NElZAL

Ron. Ii.A. Beckwlth, Chairman Board of Water Engineers 302W. 15th St. Austin, Texas Opinion No. S-134 Re: Whether the provision for reverslon ofwater rights to the State on dissolution of awater control and improvement district, contained inArticle 7880-77b, V.C.S., is automatic. Dear Sir:Your opinion request ofMarch 23, 1954 reflects the following facts:

In 1931, your Board issued apermit toAl and Lloyd Parker to appropriate 10,034 acre-feet ofwater per annum from the Rio Grande inCameron County for the purpose of irrigating 5,017 acres of land and to create a reservoir with a storage capacity of 5,017 acre-feet, the permit providing that thewater was to be diverted into the reservoir bymeans of a designated canal. The day after the permit was issued, the Parkers transferred the permit and all rights thereunder to Cameron County Water Control & Improvement District No. 18. Such district, while still,record owner of the permit, was dissolved on July 31, 1940 under Article 7880-77b, V.C.S. ing only partial completion of the plant.;nd 1932 showNo further Reports were filed in 1930k 1931 reports having been received, your Board held ahearing in 1942 to cancel thepermit butdismissed the proceedingswhen A. F. Parker protested inwriting. Parker filed reports only for 1943 and 1946, each reflecting no use of thewater and admitting thepermit had been inactive for a "number ofyears." On September 28, 1953, your 3oard cancelled the permit without notice orhearing. Affidavits recently filed reflect that 1,000 acres were irrigated. .

Hon. H.A. Beckwith -page 2 (No.S-134)

in 1929, 1931 and 1932 and arenow being irrigated, but no reservoir was ever created.

As we interpret your letter, your purpose is to ascertain the validity ofyour action cancelling the aforesaid permit, and based on that assumption, we shall answer your letter accordingly.

Articles 7474, 7519 and 7544, V.C.S., provide for forfeiture of apermit under circumstances such as above outlined. The first two statutes:above mentioned contain provisions requiring notice and hearing.

Article 7880-77b deals with dissolution ofwater control and improvement districts andprovides thatwhen the assets of the district have been liquidated and all debts paid, '. . _the directors of the district shall enter of record their final order of dissolution
. . .and thereupon anywater rights held from the State shall revert to the State andmay not, in anticipation of dissolution, be assigned by the district tobe so dissolved."

There isno provision in said statute fornotice, and its terms indicate the reversion is intended~tobe automatic. Indeed, there would seem tobe no reason fornotice orhearing. The permit was an asset of the district at the time of its dissolution. Such districts are arms of the State government. The directors of the district are "the managing officers in charge of all the business and affairs of the district. o . ;"Art. 7880-36, V,C.S.

The entry of the order of dissolution by theBoard of Directors under Art. 7880-77b, V.C.S., was a voluntary act. The initiative was theirs, not the StateIs. They are presumed toknow the legal consequences of their acts, and doubtless they did know, since the statute under which they acted in dissolving the district also provides for the reversion. Itwould seem unreasonable togive notice and have ahearing toprotect thepermit holder against the plain statutory consequences of its own voluntary act. The statute is plain, and even ifnotice andhearing were had, there is no authority given to the Board ofWater Engineers or to any other agency todeny the reversion.

We hold, therefore; that the permit automatically reverted to the State at the time of the dissolution of the district.Hon. H. A. Deckwith, page 

### 3 (S-134)

SUMMARY Upon dissolution of awater control and improvement district under Article 

### 7880-77b,V.&s., awater permit owned by said district automatically, without notice orhearing, reverts to the State. Yours very truly, JORRBRN SREPPRRD Attorney General

APPROVD: John Atchison Land Division Willis E. Gresham Reviewer Robert S.Trotti ~FirstAssistant John Ben Shepperd Attorney General JAS:bt J.Arthur Sandlin Assistant