61-540. AUTHORIZING NEGOTIATION AND EXECUTION OF CONTRACTS BY THE STATE OF IDAHO WITH ELECTRICAL CORPORATIONS REGARDING CERTAIN WATER RIGHTS IDENTIFIED IN SECTION 61-539, IDAHO CODE. The governor of the state of Idaho or his designee is hereby empowered to negotiate and the governor to execute a contract on behalf of the state of Idaho with any electrical corporation which has filed or may file suit against water users or possible water users, said electrical corporation seeking to stop junior prior consumptive water uses as a result of Idaho Supreme Court Opinion No. 13794 in "Idaho Power Company vs. State of Idaho, et al," filed November 19, 1982. Each contract shall provide, among other things, that (1) all consumptive water users who have beneficially used water for any consumptive purpose prior to November 19, 1982, or any person or persons who have previously made substantial investments in irrigation wells and irrigation equipment and have pending a water permit or application, even though such irrigation wells and irrigation equipment were not in operation prior to November 19, 1982, may continue the water licensing process, (2) persons included within the provisions of (1) above are third party beneficiaries of said contract, (3) the electrical corporation shall, where any suit is pending in which a person is within the class of consumptive users identified in (1) above, move the court for the dismissal from the suit of such person or persons, (4) said contract shall be conditional upon the passage and approval of this act but shall terminate if section 61-539 or 61-540 [this section], Idaho Code, be subsequently amended or repealed, and (5) in the event this act be amended or repealed, the defenses of statute of limitations, abandonment, adverse possession, statutory forfeiture, latches [laches], waiver, estoppel and other applicable common law defenses shall not be available against said electrical corporation following said contract termination for a period of two (2) years, unless the parties mutually consent to keep said contract in effect by addendum.

History:

[61-540, added 1983, ch. 259, sec. 2, p. 690.]