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Highway Rights-Of-Way in Alaska 2013

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Highway Rights-Of-Way in Alaska 2013 Highway Rights-of-Way in Alaska 2013 John F. Bennett, PLS, SR/WA Right-of-way Chief Alaska Department of Transportation & Public Facilities Northern Region 1/1/13 - minor rev. 3/24/13 Highway Rights-of-Way In Alaska Table of Contents I. Introduction .................................................................................................................. 5 II. History of the Department (DOT&PF) ......................................................................... 6 III. Nature, Scope & Title Interest ...................................................................................... 8 a. Omnibus Act Quitclaim Deed ................................................................................... 8 b. Nature of the Interest Conveyed by the QCD ........................................................... 9 c. Scope of a Highway Easement ............................................................................... 12 d. Right-of-way Location ............................................................................................ 13 e. A Variety of Interests .............................................................................................. 14 IV. Public Land Orders ..................................................................................................... 15 a. Introduction ............................................................................................................. 15 b. Public Land Order Chronology ............................................................................... 15 c. Practical Applications ............................................................................................. 21 i. Land Status .......................................................................................................... 21 ii. Effective Date of Public Land Order................................................................... 26 iii. Date of Construction or Posting .......................................................................... 27 d. Evaluation of Information ....................................................................................... 28 e. Case Law Summary ................................................................................................ 29 f. Case Study .............................................................................................................. 32 g. Odds & Ends ........................................................................................................... 34 V. RS-2477 (Trails) ......................................................................................................... 36 a. Chronology of Select Federal Events ..................................................................... 36 b. Chronology of Select State Events ......................................................................... 39 c. DOT&PF Perspective ............................................................................................. 42 d. Case Law Summary ................................................................................................ 46 VI. Section Line Easements .............................................................................................. 48 a. Section Line Easement Elements ............................................................................ 49 b. SLE Table & Analysis ............................................................................................ 51 c. Odds & Ends ........................................................................................................... 54 d. Case Law Summary ................................................................................................ 59 VII. 1917 Territorial Dedication of Right-of-Way ......................................................... 60 VIII. Federal Patent Reservation (’47 Act) ...................................................................... 61 a. Background ............................................................................................................. 61 Highways 2013 Page 3 of 99 1/1/13 Highway Rights-of-Way In Alaska b. The '47 Act .............................................................................................................. 61 c. Right-of-Way Act of 1966 ...................................................................................... 62 d. Case Law Summary ................................................................................................ 63 IX. 44 LD 513 ................................................................................................................... 64 X. Federal ROW Grants (BLM) ...................................................................................... 65 a. Title 23 Highway Easement Deed .......................................................................... 65 b. FLPMA Title V Right-of-Way Grant ..................................................................... 66 XI. Alaska Department of Natural Resources Right-of-Way ........................................... 67 a. Right-of-Way Permit .............................................................................................. 67 b. Tidelands Permit ..................................................................................................... 67 c. ILMA/ILMT ........................................................................................................... 67 d. Merger of Title ........................................................................................................ 68 XII. Negotiated Acquisition (Interest & Platting) .......................................................... 69 XIII. Dedication (Statutory and Common Law) .............................................................. 71 XIV. Federal Patent Reservation (General) ..................................................................... 73 XV. Public Prescriptive Easements ................................................................................ 73 XVI. Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act..................................................................... 76 a. ANCSA 17(b) Easement ......................................................................................... 76 b. ANCSA 14(c)(3) Reconveyance............................................................................. 77 XVII. Other Federal Agencies ....................................................................................... 78 a. BLM Townsite Trustee ........................................................................................... 78 b. Bureau of Indian Affairs ......................................................................................... 79 c. US Forest Service - USFWS Special Use Permit: .................................................. 79 XVIII. Right-of-Way Disposal & Vacations .................................................................. 80 a. Land Disposal Authorities ...................................................................................... 80 b. Notes Related to Excess Land Disposals ................................................................ 81 XIX. Law on the Internet ................................................................................................. 83 XX. Appendix A – Public Land Orders.......................................................................... 84 XXI. Post 1/1/13 Revisions .............................................................................................. 99 Highways 2013 Page 4 of 99 1/1/13 Highway Rights-of-Way In Alaska I. Introduction It’s been almost 20 years since this document was first prepared and presented. The purpose of this revision is for inclusion in the updated Alaska Society of Professional Land Surveyors Standards of Practice Manual and for fundraising seminars in support of the 2017 IRWA International Conference to be held in Anchorage.1 This latest edition results in a reorganization, expansion and addition of new information. When I began working with the DOT&PF Right-of-way section back in October of 1986, the presumption was that land professionals such as title examiners, professional land surveyors and attorneys were generally versed in the issues relating to access and right-of-way. Speaking for the land surveyors, the reality is that although we may have had some training or experience in subdivision street dedications or express rights-of-way that may have defined a parcel boundary, we generally had little knowledge of the various authorities and interests that make up the right-of-way for our Alaska Highway system. I suspect the same would hold true for many of the other land and title professionals. If it’s a challenge for the professional, you can imagine the difficulty the average property owner would have with this subject. So I’ve gained a lot of empathy for the landowner who is attempting to determine whether their land is encumbered by a highway right-of-way and hope that both professionals and laypersons can benefit from the presentation. The following is a compilation of notes relating to highway rights-of-way in Alaska that I have gathered over the years. It is not intended to be a statement of the law or a comprehensive analysis of every issue related to highway rights-of-way. I have learned over my career to leave the law to the lawyers. But once they provide me with their opinion of the law, it is my role to research the facts and implement the legal guidance in a practical manner. The focus of this paper is primarily on those
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