Section 26 - Purchase and sale of property(a)(1) Subject to subsection (b) of this section:(A) The Agency may purchase or lease any land, taking conveyance in the name of the State, when land is needed in connection with the layout, construction, repair, and maintenance of any State highway or the reconstruction of the highway.(B) The Agency may acquire or construct buildings necessary for use in connection with this work.(C) When any of the land or the buildings acquired or the buildings constructed become no longer necessary for these purposes, the Agency may sell or lease the property.(2) The proceeds from any sale or lease shall be deposited in the Transportation Fund, unless otherwise required by federal law or regulation.(b) An acquisition or transfer or the construction under this section of property or rights in property with an appraised or other estimated value of $500,000.00 or above, or the acquisition or transfer of an option to acquire property with an appraised or other estimated value of $500,000.00 or above, shall be made with the specific prior approval of the General Assembly of the acquisition, transfer, or construction and its terms or, if the General Assembly is not in session, with the specific prior approval of the Joint Transportation Oversight Committee. The requirement of this subsection shall not apply, however, if the General Assembly has approved a specific project described in the annual Transportation Program and the scope of the project includes the acquisition or transfer of property.Added 1985, No. 269 (Adj. Sess.), § 1; amended 1989, No. 246 (Adj. Sess.), § 9; 2003, No. 56 , § 24, eff. 6/4/2003; 2003, No. 80 (Adj. Sess.), § 84, eff. 3/8/2004; 2011, No. 153 (Adj. Sess.), § 47; 2013, No. 167 (Adj. Sess.) , § 20.