Section 73-18-14 - Tolls and charges; advance payment; omitted property.
73-18-14. Tolls and charges; advance payment; omitted property.
For the purpose of defraying the expenses of the district in carrying out the purposes of this act [73-18-1 to 73-18-24 NMSA 1978] and in the care, operation, management, repair and improvement of all canals, ditches, reservoirs and related works, including salaries and expenses of officers and employees, or for payment of charges to the United States for the temporary rental of water, for operation and maintenance of the irrigation and drainage system and incidental or related works or for any or all of said purposes the board may fix rates of tolls and charges and collect the same of all persons using the said irrigation and drainage system or the water supply made available thereby. Said tolls and charges shall be in addition to the assessments and levies elsewhere provided for in this act, and shall be fixed so that the revenue estimated to be derived therefrom in the year for which fixed, together with the amount of assessments for that year will be not less than the estimated obligation to come due and needs of the district for that year as determined under Section 8 A [73-18-8 A NMSA 1978] of this act; provided, that such assessments, tolls or charges for operation and maintenance of the said irrigation and drainage system or related and incidental works, or for the use of the water supply made available thereby, may be fixed in accordance with the reclamation law, and the rules and regulations of the secretary of the interior thereunder and the reclamation contract and statements and notices issued pursuant thereto.
Whenever any tolls and charges for the use of water have been fixed by the board of a contracting district it shall be lawful to make the same payable in advance and in case any such tolls and charges remain unpaid or any balances for water delivered by measurement are unpaid at the time specified for levying the annual assessment, the amount due for such tolls and charges or balances may be added to and become a part of the assessment levied upon the land [on] which the water for which such tolls, charges or balances are unpaid, was used. Any land which may have escaped assessment for any year or years shall, in addition to the assessment for the then current year, be assessed for such year or years with the same effect and with the same penalties as are provided for the current year and any property delinquent for any year may be correctly assessed during the current year for any expenses caused to the contracting district on account of such delinquency. In the event that any land within a contracting district, subject to assessment for any of the purposes of the district, has not been assessed and does not appear upon the assessment roll as prepared for the treasurer and collector, the land so omitted shall be forthwith assessed by the treasurer upon an order of the board of directors and as so ordered a description of the property so omitted shall be written on the roll and the proper assessment levied.