Section 84. Mining rights; regulations; continuation; termination  


Latest version.
  • 1.  All
      rights to explore for or extract minerals from a mine  or  deposit  that
      have  heretofore arisen by reason of the filing of a notice of discovery
      or by reason of the issuance of a permit or consent by the  commissioner
      of  general services under this article or under former article seven or
      which shall hereafter arise by reason of  the  filing  of  a  notice  of
      discovery  or  the  issuance  of a permit or consent by the commissioner
      under this article shall expire as to  those  heretofore  filed  at  the
      expiration  of  thirty months from the effective date of this act and as
      to those hereafter filed at the expiration of  thirty  months  from  the
      date  of filing of notice unless the person claiming under any notice so
      filed and his predecessors, if any, in interest shall have  expended  in
      each of the two years first elapsed in the said thirty months' period at
      least  two  hundred  fifty dollars in respect to each forty acres of the
      lands as to which notice was filed, in  the  exploration  for  mines  or
      minerals  or  in  operations relating to or preliminary to the mining of
      such lands or in both such explorations and mining, and shall have  made
      statements  of  the  amounts  of  minerals,  if any, extracted from such
      mines, to the commissioner, and shall have paid a royalty,  if  due,  on
      the  market  value of such minerals to the commissioner as prescribed in
      this article. Where a number  of  contiguous  forty  acre  parcels,  the
      mining  rights in which are owned in common, comprise a group, the total
      expenditure made for such group, whether or not such group  is  made  up
      entirely  of state land or state land and private land, may be allocated
      and credited  to  each  such  forty  acre  parcel  for  the  purpose  of
      determining  compliance  with  this  section,  notwithstanding that such
      expenditure may have been made on only one or more parcels in such group
      and not on every forty acre parcel therein, providing however that  such
      total  expenditure  must  be  at  least  equal  to  the  required  total
      expenditure of two hundred fifty dollars for each forty acre  parcel  in
      such group.
        2. Such right to explore or mine shall continue for successive periods
      each of thirty months, provided always that the requirements for minimum
      annual  expenditures with respect to the land affected by such notice of
      discovery as provided in subdivision  one  of  this  section  have  been
      complied   with  in  each  preceding  thirty  months'  period,  and  the
      statements of minerals, if any, extracted from such mine have been  made
      to  the  commissioner  and  royalty, if due, paid to the commissioner as
      required in this article.
        3. The proof of the making of such expenditures shall be submitted  to
      the  state  geologist,  in  such form as he may require, or, if minerals
      have been extracted, shall be submitted to  the  commissioner  with  the
      statement  of  the  amounts  of  minerals so extracted, on or before the
      thirtieth day after the last day of the first two  years  of  each  such
      thirty months' period.
        4. Failure to comply with any or all of the provisions of this article
      relating  to  the  statements  of  minerals  extracted,  the payments of
      royalty, expenditures and  proof  of  expenditures  shall  be  deemed  a
      default   in   the  performance  of  the  conditions  essential  to  the
      continuation of the rights of the  filer.  The  commissioner  shall,  at
      least  ninety days prior to the expiration of the current thirty months'
      period, as to any filer who is in default, mail to  such  filer  at  his
      last  address  known  to  the  commissioner, a notice to the effect that
      there has been default in the performance of the conditions essential to
      the continuation of the rights of the filer and that  such  rights  will
      expire  at  the end of the current thirty months' period, specifying the
      date. The filer may before the expiration of said thirty-months'  period
      file with the commissioner a petition for the right to appear before him
    
      to  establish the fact of compliance with this article. Upon the receipt
      of such petition, the commissioner shall designate a time and place  for
      a  hearing  thereon  and  advise  the filer and the state geologist. If,
      after  such  hearing,  the  commissioner  shall  be  satisfied  that the
      provisions of this article have been performed by the filer, or shall be
      satisfied by reasons or proof submitted that there  is  good  cause  for
      failure  to  comply  with  the provisions of this article, he shall make
      proper record or note of such fact in his office; and in his  discretion
      the rights under such filing shall then continue for a succeeding period
      of   thirty  months  from  the  expiration  of  the  current  period  of
      effectiveness.  If such filer shall not file  such  petition,  with  the
      commissioner,  or  having  filed  such  petition,  shall not satisfy the
      commissioner that he has performed the conditions stated in this article
      for the continuation of rights under a notice of  discovery,  then  such
      rights  shall  be  deemed  terminated as of the last day of such current
      thirty months' period.   The commissioner shall make  proper  record  or
      note in his office of the expiration of such rights.