The Sunnyside Unit of the Yakima Irrigation Project was so far completed in 1909 that the Secretary of the Interior gave notice that water would be furnished for irrigation purposes and that "the charges would be in
The defendants in their answer set up that the charge of 95 cents per acre, per annum, for maintenance and operation had been lawfully made by the Secretary of the Interior under the power conferred upon him by statute. The case was heard on Bill and Answer and the Bill dismissed. 196 Fed. Rep. 569. Baker took the case to the Circuit Court of Appeals, where, one judge dissenting, the decree was reversed (199 Fed. Rep. 865) on the ground that the Secretary of the Interior could not assess irrigable land with the cost of maintenance and operation.
Since its adoption in 1902 (32 Stat. 388, c. 1093) the act has always been differently construed by the Secretary of the Interior who, in granting water-rights, has uniformly assessed the landowners with the cost of maintenance. The contrary construction by the Circuit Court of Appeals raises a question of great importance to the owners of the land now irrigated. It is of equal importance to the Government and to that part of the public interested in the reclamation of those portions of the arid region which can be irrigated as soon as funds are available. For, by so much as the fund is depleted in the payment of
The statute provides that the cost of construction of the Project shall be charged against the land within the irrigable limits. The phrase is not expressly defined and being general in its terms is not necessarily limited to building, but may include the preservation and maintenance of what has been built. For example, a statute authorizing the levy of a tax to construct a sewer was held to empower the city to levy taxes for its maintenance. Power to construct a dock imposed the duty of operating it. Permission to "construct internal improvements" warranted the purchase of a plant already built, and authority to construct a road conferred power to maintain it. In re Fowler, 57 N.Y. 60; Seymour v. Tacoma, 6 Washington, 138; Attorney General v. Boston, 142 Massachusetts, 200; Pelham v. Woolsey, 16 Fed. Rep. 418; Atchison &c. Ry. v. McConnell, 25 Kansas, 370; Bell v. Maish, 137 Indiana, 226; Weston v. Hancock County, 98 Mississippi, 800, 54 So. Rep. 307. So, in the present case the statute provides that the Secretary may assess "the cost of construction of the project" without defining the term, and it may assist in arriving at the legislative intent to refer briefly to the facts leading up to the passage of the Reclamation Act.
The official reports show that, in 1902, there were in sixteen States and Territories 535,486,731 acres of public land still held by the Government and subject to entry. A large part of this land was arid, and it was estimated that 35,000,000 acres could be profitably reclaimed by the construction of irrigation works. The cost, however, was so stupendous as to make it impossible for the development to be undertaken by private enterprise, or, if so, only at the added expense of interest and profit private persons would naturally charge. With a view, therefore, of making these arid lands available for agricultural purposes by an expenditure of public money, it was proposed
The general outline of this plan was approved by Congress, which, on June 17, 1902, passed "An Act appropriating the receipts from the sale and disposal of public lands in certain States and Territories to the construction of irrigation works for the reclamation of arid lands."
In pursuance of this act, various Works, including that of the Sunnyside Unit of the Yakima Project, were constructed and notice was given of the charges that would be made. At first they were stated in a lump sum, cost of building, maintenance and operation making up the total. After 1906, the charges were separately stated substantially thus: "1. For building, $____ per acre; 2. For maintenance and operation, $____ per acre per annum."
1. The contention that this last item could not be assessed against the irrigated land is based upon the fact
2. If there could be any doubt as to the meaning of the statute, it disappears in the light of congressional construction which may properly be examined as an aid in its interpretation. Burridge v. Detroit, 117 Michigan, 557. The Secretary of the Interior annually made reports
3. It is argued that though these expressions show that Congress, in 1906 and 1907, thought that the cost of maintenance was chargeable under the Reclamation Act of 1902; yet no effect should be given to such legislative interpretation since Congress is not authorized to exercise the judicial function and has no power to construe existing statutes. But these acts of 1906 and 1907 were passed before the appellee, Baker, applied for his water-rights in 1909, and there are cases (State v. Orphans' Home, 37 Oh. St. 275; Dequindre v. Williams, 31 Indiana, 444), which would support a holding that this language, as to future transactions, was legislative in character
The decree of the Circuit Court of Appeals is reversed, that of the District Court is affirmed and the case remanded to the District Court.
Reversed.
Sec. 5. The entryman upon lands to be irrigated by such works shall, in addition to compliance with the homestead laws, reclaim at least one-half of the total irrigable area of his entry for agricultural purposes, and before receiving patent for the lands covered by his entry shall pay to the Government the charges apportioned against such tract, as provided in section four . . .. The annual installments shall be paid to the receiver of the local land office of the district in which the land is situated, and a failure to make any two payments when due shall render the entry subject to cancellation, with the forfeiture of all rights under this Act, as well as of any moneys already paid thereon. All moneys received from the above sources shall be paid into the reclamation fund. . . . Page 195 Sec. 6. The Secretary of the Interior is hereby authorized and directed to use the reclamation fund for the operation and maintenance of all reservoirs and irrigation works constructed under the provisions of this Act: Provided, That when the payments required by this Act are made for the major portion of the lands irrigated from the waters of any of the works herein provided for, then the management and operation of such irrigation works shall pass to the owners of the lands irrigated thereby, to be maintained at their expense under such form of organization and under such rules and regulations as may be acceptable to the Secretary of the Interior: Provided, That the title to and the management and operation of the reservoirs and the works necessary for their protection and operation shall remain in the Government until otherwise provided by Congress.
Sec. 10. The Secretary of the Interior is hereby authorized to perform any and all acts and to make such rules and regulations as may be necessary and proper for the purpose of carrying the provisions of this Act into full force and effect."
1. The building of the irrigation system, $52 per acre of irrigable land, payable in not more than 10 annual instalments. .. .
2. For operation and maintenance, which will as soon as the data are available, be fixed in proportion to the amount of water used, with the minimum charge per acre of irrigable land whether water is used or not. The operation and maintenance charge for the irrigation season of 1909, and until further notice, will be 95 cents per acre of irrigable land, for which water is ready in the irrigation season of 1909, whether water is used thereon or not.
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