Court Opinion

ID: 9562351
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2023-08-21 18:26:54.702907+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T09:17:18.376866
License: Public Domain

*34EDMONDS, J.,
concurring.
This case could have tragic consequences as a result of the department’s decisions. Farmers in the Teel Irrigation District (Teel) could find themselves without adequate irrigation water with which to cultivate and harvest their crops. The result could be severe financial hardship resulting in farm families losing their land and their livelihood.1
It is often perceived by those living east of the Cascade Mountains that the “law makers and the bureaucrats” west of the mountains are insensitive to the demands of trying to scratch out a living from the land in the more arid portions of our state. Whatever the correctness of that perception, that is not the motivation of this court. Teel’s dilemma is one of its own making. Our holding is compelled because Teel did not seek timely review of the December 1991 letter that expressly informed it that the department was prohibiting it from using water from McKay Reservoir, water that it had been using since the mid-1950’s. There is an old common law rule that sums up what has happened to Teel. “The law aids the vigilant, not those who sleep on their rights.” Under these facts, we lack the ability to consider the merits of the district’s position. If there is anything good that can come out of this case, perhaps it is that other districts will be reminded about the requirements of promptly seeking review under the Administrative Procedures Act.

 The trial court found that denied of the use of waters from McKay Reservoir could result in a loss of approximately $700,000 to the farmers in the district.