                                 CODE OF VIRGINIA

REVERSION TO COMMONWEALTH; RECORDED TITLE PREREQUISITE TO VESTING JURISDICTION
(§ 1-405)

A. As used in this section, unless the context requires otherwise:
			&#8220;Corrective action&#8221; means the response and remediation to
environmental contamination to the extent required by any applicable
environmental law or regulation applicable to the property.
			&#8220;Environmental contamination&#8221; means any hazardous waste,
substance or toxic material, or its discharge or release, that is regulated
under any environmental law or regulation applicable to the property, and shall
include petroleum (including crude oil), natural gas, liquefied natural gas,
ordnance, unexploded munitions, and asbestos.

B. If the United States shall cease to be the owner of any lands, or any part
thereof, granted or conveyed to it by the Commonwealth; if the purposes of any
such grant or conveyance to the United States shall cease; or if the United
States shall for five consecutive years fail to use any such land for the
purposes of the grant or conveyance, then, and in that event, the right and
title to such land, or such part thereof, shall immediately revert to the
Commonwealth unless such land, or part thereof, contains environmental
contamination. No land containing environmental contamination shall be
transferred or revert to the Commonwealth, unless and until all corrective
action necessary to protect human health and the environment with respect to any
environmental contamination on the lands, or portion thereof, has been completed
to the satisfaction of the Commonwealth and approved by the Governor pursuant to
&#xA7; 2.2-1149, and the United States has executed and delivered a transfer
instrument including covenants warranting that (i) all corrective action
necessary to protect human health and the environment with respect to any
environmental contamination on the land or any portion thereof has been taken,
and (ii) any corrective action for environmental contamination occurring before
the date of transfer found to be necessary after the date of the transfer of the
title of the land or any portion thereof shall be conducted by the United
States.
			In cases where the Defense Base Closure and Realignment Commission (BRAC
Commission) established pursuant to P.L. 101-510 (1990), as amended, identifies
United States military bases located in the Commonwealth for closure, the
Commonwealth shall have, in addition to the foregoing, the right to enter upon
such lands so identified for the purpose of inspection for environmental
contamination. Upon completion of such inspection, the Commonwealth shall report
its findings to the Governor and the appropriate federal agencies.

C. All deeds, conveyances or title papers for the transfer of title of lands to
the United States shall be recorded in the county or city wherein the land or
the greater part thereof lies, but no tax shall be required on any such
instrument made to the United States by which they acquire lands for public
purposes.

D. The jurisdiction ceded by &#xA7; 1-400 shall not vest until the United States
shall have acquired the title of record to such lands, or rights or interest
therein, by purchase, condemnation, lease or otherwise. So long as the lands, or
any rights or interest therein, are held in fee simple by the United States, and
no longer, such lands, rights or interest, as the case may be, shall continue
exempt and exonerated, from all state and local taxes which may be levied or
imposed under the authority of the Commonwealth.

HISTORY: Code 1950, § 7-25; 1966, c. 102, § 7.1-22; 1975, c. 449; 1976, c.
211; 1994, c. 23; 2005, c. 839.