1. Whenever the State Engineer is authorized or required by law to conduct a hearing, the State Engineer may issue subpoenas requiring the attendance of witnesses before the State Engineer, together with all books, memoranda, papers and other documents relative to the matters for which the hearing is called, and take depositions within or without the State, as the circumstances of the case may require.

2. The district court in and for the county in which any hearing is being conducted by the State Engineer or the designee of the State Engineer may compel the attendance of witnesses, the giving of testimony and the production of books and papers as required by any subpoena issued by the State Engineer.

3. If a witness refuses to attend or testify or produce any papers required by the subpoena, the State Engineer may report to the district court in and for the county in which the hearing is pending by petition, setting forth:

(a) That due notice has been given of the time and place of attendance of the witness or the production of the books and papers;

(b) That the witness has been subpoenaed in the manner prescribed in this section; and

(c) That the witness has failed and refused to attend or produce the papers required by the subpoena before the State Engineer or the designee of the State Engineer in the hearing named in the subpoena, or has refused to answer questions propounded to the witness in the course of the hearing,

and asking for an order of the court compelling the witness to attend and testify or produce the books or papers before the State Engineer or the designee of the State Engineer.

4. The court, upon petition of the State Engineer, shall enter an order directing the witness to appear before the court at a time and place to be fixed by the court in the order, and show cause why the witness has not attended or testified or produced the books or papers before the State Engineer or the designee of the State Engineer. The time for the appearance may not be later than 10 days after the date of the order. A certified copy of the order must be served upon the witness. If it appears to the court that the subpoena was regularly issued by the State Engineer, the court may thereupon enter an order that the witness appear before the State Engineer or the designee of the State Engineer at the time and place fixed in the order and testify or produce the required books or papers. If the witness fails to obey the order, the witness must be dealt with as for contempt of court.

(Added to NRS by 1989, 406)