Oregon Statutes - Chapter 539 - Determination of Water Rights Initiated Before February 24, 1909; Determination of Water Rights of Federally Recognized Indian Tribes

• 539.005   Purpose of chapter; rules.
  (1) The Legislative Assembly declares that it is the purpose of this chapter to set forth the procedures for carrying out a general stream adjudication...
• 539.010   Protection of water rights vested or initiated prior to February 24, 1909.
  (1) Actual application of water to beneficial use prior to February 24, 1909, by or under authority of any riparian proprietor or the predecessors in...
• 539.015   Certification of statements of claimants; oaths.
  Each claimant or owner who files a statement and proof of claim form or a registration statement shall be required to certify to the statements...
• 539.020   [Repealed by 1987 c.541 §1 (539.021 enacted in lieu of 539.020)]
• 539.021   Determination by Water Resources Director of rights of claimants; transfer of action to director.
  (1) The Water Resources Director upon the motion of the director or, in the discretion of the director, upon receipt of a petition from one...
• 539.030   Notice of investigation of stream.
  The Water Resources Director shall prepare a notice, setting forth the date when the director or the assistant of the director will begin such investigation...
• 539.040   Notice of hearing by director.
  (1) As soon as practicable after the examination and measurements are completed, as described in ORS 539.120, the Water Resources Director shall prepare a notice...
• 539.050   [Amended by 1955 c.669 §3; repealed by 1987 c.541 §10]
• 539.060   [Repealed by 1987 c.541 §10]
• 539.070   Hearing by director; adjournments.
  Upon the date named in the notice for taking testimony, the Water Resources Director or the authorized assistant of the director shall begin taking testimony...
• 539.080   [Amended by 1971 c.621 §37; 1975 c.607 §40; 1979 c.67 §3; 1981 c.627 §2; 1983 c.256 §2; repealed by 1987 c.541 §6 (539.081 enacted in lieu of 539.080)]
• 539.081   Fees; exemption; disposition.
  (1) At the time the owner or registrant submits a registration statement under ORS 539.240 or, if a registration statement is not filed, when a...
• 539.090   Notice of right to inspect evidence, and of place of court hearing.
  Upon the completion of the taking of testimony by the Water Resources Director, the director shall at once give notice by registered mail or by...
• 539.100   Contest of claims submitted to director; notice by contestant; service on contestee.
  Any person owning any irrigation works, or claiming any interest in the stream involved in the determination shall be a party to, and bound by,...
• 539.110   Hearing of contest; notice of; procedure.
  The Water Resources Director shall fix the time and a convenient place for hearing the contest, and shall notify the contestant and the person whose...
• 539.120   Examination by director of stream and diversions in contest; record; map.
  The Water Resources Director, or a qualified assistant, shall proceed at the time specified in the notice to the parties on the stream given as...
• 539.130   Findings of fact and determination of director; certification of proceedings; filing in court; fixing time for hearing by court; notice; force of director’s determination.
  (1) As soon as practicable after the compilation of the data the Water Resources Director shall make and cause to be entered of record in...
• 539.140   Water right certificates.
  Upon the final determination of the rights to the waters of any stream, the Water Resources Department shall issue to each person represented in the...
• 539.150   Court proceedings to review determination of director.
  (1) From and after the filing of the evidence and order of determination in the circuit court, the proceedings shall be like those in an...
• 539.160   Transmittal of copy of decree to department; instructions to watermasters.
  The clerk of the circuit court, upon the entry of any decree by the circuit court or judge thereof, as provided by ORS 539.150, shall...
• 539.170   Division of water pending hearing.
  While the hearing of the order of the Water Resources Director is pending in the circuit court, and until a certified copy of the judgment,...
• 539.180   Bond or irrevocable letter of credit to stay operation of director’s determination; notice to watermaster.
  At any time after the determination of the Water Resources Director has been entered of record, the operation thereof may be stayed in whole or...
• 539.190   Rehearing by circuit court.
  Within six months from the date of the decree of the circuit court determining the rights upon any stream, or if appealed, within six months...
• 539.200   Conclusiveness of determinations as to water rights.
  The determinations of the Water Resources Director, as confirmed or modified as provided by this chapter in proceedings, shall be conclusive as to all prior...
• 539.210   Duty of claimants to appear and submit proof; nonappearance as forfeiture; intervention in proceedings.
  Whenever proceedings are instituted for determination of rights to the use of any water, it shall be the duty of all claimants interested therein to...
• 539.220   Procedure when rights to same stream have been determined in different proceedings.
  Whenever the rights to the waters of any stream have been determined as provided in this chapter and it appears by the records of such...
• 539.230   Notice of need to file registration statement; publication requirements; additional methods of providing notice.
  (1) In order to preserve information relating to claims to undetermined vested rights as described in ORS 539.010 and federal reserved rights, the Water Resources...
• 539.240   Claim to undetermined right to appropriate surface water; registration statement; contents; effect of failure to file; recognizing changes to right; rules.
  (1) Any person, corporation or governmental agency claiming an undetermined vested right, federal reserved right or right derived from such rights to appropriate surface water...
• 539.300   Legislative findings.
  The Legislative Assembly of the State of Oregon finds it is desirable to provide a procedure for conducting negotiations to determine the water rights of...
• 539.310   Negotiation for water rights.
  (1) The Water Resources Director may negotiate with representatives of any federally recognized Indian tribe that may have a federal reserved water right claim in...
• 539.320   Agreement; submission to court.
  When the Water Resources Director and the representatives of any federally recognized Indian tribe that may have a federal reserved water right claim in Oregon...
• 539.330   Notice to persons affected by agreement.
  (1) Upon filing of the agreement with the appropriate court under ORS 539.320, the Water Resources Director shall notify owners of water right certificates or...
• 539.340   Court decree; effective date of agreement; remand.
  (1) An agreement negotiated under ORS 539.310 to 539.330 shall not be effective unless and until incorporated in a final court decree, after the court...
• 539.350   Procedures after remand of agreement.
  Within 180 days after the court remands the agreement under ORS 539.340, the Water Resources Director shall file with the court: (1) An amended agreement...

Last modified: August 7, 2008