[Congressional Bills 109th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 1501 Introduced in Senate (IS)]








109th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                S. 1501

    To develop a program to acquire interests in land from eligible 
 individuals within the Crow Reservation in the State of Montana, and 
                          for other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                             July 26, 2005

   Mr. Burns introduced the following bill; which was read twice and 
              referred to the Committee on Indian Affairs

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
    To develop a program to acquire interests in land from eligible 
 individuals within the Crow Reservation in the State of Montana, 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.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Crow Tribe Land Restoration Act''.

SEC. 2. PURPOSE.

    The purpose of this Act is to authorize the Secretary of the 
Interior to--
            (1) develop a program to acquire land and interests in land 
        from eligible individuals within the Crow Reservation in the 
        State of Montana;
            (2) hold in trust the land, and interests in land, 
        described in paragraph (1) for the benefit of the Crow Tribe of 
        the State of Montana;
            (3) allow the Tribe to assume management of the land and 
        interests in land; and
            (4) end the continuing fractionation of land on the 
        Reservation.

SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS.

    In this Act:
            (1) Eligible individual.--The term ``eligible individual'' 
        means an individual that owns land, or an interest in land, 
        within the Reservation.
            (2) Reservation.--The term ``Reservation'' means the Crow 
        Reservation in the State of Montana.
            (3) Secretary.--The term ``Secretary'' means the Secretary 
        of the Interior.
            (4) Tribe.--The term ``Tribe'' means the Crow Tribe of the 
        State of Montana.

SEC. 4. ACQUISITION OF LAND WITHIN RESERVATION.

    (a) Purchasing Program.--
            (1) Establishment.--As soon as practicable after the date 
        of enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall establish a 
        program under which the Secretary shall provide funds to the 
        Tribe to purchase from eligible individuals land, and interests 
        in land, within the Reservation.
            (2) Requirements.--
                    (A) Voluntary sale.--A sale of land to the Tribe 
                under the purchasing program shall be voluntary.
                    (B) Reasonable purchase price.--To receive funds 
                under the purchasing program, the Tribe shall offer to 
                an eligible individual in consideration for land, or an 
                interest in land, within the Reservation an amount 
                equal to the reasonable purchase price of the land, or 
                interest in land, of the eligible individual, as 
                determined in accordance with subsection (b).
            (3) Notification to eligible individuals.--
                    (A) In general.--As soon as practicable after the 
                date on which the purchasing program is established, 
                the Tribe shall provide to each eligible individual a 
                notification with respect to the program, including any 
                guidelines issued by the Secretary relating to the 
                program.
                    (B) Contact with eligible individuals.--
                Notwithstanding any other provision of law, an eligible 
                individual may be contacted directly with respect to 
                the purchasing program by--
                            (i) the Tribe, or a representative of the 
                        Tribe; or
                            (ii) the Secretary, or a representative of 
                        the Secretary.
    (b) Reasonable Purchase Price.--
            (1) Guidelines.--As soon as practicable after the date of 
        enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall establish guidelines 
        under which the reasonable purchase price of land, or an 
        interest in land, of an eligible individual shall be 
        determined.
            (2) Consideration.--In establishing guidelines under 
        paragraph (1), the Secretary may take into consideration--
                    (A) average annual earnings of land, and interests 
                in land, of eligible individuals; and
                    (B) any other factor the Secretary considers to be 
                appropriate.
    (c) Acceptance of Offer.--
            (1) In general.--On acceptance by an eligible individual of 
        an offer of the Tribe under this section--
                    (A) subject to paragraph (2), the Tribe shall pay 
                to the eligible individual the reasonable purchase 
                price of the land, or interest in land, of the eligible 
                individual, as determined in accordance with subsection 
                (b); and
                    (B) title to the land, or interest in land, 
                acquired from the eligible individual shall be conveyed 
                to the United States, to be held in trust by the 
                Secretary for the benefit of the Tribe.
            (2) Eligible individual accounts.--
                    (A) In general.--On the request of an eligible 
                individual that accepts an offer of the Tribe under 
                this section, the Tribe shall--
                            (i)(I) establish in a local financial 
                        institution an account in the name of the 
                        eligible individual; and
                            (II) deposit the amount of the offer of the 
                        Tribe under this section into that account; or
                            (ii) deposit the amount of the offer of the 
                        Tribe under this section into any account in a 
                        financial institution designated by the 
                        eligible individual.
                    (B) Withdrawal and transfer.--An eligible 
                individual may, without obtaining approval from, or 
                providing a notification to, the Secretary--
                            (i) withdraw any amount from an account 
                        described in subparagraph (A); or
                            (ii) transfer any amount from an account 
                        described in subparagraph (A) into an account 
                        in a different financial institution.
                    (C) Fees.--Any fee assessed by a financial 
                institution on an account under this paragraph shall be 
                the responsibility of the eligible individual in the 
                name of which the account is held.
                    (D) Taxation.--Amounts held in an account under 
                this paragraph, including any interest earned on such 
                amounts, shall not be subject to taxation by the 
                Federal Government, or any State or local government, 
                if the account contains only--
                            (i) amounts deposited into the account by 
                        the Tribe under subparagraph (A); and
                            (ii) interest earned on those amounts.
    (d) Judicial Review.--The terms and amount of any offer of the 
Tribe to purchase land, or an interest in land, of an eligible 
individual under this section shall not be subject to judicial review.

SEC. 5. PURCHASING PROGRAM FUNDING.

    (a) Obligations to Treasury.--
            (1) Issuance.--
                    (A) In general.--To the extent approved in annual 
                appropriations Acts and subject to approval by the 
                Secretary of the Treasury, the Secretary may issue to 
                the Secretary of the Treasury such obligations as the 
                Secretary determines to be necessary to fund the 
                purchasing program established under section 4(a)(1).
                    (B) Requirements.--The obligations issued under 
                subparagraph (A) shall be in such form and such 
                denomination, and subject to any other such terms and 
                conditions, as the Secretary of the Treasury determines 
                to be appropriate.
            (2) Purchase.--The Secretary of the Treasury shall purchase 
        any obligation issued under paragraph (1).
            (3) Interest.--The obligations issued under paragraph (1) 
        shall bear interest at a rate to be determined by the Secretary 
        of the Treasury, taking into consideration current market 
        yields on outstanding marketable obligations of the United 
        States of comparable maturities.
            (4) Limitation.--On any date, the total amount of 
        obligations issued under paragraph (1) shall not exceed 
        $_,000,000.
    (b) Repayment of Obligations.--
            (1) In general.--The Secretary shall use the revenues from 
        any land purchased by the Tribe under this Act to repay the 
        Secretary of the Treasury the amount of any obligation, 
        including interest on such an obligation, issued under 
        subsection (a).
            (2) Reasonable assurance of repayment.--The Secretary shall 
        ensure, to the maximum extent practicable, that projected 
        revenues described in paragraph (1) provide reasonable 
        assurance of repayment of the amount of obligations issued 
        under subsection (a).
    (c) Authorization of Appropriations.--For each fiscal year 
beginning after the date of enactment of this Act, there are authorized 
to be appropriated to the Secretary such sums as the Secretary 
determines to be necessary to repay to the Secretary of the Treasury 
the difference between--
            (1) the amount of obligations issued under subsection (a), 
        including interest on such obligations, that was required to be 
        repaid during the preceding fiscal year; and
            (2) the amount of obligations issued under subsection (a), 
        including interest on such obligations, that was repaid during 
        the preceding fiscal year.

SEC. 6. DONATION OF LAND.

    (a) In General.--Subject to subsection (b), the Secretary may 
accept from any eligible individual a donation of land or an interest 
in land within the Reservation.
    (b) Conditions.--
            (1) Title held in trust.--The Secretary shall hold in trust 
        for the benefit of the Tribe the title to any land or interest 
        in land acquired by the Secretary under subsection (a).
            (2) Designation of place of honor.--The Tribe shall 
        designate on the Reservation a place of honor, as the Tribe 
        determines to be appropriate, at which the name of any eligible 
        individual that donates land to the Secretary under subsection 
        (a) shall be displayed in perpetuity, in recognition of the 
        donation.

SEC. 7. LAND MANAGEMENT.

    (a) In General.--Land, and interests in land, held in trust by the 
Secretary for the benefit of the Tribe under this Act shall be managed 
by the Tribe.
    (b) Limitation of Trust Responsibility.--The trust responsibility 
of the Secretary with respect to land and interests in land described 
in subsection (a) shall be limited to--
            (1) ensuring that the land and interests in land are not 
        subject to alienation; and
            (2) enabling the Tribe to exercise jurisdiction over the 
        land and interests in land.
    (c) Authorization of Appropriations.--There is authorized to be 
appropriated to carry out this section $5,000,000.
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