A. The board of any contracting district shall commence special proceedings in and by which the proceedings had for the organization and establishment of the district and in and by which the authorization, due execution and validity of a reclamation contract may be judicially examined, approved and confirmed. Such proceedings shall be brought as to any district which has heretofore executed a reclamation contract within sixty days after the effective date of this act [73-18-1 to 73-18-24 NMSA 1978] and in all other cases within sixty days after the execution of such contract. Like proceedings may and when so required by any provision of this act shall be commenced by the board for the judicial examination, approval and confirmation of any bond issue, assessment, resolution providing for apportionment of assessments to classes of property or classifying property, order, act, proceeding or contract of such district.

B. Commencement of such proceedings shall be by the filing by the board of directors of the district in the conservancy court provided for by the provisions of the Conservancy Act of a petition praying in effect that the proceedings had for the organization of the district or the reclamation contract or other contract, bond issue, assessment, resolution providing for apportionment of assessments to classes of property, or classifying property, order, act or proceeding or any one or more thereof may be examined, approved and confirmed by the court. The petition shall state the facts, showing the proceedings had for the issue and sale of bonds of the district or the pertinent facts pertaining to a reclamation contract, bond issue, assessment, resolution providing for apportionment of assessments to classes of property or classifying property, order, act, proceeding or contract or one or more thereof, but the petition need not state the facts showing such organization of the district and it shall be sufficient that it be stated therein generally that the district was duly organized.

C. The court shall fix a time for the hearing of said petition, which time shall be not less than ten days after the last publication of notice herein provided for, and shall order the clerk of the court to give and publish a notice in form to be prescribed by the court in such order, of the filing of such petition. The notice shall be given and published in the English language once each week for four consecutive weeks in a newspaper of general circulation published in each county wherein shall be situated any lands within the district. Such notice also shall be published for a like time in Spanish in any county where publication of such notice is required to be made wherein there is a newspaper of general circulation published in the Spanish language. The notice shall state the time and place fixed for the hearing of the petition and the prayer of the petitioners and that any person interested in the organization of the district, reclamation contract, bond issue, assessment, resolution providing for apportionment of assessments to classes of property or classifying property, order, act, proceeding or contract in question may, on or before the date fixed for the hearing of said petition, demur to or answer said petition. The petition may be referred to and described in said notice as the petition of the board of directors of . . . . . . . . . . conservancy district (giving its name), praying that the proceedings for the organization of the district, the validity of the reclamation contract, bond issue, assessment, resolution providing for apportionment of assessments to classes of property or classifying property, order, act, proceeding or contract, as the case may be, may be examined, approved and confirmed by the court.

D. Any person interested in said district or in the reclamation contract, bond issue, assessment, resolution providing for apportionment of assessments to classes of property or classifying property, order, act, proceeding or contract as may be in issue as herein provided, at any time before but not after the time for hearing as fixed in said notice, may file demurrer or answer or both to said petition. The person so demurring and answering said petition shall be the defendant to the special proceeding and the board of directors shall be the plaintiff. Every material statement of the petition not specifically controverted by the answer shall, for the purpose of said special proceeding, be taken as true, and each person failing to answer the petition shall be deemed to admit as true all the material statements of the petition. The rules of pleading and practice and rules of the supreme court relating to appeals and writs of error, as the same may be in force at the time of any such appeal, which are not inconsistent with the provisions of this act are applicable to the special proceedings herein provided for; provided, appeals to the supreme court of the state, involving the special proceedings herein mentioned, shall be taken within twenty days and shall be perfected within sixty days after the granting of any such appeal.

E. Upon the hearing of such special proceeding the court shall find and determine whether the notice of the filing of the petition has been duly given and published for the time and in the manner in this act prescribed and shall have power and jurisdiction to examine and determine the legality and validity of, and approve and confirm each and all of the proceedings for the organization of said district under the provisions of the Conservancy Act from and including the petition for the organization of the district, and all other proceedings which may affect the legality or validity of said bonds and the order of the sale thereof and shall have power and jurisdiction to examine and determine the legality and validity of the reclamation contract, bond issue, assessment, resolution providing for apportionment of assessments to classes of property or classifying property, order, act, proceeding or contract as the case may be. The court, in inquiring into the regularity, legality or correctness of said proceedings, must disregard any error, irregularity or omission which does not affect the substantial rights of the parties to said special proceedings; and the court may by decree approve and confirm, in whole or in part, such proceedings and the validity thereof or of the reclamation contract, bond issue, assessment, resolution providing for apportionment of assessments to classes of property or classifying property, order, act, proceeding or contract or disapprove and declare the same illegal or invalid in whole or in part. The cost of the special proceedings may be allowed and apportioned between the parties in the discretion of the court. A judgment when finally made and entered shall be res judicata in all cases arising in connection with the organization of the district, classification of real property within the district, apportionment of assessments and the collection of taxes for payment of the principal and interest of bonds or for payment of monies to the United States, required by a reclamation contract.

F. The procedure in this section and each and every subsection thereof provided shall govern in the absence of any supreme court rule governing the subject matter of this section, but the provisions of this section shall be subject to the rule-making power of the supreme court.

History: Laws 1939, ch. 148, § 20; 1941 Comp., § 77-3120; 1953 Comp., § 75-32-20.

Compiler's notes. — For the meaning of "Conservancy Act", see the compiler's notes to 73-18-1 NMSA 1978.

Cross references. — For definition of conservancy court, see 73-14-3 G NMSA 1978.

For legal newspapers, see 14-11-2 NMSA 1978.

For rule-making power of supreme court, see 38-1-1 NMSA 1978.

For Rules of Civil Procedure for the District Courts, see Rule 1-001 NMRA et seq.

For Rules of Appellate Procedure, see Rule 12-001 NMRA et seq.

For abolition of demurrers, see Rule 1-007 C NMRA.

Special proceeding. — A proceeding to determine the validity of a reclamation contract between the United States and a conservancy district is a special proceeding, and the lower court is limited in its jurisdiction in passing upon the contract to a determination of whether the applicable statute (Sections 73-18-1 to 73-18-24 NMSA 1978) authorizes the appellee to enter into the contract as written; whether the appellee abused its discretion in so doing; and whether such statute is constitutional and valid. The supreme court's review is limited by the same yardstick. Middle Rio Grande Water Users Ass'n v. Middle Rio Grande Conservancy Dist., 1953-NMSC-035, 57 N.M. 287, 258 P.2d 391.