Notwithstanding any provision of law to the contrary, every public agency empowered by law to make water available for any beneficial use of lands or inhabitants is hereby granted, in addition to and not in derogation or limitation of the powers conferred upon the public agency by any other law, the power:

(a) To enter into a contract with the department, subject to the provisions of Section 12057, for a water supply from the Washoe Project, or from any division or unit thereof, on behalf of the entire public agency, or of any portion or portions thereof for which the law applicable to the agency authorizes an indebtedness or liability to be incurred, including any improvement district, distribution district, or zone existing or hereafter established pursuant to the provisions of the law under which the public agency was formed, or pursuant to the provisions of subdivision (e) of this section, within said public agency, notwithstanding any debt limitation or other provision in the law applicable to such agency which might otherwise preclude or limit the incurring of such indebtedness or liability.

(b) To comply with the provisions of any contract entered into with the department under this part, including any provision which obligates the public agency, or any specified portion or portions thereof, to meet all commitments, financial or otherwise, undertaken by the public agency in such contract, notwithstanding any individual default by its constituents or others in the payment to the public agency of taxes, assessments, tolls, or other charges levied by the public agency.

(c) To annually levy or cause to be levied upon all property in the public agency, or in any portion or portions thereof, subject to taxation or assessment by the public agency an ad valorem tax or assessment, based upon the assessed valuation of such property, necessary and sufficient to meet all commitments, financial or otherwise, of the public agency that are set forth in any contract which the agency enters into with the department under this part, in addition to any other taxes or assessments which the public agency is authorized to levy or cause to be levied on such property and notwithstanding any provision in the law applicable to such agency which might otherwise preclude or limit such taxing or assessing. Where the law applicable to such public agency does not set forth a procedure for levying and collecting taxes or assessments on an ad valorem basis, such public agency shall utilize the procedure for levying and collecting taxes for the payment of principal and interest on general obligation bonds of municipal water districts, set forth in the Municipal Water District Law of 1911 (Division 20 (commencing with Section 70000) of this code), as it may now or hereafter be amended, for the purpose of levying and collecting taxes or assessments necessary and sufficient to meet commitments in a contract entered into under this part.

(d) To make charges for the furnishing of services in connection with the exercise of rights acquired under its contract with the department and to pledge and use any or all revenues received from the collection of such charges for the purpose of meeting the commitments, financial or otherwise, of the public agency that are set forth in any contract which the public agency enters into with the department under this part.

(e) To establish, by resolutions of the governing board thereof adopted from time to time, after notice and hearing thereon, zones of benefit within said public agency without reference to the boundaries of other zones, setting forth in such resolutions descriptions thereof by metes and bounds and entitle each of such zones by zone number. The governing board may, by resolution, after notice and hearing thereon, amend the boundaries by annexing property to or by withdrawing property from said zones or may divide existing zones into two or more zones or may superimpose a new or amended zone or zones already in existence, setting forth in such resolutions descriptions of the amended, divided or superimposed zones by metes and bounds and entitle each of such zones by zone number; provided, that no such amendment, division, or superimposition shall impair the obligations of existing zones undertaken pursuant to the provisions of this part.

The assumption of any indebtedness which the public agency is authorized to incur may be by the entire public agency, or may be by a zone or zones thereof if less than the entire public agency will be benefited by the purpose for which such indebtedness is incurred. In the latter event any election required to authorize the indebtedness shall be held only within the affected zone or zones.

(f) To perform all acts and do all things that are necessary or convenient to carry out the above powers.

(Added by Stats. 1966, 1st Ex. Sess., Ch. 42.)