POLSON — The cost to maintain the local irrigation system is climbing, with the minimum fee increasing from $75 to $200 this year alone. Lake County commissioners are raising concerns that some landowners are paying that fee even when they can't access the water.
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According to Commissioner Gale Decker, the county has been collecting irrigation fees since 1926 and has little control over the irrigation infrastructure. Decker said the fees are rising because of the increasing cost of maintaining the irrigation infrastructure. The money collected by the county, he said, goes directly to the Bureau of Indian Affairs.
The minimum charge for smaller parcels has also been increasing. In 2025, it was $75 per tract. This year, it jumped to $200 for parcels 4.54 acres or smaller. Next year, that charge will increase to $220 for parcels 4.78 acres or smaller.
Decker said the county's biggest concern is what happens to landowners who are being charged the minimum fee but don't have access to irrigation water.
"Our biggest concern is the tracts that pay the $220 and can't get the water, and if people don't pay the taxes on their property, another person can come in on consignment. We are fearful there is going to be more delinquent tax bills. People could possibly, through a long process, lose their property over failure to pay irrigation fees," Decker said.
Decker said changes to the fee structure would have to come through the Flathead Indian Irrigation Project and the Bureau of Indian Affairs. I reached out to both for their explanation of the increase but have not yet received a response.
Are you a landowner paying irrigation fees without water access? Email reporter Robyn Iron at robyn.iron@kpax.com.
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