Section 85-04-07-03 - Sale procedure1. A letter of application for purchase of original grant lands meeting the criteria in section 85-04-07-01 may be accepted at any time. An application must include: a. A nonrefundable application fee in an amount set by the board;b. A legal description of the trust lands; andc. A legal description of the lands to be provided to ensure no net loss. Upon board approval, a sale of original grant lands must be conducted in accordance with North Dakota Century Code chapter 15-06.
2. Upon receipt of a letter of application to purchase a tract, the potential sale must be presented to the commissioner for preliminary approval or rejection.3. The commissioner may recommend to the board that a tract meeting the criteria of section 85-04-07-01 may be offered for sale even though no letter of application has been received. Upon a determination that the application covers a tract the board is willing to sell, the department shall post on the department's website a notice of the application for sale, any supporting documentation, and instructions for submitting public comments. The department also shall publish notice of a letter of application for sale in the official newspaper of the county where the nominated tract is located and in the Bismarck Tribune. Notice must be published once each week for three consecutive weeks prior to the deadline for comments. The notice must contain the legal description of the proposed tract and the deadline for comments. If publication of any notice is omitted inadvertently by any newspaper or the notice contains typographical errors, the department may proceed with the scheduled comment period if it appears the omission or error is not prejudicial to the department's interest. All comments must be in writing and contain the following:
a. Name and address of the interested person;b. Applicant's name and address;c. The legal description of the proposed tract for sale as shown on the published notice; andd. A detailed statement as to whether the interested person supports or opposes the sale.4. The board shall review all appraisals, any public comments, other relevant information including title examinations, and determine whether to proceed with the sale. If the board decides to proceed with the sale, the board shall establish a minimum acceptable sale price.5. If the land is leased, the commissioner shall notify the lessee of the intent to sell the property during the months of October through January.6. The department shall notify the applicant, if any, of the price set by the board, which must be the minimum acceptable sale price.7. The department may contract a legal metes and bounds survey for the tract to be sold at public auction under North Dakota Century Code chapter 15-06.8. If the applicant desires to proceed, the applicant shall submit to the department a formal offer to purchase. The formal offer to purchase must serve as the opening bid at the public sale. The applicant shall provide five percent of the minimum sale price as earnest money, as a condition of the formal offer to purchase.9. Land must be advertised for sale at public auction under North Dakota Century Code chapter 15-06.10. If no bids are received on a tract for which no formal application was received, the tract may be sold for the board-established minimum acceptable sale price to the first interested party at a private sale during the six months following the date of the auction.11. The sale of any tract under this chapter may be by:a. Contract under section 6 of article IX of the Constitution of North Dakota; orb. A purchase agreement requiring twenty percent payment of the purchase price on the day of the sale, which may include earnest money paid, and the balance due within sixty calendar days. The balance due date may be extended at the commissioner's discretion, up to a maximum of one hundred eighty days from the date of the sale. Interest must be charged on any remaining balance, beginning sixty days after the date of sale, at the Bank of North Dakota base rate plus one percent. N.D. Admin Code 85-04-07-03
Adopted by Administrative Rules Supplement 2020-379, January 2021, effective 1/1/2021.General Authority: N.D. Constitution article IX, § 6; NDCC 28-32-02
Law Implemented: NDCC 15-06, 15-08