A. The State Board of Agriculture shall enter into no agreement for the acquisition, lease, or purchase of any land or for any other purpose whatsoever which shall pledge the credit of, or obligate in any manner whatsoever, the state to pay any sum of money or other thing of value for any purpose, and the Board shall not in any manner or for any purpose pledge the credit of or obligate the state to pay any sum of money. The Board may receive, hold the custody of, and exercise control of any lands, and set aside into a separate, distinct, and inviolable fund the proceeds which may be derived from the sales of the products of any lands, to use in any manner, or the sale of the lands save the twenty-five percent (25%) of the proceeds of the sale to be paid into the state school fund. The Board may use and apply the funds for the acquisition, use, custody, management, development, or improvement of any lands vested in or subject to the control of the Board. After full payment has been made for the purchase of a state forest, to the federal government or other grantor, then fifteen percent (15%) of the gross receipts from a state forest shall be paid to the county or counties in which it is located in proportion to the acreage located in each county for use by the county or counties for school purposes; except that payment of gross receipts shall only apply to the state forest lands and not other lands listed in Section 16-51 of this title.

B. The Commissioners of the Land Office are authorized and directed to make and enter into a lease for a period of ten (10) years, with privilege of renewing at the end of each ten-year period, with the State Department of Agriculture, Forestry Division, the following described land and premises:

Lots One (1) and Two (2) and the East Half (E 1/2) of the Northwest Quarter (NW 1/4) and the West Half (W 1/2) of the Northeast Quarter (NE 1/4) of Section Seven (7), Township Six (6) South, Range Twenty-five (25) East of the Indian Meridian, containing two hundred forty (240) acres, more or less, situated in McCurtain County, State of Oklahoma.

The lease shall contain the following provisions in addition to any which may be agreed upon by the Commissioners of the Land Office and the State Department of Agriculture, Forestry Division:

1. The lessee shall maintain on the property the administrative headquarters for the Southeast Area of the Forestry Division;

2. The lessee shall maintain, repair, and preserve all improvements located on the described lands;

3. The lessee shall maintain and carry out a forestry plan for the entire two hundred forty-acre tract and do the necessary planting and other forestry work to restore the timber growth to its maximum productive value;

4. The lessee shall take all necessary and proper measures to protect the area from fire and theft;

5. The lessee shall formulate and carry out a plan for harvesting of the timber so that maximum financial return may be realized for the state, and that the maximum value shall be realized for demonstration purposes;

6. Unless changed by law, the annual rental payable annually of five percent (5%) per year of the appraised value of the lands without improvement shall be paid out of funds appropriated to the lessee into the common school fund of this state.

Added by Laws 1971, c. 349, § 302, emerg. eff. June 24, 1971. Amended by Laws 2001, c. 113, § 34, emerg. eff. April 18, 2001. Renumbered from § 1301-302 of this title by Laws 2001, c. 113, § 56, emerg. eff. April 18, 2001.