33 U.S.C. § 591
Section 591 · Condemnation, purchase, and donation of land and materials
Amended 2 times on record
Applied in 44 court decisions — leading case United States v. 93.970 Acres of Land (1959)
Most recently applied in 725 F. Supp. 1509 - Boone v. United States (November 1989)
How often courts cite this section
Court decisions citing this, by year.Markers show enactment and consequential amendments — watch for a citation surge after a change. The dip in the last several years is a data-coverage gap, not a real trend — our corpus holds fewer opinions from the most recent years, so recent citations are undercounted.
The Secretary of the Army may cause proceedings to be instituted, in the name of the United States, in any court having jurisdiction of such proceedings, for the acquirement by condemnation of any land, right-of-way, or material needed to enable him to maintain, operate, or prosecute works for the improvement of rivers and harbors for which provision has been made by law; such proceedings to be prosecuted in accordance with the laws relating to suits for the condemnation of property of the States wherein the proceedings may be instituted: Provided, however, That when the owner of such land, right-of-way, or material shall fix a price for the same, which in the opinion of the Secretary of the Army, shall be reasonable, he may purchase the same at such price without further delay: And provided further, That the Secretary of the Army is authorized to accept donations of lands or materials required for the maintenance or prosecution of such works.
Editorial notes U.S. Code · Office of the Law Revision Counsel
Change of Name
Department of War designated Department of the Army and title of Secretary of War changed to Secretary of the Army by section 205(a) of act July 26, 1947, ch. 343, title II, 61 Stat. 501. Section 205(a) of act July 26, 1947, was repealed by section 53 of act Aug. 10, 1956, ch. 1041, 70A Stat. 641. Section 1 of act Aug. 10, 1956, enacted “Title 10, Armed Forces” which in sections 3010 to 3013 continued Department of the Army under administrative supervision of Secretary of the Army.
Federal Rules of Civil Procedure
Procedure in condemnation proceedings, see rule 71A, Title 28, Appendix, Judiciary and Judicial Procedure.
Cross References
Condemnation of realty for sites for public buildings, see section 257 of Title 40, Public Buildings, Property, and Works.