Opinion No. (1998)

DANIEL E. LUNGREN Attorney General GREGORY L. GONOT Deputy Attorney General THE HONORABLE MARSHALL S. RUDOLPH, COUNTY COUNSEL, COUNTY OF MONO, has requested an opinion on the following question: If a federal patent conveying government property into private ownership describes the property being conveyed in terms of multiple, contiguous "lots" depicted on an official United States Government Survey Map, does each lot constitute a distinct legal parcel that a county must recognize for purposes of the California Subdivision Map Act? CONCLUSION If a federal patent conveying government property into private ownership describes the property being conveyed in terms of multiple, contiguous "lots" depicted on an official United States Government Survey Map, each lot does not constitute a distinct legal parcel that a county must recognize for purposes of the California Subdivision Map Act. ANALYSIS The California Subdivision Map Act (Gov. Code, §§ 66410 - 66499.37 ; "Act") 1 vests local governments with control over the design and improvement of land subdivisions in California. (§ 66411 ; Morehart v. County of Santa Barbara (1994) 7 Cal.4th 725 , 748 ; City of West Hollywood…