Title 45, Water Resources: Irrigation, Drainage, Flood Control, Reclamation

(1) The Water Resources Department shall establish a grant program to pay the qualifying costs of studies performed to evaluate the feasibility of projects related to: (a) Water conservation. (b) Water reuse. (c) Aquifer recharge. (d) Aquifer storage and recovery. (e) Streamflow …

(1) A study receiving a grant or payment for direct services under ORS 541.561 may include activities necessary to assess the type, location, design, cost or other factors affecting the feasibility of a project described in ORS 541.561. Specific activities may include, but are no…

(1) The Water Project Feasibility Fund is established in the State Treasury, separate and distinct from the General Fund. Interest earned by the Water Project Feasibility Fund shall be credited to the General Fund. Moneys in the Water Project Feasibility Fund are continuously app…

The Water Resources Commission shall adopt rules necessary to administer ORS 541.561 to 541.581, including rules that: (1) Establish reporting requirements for grants awarded under ORS 541.561; (2) Provide for public comment before the award of grants and payment for direct servi…

As used in ORS 541.651 to 541.696: (1) “Newly developed water” means the new increment of water: (a) Stored for a project providing new or expanded storage; (b) Allocated to a use under a secondary water right for a project involving the allocation of previously uncontracted wate…

(1) The purpose of ORS 541.651 to 541.696 is to establish a means for state government to support the development of water resource projects having economic, environmental and community benefits. (2) The Legislative Assembly intends that any conditions or requirements described i…

(1) The Water Supply Development Account is established in the State Treasury, separate and distinct from the General Fund. Interest earned by the Water Supply Development Account shall be credited to the account. Moneys in the account are continuously appropriated to the Water R…

(1) Unless otherwise specified in an Act referencing this section, an expenditure of moneys from the Water Supply Development Account is not subject to ORS 541.663, 541.666, 541.669, 541.673 or 541.677 if the expenditure is for a project specifically named in an Act as subject to…

(1) Loans and grants may be made from the Water Supply Development Account to persons as defined in ORS 536.007, to a federally recognized Indian tribe in Oregon that has members residing on a reservation or tribal trust lands in Oregon and nonprofit organizations. (2) If an appl…

(1) A prospective applicant for a loan or grant from the Water Supply Development Account may participate in a preapplication conference with the Water Resources Department. (2) At the preapplication conference, the department shall inform the prospective applicant of the procedu…

(1) Applications for a loan or grant from the Water Supply Development Account must: (a) Be in a form prescribed by the Water Resources Department. (b) Include any information required by the department. (c) Be filed with the department. (2) The department may require an applicat…

(1) The Water Resources Commission shall adopt rules establishing a system for scoring and ranking projects to determine which projects are to be awarded loans and grants from the Water Supply Development Account, including but not limited to the application of minimum criteria d…

(1) Projects applying under ORS 541.669 for funding from the Water Supply Development Account shall be evaluated based upon the public benefits of the project. The evaluation must consider both positive and negative effects of a project. The three categories of public benefit to …

(1) The Water Resources Commission shall design the minimum criteria for the project scoring and ranking system described in ORS 541.669 to achieve the following outcomes: (a) Issuing grants or loans only to projects that provide benefits in each of the three categories of public…

(1) The recipient of a grant from the Water Supply Development Account must agree to the condition set forth in subsection (2) of this section if the grant is for the development of a new or expanded above-ground storage facility that: (a) Impounds surface water on a perennial st…

(1) A project that receives a loan or grant from the Water Supply Development Account must: (a) Demonstrate social or cultural benefits and economic benefits sufficient to qualify the project under the scoring and ranking system described in ORS 541.669; and (b) Except as otherwi…

If a project dedicates water to in-stream use under the requirements described in ORS 541.681 or as allowed under ORS 541.683, the Water Resources Department shall protect the dedicated water in-stream consistent with the priority of the dedicated water source. Dedicated water fr…

(1) The Water Resources Department shall make a determination as provided under subsection (2) of this section if an application for a loan or grant from the Water Supply Development Account is for a project that requires a limited license, water right certificate or water right …

(1) Before loan or grant moneys are expended from the Water Supply Development Account for the construction of a project, the recipient must obtain all applicable local, state and federal permits. Project materials must include a notation indicating that Water Resources Departmen…

(1) The Water Resources Commission shall adopt rules establishing standards for borrowers obtaining loans issued from the Water Supply Development Account. The commission shall design the standards to ensure that all loans have a high probability of repayment and that all loans a…

The Water Resources Department Water Supply Fund is established separate and distinct from the General Fund. Interest earned on moneys deposited in the Water Resources Department Water Supply Fund shall be credited to the fund. The fund consists of lottery bond proceeds, interest…

As used in ORS 541.700 to 541.855, unless the context requires otherwise: (1) “Commission” means the Water Resources Commission appointed under ORS 536.022. (2) “Construction” means the construction, or improvement or rehabilitation, in whole or in part, of a water development pr…

Of the applications filed under ORS 541.705 for assistance in constructing a water development project for municipal use, the Water Resources Commission shall give preference for approval to those projects required to be undertaken as a result of a proceeding under ORS 222.840 to…

(1) Any water developer may file with the Water Resources Commission an application to enable the construction of a water development project as provided in ORS 541.700 to 541.855. The application shall be filed in the manner, be in the form and contain or be accompanied by any i…

(1) Upon receipt of an application filed as provided in ORS 541.705, the Water Resources Commission shall determine whether the feasibility study described in ORS 541.705 for the water development project set forth in or accompanying the application is satisfactory and if the com…

Nothing in ORS 541.700 to 541.855 is intended to prevent an applicant from employing a private planning firm, engineering firm and construction firm to perform the planning work, engineering work and construction on the proposed water development project of the applicant. [1977 c…

The Water Resources Commission may approve the financing for the construction of a water development project described in an application filed as provided in ORS 541.705 using moneys in the Water Development Fund, secured by a first, parity or second lien in the manner provided i…

If the Water Resources Commission approves the financing for the construction of a water development project, the commission, on behalf of the state, and the applicant may enter into a loan contract, secured by a first, parity or second lien in the manner provided in ORS 541.740,…

If the Water Resources Commission approves a loan for a water development project or federal water development project, the State Treasurer shall pay moneys for such project from the Water Development Fund in accordance with the terms of the loan contract, as prescribed by the co…

(1)(a) When a loan is made to a water developer other than a water developer described in ORS 541.700 (7)(a), (b), (c) or (d) for the construction of a water development project under ORS 541.700 to 541.855, the State of Oregon has a lien for the amount of the unpaid balance of t…

The Water Resources Commission shall not attempt to recover interest amounts credited or paid before January 1, 1986, to any water developer who borrowed moneys under ORS 541.700 to 541.855 and shall adjust the borrower’s account balance as necessary to reflect those credits as l…

If a water developer fails to comply with a contract entered into with the Water Resources Commission for construction and repayment as provided in ORS 541.730, the commission, in addition to remedies provided in ORS 541.740, may seek other appropriate legal remedies to secure th…

Any water developer that enters into a contract with the Water Resources Commission for construction and repayment as provided in ORS 541.730 or 541.745 may obtain moneys for repayment to the Water Development Administration and Bond Sinking Fund under the contract in the same ma…

Except as provided in ORS 541.760: (1) If any water development project investigated under ORS 541.700 to 541.855, other than a safe drinking water project financed in whole or in part from moneys in the Special Public Works Fund created by ORS 285B.455 or the Water Fund created …

If a water development project has any secondary use, and if the water developer receives from any source other than the Water Development Fund any funds to assist in the construction, operation or maintenance of such secondary use, the amount of the loan to the water developer f…

In addition to those uses of moneys in the Water Development Fund otherwise provided in ORS 541.700 to 541.855, the Water Resources Commission may authorize loans of such moneys to those persons to whom approval has been granted by the federal government or any agency or instrume…

If the Water Resources Commission approves an application for the loan of moneys authorized by ORS 541.765, the commission shall enter into a loan contract with the borrower that provides, among other matters: (1) That the loan be secured by a first lien or by other good and suff…

In order to provide funds for the purposes specified in Article XI-I (1) of the Oregon Constitution, the Water Resources Commission may request the State Treasurer to issue bonds in accordance with the provisions of ORS chapter 286A. [1977 c.246 §19; 1981 c.660 §45; 2007 c.783 §2…

Except for the proceeds of refunding bonds, all moneys obtained from the sale of bonds under ORS 541.780 to 541.815 shall be credited by the State Treasurer to the Water Development Fund. Such moneys shall be used only for the purposes stated in Article XI-I (1), Oregon Constitut…

(1) The State Treasurer shall make payment of the principal of and the interest on any bond issued under ORS 541.780 to 541.815 from the Water Development Administration and Bond Sinking Fund. (2) The State Treasurer shall compute and determine in January of each year, after the …

No bonds shall be issued or sold under ORS 541.780 to 541.815 nor indebtedness incurred thereunder, which, singly or in the aggregate with previous debts or liabilities incurred for the construction, operation and maintenance of water development projects and for the acquisition …

(1) There hereby is created the Water Development Administration and Bond Sinking Fund, separate and distinct from the General Fund, to provide for payment of: (a) Administrative expenses of the Water Resources Commission and the Water Resources Department in processing applicati…

All moneys in the Water Development Fund created by Article XI-I (1), Oregon Constitution, hereby are appropriated continuously to the Water Resources Commission and shall be used for the purposes provided in ORS 541.700 to 541.855. Moneys expended from the fund may include those…

(1) If there are insufficient funds in the Water Development Administration and Bond Sinking Fund to make the payments referred to in ORS 541.830 (1), the Water Resources Commission may request the funds necessary for such payments from the Legislative Assembly within the budget …

(1) In accordance with the applicable provisions of ORS chapter 183, the Water Resources Commission may adopt rules necessary to carry out ORS 541.700 to 541.855. (2) In adopting rules establishing guidelines or criteria for awarding loans or grants for drinking water projects, t…

The Water Resources Commission may accept gifts of money or other property from any source, given for the purposes of ORS 541.700 and 541.705 to 541.770. Money so received shall be paid into the Water Development Fund. Money or other property so received shall be used for the pur…

The Water Resources Commission shall make available to the Legislative Assembly and the Governor a biennial report of the transactions of the Water Development Fund and the Water Development Administration and Bond Sinking Fund in such detail as will accurately indicate the trans…

(1) It is the intent of the Legislative Assembly in enacting ORS 541.857 to 541.882 to: (a) Establish the Oregon Environmental Restoration Fund in the State Treasury, consisting of moneys paid to the state from the Monsanto Settlement Agreement; (b) Provide for the investment of …

As used in ORS 541.857 to 541.882: (1) “Disproportionately impacted community” means communities that have been disproportionately impacted by PCB or other contaminants or that have been historically underrepresented in public processes regarding environmental laws or policies an…

(1) The Environmental Restoration Council is established in the Oregon Watershed Enhancement Board. The council consists of 13 members as follows: (a) The Governor or the Governor’s designee. (b) The Director of the Department of Environmental Quality or the director’s designee. …