One third of the Nation's land : a report to the President and to the Congress / by the Public Land Law Review Commission.

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Where there are no governing Federal statutes, state law concerning trespass is applicable where the state has not ceded legislative jurisdiction to the Federal Government. State statutes vary widely. Penalties for the same trespass may be greater in one state than another. Some states have very strict procedural requirements, while those of other states are very informal. Those who use the public lands and those who administer them are entitled to a clear expression of policy concerning trespass and a more uniform expression of operating rules. At the present time, for example, operating "dune buggies" on Federal lands might be treated as a trespass by one agency but ignored by another agency on similar lands in different areas. Clear definitions, uniformly applied, would make violations more easily identifiable and permit more expeditious enforcement action. Trespass control is further hampered by differences in procedures and enforcement authority existing among Federal agencies. While the National Park Service maintains a system of park police, and the Forest Service employs forest rangers without police authority, other land management agencies have no comparable services and authority. Instead, they are compelled to call upon local authorities or Federal marshals for assistance to apprehend trespassers and bring them before the proper magistrates. These requirements often result in delays and ineffectiveness in policing Federal lands. To the extent possible, a single set of procedures for handling various kinds of trespass cases, regardless of agency or type of land, should be established to prevent needless overlapping and duplication of procedures. Further, statutory authority for policing Federal lands should be provided to those agencies not now having such authority to the end that complex enforcement litigation may be reduced and trespass cases be more quickly resolved. In the meantime outstanding cases involving alleged trespasses should be settled or litigated expedi-tiously. Uranium Trespass Claims The Secretary of the Interior should be authorized to settle outstanding uranium trespass claims on an equitable basis; and the Attorney General should be directed to proceed with actions to recover damages to the United States, and he should be empowered to settle claims depending on the equities involved. There are a substantial number of outstanding trespass claims based on the production of uranium from invalid mining claims which was sold to the Atomic Energy Commission. The evidence appears conflicting whether this production was encouraged by re- 260 sponsible officials of the Commission. The uncertainties of this situation should be resolved expeditiously. Boundary Determinations Recommendation 112: An intensified survey program to locate and mark boundaries of all public lands based upon a system of priorities, over a period of years, should be undertaken as the public interest requires. Boundaries of public lands in many areas remain unsurveyed. Erroneous or fraudulent early surveys, as well as impermanent survey makers, which can no longer be located, require substantial resurveys of public land boundaries. There are, for example, an estimated 272,000 miles of boundary between national forests and other ownerships. Of these, approximately 253,000 miles need to be established or reestablished. The magnitude of the problem is greater with respect to lands administered by the Bureau of Land Management. The frequency and degree of unintentional trespass, including construction of buildings, would be substantially reduced by an intensified program to locate accurately and mark the boundaries of all public lands, thereby clearly identifying those lands which are federally owned. Adjacent owners would benefit from properly surveyed boundaries and greater certainty of title. An intensified survey program would assist the Government in properly inventorying its lands. It would enable the Government to identify trespasses more rapidly and reduce trespass damages to Federal lands. Early action would reduce the likelihood of inequitable penalties against long-standing innocent, but unauthorized, occupancies. While an expanded survey program would be expensive, such a program should, nevertheless, be undertaken to the extent possible. If appropriations are limited, then priority should be given to areas of substantial value and intensive public use. Determination of Title Disputes Recommendation 113: The doctrine of adverse possession3 should be made applicable against the United States with respect to the public lands where the land has been occupied in good faith. Citizens should be permitted to bring quiet title actions in which the Government could be named as defend- 3 Often loosely referred to as "squatter's rights," the doctrine permits one to establish title to another's land by taking actual possession of the land, usually under claim or color-of-title, and holding it for a required period of time.