Sec. 66.76.  ASSIGNMENT;  RELINQUISHMENT.  (a)  Rights acquired in a lease or contract for development issued under this subchapter may be assigned;  provided, however, for an assignment to be valid and effective, the assignment must be filed in the county or counties in which the leased premises are situated and a legible copy of the recorded assignment must be filed with the board of regents within the time set by the board, accompanied by a filing fee and any applicable penalty for late filing set by the board for each lease assigned and a summary in the form adopted by the board of regents.
(b)  Rights to a lease or to an assigned portion thereof may be relinquished at any time by having an instrument of relinquishment or release recorded in the county or counties in which the area relinquished is situated and a legible copy of the recorded instrument filed with the board of regents, accompanied by a filing fee set by the board.
(c)  An assignment or relinquishment of a lease or a portion thereof or an interest in a lease shall not relieve the lessee of accrued obligations, including the payment of royalty, penalty, or interest, and the lessee shall remain liable therefor.
(d)  In the enforcement of lease obligations, the board and the board of regents shall be entitled to rely on the state of title reflected by the records of the board of regents.
Amended by Acts 1997, 75th Leg., ch. 1324, Sec. 1, eff. Jan. 1, 1998.