[Congressional Bills 106th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 4338 Introduced in House (IH)]







106th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                H. R. 4338

 To restore the reservation lands of the Elk Valley Band of Indians of 
    the Elk Valley Rancheria of California, and for other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                             April 13, 2000

  Mr. Thompson of California introduced the following bill; which was 
                 referred to the Committee on Resources

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
 To restore the reservation lands of the Elk Valley Band of Indians of 
    the Elk Valley Rancheria of California, and for other purposes.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE; FINDINGS.

    (a) Short Title.--This Act may be cited as the ``Elk Valley Land 
Restoration Act''.
    (b) Findings.--Congress finds the following:
            (1) In Hardwick v. United States of America, United States 
        District Court, Northern District of California, Case No. C-79-
        1710-SW, the Court declared that the plaintiff Elk Valley 
        Rancheria ``were never and are not now lawfully terminated 
        under the California Rancheria Act of August 18, 1958 (72 Stat. 
        619), as amended by the Act of August 11, 1964 (78 Stat. 390), 
        in that the requirements of section 3 of that Act were not 
        fulfilled prior to the conveyance of the deeds to the Rancheria 
        Parcels''.
            (2) As a direct result of its unlawful termination and 
        subsequent conveyance of Rancheria parcels to third parties, 
        the United States no longer owns any lands in trust for the Elk 
        Valley Band.
            (3) The Court held that ``as a consequence, (it) has 
        authority as a court of equity to remedy the effects of the 
        premature and unlawful termination of the plaintiff 
        Rancherias''.
            (4) Pursuant to the Court's judgment, the Secretary of the 
        Interior published a notice in the Federal Register (Vol. 63, 
        No. 250, December 30, 1998) acknowledging that the United 
        States maintains a government-to-government relationship with 
        the Elk Valley Band of Indians of the Elk Valley Rancheria of 
        California.
            (5) Recognizing the special trust relationship between the 
        United States and the Elk Valley Band and acknowledging that 
        the United States was responsible for the premature and 
        unlawful termination of the Elk Valley Band's reservation, the 
        United States has an obligation to restore a reservation for 
        the Band.
            (6) The best means of accomplishing this goal is to require 
        the Secretary of the Interior to take title to lands acquired 
        by the Elk Valley Band in Del Norte County, California, in the 
        name of the United States of America in trust for the Band 
        subject to the provisions of this Act.

SEC. 2. DEFINITIONS.

    For purposes of this Act:
            (1) Tribe.--The term ``Tribe'' means the Elk Valley Band of 
        Indians of the Elk Valley Rancheria of California.
            (2) Secretary.--The term ``Secretary'' means the Secretary 
        of the Interior.

SEC. 3. TRANSFER OF LAND TO BE HELD IN TRUST.

    (a) Lands To Be Taken in Trust.--The Secretary shall accept title 
to and take into trust for the benefit of the Tribe any real property 
located in Del Norte County, California, if--
            (1) such property is conveyed or otherwise transferred to 
        the Secretary by or for the benefit of the Tribe; and
            (2) at the time of such conveyance or transfer, there are 
        no adverse legal claims to such property, including outstanding 
        liens, mortgages, or taxes owed.
    (b) Lands To Be Part of Reservation.--Any real property taken into 
trust pursuant to subsection (a) shall be considered part of the 
Tribe's initial reservation.
    (c) Service Area.--For the purposes of the delivery of Federal 
services to enrolled members of the Tribe, the Tribe's service area 
shall be deemed to be the area comprised of Del Norte County, 
California.

SEC. 4. GENERAL PROVISION.

    The Secretary may promulgate such regulations as may be necessary 
to carry out the provisions of this Act.
                                 <all>