TITLE 50 STATE GOVERNMENT

Section 16. Public Property, 50-16-1 through 50-16-183.

ARTICLE 1 GENERAL PROVISIONS

50-16-7. Improvement of real estate held by state in fee simple with reversionary interest in federal government or under long-term federal license.

As used in this Code section, the term "long-term federal license" means a license under which the state holds real estate belonging to the federal government for a period of ten years or longer.
Any real estate held by the state in fee simple or under a quitclaim deed with a reversionary interest in the federal government or under a long-term federal license with a reversionary interest in the federal government may be improved with funds appropriated for a state department, provided the commissioner of the department affected and the Office of Planning and Budget, consisting of the Governor and state auditor, consent to the use of such funds if the amount of funds to be appropriated exceeds $1,000.00. If the amount of the improvement funds to be appropriated is $1,000.00 or less, the commissioner of the department shall have the authority to approve the appropriation without the approval of the Office of Planning and Budget; provided, however, nothing in this Code section shall prevent or prohibit a state department from constructing with appropriated state funds a public ramp for the launching and retrieving of watercraft and other facilities for use in connection therewith, including, but not limited to, paved parking areas and access roads, upon real estate owned by the state adjoining lakes, reservoirs, rivers, or other bodies of water available for free use by the public, the title to which real estate is burdened by a flood easement, license, permit, or reservation running in favor of an electric utility company regulated by the state or the United States, or any public corporation or authority declared by law to be an instrumentality of the state or the United States, or any agency or department of the United States; provided, further, nothing in this Code section shall prevent the expenditure of appropriated state funds to construct access roads or ways for ingress and egress or the construction or placement of utilities in, on, through, over, or under real property in which the state holds a legal interest or estate less than fee simple if the roads, ways, or utilities are constructed to serve facilities located on or to be located on real property held by the state in fee simple or under a quitclaim deed with a reversionary interest in the federal government or under a long-term federal license with a reversionary interest in the federal government.

(Ga. L. 1961, p. 47, §§ 1, 2; Ga. L. 1972, p. 927, § 1; Ga. L. 1977, p. 872, § 1.)

OPINIONS OF THE ATTORNEY GENERAL

Editor's notes.

- In light of the similarity of the statutory provisions, opinions decided under former law are included in the annotations for this Code section.

Incidental expenditures on leased property.

- Legislature did not intend that the statute be so strictly construed that the state is powerless to make incidental expenditures on leased property, which expenditures are dictated by practical business considerations and which, if not made by the state, would deny the state the maximum benefits of the use of the premises or would result in considerably greater loss to the state before the premises could be used for the purposes intended. 1963-65 Op. Att'y Gen. p. 306.

Expenditures on "permanent facilities."

- State could not spend money on leased property to construct "permanent facilities"; only structures which as a practical matter may be removed from the premises as a unit, or dismantled and removed without substantial loss or damage may be considered as temporary or removable structures. 1965-66 Op. Att'y Gen. No. 66-70.

State acceptance of property lease.

- State may accept lease on property when no valuable permanent improvements are to be placed on land, and a policy of title insurance is procured. 1954-56 Op. Att'y Gen. p. 655 (decided under former law).

Restrictions on county-owned real estate.

- State funds appropriated by a state agency from the Governor's Emergency Fund may be utilized for improvements to real estate held by the state in fee simple, but may not be used for such improvements to real property owned by individual counties; the expenditures for improvements to state-owned property must be consistent with and authorized by the enumerated powers of the governmental agency proposing the improvements. 1974 Op. Att'y Gen. No. 74-158.

Construction of radio beacons.

- Although the Department of Industry and Trade may lawfully accept a grant from the Governor's Emergency Fund, such grant may not be utilized, by contract or otherwise, for the purpose of constructing a radio beacon at a municipal airport. 1967 Op. Att'y Gen. No. 67-322.

Property not owned by state.

- Authorization to participate in the operation of a welcome center would not be inclusive of an authorization to utilize state funds for the construction of a welcome center on property not owned by the state or otherwise permitted under this section. 1973 Op. Att'y Gen. No. 73-30.

Leased property of other branch of state government.

- Regents may legally expend appropriated state funds for improvements on property leased from another branch of state government, the title to which is held by the state. 1967 Op. Att'y Gen. No. 67-450.

Title to land required.

- State must have title to land before permanent improvements may be made thereon. 1954-56 Op. Att'y Gen. p. 574 (decided under former law).

Reversionary clause in deed.

- No state funds can be expended to place any permanent improvements on property transferred to the state as long as a reversionary clause is in the deed of conveyance. 1954-56 Op. Att'y Gen. p. 573 (decided under former law).

State should not accept a deed of real property when the deed contains a reversionary clause. 1963-65 Op. Att'y Gen. p. 755.

Improvements to leased property.

- State funds may be used for improvement of leased property when improvements are of such a nature as to be easily removable and the lease provides that the state may remove such improvements upon termination or when the state no longer requires use of the property. 1962 Op. Att'y Gen. p. 398.

Property held in fee simple or quitclaim deed.

- State funds may be used for property held by the state in fee simple or under quitclaim deed with a reversionary interest in United States government upon approval of proper state officials. 1962 Op. Att'y Gen. p. 396.

Acceptance of property with reversionary clause. 1960-61 Op. Att'y Gen. p. 386.

Department of Natural Resources cannot accept deed from city containing reversionary clause for land on which state funds are to be used. 1962 Op. Att'y Gen. p. 395.

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