Pioneer Irrigation District v. Stone

Citations

• 23 Idaho 348
• 130 P. 382
• 1913 Ida. LEXIS 66

Syllabus

<p>Powers or Irrigation Districts — Power to Contract With Secretary or the Interior — Government Declamation Service — Powers or District to Drain Overelowed Land.</p> <p>1. Sees. 2397 and 2398 of the Eev. Codes authorize the board of directors of an irrigation district to contract with the United States for the construction of necessary works for the supply of water and irrigation of lands within the district, and the provisions of those sections have been complied with in this case and the action of the district has been regular and legal.</p> <p>2. Under the laws of this state, an irrigation district may provide for the drainage and reclamation of lands within the district which have been flooded or water-logged by reason of overflow, percolation or seepage from its irrigation works, and the accomplishment of such purpose is one of the necessarily implied duties of the district equally as incumbent on the district as the irrigation of its dry and arid lands.</p> <p>3. The Boise-Payette Water Users’ Association has the power under its articles of incorporation and the state statute, to sign and execute a contract with the Secretary of the Interior for supplying water to the district for the irrigation of its lands and the drainage of overflowed lands within the district.</p> <p>4. Under the provisions of the act of June 17, 1902, known as the reclamation act (32 Stats, at Large, 388), and the decision of the circuit court of appeals, in Burley v. United States, 179 Fed. 1, 33 L. R. A., N. S., 807, 102 O. C. A. 429 and the act of Congress of February 21, 1911 (36 Stats, at Large, 925), known as the Warren act, the Secretary of the Interior is authorized and has the power to contract with an irrigation district for supplying water to such district, or partially supplying it with water for the irrigation of the lands therein and for the drainage of other lands within such district.</p>