A personal watercraft zips across Moses Lake on a recent Saturday. A new law sponsored by Rep. Tom Dent, R-Moses Lake, and recently signed by Gov. Jay Inslee, clarifies the legal ability of the Moses Lake Irrigation District to levy assessments on property owners to maintain the quality of the lake for recreation.
May 24, 2023
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MLIRD looks at assessment changes following new law
MOSES LAKE — The Moses Lake Irrigation and Rehabilitation District hopes to have its new assessment structure ready for the public by Sept. 1, according to MLIRD Board President Bill Bailey. “We will decide how these rates will be determined and then publish them and make them available,” Bailey said. “There are a lot of factors that need to be considered.” Bailey spoke following passage by the Washington State Legislature during the regular spring session of a measure supported by Rep. Tom Dent, R-Moses Lake, to clarify the MLIRD’s legal status and ability to levy assessments on property within the district. In 2020, a Grant County Superior Court judge found in favor of property owner and former MLIRD board member Mick Hansen when he challenged the district’s method of levying assessments on property, noting the district could not levy an irrigation assessment because it has no way of delivering irrigation water to properties in the district.