A. Upon the substantial completion of the improvements of the district, or any unit thereof, and on or before the first day of September in each year the board may levy an assessment on all property and upon public corporations subject to assessment under this act, to maintain, operate and preserve the improvements made, to strengthen, repair and restore the same when needed or to defray the current expenses of the district.

B. The said assessment shall be levied by resolution of the board, shall be known as a maintenance assessment, shall be apportioned upon the basis of the total appraisal of benefits accruing for original and subsequent construction and shall not exceed one (1%) per centum thereof in any one year unless the court shall by its order authorize an assessment of a larger percentage.

C. As soon as said assessment is levied, the secretary shall prepare, in duplicate, a maintenance fund assessment record of the district. The said record shall be in the form of a well-bound book, endorsed and named "Maintenance Fund Assessment Record of . . . . . . . Conservancy District," which endorsement shall also be printed at the top of each page thereof.

D. The maintenance fund assessment record shall include a table or schedule (Form IX) [73-17-24 NMSA 1978] showing in properly ruled columns:

(1) the names of the owners of the property to which benefits are appraised, which may be as they appear in the decree of the court confirming the appraisals, and, in case of appraisals against a town, city, county or other public corporation, the name of the individual owners need not be given, but only the name of such corporation;

(2) the description of the items of property appraised and assessed, arranged by counties;

(3) the total maintenance assessment levied against each item of property;

(4) blank columns in which the treasurer shall enter payments as made, and the names of the persons paying the same.

E. Where successive levies of assessments are made for the maintenance fund, the maintenance fund assessment record shall contain suitable notations to show the number of levies and the amount of each, to the end that it may disclose the aggregate of all levies for the maintenance fund.

F. Upon the completion of the maintenance fund assessment record it shall be signed by the president of the district, and the seal of the district shall be thereunto affixed and attested by the signature of the secretary and the same shall thereafter become a permanent record in the office of the said district.

G. The amount of the said assessment paid by the owner of any property or by any public corporation shall not be credited against the benefits appraised against such property, or public corporation, but the maintenance assessment shall be in addition to any assessment that has been or can be levied against the benefits so appraised.

History: Laws 1927, ch. 45, § 509; C.S. 1929, § 30-509; 1941 Comp., § 77-2909; 1953 Comp., § 75-30-9.

Compiler's notes. — For the meaning of "this act", see compiler's notes to 73-16-2 NMSA 1978 and note following 73-14-1 and 73-18-1 NMSA 1978.

Cross references. — For annual levies, see 73-16-15 NMSA 1978.

For construction and development fund assessment, see 73-16-31 NMSA 1978.

Property control division required to pay levies. — The property control division of the general services department is required to pay levies assessed by the middle Rio Grande conservancy district on real property owned by the property control division within the conservancy district. 1987 Op. Att'y Gen. No. 87-07.

Am. Jur. 2d, A.L.R. and C.J.S. references. — 45 Am. Jur. 2d Irrigation §§ 70 to 72.

52A C.J.S. Levees and Flood Control §§ 28 to 39; 94 C.J.S. Waters §§ 332 to 337.