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H0416........................................................by MR. SPEAKER
Requested by: Department of Water Resources
WATER RIGHTS - Amends existing law relating to adjudication of water rights
to clarify the period of time to be set forth in certain notices between
filing the report with the director of the Department of Water Resources
and the hearing, at which time the unobjected parts of the report will be
decreed; and to clarify the time in which the director of the Department of
Water Resources shall file certain statements with the district court.
01/07 House intro - 1st rdg - to printing
Rpt prt - to Res/Con
01/16 Rpt out - rec d/p - to 2nd rdg
01/17 2nd rdg - to 3rd rdg
01/23 3rd rdg - PASSED - 67-0-3
AYES -- Aikele, Barraclough, Barrett, Bedke, Bell, Bieter, Black,
Block, Boe, Bolz, Bradford, Bruneel, Callister, Campbell, Clark,
Collins, Crow, Cuddy, Deal, Denney, Ellis, Ellsworth, Eskridge,
Field(13), Field(20), Gagner, Gould, Hadley, Harwood, Henbest,
Higgins, Hornbeck, Jaquet, Jones, Kendell, Kunz, Lake, Langford,
Loertscher, Mader, Martinez, McKague, Meyer, Montgomery, Mortensen,
Moyle, Pearce, Pischner, Pomeroy, Raybould, Ridinger, Roberts,
Robison, Sali, Schaefer, Shepherd, Smith(33), Smith(23), Smylie,
Stevenson, Stone, Tilman, Trail, Wheeler, Wood, Young, Mr. Speaker
NAYS -- None
Absent and excused -- Hammond, Kellogg, Sellman
Floor Sponsor - Stevenson
Title apvd - to Senate
01/24 Senate intro - 1st rdg - to Res/Env
01/29 Rpt out - rec d/p - to 2nd rdg
2nd rdg - to 3rd rdg
02/01 3rd rdg - PASSED - 32-0-3
AYES -- Boatright, Branch, Brandt, Burtenshaw, Cameron, Darrington,
Davis, Deide, Dunklin, Frasure, Geddes, Goedde, Hawkins, Hill, Ipsen,
Keough, King-Barrutia, Little, Lodge, Marley, Noh, Richardson, Risch,
Sandy, Schroeder, Sims, Sorensen, Stegner, Stennett, Thorne(Thorne),
Wheeler, Williams
NAYS -- None
Absent and excused -- Andreason, Bunderson, Ingram
Floor Sponsor - Little
Title apvd - to House
02/04 To enrol
02/05 Rpt enrol - Sp signed
02/06 Pres signed
02/07 To Governor
02/12 Governor signed
Session Law Chapter 13
Effective: 07/01/02
|||| LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF IDAHO |||| Fifty-sixth Legislature Second Regular Session - 2002IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES HOUSE BILL NO. 416 BY MR. SPEAKER Requested by: Department of Water Resources 1 AN ACT 2 RELATING TO THE ADJUDICATION OF WATER RIGHTS; AMENDING SECTION 42-1411, IDAHO 3 CODE, TO CLARIFY THE PERIOD OF TIME TO BE SET FORTH IN CERTAIN NOTICES 4 BETWEEN FILING OF THE REPORT OF THE DIRECTOR OF THE DEPARTMENT OF WATER 5 RESOURCES AND THE HEARING AT WHICH TIME THE UNOBJECTED PARTS OF THE REPORT 6 WILL BE DECREED; AND AMENDING SECTION 42-1412, IDAHO CODE, TO CLARIFY THE 7 TIME IN WHICH THE DIRECTOR SHALL FILE CERTAIN STATEMENTS WITH THE DISTRICT 8 COURT. 9 Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Idaho: 10 SECTION 1. That Section 42-1411, Idaho Code, be, and the same is hereby 11 amended to read as follows: 12 42-1411. REPORT OF THE DIRECTOR. (1) The director shall prepare a 13 director's report on the water system. The director may file the director's 14 report in parts as the director deems appropriate. The director may include 15 such explanatory material as he deems appropriate in the director's report. 16 Such explanatory material shall not impose any conditions or restrictions on 17 the rights reported and shall not be subject to objection. This explanatory 18 material shall not be used to support any notice of claim, objection to a 19 notice of claim, or response to an objection. 20 (2) The director shall determine the following elements, to the extent 21 the director deems appropriate and proper, to define and administer the water 22 rights acquired under state law: 23 (a) the name and address of the claimant; 24 (b) the source of water; 25 (c) the quantity of water used describing the rate of water diversion or, 26 in the case of an instream flow right, the rate of water flow in cubic 27 feet per second or annual volume of diversion of water for use or storage 28 in acre-feet per year as necessary for the proper administration of the 29 water right; 30 (d) the date of priority; 31 (e) the legal description of the point(s) of diversion; if the claim is 32 for an instream flow, then a legal description of the beginning and ending 33 points of the claimed instream flow; 34 (f) the purpose of use; 35 (g) the period of the year when water is used for such purposes; 36 (h) a legal description of the place of use; if one (1) of the purposes 37 of use is irrigation, then the number of irrigated acres within each forty 38 (40) acre subdivision, except as provided in section 42-219, Idaho Code; 39 (i) conditions on the exercise of any water right included in any decree, 40 license, or approved transfer application; and 41 (j) such remarks and other matters as are necessary for definition of the 42 right, for clarification of any element of a right, or for administration 43 of the right by the director. 2 1 (3) The director may include such general provisions in the director's 2 report, as the director deems appropriate and proper, to define and to admin- 3 ister all water rights. 4 (4) The director shall file the director's report with the district 5 court, and the director's report shall be a part of the record. Upon filing 6 with the court, the director's report, except for the explanatory material 7 referred to in subsection (1) of this section, shall constitute prima facie 8 evidence of the nature and extent of the water rights acquired under state 9 law. The unobjected to portions of the director's report shall be decreed as 10 reported. 11 (5) Each claimant of a water right acquired under state law has the ulti- 12 mate burden of persuasion for each element of a water right. Since the 13 director's report is prima facie evidence of the nature and extent of the 14 water rights acquired under state law, a claimant of a water right acquired 15 under state law has the burden of going forward with the evidence to establish 16 any element of a water right which is in addition to or inconsistent with the 17 description in a director's report. Any party filing an objection to any por- 18 tion of the director's report shall have the burden of going forward with the 19 evidence to rebut the director's report as to all issues raised by the objec- 20 tion. Any other party to the proceeding may submit evidence in opposition to 21 the objector's position and in support of the director's report. All such pro- 22 ceedings shall be governed by the Idaho rules of civil procedure and Idaho 23 rules of evidence. 24 (6) The director shall file an original of the director's report with the 25 district court. The director shall also distribute for display and review at 26 least one (1) copy of the director's report to the office of the clerk of the 27 district court for each county in which any part of the water system is 28 located. The director shall also serve on each claimant or the claimant's 29 attorney whose water right is listed in the director's report a notice of fil- 30 ing of the director's report. Notice shall be sent to the last known address 31 of the claimant or the claimant's attorney. The notice shall be prepared by 32 the director using plain and concise language and shall include: 33 (a) a statement that the director's report of the various water rights 34 acquired under state law has been filed with the district court, naming 35 the district court(s) to which the report was filed; 36 (b) a copy of that portion of the report setting forth the claimant's 37 water right; 38 (c) a statement that a complete copy of the director's report is avail- 39 able for inspection, listing the locations at which the director's report 40 is available, which shall include the office of the clerk of the district 41 court for each county in which any part of the water system is located, 42 the offices of the department, and any other locations the director may 43 designate; 44 (d) a statement that all or a portion of the director's report is avail- 45 able upon request at the offices of the department, subject to payment of 46 a reasonable fee to cover costs of reproduction and mailing; 47 (e) a statement that any claimant may file objections to any portion of 48 the director's report with the district court specified in the notice and 49 must mail a copy of the objection to the director, and to the claimant of 50 each claimed right objected to, if the objector is not also the claimant 51 of the right for which the objection is filed; 52 (f) the date prior to which all objections must be filed, which shall not 53 be less than sixty (60) days for any director's report containing five 54 hundred (500) claims or less, one hundred twenty (120) days for any 55 director's report containing more than five hundred (500) claims and not 3 1 more than five thousand (5,000) claims, and one hundred eighty (180) days 2 for any director's report containing more than five thousand (5,000) 3 claims; the above-stated periods of time shall commence on the date of 4 service by mail of the notice of filing; 5 (g) a statement that claimants may file responses with the court to 6 objections filed against their claims, and that a copy of any response 7 must be mailed to the director and to the objector; 8 (h) the date prior to which all responses to objections must be filed 9 with the court, which shall not be less than one hundred twenty (120) days 10 following receipt of a copy of the objection; and 11 (i) a statement that any part of the report to which no objections are 12 filed shall be decreed by the district court and the time and location set 13 for the hearing at which the unobjected parts of the report will be 14 decreed, which time shall not be less than sixty (60) days following the 15 expiration of the period for filingresponses toobjections. 16 (7) The director shall file an affidavit with the district court demon- 17 strating compliance with the notice requirements of subsection (6) of this 18 section. 19 SECTION 2. That Section 42-1412, Idaho Code, be, and the same is hereby 20 amended to read as follows: 21 42-1412. OBJECTIONS -- RESPONSES TO OBJECTIONS -- HEARING BEFORE DISTRICT 22 JUDGE -- ENTRY OF FINAL DECREE. (1) Any claimant who desires to object to a 23 water right, or to a general provision in the director's report, shall file an 24 objection with the district court within the time specified in the notice of 25 filing of the director's report. The claimant shall also send a copy of the 26 objection to the claimant whose water right claim is the subject of the objec- 27 tion and to the director. 28 (2) The director may file with the district court a supplemental report 29 to any objection to the director's report within the time specified in the 30 notice of filing of the report. The director shall file with the district 31 court the original of the notice of claim. The director shall mail a copy of 32 the supplemental report to the objector and the claimant whose right is the 33 subject of the objection. A claimant may file with the district court a 34 response to any objection filed with respect to the claimant's water right 35 within the time specified in the notice of filing of the report. If a party 36 other than the claimant or the objector desires to participate in the proceed- 37 ing concerning a particular objection, the party shall file a response to the 38 objection that states the position of the party. In addition, any party may 39 intervene in any objection proceeding in accordance with rules of practice and 40 procedure established by the district court. 41 (3) The notice of claim, objections, and responses to objections, shall 42 identify the issues to be heard for water rights acquired under state law. 43 (4) Following expiration of the period for filing objections and 44 responses thereto, the district court shall hear and determine the objections 45 to any water right or to any general provision in the director's report. The 46 court shall before any trial, however, order a settlement conference to deter- 47 mine whether the matter can be settled. The court may request the director to 48 conduct a further investigation and to submit a supplemental report for any 49 water right acquired under state law that is the subject of an objection. In 50 addition, the district court or a party may request the director or his desig- 51 nee to present the basis for the recommendations in the director's report. 52 (5) The district court or special master shall conduct the trial without 53 a jury on an objection or any group of objections in accordance with the Idaho 4 1 rules of civil procedure. 2 (6) The district court shall enter a partial decree determining the 3 nature and extent of the water right which is the subject of the objection or 4 other matters which are the subject of the objection. The decree shall contain 5 or incorporate a statement of each element of a water right as stated in sub- 6 sections (2) and (3) of section 42-1411, Idaho Code, as applicable. The decree 7 shall also contain an express statement that the partial decree is subject to 8 such general provisions necessary for the definition of the rights or for the 9 efficient administration of the water rights. Upon entry of the decree, the 10 clerk of the district court shall send a certified copy of the decree to the 11 director in accordance with section 42-1403, Idaho Code. The clerk of the dis- 12 trict court shall notify the objector and claimant of each right as to which 13 an objection was determined by the district court of entry of the decree in 14 the manner provided in the Idaho rules of civil procedure. 15 (7) Not less than sixty (60) days after the expiration of the period for 16 filingresponses toobjections, the director shall file with the district 17 court a statement of those portions of the director's report for which no 18 objection was filed. Following hearing, the district court shall enter a par- 19 tial decree as to those portions of the director's report for which no objec- 20 tion has been filed. However, the district court may exclude unobjected claims 21 from this list if the unobjected claim may be affected by the outcome of a 22 contested matter. The decree shall contain or incorporate a statement of those 23 elements of a water right contained in the director's report for water rights 24 acquired under state law. Upon entry of the decree, the clerk of the district 25 court shall send a certified copy of the decree to the director in accordance 26 with section 42-1403, Idaho Code. The clerk of the district court shall notify 27 each claimant of entry of the decree in the manner provided in the Idaho rules 28 of civil procedure. 29 (8) Upon resolution of all objections to water rights acquired under 30 state law, to water rights established under federal law, and to general pro- 31 visions, and after entry of partial decree(s), the district court shall com- 32 bine all partial decrees and the general provisions into a final decree. 33 (9) The district court may extend or shorten the time for filing any 34 objection to the director's report or any response to an objection.
STATEMENT OF PURPOSE
RS 11460
The proposed legislation would modify Section 42-1411(6)(i), Idaho
Code, Report of the Director, and Section 42-1412(7), Idaho Code,
Objection, to change the time for the hearing on unobjected parts of
the Director's Report from 60 days following the expiration for filing
responses to objections, to 60 days following the expiration for
filing objections. Because the hearing is for uncontested matters,
there is no reason to delay the hearing date based on actions
pertaining to the contested matters. The proposed modification would
enable claimants to receive the partial decrees for their uncontested
claims 60 days sooner, thus expediting the adjudication process.
There would be no adverse effects on claimants and other interested
parties.
FISCAL IMPACT
Streamlining and expediting the SRBA will reduce general fund
expenditures by an unquantified amount.
CONTACT
Name: Karl Dreher
Agency: Water Resources, Dept. of
Phone: 327-7910
Statement of Purpose/Fiscal Impact H0416