199.410 to 199.519.

(3) Consolidations under ORS 199.705 to 199.795.

(4) Incorporations under ORS 221.010 to 221.090.

(5) Annexations under ORS 222.111 to 222.180, 222.750 and 222.840 to 222.915.

(6) Consolidations under ORS 222.210 to 222.310.

(7) Withdrawals and transfers of territory under ORS 222.510 to 222.580.

(8) Mergers under ORS 222.610 to 222.710.

(9) Formations and changes under ORS chapter 261.

(10) Alterations, changes, mergers and consolidations under ORS 330.080 to 330.123, 330.505 to 330.780 (1989 Edition), 335.490 to 335.505 and ORS chapter 333.

(11) Formations and boundary changes under ORS 341.025 to 341.125 and 341.565 to 341.575.

(12) Organizations and boundary changes under ORS 545.002 and 545.025 to 545.043, 545.051 to 545.105, 545.109, [and 545.117 to] 545.123, 545.126 and 545.131.

(13) Formations and boundary alterations under ORS 547.005 to 547.060 and 547.250 to 547.260.

(14) Formations and organizations under ORS 551.010 to 551.180.

SECTION 30. ORS 545.117, 545.156 and 545.625 are repealed.

Approved by the Governor July 1, 1999

Filed in the office of Secretary of State July 2, 1999

Effective date October 23, 1999

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