[Congressional Bills 108th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 4601 Introduced in House (IH)]







108th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                H. R. 4601

To amend the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act to recognize Alexander 
           Creek as a Native village, and for other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                             June 16, 2004

 Mr. Young of Alaska introduced the following bill; which was referred 
                     to the Committee on Resources

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
To amend the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act to recognize Alexander 
           Creek as a Native village, 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. ALEXANDER CREEK VILLAGE RECOGNITION.

    The Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act (43 U.S.C. 1601 et seq.) is 
amended by adding at the end the following:

                 ``alexander creek village recognition

    ``Sec. 43.
    ``(a) Recognition of the Village of Alexander Creek.--Alexander 
Creek, located within Township 15N, Range 7W, Seward Meridian, Alaska, 
is an eligible Native village under section 11(b)(3).
    ``(b) Definitions.--For the purposes of this section, the following 
terms apply:
            ``(1) The term `agency' includes--
                    ``(A) any instrumentality of the United States;
                    ``(B) any element of an agency; and
                    ``(C) any wholly owned or mixed-owned corporation 
                of the United States Government identified in chapter 
                91 of title 31, United States Code.
            ``(2) The term `conservation system unit' has the meaning 
        given that term in the Alaska National Interest Lands 
        Conservation Act.
            ``(3) The term `Alexander Creek' means Alexander Creek 
        Incorporated, an Alaska Native Group corporation, organized 
        pursuant to this Act.
            ``(4) The term `property' has the meaning given that term 
        in Public Law 94-204 (43 U.S.C. 1611 note).
            ``(5) The term `Region' means Cook Inlet Region 
        Incorporated, an Alaska Native Regional Corporation, which is 
        the appropriate Regional Corporation for Alexander Creek under 
        section 1613(h).
    ``(c) Establishment.--(1) The Secretary of the Treasury, in 
consultation with the Secretary of the Interior, shall establish an 
account in the Treasury to be known as the `Alexander Creek account'.
    ``(2) Funds in the Alexander Creek account shall--
            ``(A) be available to Alexander Creek for bidding on and 
        purchasing property sold at public sale, subject to paragraph 
        (3); and
            ``(B) remain available until expended.
    ``(3)(A) Alexander Creek may use funds in the Alexander Creek 
account to bid as any other bidder for property in Alaska at any public 
sale by an agency and may purchase such property in accordance with 
applicable laws and regulations of the agency offering the property for 
sale.
    ``(B) In conducting a transaction described in subparagraph (A), an 
agency shall accept, in the same manner as cash, any amount tendered 
from the Alexander Creek account. The Secretary of the Treasury shall 
adjust the balance of the Alexander Creek account to reflect the 
transaction.
    ``(C) The Secretary of the Treasury, in consultation with the 
Secretary of the Interior, shall establish procedures for the following 
transactions related to the Alexander Creek account:
            ``(i) Receipt of deposits.
            ``(ii) Receipt of deposits into escrow when an escrow is 
        required for the sale of property.
            ``(iii) Reinstatement to the Alexander Creek account of any 
        unused escrow deposits in the event that a sale of property is 
        not consummated.
    ``(d) Land Exchange.--The Secretary of the Interior shall enter 
into negotiations to attempt to conclude, under the authority of 
section 22(f), a land exchange to acquire the surface estate in lands 
not within any conservation system unit from the State of Alaska or the 
Matanuska-Susitna Borough under the same procedures set forth in 
section 22(f) to enable Alexander Creek to select additional public 
lands within Alexander Creek's original withdrawal area in Alaska, as 
identified by Alexander Creek.
    ``(e) Amount.--(1) The initial balance of the Alexander Creek 
account shall be the fair market value of the surface estate of the 
approximately 61,440 acres of deficiency selections made by Alexander 
Creek, as depicted on the map entitled `____________' and dated 
____________.
    ``(2) If a conveyance is made to Alexander Creek pursuant to 
subsection (d), the Alexander Creek account shall be reduced by the 
amount of the actual acres conveyed multiplied by the average value per 
acre determined under subsection (g).
    ``(f) Subsurface Estate.--The subsurface estate to lands conveyed 
to Alexander Creek under this section shall be conveyed, without 
consideration, to the Region.
    ``(g) Appraisal.--(1)(A) The Secretary shall determine the amount 
to be deposited into the Alexander Creek account by appraising the fair 
market value, as of the date of the enactment of this section, of each 
section selected as a separate parcel and considering that `public 
interest' use may be the highest and best use of such parcels.
    ``(B) Alexander Creek shall have the opportunity to present 
evidence of value to the Secretary. The Secretary shall provide 
Alexander Creek with a preliminary draft of the appraisal. Alexander 
Creek shall have a reasonable and sufficient opportunity to comment on 
the appraisal.
    ``(2) The Secretary shall forward a certified copy of the appraisal 
to Alexander Creek.
    ``(h) Implementation.--(1) Alexander Creek may assign without 
restriction any or all of the Alexander Creek account upon written 
notification to the Secretary of the Treasury and the Secretary of the 
Interior. In the event that such an assignment is made to the Region, 
on notice from Alexander Creek to the Secretary of the Treasury and the 
Secretary of the Interior, the amount of such assignment shall be added 
to or made a part of the Region's Property Account in the Treasury 
established pursuant to section 12(b) of Public Law 94-204, and may be 
used in the same manner as other funds in that account.
    ``(2) Upon certification by the Secretary of the Interior of the 
appraisal completed pursuant to subsection (g), Alexander Creek shall 
be deemed to have accepted the terms of this section in lieu of any 
other land entitlement it could have received pursuant to this Act. 
Such acceptance shall satisfy all claims Alexander Creek had or may 
have had against the United States on the date of the enactment of this 
section.
    ``(3) Any land conveyed to Alexander Creek pursuant to subsection 
(e) shall be deemed to be a conveyance pursuant to this Act.
    ``(i) Treatment of Amounts From Account.--The Secretary of the 
Treasury and the heads of agencies shall administer sales pursuant to 
this section in the same manner as is provided for any other Native 
village authorized by law as of the date of the enactment of this 
section (including the use of similar accounts for bidding on and 
purchasing property sold for public sale).
    ``(j) Limitation on Agents' and Attorneys' Fees.--No more than 2.5 
percent of payments received by or on behalf of Alexander Creek under 
this section may be paid to or received by any agent or attorney for 
services rendered in connection with obtaining such payment, any 
contract to the contrary notwithstanding. Any person who violates this 
subsection shall be guilty of a misdemeanor and shall be subject to a 
fine in the amount provided in title 18, United States Code.''.
                                 <all>