Exchanges and sales

(1) (a) It is the policy of this state that exchanges of public land are preferred to any sale of public land, and that when pursuing an exchange, an exchange with the School and Institutional Trust Lands Administration is preferred to an exchange with any other party. (b) If the DLM proposes an exchange of public land for a different parcel of land, the land the DLM seeks to acquire shall be larger in acreage or considered more valuable for one or more of the principal or major uses described in Section 63L-8-103 than the land the DLM is offering in exchange. (c) The state may exchange a parcel of public land with the federal government, the School and Institutional Trust Lands Administration, or a private party for a similarly valued parcel of land if: (i) no more than 1,000 acres of public land is exchanged with the federal government, the School and Institutional Trust Lands Administration, or the private party in one calendar year; or (ii) the exchange is approved by a two-thirds vote of the Legislature. (2) The DLM may execute a sale of a parcel of public land if: (a) the requirements of Subsection 63L-8-104(1)(b) have been met; (b) the following information is made available on the DLM's website for 30 days before the day on which the director executes the sale: (i) the legal description of the parcel; (ii) the local land use plan governing the parcel; (iii) the proposed purchaser of the parcel; (iv) the DLM's findings that the sale will further an important public objective, including expansion of a local community; (v) the minutes or a recording of a meeting in which the public comment was taken on the proposed sale; and (vi) the purchase price, which may not be less than fair market value; (c) the director, having completed the land use planning process described in Section 63L-8-202, has determined that the parcel in question: (i) is not suitable for long-term management by the DLM or another state agency because of the parcel's location or other characteristics; and (ii) has minimal value for hunting, fishing, or other outdoor recreation; (d) the parcel is 100 acres or smaller; (e) the director has determined an exchange, as described in Subsection (1), is not possible; (f) a competitive bidding process is used to determine the purchaser of the parcel; (g) the sale is approved by a two-thirds vote of the Legislature; and (h) the sale is approved by the governor. (3) All proceeds of a sale under Subsection (2) shall be: (a) deposited in the Public Land Management Fund created in Section 63L-8-308; and (b) used to: (i) acquire additional land that the DLM has determined would be appropriate for public purposes; (ii) improve existing public land for one or more principal or major uses, as described in Section 63L-8-103; and (iii) increase the utilization of the public land by the public.