Except as otherwise provided in a special act pertaining to a particular area:

1. The Department may, if such leases or sales do not interfere with the use of such real property for wildlife management or for hunting or fishing thereon:

(a) Lease, for a term not exceeding 5 years, grazing or pasturage rights in and to real property which is assigned to the Department for administration.

(b) Sell crops or agricultural products of whatever kind produced on such real property.

2. Except as otherwise provided in subsection 3, whenever the Department intends to lease grazing or pasturage rights or to sell or offer for sale agricultural products as provided in subsection 1, the Department may do so only by advertising for bids, reserving in such advertising the right to reject any or all bids.

3. The Department may enter into such a lease with or make such a sale to a state agency without advertising for bids if the rent agreed to be paid for the lease or the sale price agreed to be paid for any agricultural commodities to be sold is, in the opinion of the Department, equal to the amount that would be obtained by advertising for bids.

4. If the Department finds that the highest or best bid is less than the amount that should be paid, the Department may reject all bids and negotiate with interested persons for such lease or sale, but shall not accept any negotiated price if it is less in amount than the highest bid tendered for the same lease or sale.

5. If the deed to real property assigned to the Department for administration contains a covenant or provision giving to the grantor an option to meet the highest bid for any lease by the Department of grazing or pasturage rights to the real property or the sale of agricultural products from it, the Department shall comply with the terms of the covenant or provision in the deed.

(Added to NRS by 1961, 665; A 1969, 1549; 1979, 901; 1993, 447, 1677; 1995, 521; 2003, 1553, effective upon the conveyance of the Carson Lake Pasture to the State of Nevada)