Purpose

(1) The purpose of 1-4-112, 82-1-501, and this section is to enact into law a presumptive understanding that fossils are not minerals and that fossils belong to the surface estate, unless conveyed by a clear and express grant. (2) It is the intent of the legislature that 1-4-112, 82-1-501, and this section apply prospectively and retroactively to instruments governed by Montana law to the maximum extent possible under the constitutions of the United States and the state of Montana.