Title 79 — Title 79 PUBLIC LANDS

Whenever the department finds that it is in the best interests of the state of Washington to acquire any property or use of a road in private ownership to afford access to state timber and other valuable material for the purpose of developing, caring for, or selling the same, the…

The attorney general of the state of Washington is hereby required and authorized to condemn said property interests found to be necessary for the public purposes of the state of Washington, as provided in RCW 79.36.310, and upon being furnished with a certified copy of the resol…

In the event the department should determine that the property interests acquired under the authority of this chapter are no longer necessary for the purposes for which they were acquired, the department shall dispose of the same in the following manner, when in the discretion of…

The department in acquiring any property interests under the provisions of this chapter, either by purchase or condemnation, is hereby authorized to pay for the same out of any moneys available to the department for this purpose.[ 2003 c 334 s 229; 1963 c 140 s 4; 1945 c 239 s 4;…

(1) Any person, firm, or corporation engaged in the business of logging or lumbering, quarrying, mining or removing sand, gravel, or other valuable materials from land, and desirous of obtaining a right-of-way for the purpose of transporting or moving timber, minerals, stone, san…

The department may grant to any person such easements and rights in public lands, not otherwise provided in law, as the applicant applying therefor may acquire in privately owned lands. No grant shall be made under this section until such time as the full market value of the esta…

All state lands granted, sold or leased since the fifteenth day of June, 1911, or hereafter granted, sold or leased, containing timber, minerals, stone, sand, gravel, or other valuable materials, or when other state lands contiguous or in proximity thereto contain any such valuab…

Every grant, deed, conveyance, contract to purchase or lease made since June 15, 1911, or hereafter made to any person, firm, or corporation, for a right-of-way for a private railroad, skid road, canal, flume, watercourse, or other easement, over or across any public lands for th…

Any person, firm, or corporation, having acquired such right-of-way or easement since June 15, 1911, or hereafter acquiring such right-of-way or easement over any public lands for the purpose of transporting or moving timber, mineral, stone, sand, gravel, or other valuable materi…

Should the owner or operator of any private railroad, skid road, flume, canal, watercourse or other easement operating over lands acquired since the fifteenth day of June, 1911, or hereafter acquired, from the state, as in the previous sections provided, fail to agree with the st…

In case any person, firm or corporation, owning or operating any private railroad, skid road, flume, canal, watercourse or other easement, over and across any state lands, or any lands acquired since the fifteenth day of June, 1911, or hereafter acquired, from the state, subject …

Any such right-of-way heretofore granted which has never been used, or has ceased to be used for the purpose for which it was granted, for a period of two years, shall be deemed forfeited. The forfeiture of any such right-of-way heretofore granted, or granted under the provisions…

Any county or city or the United States of America or state agency desiring to locate, establish, and construct a road or street over and across any state lands of the state of Washington shall by resolution of the board of county commissioners of such county, or city council or …

A right-of-way through, over and across any state lands not held under a contract of sale, is hereby granted to any railroad company organized under the laws of this state, or any state or territory of the United States, or under any act of congress of the United States, to any e…

In order to obtain the benefits of RCW 79.36.450, any railroad company hereafter constructing, or proposing to construct, a railroad, shall file with the department a copy of its articles of incorporation, due proof of organization thereunder, a map or maps, accompanied by the fi…

All state lands over which a right-of-way of any railroad to be hereafter constructed, shall be located, shall be appraised in the same manner as in the case of applications for the purchase of state lands, fixing the appraised value per acre for each lot or block, quarter sectio…

Should any improvements, made by anyone not holding adversely to the state at the time of making such improvements or made in good faith by a lessee of the state whose lease had not been canceled or was not subject to cancellation for any cause, or made upon the land by mistake, …

When the construction or proposed construction of said railroad affects the value of improvements on state lands not situated on the right-of-way or extra widths, the applicant for said right-of-way shall file with the department a valid release of damages duly executed by the ow…

Upon full payment of the appraised value of any right-of-way for a railroad and of damages to state lands affected, the department shall issue to the railroad company applying for such right-of-way a certificate in such form as the department may prescribe, in which the terms and…

A right-of-way through, over, and across any state lands or state forestlands, may be granted to any municipal or private corporation, company, association, individual, or the United States of America, constructing or proposing to construct, or which has heretofore constructed, a…

In order to obtain the benefits of the grant made in RCW 79.36.510, the municipal or private corporation or company, association, individual, or the United States of America, constructing or proposing to construct, or which has heretofore constructed, such telephone line, ditch, …

Upon the filing of the plat and field notes, as provided in RCW 79.36.520, the land applied for and the valuable materials on the right-of-way applied for, and the marked danger trees to be felled off the right-of-way, if any, and the improvements included in the right-of-way app…

A right-of-way through, over and across any state lands is hereby granted to any irrigation district, or irrigation company duly organized under the laws of this state, and to any association, individual, or the United States of America, constructing or proposing to construct an …

In order to obtain the benefits of the grant provided for in RCW 79.36.540, the irrigation district, irrigation company, association, individual, or the United States of America, constructing or proposing to construct such irrigation ditch or pipe line for irrigation, or the diki…

Upon the filing of the plat and field notes as provided in RCW 79.36.550, the lands included within the right-of-way applied for shall be appraised as in the case of an application to purchase such lands, at the full market value thereof. Upon full payment of the appraised value …

The department shall have the power to grant to any person or corporation the right, privilege, and authority to perpetually back and hold water upon or over any state lands, and overflow such lands and inundate the same, whenever the department shall deem it necessary for the pu…

The foregoing sections relating to the acquiring of rights-of-way and overflow rights through, over and across lands belonging to the state, shall not be construed as exclusive or as affecting the right of municipal and public service corporations to acquire lands belonging to or…

All state lands hereafter granted, sold or leased shall be subject to the right of the state, or any grantee or lessee or successor in interest thereof hereafter acquiring other state lands, or acquiring the timber, stone, mineral or other natural products thereon, or the manufac…

Every grant, deed, conveyance, lease or contract hereafter made to any person, firm or corporation over and across any state lands for the purpose of right-of-way for any logging and/or lumbering railroad, private railroad, skid road, flume, canal, watercourse or other easement t…

Any person, firm or corporation hereafter acquiring the right-of-way or other easement over state lands or over any tide or shore lands [tidelands or shorelands] belonging to the state, or over and across any navigable water or stream for the purpose of transporting or moving tim…

Whenever any person, firm, or corporation shall hereafter purchase, lease, or acquire any state lands, or any easement or interest therein, or any timber, stone, mineral, or other natural products thereon, or the manufactured products thereof the purchase, lease, or grant shall b…

Should the owner or operator of any logging and/or lumbering railroad, private railroad, skid road, flume, canal, watercourse, or other easement operating over lands hereafter acquired from the state, as in RCW 79.36.590 through 79.36.650 set out, fail to agree with the state or …

In case any person, firm, or corporation owning and/or operating any logging and/or lumbering railroad, private railroad, skid road, flume, canal, watercourse, or other easement subject to the provisions of RCW 79.36.590 through 79.36.650 shall fail to comply with any rule or ord…

Any person, firm, or corporation shall have a right-of-way over public lands, subject to the provisions of RCW 79.36.590 through 79.36.650, when necessary, for the purpose of hauling or removing timber, stone, mineral, or other natural products or the manufactured products thereo…

In addition to any authority otherwise granted by law, the department shall have the authority to acquire lands, interests in lands, and other property for the purpose of affording access by road to public lands from any public highway.[ 2004 c 199 s 221; 2003 c 334 s 499; 1961 c…

To facilitate the carrying out of the purpose of this chapter, the department may:(1) Grant easements, rights-of-way, and permits to cross public lands to any person in exchange for similar rights over lands not under its jurisdiction;(2) Enter into agreements with any person or …

Purchasers of valuable materials from public lands may use access roads or public roads for the removal of such materials where the rights acquired by the state will permit, but use shall be subject to the right of the department:(1) To impose reasonable terms for the use, constr…

Whenever the department finds that it is for the best interest of the state and where the rights acquired by the state will permit, the department may grant permits for the use of access roads to any person. Any permit issued under the authority of this section shall be subject t…

The department shall create, maintain, and administer a revolving fund, to be known as the access road revolving fund in which shall be deposited all moneys received by it from users of access roads as payment for costs incurred or to be incurred in maintaining, repairing, and re…

All moneys received by the department from users of access roads that are not deposited in the access road revolving fund shall be paid as follows:(1) To reimburse the state fund or account from which expenditures have been made for the acquisition, construction, or improvement o…

The department may enter into agreements with the county to:(1) Identify public roads used to provide access to state forestlands in need of improvement;(2) Establish a time schedule for the improvements;(3) Advance payments to the county to fund the road improvements. However, n…

As used in this chapter "assessing district" means:(1) Incorporated cities and towns;(2) Diking districts;(3) Drainage districts;(4) Port districts;(5) Irrigation districts;(6) Water-sewer districts;(7) Counties;(8) Weed boards and weed districts; and(9) Any municipal corporation…

As used in this chapter, "assessment" shall mean any assessment, rate or charge levied, assessed, imposed, or charged by any assessing district as defined in RCW 79.44.003, and which assessments, rates or charges by statute are expressly made applicable to lands of the state.[ 19…

All lands, including school lands, granted lands, escheated lands, or other lands, held or owned by the state of Washington in fee simple (in trust or otherwise), situated within the limits of any assessing district in this state, may be assessed and charged for the cost of local…

In all local improvement assessment districts in any assessing district in this state, property in such district, held or owned by the state shall be assessed and charged for its proportion of the cost of such local improvements in the same manner as other property in such distri…

Where lands of the state are under lease, the proportionate amounts to be assessed against the leasehold interest, and the fee simple interest of the state, shall be fixed with reference to the life of the improvement and the period for which the lease has yet to run.[ 2003 c 334…

Notice of the intention to make such improvement, or impose any assessment, together with the estimate of the amount to be charged to each lot, tract or parcel of land, or other property owned by the state to be assessed, shall be forwarded by registered or certified mail to the …

Upon the approval and confirmation of the assessment roll ordered by the proper authorities of any assessing district, the treasurer of such assessing district shall certify and forward to the chief administrative officer of the agency of state government occupying, using, or hav…

When the chief administrative officer of an agency of state government is satisfied that an assessing district has complied with all the conditions precedent to the levy of assessments for district purposes, pursuant to this chapter against lands occupied, used, or under the juri…

When any assessing district has made or caused to be made an assessment against such leasehold, contractual, or possessory interest for any such local improvement, the treasurer of that assessing district shall immediately give notice to the chief administrative officer of the ag…