§3215 Public Land Entries in Alaska

Summary

Approves many Alaska public-land applications that were filed on time under older federal laws from 1891, 1898, 1927, and 1938. If an application described land that was open for entry when the person applied, the application is treated as approved on the 180th day after the law’s effective date unless an exception or an adjustment is needed. Some applications are not automatically approved and must be decided under the old laws and the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act instead. That includes applications that affect national parks, wildlife refuges, certain wilderness areas, or land already picked or owned by the State under Alaska’s settlement law. An application also must be decided instead of approved if, by the 180th day, a Native corporation, the State, or another person files a timely protest saying the applicant is not entitled to the land, that the land is needed for access, or that someone else has improvements there, or if the applicant knowingly gave up the application. An applicant may correct a wrong land description if the new description matches what they meant to claim. The Interior Department must tell the State and interested parties about the correction, and those parties can protest by the 180th day or within 60 days after the notice, whichever is later. The Secretary can set a final date for making corrections but must give at least 60 days’ notice. Lands set aside for power projects are treated as available for approval unless they are part of a licensed power project or already used for power; entries made after such withdrawal may carry a U.S. right to reenter. Any reserved right of reentry in a patent ends 20 years after the law’s effective date if the land is not licensed or used for an authorized project. Before issuing an official title, the Secretary must sort out any earlier claims and respect any rights from actual use before withdrawal.