ARTICLE 8. Procedure on Improper Sales and Abandonment of Entries [7971. - 7977.]

Cal. Public Resources Code - PRC 8.

in effect

Cal. Public Resources Code - PRC § 7971. Section 7971.

If any land was not the property of the State, at the date application was filed therefor, or if the land applied for was swamp and overflowed land but the application became or was void by reason of the fact that the land had not been segregated, or if subsequent to March 20, 1889, any money has been accepted by the State as a part of or on account of the purchase price of any State land under an application or certificate of purchase which at the time of accepting such money had become invalidated by reason of an act of the Legislature of the State of California entitled “An act respecting the payment in full by holders of certificates of purchase for lands sold by the State of California prior to March 27, 1872, and for which the said State has at any time heretofore issued certificates of purchase to subsequent purchasers,” approved March 20, 1889, the owner of such certificate of purchase or patent may receive in exchange therefor, from the commission, a certificate showing the amount paid and the class of land upon which payment was made by conveying a quitclaim deed to the State, all of his right, title and interest in and to the land. If the land is lieu land or indemnity land, the commission’s certificate shall not issue until the selection therefor is canceled by authority of the Department of the Interior.

Cal. Public Resources Code - PRC § 7972. Section 7972.

In all cases where money has been paid since the passage of the act of March 20, 1889, on account of the purchase price of lands where the certificates or applications, became invalidated by reason of that act, the amount to be repaid as shown in the certificate to be issued by the commission in exchange for the certificate of purchase, shall be only such amount as has been paid on account of the purchase price of such lands subsequent to the passage of the act of March 20, 1889.

Cal. Public Resources Code - PRC § 7973. Section 7973.

The authority of the commission to issue such certificate and likewise the authority of the auditor and Controller to issue their warrants, as provided in Section 7974, shall not be barred by any period of time which may have elapsed since the issuance of the certificate of purchase or patent, but in the issuance of the certificate, the commission shall first determine that the person applying for the certificate is the owner of the certificate of purchase or patent, and has not assigned or conveyed his interest therein or in the land therein described or any part thereof, and that it is a proper case for the issuance of a certificate. A copy of a patent duly certified by the county recorder of any county where it has been recorded shall have the same force and effect as the original.

Cal. Public Resources Code - PRC § 7974. Section 7974.

If the land sold was swamp and overflowed, the county auditor of the county in which the land is situated shall, upon the surrender to him of the certificate mentioned in Section 7971, draw his warrant in favor of the person surrendering the certificate for the amount therein specified, upon the treasurer of the county, who shall pay the warrant out of the swamp and overflowed land fund of the district in which the land is situated. If the land sold was not swamp and overflowed, the Controller of the State, upon the surrender to him of the certificate, shall draw his warrant in favor of the person surrendering the certificate, for the amount therein specified, upon the Treasurer of the State, who shall pay the warrant out of the fund into which the purchase-money was paid.

Cal. Public Resources Code - PRC § 7975. Section 7975.

Whenever a purchaser of land upon credit desires to abandon the location or entry made by him, he may do so by conveyance of his title to the State and surrender of the certificate of purchase, or, if it has been lost, by filing an affidavit of that fact with the commission.

Cal. Public Resources Code - PRC § 7976. Section 7976.

Whenever any person has, in conformity with law, conveyed any land to the State by quitclaim deed, duly executed, delivered, and accepted by the commission, for the purpose of receiving restitution of the purchase price thereof, as provided by law, and such restitution has not been made, and a patent for such land is thereafter issued in the name of the original purchaser, the title granted by such patent shall vest in, and inure to the benefit of, such original purchaser, his heirs, assigns, and successors in interest, notwithstanding the execution, delivery and acceptance of the quitclaim deed, as fully and completely as if the quitclaim deed had never been made, executed, delivered, or accepted.

Cal. Public Resources Code - PRC § 7977. Section 7977.

Upon the issuance of such patent, the commission shall make and issue to the patentee therein named, his heirs, assigns, and successors in interest, a certificate under the seal of the commission, reciting the making, execution, delivery and acceptance of the quitclaim deed, and further reciting the fact that no restitution of the purchase price of the land was made. Upon the presentation of such certificate to the county recorder of the county wherein such land is situate, the recorder shall record it in the proper book in the records of such county.

Source: CA Legislative Counsel Bulk DataURL: https://downloads.leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/pubinfo_2025.zipFetched: 6/27/2026