All contracts of purchase of state-owned tidelands or shorelands, otherwise permitted under RCW 79.125.200 to be sold, and all leases of state-owned tidelands, shorelands, or beds of navigable waters issued by the department shall be assignable in writing by the contract holder or lessee. The assignee shall be subject to the provisions of law applicable to the purchaser or lessee of whom they are the assignee, and shall have the same rights in all respects as the original purchaser or lessee of the lands, but only if the assignment is first approved by the department and entered upon the records in the department.