Ownership and Control of U.S. Virgin Islands Monument Lands

United States General Accounting office

This responds to your request for our opinion concerning two Presidential proclamations issued on January 17, 2001, pursuant to the Antiquities Act, 16 U.S.C. §§ 431 et seq. As you know, one proclamation enlarged the existing Buck Wand Reef National Monument north of St. Croix, and the second proclamation created the Virgin Islands Coral Reef National Monument north and south of St. John. A number of question$ have been raised relating to these monuments; you have asked for our opinion about who owns the lands encompassed by the monument designations. Under the Antiquities Act, objects designated by the President as national monuments must be located upon lands either ·”owned or controlled" by the United States. As summarized below and detailed in the enclosed opinion (Enclosure l ), we conclude that the United States both ''owns" and “controls” the lands constituting the two monuments, as those terms are used under the Antiquities Act 2. The only possible exception is an 1,185-marina: acre "finger" of submerged lands off the southeast coast of St. John. which the relevant proclamation suggests may be included in the Virgin Islands Coral Reef monument: we conclude that those lands are neither U.S owned nor -controlled. For convenience and clarity, we enclosed copies of the two proclamations (Enclosures 2 and 3), including their attached maps 3.