HB329 Alabama 2010 Session

Summary

Primary Sponsor

Alan Harper

Republican

Co-Sponsors

Bill J. DukesWilliam E. ThigpenHarry ShiverJoe FaustAlan BakerSteve McMillan

Session

Regular Session 2010

Title

State property, time period for state to repurchase land sold by state to certain entities if later sold to private person or entities, decreased, municipal commercial development authorities exempt from procedures regarding sale or transfer of state property, retroactive effect, Sec. 9-15-82 am'd.

Summary

HB329 changes how Alabama handles state property transfers by expanding exemptions from standard procedures, shortening the state's repurchase window to three years, adding municipal commercial development authorities to the exemptions, and applying retroactively to 1995 with immediate effect.

What This Bill Does

It exempts certain state property transfers from the normal Lands Division procedures; reduces the state's right to repurchase sold property from five years to three years; includes municipal commercial development authorities in the exemption; provides retroactive effect to June 29, 1995, and immediate effectiveness after governor approval; allows certain agencies (like the Alabama Forestry Commission and some higher education entities) to conduct sales or leases using alternative methods while still complying with overall rules.

Who It Affects

• State agencies and departments that transfer or sell property: may use exemptions and face a shorter three-year window for repurchase.
• Municipal commercial development authorities: added to the exemption, allowing transfers/sales without standard procedures.
• Alabama Forestry Commission: may conduct real property sales without going through the Lands Division, subject to other rules.
• Institutions of higher education and their separately governed boards: may sell or lease real property via public auction or sealed bids without Lands Division involvement, with board ratification and public documentation; some leases to support institutional operations are exempt.
• County/municipal boards of education and local governments: generally exempt from the article, but resale/transfer to private parties within certain time frames may trigger compliance and repurchase considerations.

Key Provisions

• Exempts transfers or sales of certain state-owned real property from the article's normal procedures.
• Decreases the state's repurchase period for property sold by the state from five years to three years.
• Adds municipal commercial development authorities to the exemptions from standard procedures.
• Makes the exemption retroactive to June 29, 1995, with a specific retroactive effective date in Section 2.
• Provides for immediate effectiveness upon governor's signing, and retroactive application to 1995.
• Explicitly lists categories of transactions exempt from the article (e.g., interagency transfers, timber/mineral leases, certain tax-reverted property, historical property, housing finance authority sales, risk-management trust properties, and right-of-way transactions by DOT).
• Allows the Alabama Forestry Commission to conduct real property sales without Lands Division oversight, while complying with other article provisions.
• Allows higher education institutions with separate boards to sell/lease real property via public auction or sealed bids without Lands Division, with board ratification and open documentation.
• Ground leases and facility leases by HEIs to certain organizations, for operation, are exempt from the article.
• Provisions that govern resale within three years to private parties for counties/municipal boards of education and related entities, indicating compliance requirements if transferred within three years.

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

Subjects

State Property