2005 Texas Natural Resources Code CHAPTER 11. PROVISIONS GENERALLY APPLICABLE TO THE PUBLIC DOMAIN

NATURAL RESOURCES CODE

TITLE 2. PUBLIC DOMAIN

SUBTITLE A. GENERAL PROVISIONS

CHAPTER 11. PROVISIONS GENERALLY APPLICABLE TO THE PUBLIC DOMAIN

SUBCHAPTER A. GENERAL PROVISIONS


	§ 11.001. DEFINITIONS.  In this chapter:                                    
		(1)  "State" means the State of Texas.                                        
		(2)  "Land office" means the General Land Office.                             
		(3)  "Commissioner" means the Commissioner of the 
General Land Office.      

Acts 1977, 65th Leg., p. 2349, ch. 871, art. I, § 1, eff. Sept. 1, 
1977. 

SUBCHAPTER B. TERRITORY AND BOUNDARIES OF THE STATE


	§ 11.011. VACANT AND UNAPPROPRIATED LAND.  So that the 
law relating to the public domain may be brought together, the 
following extract is taken from the joint resolutions of the 
Congress of the United States relating to the annexation of Texas to 
the United States, which was approved June 23, 1845:  "Said State, 
when admitted into the Union,  . . .  shall also retain all the 
vacant and unappropriated lands lying within its limits, to be 
applied to the payment of debts and liabilities of said Republic of 
Texas, and the residue of said lands, after discharging said debts 
and liabilities, to be disposed of as said State may direct.  . . ."

Acts 1977, 65th Leg., p. 2349, ch. 871, art. I, § 1, eff. Sept. 1, 
1977. 


	§ 11.0111. LOCATION OF COASTAL BOUNDARIES.  (a) The 
commissioner shall:   
		(1)  have the area between the coastline of the Gulf of 
Mexico and the Three Marine League line compiled and platted;  and
		(2)  locate and set the boundary lines between the 
coastal counties from the coastline to the Three Marine League 
line.
	(b)  The commissioner shall locate and set the boundary lines 
between the counties from the coastline to the Three Marine League 
line in accordance with established engineering practice.
	(c)  The legal description of the boundary lines set between 
the counties from the coastline to the continental shelf shall be 
filed and recorded in the office of the county clerk of the affected 
county.

Added by Acts 2003, 78th Leg., ch. 1091, § 30, eff. June 20, 
2003.       


	§ 11.012. GULFWARD BOUNDARY OF TEXAS.  (a) The gulfward 
boundary of the State of Texas is the boundary determined in and 
pursuant to the decision of the United States Supreme Court in Texas 
v. Louisiana, 426 U.S. 465 (1976).
	(b)  The State of Texas has full sovereignty over the water, 
the beds and shores, and the arms of the Gulf of Mexico within its 
boundaries as provided in Subsection (a) of this section, subject 
only to the right of the United States to regulate foreign and 
interstate commerce under Article I, Section 8 of the United States 
Constitution, and the power of the United States over admiralty and 
maritime jurisdiction under Article III, Section 2 of the United 
States Constitution.
	(c)  The State of Texas owns the water and the beds and shores 
of the Gulf of Mexico and the arms of the Gulf of Mexico within the 
boundaries provided in this section, including all land which is 
covered by the Gulf of Mexico and the arms of the Gulf of Mexico 
either at low tide or high tide.
	(d)  None of the provisions of this section may be construed 
to relinquish any dominion, sovereignty, territory, property, or 
rights of the State of Texas previously held by the state.

Acts 1977, 65th Leg., p. 2349, ch. 871, art. I, § 1, eff. Sept. 1, 
1977. 


	§ 11.013. GULFWARD BOUNDARIES OF COUNTIES, CITIES, TOWNS, 
OR VILLAGES.  (a) The gulfward boundary of each county located on 
the coastline of the Gulf of Mexico is the Three Marine League line 
as determined by the United States Supreme Court.
	(b)  The area in the extended boundaries of the counties as 
provided in this section becomes a part of the public free school 
land and is subject to the constitutional and statutory provisions 
of this state pertaining to the use, distribution, sale, and lease 
of public free school land in this state.
	(c)  The gulfward boundaries of any city, town, or village 
created and operating under the general laws of the State of Texas 
shall not be established or extended by incorporation or annexation 
more than 5,280 feet gulfward beyond the coastline.  The governing 
body of such a city, town, or village may, by ordinance, extend the 
municipal boundaries up to 5,280 feet gulfward.  Any inclusion of 
territory in any such city, town, or village more than 5,280 feet 
gulfward beyond the coastline is void.  The term "coastline" as used 
in this subsection means the line of mean low tide along that 
portion of the coast which is in direct contact with the open Gulf 
of Mexico.  The term "city, town, or village created and operating 
under the general laws of the State of Texas" shall not include any 
city operating under a home-rule charter.
	If any such general-law city, town, or village has heretofore 
been established by incorporation or attempted incorporation more 
than 5,280 feet gulfward beyond the coastline, the corporate 
existence of such general-law city, town, or village is in all 
things validated, ratified, approved, and confirmed.
	The boundaries of such general-law city, town, or village, 
including the gulfward boundaries to the extent of 5,280 feet 
gulfward beyond the coastline, are in all things validated, 
ratified, approved, and confirmed and shall not be held invalid by 
reason of the inclusion of more territory than is expressly 
authorized in Article 971, Revised Civil Statutes of Texas, 1925, 
as amended, or by reason of the inclusion of territory other than 
that which is intended to be used for strictly town or city purposes 
as required by Section 7.002, Local Government Code or by reason of 
not constituting a city, town, or village.
	Neither this Act nor the general laws nor the special laws of 
the state shall have the effect of validating, ratifying, 
approving, or confirming the inclusion of territory in any such 
general-law city, town, or village more than 5,280 feet gulfward 
beyond the coastline.
	If for any reason it should be determined by any court of 
competent jurisdiction that any such general-law city, town, or 
village has heretofore been incorporated in violation of the laws 
of the state in effect as of the date of such incorporation or is 
invalid, the corporate boundaries of any such general-law city, 
town, or village shall be revised and reformed to exclude all 
territory more than 5,280 feet gulfward of the coastline.

Acts 1977, 65th Leg., p. 2349, ch. 871, art. I, § 1, eff. Sept. 1, 
1977.  Amended by Acts 1979, 66th Leg., p. 2165, ch. 828, § 1, 
eff. June 14, 1979;  Acts 1987, 70th Leg., ch. 149, § 24, eff. 
Sept. 1, 1987.


	§ 11.0131. JURISDICTION OF HOME-RULE CITIES OVER 
SUBMERGED LANDS.  (a) In this section:
		(1)  "Coastline" has the meaning assigned by Section 
11.013(c) of this code.
		(2)  "State-owned submerged lands" means the 
state-owned submerged lands described by Section 11.012 of this 
code.
	(b)  The boundary of a home-rule city may not extend into the 
gulf outside of an area that is enclosed by:
		(1)  for home-rule cities which have not prior to May 1, 
1983, annexed gulfward from the coastline:
			(A)  drawing a straight line connecting the two 
most remote points on the part of the coastline located in the city 
on June 1, 1983, the distance to be measured along the coastline;
			(B)  drawing straight lines that extend gulfward 
for one marine league from each of the two ends of the line drawn 
under Paragraph (A) of Subdivision (1) of this subsection and that 
are perpendicular to the line drawn under Paragraph (A);  and
			(C)  drawing a straight line connecting the two 
gulfward ends of the lines drawn under Paragraph (B) of Subdivision 
(1) of this subsection;  or
		(2)  for home-rule cities which have, prior to May 1, 
1983, annexed no farther than one marine league gulfward from the 
coastline:
			(A)  drawing a straight line that connects the two 
most remote points on the part of the coastline located in the city 
on June 1, 1983, and that extends through those two points as far as 
necessary to draw the lines described by Paragraph (B) of 
Subdivision (2) of this subsection;
			(B)  drawing two straight lines that extend 
gulfward for one marine league, that are perpendicular to the line 
drawn under Paragraph (A) of Subdivision (2) of this subsection, 
and that each extend through one of the two most remote points from 
the coastline on the boundary lines extending gulfward from the 
coastline;
			(C)  drawing a straight line connecting the two 
gulfward ends of the lines drawn under Paragraph (B) of Subdivision 
(2) of this subsection;  or
		(3)  for home-rule cities which have, prior to May 1, 
1983, annexed farther than one marine league gulfward from the 
coastline:
			(A)  drawing lines following the two current 
boundary lines extending gulfward from the coastline for a distance 
of one marine league;
			(B)  drawing a straight line connecting the two 
gulfward ends of the lines drawn under Paragraph (A) of Subdivision 
(3) of this subsection.
	(c)  A contract or agreement by which a home-rule city 
purports to pledge, directly or indirectly, taxes or other revenue 
from or attributable to state-owned submerged lands or other lands 
located outside the area described by Subsection (b) of this 
section does not create an enforceable right to prevent the 
reformation of the city's boundary under Subsection (d) of this 
section.
	(d)  The boundary of a home-rule city is void to the extent 
that it violates Subsection (b) of this section, and the boundary is 
reformed on the effective date of this Act to exclude the territory 
situated outside the area described by Subsection (b) of this 
section.
	(e)  A home-rule city may create industrial districts in the 
area that is outside the city limits and that is located in an area 
formed in the manner prescribed by Subsection (b) of this section 
except that the lines drawn under Paragraph (B) of Subdivision (1), 
Paragraph (B) of Subdivision (2) or Paragraph (A) of Subdivision 
(3) of Subsection (b) may be extended for no more than five statute 
miles instead of one marine league.  The governing body of such city 
shall have the right, power, and authority to designate the area 
described as an industrial district, as the term is customarily 
used, and to treat such area from time to time as such governing 
body may deem to be in the best interest of the city.  Included in 
such rights and powers of the governing body of any city is the 
right and power to enter into contracts or agreements with the 
owner(s) or lessee(s) of land in such industrial district upon such 
terms and considerations as the parties might deem appropriate.  
The city shall have no authority to regulate oil and gas 
exploration, production, and transportation operations in an 
industrial district established pursuant to this Act, but in 
consideration of such relinquishment and the relinquishment of 
other rights under Section 42.044, Local Government Code, the city 
is expressly authorized to require payments of a property owner or 
lessee(s) in such industrial district in an amount not to exceed 35 
percent of the revenue that would be produced if the city imposed a 
property tax in the industrial district.  Nothing herein shall 
prohibit a city and property owner or lessee(s) from agreement by 
contract for payments in a lesser amount.

Added by Acts 1981, 67th Leg., p. 3057, ch. 803, § 1, eff. Aug. 
31, 1981.  Amended by Acts 1983, 68th Leg., p. 3134, ch. 538, § 1, 
eff. June 19, 1983;  Acts 1987, 70th Leg., ch. 149, § 38, eff. 
Sept. 1, 1987.


	§ 11.014. LAND ACQUIRED FROM OKLAHOMA.  (a) Land acquired 
by the state in Oklahoma v. Texas, 272 U.S. 21 (1926) and subsequent 
orders of the United States Supreme Court relating to that case, is 
incorporated into the counties which are adjacent to the land, and 
the north and south lines of the adjacent counties, Lipscomb, 
Hemphill, Wheeler, Collingsworth, and Childress, are extended east 
to the 100th degree of west longitude as it is fixed in the final 
judgment.
	(b)  The land acquired from Oklahoma shall become a part of 
the respective counties as though it were originally included in 
each county for governmental purposes and shall be assessed for 
taxes and have taxes collected under the provisions of existing 
law.

Acts 1977, 65th Leg., p. 2350, ch. 871, art. I, § 1, eff. Sept. 1, 
1977. 


	§ 11.015. EXTENSION OF TEXAS-NEW MEXICO BOUNDARY.  (a) 
The boundary lines of all counties in the Texas Panhandle that 
border on the New Mexico boundary line are extended by extending the 
north and south lines of certain counties west to the Texas-New 
Mexico line, which was established by the survey of John H. Clark in 
1859 and later retraced to completion on September 26, 1911, by the 
Boundary Commission composed of Francis M. Cockrell and Sam R. 
Scott, under authority of S.J.R. No. 124, of the 61st Congress, 
Third Session.
	(b)  The boundary line is referred to as the 103rd Meridian 
and is described as follows:
		Beginning at the point where the one hundred and third 
degree of longitude west from Greenwich intersects the parallel of 
thirty-six degrees and thirty Minutes North latitude, as determined 
and fixed by John H. Clark, the Commissioner on the part of the 
United States in the years eighteen hundred and fifty-nine and 
eighteen hundred and sixty;  thence South with the line run by said 
Clark for the said one hundred and third degree of longitude to the 
Thirty-second parallel of North latitude to the point marked by 
said Clark as the Southeast corner of New Mexico;  and thence West 
with the thirty-second degree of North latitude as determined by 
said Clark to the Rio Grande.
	(c)  Copies of the deeds certified by the custodian of 
records in each of the counties in New Mexico in which the land is 
located and other instruments of title are admissible as evidence 
in suits filed in this state to the same extent as the original 
deeds or certified copies of them.
	(d)  The county clerk of each of the counties in Texas in 
which the land is now located may file the certified copies of deeds 
and other instruments affecting title in the same manner as the 
original deeds could have been filed.

Acts 1977, 65th Leg., p. 2350, ch. 871, art. I, § 1, eff. Sept. 1, 
1977. 


	§ 11.016. LAND ACQUIRED FROM MEXICO IN 1933.  (a) The 
State of Texas recognizes the provisions of 54 Stat. 21 (1940) and 
accepts as part of its territory and assumes civil and criminal 
jurisdiction over all of certain parcels or tracts of land lying 
adjacent to the territory of the State of Texas which were acquired 
by the United States under a convention between the United States of 
America and the United Mexican States signed February 1, 1933.
	(b)  The parcels and tracts of land acquired by the state 
constitute a part of the respective counties within whose 
boundaries they are located by extending the county boundaries to 
the Rio Grande and are subject to the civil and criminal 
jurisdiction of these counties.
	(c)  Any parcels or tracts, parts of which are located in two 
separate counties, shall be surveyed by the county surveyors of 
both counties, who shall determine the portion of the land located 
in their respective counties and shall file the field notes of the 
land in their offices together with a map of the parcels or tracts 
in the map records of the county.
	(d)  For the purpose of determining the boundaries, the 
boundary lines of the parcels and tracts established by the 
American Section of the International Boundary Commission, United 
States and Mexico, shall be accepted as the true boundaries.
	(e)  Any parcels or tracts of land that are adjacent to or 
contiguous to a water improvement district or a conservation and 
reclamation district may be included within the district by a 
written contract entered into between the owner of the land and the 
board of directors of the district.  The contract shall 
specifically describe the land to be included in the district, the 
character of water service to be furnished to the land, and the 
terms and conditions on which the land is to be included in the 
district and shall be acknowledged in the manner required for the 
acknowledgment of deeds and recorded in the deed records of the 
county in which the land is located.
	(f)  None of the provisions of this section may be construed 
to affect the ownership of the land.

Acts 1977, 65th Leg., p. 2350, ch. 871, art. I, § 1, eff. Sept. 1, 
1977. 


	§ 11.017. CHAMIZAL AREA.  (a) The State of Texas accepts 
as part of its territory and assumes civil and criminal 
jurisdiction over the tract of land lying adjacent to the State of 
Texas which was acquired by the United States of America from the 
United Mexican States under the Convention for the Solution of the 
Problem of the Chamizal, signed August 29, 1963, and ceded to Texas 
by Act of Congress.
	(b)  The territory shall be a part of El Paso County.                          
	(c)  None of the provisions of this section affect the 
ownership of the land.

Acts 1977, 65th Leg., p. 2351, ch. 871, art. I, § 1, eff. Sept. 1, 
1977. 


	§ 11.018. CESSION OF CERTAIN EL PASO LAND.  (a) To 
facilitate the project for rectification of the Rio Grande in the El 
Paso-Juarez Valley under the convention between the United States 
of America and the United Mexican States signed February 1, 1933, 
without cost to the state, all right, title, and interest of the 
State of Texas in and to the bed and banks of the Rio Grande in El 
Paso County and Hudspeth County which may be necessary or expedient 
in the construction of the project is ceded to the United States of 
America.
	(b)  This cession is made on the express condition that the 
State of Texas retain concurrent jurisdiction with the United 
States of America over every portion of land ceded which remains 
within the territorial limits of the United States after the 
project is completed so that process may be executed in the same 
manner and with the same effect as before the cession took place.
	(c)  None of the provisions of this section may be construed 
as a cession or relinquishment of any rights which the State of 
Texas, its citizens, or any property owners have in the water of the 
Rio Grande, its use, or access to it.

Acts 1977, 65th Leg., p. 2351, ch. 871, art. I, § 1, eff. Sept. 1, 
1977. 

SUBCHAPTER C. SPECIAL FUNDS


	§ 11.041. PERMANENT SCHOOL FUND.  (a) In addition to land 
and minerals granted to the permanent school fund under the 
constitution and other laws of this state, the permanent school 
fund shall include:
		(1)  the mineral estate in river beds and channels;                           
		(2)  the mineral estate in areas within tidewater 
limits, including islands, lakes, bays, and the bed of the sea which 
belong to the state;  and
		(3)  the arms and the beds and shores of the Gulf of 
Mexico within the boundary of Texas.
	(b)  The land and minerals dedicated to the permanent school 
fund shall be managed as provided by law.

Acts 1977, 65th Leg., p. 2352, ch. 871, art. I, § 1, eff. Sept. 1, 
1977. 


	§ 11.042. ASYLUM FUND.  The 400,000 acres of land set 
apart for the various asylums in equal portions of 100,000 acres for 
each by act of the legislature, approved August 30, 1856, is 
recognized and set apart to provide a permanent fund for the 
support, maintenance, and improvement of the asylums.

Acts 1977, 65th Leg., p. 2352, ch. 871, art. I, § 1, eff. Sept. 1, 
1977. 


	§ 11.043. UNIVERSITY FUND.  After payment of the amount 
due to the permanent school fund for proceeds from the sale of the 
portion of the public land set aside for payment of the public debt 
by act of the legislature in 1879 and payment directed to be made to 
the permanent school and university funds by act of the legislature 
in 1883, the remainder of the land not to exceed two million acres 
or the proceeds from their sale shall be divided in half and one of 
the halves shall constitute a permanent endowment fund for The 
University of Texas System.

Acts 1977, 65th Leg., p. 2352, ch. 871, art. I, § 1, eff. Sept. 1, 
1977. 

SUBCHAPTER D. REGULATION OF THE PUBLIC DOMAIN


	§ 11.071. RECOVERY OF VALUE OF MINERALS AND TIMBER.  (a) 
At least semiannually, the commissioner and the county attorney of 
each county shall report to the attorney general the name and 
address of each person who has taken any minerals or other property 
of value from public land or who has cut, used, destroyed, sold, or 
otherwise appropriated any timber from public land and shall report 
any other data within their knowledge.  The county attorneys also 
shall assist the attorney general relating to these matters in any 
manner he requests.
	(b)  The attorney general shall file suit in any county in 
which all or part of the injury occurred or in the county in which 
the defendant resides to recover the value of the property, or with 
the consent of the governor, the attorney general may compromise 
and settle any of these liabilities with or without suit.
	(c)  The attorney general shall pay all amounts collected or 
received by him to the permanent funds to which they belong.
	(d)  From amounts recovered by suit, the attorney general 
shall receive a fee of 10 percent and the county attorney shall 
receive a fee of five percent, and from amounts recovered by 
compromise, the attorney general and county attorney shall each 
receive one-half of the fees to be taxed against the defendant as 
costs.  No county attorney may receive compensation from cases not 
reported by him to the attorney general.
	(e)  Except as otherwise provided by law, no person may use 
for his benefit or cut or remove any mineral, plant, or anything of 
value located on land belonging to the permanent school fund 
without proper authority from the commissioner.
	(f)  In addition to any other penalties provided by law, a 
person violating the provisions of Subsection (e) of this section 
shall be liable for a civil penalty of not more than $10,000 for 
each thing of value cut, used, or removed.  All civil penalties 
collected under this subsection shall be credited to the permanent 
school fund.

Acts 1977, 65th Leg., p. 2352, ch. 871, art. I, § 1, eff. Sept. 1, 
1977.  Amended by Acts 1987, 70th Leg., ch. 208, § 9, eff. Aug. 
31, 1987.


	§ 11.072. FENCES WITH AND WITHOUT GATES.  (a) A person who 
has used any of the pasture land by joining fences or otherwise and 
who builds or maintains more than three miles lineal measure of 
fences running in the same general direction without a gate in it 
shall be fined not less than $200 nor more than $1,000.
	(b)  The gate in the fence described in Subsection (a) of 
this section shall be at least 10 feet wide and shall not be locked 
or kept closed so that it obstructs free ingress or egress.
	(c)  The provisions of this section do not apply to persons 
who have previously settled on land not their own, if the enclosure 
is 200 acres or less and if the principal pursuit of the person on 
the land is agriculture.

Acts 1977, 65th Leg., p. 2353, ch. 871, art. I, § 1, eff. Sept. 1, 
1977. 


	§ 11.073. DEFINITION OF FENCING.  In Sections 11.074 and 
11.075 of this code, "fencing" means the erection of any structure 
of wood, wire, wood and wire, or any other material, whether it 
encloses land on all sides or only one or more sides, which is 
intended to prevent the passage of cattle, horses, mules, sheep, 
goats, or hogs.

Acts 1977, 65th Leg., p. 2353, ch. 871, art. I, § 1, eff. Sept. 1, 
1977. 


	§ 11.074. HERDING AND LINE-RIDING.  (a) No owner of 
stock, manager, agent, employee, or servant may fence, use, occupy, 
or appropriate by herding or line-riding any portion of the public 
land of the state or land which belongs to the public schools or 
asylums unless he obtains a lease for the land from the proper 
authority.
	(b)  Any owner of stock or his manager, agent, employee, or 
servant who fences, uses, occupies, or appropriates by herding or 
line-riding any portion of the land covered by Subsection (a) of 
this section without a lease for the land, on conviction, shall be 
fined not less than $100 nor more than $1,000 and confined in the 
county jail for not less than three months nor more than two years.  
Each day for which a violation continues constitutes a separate 
offense.
	(c)  Prosecution under this section may take place in the 
county in which a portion of the land is located or to which the 
county may be attached for judicial purposes or in Travis County.

Acts 1977, 65th Leg., p. 2353, ch. 871, art. I, § 1, eff. Sept. 1, 
1977. 


	§ 11.075. APPROPRIATION OF LAND BY FENCING.  (a) Unless a 
lease for the land is obtained, any appropriation of public land of 
the state or land which belongs to the public schools and asylums by 
fencing or by enclosures consisting partly of fencing and partly of 
natural obstacles or impediments to the passage of livestock is an 
unlawful appropriation of land which is punishable by the penalty 
provided in Subsection (b) of Section 11.074 of this code.
	(b)  Each day that the violation continues constitutes a 
separate offense.   

Acts 1977, 65th Leg., p. 2353, ch. 871, art. I, § 1, eff. Sept. 1, 
1977. 


	§ 11.076. UNLAWFUL ENCLOSURES.  (a) If the governor is 
credibly informed that any portion of the public land or the land 
which belongs to any of the special land funds has been enclosed or 
that fences have been erected on the land in violation of law, he 
may direct the attorney general to institute suit in the name of the 
state for the recovery of the land, damages, and fees.
	(b)  The fee for the attorney general may not be less than $10 
if the amount recovered is less than $100, but if the amount of 
recovery is over $100, the fee shall be 10 percent paid by the 
defendant for the use and occupancy of the land and the removal of 
the enclosure and fences.
	(c)  The damages may not be less than five cents an acre a 
year for the period of occupancy.
	(d)  In a suit brought under this section, the court shall 
issue a writ of sequestration directed to any sheriff in the state 
requiring him to take into actual custody the land and any property 
on the land which belongs to the person who is unlawfully occupying 
the land and to hold the land and other property until the court 
issues further orders.  The writ may be executed by the sheriff to 
whom it is delivered, and he shall proceed to execute the writ.
	(e)  The defendant in the suit may replevy the property as 
provided in other cases by executing the bond required by law.
	(f)  An appeal from a suit brought under this section has 
precedence over other cases.
	(g)  If judgment is recovered by the state in the suit, the 
court shall order the enclosure or fences removed and shall charge 
the costs of the suit to the defendant.  Property on the land which 
belongs to the defendant and which is not exempt from execution may 
be used to pay costs and damages in addition to the personal 
liability of the defendant.

Acts 1977, 65th Leg., p. 2353, ch. 871, art. I, § 1, eff. Sept. 1, 
1977.  Amended by Acts 1981, 67th Leg., p. 2644, ch. 707, § 
4(32), eff. Aug. 31, 1981.


	§ 11.077. SUIT AGAINST ADVERSE CLAIMANT.  If any public 
land is held, occupied, or claimed adversely to the state or to any 
fund of the state by any person or if land is forfeited to the state 
for any reason, the attorney general shall file suit for the land, 
for rent on the land, and to recover damages to the land.

Acts 1977, 65th Leg., p. 2354, ch. 871, art. I, § 1, eff. Sept. 1, 
1977. 


	§ 11.078. VENUE.  A suit brought under the provisions of 
Section 11.076 or Section 11.077 of this code shall be brought in 
the county in which the land or any part of the land is located.

Acts 1977, 65th Leg., p. 2354, ch. 871, art. I, § 1, eff. Sept. 1, 
1977. 


	§ 11.079. ACCESS TO LAND.  (a) The state, a permittee of 
the state, or a lessee or assignee of state land or minerals 
dedicated to the permanent school fund may exercise the power of 
eminent domain to obtain an easement whenever it is necessary to 
enter or cross the land of another person for the purpose of 
obtaining access to any land or interest in land that is owned by 
the state and that is dedicated by law to the permanent school fund.
	(b)  If the state or such permittee, lessee, or assignee and 
the private owner of the land through which an easement for access 
is sought cannot agree on the place or the terms for the easement to 
obtain access, either the state or such permittee, lessee, or 
assignee may, in order to provide that access, exercise this power 
of eminent domain in the manner provided by Chapter 21, Property 
Code.
	(c)  Easements acquired under this section are declared to be 
for the sole use and benefit of the state, its permittee, lessee, or 
assignee and may be used only to the extent necessary to achieve the 
required access or for the purposes for which the permit, lease, or 
assignment was granted.  An easement so acquired is hereby 
dedicated to the permanent school fund.
	(d)  If the state desires to utilize the power of eminent 
domain to obtain an easement under this section for access to a 
tract of land, the attorney general shall institute condemnation 
proceedings as provided under Chapter 21, Property Code.  If 
agreement regarding an easement for access cannot be reached with a 
private landowner, a permittee of the state or a lessee or assignee 
of land or minerals dedicated to the permanent school fund desiring 
to utilize this section to obtain an easement for access to a tract 
of land must institute the condemnation proceedings authorized by 
this section.
	(e)  If the easement acquired under this section is taken 
solely to benefit a tract of land in which the permanent school fund 
owns only a mineral interest, the easement shall not be permanent 
but shall be limited to the term that the state minerals are held 
under a valid prospect permit or lease.  The easement will terminate 
when the prospect permit and lease expires or terminates.
	(f)  This section is cumulative of the provisions of 
Subtitles C and D, Title 2, Natural Resources Code, relating to 
access to land and to the power of eminent domain.  The special fund 
accounts established under Sections 51.401, 52.297, and 53.155 of 
this code may be used to compensate landowners for an easement to 
obtain access under this section.

Added by Acts 1987, 70th Leg., ch. 1061, § 1, eff. Aug. 31, 1987.          


	§ 11.0791. OTHER PROVISIONS REGARDING ACCESS TO STATE 
LANDS.  When a state governmental entity sells state land, the 
entity shall require that the state have the right of ingress and 
egress to remaining state land in the immediate area by an easement 
to a public thoroughfare.

Added by Acts 1999, 76th Leg., ch. 1499, § 1.41, eff. Sept. 1, 
1999.     


	§ 11.080. DAMAGES TO PERSONS AND PERSONALTY.  When access 
to any land is obtained by the state under Section 11.079 of this 
code, the state shall be liable to the property owner to the same 
extent that any private easement holder would be held liable for the 
use of access across privately owned property.

Added by Acts 1987, 70th Leg., ch. 1061, § 2, eff. Aug. 31, 1987.          


	§ 11.081. RULES.  The General Land Office of the State of 
Texas shall promulgate and enforce rules governing the 
construction, maintenance, and use of roads created by access 
granted under Section 11.079 of this code.

Added by Acts 1987, 70th Leg., ch. 1061, § 3, eff. Aug. 31, 1987.          


	§ 11.082. NOTICE TO SCHOOL LAND BOARD.  (a) A state agency 
or political subdivision may not formally take any action that may 
affect state land dedicated to the permanent school fund without 
first giving notice of the action to the board.  Notice of the 
proposed action shall be delivered by certified mail, return 
receipt requested, addressed to the deputy commissioner of the 
asset management division of the General Land Office on or before 
the state agency's or political subdivision's formal initiation of 
the action.
	(b)  The notice must:                                                          
		(1)  describe the proposed action;                                            
		(2)  state the location of the permanent school fund 
land to be affected;  and
		(3)  describe any foreseeable impact or effect of the 
state agency's or political subdivision's action on the permanent 
school fund land.
	(c)  An action taken by a state agency or political 
subdivision without the notice required by Subsection (a) of this 
section that affects state land dedicated to the permanent school 
fund is not effective as to permanent school fund land affected by 
the action.
	(d)  In this section:                                                          
		(1)  "Action" means:                                                          
			(A)  formal adoption of an agency or political 
subdivision policy;         
			(B)  final adoption of an administrative rule;                               
			(C)  issuance of findings of fact or law;                                    
			(D)  issuance of an administrative order in an 
administrative hearing;  or 
			(E)  adoption of a local ordinance or resolution.                            
		(2)  "Board" means the School Land Board.                                     
		(3)  "Initiation" means the commencement of the first 
phase of public consideration of a formal policy, rule, or 
ordinance, or a hearing undertaken by a state agency or political 
subdivision that is intended to result in final adoption of a formal 
policy, rule, or ordinance.
		(4)  "Political subdivision" means a county, public 
school district, or special-purpose district or authority.
		(5)  "State agency" means:                                                    
			(A)  a department, commission, board, office, 
bureau, council, or other agency in the executive branch of state 
government other than the Texas Department of Transportation and 
the Railroad Commission of Texas;  or
			(B)  a university system or an institution of 
higher education as defined in Section 61.003, Education Code.

Added by Acts 1993, 73rd Leg., ch. 991, § 7, eff. Sept. 1, 1993.           


	§ 11.083. RETENTION OF MINERAL RIGHTS.  The state shall 
retain the mineral rights to state land that is sold unless it is 
impractical to do so.

Added by Acts 1999, 76th Leg., ch. 1499, § 1.42, eff. Sept. 1, 
1999.     


	§ 11.084. SCHOOL LAND BOARD APPROVAL OF PATENT FOR 
INTEREST IN LAND RELEASED BY STATE.  (a) The School Land Board may 
approve a tract of land for patenting to release all or part of the 
state's interest in land, excluding mineral rights, if the board:
		(1)  finds that:                                                              
			(A)  the land is surveyed, unsold, permanent 
school fund land according to the records of the land office;
			(B)  the land is not patentable under the law in 
effect before January 1, 2002;  and
			(C)  the person claiming title to the land:                                  
				(i)  holds the land under color of title;                                   
				(ii)  holds the land under a chain of title 
that originated on or before January 1, 1952;
				(iii)  acquired the land without actual 
knowledge that title to the land was vested in the State of Texas;
				(iv)  has a deed to the land recorded in the 
appropriate county;  and     
				(v)  has paid all taxes assessed on the land 
and any interest and penalties associated with any period of tax 
delinquency;  and
		(2)  unanimously approves the release of the state's 
interest.              
	(b)  This section does not apply to:                                           
		(1)  beach land, submerged or filled land, or islands;  
or                  
		(2)  land that has been determined to be state-owned by 
judicial decree.    
	(c)  This section may not be used to:                                          
		(1)  resolve boundary disputes;  or                                           
		(2)  change the mineral reservation in an existing 
patent.                  

Added by Acts 2001, 77th Leg., ch. 310, § 1, eff. Nov. 6, 2001.            


	§ 11.085. PROCEDURE FOR APPLYING FOR PATENT FOR INTEREST 
IN LAND RELEASED BY STATE.  (a) A person claiming title to land may 
apply for a patent under Section 11.084 by filing with the 
commissioner an application on a form prescribed by the 
commissioner.  The claimant must attach to the application all 
documentation necessary to support the claimant's request for a 
patent.
	(b)  The land office shall review the claimant's application 
to determine whether the claimant substantially meets the criteria 
for issuance of a patent under Section 11.084.
	(c)  If the land office determines that the application is 
complete for consideration by the board, the commissioner shall 
convene the board to determine whether a patent is to be issued 
under Section 11.084.
	(d)  The commissioner may adopt rules as necessary to 
administer Section 11.084 and this section.

Added by Acts 2001, 77th Leg., ch. 310, § 1, eff. Nov. 6, 2001.            


	§ 11.086. CONFIDENTIALITY OF CERTAIN INFORMATION RELATED 
TO PURCHASE OR SALE OF REAL PROPERTY.  (a) Information relating to 
the location, or purchase price, or sale price of real property 
purchased or sold by or for the School Land Board, Veterans' Land 
Board, land office, or commissioner under authority granted by this 
code is confidential and exempt from disclosure under Chapter 552, 
Government Code, until a deed for the property is executed.  
Information that is confidential and exempted from disclosure under 
this subsection includes an appraisal, completed report, 
evaluation, investigation conducted for the purpose of locating or 
determining the purchase or sale price of the property, or any 
report prepared in anticipation of purchasing or selling real 
property.
	(b)  Information that is confidential and excluded from 
disclosure under Subsection (a) is not subject to a subpoena 
directed to the School Land Board, Veterans' Land Board, land 
office, commissioner, attorney general, or governor.

Added by Acts 2001, 77th Leg., ch. 1317, § 1, eff. Sept. 1, 2001.  
Renumbered from § 11.084 and amended by Acts 2003, 78th Leg., ch. 
532, § 1, eff. June 20, 2003;  Acts 2003, 78th Leg., ch. 1275, 
§ 2(111), eff. Sept. 1, 2003.