Each district board has the power to:
1. Sue and be sued in the name of the district.
2. Exercise the power of eminent domain in the manner provided by title 32 for the
purpose of acquiring and securing any rights, titles, interests, estates, or easements
necessary or proper to carry out the duties imposed by this chapter, and particularly to
acquire the necessary rights in land for the construction of pipelines, reservoirs,
connections, valves, pumping installations, or other facilities for the storage,
transportation, or utilization of water and all other appurtenant facilities necessary to
carry out the purposes of its organization.
3. Accept funds, property, and services or other assistance, financial or otherwise, from
federal, state, and other public or private sources for the purpose of aiding and
promoting the construction, maintenance, and operation of projects within the district.
4. Cooperate and contract with the state, its agencies, or its political subdivisions or any
federal agency in research and investigation or other activities promoting the
establishment, construction, development, or operation of projects within the district.
5. Furnish assurances of cooperation, and as principal and guarantor, or either, to enter
into contracts with any federal agency, and with public corporations and political
subdivisions of this state for the performance of obligations for the construction,
operation, or maintenance of the district or for the delivery of water to any such
department, agency, or political subdivision.
6. Construct, lease, or purchase separately or in cooperation with any federal agency or
the state, its agencies, or political subdivisions, and to equip, maintain, and operate an
office and principal place of business for the district, or other buildings or facilities to
carry out activities authorized by this chapter.
7. Appoint and fix the compensation and reimbursement of expenses of such employees
as the board deems necessary to conduct the business and affairs of the district and
to procure the services of engineers and other technical experts, and to retain
attorneys to assist, advise, and act for it in its proceedings.
8. Sell or exchange any and all real property purchased or acquired by the district. All
money received from any such sale or exchange must be deposited to the credit of the
district and may be used to pay expenses of the district.
9. Borrow money as provided in this chapter.
10. Issue and sell bonds in an amount or amounts determined by the board, including an
amount or amounts for costs of issuance and financing, and any necessary reserve
funds, for the purpose of financing the cost of a project.
11. Refund and refinance its bonds from time to time as often as it is advantageous and in
the interest of the district.
12. Pledge any and all income, profits, and revenues received by the district in connection
with the operation, lease, sale, or other disposition of all or any part of a project to
secure the payment of bonds issued and sold to finance the project.
13. Pledge all or any part of any assessments levied under this chapter to secure the
payment or redemption of any bonds issued in anticipation of the levy and collection of
the assessments.
14. Acquire by gift, purchase, or the exercise of the right of eminent domain, property
required to construct, reconstruct, improve, better, or extend any project, whether
completely or partially within or outside the district, and easements, rights in lands, and
water rights in connection with the project.
15. Operate and maintain any project for its own use and for the use of public and private
consumers and users within and without the territorial boundaries of the district.
16. Prescribe, revise, and collect rates, fees, tolls, or charges for the services, facilities, or
commodities furnished by the project, and in anticipation of the collection of the
revenues of the project, issue revenue bonds to finance all or part of the cost of the
acquisition, construction, reconstruction, improvement, betterment, or extension of any
project.
17. Pledge revenues of the project to the punctual payment of principal and interest on
bonds. A pledge under this subsection applies to the revenues of improvements,
betterments, or extensions of the project which may be constructed or acquired after
the issuance of bonds as well as the revenues of existing systems, plants, works,
instrumentalities, and properties of any part of the project improved, bettered, or
extended.
18. Make all contracts, execute all instruments, and do all things necessary or convenient
in the exercise of its powers or in the performance of its covenants or duties or in order
to secure the payment of its bonds, but an encumbrance, mortgage, or other pledge of
property of the district may not be created by any such contract or instrument.
19. Enter into and perform long-term or short-term contracts with any nongovernmental
unit for the provision and operation by the district of sewerage facilities, when the
board of the district determines such action to be in the public interest and necessary
for the protection of the public health, in order to abate or reduce the pollution of
waters caused by discharges of industrial wastes by the nongovernmental unit, and for
the payment periodically by the nongovernmental unit to the district of amounts the
board deems sufficient to compensate the district for all costs associated with
providing, operating, and maintaining the sewerage facilities serving the
nongovernmental unit.
20. Enter into and perform such contracts and agreements with other districts, political
subdivisions, and state institutions as the board deems proper and feasible concerning
the planning, construction, lease, or other acquisition and the financing, maintenance,
and operation of sewerage facilities. Any districts contracting with each other may
provide in any contract or agreement for a board, commission, or such other body as
their boards deem proper to supervise, manage, and operate the sewerage facilities
and may prescribe its powers and duties and compensation of its members.
21. Accept from any authorized federal agency loans or grants for the planning,
construction, acquisition, lease, or other provision of any project, and to enter into
agreements with such agency respecting such loan or grants.
22. Contract debts and borrow money, pledge property of the district for repayment of
indebtedness other than bonded indebtedness, and provide for payment of debts and
expenses of the district.
23. Notwithstanding any other law, exercise the powers granted to a municipality under
subsection 5 of section 40-33-01 and section 40-34-19, pursuant to the limitations set
forth therein. A district may pay the cost of leasing any waterworks, mains, and water
distribution system and any equipment or appliances connected therewith and any
property related thereto pursuant to subsection 5 of section 40-33-01, or of any
sewage system and all related property for the collection, treatment, purification, and
disposal in a sanitary manner of sewage pursuant to section 40-34-19, solely from
revenues to be derived by the district from the ownership, sale, lease disposition, and
operation of the waterworks, mains, and water distribution system or sewage system;
the funds or any other amounts invested by such district pursuant to section 21-06-07,
or invested on such district's behalf by the state, or any agency or institution of the
state, in conformity with policies of the industrial commission, including investment in a
guaranteed investment contract and any earnings thereon, to the extent pledged
therefor; and funds, if any, appropriated annually by the board of the district or
received from federal or state sources.
24. Enter and perform long-term and short-term contracts for the purchase or sale of water
and to pledge any and all income, profits, and revenues received by the district to
secure payment of the district's obligations created by the contracts.
Property of the district may not be liable to be forfeited or taken in payment of any bonds issued
under this chapter, and debt on the general credit of the district may not be incurred in any
manner for payment of bonds under this chapter.