April 25, 2007, Introduced by Senators RICHARDVILLE, VAN WOERKOM, BIRKHOLZ, GILBERT, PAPPAGEORGE, JELINEK, PATTERSON, KUIPERS, McMANUS, GARCIA, STAMAS, JANSEN, KAHN, BASHAM and PRUSI and referred to the Committee on Natural Resources and Environmental Affairs.
A bill to amend 1994 PA 451, entitled
"Natural resources and environmental protection act,"
by amending section 503 (MCL 324.503), as amended by 2004 PA 587.
THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF MICHIGAN ENACT:
Sec. 503. (1) The department shall protect and conserve the
natural resources of this state; provide and develop facilities for
outdoor recreation; prevent the destruction of timber and other
forest growth by fire or otherwise; promote the reforesting of
forestlands belonging to the state; prevent and guard against the
pollution of lakes and streams within the state and enforce all
laws provided for that purpose with all authority granted by law;
and
foster and encourage the protecting
protection and propagation
of game and fish; and protect and promote the exercise of the
people's right to lawfully hunt and fish and harvest game and fish
that are the property of the state. The department has the power
and jurisdiction over the management, control, and disposition of
all land under the public domain, except for those lands under the
public domain that are managed by other state agencies to carry out
their
assigned duties. and responsibilities. On behalf of the
people of the state, the department may accept gifts and grants of
land and other property and may buy, sell, exchange, or condemn
land and other property, for any of the purposes contemplated by
this part. The department may accept funds, money, or grants for
development of salmon and steelhead trout fishing in this state
from the government of the United States, or any of its departments
or agencies, pursuant to the anadromous fish conservation act, 16
USC 757a to 757f, and may use this money in accordance with the
terms and provisions of that act. However, the acceptance and use
of federal funds does not commit state funds and does not place an
obligation upon the legislature to continue the purposes for which
the funds are made available.
(2) The department may lease lands owned or controlled by the
department or may grant concessions on lands owned or controlled by
the department to any person for any purpose that the department
determines to be necessary to implement this part. In granting a
concession, the department shall provide that each concession is
awarded at least every 7 years based on extension, renegotiation,
or competitive bidding. However, if the department determines that
a concession requires a capital investment in which reasonable
financing or amortization necessitates a longer term, the
department may grant a concession for up to a 15-year term. A
concession granted under this subsection shall require, unless the
department authorizes otherwise, that all buildings and equipment
shall be removed at the end of the concession's term. Any lease
entered into under this subsection shall limit the purposes for
which the leased land is to be used and shall authorize the
department to terminate the lease upon a finding that the land is
being used for purposes other than those permitted in the lease.
Unless otherwise provided by law, money received from a lease or a
concession of tax reverted land shall be credited to the fund
providing financial support for the management of the leased land.
Money received from a lease of all other land shall be credited to
the fund from which the land was purchased. However, money received
from program-related leases on these lands shall be credited to the
fund providing financial support for the management of the leased
lands. For land managed by the forest management division of the
department, that fund is either the forest development fund
established
pursuant to part 505 section
50507 or the forest
recreation account of the Michigan conservation and recreation
legacy
fund provided for established
in section 2005. For land
managed by the wildlife or fisheries division of the department,
that fund is the game and fish protection account of the Michigan
conservation
and recreation legacy fund provided for established in
section 2010.
(3) When the department sells land, the deed by which the land
is conveyed may reserve all mineral, coal, oil, and gas rights to
the state only when the land is in production or is leased or
permitted for production, or when the department determines that
the land has unusual or sensitive environmental features or that it
is in the best interest of this state to reserve those rights as
determined by commission policy. However, the department shall not
reserve the rights to sand, gravel, clay, or other nonmetallic
minerals. When the department sells land that contains subsurface
rights, the department shall include a deed restriction that
restricts the subsurface rights from being severed from the surface
rights in the future. If the landowner severs the subsurface rights
from the surface rights, the subsurface rights revert to this
state. The deed may reserve to the state the right of ingress and
egress over and across land along watercourses and streams.
Whenever an exchange of land is made, either with the United States
government, a corporation, or an individual, for the purpose of
consolidating the state forest reserves, the department may issue
deeds without reserving to the state the mineral, coal, oil, and
gas rights and the rights of ingress and egress. The department may
sell the limestone, sand, gravel, or other nonmetallic minerals.
However, the department shall not sell a mineral or nonmetallic
mineral right if the sale would violate part 353, part 637, or any
other provision of law. The department may sell all reserved
mineral, coal, oil, and gas rights to such lands upon terms and
conditions as the department considers proper and may sell oil and
gas rights as provided in part 610. The owner of such lands as
shown by the records shall be given priority in case the department
authorizes any sale of such lands, and, unless the landowner waives
such rights, the department shall not sell such rights to any other
person. For the purpose of this section, mineral rights do not
include rights to sand, gravel, clay, or other nonmetallic
minerals.
(4) The department may enter into contracts for the sale of
the economic share of royalty interests it holds in hydrocarbons
produced from devonian or antrim shale qualifying for the
nonconventional
fuel credit contained in section 29 of the internal
revenue
code of 1986 26 USC 45k. However, in entering into these
contracts, the department shall assure that revenues to the natural
resources trust fund under these contracts are not less than the
revenues the natural resources trust fund would have received if
the contracts were not entered into. The sale of the economic share
of royalty interests under this subsection may occur under
contractual terms and conditions considered appropriate by the
department and as approved by the state administrative board. Funds
received from the sale of the economic share of royalty interests
under this subsection shall be transmitted to the state treasurer
for deposit in the state treasury as follows:
(a) Net proceeds allocable to the nonconventional fuel credit
contained
in section 29 of the internal revenue code of 1986, 26
USC 45k under this subsection shall be credited to the
environmental protection fund created in section 503a.
(b) Proceeds related to the production of oil or gas from
devonian or antrim shale shall be credited to the natural resources
trust fund or other applicable fund as provided by law.
(5) As used in subsection (4):
(a) "Natural resources trust fund" means the Michigan natural
resources trust fund established in section 35 of article IX of the
state constitution of 1963 and provided for in section 1902.
(b) "Net proceeds" means the total receipts received from the
sale of royalty interests under subsection (4) less costs related
to the sale. Costs may include, but are not limited to, legal,
financial advisory, geological or reserve studies, and accounting
services.
(6) As used in this section:
(a) "Concession" means an agreement between the department and
a person under terms and conditions as specified by the department
to provide services or recreational opportunities for public use.
(b) "Lease" means a conveyance by the department to a person
of a portion of the state's interest in land under specific terms
and for valuable consideration, thereby granting to the lessee the
possession of that portion conveyed during the period stipulated.