HB286 Alabama 2010 Session

Summary

Primary Sponsor

Thad McClammy

Democrat

Session

Regular Session 2010

Title

Sixteenth Section Lands, distribution of federal offshore royalty revenues by state to counties based upon calculation by Conservation and Natural Resources Department, annual report to Governor, State Superintendent of Education, and Legislature

Summary

HB286 would create a program to use federal offshore oil royalty revenues to compensate Alabama counties for lost sixteenth section school lands, with an inventory, annual distributions, and reporting.

What This Bill Does

It would earmark annual federal offshore royalty revenues to the Department of Conservation and Natural Resources to fund indemnification payments to counties for lost sixteenth section lands, when funds are available, using a defined methodology. It would require the department to maintain a comprehensive inventory of all sixteenth section lands, the local boards associated with them, and the revenue distributed, and to report annually to the Governor, the State Superintendent of Education, and the Legislature. It would establish an equitable benchmark to guide distributions and aim to raise counties toward that benchmark, while ensuring payments do not replace existing education funding and subject to federal funding availability. Implementation hinges on Congress providing funds for indemnification.

Who It Affects

• Counties and their local boards of education in Alabama, who would be eligible to receive annual indemnification payments for lost sixteenth section land based on the county's lost acres, subject to available federal funds and the bill's methodology.
• State and local government entities (Department of Conservation and Natural Resources, State Department of Education, Department of Examiners of Public Accounts, Attorney General, Governor, and Legislature) who would inventory, administer, distribute, regulate, and report on the program.

Key Provisions

• Annual appropriation of federal offshore royalty revenues to the Department of Conservation and Natural Resources for indemnifying counties for lost sixteenth section lands, to be distributed annually when funds are available and according to a specified methodology.
• The department must annually distribute indemnification funds to counties based on the number of lost sixteenth section acres, with an anticipated per-county distribution and a schedule of amounts provided in the bill if Congress funds the program.
• The department, with the State Department of Education and the Department of Examiners of Public Accounts, must compile and maintain a comprehensive inventory of all sixteenth section lands, the associated local boards of education, and the annual revenue distributed, and must publish an annual report on the inventory to the Governor, the State Superintendent of Education, and the Legislature.
• Definition of terms, including Lost Sixteenth Section Land (acres identifiable in a county below 13,881) and Sixteenth Section Land (sections granted for schools, indemnity lands, and school lands as defined by law).
• Establishment of an equitable benchmark to raise counties’ income from sixteenth section lands toward the greatest-earning county, with adjustments based on inventory data and historical income (since 1995) where possible.
• Sufficient safeguards to ensure indemnification funds increase, not replace, existing education funding; oversight of distribution procedures and rules by the Attorney General.
• Implementation contingent on the state receiving federal offshore royalty reserves for indemnification; act becomes effective immediately upon passage and approval.

AI-generated summary using openai/gpt-5-nano on Feb 24, 2026. May contain errors — refer to the official bill text for accuracy.

Subjects

Education