Mississippi Code Title 29. Public Lands, Buildings and Property § 29-3-31

It is hereby made the duty of the board of education, using the services of all appropriate public agencies, to survey and classify all sixteenth section lands in the Choctaw purchase and lands granted in lieu thereof reserved for the support of township schools. Said lands shall be classified into eight (8) categories, as follows: (1) forest land; (2) agricultural land; (3) industrial land; (4) commercial land; (5) farm-residential land; (6) residential land; (7) recreational land; and (8) other land. The classifications shall be applied to said lands based upon the finding of the highest and best use of each parcel or tract for producing a maximum of revenue by proper utilization. In determining the highest and best use of these lands, the same principles shall be followed as are applied in determining the highest and best use of land in private ownership. Notwithstanding anything herein to the contrary, all land that is being used as “residential land” or “farm-residential land” shall continue to be classified as “residential land” or “farm-residential land” until such land ceases to be used as a residence.

All sixteenth section lands in the Choctaw purchase and lands granted in lieu thereof, regardless of classification, shall be deemed to contain oil, gas and minerals, including the following: (a) oil, gas, carbon dioxide and other gaseous substances; (b) metals, compounds of metals or metal-bearing ores; (c) coal, including anthracite, bituminous, subbituminous, lignite and their constituent components and products and minerals intermingled or associated therewith; and (d) sulphur, salt, sand, gravel, fill dirt and clay.

Such oil, gas and minerals shall be leased for exploration, mining, production and development as provided for in Section 29-3-99, regardless of the classifications of the lands in, on or under which such oil, gas and minerals are situated. Statutory procedures for the leasing of the surface of the land in such eight (8) classifications shall not apply to such oil, gas and minerals in, on or under such lands.

Such oil, gas and minerals shall be deemed a separate classification of sixteenth section lands for the purpose of Section 211 of the Mississippi Constitution.