PART 2. FORMATION [20700. - 20982.]

Part 2 added by Stats. 1943, Ch. 372.

§§ 20700–20982 · 67 sections

1. CHAPTER 1. Petition for Formation §§ 20700–20742 · 11 sections

   1. ARTICLE 1. Petitioners and Land §§ 20700–20702 · 3 sections

      • § 20700 A majority in number of the holders of title to land susceptible of irrigation from a common source and by the same system of works, including pumping from…
      • § 20701 The land proposed to be formed into a district need not consist of contiguous parcels.
      • § 20702 “Land susceptible of irrigation” as used in section 20700 of this code includes land used for residential or business purposes susceptible of receiving water…
   2. ARTICLE 2. Petition §§ 20720–20724 · 5 sections

      • § 20720 A petition for the formation of a district shall contain: (a) Generally, a description of the land. (b) Generally, the sources, which may be in the…
      • § 20721 A petition for the formation of a district may request any of the following: (a) Three divisions in the proposed district. (b) Election of the directors of the…
      • § 20722 The petition may consist of any number of separate instruments, which shall be duplicates except as to signatures.
      • § 20723 The petition shall be accompanied by a sufficient undertaking, to be approved by the board of supervisors, in double the amount of the probable cost of forming…
      • § 20724 Signatures to the petition may be withdrawn at any time before its publication is commenced, by filing a declaration, signed and acknowledged by the…
   3. ARTICLE 3. Publication §§ 20740–20742 · 3 sections

      • § 20740 The petition and a notice of the time of the meeting at which it will be presented shall be published for at least two weeks before the time at which it is to…
      • § 20741 When the petition consists of a number of separate instruments, only one need be published, but the names attached to all of the instruments shall appear in…
      • § 20742 No defect in the form or contents of the published notice, title to it, or petition, nor failure to publish or error in publishing any signature to the…
2. CHAPTER 2. Hearings on Formation §§ 20800–20850 · 23 sections

   1. ARTICLE 1. Preliminary Hearing §§ 20800–20806 · 7 sections

      • § 20800 The formation petition shall be presented to the board of supervisors of the principal county.
      • § 20801 The petition shall be presented at a regular meeting of the board of supervisors.
      • § 20802 The board of supervisors shall hear all competent and relevant testimony offered in support of or in opposition to the sufficiency of the petition and the…
      • § 20803 The hearing may be adjourned from time to time, but not exceeding two weeks in all.
      • § 20804 At the hearing the board of supervisors shall determine by resolution whether or not the petition and notice comply with Chapter 1 of this part.…
      • § 20805 (a) If the board of supervisors determines that any of the requirements for the formation petition or notice were not complied with, the petition shall be…
      • § 20806 If the board of supervisors determines that the requirements for the formation petition and notice have been complied with, the resolution so determining shall…
   2. ARTICLE 2. Reference to Department §§ 20820–20824 · 5 sections

      • § 20820 On or before the day on which the petition is presented to the board of supervisors, a copy of the petition shall be filed in the office of the department.
      • § 20821 Upon the adoption of the preliminary formation resolution the board of supervisors shall send a copy of the resolution to the department.
      • § 20822 Upon receiving a copy of the resolution, the department shall make such preliminary investigation as may be practicable to determine the feasibility of the…
      • § 20823 The department shall report in writing to the board of supervisors as soon as practicable, but at all events within 90 days from the date of the adoption of…
      • § 20824 If the department reports within the specified time that the supply of water available for the use of the proposed district or that may be acquired by any…
   3. ARTICLE 3. Final Hearing §§ 20840–20850 · 11 sections

      • § 20840 The board of supervisors not later than its first regular meeting after the occurrence of any one of the following shall set a time for the final hearing of…
      • § 20841 The time set for the final hearing shall not be less than one week from the meeting at which the time is set.
      • § 20842 Notice of the time of the final hearing shall be given either by: (a) Registered mail to the person designated for that purpose in the petition. (b)…
      • § 20843 Failure to give notice of the final hearing shall not affect the validity of subsequent proceedings.
      • § 20844 On a final hearing the board of supervisors may adjourn from time to time, but at no time for a longer period than three days, until a determination of the…
      • § 20845 At the final hearing the board of supervisors shall determine the land to be formed into the proposed district: (a) Land shall be excluded which will not in…
      • § 20846 At the final hearing no evidence shall be heard against the genuineness or sufficiency of the petition or notice unless it is shown to the satisfaction of the…
      • § 20847 At the conclusion of the final hearing on the petition the board of supervisors shall make an order containing all of the following: (a) Reaffirmance, when it…
      • § 20848 The order on final hearing shall also contain all of the following: (a) Division of the district into the following number of divisions, which shall be as…
      • § 20849 The order on final hearing shall be entered in full upon the minutes of the board of supervisors.
      • § 20850 A finding of the board of supervisors in favor of the genuineness and sufficiency of the petition and notice shall be conclusive against all persons except the…
3. CHAPTER 3. Election on Formation §§ 20890–20938 · 23 sections

   1. ARTICLE 1. Calling of Election §§ 20890–20896 · 7 sections

      • § 20890 Upon making the order on final hearing of the formation petition, the board of supervisors shall call and give notice of a formation election to be held in the…
      • § 20891 The notice of the formation election shall contain: (a) Date and hours of election. (b) Place of polls in each precinct. (c) Description of the land. (d) Name…
      • § 20892 Notice of the formation election shall be published once a week for three weeks previous to the election, in a newspaper published in each affected county.
      • § 20893 Within five days after the district formation election has been called, the legislative body which has called the election shall transmit, by registered mail,…
      • § 20894 The board of supervisors or any member or members of the board authorized by the board, or any individual voter or bona fide association of citizens entitled…
      • § 20895 If more than one argument for or more than one argument against the proposed district formation is filed with the election officials within the time…
      • § 20896 (a) The officials in charge of conducting the election shall cause a ballot pamphlet concerning the district formation proposition to be voted on to be printed…
   2. ARTICLE 2. Conduct of Election §§ 20910–20916 · 7 sections

      • § 20910 For the purposes of the formation election the board of supervisors shall establish a convenient number of election precincts in the proposed district and…
      • § 20911 The precinct board for the formation election shall be appointed, candidates for the offices of the proposed district shall be nominated, ballots and other…
      • § 20912 The board of supervisors shall act in place of the board, and the clerk of the board of supervisors shall act in place of the secretary.
      • § 20913 At the formation election the elective officers of the district shall be elected, but only one person shall be elected to fill the offices consolidated, if any.
      • § 20914 On the ballots provided for the formation election shall be printed a proposition substantially as follows: “Shall the proposed ____ Irrigation District be…
      • § 20915 The board of supervisors shall meet on the second Monday following the formation election to canvass the votes cast, and only if upon the canvass it appears…
      • § 20916 No informalities in the conduct of the formation election or in any related matters shall invalidate the election or the result if notice was given…
   3. ARTICLE 3. Contest of Election §§ 20930–20938 · 9 sections

      • § 20930 The formation election may be contested by any person owning property liable to assessment within the proposed district.
      • § 20931 No contest shall be brought more than 20 days after the canvass of the vote of the election by the board of supervisors.
      • § 20932 The directors elected at the formation election shall be parties defendant in an election contest.
      • § 20933 The election contest shall be brought in the superior court of the county where the formation proceedings were had.
      • § 20934 If more than one contest is pending, they shall be consolidated and tried together.
      • § 20935 The court shall speedily try the election contest.
      • § 20936 The determination of the election contest shall be based on whether or not the election was conducted fairly and in substantial compliance with the…
      • § 20937 An appeal may be taken by any party to an election contest within 30 days from entry of judgment.
      • § 20938 The appeal shall be heard and determined within 60 days from the time of filing the notice of appeal.
4. CHAPTER 4. Establishment of District §§ 20960–20963 · 5 sections

   • § 20960 If upon the canvass of the formation election it appears that a majority of all the votes cast are “Irrigation District—Yes,” the board of supervisors shall by…
   • § 20961 The board of supervisors shall immediately file for record in the office of the county recorder of each affected county a certified copy of the order declaring…
   • § 20962 From the filing for record of the order declaring the district formed the formation of the district is complete.
   • § 20962.5 The county clerk of the principal county shall immediately file with the Secretary of State a certificate listing: (a) The name of the district. (b) The date…
   • § 20963 The board of supervisors of any county in which any land embraced in a district is situated shall not after its formation allow another district to be formed…
5. CHAPTER 5. Change of Name §§ 20980–20982 · 5 sections

   • § 20980 Whenever the board so determines it may, or in the event any district has been formed under the same name as that of another district, the board of the last…
   • § 20980.5 The Palmdale Irrigation District may change its name pursuant to this chapter to the Palmdale Water District.
   • § 20980.6 The Helix Irrigation District may change its name pursuant to this chapter to the Helix Water District.
   • § 20981 Certified copies of the resolution changing the name of the district shall be recorded in the office of the county recorder in each affected county and sent to…
   • § 20982 The change of name shall become effective for all purposes upon the recordation of the resolution after which the district shall perform all functions,…