Volume 68 · 782
Public Law 83–639
To authorize the Commissioner of Public Lands of the Territory of Hawaii to sell public lands to certain lessees, permittees, and others.
Approved August 24, 1954
Statutory text
AN ACT
To authorize the Commissioner of Public Lands of the Territory of Hawaii to sell public lands to certain lessees, permittees, and others.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,
That any provision
Hawaii.
Sale of lands to leasees, etc.
of section 73 of the Hawaiian Organic Act, as amended, or of the Land Laws of Hawaii, as amended, to the contrary notwithstanding, the Commissioner of Public Lands of the Territory of Hawaii, with the approval of the Governor and two-thirds of the members of the Board of Public Lands, in his discretion, may transfer and convey to any applicant who is a citizen of the United States, or who has heretofore legally declared his intentions to become a citizen of the United States, upon his becoming such,
who upon the date of approval of this Act held public lands in the Territory of Hawaii, by lease or revocable permit,
who on the said date, had, or whose predecessors in interest, or the combination of both, had occupied such land for an aggregate period of not less than five continuous years,
who while still holding such land by lease or revocable permit, applies for a transfer and conveyance of such public land to himself, and
who complies with all rules and regulations duly promulgated with regard to such public land,
not more than one-half acre of such land as was in use by the applicant for a house lot or for business purposes, or both, as the case may be, and such adjoining land as may be reasonably required for a right-of-way to a government road, upon the payment of a fair and reasonable price, which price shall be determined by a disinterested appraiser or appraisers, but not more than three, to be appointed by the Governor of Hawaii, all improvements thereon made or purchased by the applicant or his predecessors in interest to be valued at $1.
Sec. 2.
Not more than three acres of public lands immediately
Cemetery owners.
adjacent to any cemetery now in existence may, with the consent of such person or persons, if any, as could qualify under section 1 for the purchase of said land, be sold to the owner or owners of said cemetery. This Act, with the exception of paragraphs (1), (2), and (3) of section 1, shall apply to any such sale made to the owner or owners of a cemetery.
Sec. 3.
In the case of an applicant giving his consent to a sale to a cemetery pursuant to section 2, or when the Commissioner of Public Lands shall deem it to be in the public interest, he may substitute in place of the lands used by the applicant, or in place of the portion thereof requested by him, as the case may be, other appropriate public lands of no greater area or value, the applicant to bear the cost of the relocation on the substituted land of any improvements.
Sec. 4.
No sale shall be made hereunder to any applicant who has already acquired public land pursuant to the provisions of this Act, or to any applicant whose application is not filed within two years from the date of approval of this Act, or such shorter period as shall be specified by rule or regulation.
Sec. 5.
The term “predecessor in interest” includes any individual or individuals, partnership, corporation, or other legal entity, and in the case of an applicant who is a permittee under a revocable permit shall include such applicant occupying under a lease or a sublease immediately prior to the issuance of the revocable permit and the person from whom the applicant acquired such lease or sublease.
Approved August 24, 1954.