6. The amount of district indebtedness is set forth and information is given as to their bond maturities and how they are meeting their obligations.

7. The amounts of annual irrigation charges which lands in the districts must pay and the procedure followed in the levy and collection of taxes is presented.

8. The gross and net irrigable areas of the districts are shown together with the crops that may be grown.

ACTIVE IRRIGATION DISTRICTS AS OF NOVEMBER, 1928-Continued

*Formed without approval of State Engineer.

East Contra Costa formed by consolidation in 1926 of Brentwood, Knightsen and Lone Tree; bond issued assumed by new district.

2Glenn, Colusa and Williams consolidated in 1924.

Palo Verde assumed bonded indebtedness of constituent districts of $2,647,330.36 in addition to $3,287,000 bonds voted and $213,000 refunding issue voted.

CHAPTER III

WATER STORAGE AND WATER CONSERVATION DISTRICTS

WATER STORAGE DISTRICT ACT

The Water Storage District Act was passed in 1921. While similar in many ways to the California Irrigation District Act it differs in the two important features of voting and assessments. Its enactment was due to the difficulty of handling irrigation districts of the usual form in areas where the land ownership is largely nonresident or where an ad valorem assessment is not applicable.

Where land ownership includes both large and small holdings with many nonresident owners it is difficult to select a basis of voting which gives to both the large and small owners adequate voice in the conduct of the district and avoids opportunity for dominance by either group to the disadvantage of the other group. The California Irrigation District Act uses the general electorate resident within the district as its basis of voting. This includes nonlandowners as well as landowners. Where there are large land holdings or many nonresident owners this basis has been objected to as not being representative of those responsible for the payment of district costs.

In the Water Storage District Act, voting is on a property qualification basis, each landowner being entitled to one vote for each $100 of assessed value of land. Such voting is also independent of residence within or without the district.

The California Irrigation District Act provides for assessments on an ad valorem basis, the assessed value of the land without improvements being used. Where all lands are to secure a complete water supply from the district works and where the larger part of the lands are of similar value, the ad valorem basis is equitable in result and flexible in application. Where the district will provide varying extents of service to different parts of its area, such as where some lands have existing direct flow rights furnishing a partial supply and other lands have no rights or supply, the value of the land is not proportional to the benefits or service supplied by the district. For such conditions, the lands having partial rights would secure no credit therefor under an ad valorem assessment. In such districts an assessment based on benefits enables such differences to be adjusted. As the areas desiring to organize under the Water Storage District Act were ones, which included varying degrees of present service, the benefit assessment was desired and adopted.

The Water Storage District Act also differs from the California Irrigation District Act in many features of its procedure. In general the organization and other procedure that is placed with the county supervisors for the irrigation districts, is placed with the State Engineer