Public Law 76–691

That the Secretary

Florida.

Sale of designated public lands authorized.

of the Interior, in his discretion, is hereby authorized to sell, in the manner hereinafter provided, lots 3, 4, and 5, section 10, lots 3, 4, 5, and 6, section 11, lots 1 and 2, section 14, township 3 south, range 17 west, Tallahassee meridian, Florida, which lands were omitted from the original survey due to the erroneous meanders of the Gulf of Mexico and shown upon the official plat of the original survey as a water-covered area.

Sec. 2.

Any owner in good faith of land in sections 10, 11, and

Preferred rights to purchase.

14, township 3 south, range 17 west, shown by the official plat of the original survey approved May 22, 1849, to be bounded by the Gulf of Mexico, but which in fact is bounded by the omitted area as shown by plat of survey accepted March 6, 1939, and who acquired title to such land prior to this enactment, or any citizen of the United States who in good faith under color of title or claiming as a riparian owner has, prior to this Act, placed valuable improvements upon or reduced to cultivation any of the lands subject to the operation of this Act, shall have a preferred right to purchase the erroneously omitted land lying adjacent to his privately owned land, or to purchase the land thus improved by him, respectively, at any time within ninety days from the date of the passage of this Act. Every application to purchase must be filed in the General Land

Application to purchase.

Office and must be accompanied with satisfactory proof that the applicant is entitled to such preference right and that the lands which he applies to purchase are not in the legal possession of an adverse claimant under the public land laws. The term “citizen” as

“Citizen” construed.

herein used shall include any association of citizens, and a corporation organized under the laws of any State and authorized to engage in business in the State of Florida. In event that any such

Contract to convey, etc., lands with covenants of warranty.

applicant shall have contracted to convey or attempted to convey title to any of the above-described lands with covenants of warranty, express or implied, he may be allowed to make such purchase and to obtain patent in trust for the persons holding under such contract or conveyance, as their interests may appear.

Sec. 3.

Upon the filing of an application to purchase any lands subject to the operation of this Act, together with the required proof, the Secretary of the Interior shall cause the lands described in said application to be appraised, said appraisal to be on the basis of the value of such lands at the date of appraisal exclusive of any increased value resulting from the development or improvement thereof by the applicant or his predecessor in interest.

Sec. 4.

An applicant to purchase under the provisions of this Act, in order to be entitled to a patent, must, within three months from receipt of notice of appraisal, pay to the Commissioner of the General Land Office the appraised value of the lands, and thereupon a patent shall issue to said applicant for such lands as the Secretary of the Interior shall determine that such applicant is entitled to

Proceeds covered into Treasury.

purchase under this Act. The proceeds from such sales shall be covered into the United States Treasury and applied as provided by law for the disposal of the proceeds from the sale of public lands.

Sec. 5.

The Secretary of the Interior is hereby authorized to prescribe all necessary rules and regulations for administering the provisions of this Act and determining conflicting claims arising hereunder.

Sec. 6.

All purchases made and patents issued under the provisions of this Act shall be subject to and contain a reservation to the United States of all the coal, oil, gas, and other minerals in the lands so purchased and patented, together with the right to prospect for, mine, and remove the same.