The Delta independent., 1922-02-10
ments required Of the project farmers

project lands Will take ADVANTAGE Ot
the Extension Act which provides that
the payments be made and spread out
over period of twenty years.
For your information you are ad
vised that approximately 80 per cent
of the project, or $4,000 acres. come
under Section OF the Reclamation
Extension Act. This section requires
that lands entered on or obligated to
the Water Users Association prior to
August 13, 1914, shall pay the con.
struction charge in twenty annual in.
stallments as follows: The first in.
stallment becomes due and payable on
December ! of the year in which pub.
lie notice is issued, and subsequent
installments on December 1 of each
year thereafter. The first four of such
instanInents shall each be per cent,
the next two installments shall be 4
per cent, and the next fourteen in
stallments each per cent, of the
total construction charge.
approximately 20 per cent, or 20
900 acres, will come under Section l
of the Reclamation Extension Act.
This section requires that any land
entered on or obligated to the Water
Users Association after August 13,
1914, shall at the time of making a
water right application or entry. as
the case may be, pay an initial install
ment of 8 per cent per annum and the
balance of said charge in fifteen an
nual installments, the first five of
which shall be 5 per cent, and the
ten each per cent The
first of the annual installments due
after the initial insta1lment has been
paid shall become due and payable on
December 1 of the fifth calendar year
after the initial installment.
On the assumption that the project
charge will approximate
$40 per acre, it will be seen that the
first four construction charge pay
ments due on December 1 of each year
will amount to $1.40 per acre on the
greater portion of this project When
public notice is issued the operation
and maintenance costs are charged
against all of the irrigable area on
the project, irrespective of whether
water is used on such land or not In
other words. assuming that the cost
Of operation and maintenance during
future years will approximate s135, 900.
it will be seen that the average cost
per acre for operation and mainten-
ance would be s1.35 per acre. and
adding this amount to the $1.40 per
acre of construction charge we have
a total required payment of s2.75 per
acre.
The cost of operation and maiEten-
ance during the season 1921 amounted
to s153,1O4.74; 63.75g acres were irri-
gated. The cost per acre irrigated,
therefore. amounts to $40 for the
past year.
It will be appreciated that much
work is necessitated each year on the
maintenance Of the South canal and
Gunnison tunnel. These features are
necessary for every acre Of land in
the valley. The cost OF this work
during the past four years has been
charged against the lands that are
being irrigated. In other words, the
lands that are now being irrigated pay
for work that is OF benefit to every
acre Of land that will eventually come
under the project.
The lands subject to Section of
the Reclamation Extension Act would
be required to pay $3.50 per acre prior
to the irrigation season under which
water was being furnished under a
public notice basis. No other pay
ments would be required of this class
of land for period of four years.
after which additional annual pay
ments OF $3.50 per acre would be re-
quired on December 1 for five years.
and $3.50 per acre on December ! for
ten years thereafter.
Costs and Returns
The cost of operation and mainten-
ance during the calendar year 1921
to $153,104.74. The rates in
effect for the past year were based on
a defererd payment of a project water
rental charge of $105 per second foot.
The revenues derived from the sale of
rental water during the past year will
be sufficient to pay for the project
operation and maintenance cost and
leave a surplus of from 5000 to $500
for the current irrigation season.
These rates during the past year were
also sufficient to take up an operation
and maintenance deficit of $2.08360
which occurred during the calendar
year 1920.
At the present time the amount of
water charges due from those who
have not yet paid, including the PEN
atty and interest charges. amount to
$31. .073.20. In other words, approx.
mately 20 per cent Of the water rental
accounts are now outstanding, and in