2012 US Code
Title 43 - Public Lands
Chapter 12 - RECLAMATION AND IRRIGATION OF LANDS BY FEDERAL GOVERNMENT (§§ 371 - 616yyyy)
Subchapter XIV - PATENTS AND FINAL WATER-RIGHT CERTIFICATES (§§ 541 - 547)
Section 545 - Appointment of agents to receive payments; record of payments and amounts owing

The Secretary of the Interior is authorized to designate such bonded fiscal agents or officers of the Reclamation Service as he may deem advisable on each reclamation project, to whom shall be paid all sums due on reclamation entries or water rights, and the officials so designated shall keep a record for the information of the public of the sums paid and the amount due at any time on account of any entry made or water right purchased under the reclamation Act; and the Secretary of the Interior shall make provision for furnishing copies of duly authenticated records of entries upon payment of reasonable fees which copies shall be admissible in evidence, as are copies authenticated under section eight hundred and eighty-eight ¹ of the Revised Statutes.

(Aug. 9, 1912, ch. 278, §4, 37 Stat. 267.)

The reclamation Act, referred to in text, is identified in section 541 of this section as act June 17, 1902, ch. 1093, 32 Stat. 388, popularly known as the Reclamation Act, which is classified generally to this chapter. For complete classification of this Act to the Code, see Short Title note set out under section 371 of this title and Tables.

Section eight hundred and eighty-eight of the Revised Statutes, referred to in text, was repealed by section 21 of act June 25, 1948, ch. 645, 62 Stat. 862, the first section of which enacted Title 18, Crimes and Criminal Procedure. Prior to repeal, R.S. §888 was classified to section 669 of former Title 28, Judicial Code and Judiciary. For provisions relating to admissibility in evidence of authenticated copies, see section 1733 of Title 28, Judiciary and Judicial Procedure.

The Reclamation Service, established in July 1902, changed to the Bureau of Reclamation on June 20, 1923, then to the Water and Power Resources Service on Nov. 6, 1979, and then to the Bureau of Reclamation on May 18, 1981. See 155 Dep't of the Interior, Departmental Manual 1.1 (2008 repl.); Sec'y Hubert Work, Dep't of the Interior, Order (June 20, 1923); Sec'y Cecil D. Andrus, Dep't of the Interior, Secretarial Order 3042, §§1, 4 (Nov. 6, 1979); Sec'y James G. Watt, Dep't of the Interior, Secretarial Order 3064, §§3, 5 (May 18, 1981).

For transfer of functions of other officers, employees, and agencies of Department of the Interior, with certain exceptions, to Secretary of the Interior, with power to delegate, see Reorg. Plan No. 3 of 1950, §§1, 2, eff. May 24, 1950, 15 F.R. 3174, 64 Stat. 1262, set out under section 1451 of this title.

¹ See References in Text note below.