2023 Alaska Statutes › Title 38. Public Land › Chapter 05. Alaska Land Act › Article 7. Leasing of Mineral Land and Large-Scale Mine Legislative Approval. › Sec. 38.05.140. Limitations.

(a) A person may not take or hold coal leases or permits during the life of coal leases on state land exceeding an aggregate of 92,160 acres, except that a person may apply for coal leases or permits for acreage in addition to 92,160 acres, not exceeding a total of 5,120 additional acres of state land. The additional area applied for shall be in multiples of 40 acres, and the application shall contain a statement that the granting of a lease for additional land is necessary for the person to carry on business economically and is in the public interest. On the filing of the application, except as provided by AS 38.05.180(ff)(3) or 38.05.180(gg), the coal deposits in the land covered by the application shall be temporarily set aside and withdrawn from all other forms of disposal provided under AS 38.05.135 - 38.05.181.
(b) The commissioner shall, after posting notice of the pending application in the local land office, conduct public hearings on the application for additional acreage. After public hearings, to the extent the commissioner finds to be in the public interest and necessary for the applicant in order to carry on business economically, the commissioner may, under regulations adopted by the commissioner, permit the person to take or hold coal leases or permits for an additional aggregate acreage of not more than 5,120 acres.
(c) A person may not take or hold at one time phosphate leases on state land exceeding in the aggregate 10,240 acres. A person may not take or hold sodium leases or permits during the life of sodium leases on state land exceeding in the aggregate acreage 5,120 acres, except that the commissioner may, where it is necessary in order to secure the economic mining of sodium compounds, permit a person to take or hold sodium leases or permits for up to 15,360 acres. A person may not take or hold at any one time oil or gas leases exceeding in the aggregate 500,000 acres granted on tide and submerged land, including leases held both as lessee and under option or operating agreement from others. A person may not take or hold at any one time oil or gas leases exceeding in the aggregate 750,000 acres on all land other than tide and submerged land, of which not more than 500,000 acres may be located north of the Umiat baseline, including leases held both as lessee and under option or operating agreement from others. Where more than a single person holds an interest in an oil or gas lease, each person shall be charged only with that percentage of the total acreage that corresponds to its percentage share of the total beneficial interest in the lease.
(d) The commissioner, for the purpose of encouraging the greatest ultimate recovery of coal, oil shale, phosphate, sodium, potassium, sulphur, and geothermal resources and in the interest of conservation of natural resources, after public hearing, or, when the state's title to land beneath navigable waters has been legally challenged by the United States and litigation initiated, may waive, suspend, refund, or reduce the rental, or minimum royalty, or reduce the royalty on an entire leasehold, or on any tract or portion of a leasehold segregated for royalty purposes, whenever the commissioner determines that it is necessary to do so in order to promote development, or that the lease cannot be successfully operated under its terms. If the commissioner, in the interest of conservation, directs or assents to the suspension of operations and production under a lease granted, the payment of acreage rental or of minimum royalty prescribed by the lease may be suspended during the period of suspension of operations and production. The term of the lease shall be extended by adding the period of suspension to the lease.
(e) The provisions of (d) of this section that apply to waiver, suspension, refund, or reduction of rental or minimum royalty apply to rental or minimum royalty paid before or after June 19, 1970, on any lease covering land beneath navigable waters which, according to the records of the division of lands, is in effect on June 19, 1970.
(f) The submerged and shoreland lying north of 57 degrees, 30 minutes, North latitude and east of 159 degrees, 49 minutes, West longitude within the Bristol Bay drainage are designated as the Bristol Bay Fisheries Reserve. Within the Bristol Bay Fisheries Reserve, a surface entry permit to develop an oil or gas lease or an exploration license under AS 38.05.131 - 38.05.134 may not be issued on state owned or controlled land until the legislature by appropriate resolution specifically finds that the entry will not constitute danger to the fishery.