The board shall, in addition to any other powers and duties provided in this chapter, and provided that nothing in this chapter shall abrogate or impair the right of any person to take any action necessary to acquire, protect, challenge or defend any water right, have the following powers and duties:
(1)  To acquire, and/or construct, operate, control or use by appropriation, grant, purchase, bequest, devise, contract or lease works or facilities, water rights, water permits or licenses, well-drilling permits, wells, pipelines, ditches and any other real and personal property (including easements and rights-of-way) or contract entitlement within or without the district necessary or convenient to fully exercise its powers;

Terms Used In Idaho Code 42-5224

  • Appropriation: The provision of funds, through an annual appropriations act or a permanent law, for federal agencies to make payments out of the Treasury for specified purposes. The formal federal spending process consists of two sequential steps: authorization
  • Bequest: Property gifted by will.
  • Board: means the board of directors of a ground water district organized pursuant to this chapter. See Idaho Code 42-5201
  • Contract: A legal written agreement that becomes binding when signed.
  • Department: means the Idaho department of water resources. See Idaho Code 42-5201
  • Devise: To gift property by will.
  • Director: means the director of the department of water resources. See Idaho Code 42-5201
  • District: means a ground water district established, or to be established, pursuant to this chapter. See Idaho Code 42-5201
  • Entitlement: A Federal program or provision of law that requires payments to any person or unit of government that meets the eligibility criteria established by law. Entitlements constitute a binding obligation on the part of the Federal Government, and eligible recipients have legal recourse if the obligation is not fulfilled. Social Security and veterans' compensation and pensions are examples of entitlement programs.
  • Fiscal year: The fiscal year is the accounting period for the government. For the federal government, this begins on October 1 and ends on September 30. The fiscal year is designated by the calendar year in which it ends; for example, fiscal year 2006 begins on October 1, 2005 and ends on September 30, 2006.
  • Ground water: when used in this chapter means water under the surface of the ground whatever may be the geologic structure in which it is standing or moving, as provided in section 42-230(a), Idaho Code. See Idaho Code 42-5201
  • Lease: A contract transferring the use of property or occupancy of land, space, structures, or equipment in consideration of a payment (e.g., rent). Source: OCC
  • Member: means a ground water user whose lands, facilities and/or water rights are included in and subject to a ground water district and its policies. See Idaho Code 42-5201
  • Person: means an individual, partnership, trust, estate, association, corporation, municipal corporation, the state of Idaho and any of its agencies, the United States, an Indian tribe, a public corporation, or any other public or private entity. See Idaho Code 42-5201
  • Personal property: includes money, goods, chattels, things in action, evidences of debt and general intangibles as defined in the uniform commercial code — secured transactions. See Idaho Code 73-114
  • Personal property: All property that is not real property.
  • Property: includes both real and personal property. See Idaho Code 73-114
  • State: when applied to the different parts of the United States, includes the District of Columbia and the territories; and the words "United States" may include the District of Columbia and territories. See Idaho Code 73-114
  • Water right: means the legal right to divert and beneficially use the public waters of the state of Idaho where such right is evidenced by a decree, a permit or a license issued by the department, a beneficial or constitutional use right evidenced by an adjudication claim or claim based on section 42-243, Idaho Code, or a right based on federal law. See Idaho Code 42-5201
(2)  To sell, lease, encumber, alienate, or otherwise dispose of works or facilities, water, water rights, wells, pipelines, ditches, reservoirs, recharge facilities, and any other real and personal property owned by the district within or without its boundaries, and to incur indebtedness on behalf of the district as specified in this chapter;
(3)  To enter into contracts and agreements, cooperative and otherwise, including contracts with the United States of America and any of its agencies or instrumentalities, and tribes, and contracts with corporations, public or private, municipalities, or governmental subdivisions necessary or convenient to fully exercise its powers;
(4)  To hire and retain agents, employees, engineers, hydrologists, geologists, and attorneys as shall be necessary and convenient to transact the district’s business and to represent the district’s interests;
(5)  To levy assessments for the operation of the district and its programs;
(6)  To represent district members, with respect to their individual water rights, in general water rights adjudications and other legal and administrative proceedings or before political bodies, provided that the board may levy assessments for these matters against only those members who have given written consent for the representation;
(7)  To represent district members in proceedings or meetings of a water district established by the director of the department notwithstanding any provision to the contrary in chapter 6, title 42, Idaho Code. Provided however, that the board shall not be authorized to cast a vote in any proceeding or meeting of a water district established pursuant to chapter 6, title 42, Idaho Code, on behalf of any district member who has, prior to such proceeding or meeting, given written notice to the board and to the water district that such district member intends to vote on his own behalf, or on behalf of any district member who attends such meeting or proceeding and intends to vote on his own behalf. The board shall provide a verified list of the water rights that it represents at any water district proceeding or meeting to the chairman of the water district proceeding or meeting;
(8)  To appropriate, develop, store, and transport water within the state;
(9)  To acquire stock in canal companies, water companies, and water users’ associations;
(10) To invest any surplus money in the district treasury pursuant to the public depository law as contained in chapter 1, title 57, Idaho Code;
(11) To develop, maintain, operate and implement mitigation plans designed to mitigate any material injury caused by ground water use within the district upon senior water uses within and/or without the district;
(12) To finance the repair or abandonment of wells in the ground water district which have experienced or are experiencing declines in water level or water pressures because of reasons including, but not limited to, flow, leakage, and waste from improper construction, maintenance, and operation of wells;
(13) To have and exercise the power of eminent domain in the manner provided by law for the condemnation of private property for easements, rights-of-way, and other rights of access to property necessary to the exercise of the mitigation powers herein granted, both within and without the district;
(14) To sue and be sued, and be a party to suits, actions and proceedings;
(15) To enter into joint powers agreements and/or memoranda of understanding with other districts, governmental or quasi-public entities;
(16) To develop and acquire water rights for, and operate, aquifer storage or recharge projects;
(17) To monitor, measure, study, and implement programs in the interests of the district’s members regarding the protection of ground water diversions, depth of water in wells, aquifer water levels and characteristics;
(18) To adopt and amend bylaws not in conflict with the constitution and laws of the state for carrying on the business, objects and affairs of the board and of the district and to establish a fiscal year;
(19) To enter upon land to make surveys, locate district property, works, or facilities, and to otherwise conduct the affairs of the district;
(20) To make, record and report annually to the director sufficient measurements of diversions and water levels of district members to allow the district to be excluded from any water measurements district created pursuant to sections 42-705 through 42-715, Idaho Code;
(21) To manage and conduct the affairs of the district and to have and exercise all rights and powers necessary or incidental to or implied from the specific powers granted herein. Such specific powers shall not be considered as a limitation upon any power necessary or appropriate to carry out the purposes and intent of this chapter.