FAQ

Our Annual Assessment is billed one time every year. The invoices are mailed by February 1^st each year.

The Annual Assessment invoices are due 30 days after they are issued. We grant another 30 days without penalty asking only that Assessments are paid in full by the time the water comes on April 1^st.

NCCA accepts payment by check, cash and credit/debit card.

You can make your payment in person with cash, check, or card, by mailing a check, online with a credit/debit card or over the phone with debit/credit card.

We are not able to offer an automatic payment option at this time.

Please call the office at 509-457-6217. A replacement invoice can be mailed or emailed to you.

We are happy to work with you if you need to break up your Assessment over time, but we need to hear from you. Please call the office to make arrangements. 509-457-6217

If payment arrangements have not been made, a $10 late fee will be added to your account after April 1^st and the remaining balance will begin to accrue interest. If unpaid by June 1^st, your irrigation water service will be shut off and a $50 fee added to your account. Unpaid balances as of September 1^st can become a Lien on your property and a minimum of $350 will be added to your account. Your account will continue to be billed for the Annual Assessment every year. Interest will continue to accrue. The Lien is recorded with the County Auditor creating a cloud on your title which must be paid before your property can be sold or refinanced.

There can be multiple reasons why your irrigation water is not running. Anytime your irrigation water is not running, and you are not aware of the reason, please don’t wait to call so we can address any issue as quickly as possible. Canal Maintenance 509-457-6214 ext 2.

1. Your line could have a break or obstruction that we are unaware of. Please always call to report lack of water to Maintenance. We don’t like our members to be without water and work hard at making prompt repairs, but we need you to let us know about the issues.
2. We may be working on the line and needed to temporarily shut down your water to complete repairs. If down time is only going to be one day or less, there likely will not be any notice. If repairs will take longer than one day, you may see a door-hanger notice on your residence door. Also, check the website as lines down for more than one day will be posted.
3. Your service may be interrupted for lack of payment on your account. If this is the case, you will find a door-hanger notice on your residence door. Once the account has been paid in full, service will be restored within 48 hours.

Of course! We will accept payment in full and restore irrigation water service within 48 hours. If you need to, we will accept payment arrangements, but your account will continue to accrue interest and water will remain shut off until the account is paid in full.

Once a property becomes a member of NCCA, irrigation water delivery service becomes an Appurtenance on the property. Owners of the member property are obligated to participate in the maintenance of the NCCA canal system, regardless of how much water they use, or if they decide they don’t want to use our water any longer. The Appurtenance runs with the land, from owner to owner. Water Rights created by the Appurtenance cannot be surrendered, vacated or sold separately from the subject property as per the NCCA Articles and Bylaws.

Irrigation Water Units (shares) cannot be surrendered, vacated or sold separately from the member property as per the NCCA Articles and Bylaws. They run with the land and are sold only as the property is sold from one owner to the next.

Once a property has become of member of NCCA, the owner becomes obligated to support the maintenance of the canal system regardless of how much water they use. Assessment rates are not set by the amount of water used. NCCA evaluates the maintenance needs of our system annually and sets the Assessment Rate for the year based on that need. NCCA is not profit driven. As a non-profit corporation, our purpose is to provide excellent customer service and efficient irrigation water delivery to our customers at an economical rate.

In 2020 we conducted a cash flow analysis, put together a budget and ran out 5 year projections. It was discovered that our previous 2-5% annual increases were not sufficient to keep up with the changing economy and we had actually been running at a deficit for several years which had depleted reserves. It was determined that an estimated 34% rate increase was going to be necessary to secure cash flow needs. The Board recognized that 34% was going to be a large bump and decided to split the increase over a 2 year period. In 2021, a 16.3% increase was applied. After judicious application of the budget through 2021, the amount of the 2022 increase is actually 10.2%. After 2022, as long as inflation doesn’t take a tremendous leap, the regular 2-5% annual increases should be sufficient going forward.

Also in 2020, State v Aquavella, a 25 year lawsuit was finalized. The result of the courts decision changed the way our water units (shares) are calculated. The original formula was 10 acres = 1 Unit (share). The court determined this should now be 5.4 acres = 1 Unit (share). The result was that more water was awarded however since our billing structure is by the Unit, it also caused costs to increase. This change had the most impact on owners of property over 1 acre in size.

If your property is over 1 acre in size, the size will be reflected in the Service Address box on your invoice.

Please advise us right away!

1. If you rent your home or even just change your billing address, please let us know right away. It is your responsibility to keep your billing address current in our records to avoid interest charges or a shut off from happening on your account. Please call or email Judy in the office.
2. If you sell your home, please advise your Escrow Closer at the Title Company that you receive your irrigation water from NCCA. They will contact us to verify your account is in good standing with no outstanding balance and transfer the ownership to your Buyer. If your sale closes during irrigation water season, Escrow will prorate the Annual Assessment you have paid and refund to you that portion of funds representing the time from closing date through the end of irrigation season when you no longer owned the property. If your account does have a balance owing, this amount will be provided to Escrow and will be paid out of closing.