Louisiana Administrative Code › Title 76 - WILDLIFE AND FISHERIES › Part VII - Fish and Other Aquatic Life › Chapter 5 - Oysters › Section VII-505 - Oyster Lease Moratorium

Current through Register Vol. 50, No. 6, June 20, 2024
A. A
				moratorium on the issuance of oyster leases for water bottoms not presently
				under lease is established. This includes a moratorium on the taking of oyster
				lease applications for water bottoms not presently under lease. This moratorium
				shall remain in place and may not be finally lifted until the following
				preferential rights have been claimed or forfeited in the following order. Upon
				the conclusion of the final oyster lease moratorium lifting phase, the
				secretary shall have the authority to fully and finally lift the moratorium.
				The secretary shall notify the Wildlife and Fisheries Commission of the lifting
				of the moratorium and post notice thereof on the department's website at least
				30 days before the lifting becomes effective.
1. Phase 0: Processing Pre-Moratorium Lease
				Application Backlog
a. Applications pending
				at the time of the March 7, 2002 moratorium shall be processed. This includes
				all pending applications that have been held, along with all fees paid, but
				excludes applications as to which the applicant requested cancellation of the
				application and received a refund of fees.
b. In the event of the death of an applicant,
				the applicant's heirs or legatees shall so notify the department; and any lease
				ultimately issued shall issue only to persons placed in possession of the
				application by Judgment of Possession or to a court-appointed administrator or
				executor on behalf of a deceased applicant's estate.
c. Pending applications shall be subject to
				the application procedures established in
				R.S.
				56:427(F) and
				LAC76:VII.501.B.
d. The Office of
				State Lands shall make a determination of ownership for water bottoms applied
				for in any pending application prior to the execution of such lease.
e. Pending applications may be issued as a
				"dual claim lease" under LAC 76:VIL502 if ownership of the water bottom is
				contested.
f. No water bottoms
				applied for in a pending lease application shall be leased if such water
				bottoms were encumbered by a private oyster lease that was in effect and
				properly recorded as of February 1, 2016 in the public records of the parish
				where the water bottoms are located, and at the time of the lease application,
				are encumbered by a private oyster lease, to the extent of the lease in effect
				on February 1, 2016. An applicant may amend the pending application to limit it
				to the remainder of the water bottoms that are not encumbered by the private
				oyster lease, or may withdraw the application and receive a full
				refund.
g. Any lease executed under
				this phase shall not be subject to the subordination conditions established in
				LAC 76:VII.501.A.7, as they were originally applied for prior to July
				1,2016.
h. In addition to the
				official notification of eligible applications the department shall post on the
				department's website a list of all applicants with pending oyster lease
				applications eligible for process under Phase 0.