Title XVIII, Public Lands and Property

The Board of Trustees of the Internal Improvement Trust Fund is hereby authorized and empowered to negotiate, sell, and convey leasehold estates in and to lands the title to which is vested in any state board, department or agency thereof or lands the title to which is vested in …

(1) The Board of Trustees of the Internal Improvement Trust Fund shall require from each lessee of public land under s. 253.45, s. 253.47 or s. 253.51 an annual notarized report as to the status of operations on the land under lease. Such report shall include the number of holes …

Each applicant for a lease concerning oil, gas, or mineral exploitation or exploration in the state shall submit to the agency of the state issuing the lease a certified statement as to any lease holdings regarding oil, gas, or minerals the applicant has which were granted by the…

Whenever in the opinion of the Board of Trustees of the Internal Improvement Trust Fund there shall be a demand for the purchase of oil and gas leases on any area, tract, or parcel of the land so owned, controlled, or managed, by any state board, department, or agency, then the b…

All lands subject to this law shall be leased upon sealed bids. All bids shall be directed to the Board of Trustees of the Internal Improvement Trust Fund. Said bids shall not be opened until the day, time, and place designated by the board of trustees and provided in said notice…

On the date specified in the advertisement of sale, the Board of Trustees of the Internal Improvement Trust Fund shall at a public meeting consider any and all bids submitted prior to such date for the leasing of the land or lands so advertised and, in the discretion of the board…

(1) Subject to the further provisions hereof, each lease shall be for a primary term prescribed by the Board of Trustees of the Internal Improvement Trust Fund not to exceed 10 years from the date of the lease, and shall provide that such lease, upon which operations are being ca…

Before the acceptance of any bid for such lease the Board of Trustees of the Internal Improvement Trust Fund shall establish to its satisfaction the responsibility of the bidder. And no lease shall be assigned in whole, or in part, nor any land covered thereby, until and except t…

The state’s royalties, a part of the consideration of every lease, shall be computed after deducting any oil or gas reasonably used for the production hereof.History.—s. 7, ch. 22824, 1945.

The Board of Trustees of the Internal Improvement Trust Fund may require a surety or property bond, an irrevocable letter of credit, or other proof of financial responsibility from each lessee of public land or mineral interest prior to the time such lessee mines, drills, or extr…

The development of the lands leased by the Board of Trustees of the Internal Improvement Trust Fund for the production of oil and gas therefrom shall be in accord with the laws of Florida relating to conservation and control and, if herein is found any conflict with those laws, s…

(1) Regardless of anything to the contrary contained in this law in any previous section or part thereof, no board or agency mentioned therein or the state shall have the power or authority to sell, execute, or enter into any lease of the type covered by this law relating to any …

(1) The Board of Trustees of the Internal Improvement Trust Fund in making exchanges of land under ss. 253.42 and 253.43, is hereby authorized in its discretion to convey said land without reservations of oil and gas or of phosphate and other minerals required by s. 270.11, where…

(1) As soon as a county bulkhead line as provided in s. 253.1221 has been fixed by the water and navigation control authority of Pinellas County around the mainland of the county and the offshore islands therein, and the bulkhead line has been formally approved by the Board of Tr…

(1) The Board of Trustees of the Internal Improvement Trust Fund of this state is authorized and empowered to grant unto riparian owners as herein defined, their heirs, successors and assigns, perpetual easements and easements, licenses and leases for specified terms of years, pe…

As used in ss. 253.67-253.75:(1) “Aquaculture” means the cultivation of aquatic organisms and associated activities, including, but not limited to, grading, sorting, transporting, harvesting, holding, storing, growing, and planting.(2) “Board” means the Board of Trustees of the I…

(1) To the extent that it is not contrary to the public interest, and subject to limitations contained in ss. 253.67-253.75, the board of trustees may lease or authorize the use of submerged lands to which it has title for the conduct of aquaculture activities and grant exclusive…

Any applicant desiring to lease a portion of the submerged lands of this state for the purpose of conducting aquaculture activities shall file with the board a written application in such form as it may prescribe, setting forth the following information:(1) The name and address o…

Upon receiving an application under this act that satisfactorily sets forth the information required by s. 253.69, the board shall give notice of the application as provided by s. 253.115.History.—s. 1, ch. 69-46; ss. 27, 35, ch. 69-106; s. 23, ch. 78-95; s. 494, ch. 94-356.

When the board has determined that the proposed lease is not incompatible with the public interest and that the applicant has demonstrated his or her capacity to perform the operations upon which the application is based, it may proceed to consummate a lease contract having the f…

(1) The board shall require all lessees to stake off and mark the areas under lease according to the conditions of the lease agreement and rules of the board, by appropriate ranges, monuments, stakes, buoys, and fences, so placed as not to interfere unnecessarily with navigation …

The board has authority to adopt rules pursuant to ss. 120.536(1) and 120.54 to administer the provisions of ss. 253.67-253.75.History.—s. 1, ch. 69-46; ss. 27, 35, ch. 69-106; s. 45, ch. 98-200.

(1) A person who conducts aquaculture activities in excess of those authorized by the board or who conducts such activities on state-owned submerged lands without having previously obtained an authorization from the board commits a misdemeanor of the second degree, punishable as …

(1) Prior to the granting of any form of authorization under this act, the board shall request comments by the Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission when the application relates to bottom land covered by fresh or salt water. Such comments shall be based on such factors as an …

(1) As used in this section, unless the context otherwise requires:(a) “Agency” means any official, officer, commission, authority, council, committee, department, division, bureau, board, section, or other unit or entity of state government.(b) “Permit” means any permit or licen…

(1) A person may not commence any excavation, construction, or other activity involving the use of sovereign or other lands of the state, the title to which is vested in the board of trustees of the Internal Improvement Trust Fund under this chapter, until the person has received…

(1) It is the intent of the Legislature to conserve and protect the natural resources and scenic beauty of the Oklawaha River Valley and all lands and interests formerly acquired by the state or Federal Government for construction and operation of the Cross Florida Barge Canal. I…

(1) It is the intent of the Legislature to conserve, protect, and maintain the natural resources, recreational values, and water management capabilities of Lake Rousseau and the Withlacoochee River. It is the finding of the Legislature that said lands and waters are areas contain…

The Cross Florida Greenways State Recreation and Conservation Area is established and assigned to the department. The department shall manage the greenways pursuant to the department’s existing statutory authority until administrative rules are adopted by the department. However,…

(1) The initial boundaries of the greenways shall be as follows, as described in the August 30, 1992, management plan published by the University of Florida University Planning Team:(a) Segments 1, 2, 5, 6, 7, 8, and 9 of the Base Boundary.(b) Segments 3 and 4 of the Payback Boun…

(1) The department may identify parcels of former barge canal lands that may be sold or exchanged. In identifying said surplus lands, the department shall give priority to those lands not having high recreation or conservation values, and those having the greatest assessed valuat…

The Department of Environmental Protection may authorize the removal and sale of products from the land where environmentally appropriate, the proceeds from which shall be deposited into the appropriate trust fund in accordance with the same disposition provided under s. 253.0341…

(1) The Cross Florida Greenways State Recreation and Conservation Area must be managed as a multiple-use area pursuant to s. 253.034(2)(a), and as provided in this section. Future site-specific studies and investigations must be conducted by the department to determine compatibil…

(1) The Legislature recognizes that from time to time it may be necessary to serve statewide public needs by allowing transportation and utility uses to cross the greenways lands. When these crossings are needed, the location and design should consider and mitigate the impact on …

All agencies of the state, water management districts, and local governments shall recognize the special character of the lands and waters designated by the state as the Cross Florida Greenways State Recreation and Conservation Area and shall not take any action which will impair…

The department shall make no expenditures for the purpose of acquiring land for constructing, operating, or promoting a canal across the peninsula of Florida connecting the waters of the Atlantic Ocean with the waters of the Gulf of America via the St. Johns River.History.—ss. 4,…

The department shall have the power and authority to enter into any and all contracts necessary or convenient to the exercise of any of the powers granted to the department by this act. The department is authorized to assign, transfer, and convey to the United States, or to any a…

It is intended that the provisions of this act shall be liberally construed for accomplishing the work authorized and provided for or intended to be provided for by this act, and when strict construction would result in the defeat of the accomplishment of any part of the work aut…

No costs or attorney fees of any party adverse to the state may be charged to the state in any proceeding to quiet title in any person to lands the title to which vested in the state under the provisions of chapter 18296, Laws of Florida, 1937.History.—s. 1, ch. 72-268; s. 1, ch.…

The right to apply for a tax deed or to institute other action for recovery on, or enforcement of, tax sale certificates, and subsequent and omitted taxes in connection therewith, that were sold and assigned under the provisions of chapter 18296, Laws of Florida, 1937, commonly k…

(1)(a) The interest of the state in any land which was acquired by the state under chapter 18296, Laws of Florida, 1937, but which is listed on a county tax assessment roll as being owned by a person other than the state and on which ad valorem taxes have been paid at least since…

The recodification of the sections relating to chapter 18296, Laws of Florida, 1937, by chapters 72-268 and 84-197, Laws of Florida, shall not serve to reinstate any right to maintain any action that had expired prior to October 1, 1984.History.—s. 1, ch. 72-268; s. 3, ch. 84-197…

(1) The Office of Coastal and Aquatic Managed Areas of the Department of Environmental Protection shall have the authority to promulgate rules to govern the management and use of state-owned or other uplands assigned to it for management. Such rules may include, but shall not be …

(1) By July 1, 2018, the department shall include in the Florida State-Owned Lands and Records Information System (FL-SOLARIS) database all federally owned conservation lands in the state, all lands on which the Federal Government retains a permanent conservation easement in the …

There is established the Southeast Florida Coral Reef Ecosystem Conservation Area. The conservation area shall consist of the sovereignty submerged lands and state waters offshore of Broward, Martin, Miami-Dade, and Palm Beach Counties from the St. Lucie Inlet to the northern bou…

When any state, county, municipal, or other public property of this state is destroyed or partially destroyed, by fire or otherwise, upon which there is insurance, the proceeds of such insurance, when collected, may be used by the officer having the supervision of the property de…