US Laws, Codes, Statutes & Cases

Chapter 547 — Drainage Districts

 

2007 EDITION

 

DRAINAGE DISTRICTS

 

WATER LAWS

 

ORGANIZATION OF DRAINAGE DISTRICTS; SCOPE OF LAW

 

547.005     Authority to form drainage district

 

547.010     Petition to form district; contents

 

547.015     Verification and filing of petition

 

547.020     Fixing time and place of hearing; notice; jurisdiction over district

 

547.025     Filing of objections

 

547.030     Evidence at hearing; findings; appeal

 

547.040     Application of Act of 1915 and amendments to districts organized under earlier laws

 

547.045     State lands within district; authority to sign petition or objections; liability of lands; assessments

 

547.050     Signing of petition by Governor

 

547.055     Attack on validity or boundaries of district; time for commencement of suit

 

547.060     Scope of Drainage District Act

 

BOARD OF SUPERVISORS; ADMINISTRATION; SURETY BONDS; WARRANTS

 

547.105     Election of supervisors; qualifications and terms of office; quorum for transaction of business at owners’ meetings

 

547.110     Annual meeting; election of supervisors; owners entitled to vote

 

547.112     Change in number of supervisors

 

547.115     Supervisor’s oath of office

 

547.120     Board of supervisors; officers; secretary; seal; record of proceedings; report

 

547.125     Secretary as treasurer; duties; audit of books and report to landowners; compensation

 

547.130     Record of meetings, proceedings, certificates, bonds, acts

 

547.135     Removal of employees

 

547.140     Uniform charge to pay expenses of organizing district, surveys, assessing benefits and damages; collection; surplus funds; refunding in case of dissolution

 

547.150     Payment of claims; warrants; nonpayment; interest-bearing warrants; charge or levy of tax to pay

 

ENGINEER; PLAN FOR RECLAMATION; COMMISSIONERS; ASSESSMENT OF BENEFITS

 

547.205     Appointment of engineer; duties; surveys; report; maps

 

547.210     Engineer’s report; adoption by supervisors; report constitutes “Plan for Reclamation”; exclusion of lands not benefited; certain irrigated lands deemed to be benefited

 

547.215     Commissioners; appointment; qualifications; quorum; continuing existence

 

547.220     Notice of appointment of commissioners; meeting; secretary of board of supervisors to furnish certain information; oath; officers

 

547.225     Assessment of benefits and damages by commissioners; report; compensation

 

547.230     Notice of report of commissioners; publication; form

 

547.235     Exceptions to report or assessment; hearing by court; modifications; transmission of judgment and report to supervisors and county clerks; appeal from judgment

 

547.240     Dissolution of district if cost exceeds benefits; obligations and expenses; additional charges

 

547.245     Reassessment of benefits

 

547.250     Changes in plan for reclamation; petition for amendment of plan; notice

 

547.255     Objections to petition; findings; judgment; recording

 

547.260     Appointment of commissioners when plan amended; subsequent proceedings; court costs

 

547.265     Amendment of plan where works or charge insufficient; additional charge

 

WORKS AND IMPROVEMENTS OF DISTRICT

 

547.305     Entry on land; acquisition of property; water filings and appropriations; condemnation of property devoted to public use; right of way across state lands

 

547.310     Board authority regarding reclamation works; contracts; engineer’s duties

 

547.315     Connecting existing improvements; procedure; connection with improvements outside district

 

547.320     Powers of districts regarding irrigation works; bonds

 

547.325     Powers of districts under 1,000 acres regarding domestic water supply

 

CONTRACTS WITH UNITED STATES FOR RECLAMATION

 

547.355     Contracts with United States for reclamation by drainage or irrigation authorized

 

547.360     Payment of amounts due; assessments on lands; lien thereof; collection

 

DISTRICTS WEST OF CASCADES; CONSTRUCTION AND MAINTENANCE OF DITCHES

 

547.405     Districts west of Cascades; control of supervisors over improvements

 

547.410     Maintaining improvements; notice to owner or occupant of premises

 

547.415     Failure of owner or occupant to act; maintenance by supervisors

 

547.420     Liability for cost of work; notice of claim of lien; foreclosure; sale of land

 

547.425     Prohibited practices

 

547.430     Civil liability for expense of removal of filth or obstruction; recovery by action

 

ASSESSMENTS, CHARGES AND TAXES

 

547.455     Annual charge or assessment; computation; apportionment; liability of state lands; payment of assessments by bonds, coupons or warrants

 

547.460     County, city and town lands subject to taxation, assessment or charges

 

547.465     Assessment or charge of low lands used for growing crops

 

547.470     Extra assessment or charge for lake drainage

 

547.475     List of assessments and apportionments

 

547.480     Collection of tax; disposition

 

547.482     Filing boundary change with county assessor and Department of Revenue

 

547.485     Governing body of county to make assessment and levy upon failure of supervisors to do so

 

547.490     Waiver of penalty or interest by certain districts

 

547.492     Alternative charge or assessment method

 

547.495     Crops bound by lien; exceptions

 

547.500     Notice or claim of crop lien; filing; contents

 

547.505     Recording of crop lien claim by clerk; indexing

 

547.510     Form of crop lien claim; foreclosure

 

547.515     Removal of crops to another county; recording of notice in latter county; rights of purchasers and mortgagees

 

BONDS OF DISTRICT

 

547.555     Bonds; issuance; interest; place of payment; maturities

 

547.560     Sale of bonds; procedure

 

547.565     Payment of bonds from assessments

 

547.570     Bond proceeds; depository

 

547.575     Bond fund account; general fund

 

547.580     Retirement of bonds before maturity; call provisions

 

FUNDING AND REFUNDING OF DEBT UNDER 1909 ACT

 

547.605     Funding and refunding of debt; bonds; place of payment

 

547.610     Sale or exchange of bonds; application of proceeds; cancellation of retired obligations; record of transactions

 

547.615     Tax for payment of interest and principal; sinking fund

 

547.620     Retirement of outstanding bonds; notice to bondholders to submit propositions; premium; calling of bonds

 

ALTERNATIVE METHOD OF REFUNDING INDEBTEDNESS OR ISSUING BONDS

 

547.655     Authority to adopt alternative procedure

 

547.660     Exchange of refunding bonds for outstanding indebtedness

 

547.665     Numbering; maturities; negotiability; interest; place of payment; denominations; execution; registration; authority to retire bonds

 

547.670     Offer by holders of indebtedness to surrender evidences thereof or accept proportional payment; sale of bonds; notice; publication

 

547.675     Lien on land assessed for bond payment

 

547.680     Emergency fund; assessments for; use of

 

547.685     Retirement of bonds before maturity; notice of call; date of payment; cessation of interest

 

547.690     Judicial confirmation

 

547.695     Sale of lands for delinquent charges; district as purchaser; resale; payment of proceeds into emergency fund; district to bid at tax sale

 

547.697     Bond fund separate from district general fund; deposits to bond fund and district general fund; expenditures from bond fund and district general fund

 

WITHDRAWAL

 

547.755     Part of district annexed to city to be withdrawn from district only by consent of voters

 

PENALTIES

 

547.990     Penalties

 

ORGANIZATION OF DRAINAGE DISTRICTS; SCOPE OF LAW

 

      547.005 Authority to form drainage district. The persons shown by the records of the county to be the owners of 50 percent of the acreage in any contiguous body of swamp, wet or overflowed lands or irrigated lands, waters from which contribute to the swamp, wet or overflowed conditions of those or other lands, situated in one or more counties of the state, may form a drainage district for the purpose of having such lands reclaimed and protected by drainage or otherwise from the effects of water, for sanitary or agricultural purposes, or when the same may be conducive to the public health, convenience and welfare or of public utility or benefit.

 

      547.010 Petition to form district; contents. For the purpose mentioned in ORS 547.005, the owners may prepare and sign a petition in which shall be stated:

      (1) The name proposed for the district.

      (2) The boundary lines of the district, or a description of all the lands included therein, with an allegation that such lands constitute a contiguous body of swamp, wet or overflowed lands, or irrigated lands the waters from which contribute to the swamp, wet or overflowed condition of those or other lands.

      (3) The total acreage included in the district, and if land in more than one county is included, then the acreage in each county.

      (4) The names of the owners of land in the district as shown by the county records, and the acreage owned by each owner.

      (5) An allegation that the proposed reclamation or protection is for sanitary or agricultural purposes, or both, and that the proposed reclamation or protection will be conducive to the public health or welfare or of public utility or benefit.

      (6) An allegation that all the lands included in the proposed district are properly included, and will be beneficially affected by the operations of the proposed district.

      (7) An allegation that the benefits of the proposed reclamation or protection will exceed the damage to be done and that the best interests of the land included and of the owners of such land as a whole, and of the public at large, will be promoted by the formation and proposed operations of the district.

      (8) An allegation that the formation of a drainage district under the provisions of this chapter is a proper and advantageous method of accomplishing the reclamation and protection of the lands included therein.

      (9) A brief, general, informal statement of a proposed plan of reclamation or protection and such general facts as will enable the court to determine that there is a reasonable probability that the objects sought by the formation of the district may be accomplished.

      (10) An agreement that the signers will pay any expenses incurred and any charges imposed and billed to the signers, for the purpose of paying the expense of organizing or attempting to organize the proposed district.

      (11) A prayer asking that the lands described, or such of them as may be found by the court to be properly included in the proposed district, either permanently or until further investigation and surveys may permit elimination, shall be declared organized into a drainage district. [Amended by 1991 c.459 §425]

 

      547.015 Verification and filing of petition. The petition shall be verified by one or more of the petitioners to the effect that they have read the petition and believe the allegations to be true. It shall be filed in the office of the county clerk of the county in which the lands described are situated. If the lands are situated in more than one county it shall be filed in the office of the county clerk of the county in which more of the lands are situated than in any other county.

 

      547.020 Fixing time and place of hearing; notice; jurisdiction over district. (1) Upon presentation of the petition, the county court shall fix the time and place for hearing the petition. Thereupon the clerk in whose office the petition was filed shall give notice in the following manner:

      (a) The clerk shall cause notice to be published once each week for four consecutive weeks in some newspaper published in each county in which are situated lands of the district, the last insertion to be made at least 15 days prior to the meeting of the county court at which the petition is to be heard. The notice shall be substantially in the following form and shall be deemed sufficient for all purposes of the Drainage District Act:

______________________________________________________________________________

 

Notice of Hearing on Petition to Form Drainage District.

 

In the County Court of the State of Oregon, for the County of _____.

      Notice is given that hearing on the following petition will be held at the courthouse in the city of _____, County of _____, State of Oregon, on the ___ day of _____, 2___, for the purpose of determining whether the prayer of the petition shall be granted.

      All persons owning or claiming an interest in lands described in the petition are notified to appear at that place on that date and show cause, if any there be, why the prayer in the petition should not be granted.

_______________

Clerk of the County Court

______________________________________________________________________________

 

      (b) Immediately following the notice and as a part thereof, there shall be published the petition in full, including the signatures thereto.

      (2) The county court of the county in which the petition has been filed shall thereafter maintain and have original and exclusive jurisdiction coextensive with the boundaries and limits of the district without regard to county lines, for all purposes of the Drainage District Act.

 

      547.025 Filing of objections. On or before the date set for the hearing, any person objecting to the organization and incorporation of the district may appear and file a writing setting forth specifically and definitely any objections thereto.

 

      547.030 Evidence at hearing; findings; appeal. (1) At the hearing the court shall hear and consider any evidence that may be presented for or against the petition or any objection thereto.

      (2) Thereupon the court shall make its findings upon the facts alleged in the petition or objections and any other facts necessary and proper for the determination of the propriety of the organization of the district, which findings shall be entered on the journal of the court.

      (3) If it appears to the court that the prayer of the petition should be granted, the court shall, by its order entered of record, declare the drainage district organized.

      (4) If it appears to the court that the prayer of the petition should not be granted, the proceedings shall be dismissed and the costs adjudged against the signers of the petition in proportion to the acreage represented by each.

      (5) In making such findings and decision, the court shall disregard any error, irregularity or omission which does not affect substantial rights, and no such error, irregularity or omission shall affect the validity of the organization or any proceedings taken thereon.

      (6) Appeal may be taken de novo from the decision of the court to the circuit court. [Amended by 1979 c.284 §168]

 

      547.035 [Repealed by 1975 c.326 §5]

 

      547.040 Application of Act of 1915 and amendments to districts organized under earlier laws. All drainage districts organized before February 14, 1921, in pursuance of any law relating to drainage districts passed prior to the enactment of chapter 340, Oregon Laws 1915, shall have all the powers and be subject to all the provisions of the Drainage District Act, except in so far as the organization of the district is concerned.

 

      547.045 State lands within district; authority to sign petition or objections; liability of lands; assessments. (1) Whenever any diking or drainage district is sought to be created and organized or is created and organized in the manner provided by law, within the boundaries of which are located any lands belonging to the state that have been acquired or used by or for any state institution described in ORS 179.321, the Director of Human Services may sign any petition or objections thereto for the organization of such district and exercise on behalf of the state with respect to the district and the land therein belonging to the state, all the rights and privileges of a landowner within the district.

      (2) Whenever any such district or proposed district includes any lands belonging to any public body as defined in ORS 174.109, the presiding officer of such public body, or other member of the governing body of such public body, when thereto authorized by a resolution of the governing body thereof, may sign such petition or objection thereto on behalf of the public body, and exercise with respect to the district and the land therein belonging to the public body, all the rights and privileges of a landowner in the district, including the right to be a supervisor of the district.

      (3) Lands belonging to a public body as defined in ORS 174.109 shall be subject to the same burdens and liabilities and entitled to the same benefits as lands in the district belonging to private individuals. The Department of Human Services may pay from any appropriations made for the operation and maintenance of any institution, the lands of which have been included in any diking or drainage district, any charges billed to the department or any assessments levied against such lands by the diking or drainage district. [Amended by 1959 c.380 §1; 1969 c.597 §61; 1989 c.171 §72; 1991 c.459 §425a; 2003 c.802 §134]

 

      547.050 Signing of petition by Governor. The signing of the petition by the Governor for the organization of a diking or drainage district on behalf of the state shall be deemed to constitute compliance with the provisions of ORS 547.005 to 547.015, and any previous such action by the Governor is hereby ratified and confirmed. [Amended by 1969 c.597 §62]

 

      547.055 Attack on validity or boundaries of district; time for commencement of suit. No action, suit or proceeding, under ORS 30.570 or otherwise, shall be maintained for the purpose of avoiding, setting aside or otherwise questioning or affecting the validity of the organization of any district organized under the Drainage District Act, unless such action, suit or proceeding is commenced within nine months from the date of the proclamation in such matter made by the county judge; nor for the purpose of questioning the legality of the boundaries established for such corporation in such proclamation unless similarly commenced within nine months therefrom; nor for the purpose of questioning the legality of any altered boundaries of the district which may be subsequently established as provided for by ORS 547.250 to 547.260 unless commenced within nine months from the date of the judgment. [Amended by 2003 c.576 §505]

 

      547.060 Scope of Drainage District Act. As used in this chapter, “Drainage District Act” means ORS 547.005 to 547.030, 547.105 to 547.150, 547.205 to 547.240, 547.250 to 547.265, 547.310, 547.315, 547.455 to 547.475, and 547.555 to 547.580.

 

BOARD OF SUPERVISORS; ADMINISTRATION; SURETY BONDS; WARRANTS

 

      547.105 Election of supervisors; qualifications and terms of office; quorum for transaction of business at owners’ meetings. Within 30 days after any drainage district has been organized under the provisions of the Drainage District Act, the county clerk of the county in which the petition was filed shall call a meeting of the owners of land situated in the district for the purpose of electing a board of supervisors with three or five supervisors as determined by the owners of land within the district. Notice of the meeting shall be given by publication in some newspaper published in each county in which lands of the district are situated, at least 10 days before the date of the meeting. The supervisors shall be owners of land in the district. The landowners, assembled at the place and time required by the notice, shall organize by the election of a chairperson and secretary of the meeting who shall conduct the election. Each owner is entitled to one vote in person or by proxy for each acre of land owned by the owner in the district. The three or five persons receiving the highest number of votes shall be declared elected as supervisors. They shall immediately by lot determine the terms of their office. If three supervisors are elected, the supervisors shall serve, respectively, one, two and three years. If five supervisors are elected, one supervisor shall serve one year, two supervisors shall serve two years, and two supervisors shall serve three years. The supervisors first elected shall serve until their successors are elected and qualified. The majority of the acreage represented shall be necessary to constitute a quorum for the transaction of business at all landowners’ meetings; provided, however, that when in any year a district shall fail to have a quorum at its annual meeting called pursuant to ORS 547.110 then the quorum for the annual meeting for the succeeding year shall be at least 35 percent of the acreage represented. [Amended by 1959 c.379 §1; 2003 c.223 §1]

 

      547.110 Annual meeting; election of supervisors; owners entitled to vote. In the same month of each year after the election of the first board of supervisors, the board shall call a meeting of the owners of land in the district, after giving notice in the manner provided for in ORS 547.105. The owners shall meet at the time and place fixed by the board and elect one or two supervisors in the manner prescribed in ORS 547.105, who shall hold office for three years and until a successor is elected and qualified. However, after the report of the commissioners has been confirmed by the court under the provisions of ORS 547.235, only the owners of the land having benefits attributed to the land shall be entitled to vote at the annual meetings held under the provisions of this section. [Amended by 1969 c.669 §14; 1991 c.459 §425b; 2003 c.223 §2]

 

      547.112 Change in number of supervisors. (1) At least six months prior to an annual meeting of a drainage district, the board of supervisors of the drainage district may change the number of supervisors elected to the board, effective at the next annual meeting, by a motion approved by the affirmative vote of a majority of the supervisors.

      (2) If the board of supervisors acts under subsection (1) of this section:

      (a) To change the number of supervisors on the board, the board shall notify the county clerk of the county in which the petition to form the district was filed and the Secretary of State at least six months prior to the annual meeting at which one or more supervisors will be added to or removed from the board or within 30 days of taking action under subsection (1) of this section, whichever is later.

      (b) To reduce the number of supervisors from five to three, the board shall phase in the change, beginning at the next annual meeting, in a manner that allows each supervisor to serve the full term to which the supervisor was elected. If the decision is made to reduce the number of supervisors from five to three at an annual meeting at which only one supervisor is scheduled to be elected, the election must be canceled and the supervisor whose term is ending shall continue in office until the following annual meeting. At the following annual meeting, the terms of two more supervisors will end, and only one supervisor will be elected. [2003 c.223 §4]

 

      547.115 Supervisor’s oath of office. Each supervisor before entering upon official duties shall take and subscribe to an oath before some officer authorized by law to administer oaths, that the supervisor will honestly, faithfully and impartially perform the duties devolving upon the supervisor in office as supervisor of the drainage district in which the supervisor was elected, and that the supervisor will not neglect any of the duties imposed upon the supervisor by the Drainage District Act.

 

      547.120 Board of supervisors; officers; secretary; seal; record of proceedings; report. The board of supervisors immediately after its election shall choose one of its number president of the board, and elect some suitable person secretary, who may or may not be a member of the board. The board shall adopt a seal with a suitable design, and shall keep a record of all its proceedings. The board shall report to the landowners at the annual meeting held under the provisions of ORS 547.110 what work has been done, either by the engineers or otherwise. Notwithstanding the provisions of ORS 198.190, if the secretary is a member of the board the secretary shall be entitled to compensation as provided for in ORS 547.125. [Amended by 1971 c.403 §10; 1973 c.794 §28]

 

      547.125 Secretary as treasurer; duties; audit of books and report to landowners; compensation. (1) The secretary of the board of supervisors in any drainage district shall hold the office of treasurer of the district, except as otherwise provided in this chapter.

      (2) The treasurer shall receipt for all moneys received by the treasurer and shall keep all funds received by the treasurer from any source deposited at all times in some insured institution or trust company, as those terms are defined in ORS 706.008, that is designated by the board of supervisors. All interest accruing on such funds shall, when paid, be credited to the district.

      (3) The board of supervisors shall audit or have audited the books of the treasurer each year and make report thereof to the landowners at the annual meeting and publish a statement within 30 days thereafter, showing the amount of money received, the amount paid out during the year, and the amount in the treasury at the beginning and end of the year.

      (4) The treasurer shall pay out funds of the district only on warrants signed by the president of the board and attested by the signature of the secretary and treasurer.

      (5) The secretary shall receive as compensation for performing the duties of secretary-treasurer such salary as may be fixed and directed to be paid by resolution of the board. [Amended by 1969 c.345 §14; 1997 c.631 §489]

 

      547.130 Record of meetings, proceedings, certificates, bonds, acts. The board of supervisors of any district organized under the Drainage District Act shall cause to be kept a well-bound book, entitled “Record of Proceedings of Board of Supervisors of _____ District,” in which shall be recorded minutes of all meetings, proceedings, certificates, bonds given by all employees, and any and all corporate acts, which record shall at all times be open to the inspection of anyone interested, whether taxpayer or bondholder.

 

      547.135 Removal of employees. The board of supervisors may at any time remove any officer, attorney or other employee appointed or employed by the board.

 

      547.140 Uniform charge to pay expenses of organizing district, surveys, assessing benefits and damages; collection; surplus funds; refunding in case of dissolution. (1) The board of supervisors of any district organized under the provisions of the Drainage District Act shall, as soon as elected and qualified, impose a uniform charge of not more than $1 per acre upon the owner of each acre of land within the district, to be used for the purpose of paying expenses incurred or to be incurred in organizing the district, making surveys of the same, and assessing benefits and damages, and to pay other expenses necessary to be incurred before the board shall be empowered by other provisions of the Drainage District Act, to provide funds to pay the total cost of works and improvements of the district. In case the boundary lines of the district are extended so as to include lands not described and contained in the petition, the same uniform charge shall be imposed upon the owners of the included lands as soon as the lands are annexed and included in the district.

      (2) The charge shall be due and payable as soon as imposed and billed, and if not paid within 60 days after the billing date, the charge shall become delinquent.

      (3) In case the sums received from the charges exceed the total cost of items for which the charges are imposed, the surplus shall be placed in the general fund of the district and used to pay cost of construction. Upon dissolution of the district, any amount of surplus remaining shall be prorated and refunded to the landowners who paid the charges. [Amended by 1991 c.459 §425c]

 

      547.145 [Repealed by 1969 c.345 §20]

 

      547.150 Payment of claims; warrants; nonpayment; interest-bearing warrants; charge or levy of tax to pay. All claims against the district shall be paid by warrants drawn on the district treasurer and signed by the president and secretary of the board. When any warrant is not paid when presented to the treasurer because of lack of funds in the treasury, such fact shall be indorsed on the back of the warrant, and such warrant shall draw interest thereafter at the rate of six percent per annum until there is money on hand to pay the amount of the warrant and the interest then accumulated. No interest shall be allowed on warrants after sufficient funds are in the treasury to pay the indorsed warrants and interest. The secretary shall give notice by publication whenever sufficient funds are available to pay outstanding warrants. The board shall charge or levy each year a sufficient amount of money to pay the outstanding warrants of the district to the extent permitted within the constitutional limitation. [Amended by 1991 c.459 §425d]

 

ENGINEER; PLAN FOR RECLAMATION; COMMISSIONERS; ASSESSMENT OF BENEFITS

 

      547.205 Appointment of engineer; duties; surveys; report; maps. Within 30 days after organizing, the board of supervisors shall appoint a competent civil engineer as chief engineer, who may be an individual, partnership or corporation, and who shall engage such assistants as the board of supervisors may approve. The chief engineer shall:

      (1) Have control of the engineering work in the district.

      (2) Make all necessary surveys of the lands within the boundary lines of the district, as described in the petition, and of all lands adjacent thereto that may or will be improved or reclaimed in part or in whole by any system of drainage or levees that may be outlined and adopted.

      (3) Make a report in writing to the board of supervisors with maps and profiles of the surveys, which report shall contain a plan for draining and reclaiming the lands described in the petition or adjacent thereto from overflow of or damage by water, and which maps and profiles shall indicate so far as necessary the physical characteristics of the lands, and location of any public roads, railroads and other rights of way, roadways and other property or improvements located on such lands.

 

      547.210 Engineer’s report; adoption by supervisors; report constitutes “Plan for Reclamation”; exclusion of lands not benefited; certain irrigated lands deemed to be benefited. (1) The chief engineer shall make a report in writing to the board of supervisors whenever the board requires. Upon receipt of the final report of the engineer concerning surveys made of the lands contained in the district, and plans for reclaiming the same, the board shall adopt the report or any modification thereof approved by the chief engineer. The adopted report shall be the plan for draining and reclaiming such lands from overflow or damage by water, and shall be known and designated as the “Plan for Reclamation.” The plan shall be filed with the secretary of the board of supervisors and by the secretary copied into the records of the district.

      (2) Any lands included in the district, which will not be reclaimed or benefited by the construction of the work as specified in the plan for reclamation, may be excluded from the district by order of the county court. Any charge billed to an owner of land so excluded shall be refunded to the person paying the same. However, any irrigated lands contributing to the wet, swamp or overflowed condition of any lands of the district, the waste or seepage waters from which lands will be carried by and disposed of through the works specified in the plan for reclamation, shall be deemed benefited by the construction of the works as specified in the plan. [Amended by 1991 c.459 §425e]

 

      547.215 Commissioners; appointment; qualifications; quorum; continuing existence. Upon adoption of the plan for reclamation, the county judge shall, by order, appoint three commissioners (who shall not be landowners in the district nor of kin within the fourth degree of consanguinity to any person owning land in the district), one of whom shall be a civil engineer and two of whom shall be freeholders residing within the state. A majority of the commissioners shall constitute a quorum and shall control the action of the board on all questions. Such commissioners shall constitute a body which shall continue in office and may be convened at any time by the county court for the purpose of correcting any errors, omissions or other mistakes that shall have been discovered in its original report as the same may have been amended and supplemented from time to time or for any other good cause shown. The court shall fill any vacancy occurring in such body of commissioners by appointment of a person who has the qualifications required by this section of the commissioner the person is to replace. Whenever said body of commissioners has been reconvened by the court, it shall thereafter make its report in response to the directions of the court and such report when completed shall be subject to ORS 547.245, with reference to a hearing thereon and a confirmation thereof by order or judgment of the court before such supplemental report shall go into effect. [Amended by 1953 c.434 §2; 2003 c.576 §506]

 

      547.220 Notice of appointment of commissioners; meeting; secretary of board of supervisors to furnish certain information; oath; officers. The county clerk upon the filing of the order of appointment shall notify each commissioner of appointment by written or printed notice, and in the notice the county clerk shall state the time and place for the first meeting of the commissioners. The secretary of the board of supervisors shall attend the meeting, and shall furnish the commissioners a complete list of all lands in the district, and the names of the owners thereof, as were contained in the petition, at the date of the judgment of the court incorporating the district. The secretary shall also furnish the commissioners a copy of the plan for reclamation, with maps and profiles in the office of the secretary. The commissioners at the meeting, or within 10 days thereafter, shall each take and subscribe to an oath that they will faithfully and impartially discharge their duties as commissioners and make a true report of the work done by them. They shall also at the meeting elect one of their own number chairperson. The secretary of the board of supervisors shall be ex officio secretary of the commissioners. [Amended by 2003 c.576 §507]

 

      547.225 Assessment of benefits and damages by commissioners; report; compensation. (1) Within 30 days after qualifying, the commissioners shall begin their duties. The chief engineer shall accompany them at all times, and render an opinion in writing when called for.

      (2) The commissioners shall proceed to view the premises and determine the value of all lands within or without the district to be acquired and used for rights of way, holding basins or other works set out in the plan for reclamation. They shall assess the amount of benefits and the amount of damages, if any, that will accrue to each parcel of land, including irrigated lands, irrigation ditches and canals which contribute to the swampy, wet or overflowed condition of those lands, or any lands, public highways, railroads and other rights of way, roadways and other property which will be affected by the proposed reclamation work.

      (3) For the purpose of determining benefits under the provisions of this section, all irrigated lands having an available water supply for irrigation that are adjacent to and on a higher level than other lands within the district and which fall naturally within the same watershed as the land within the district, shall be deemed contributing to the wet, swampy or overflowed condition of the lands of the district, and shall be deemed benefited by the construction of the works as specified in the plan for reclamation.

      (4) The commissioners shall give due consideration and credit to any other drains, ditches, levees or other systems of reclamation which already have been constructed and which afford partial or complete protection to any tract or parcel of land in the new district.

      (5) The public highways, railroads and other rights of way, roadways and other property shall be assessed according to the increased physical efficiency and decreased maintenance cost thereof by reason of the protection to be derived from the proposed works and improvements.

      (6) The commissioners shall have no power to change the plan for reclamation.

      (7) The commissioners shall prepare a report of their findings, which shall be signed by at least a majority of the commissioners and filed in the office of the county clerk of the county in which the district is organized. The secretary of the board of supervisors shall accompany the commissioners while engaged in their duties, and shall perform all clerical work of the board. The commissioners shall report to the board of supervisors the number of days each was employed and the actual expenses incurred. Each commissioner shall be paid $5 per day for services, and necessary expenses in addition thereto.

 

      547.230 Notice of report of commissioners; publication; form. (1) Upon the filing of the report of the commissioners, the county clerk shall give notice thereof by publication once a week for three consecutive weeks in some newspaper published in each county in the district. It shall not be necessary for the notice to name the parties interested. The notice shall be in small type, in substantially the following form:

______________________________________________________________________________

Notice of Filing of Commissioners’ Report for

_____Drainage District

      Notice is given to all persons interested in the land included within the _____ drainage district, _____ County (or counties), Oregon, (here describe land or give boundaries of district) that the commissioners heretofore appointed to assess benefits and damages to the property and lands situate in the drainage district and to appraise the cash value of the land necessary to be taken for rights of way, holding basins and other works of the district within or without its limits, filed their report in this office on the ___ day of ______, 2___, and you are notified that you may examine the report and file exceptions to all or any part thereof, on or before the ___ day of _____, 2___.

____________

County Clerk of _____ County, Oregon.

______________________________________________________________________________

 

      (2) Where lands in different counties are contained in the report, the notice shall be published in some newspaper in each county in which the lands so affected are situated.

 

      547.235 Exceptions to report or assessment; hearing by court; modifications; transmission of judgment and report to supervisors and county clerks; appeal from judgment. The drainage district or any owner of land in the district may file exceptions to the report or to any assessment of either benefits or damages, within 10 days after the last day of publication of the notice provided for in ORS 547.230. All exceptions shall be heard by the court and such amendments and modifications made to the report of the commissioners as may in the court’s judgment be equitable. When it appears to the satisfaction of the court, after having heard and determined all the exceptions, that the estimated cost of the improvement contemplated in the plan for reclamation is less than the benefits to be derived therefrom, the court shall approve and confirm the commissioners’ report, as so amended and modified. The county clerk shall transmit a certified copy of the judgment and copy of the commissioners’ report, as confirmed or amended by the court, to the secretary of the board of supervisors of the district and to the clerk of each county having lands in the district, or affected by the report, where the same shall become a permanent record. Each such county clerk shall receive a fee of $3.75 for receiving, filing and preserving the same. Any person may appeal from the judgment of the court. [Amended by 1971 c.621 §39; 1975 c.607 §42; 1979 c.833 §34; 1981 c.835 §16; 2003 c.576 §508]

 

      547.240 Dissolution of district if cost exceeds benefits; obligations and expenses; additional charges. If after determining the objections made to the commissioners’ report, the court finds that the estimated costs of works and improvements as reported by the commissioners, or as amended by the court, exceed the estimated benefits, the court shall then render a judgment, declaring the incorporation of the district to be dissolved as soon as all costs incurred, which shall include court costs and all obligations and expenses incurred in behalf of the district by the board of supervisors, are paid. If the uniform charge made under ORS 547.140 is found insufficient to pay all the costs, the board of supervisors shall make such additional uniform charges as will be necessary to pay the deficiency. [Amended by 1991 c.459 §425f; 2003 c.576 §509]

 

      547.245 Reassessment of benefits. At any time after the expiration of five years from the confirmation of the report of the commissioners, as provided by ORS 547.235, and upon the filing of a petition with the county clerk signed by at least one-tenth of the owners of the lands within the drainage district or the owners of at least one-tenth of the lands within such district, setting forth that the original assessments or benefits are inequitable and unjust, the county court shall appoint three commissioners, as provided by ORS 547.215, to reassess the benefits in the district. The commissioners shall report the reassessment to the court. Upon the filing of the report of the commissioners, the county clerk shall give notice of hearing thereon by publication once a week for three consecutive weeks in some newspaper published in each county in the district, the last insertion to be made at least 15 days prior to the hearing. At least 10 days before the day set for hearing, exceptions may be filed by any interested person, and upon hearing the same the court shall approve the report or direct how it shall be modified and, when so modified or approved, shall confirm it. The assessment as confirmed shall take the place of all prior assessments; provided, that in no case shall the total amount of assessments be less than the outstanding obligations. The county clerk shall transmit a certified copy of the court’s judgment and copy of the commissioners’ report, as confirmed or amended by the court, to the secretary of the board of supervisors of the district and to the county clerk of each county having lands in the district. [Amended by 2003 c.576 §510]

 

      547.250 Changes in plan for reclamation; petition for amendment of plan; notice. The board of supervisors shall have power to make any change in the plan for reclamation by action of the board until such time as the commissioners have filed their report. After that all changes shall be made as follows:

      (1) The board of supervisors, for and in behalf of the district, or the owners of land adjacent to the district, may file a petition in the office of the clerk of the court which organized the district, praying the court to amend its former judgment incorporating the district, by correcting the names of landowners, by striking out any such names, by adding, striking out or correcting the descriptions of any lands within or alleged to be within the boundary lines of the district, or in any other manner.

      (2) The petition may ask permission of the court to amend or change the plan for reclamation or to correct any errors, omissions or other mistakes that have been discovered in the plan or may ask that the boundary lines of the district be extended so as to include lands not described by and included in the petition and judgment of the court incorporating the district. However, in no case shall any lands be included in the district other than the lands described in the original petition for the creation of the district and in the judgment of the court incorporating it, unless the persons shown by the records of the county to be the owners of not less than 60 percent of the acreage sought to be brought within the boundary lines of the district and not described in and included in the original petition and judgment of the court incorporating such district, shall first sign and file with the court a petition therefor.

      (3) If the petition asks that the lines of the district be in any manner changed, it shall also ask the court to appoint three commissioners, as provided for under ORS 547.215, to appraise the land that shall be taken for rights of way, holding basins, or other works, or assess the benefits and damages to any lands, public highways, railroad and other property already in the district, or that may be annexed to the district by the proposed amendments and changes to the plan for reclamation or the proposed change in the boundary lines. As soon as the petition is filed the clerk of the court shall give notice in the manner and for the time provided for in ORS 547.020, the notice to be substantially in the following form:

______________________________________________________________________________

Notice of Drainage Hearing.

 

      To the owners and all persons interested in the lands corporate and other property in and adjacent to _____ Drainage Dis