* Act of March 4, 1917 (P.L. 64-390, Ch. 179, 39 Stat. 1149;
16 U.S.C. 520)
The Secretary of the Agriculture is authorized, under general
regulations to be prescribed by him, to permit the prospecting,
development, utilization of the mineral resources of the lands
acquired under the Act of March 1, 1911 (36 Stat. 961), known
as the Weeks Law, upon such terms and for specified periods or
otherwise, as he may deem to be for the best interests of the
United States; and all moneys received on account of charges,
if any, made under this Act shall be disposed of as is provided
by existing law for the disposition of receipts from national
forests. (16 U.S.C. 520)
Note-See transfer provisions below.
Section 402 of Reorganization Plan No. 3, of July 16, 1946 (60
Stat. 1097, 1099; 5 U.S.C. Appendix)
The functions of the Secretary of Agriculture and the Department
of Agriculture with respect to the uses of mineral deposits in
certain lands pursuant to the provisions of the Act of March 4,
1917, (39 Stat. 1134, 1150; 16 U.S.C. 520) . . . . are hereby
transferred to the Secretary of the Interior and shall be performed
by him or, subject to his direction and control, by such officers
and agencies of the Department of the Interior as he may designate:
Provided, That mineral development on such lands shall be authorized
by the Secretary of the Interior only when he is advised by the
Secretary of Agriculture that such development will not interfere
with the primary purposes for which the land was acquired and
only in accordance with such conditions as may be specified by
the Secretary of Agriculture in order to protect such purposes.
The provisions of law governing the crediting and distribu-tion
of reve-nues derived from the said lands shall be ap-plica-ble
to reve-nues derived in connection with the functions transferred
by this section. To the extent necessary in connection with the
performance of the functions transferred by this section, the
Secretary of the Interior and his representatives shall have access
to the title records of the Department of Agriculture relating
to the lands affected by this section.
Note-Functions relating to common varieties of mineral materials
in acquired and certain other lands were transferred back to the
Secretary of Agriculture by Sec. 1(1) of the Act of June 11, 1960
(74 Stat. 205; 7 U.S.C. 220 (note))