The provisions of this part shall govern the levy and enforcement of assessments by or on behalf of irrigation districts against lands owned by the United States within the Columbia Basin Project, pursuant to the provisions of subsection 5 (b) and section 8 of the Columbia Basin Project Act (57 Stat. 14; 16 U. S. C. 835c-1 and 835c-4) and in keeping with the provisions of section 14, Chapter 275, Laws of Washington, 1943. (Section 89.12.120, Revised Code of Washington).

As used in this part:

(a) Project Manager means the Project Manager of the Columbia Basin Project, a Federal reclamation project.

(b) District means any one of the irrigation districts organized under the laws of Washington which has contracted with the United States under the Columbia Basin Project Act to repay a portion of the construction cost of the project.

(c) Settlement lands means those public lands of the United States within the project or those lands acquired by the United States under the authority of the Columbia Basin Project Act, title to which is vested in the United States and which are being held pending their conveyance in accordance with the project settlement and development program.

(d) Other project act lands means those public lands within the project and those lands or interests acquired and being held by the United States under the Columbia Basin Project Act, which are being held other than for conveyance in accordance with the project settlement and development program.

(e) Rights of way means lands or interests in lands acquired by the United States under the Federal Reclamation Laws (Act of June 17, 1902, 32 Stat. 388, 43 U. S. C. 391, and acts amendatory thereof or supplementary thereto) for the construction and operation of project works, rights of way, including improvements thereon, reserved to the United States, under the Act of August 30, 1890 (26 Stat. 391; 43 U. S. C. 945) or section 90.40.050 of the Revised Code of Washington and being asserted for project purposes.

(a) Settlement lands, which the United States is not under contract to sell or exchange at the time a district makes its annual levy of assessments shall not be assessed, except as provided in paragraph (c) of this section. If the United States thereafter contracts to sell or exchange such lands before the end of the irrigation season following the date of the annual levy, the purchaser will be required to make appropriate payment to the district for the water service which will be available to the purchaser during that irrigation season or the remaining portion thereof.

(b) From the date the United States contracts to sell or exchange settlement lands until title thereto passes to the purchaser under such contract, or until the rights of the purchaser are terminated or reacquired by the United States settlement lands shall be subject to assessment by a district on the same basis as other lands of like character within the operation of the district.

(c) Settlement lands, which the United States is not under contract to sell or exchange at the time a district makes its levy may be assessed by a district to the extent of the construction charge obligation installment required to be levied for the following year on such lands on account of the district's construction cost obligation to the United States. No other levies shall be made by a district against settlement lands in this status.

(d) While settlement lands which the United States has leased for use as irrigated lands and which the United States has not contracted to sell or exchange may not be assessed by a district except as provided in paragraph (c) of this section, lessees shall pay the district the same amounts annually that would be required to be paid for water service if the lands were subject to assessment therefor, in addition to any assessment levied under paragraph (c) of this section.

(e) Assessments made by a district against settlement lands while the United States is under contract to sell or exchange such lands shall be subject to all interest and penalties for delinquency as provided by the laws of Washington, but interest and penalties shall cease to accumulate on the date such contract is terminated or the purchaser's interest therein reacquired by the United States.

(f) No action shall be taken by or for a district to enforce any lien created as permitted under the regulations in this part by assessment foreclosure or other means that would purport to transfer any right in or title to any land or interests therein while title thereto is vested in the United States. Although the United States does not assume any obligation for the payment of such liens, it will in any conveyance of settlement lands covered thereby convey subject to those liens.

(a) A district shall, as to other project act lands and rights of way the title to which passes to the United States on or after January 1 of any year and before the district has levied its assessments for that year, immediately remove the lands from its assessment rolls and shall not thereafter take any proceedings to complete or enforce the assessments. Any such removal from the rolls shall be effective as of January 1 of the year in which title passes to the United States Action so to remove shall be taken promptly after the giving of written notice by the Project Manager to the district as to the lands involved, and the district shall provide the United States with a certificate stating that the lands have not been and will not be assessed so long as title thereto remains in the United States.

(b) There is no authority in law for the assessment of rights of way owned by the United States. Accordingly, a district shall make no assessment thereof while title thereto remains in the United States.

(c) Other project act lands while title thereto remains in the United States shall not be assessed for any district charge so long as they are in the “other project act lands” category.

The Project Manager will furnish each district prior to its annual levy every year a list of all the settlement lands owned by the United States for which water is available and which are not under contract of sale or exchange and therefore are not to be assessed by the district, except for construction charge obligation installments under § 413.3(c) when such charges are required to be levied.