1997 Minnesota Statutes

     92.12 Appraisal of school and other state lands. 

    Subdivision 1.    Appraisers.  The commissioner may have 
 any school or other state lands appraised.  The appraisals must 
 be made by regularly appointed and qualified state appraisers.  
 Each appraiser shall take and sign an oath to faithfully and 
 impartially discharge the duties of appraiser as best able and 
 that the appraiser is not interested directly or indirectly in 
 the state lands to be appraised, or the timber or improvements 
 on them or in their purchase.  The oath must be attached to the 
 appraisal report.  

    Subd. 2.    Valuation and appraisal.  The appraiser 
 shall view and appraise the lands, including the merchantable 
 timber and improvements on them, and make a report to the 
 commissioner.  The valuation of the lands and the merchantable 
 timber and improvements on them must each be made and stated 
 separately in the appraisal.  The minimum price established by 
 the appraisal is the minimum price for the lands until changed 
 by later appraisal.  No school or other state lands may be sold 
 until appraised.  The price may not be less than $5 an acre.  In 
 the appraisal the value of the land before the addition of the 
 value of merchantable timber and improvements must include the 
 value of timber reproduction.  

    Subd. 3.  Repealed, 1961 c 657 s 3 

    Subd. 4.    Sales.  The commissioner shall hold frequent 
 sales of school and other state lands.  The time and place of 
 the sales must be publicly posted in the courthouse in the 
 county where the lands are located and in the courthouse in the 
 county where the sale is to take place at least 30 days in 
 advance, in addition to the regular notice of sale provided by 
 law.  At this sale the commissioner shall sell lands the 
 commissioner considers best for the public interest.  

    Subd. 5.    Sale of land and timber.  When the appraisal 
 and other reports show that the land is mainly valuable for 
 agricultural purposes and contains only small quantities of 
 timber, the commissioner may either sell the timber separately 
 as provided by law for state timber sales or sell the land as 
 agricultural land.  If the land is sold as agricultural land the 
 purchaser must pay down as first payment an amount equal to the 
 value of the timber, in addition to the first payment required 
 on the land.  If the appraisal and other reports show land 
 should be sold for continuous forest production or other 
 conservation purpose, the commissioner may require that the full 
 appraised value of land and timber must be paid by the purchaser 
 at the time of purchase.  

    Subd. 6.    Drainage.  The appraisers must report to the 
 commissioner lands that they believe should be drained.  After 
 the state has constructed or has been assessed for a public 
 ditch or drain, the lands assessed or improved must be 
 reappraised before being offered for sale.  

    HIST: (6277, 6438) 1911 c 90 s 5; 1911 c 196 s 1; Ex1919 c 17 
 s 1; 1927 c 332 s 1; Ex1933 c 22 s 1; 1941 c 374 s 3; 1959 c 589 
 s 1; 1963 c 171 s 2; 1985 c 265 art 3 s 1; 1986 c 444; 1991 c 
 219 s 2 

*   NOTE:  As to Volstead lands, see Laws 1961, Chapter 472, 
*and Laws 1963, Chapter 390, Section 1.