ANCSA 14(c)(3) Requirements

Section 14(c)(3) of the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act (ANCSA) obligates a Village Corporation to convey 1280 acres to the local municipality organized under the laws of the State of Alaska for certain public purposes as described in the statute, unless the municipality and the Village Corporation (Haida Corporation) reach an agreement on a lesser amount of acreage. The amount of acreage is not up to the Village Corporation; the Village Corporation and the municipality have to agree if a lesser amount is to be conveyed.

The 14(c)(3) Process

1. The specific lands proposed for conveyance are identified and depicted on a Map of Boundaries, which is submitted to the BLM. The Village Corporation and claimants can agree on the specific lands. The law is clear that The Village Corporation has the power to submit its own version of a Map of Boundaries and the BLM has to process it.

2. Upon receipt of the Map of Boundaries, the BLM is required to publish, at government expense, a notice that the Map of Boundaries has been submitted. This notice is published in the local paper.

3. Persons who want to challenge the conveyances proposed in the Map of Boundaries have one year from the date of publication to start legal action to challenge the conveyance. If legal action is not timely started, it is barred.

4. After a one-year period goes by without legal challenge, the BLM will proceed to survey the conveyances described in the Map of Boundaries at government expense. However, because of a backlog, there will be a delay of perhaps 2-3 years. As an alternative, the Village Corporation can hire its own survey, but would have to pay for it.

5. After the plat of survey is in the appropriate recording district, the Village Corporation conveys the land via deed to the local municipality.

A copy of the Map of Boundaries can be downloaded from the right-hand column of this page.