Effective 28 Aug 1961

278.120. District shall be body corporate — duties. — 1. Any soil and water district organized under the provisions of this law shall be a body corporate and shall possess only such powers as herein provided, but any such powers possessed by said body corporate shall be particularly limited by the following provisos: provided, that the private property of any land representative or owner of property in such soil and water district shall be exempt from execution for the debts of the body corporate or soil and water district and no land representative or owner of property within said soil and water district shall be liable or responsible for any debts of the body corporate or soil and water district, and provided further, that no property of any character, title to which is not vested in said soil and water district, or a soil and water district, as the case may be, shall ever be subject to any lien for any claim or judgment of or against said district, or a soil and water district as the case may be. Any soil and water district so organized shall be officially known and titled "The Soil and Water District of ______ County", and shall be so designated by the county commission by order of record, and in that name shall be capable of suing and being sued and of contracting and being contracted with.

2. A soil and water district through the board of soil and water district supervisors thereof shall have the following authority and duty in addition to other authority and duty granted in other sections of this law:

(1) To promote all reasonable measures for the saving of the soil and water within that soil and water district; and all such measures shall be in general agreement with those currently advocated by the college of agriculture of the University of Missouri for saving the productive power of Missouri farm land;

(2) To cooperate or enter into agreements with, and to aid within the limits of appropriations duly made available to it by law, any agency, government or otherwise, or any land representative within that soil and water district, in the saving of the soil and water within that district; and all such cooperations or agreements shall be in accord with the policies of the state soil and water districts commission; and any land representative of farm land within that soil and water district shall be eligible to enter into such cooperations or agreements with the soil and water supervisors; and no program or procedure of soil and water conservation shall be ordered or executed by the soil and water supervisors on any farm without the full consent and agreement of the land representative of that farm;

(3) To make available to any land representative within that soil and water district, through existing agencies if agreements with them seem feasible, or by such other feasible means as the supervisors shall prescribe, such services, materials, and equipment as will assist such land representatives to carry on operations for the saving of the soil and water;

(4) To accept grants, gifts, and contributions in money, services, or materials from the United States or any of its agencies, and to use or expend such grants, gifts or contributions in carrying on the soil and water district operations; and such use or expenditure shall be in accord with the policies of the state soil and water districts commission;

(5) To make and execute contracts and other legal instruments, necessary for the saving of the soil and water in that district, subject to approval by the state soil and water districts commission;

(6) To accept for the purpose of saving soil and water in that district, contributions in money, services or materials from any source not otherwise provided for herein, and to enter into such agreements with land representatives as will tend to prevent future wastage of the soil and water presently benefitted by these contributions.

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(L. 1943 p. 839 § 6, A.L. 1961 p. 31)