* Act of July 23, 1955 (P.L. 84-167, 69 Stat. 368, as amended; 30 U.S.C.

611-615)

Note.-Sections one and two amended the Materials Act of 1947, P.L. 80-291. See Section 1 and 3 of that act for those provisions.

Common Varieties of Sand, Stone, Gravel, Pumice, Pumicite, or Cin-ders, and Petrified Wood

Sec. 3. No deposit of common varieties of sand, stone, gravel, pumice, pumicite, or cinders and no deposit of petrified wood shall be deemed a valuable mineral deposit within the meaning of the mining laws of the United States so as to give effective validi-ty to any mining claim hereafter located under such mining laws: Provided, however, That nothing herein shall affect the validity of any mining location based upon discovery of some other mineral occurring in or in associa-tion with such a deposit. "Common varieties" as used in this subchapter and sections 601 and 603 of this title does not in-clude deposits of such materials which are valuable because the deposit has some prop-erty giving it distinct and spe-cial value and does not inlude so-called "block pumice" which occurs in nature in pieces having one dimen-sion of two inches or more. "Petri-fied wood" as used in this subchap-ter and sections 601 and 603 of this title means agatized, opalized, petri-fied, or silicified wood, or any mate-rial formed by the re-placement of wood by silica or other matter.

(30 U.S.C. 611)

Unpatented Mining Claims

Sec. 4. (a) Any mining claim here-after located under the mining laws of the United States shall not be used, prior to issuance of patent therefor, for any purposes other than prospecting, mining or processing operations and uses reasonable inci-dent thereto.

(b) Rights under any mining claim hereafter located under the mining laws of the United States shall be subject, prior to issuance of patent therefor, to the right of the United States to manage and dispose of the vegeta-tive surface resources thereof and to manage other surface resources thereof (ex-cept mineral deposits subject to location under the mining laws of the United States). Any such mining claim shall also be subject, prior to issu-ance of patent therefor, to the right of the United States, its permittees, and licensees, to use so much of the surface thereof as may be necessary for such purposes or for access to adjacent land: Provided, however, That any use of the surface of any such mining claim by the United States, its permittees or licensees, shall be such as not to endanger or materially interfere with prospecting, mining or processing operations or uses rea-sonably incident thereto- Provided further, That if at any time the locator re-quires more timber for his mining operations than is avail-able to him from the claim after disposition of timber therefrom by the United States, subsequent to the location of the claim, he shall be entitled, free of charge, to be sup-plied with timber for such require-ments from the nearest timber ad-ministered by the disposing agency which is ready for harvesting under the rules and regu-lations of that agency and which is substantially equivalent in kind and quantity to the timber estimated by the dispos-ing agency to have been dis-posed of from the claim: Provid-ed further, That nothing in this subchap-ter and sections 601 and 603 of this title shall be construed as affecting or intended to affect or in any way interfere with or modify the laws of the States which lie wholly or in part westward of the ninety-eighth meridian relating to the ownership, control, appropria-tion, use, and distribution of ground or surface waters within any unpat-ented min-ing claim.

(c) Except to the extent required for the mining claimant's prospect-ing, mining or processing operations and uses reasonably incident thereto, or for the construction of buildings or structures in connection there-with, or to provide clearance for such opera-tions or uses, or to the extent autho-rized by the United States, no claimant of any mining claim hereafter located under the mining laws of the United States shall, prior to issuance of patent therefor, sever, remove, or use any vegetative or other surface resources thereof which are subject to man-age-ment or dispo-sition by the Unit-ed States under subsection (b) of this section. Any severance or removal of timber which is per-mit-ted under the exceptions of the pre-ced-ing sentence, other than sever-ance or removal to provide clear-ance, shall be in accordance with sound principles of forest manage-ment. (30 U.S.C. 612)

Procedure for Deter-mining Title Uncertainties

Sec. 5. (a) The head of a Federal department or agency which has the responsibility for administering surface resources of any lands belonging to the United States may file as to such lands in the office of the Secretary of the Interior, or in such office as the Secretary of the Interior may designate, a request for publication of notice to mining claimants, for determination of surface rights, which request shall contain a description of the lands covered thereby, showing the sec-tion or sections of the public land sur-veys which embrace the lands covered by such request, or if such lands are unsur-veyed, either the section or sections which would probably embrace such lands when the public land surveys are extended to such lands or a tie by courses and distances to an approved United States mineral monument.

The filing of such request for publi-cation shall be accompanied by an affidavit or affidavits of a person or persons over twenty-one years of age setting forth that the affiant or affiants have examined the lands involved in a reasonable effort to ascertain wheth-er any person or persons were in actual possession of or engaged in the working of such lands or any part thereof, and, if no person or persons were found to be in actual possession of or engaged in the working of said lands or any part thereof on the date of such examina-tion, setting forth such fact, or, if any person or persons were so found to be actual possession or engaged in such working on the date of such exami-nation, setting forth the name and address of each suchperson, unless affiant shall have been unable through reason-able inquiry to obtain information as to the name and address of any such person, in which event the affidavit shall set forth fully the nature and results of such inquiry.

The filing of such request for publi-cation shall also be accompa-nied by the certifi-cate of a title or abstract com-pany, or of a title ab-stractor, or of an attorney, based upon such company's abstractor's, or attorney's examination of those instruments which are shown by the tract index-es in the county office of record as affecting the lands de-scribed in said request, setting forth the name of any person disclosed by said instru-ments to have an interest in said lands under any unpatented mining claim heretofore located, together with the address of such person if such address is disclosed by such instruments of record. "Tract index-es" as used herein shall mean those indexes, if any, as to surveyed lands identifying instru-ments as affecting a particular legal subdivi-sion of the public land sur-veys, and as to unsur-veyed lands identifying instru-ments as affecting a particular probable legal subdivi-sion according to a projected exten-sion of the public land surveys. Thereupon the Secre-tary of the Interior, at the expense of the re-questing department or agen-cy, shall cause notice to mining claimants to be published in a news-paper having general circula-tion in the county in which the lands in-volved are situat-ed.

Such notice shall describe the lands covered by such request, as provid-ed heretofore, and shall notify whom-ever it may con-cern that if any person claiming or asserting under, or by virtue of, any unpatent-ed mining claim heretofore located, rights as to such lands or any part thereof, shall fail to file in the office where such request for publication was filed (which office shall be specified in such notice) and within one hundred and fifty days from the date of the first publication of such notice (which date shall be specified in such notice), a verified statement which shall set forth, as to such unpatented mining claim-

(1) the date of location;

(2) the book and page of recordation of the notice or certificate of location;

(3) the section or sections of the public land surveys which embrace such mining claims; or if such lands are unsurveyed, either the section or sections which would probably embrace such mining claim when the public land surveys are extended to such lands or a tie by courses and distances to an approved United States mineral monument;

(4) whether such claimant is a locator or purchaser under such location; and

(5) the name and address of such claimant and names and ad-dresses so far as know to the claim-ant of any other person or persons claiming any interest or interests in or under such unpatented mining claim; such failure shall be conclu-sively deemed (i) to constitute a waiver and relinquishment by such mining claimant of any right, title, or inter-est under such mining claim con-trary to or in conflict with the limi-tations or restrictions specified in section 612 of this title as to hereaf-ter located unpatented mining claims, and (ii) to constitute a consent by such mining claimant that such mining claim, prior to issuance of patent therefor, shall be subject to the limitations and restric-tions speci-fied in section 612 of this title as to hereafter located unpatent-ed mining claims, and (iii) to pre-clude hereaf-ter, prior to issuance of pat-ent, any assertion by such mining claim-ant of any right or title to or interest in or under such mining claimant of any right or title to or interest in or under such mining claim contrary to or in conflict with the limitations or re-strictions specified in section 612 of this title as to hereafter located unpatent-ed mining claims.

If such notice is published in a daily paper, it shall be published in the Wednes-day issue for nine con-secu-tive weeks, or, if in a weekly paper, in nine consecutive issues, or if in a semi-weekly or triweekly paper, in the issue of the same day of each week for nine consecutive weeks.

Within fifteen days after the date of first publication of such notice, the department or agency requesting such publication-

(1) shall cause a copy of such notice to be personally delivered to or to be mailed by registered mail or by certified mail addressed to each person in posses-sion or en-gaged in the working of the land whose name and address is shown by an affidavit filed as afore-said, and to each per-son who may have filed, as to any lands described in said notice, a request for notices, as provided in subsection (d) of this section, and shall cause a copy of such notice to be mailed by regis-tered mail or by certified mail to each person whose name and address is set forth in the title or abstract company's or title abstractor's or attorney's certificate filed as aforesaid, as having an interest in the lands described in said notice under any unpatented mining claim hereto-fore located, such notice to be di-rected to be directed to such person's address as set forth in such certificate; and (2) shall file in the office where said request for publi-cation was filed an affidavit show-ing that copies have been so deliv-ered or mailed.

(b) If any claimant under any unpatented mining claim heretofore located which embraces any of the lands described in any notice pub-lished in accordance with the provi-sions of subsection (a) of this sec-tion, shall fail to file a verified state-ment, as provided in such sub-section (a), within one hundred and fifty days from the date of the first publication of such notice, such failure shall be conclusively deemed, ex-cept as otherwise provid-ed in sub-section (e) of this section, (i) to constitute a waiv-er and relin-quishment by such min-ing claimant of any right, title, or inter-est under such mining claim con-trary to or in conflict with the limitations or re-strictions specified in section 612 of this title as to hereafter located unpatented mining claims, and (ii) to constitute a consent by such min-ing claimant that such mining claim, prior to issuance of patent therefor, shall be subject to the limitations and restrictions specified in section 612 of this title as to hereafter locat-ed unpatented mining claims, and (iii) to preclude thereafter, prior to issu-ance of patent, any assertion by such mining claimant of any right or title to or interest in or under such mining claim contrary to or in conflict with the limitations or restric-tions specified in section 612 of this title as to hereafter located unpatent-ed mining claims.

(c) If any verified statement shall be filed by a mining claimant as provided in subsection (a) of this section, then the Secretary of Interi-or shall fix a time and place for a hearing to determine the validity and effective-ness of any right or title to, or interest in or under such min-ing claim, which the mining claimant may assert contrary to or in conflict with the limitations and restrictions specified in section 612 of this title as to hereafter locat-ed unpatented mining claims, which place of hearing shall be in the county where the lands in question or parts thereof are located, unless the mining claim-ant agrees other-wise. Where verified statements are filed asserting rights to an aggregate of more than twenty min-ing claims, any singlehearing shall be limited to a maximum of twenty mining claims unless the parties affected shall otherwise stipulate and as many separate hearing shall be set as shall be necessary to comply with this provi-sion. The procedures with respect to notice of such a hearing and the conduct thereof, and in respect to appeals shall follow the then established general procedures and rules of practice of the Depart-ment of the Interior in respect to contests or protests affect-ing public lands of the United States. If, pur-suant to such a hearing the final decision rendered in the matter shall affirm the validity and effectiveness of any mining claimant's so asserted right or interest under the mining claim, then no subsequent proceedings under this section shall have any force or effect upon the so-affirmed right or interest of such mining claimant under such mining claim. If at any time prior to a hearing the department or agency requesting publication of notice and any person filing a verified statement pursuant to such notice shall so stipulate, then to the extent so stipulated, but only to such extent, no hearing shall be held with respect to rights asserted under that verified statement, and to the extent defined by the stipulation the rights asserted under that verified statement shall be deemed to be unaffected by that particular published notice.

(d) Any person claiming any right under or by virtue of any unpatented mining claim heretofore located and desiring to receive a copy of any notice to mining claimants which may be published as provided in subsection (a) of this section, and which may affect lands embraced in such mining claim, may cause to be filed for record in the county office of record where the notice or certificate of location of such mining claim shall have been recorded, a duly acknowl-edged request for a copy of any such no-tice. Such request for copies shall set forth the name and address of the person requesting copies and shall also set forth, as to each here-to-fore located unpat-ented mining claim under which such person asserts right-

(1) the date of location;

(2) the book and page of the recordation of the notice or certifi-cate of location; and

(3) the section or sections of the public land surveys which embrace such mining claim; or if such lands are unsurveyed, either the section or sections which would probably embrace such mining claim when the public land surveys are extended to such lands or a tie by courses and distances to an approved United States mineral monument.

Other than in respect to the re-quire-ments of subsection (a) of this sec-tion as to personal delivery or mail-ing of copies of notices and in re-spect to the provisions of subsec-tion (e) of this section, no such request for copies of published notic-es and no statement or allega-tion in such request and no recorda-tion thereof shall affect title to any mining claim or to any land or be deemed to constitute constructive notice to any person that the person requesting copies has, or claims, any right, title, or interest in or under any mining claim referred to in such request.

(e) If any department or agency requesting publication shall fail to comply with the requirements of subsection (a) of this section as to the personal delivery or mailing of a copy of notice to any person, the publication of such notice shall be deemed wholly inef-fectual as to that person or as to the rights asserted by that person and the failure of that person to file a veri-fied statement, as provided in such no-tice, shall in no manner affect, di-minish, preju-dice or bar any rights of that person. (30 U.S.C. 613)

Waiver of Rights

Sec 6. The owner or owners of any unpatented mining claim hereto-fore located may waive and relin-quish all rights thereunder which are contrary to or in conflict with the limitations or re-strictions specified in section 612 of this title as to here-after located unpatent-ed mining claims. The execution and acknowl-edgement of such a waiver and relinquishment by such owner or owners and the recordation thereof in the office where the notice or certif-icate of location of such min-ing claim is of record shall render such mining claim thereafter and prior to issuance of patent subject to the limitations and restrictions in section 612 of this title in all re-spects as if said mining claim had been located after July 23, 1955, but no such waiver or relinquishment shall be deemed in any manner to constitute any con-cession as to the date of priority of rights under said mining claim or as to the valid-ity thereof. (30 U.S.C. 614)

Limitation of Existing Rights

Sec. 7. Nothing in this subchap-ter and sections 601 and 603 of this title shall be construed in any man-ner to limit or restrict or to autho-rize the limitation or restriction of any exist-ing rights of any claimant under any valid mining claim here-to-fore locat-ed, except as such rights may be limited or restricted as a result of a proceeding pursuant to section 613 of this title, or as a result of a waiver and relinquishment pursuant to section 614 of this title; and nothing in this subchapter and sections 601 and 603 of this title shall be construed in any manner to authorized inclusion in any patent hereafter issued under the mining laws of the United States for any mining claim heretofore or hereafter located, of any reservation, limitation, or restriction not otherwise authorized by law, or to limit or repeal any existing authority to include any reservation, limitation, or restriction in any such patent, or to limit or restrict any use of the lands covered by any patented or unpatented mining claim by the United States, its lessees, permittees, and licensees which is otherwise authorized by law. (30 U.S.C. 615)