McDonell

Petitioner herein seeks a peremptory writ of mandate to compel respondent to publish and mail an official notice of the sale of general obligation bonds of Improvement District Number 1 of the petitioner district in accordance with an order of the board of directors of said district. Respondent has refused to perform this duty cast upon him by law, basing his refusal on various grounds.

Respondent’s first contention is that the petitioner district has not been lawfully formed for the reason that notice of the hearing before the Board of Supervisors of Sacramento County of the petition to establish the district and fix the boundaries thereof was published in a newspaper on the thirteenth and sixth days before the hearing, whereas the California Water Code requires publication for at least two weeks before the day when the petition is to be presented to and considered by the board. This contention cannot be sustained. Section 30230 of the Water Code provides that:

Standing alone, this section might well be construed to require that the first publication take place at least 14 days before the petition is to be presented. However, this construction is rendered improper by the…