The board shall have power to acquire any property, easements, rights of way, and water course deemed necessary for the construction of any of its public works or improvements provided for in this act by the right of eminent domain, and shall have power to enter upon, injure or destroy any such property deemed necessary for such purposes. The proceedings for the condemnation of property and for the assessment of damages for property taken, injured or destroyed shall be in accordance with the act, approved the fifteenth day of July, one thousand nine hundred and nineteen (Pamphlet Laws, nine hundred seventy-six), entitled “An act to authorize the Board of Commissioners of Public Grounds and Buildings to acquire property for the Commonwealth by proceedings in eminent domain, where the purchase of such property has either been authorized by law or determined by the Board of Commissioners of Public Grounds and Buildings under existing laws, and an appropriation made therefor,” and its amendments and supplements,¹ except that the board may take possession of the property upon tendering the value of the property taken as determined by the board's appraisers: Provided, That any property owner, who believes the amount tendered insufficient to fully compensate him, may accept the same under protest and without prejudice to his right to apply for the appointment of a Board of View to assess the damages claimed: And provided further, That if the award of the Board of View is not greater than the amount previously tendered and accepted, then all costs of the proceeding shall be imposed on such claimant. If the award is greater than the amount tendered and paid by the board, the claimant shall be entitled to costs, and the board shall pay, in addition thereto, the difference between the amount awarded and tendered. Nothing herein contained, however, shall deprive either the board or the claimant from appealing from or filing exceptions to the report of the Board of View, but upon trial of any appeal, if the party appealing does not obtain a verdict more favorable than was the report of the Board of View, he shall not recover costs.

The board shall have like powers of eminent domain as hereinbefore granted in this section and in accordance with the same procedure provided by this section, to acquire property, easements, rights of way, and water courses deemed necessary by the board to enable the Federal Government, or any of its agencies or instrumentalities, to erect and construct suitable public flood control works and improvements in this Commonwealth, in the construction and erection of which the board has been authorized by this act to aid, assist, and cooperate.

The board shall have the power to authorize the Federal Government, or any of its instrumentalities or agencies, to acquire outside the Commonwealth such property, easements, rights of way, and water courses as are deemed necessary for the construction of any public works or improvements provided for in this act, and to order the payment therefor out of the General Fund Appropriations for Flood Control Projects to the Federal Government, or its instrumentality or agency, not however, exceeding the unencumbered amounts of money available in the appropriations. The board shall not agree to pay any tax on or rental for any such property, easements, rights of way or water courses, nor shall the Commonwealth be liable therefor without the consent of the General Assembly.

In any case, where property necessary to be taken by eminent domain is owned by any person or municipality owning other property which will be benefited by the flood control improvement, the board shall have power to require the Board of View, appointed to assess damages against the property taken, to also assess benefits against the parts of the same property not taken, and such other property owned by the claimant benefited, to an amount not exceeding the damages claimed by the owner, and to set off the same against any damages which may be awarded for the property, or part thereof, taken.

In such case, the fact that the property claimed to be benefited was at any time previously damaged by a flood shall be conclusive evidence of the fact that benefits have accrued.