The county board may appoint a land commissioner and necessary assistants, such land commissioner to perform any or all of the following duties as directed by the county board: to gather data and information on tax-forfeited lands; make land classifications and appraisals of land, timber and other products and uses; enforce trespass laws and regulations; seize and appraise timber and other products and property cut and removed illegally from tax-forfeited lands; assist the county auditor in the sale and rental of forfeited lands and the products thereon; and such other duties concerning tax-forfeited lands as the county board may direct. Such appointment shall be for such time as the county board may determine. The compensation of said land commissioner and assistants shall be fixed by the county board and their salaries and expenses shall be paid from the forfeited tax sale fund, except that in counties having more than 300,000 and less than 450,000 inhabitants an officer or employee of a city of the first class situated therein who is appointed shall receive no additional compensation therefor. Any funds required by the commissioner of revenue for the purpose of cancellation of contracts, as provided in section 282.01, shall be paid by the county auditor upon the written order of the commissioner of revenue from moneys then available in the fund.

When tax-forfeited lands have been acquired by a city of the first class for municipal purposes, and a privately owned lot lies between such tax-forfeited land, and it is in the interest of the municipality that such privately owned lot be acquired for the same municipal use to which the tax-forfeited lands have been devoted, such city of the first class may exchange on such basis as may be approved by the governing body thereof, a portion of the tax-forfeited lands acquired by the municipality for the privately owned lot, and the officers of such municipality are hereby authorized to execute deeds to carry out such purpose.

History: (2139-25) 1935 c 386 s 11; 1943 c 627 s 5; 1951 c 562 s 1; 1953 c 340 s 1; 1973 c 582 s 3; 1986 c 444