§642 Liens for Expenses of Reclamation

Summary

States that get arid public lands can place liens on the specific tracts they reclaim. Those liens must cover the actual cost and necessary expenses of reclaiming the land, plus reasonable interest from the date the land is reclaimed until it is sold to settlers. If enough water is actually supplied by a substantial ditch, canal, artesian well, or reservoir to reclaim a tract, the government will give legal title to the State even if no one has settled or farmed it. The United States is never responsible for paying any part of these liens.