An Act to amend section 27 of the Mineral Leasing Act of February 25, 1920, as amended, in order to promote the development of oil and gas on the public domain
PL 83-561 (S.2381), enacted 08/02/1954

648 
PUBLIC LAW 561-AUG. 2, 1954 
[68 S T A T . 
Ante, 
p. 642. 
Ante, 
p. 607. 
REPORT TO CONGRESS OF INFORMATION ON HOUSING 
SEC. 817. The annual report made by the Housing and Home Finance 
Administrator to the President for submission to the Congress on ail 
operations provided for by section 802 hereof shall contain pertinerifc 
information with respect to all projects for which any loan, contribu-
tion, or grant has been made by the Housing and Home Finance 
Agency, including the amount of loans, contributions and grants con-
tracted for, and shall also contain pertinent information with respect 
to all builders' cost certifications required by section 227 of the National 
Housing Act, as amended, including information as to the amounts 
paid by niortgagors to mortgagees for application to the reduction of 
the principal obligations of the mortgages pursuant to that section. 
ACT CONTROLLING 
SEC. 818. Insofar as the provisions of any other law are inconsistent 
with the provisions of this Act, the provisions of this Act shall be 
controlling. 
SEPARABILITY 
SEC. 819. Except as may be otherwise expressly provided in this 
Act, all powers and authorities conferred by this Act shall be cumu-
lative and additional to and not in derogation of any powers and 
authorities otherwise existing. Notwithstanding any other evidences 
of the intention of Congress, it is hereby declared to be the controlling 
intent of Congress that if any provisions of this Act, or the application 
thereof to any persons or circumstances, shall be adjudged by any court 
of competent jurisdiction to be invalid, such judgment shall not affect, 
impair, or invalidate the remainder of this Act or its application to 
other persons and circumstances. 
Approved August 2, 1954. 
August 
2,1954 
[S. 2381] 
O i l 
a n d 
g a s 
l e a s e s . 
62 Stat. 291. 
Public Law 561 
CHAPTER 650 
AN ACT 
To amend section 27 of the Mineral Leasing Act of February 25,1920, as amended, 
in order to promote tlie development of oil and gas on the public domain. 
Be it eTiacted hy the Senate and House of Representatives 
of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled^ That section 27 of 
the Act of February 25,1920, as amended (30 U. S. C. 184), is further 
amended as follows: 
(1) Strike out all of the language preceding the semicolon of the 
second sentence of section 27, and insert the following in lieu thereof: 
Acreage hold- <-<-^Q persou, associatiou, or corporation, except as herein provided, 
ing restriction. 
^j^^jj ^^^^ ^^ ^^-^^ ^^ ^^^ ^.^^ ^.j ^^ ^^^ leascs exceeding in the aggre-
gate forty-six thousand and eighty acres granted hereunder in any 
one State, except that in the Territory of Alaska no person, associa-
tion, or corporation, except as herein provided, shall take or hold at 
one time oil or gas leases exceeding in the aggregate one hundred 
thousand acres granted hereunder;". 
(2) Strike out sentences 5 and 6 of section 27 and insert the follow-
ing in lieu thereof: "The interest of an optionee under a nonrenew-
able option to purchase or otherwise acquire one or more oil or gas 
leases (whether then or thereafter issued), or any interest therein, 
shall not, prior to the exercise of such option, be a taking or holding or 
control under the acreage limitations provisions of anj^ section of 
Time and acre- fj^jg ^(.^ 
J^Q g^ch optiou shall be entered into for a period of more 
age limitation. 
^ 
Alaska. 
60 Stat. 954. 
N on r e ne wa bl e 
option. 
68 
S T A T . ] 
PUBLIC LAW 562-AUG. 3, 1954 
649 
than three years, without the prior approval of the Secretary of the 
Interior, and no person, association, or corporation shall hold at one 
time such options of more than two hundred thousand acres in any 
one State.". 
Approved August 2, 1954. 
Public Law 562 
CHAPTER 652 
AN A C T 
August 3, 1954 
To provide for two additional Assistant Secretaries of the Army, Navy, and Air 
[S. 3466] 
Force, respectively. 
Be it enacted hy the Senate and House of Representatives 
of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled^ That section 102 (a) 
of the Army Organization Act of 1950 (64 Stat. 264), is hereby 
amended to read as follows: 
"There shall be in the Department of the Army an Under Secretary 
of the Army and four Assistant Secretaries of the Army, who shall 
be appointed from civilian life by the President, by and with the 
advice and consent of the Senate, and who shall receive the com-
pensation prescribed by law. One of the Assistant Secretaries author-
ized herein shall be designated Assistant Secretary of the Army for 
Financial Management, and may also act as Comptroller of the 
Army, if so designated by the Secretary of the Army." 
(b) Subsections (b) and (c) of section 101 of the Army Organiza-
tion Act of 1950 (64 Stat. 264), are amended by deleting the word 
"either", wherever appearing, and inserting in lieu thereof the word 
"an". 
SEC. 2. Two Assistant Secretaries of the Navy may be appointed 
from civilian life by the President by and with the advice and consent 
of the Senate. Such Assistant Secretaries shall be in addition to the 
Assistant Secretary of the Navy authorized under section 1 of the 
Act of July 11, 1890 (26 Stat. 254), as amended, and the Assistant 
Secretary of the Navy for Air authorized under section 4 of the 
Act of June 24, 1926 (44 Stat. 767), as amended, making a total of 
four Assistant Secretaries. Each such additional Assistant Secretary 
shall perform such functions as the Secretary of the Navy may from 
time to time prescribe and each shall receive compensation at the rate 
prescribed by law for Assistant Secretaries of military departments. 
One of the Assistant Secretaries authorized herein shall be designated 
as the Assistant Secretary of the Navy for Financial Management, 
and may also act as Comptroller of the Navy, if so designated by the 
Secretary of the Navy. The Assistant Secretaries of the Navy shall 
succeed to the Office of the Secretary of the N avy during his temporary 
absence in the position provided for the Assistant Secretary of the 
Navy and the Assistant Secretary of the Navy for Air by section 10 
of the Act of March 5,1948 (62 Stat. 66), and the Assistant Secretaries 
of the Navy shall take order among themselves in the order prescribed 
by the Secretary of the Navy or if no order is prescribed by the Secre-
tary of the Navy then in the order in which the several Assistant 
Secretaries of the Navy took office as such. 
SEC. 3. (a) Subsection (a) of section 102 of the Air Force Organiza-
tion Act of 1951 (65 Stat. 327), is hereby amended to read as follows: 
"There shall be in the Department of the Air Force an Under 
Secretary of the Air Force and four Assistant Secretaries of the Air 
Force, who shall be appointed from civilian life by the President, 
by and with the advice and consent of the Senate, and who shall 
receive the compensation prescribed by law. One of the Assistant 
Secretaries authorized herein shall be designated Assistant Secretary 
Armed Forces. 
Assistant Sec> 
retaries. 
5 u s e 181-5. 
Army. 
5 u s e 181-4. 
Navy. 
5 u s e 420. 
5 u s e 421a. 
62 Stat. 69. 
5 u s e 423j. 
5 u s e 626-1. 
Air Force.