Shoshone Irrigation District billing should be more fair

Submitted by R. Stevens
Posted 10/1/24

Dear editor:

By now everyone should have received and reviewed their annual billing statement from Shoshone Irrigation District ("SID"). Again, this year the SID has elected to include the …

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Shoshone Irrigation District billing should be more fair

Posted

Dear editor:

By now everyone should have received and reviewed their annual billing statement from Shoshone Irrigation District ("SID"). Again, this year the SID has elected to include the landowner fee of $300 per year. At first glance, this fee, while seemingly high, would appear to have been implemented in a fair manner. Each landowner must pay the same fee.

It is only when we look at the numbers for the entire SID that the landowner fee is revealed to be something else. The SID classifies landowners into two groups — those with 30 or more acres (large owners) and those under 30 acres of land (small owners). There are 268 large owners who together own 27,406.16 acres and 1,140 small owners who together own 6,159.56 acres. The total combined acres owned are 33,565.72. In regards to the landowner fees paid, the large owners paid a total of $84,400 and the small owners paid a whopping total of $342,000 for a combined total of $462,400.

In summary of the above, the small owners are 81% of the total owners and yet only own 18% of the land. Yet the small owners paid 81% of the total landowner fee. Large owners who represent 19% of the total owners, control 82% of the total land and paid only 19.8% of the total landowner fee.

In short, the small owners, who own just 18% of the total acreage (6,159.56 out of 33,565.72 acres) in the SID, paid 81% of the total fee collected, yet they own only 18% of the land! In my opinion, the correct and fair measurement method would be to base any fee on the actual acreage owned. SID is charging all other fees on acreage (mossing, operation and maintenance, rehabilitation and betterment), so why is the landowner fee different? The answer seems to be that if the total of the landowner fee ($426,400) was charged based on acreage, the majority of the cost would shift to the large owners, who remember own 82% of the total acreage in the SID.

So knowingly or unknowingly the landowner fee seems to be set up to put the cost burden on the small owners and to thereby reduce the costs to the large owners. Again, I don't feel this is a fair method. Just to make this point clearer, if we look at the current average costs on a per acre basis, the average cost per acre is $3.08 for the large owners with more than 30 acres and $55.52 for the small owners. That is a 1,702.6% difference!

I believe that anyone who has concerns about the landowner fee and/or the fairness of the assessment method of the fee, must contact their SID commissioner and request an individual meeting with them to let them know of your concerns, I also suggest that you contact Trent Reed, the general manager, who produces the annual budget. Their contact information is listed on the SID website. It is only by hearing from everyone that the management of SID may reconsider this matter. If the members of the SID don't make their voices heard, there is little to no chance of change. Talk to your neighbors and friends about this matter. The more individuals who contact their commissioner and Mr. Reed the more our voices will be heard.

R. Stevens

Powell

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