Page:United States Statutes at Large Volume 95.djvu/1000

 95 STAT. 974

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Unpatented mining claims.

43 USC 1744.

PUBLIC LAW 97-55—OCT. 6, 1981 (a) The council or the trustee shall convey, at any time after two years from enactment of this Act, the interests conveyed to it under the first section of this Act to individuals or other legal entities— (1) which have submitted to the council or the trustee an application for such interests, and (2) which appear, or which are the heirs, successors, or assignees of individuals or other legal entities which appear upon the secured tax rolls of Calaveras County, California, as of July 1, 1978, as the owners of the lands or interests with respect to which such application was submitted. (b) The conveyed property shall remain subject to all encumbrances, if any, existing on the date of enactment of this Act, including easements, servitudes, leases, and rights-of-way, except those encumbrances that are related to interests in mining claims which may be extinguished pursuant to sections 6 and 7 of this Act. (c) Conveyance of the conveyed property shall be conditioned upon and subject to the right of mining claimants whose rights and interests were initiated pursuant to the mining laws prior to entry and patent under the Townsite Act (43 U.S.C. 711 et seq. (repealed)), and who initiate patent procedures pursuant to section 6 of this Act which result in the issuance of a patent under the mining laws. SEC. 4. Any administrative or recording costs incurred with respect to any conveyance made by the council or the trustee under section 3 of this Act shall be borne by the party to whom such conveyance is made. SEC. 5. Any of the interests conveyed under the first section of this Act which do not appear on the secured tax rolls of Calaveras County, California, as of July 1, 1978, shall be conveyed to the council, if held by the trustee, and held or disposed of by the council for the benefit of the City of Angels, California. SEC. 6. (a) Any unpatented mining claim located within those lands described in the first section of this Act recorded pursuant to the Federal Land Policy and Management Act of 1976 (43 U.S.C. 1701), for which the claimant has not made application for patent within two years after the date of the enactment of this Act shall be conclusively deemed to be abandoned and shall be void and all interests in such claim shall be deemed to have reverted to the United States for the purpose of this Act: Provided, however. That upon a showing that a mineral survey cannot be completed within said twoyear period, the filing of an application for a mineral survey, which states on its face that it was filed for the purpose of proceeding to patent, shall be acceptable for the patent application purpose of this section if all other applicable requirements under the general mining laws and other laws have been met and if the applicant subsequently prosecutes diligently to completion his application for patent. (b) Final rejection of any patent application filed under section 6 of this Act shall cause to lapse and be void the condition imposed by section 3(c) of this Act in the grant to any person receiving conveyance of lands embracing all or part of the mining claim which was the subject of the rejected patent application. SEC. 7. For the purposes of tnis Act, any unpatented mining claim located within those lands described in the first section of this Act which on the date of enactment of this Act was not recorded pursuant to section 314 of the Federal Land Policy and Management Act of 1976, or which is not maintained by the annual filings required by

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