[Congressional Bills 106th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 2665 Introduced in Senate (IS)]







106th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                S. 2665

To establish a streamlined process to enable the Navajo Nation to lease 
 trust lands without having to obtain the approval of the Secretary of 
   the Interior of individual leases, except leases for exploration, 
          development, or extraction of any mineral resources.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                              May 25, 2000

 Mr. Kyl (for himself and Mr. Domenici) introduced the following bill; 
  which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Indian Affairs

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
To establish a streamlined process to enable the Navajo Nation to lease 
 trust lands without having to obtain the approval of the Secretary of 
   the Interior of individual leases, except leases for exploration, 
          development, or extraction of any mineral resources.

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

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Navajo Nation Trust Land Leasing Act 
of 2000''.

SEC. 2. CONGRESSIONAL FINDINGS AND DECLARATION OF PURPOSES.

    (a) Findings.--Recognizing the special relationship between the 
United States and the Navajo nation and its members, and the Federal 
responsibility to the Navajo people, Congress finds that--
            (1) the third clause of section 8, Article I of the United 
        States Constitution provides that ``The Congress shall have 
        Power...to regulate Commerce...with Indian tribes'', and, 
        through this and other constitutional authority, Congress has 
        plenary power over Indian affairs;
            (2) Congress, through statutes, treaties, and the general 
        course of dealing with Indian tribes, has assumed the 
        responsibility for the protection and preservation of Indian 
        tribes and their resources;
            (3) the United States has a trust obligation to guard and 
        preserve the sovereignty of Indian tribes in order to foster 
        strong tribal governments, Indian self-determination, and 
        economic self-sufficiency;
            (4) pursuant to the first section of the Act of August 9, 
        1955 (25 U.S.C. 415), Congress conferred upon the Secretary of 
        the Interior the power to promulgate regulations governing 
        tribal leases and to approve tribal leases for tribes according 
        to regulations promulgated by the Secretary;
            (5) the Secretary of the Interior has promulgated the 
        regulations described in paragraph (4) at part 162 of title 25, 
        Code of Federal Regulations;
            (6) the requirement that the Secretary approve leases for 
        the development of Navajo trust lands has added a level of 
        review and regulation that does not apply to the development of 
        non-Indian land; and
            (7) in the global economy of the 21st Century, it is 
        crucial that individual leases of Navajo trust lands not be 
        subject to Secretarial approval and that the Navajo Nation be 
        able to make immediate decisions over the use of Navajo trust 
        lands.
    (b) Purposes.--The purposes of this Act are as follows:
            (1) To establish a streamlined process for the Navajo 
        Nation to lease trust lands without having to obtain the 
        approval of the Secretary of the Interior of individual leases, 
        except leases for exploration, development, or extraction of 
        any mineral resources.
            (2) To authorize the Navajo nation, pursuant to tribal 
        regulations, which must be approved by the Secretary, to lease 
        Navajo trust lands without the approval of the Secretary of the 
        Interior of the individual leases, except leases for 
        exploration, development, or extraction of any mineral 
        resources.
            (3) To revitalize the distressed Navajo Reservation by 
        promoting political self-determination, and encouraging 
        economic self-sufficiency, including economic development that 
        increases productivity and the standard of living for members 
        of the Navajo Nation.
            (4) To maintain, strengthen, and protect the Navajo 
        Nation's leasing power over Navajo trust lands.
    (c) Definitions.--In this section:
            (1) Indian tribe.--The term ``Indian tribe'' has the 
        meaning given such term in section 4(e) of the Indian Self-
        Determination and Education Assistance Act (25 U.S.C. 450b(e)).
            (2) Navajo nation.--The term ``Navajo Nation'' means the 
        Navajo Nation government that is in existence on the date of 
        enactment of this Act.
            (3) Tribal regulations.--The term ``tribal regulations'' 
        means the Navajo Nation regulations as enacted by the Navajo 
        Nation Council or its standing committees and approved by the 
        Secretary.

SEC. 3. LEASE OF RESTRICTED LANDS FOR THE NAVAJO NATION.

    The first section of the Act of August 9, 1955 (25 U.S.C. 415) is 
amended--
            (1) in subsection (d)--
                    (A) in paragraph (1), by striking ``and'' at the 
                end;
                    (B) in paragraph (2), by striking the period and 
                inserting a semicolon; and
                    (C) by adding at the end the following:
            ``(3) the term `individually owned Navajo Indian allotted 
        lands' means Navajo Indian allotted land that is owned by 1 or 
        more individuals located within the Navajo Nation;
            ``(4) the term `Navajo Nation' means the Navajo Nation 
        government that is in existence on the date of enactment of 
        this Act;
            ``(5) the term `Secretary' means the Secretary of the 
        Interior; and
            ``(6) the term `tribal regulations' means the Navajo Nation 
        regulations as enacted by the Navajo Nation Council or its 
        standing committees and approved by the Secretary.''; and
            (2) by adding at the end the following:
    ``(e)(1) Any leases by the Navajo Nation for purposes authorized 
under subsection (a), except a lease for the exploration, development, 
or extraction of any mineral resources, shall not require the approval 
of the Secretary if the term of the lease does not exceed 75 years 
(including options to renew), and the lease is executed under tribal 
regulations that are approved by the Secretary under this subsection.
    ``(2) Paragraph (1) shall not apply to individually owned Navajo 
Indian allotted land located within the Navajo Nation.
    ``(3) The Secretary shall have the authority to approve or 
disapprove tribal regulations required under paragraph (1). The 
Secretary shall not have approval authority over individual leases of 
Navajo trust lands, except for the exploration, development, or 
extraction of any mineral resources. The Secretary shall perform the 
duties of the Secretary under this subsection in the best interest of 
the Navajo Nation.
    ``(4) If the Navajo Nation has executed a lease pursuant to tribal 
regulations required under paragraph (1), the United states shall not 
be liable for losses sustained by any party to such lease, including 
the Navajo Nation, except that--
            ``(A) the Secretary shall continue to have a trust 
        obligation to ensure that the rights of the Navajo Nation are 
        protected in the event of a violation of the terms of any lease 
        by any other party to such lease, including the right to cancel 
        the lease if requested by the Navajo Nation; and
            ``(B) nothing in this subsection shall be construed to 
        absolve the United States from any responsibility to the Navajo 
        Nation, including responsibilities that derive from the trust 
        relationship and from any treaties, Executive Orders, or 
        agreements between the United States and the Navajo Nation, 
        except as otherwise specifically provided in this 
        subsection.''.
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