4.2 The Surveyor Certificate, the Five (f)(11) Statements & Recording Exceptions

4.2 The Surveyor Certificate, the Five (f)(11) Statements & Recording Exceptions

G.S. 47-30 asks a North Carolina surveyor for two distinct written statements on a recordable plat, and they live in different subsections. Getting the subsection right is the difference between finding the answer in an open-book exam and hunting for it.

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1. The Surveyor Certificate — G.S. 47-30(d)

"There shall appear on each plat a certificate by the person under whose supervision the survey or plat was made, stating the reference source for the boundary information for the surveyed property shown on the plat, including recorded deed and plat references shown thereon." The subsection then adds three hard requirements and a multi-sheet rule:

• The ratio of precision or positional accuracy before any adjustments must be shown.
• Any lines on the plat that were not actually surveyed must be clearly indicated and a statement included revealing the source of information.
• Where a plat consists of more than one sheet, only one sheet must contain the certification and all other sheets must be signed and sealed. Multiple-sheet plats shall be identified as a map set.

The certificate must include (i) the source of information for the survey, (ii) data indicating the ratio of precision or positional accuracy before adjustments, and (iii) the seal and signature pursuant to Chapter 89C, substantially in this form:

"I, ______, certify that this plat was drawn under my supervision from an actual
survey made under my supervision (deed description recorded in Book ____, page
____, etc.) (other); that the boundaries not surveyed are clearly indicated as
drawn from information found in Book ____, page ____; that the ratio of
precision or positional accuracy as calculated is ____; that this plat was
prepared in accordance with G.S. 47-30 as amended. Witness my original
signature, license number and seal this ____ day of ____, A.D., ____.

Seal or Stamp
                                        ___________________________
                                        Professional Land Surveyor
                                        License Number"

Two closing sentences of (d) matter more than their placement suggests. First, a map prepared under a previous version of G.S. 47-30, properly signed and notarized under the statutes applicable at the time, may still be recorded — but the person presenting it bears the burden of proving it was so prepared. Second, and most consequentially:

"The presence of the personal signature and seal of a professional land surveyor shall constitute a certification that the map conforms to the standards of practice for land surveying in this State as defined in the rules of the North Carolina State Board of Examiners for Engineers and Surveyors."

Sealing a recordable plat is therefore an affirmative representation of compliance with all of 21 NCAC 56 .1600, whether or not the plat says so.

Computation (G.S. 47-30(e)). An accurate method of computation must be used for the acreage and for the ratio of precision or positional accuracy shown. Area by estimation, planimeter, scale, or copying from another source is not acceptable, except for tracts containing inaccessible sections — where the surveyor may use aerial photographs or other appropriate aids for areas bounded by natural and visible monuments, must state the methods on the plat, and must keep all accessible areas subject to the full standards.

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2. The Five Statements — G.S. 47-30(f)(11)

"Notwithstanding any other provision contained in this section, it is the duty of the surveyor, by a certificate on the face of the plat, to certify to one of the following":

The statute defines "existing parcel" and "existing easement" for category c.1. as "an area of land described in a single, legal description or legally recorded subdivision that has been or may be legally conveyed to a new owner by deed in its existing configuration."

        WHICH (f)(11) CERTIFICATE DID YOU SIGN?

        b. unregulated area  ------+
        c. existing parcel /       |---->  RECORD.  No local approval or
           feature / control       |             review officer certificate
           survey / utility        |             required.
           easement          ------+

        a. creates a regulated ----+
           subdivision             |
        d. other category /        |---->  Local government approval (or
           recombination /         |             "no approval required") PLUS
           court-ordered           |             review officer certification
        e. unable to determine ----+             under G.S. 47-30.2.

The final sentence of (f)(11) supplies a useful shortcut: "The signing and sealing of the certification as required in subsection (d) of this section shall satisfy the certification requirement contained in this subsection" — that is, the surveyor's seal and signature under (d) authenticate the (f)(11) statement; a second signature block is not needed.

[!CAUTION] There is no sixth category for "new parcels over 10 acres." A division into tracts each greater than 10 acres is not a subdivision under G.S. 160D-802, but on the plat that is certified under category d. ("other exemption or exception to the definition of subdivision") — which still requires the local certification and the review officer. Certifying such a plat under category c. is a common and consequential error.

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3. Subdivision Exemptions — G.S. 160D-802

G.S. 160D-802(a) removes five kinds of division from the statutory definition of "subdivision," and therefore from local subdivision regulation:

1. Recombination. The combination or recombination of portions of previously subdivided and recorded lots where the total number of lots is not increased and the resultant lots equal or exceed the standards of the municipality as shown in its subdivision regulations.
2. The 10-acre rule. The division of land into parcels greater than 10 acres where no street right-of-way dedication is involved.
3. Public right-of-way acquisition. The public acquisition by purchase of strips of land for widening or opening streets or for public transportation system corridors.
4. Small-tract division. The division of a tract in single ownership whose entire area is no greater than two acres into not more than three lots, where no street right-of-way dedication is involved and where the resultant lots comply with the standards of the local ordinance.
5. Estate and court division. The division of a tract into parcels in accordance with the terms of a probated will or in accordance with intestate succession.

Both quantitative tests carry a street condition. A 12-acre tract split into two six-acre parcels is exempt only if no street right-of-way is dedicated; dedicate a road and the exemption evaporates.

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4. Recording Exceptions — Subsections (j), (l), (m), (n)

These four subsections are commonly swapped in prep material. Learn them as a block.

The G.S. 47-30(n) disclaimer, verbatim

"THIS MAP MAY NOT BE A CERTIFIED SURVEY AND HAS NOT BEEN REVIEWED BY A LOCAL
GOVERNMENT AGENCY FOR COMPLIANCE WITH ANY APPLICABLE LAND DEVELOPMENT
REGULATIONS AND HAS NOT BEEN REVIEWED FOR COMPLIANCE WITH RECORDING
REQUIREMENTS FOR PLATS."

The disclaimer says nothing about review officers and nothing about G.S. 47-30.2. Prep material that adds "AND HAS NOT BEEN REVIEWED FOR A REVIEW OFFICER CERTIFICATION PURSUANT TO G.S. 47-30.2" is quoting text that is not in the statute. The connection to the review officer runs the other way: G.S. 47-30.2(c)(3) lists a map recorded as an attachment under 47-30(n) as one of the three situations where no review officer certification is necessary. The other two are a (f)(11)b. or c. certificate, and a map exempt under 47-30(j) or (l).

Two more (d)-adjacent provisions

• (g) In certifying a plat under G.S. 47-30.2, the Review Officer is not responsible for reviewing or certifying (b) as to archival, (e), or subdivisions (1) through (10) of subsection (f). That leaves the review officer's statutory reach essentially at (c), (d), and (f)(11) — which is why Section 4.3 describes the role as administrative rather than technical.
• (h) A plat prepared by a professional land surveyor but not recorded before that surveyor's death may still be filed, on proof by the person presenting it, and may be filed without signature, notary acknowledgement, or probate in a special plat file for preservation.
• (i) Nothing in the section invalidates any instrument or title conveyed by reference to any recorded plat.