Mark Winkleman acts as the trustee of 90 million acres of state trust land throughout Arizona, more than a million of which exists in Yavapai County.
The sale of such land benefits public education, said Winkleman, commissioner of the Arizona State Land Department, Thursday at the Prescott Resort.
About 96 percent of the money from auctioned parcels of state land goes to school districts and universities in Arizona. The location of the land has nothing to do with which school district receives revenue, Winkleman said. The proceeds are spread throughout the state.
A significant amount of land in this area tends to be on top of mountains or in river bottoms. Ranchers lease some state land for grazing livestock, and that doesn't bring in a lot of money, he said. But ranchers are the eyes and ears for turning in those who dump garbage or spoil the land. The department employs only two people for the entire state for enforcement purposes.
One of the challenges of generating revenue from state trust land sales is the way the property, marked in 36-square-mile townships, checkerboard the landscape. Winkelman said that makes it difficult for those who purchase the property to use it efficiently.
He hopes to create a way to trade or somehow put the acreage into blocks to better manage future sales.
The department's staff of 160 conducts auctions when property is ready for sale. These auctions generate hundreds of millions of dollars each year, Winkelman said.
In 2000, the legislature approved the proceeds of state trust land to support education. The Classroom Site Fund provides school districts with money to help with teachers' salaries and reduce classroom size. None of the money goes to administration, he said.
School districts and universities received about $100 million this year, and he estimates that will increase to $115 million-$120 million next year.
"The numbers are pretty staggering," he said.
For many years, people assumed the state created "inside deals" with developers, but Winkelman said this is not so.
"Now we have an understanding that everybody has a fair shake," he said. "I can't sit down with somebody and make a deal."
The property first goes through a due diligence process with an exploration of the characteristics of the land, Then it is appraised, and the board must approve the appraisal. After a 2.5 month advertising period, it goes on the auction block.
In Yavapai County, he said, the biggest challenge is water.
"If you don't have water on your land, it makes it kind of difficult," Winkelman said.
The Central Arizona Partnership sponsored Winkelman's presentation. Andrew Morrill, vice president of Arizona Education Association, was unable to make the luncheon.
