Louisiana § RS 41:1701.1 - State Land Office; powers, duties, functions, and responsibilities

§ RS 41:1701.1. State Land Office; powers, duties, functions, and responsibilities

            A. The duties of the State Land Office shall be under the administration of a public lands administrator and a deputy public lands administrator who shall be responsible for performing the functions set forth in this Chapter unless otherwise specified.

            B. The State Land Office shall be composed of four sections as follows:

            (1) The administrative section, which shall be responsible for the administration, control, and operation of the functions and programs of the office.

            (2) The land and water bottom section, which shall be responsible for management of the programs within the statutory responsibility and authority of the State Land Office relating to the beds and bottoms of navigable waters and the banks or shores of the bays, arms of the sea, the Gulf of Mexico, and navigable lakes which belong to the state of Louisiana, and those over which the state has acquired the right to navigate by conventional agreement or otherwise, which shall be protected, administered, and conserved to best ensure full public navigation, fishery, recreation, and other interests.

            (3) The historical records section, which shall be responsible for the maintaining of records and plats of state and federal land sold; maintaining a state land and building inventory system; and maintaining tax adjudication documents.

            (4) The titles and surveys section, which shall be responsible for the determination of titles and surveys pertaining to state lands and water bottoms using the records of the office and its field assets in such determinations.

            C. Subject to the approval of the commissioner of administration, the governor, the attorney general, the Department of Wildlife and Fisheries, and the Department of Conservation and Energy, the State Land Office shall develop and promulgate a comprehensive state master plan for the administration of state lands and water bottoms and shall ensure that all public lands and water bottoms are protected, administered, and conserved in a manner consistent with the constitution.

            D. The State Land Office shall identify all public lands and water bottoms within the state and develop and maintain a current master list of those lands and water bottoms. All state agencies, including but not limited to Department of Culture, Recreation and Tourism, the Department of Conservation and Energy, the Office of Coastal Protection and Restoration, the Department of Wildlife and Fisheries, the Department of Transportation and Development, the Louisiana Geological Survey, the state's colleges and universities, all levee boards, drainage boards, parish governing authorities, and any districts created under the jurisdiction of levee boards, drainage boards, or parish governing authorities, shall cooperate with the State Land Office in developing the master list.

            E. The State Land Office is hereby authorized to conduct meetings, hold public hearings, and appoint advisory committees to assist the office in its duties. In accordance with law, the office may accept gifts, donations, and bequests which may assist the office in the performance of its duties.

            F. The State Land Office shall have the authority to develop and promulgate necessary rules and regulations in accordance with the Administrative Procedure Act.

            G. None of the duties and responsibilities or organization of the State Land Office as provided in this Section shall supersede or modify the authority granted to any other state agency.

            Acts 2001, No. 919, §1; Acts 2010, No. 734, §5; Acts 2023, No. 150, §15, eff. Jan. 10, 2024.