Jocko Irrigation District withdraws from FJBC
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News from the Jocko
Irrigation District
ARLEE — In a 2-1 vote, the three Jocko Irrigation District representatives voted to withdraw from the Flathead Joint Board of Control on June 14. Kerry Doney and Roger Christopher voted yes, and Boone Cole voted against.
The three representatives, Doney, Jocko division chair, Cole, Flathead Joint Board of Control chair, and Christopher, met in Arlee and voted to withdraw from the written contractual agreement with the FJBC, according to a press release issued on June 17.
The vote was intended to return full control of the Jocko Irrigation District affairs to the irrigators in the district, rather than the regional FJBC.
The meeting was in response to concerns from Jocko irrigators about recent developments, notably the intentions of the FJBC to reopen discussions with the Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribes on the water agreement.
The meeting also included approximately two dozen district irrigators and other concerned and interested parties.
Soon after the meeting began, Cole, Christopher and Doney were served with a writ of prohibition issued by 20th Judicial District Judge C. B. McNeil enjoining them from voting on the Montana Reserved Water Rights Compact.
Judge McNeil issued a similar order on Feb. 15 against the FJBC. The Montana Supreme Court overturned that order on April 9.
The petitions supporting both these orders originated from Western Montana Water User Association attorneys.
The press release noted the objective of the Jocko Irrigation District meeting, posted in a public notice on June 13, was “to provide background information on the water use agreement; share the views of the district representatives on the situation; and obtain feedback from irrigators.”
Alan Mikkelson, previously an official and consultant with the FJBC, presented background on local water issues, including the compact.
Mikkelson offered the opinion the agreement as negotiated was the best conclusion that irrigators could hope to achieve under the circumstances. If approved, the compact would have included earmarked state, federal and CSKT funds to support a much-needed modernization of the area’s irrigation system.
In a question and answer period after Mikkelson’s presentation, Doney reiterated that the meeting was intended to give Jocko district irrigators, particularly those that may have not been closely following developments over the past years, to ask questions and express their concerns.
There was discussion about the FJBC’s plan for reopening discussions and potential litigation. Cole, newly elected FJBC chair, advocated for a delay in the Jocko representatives’ withdrawal vote until after the FJBC attempted to reopen negotiations with the Tribes.
Given the costs and uncertainty associated with a lengthy litigation process, several participants expressed the view that litigation was highly unlikely to succeed.
Some opponents of the compact believed that the State of Montana would pay all, or most, of the associated costs. Such support would require authorization by the legislature, which has not occurred in similar past cases.
Following the question and answer period, Mr. Christopher made a motion that the Jocko District gives formal notice of its decision to withdraw from the FJBC. Mr. Doney seconded the motion.
In the discussion of the motion, Mr. Cole cautioned participants about the seriousness of this move and urged everyone to study the pros and cons more carefully. Opponents saw this withdrawal as undermining efforts to obtain an agreement that was more favorable to irrigators. Proponents expressed concerns about the costs, community divisiveness and uncertainty associated with trying to reopen discussions between the FJBC and the CSKT.
Several Jocko District irrigators felt that charges to irrigators would likely increase if they remained with the FJBC than if they withdrew. In particular, they noted that the Jocko District is currently subsidizing pumping costs for the Flathead District, which extends their irrigation season beyond the Jocko District season.
In addition, several participants expressed concerns about the inflammatory tone of some of statements attributed to opponents of the Compact. They had a strong preference for a harmonious and respectful relationship among residents of Western Montana and the agreement that their representatives had negotiated in good faith for more than a decade. They felt that the majority of the FJBC no longer represented their interest in these matters.
The vote began the withdrawal process from the FJBC, which becomes effective 90 days after written notice to the FJBC.
Jocko District Irrigators will henceforth seek to be directly represented on the Cooperative Management Entity where representatives of the CSKT and irrigators jointly oversee the Flathead Indian Irrigation Project. In that venue the district commissioners intend to represent the best interests of all Jocko irrigators within the framework of Montana and U.S. laws.
For additional information please contact Doney at irrigators@blackfoot.net.
