Opinion ID: 884137
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 5

Heading: issues

Text: Did the District Court err in implicitly concluding that the Board's own on-site wastewater treatment regulations did not obligate the Board to approve shallow-capped drainfields for the Green Acres subdivision? We review a district court's conclusions of law to determine whether the court's interpretation of the law is correct. Carbon County v. Union Reserve Coal Co., Inc. (1995), 271 Mont. 459, 469, 898 P.2d 680, 687. Assuming we hold, as we have above, that the Board has statutory authority to regulate sanitation in the Green Acres subdivision, Skinner Enterprises argues the District Court nonetheless erred in denying its petition for writ of mandamus and declaratory judgment for two reasons. First, Skinner Enterprises asserts the court erred in refusing to grant the relief requested because, in light of the uncontroverted facts, the Board could not refuse to approve shallow-capped drainfields. Second, Skinner Enterprises argues the court erred in denying its petition because the on-site wastewater treatment regulations in effect in 1990 indicated that shallow-capped drainfields were in fact appropriate for Green Acres.