§865 Confirmation of Certain Lands Selected by California

Summary

Confirms many land claims the State of California made before July 23, 1866, when those lands were public, not already claimed by a settler under U.S. law, not mineral land, not set aside for naval, military, or Indian use, not covered by a valid Mexican or Spanish grant, and not inside any city, town, village, or the county of San Francisco, and had been sold by California to buyers in good faith. The State cannot get more land for schools or improvements than it is legally allowed. If the land had already been surveyed by the United States, California must tell the U.S. land office officer named by the Secretary of the Interior; that notice becomes the selection date and the land office will investigate and send approved selections to the Bureau of Land Management for certification to the State. If California had surveyed unsurveyed federal land and sold it in good faith, those marked selections (as of July 23, 1866) get the same rights as a settler’s preemption claim. If U.S. surveys differ, the selection is adjusted to the nearest legal subdivisions, and holders get the same time to prove their claims as preemptors before the land is certified to the State.