Oregon Water Resources Department
Electronic Public Comments
Transfer: T 12402
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Name
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Comment
Derek Hopp
Carl W. Hopp, Jr. Attorney at Law, LLC
This transfer should be denied because it is not consistent with applicable statutes or administrative rules. Central Oregon Irrigation District (“COID”), as petitioner, submitted its petition on May 31, 2016 and subsequently revised its petition on June 6, 2016. A petitioner under ORS 540.580 must include several things that COID has failed to provide. ORS 540.580(2)(a) states that the petition shall include the information required under ORS 540.574(3). Subsection (b) of ORS 540.574(3) requires the names of all users within the district from whose lands water rights are to be transferred. COID claims on Table 1 of its petition that the Parr Family Trust is the user from whose land water rights are to be transferred. COID has provided incorrect information as the Parr Family Trust does not own the land from which the water rights are to be transferred, nor did the Parr Family Trust own the land from which the water rights are to be transferred on the dates COID submitted its petition. Thus, the Parr Family Trust is not the right user for COID to provide in its petition, pursuant to ORS 540.580(2)(a), and COID’s petition is incomplete. COID was required by ORS 540.580(2)(c) to include a statement that each landowner affected by the transfer has authorized the transfer. COID has misrepresented the owner of the land from which the water rights are to be transferred, so it naturally follows that COID did not get authorization for the transfer from the actual owner of the real property. Additionally, subsection (d) of ORS 540.580(2) requires COID to include any other information required by the Water Resources Commission. The Water Resources Commission, under OAR 690-385-4100(2)(c), requires COID to provide the names of the affected users. Again, COID incorrectly named the Parr Family Trust, thus COID failed to satisfy this requirement and its petition is incomplete. Finally, ORS 540.580(3) requires COID to notify each affected landowner and to notify the Department of the names of the users within the district from whose lands water rights are to be transferred. COID never notified the actual owner of the real property listed on Table 1 of COID’s petition for transfer of water rights. For the above reasons this transfer is not consistent with ORS 540.580 or OAR 690-385-4100(2)(c). The Department should find that COID’s petition does not include all required information, and the Department should deny COID’s petition pursuant to OAR 690-385-4400(2). Additionally, my office has sent two letters to Susan Douthit of Oregon Water Resources further explaining our objection to Transfer T-12402. Those letters are dated May 27, 2016 and June 16, 2016 and will be reproduced at the request of the Department.