Public meetings will be held in March to explain a proposed liability assessment district, which is being considered as the most beneficial mechanism to finance the Diversion Project.

The Cass County Joint Water Resource District (CCJWRD) is planning to administer the assessment district throughout the area in North Dakota benefited by the Diversion Project. Under the current plan, property owners would not likely have to pay annual assessments; the two voter-approved sales taxes would do that. The assessment district would allow the Diversion Authority to finance the Diversion Project at a more favorable interest rate and remove the unfavorable coverage requirements of sales tax financing.

The liability district is a special assessment process, but it is different from the special assessment process used by a city. The State allows a water district to use a process in which each property owner gets a vote. The weight of each property’s vote is based on the benefit assigned to the property, so the higher a property’s value and protection level, the more that property’s vote is weighed and is ultimately assessed. Properties which are not in as much risk of flooding will not be assessed as much under the liability district.

The liability will go down every year through annual sales tax payments and continued regional growth. The two voter-approved sales taxes in Cass County and Fargo are estimated to raise $700 million over the life of the tax.

Also, the liability would be much lower than the flood insurance rates some homeowners would have to face without the Diversion Project. A flood insurance policy for some homeowners in south Fargo could range between $2,000 and $4,000, annually.

Everyone is welcome to attend the public informational meetings which will be held March 10, 17 and 24. In addition to these meetings, the Cass County Joint Water Resource District will conduct the statutory project hearing regarding the assessment district vote on March 31, which is also open to the public.

The schedule for the meetings is as follows:

March 10, 2015
Holiday Inn
Fargo, ND
5:30 pm-7:30 pm

March 17, 2015
Harwood Community Center
Harwood, ND
5:30 pm-7:30 pm

March 24, 2015
Liberty Middle School
West Fargo, ND
5:30 pm-7:30 pm

March 31, 2015 (Statuary Project Hearing)
Fargodome
Fargo, ND
5:30 pm-7:30 pm

Related article:

How the Diversion Project Liability Assessment will Save Money for Homeowners