Mont. Admin. r. 36.25.1102 - PURPOSE AND APPLICABILITY
(1) Pursuant to
Article X, Section 11(1) of the 1972 Montana Constitution and
70-1-202(1) and
77-1-102(2), MCA,
the title to all navigable rivers is held by the board in trust for the benefit
of the public.
(2) The board,
through the department as the board's administrative arm, shall manage and
administer the navigable rivers of the state of Montana to:
(a) ensure the public's right to fully use
and enjoy this resource for commerce, navigation, fishing, hunting, recreation
and other public trust values; and
(b) generate income from navigable rivers for
the public trust in a manner consistent with these rules and other
laws.
(3) The department
may, upon request by an applicant, issue an easement or lease for the board's
approval of the use of a riverbed which is not yet adjudicated as navigable.
(a) Any such easement or lease, which is
voluntarily sought by an applicant, shall only convey a contingent right to use
the riverbed based upon the validity and extent of the board's title to the
riverbed.
(b) The department may
issue such contingent-right easements and leases, only where the department has
historical documentation that the river was susceptible of use in commerce at
statehood.
(c) Private use may be
made of the bed of an unadjudicated river without prior department
authorization, unless and until five years has passed since the department:
(i) has published public notice twice in a
newspaper of general circulation in the area of the river that the river has
been adjudicated as navigable; and
(ii) has given notice to adjacent landowners
that the river has been adjudicated as navigable.
(4) The department may, upon
request by an applicant, issue a license for the use of a riverbed which is not
yet adjudicated as navigable.
(a) Any such
license, which is voluntarily sought by an applicant, shall only convey a
contingent right to use the riverbed based upon the validity and extent of the
board's title to the riverbed.
(b)
The department may issue such contingent-right licenses only where the
department has historical documentation that the river was susceptible of use
in commerce at statehood.
(5) Navigable rivers are classified as class
4 lands under
77-1-401, MCA.
Notes
AUTH: 77-1-1109, 77-1-1117, MCA; IMP: 77-1-1109, MCA
State regulations are updated quarterly; we currently have two versions available. Below is a comparison between our most recent version and the prior quarterly release. More comparison features will be added as we have more versions to compare.
No prior version found.