(a) Except as otherwise in this act expressly provided, a department, board, or commission, shall not sell or exchange any real estate belonging to the Commonwealth, or grant any easement, right of way, or other interest over or in such real estate, without specific authority from the General Assembly so to do, but a department, board, or commission may, with the approval of the Governor, grant a license to any public service corporation to place upon, in, or over, any dry or submerged land or bridge of or maintained by the Commonwealth, any public service line, if such line will enable any State building or State institution to receive better service, or if such line is necessary for the service of the public and it is necessary or reasonably required to cross the Commonwealth's land to afford such service or if the running of such line over a bridge will be more economical than the erection of a separate bridge for the line. Every such license shall be revocable for reasonable cause upon six months' written notice by the Commonwealth, and also after like notice for violation of such proper terms and conditions as the department, board, or commission, with the approval of the Governor, shall prescribe when the license issues. Unless any such line is primarily for the benefit of a State building or State institution, the license shall provide for the payment to the Commonwealth of compensation for the use of its property in such amount as the department, board, or commission granting it shall, with the approval of the Governor, prescribe.

But nothing herein contained shall authorize the Commonwealth to impose and collect from any municipality or township any compensation for a license granted to such municipality or township for the running of a public service line over any such bridge.

This section shall be deemed the exclusive system for the granting of licenses, consents and permits to place public service lines upon, in or over any dry or submerged lands of the Commonwealth. In the case of submerged lands such licenses shall be granted only by the Department of Environmental Resources, and the permit shall prescribe such terms and conditions as shall be deemed necessary by the board to protect the interests of the public. In the case of dry lands, licenses shall be issued by the department, board or commission having the management of such lands.

(b) Any department, board, or commission, having control over lands of the Commonwealth underlaid with veins of coal, may, with the approval of the Governor, exchange part of such coal for coal in place, owned by private interests, which may be necessary to insure lateral or surface support for any building, reservoir, or structure erected or to be erected on such lands of the Commonwealth: Provided, That the coal given by the department, board, or commission, to private interests, shall be approximately equivalent in value to the coal received in exchange therefor; every such department, board, or commission is hereby authorized and empowered to execute and deliver and to receive legal instruments and deeds necessary to effectuate any exchange authorized hereunder, which instruments and deeds shall have the prior approval of the Department of Justice, and a copy thereof shall be filed with the Department of Community Affairs.¹

(c) Any department, board, or commission, having control over any water supply serving any State institution or sanitorium, may, with the approval of the Governor, permit and authorize the public authorities of any political subdivision, to which no other source of supply is available, under suitable regulations, to tap the lines of any such water supply for the purpose of supplying water to the people of any community living in proximity to such institution or sanitorium, and may impose reasonable charges payable periodically by such political subdivision for the water so furnished. All moneys, received under the provisions of this clause, shall be paid into the State Treasury through the Department of Revenue.

(d) In the event that the facilities of any corporation heretofore created under the act, approved the twenty-ninth day of April, one thousand eight hundred seventy-four (Pamphlet Laws, seventy-three),² section two, clause eleven, as amended by the act, approved the eighth day of May, one thousand eight hundred eighty-nine (Pamphlet Laws, one hundred thirty-six),³ are located by virtue of a permanent easement, right of way upon, across, over, under or along lands of the Commonwealth, which lands were acquired by it subject to such easement or right of way and in the interest of national defense, such corporation consents or is required to remove or dispose of such facilities and abandon such easement or right of way, any department, board or commission having control over such lands of the Commonwealth may, with the approval of the Governor, and upon the surrender to the Commonwealth of the easement or right of way pertaining to such facilities grant to such corporation a permanent easement or right of way upon, across, over, under or along other lands of the Commonwealth in the same locality. Every such department, board or commission is hereby authorized and empowered to execute and deliver and to receive deeds or other legal instruments necessary to effectuate such grant and surrender, which deeds or instruments shall have the prior approval of the Department of Justice, and a copy thereof shall be filed with the Department of Community Affairs.

(e) Subject to the approval of the Governor, any administrative department, board or commission may, in the interest of national defense, grant to the United States of America any easement, right of way or other interest over, on or in any real estate belonging to the Commonwealth upon such terms and conditions and for such periods of time as such department, board or commission may prescribe.