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Alaska Statutes.

Title 38. Public Land

Chapter 5. Alaska Land Act

Section 65. Terms of Contract of Sale.

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AS 38.05.065. Terms of Contract of Sale.

(a) The contract of sale for land sold at public auction under AS 38.05.055 shall require the remainder of the purchase price to be paid in monthly, quarterly, or annual installments over a period of not more than 20 years, with interest at the rate provided in (i) of this section. Installment payments plus interest shall be set on the level-payment basis.

(b) The contract of sale for land sold under AS 38.05.057 or under former AS 38.05.078 shall require the remainder of the purchase price to be paid in monthly, quarterly, or annual installments over a period of not more than 20 years. Installment payments plus interest shall be set on the level-payment basis. The interest rate to be charged on installment payments is the rate provided in (i) of this section.

(c) The director shall, for contracts under (a), (b), or (h) of this section, set out in the contract for each sale the period for the payment of installments and the total purchase price plus interest. The director, with the consent of the commissioner, may also include in contracts under this section conditions, limitations, and terms considered necessary and proper to protect the interest of the state. Violations of any provision of this chapter or the terms of the contract of sale subject the purchaser to appropriate administrative and legal action, including but not limited to specific performance, foreclosure, ejectment, or other legal remedies in accordance with applicable state law.

(d) If a contract for a sale of state land has been breached, the director may issue a decision to foreclose and terminate the contract at any time 31 days after delivering by certified mail a written notice of the breach to the address of record of the purchaser. A breach caused by the failure to make payments required by the contract may be cured within 30 days after the notice of the breach has been received by the purchaser by payment of the sum in default together with the larger of a fee of $50 or five percent of the sum in default. If there are material facts in dispute between the state and the purchaser, the purchaser may submit a written request for a public hearing for the review of the facts within 30 days after the notice of the breach has been received.

(e) On a determination that there has been a breach of the contract based on the administrative record and the evidence presented at a hearing, the director shall issue a decision foreclosing the interest of the purchaser and terminating the contract. The obligation to make payments under the contract continues through the date of the decision to foreclose by the director.

(f) The director shall deliver the decision to foreclose and terminate personally to the purchaser or send it certified mail, return receipt requested, to the address of record of the purchaser. If the breach is a failure to make payments required by the contract, the decision shall include a notice to the purchaser that if within 30 days the purchaser pays to the state the full amount of the unpaid contract price, including all accrued interest, and any fees assessed under (d) of this section, the department shall issue to the purchaser a deed to the land. If full payment is not made within 30 days or the breach is for other than failure to make payment, the decision forecloses and terminates all legal and equitable rights the purchaser has in the land.

(g) The purchaser may appeal the director's decision to the commissioner within 30 days. The final decision by the department is reviewable under AS 44.62.560 .

(h) The commissioner, after consulting with the Board of Agriculture and Conservation (AS 03.09.010 ),

(1) shall provide that, notwithstanding (a) and (b) of this section, in a contract for the sale of land classified under AS 38.05.020 (b)(6) for agricultural uses, the interest rate to be charged on installment payments may not exceed 9.5 percent; and

(2) may declare a moratorium of up to five years on payments on land sold under this section for land classified under AS 38.05.020 (b)(6) for agricultural uses if

(A) the commissioner determines that the moratorium is in the best interest of the state;

(B) the commissioner certifies and the contract purchaser agrees to perform farm development, crop production, and harvesting, not including land clearing or related activity, requiring the expenditure of amounts equivalent to the payments that would otherwise be made during the moratorium;

(C) the sale of the agricultural land takes place after July 1, 1979; and

(D) the contract purchaser is in compliance with the development plan specified in the purchase contract at the time the purchaser applies for a moratorium under this subsection and remains in compliance with the development plan during the moratorium; for the payments subject to the moratorium declared under this paragraph, interest payments are subject to the moratorium but interest continues to accrue during the moratorium.

(i) The interest rate for contracts under this section is the prime rate as reported in the Wall Street Journal on the first business day of the month in which the contract is sent to the purchaser for signature, plus three percent; however, the total rate of interest may not exceed

(1) 9.5 percent, in contracts for the sale of land classified under AS 38.05.020 (b)(6) for agricultural uses; or

(2) 13.5 percent, in other contracts for the sale of land.