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BILL ANALYSIS |
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By: Hopson |
BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE
In 1929, the Texas Forest Service, an integral part of The Texas A&M University System, acquired land in Cherokee County through a transfer from the Texas Prison System and designated it as the I.D. Fairchild State Forest. Today, the forest contains approximately 2,789 acres in several non-contiguous tracts. One of the tracts consists of approximately 221 acres of landlocked land in the John S. Evans Survey and is located several miles southeast of the main body of the forest. Mr. Rodney Newman owns land adjoining the Evans tract and other land adjoining the main body of the forest. He has proposed an exchange of a portion of his land of equal acreage adjacent to the main forest area for the Evans tract. Two independent fair market appraisals indicate Mr. Newman’s land has a slightly higher value.
The two tracts of land have been inspected by the forest service and are deemed to be equal in quality for forestry purposes. The proximity of the proposed exchange land would benefit the forest service by increasing the efficiency of on-going programmatic uses and eliminate the need to utilize adjacent landowner’s property to access the Evans tract. An exchange of state forest land must be approved by the Texas Legislature.
H.B. 3340 authorizes the board of regents of The Texas A&M University System to convey 221.64 acres of real property in Cherokee County.
RULEMAKING AUTHORITY
It is the committee's opinion that this bill does not expressly grant any additional rulemaking authority to a state officer, department, agency, or institution.
ANALYSIS
H.B. 3340 authorizes the board of regents of The Texas A&M University System to convey 221.64 acres of real property in Cherokee County, and provides a description of the property. The bill provides that the authorized conveyance is of fee title to the surface, and is exclusive of all mineral rights. The bill requires that all instruments of conveyance be in a form acceptable to The Texas A&M University System.
EFFECTIVE DATE
On passage, or, if the act does not receive the necessary vote, the act takes effect September 1, 2009.