SEC. 8. Whereas an emergency exists this Act shall take effect and be in force from and after its passage.

Approved the 2nd day of February, 1899.

H. B. NO. 35.
AN ACT

DEFINING THE POWERS AND DUTIES OF THE STATE BOARD OF LAND COMMISSIONERS, PROVIDING FOR THE SELECTION, LOCATION, PROTECTION, SALE, RENTAL AND GENERAL MANAGEMENT OF THE PUBLIC LANDS OF THE STATE, AND FOR THE INVESTMENT OF THE FUNDS ARISING FROM THE SALE AND LEASING OF SUCH LANDS AND FOR THE SALE AND PROTECTION OF THE TIMBER ON THE LANDS OF THE STATE: AND REPEALING AN ACT ENTITLED, "AN ACT DEFINING THE DUTIES OF THE STATE BOARD OF LAND COMMISSIONERS, TO PROVIDE FOR THE SELECTION, LOCATION, PROTECTION, SALE, RENTAL AND GENERAL MANAGEMENT OF THE PUBLIC LANDS OF THE STATE, AND FOR THE INVESTMENT OF THE FUNDS ARISING FROM THE SALE AND LEASING OF SUCH LANDS," APPROVED FEBRUARY TWENTY-SIX, EIGHTEEN HUNDRED AND NINETY-ONE.

Be it enacted by the Legislature of the State of Idaho:

SECTION I. The State Board of Land Commissioners provided for in section seven, of article nine of the Constitution of Idaho, consisting of the Governor, Superintendent of Public Instruction, Secretary of State and Attorney General, shall cause all the public lands now owned by or the title to which may hereafter be vested in the State, to be selected and registered, and thereafter sold or leased, and the funds arising from the sale or leasing thereof (except university lands) shall be invested in the manner provided in this Act.

SEC. 2. The Board shall appoint one or more suitable persons to perfect the selection and location of all lands granted, or to be granted to the State by the United States government; also to select lands in lieu of all lands granted heretofore, or which may be granted, and which may have been disposed of by the general government, or occupied by bona fide settlers. The person or persons appointed as aforesaid, shall each. receive a compensation of five dollars per day for all the time actually and necessarily employed in the performance of his duties, and such traveling expenses as may be allowed by the Board. The Board shall have power to cancel, relinquish, or release the claims of the State to all lands heretofore or hereafter selected which have been occupied by bona fide settlers, when in the opinion of the Board the substantial rights of the State will not be injured thereby.

SEC. 3. The Board shall cause suitable abstracts to be made of all lands owned by the State, and entered in suitable and well bound books. Such abstracts shall show in proper columns and pages, the county in which each tract is situated; the section, part of section, township and range; whether timbered or not, mineral or non-mineral, in whole or in part; improved or unimproved, and the value of improvements (if any); the character, whether agricultural or grazing; the date of appraisement; the value per acre; the date of sale or lease; the price per acre, if sold; the name of the purchaser or lessee; the amount paid in cash; the amount unpaid; the amount of the annual interest or rental; the date of deed from the State; and such other information as may be necessary to show a complete and full abstract of the condition of each tract of land acquired by the State until final payment by the purchaser and the issue of a deed for the land by the State.

SEC. 4. For the purpose of making the abstracts provided for in the preceding section, and keeping the records provided for in this Act, the

secretary of the Board with the approval of the Board, shall have power to employ necessary clerical assistance, whose compensation shall be fixed by the Board.

SEC. 5. When the abstracts provided for in section 3 of this Act are made, the Board may cause the lands therein described to be appraised, and the appraisement may be made by an agent or agents of the Board appointed to select lands granted to the State by the United States government, as provided in section 2 of this Act or the Board may appoint an agent or agents for that purpose. The person or persons selected to make such appraisement shall view each parcel or lot of land and make return under oath to the State Board giving in detail the correct and true value of each parcel or lot of land and of the timber thereon, if any; stating the character of the land in whole or in part, whether timbered or not; mineral or non-mineral; agricultural or grazing; arid or not; improved or unimproved; occupied or unoccupied; and the value of the improvements thereon, if any; and the name of the owner of the improvements. In making appraisements no land shall be deemed to be "improved land" and nothing shall be deemed to be "improvements" unless such improvements as may be found by the appraisers were made pursuant to the provisions of a lease or other contract with the State.

SEC. 6. The State Board shall have general supervisory power over all matters of appraisement under this Act, and may set aside any appraisement which said Board is convinced is unreasonable. All appraisements must be approved by the Board before compensation for making the same may be allowed, and no compensation shall be allowed for appraising any land the appraisement of which is set aside by the Board.

SEC. 7. In all counties where the public lands or any portion thereof, have been appraised, the State Board shall, when deemed conducive to the best interests of the State, attend in person or by agent, at such times as the said Board shall direct, and offer at public auction, at the court house of the county, all or any of the appraised and unsold and unleased lands situated in the county where such public auction is held, to the highest bidder: Provided, That no land shall be sold for less than the appraised value thereof, nor for less than ten dollars per acre: Provided, also, That not more than one hundred and sixty acres, nor less than a legal subdivision, (except in cases where lands are subdivided as provided in section 22) be sold to any one individual, company or corporation. At the close of the sale of lands provided for in this section, the person ducting the said sale shall offer, at public auction, the timber on the unsold and unleased lands situated in the county, belonging to the State, to the highest bidder; Provided, That no timber shall be sold for less than the appraised value thereof. And provided, also, That all rights of ownership in any timber on lands of the State by right or virtue of purchase from the State, shall cease twenty years from and after such purchase. Notice of all sales of land or timber or both, shall be given by publication, in some newspaper published and of general circulation in the county wherein the sale will be held for at least once a week for four weeks next preceding the sale; such notice shall specify the time when, and the place where the sale will be held.

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SEC. 8. Payments for lands and timber sold under the provisions of this Act shall be made as follows: For timber and for lands chiefly valuable for timber, cash in hand; for lands not chiefly valuable for timber, but on

which the timber is appraised at more than two and one-half dollars per acre, at least one-half cash in hand; for other lands not less than one-tenth of the purchase price cash in hand.

On all lands whereon there is timber appraised at not to exceed two and one-half dollars per acre, the appraised value of the timber shall be added to and considered as a part of the value of the land, and such land shall be deemed agricultural or grazing land and when sold shall be paid for as if no timber were growing thereon.

Notes shall be given by the purchaser for the unpaid portion of the purchase price of all land sold to him, and shall be due in ten years from the date of the sale unless the same shall fall due, at the option of the State, because of the failure of the purchaser to perform the covenants of the contract expressed in said note or notes. The rate of interest on all such notes shall be six per centum per annum, and shall be due and payable as follows: On the day of sale the interest on the unpaid portion of such purchase price shall be computed and paid up to the first day of January next ensuing, and thereafter it shall become due and payable annually in advance on the first day of January of each year.

All notes required to be given by the provisions of this section shall be executed at the same time that the first payment of purchase money is made, and shall be in the form prescribed by the State Board.

Any purchaser may make full payment for land purchased, at any time; and after the payment of the amount required to be paid at the time of sale, a purchaser may pay any part of the amount due and such payment shall be endorsed on the note given for the unpaid portion of the purchase price of the land on account of which such partial payment has been made. SEC. 9. All payments of principal or interest provided for in the last preceding section shall be made to the county treasurer of the county in which the land purchased is situated, and all notes required to be executed shall be delivered to him by the purchaser or purchasers at the time of making the first payment of principal, at the time of sale.

SEC. 10. When the public lands or any portion thereof, in any county have been appraised as hereinbefore provided, it shall be the duty of the State Board to cause duplicates of the abstracts provided for in section 3, to be prepared and sent forthwith to the county treasurer of such county, and the county treasurer shall preserve the same as a record of his office. In such record said treasurer shall keep an account of all sales of land and timber and of all leases made in his county. Whenever after the transmission of such duplicate abstracts to the county treasurer other lands are appraised in that county a copy of the appraisement in full shall be forwarded to such treasurer by the State Board and shall be entered by said treasurer in said duplicate abstracts. County treasurers of the several counties in which lands or timber have been sold or lands leased, shall use due diligence to collect all money due the State for lands and timber sold, both principal and interest, and for lands leased. Whenever payments of principal or interest for lands sold or of rental for lands leased are made, the county treasurer shall deliver a receipt therefor to the person making the same, a duplicate of which such treasurer shall file with the county auditor, to be by such auditor transmitted to the State Board after such auditor shall have countersigned the same. Duplicate receipts when received by the State Board and entered in the records of the Board shall be deposited with the State Auditor; and no duplicate receipt whether for principal,

interest or rental shall be held valid unless countersigned by said county auditor.

SEC. II. Any person purchasing land upon which improvements have been made by any other person, and appraised as provided in section 3 of this Act, shall pay to the county treasurer, in addition to the amount of principal and interest required by law to be paid at the time of sale, the full appraised value of such improvements. The amount thus paid for improvements, shall be paid by the county treasurer to the owner of the improvements unless such owner shall elect within ninety days of such sale to remove the improvements and remove the same, (for which purpose he shall have the right to go upon the land.) In case the owner elect to remove the improvements and remove the same within said ninety days the county treasurer shall return to the person by whom it was paid, the amount paid for improvements.

SEC. 12. Upon the sale of lands under the provisions of this Act upon which full payment has not been made as herein provided, the State Board shall issue to the purchaser a certificate of sale showing the land purchased, the amount paid, the amount due, and the time when the principal and interest shall become due. All payments of interest made subsequent to the issue of such certificate of sale shall be endorsed upon such certificate. Upon the filing of countersigned duplicate receipts evidencing full payment of principal and interest for any tract of land sold, the Governor shall, under the great seal of the State, issue a deed therefor to the purchaser, or his assignee. All deeds so issued shall be attested by the Secretary of State and the Secretary of the State Board of Land Commissioners, and a record thereof shall be kept in the office of the State Board.

SEC. 13. All land appraised and unsold shall be subject to lease, at an annual rental of ten per centum on the appraised value thereof. Agricultural lands shall be leased for terms of not more than five years, and in tracts not exceeding 160 acres in extent to any one person, company, or corporation. Grazing lands may be leased in tracts not exceeding 640 acres to any one person, company or corporation. Applications for lease shall be made to the county treasurer of the county wherein the lands desired to be leased are situated, and shall contain an affidavit that the applicant is not the owner of a lease of state lands of more than 160 acres, if agricultural land, and not more than 640 acres, if grazing land, including the amount applied for, and that he desires to lease for his own use and benefit. Applications for lease shall be accompanied by the amount of rental computed from the date of the application to the first day of January next ensuing. Rental after the first payment thereof, as above required, shall be due and payable annually, in advance, on the first day of January of each year.

SEC. 14.

If two or more persons desire to lease the same tract of land the county treasurer shall, after at least five days notice to all parties who have made application to lease the same tract, auction off, at public auction to the person who, in addition to the ten per cent. on the appraised value will pay the highest premium for the said lease.

SEC. 15. When payments of rental, or of rental and premium are made, the county treasurer shall issue receipts in duplicate therefor, the "original" to be delivered to the lessee, and the "duplicate" delivered to the county auditor, and by that officer "countersigned," and transmitted to the State Board: Immediately after the issue of such re

ceipts the county treasurer shall forward the application to the State Board, and upon the receipt by said Board of the application and the "countersigned duplicate receipt," said Board shall issue a lease to the applicant.

When application is made to lease lands on which there are improvements the person, other than the owner of the improvements, who is the highest bidder shall deposit with the county treasurer the appraised value of the improvements in addition to the payment of rental, or rental and premium by law required to be made, and the amount so deposited shall be paid to the owner of the improvements, or if such owner so elect he may remove the improvements, in which case the amount deposited shall be returned to the person by whom it was deposited.

SEC. 16. Each lease shall contain a covenant that the lessee will promptly pay the rental annually in advance; that no waste shall be committed on the land; and that the premises shall be surrendered at the expiration of the term of the lease, which shall be five years from and after the date thereof, or sooner, with the consent of the State Board; and that a failure to pay the agreed rental for a period of one month from the time such rental is due will work a forfeiture of said lease after notice as hereinafter provided. No lease shall be sub-let without the written consent of the State Board.

SEC. 17. Any lessee or purchaser or any assignee of any lessee or purchaser who is in default of rental or interest due the State for a period of one month after such rental or interest is due and payable shall be notified by the State Board by registered letter, of such default and if within one month after service of such notice such delinquent lessee, purchaser or assignee has not paid such rental or interest so delinquent his lease or contract of sale shall be forfeited; and such forfeiture shall be noted on the records of the State Board.

In case a notice of delinquency cannot be sent to any delinquent lessee, purchaser or asignee, as in this section provided, because the postoffice address of such delinquent is unknown to the State Board, then notice of such delinquency may be given by publication in a newspaper published in the county wherein the land is situated; and upon proof of the publication in such newspaper being made to the State Board the contract of sale or lease shall be forfeited the same as if service had been made by registered letter.

Any person whose lease or contract of sale has been forfeited may, however, redeem such forfeiture at any time before the land has again been sold or leased, by paying all arrears of rental or interest and ten per cent. penalty thereon, together with costs of publication if publication was made.

SEC. 18. All State lands not sold or leased shall be subject to lease as now provided by law, but rental for any lands leased need not be paid in advance but for any year may, at the option of the lessee, be paid at any time of the year for which rental is due not later than the last day of December, of such year. All persons occupying State lands, where such occupancy was commenced pursuant to a sale contract to such persons, shall have a first right to a lease of the tract so occupied at the minimum rental provided by law. Provided, That the State Land Board shall have power to lease State lands that are subdivided into less than forty (40) acre tracts, and: Provided further, that the State Land Board shall have