[Congressional Bills 111th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 6527 Introduced in House (IH)]
111th CONGRESS
2d Session
H. R. 6527
To provide the Quileute Indian Tribe Tsunami and Flood Protection, and
for other purposes.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
December 16, 2010
Mr. Dicks introduced the following bill; which was referred to the
Committee on Natural Resources
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To provide the Quileute Indian Tribe Tsunami and Flood Protection, 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. OLYMPIC NATIONAL PARK -- QUILEUTE TRIBE.
(a) Definitions.--In this section:
(1) Map.--The term ``Map'' means the map entitled ``Olympic
National Park and Quileute Reservation Boundary Adjustment
Map'', numbered 149/80,059, and dated June 2010.
(2) Park.--The term ``Park'' means the Olympic National
Park, located in the State of Washington.
(3) Reservation.--The term ``Reservation'' means the
Quileute Indian Reservation, located on the Olympic Peninsula
in the State of Washington.
(4) Secretary.--The term ``Secretary'' means the Secretary
of the Interior.
(5) Tribe.--The term ``Tribe'' means the Quileute Indian
Tribe in the State of Washington.
(b) Findings and Purpose.--
(1) Findings.--Congress finds that--
(A) the Reservation is located on the western coast
of the Olympic Peninsula in the State of Washington,
bordered by the Pacific Ocean to the west and the Park
on the north, south, and east;
(B) most of the Reservation village of La Push is
located within the coastal flood plain, with the
Tribe's administrative buildings, school, elder center,
and housing all located in a tsunami zone;
(C) for many decades, the Tribe and the Park have
had a dispute over the Reservation boundaries along the
Quillayute River;
(D) in recent years, this dispute has intensified
as the Tribe has faced an urgent need for additional
lands for housing, schools, and other Tribe purposes
outside the tsunami and Quillayute River flood zones;
and
(E) the lack of a settlement of this dispute
threatens to adversely impact the public's existing and
future recreational use of several attractions in the
Park that are accessed by the public's use of
Reservation lands.
(2) Purposes.--The purposes of this Act are--
(A) to resolve the longstanding dispute along
portions of the northern boundary of the Quileute
Indian Reservation;
(B) to clarify public use and access to Olympic
National Park lands that are contiguous to the
Reservation;
(C) to provide the Quileute Indian Tribe with
approximately 275 acres of land currently located
within the Park and approximately 510 acres of land
along the Quillayute River, also within the Park;
(D) to adjust the Wilderness boundaries to provide
the Quileute Indian Tribe Tsunami and flood protection;
(E) through the land conveyance, to grant the Tribe
access to land outside of tsunami and Quillayute River
flood zones, and link existing Reservation land with
Tribe land to the east of the Park; and
(F) to add 4,100 acres of Wilderness to the Park.
(c) Designation of Additional National Park System Land in Olympic
National Park as Wilderness or Potential Wilderness.--
(1) Designation.--In accordance with the Wilderness Act (16
U.S.C. 1131 et seq.), the following lands within Olympic
National Park in the State of Washington are designated as
wilderness or potential wilderness and incorporated in the
Olympic Wilderness designated by section 101(a) of Public Law
100-668 (102 Stat. 3961):
(A) Certain Federal land comprising approximately
4,100 acres as generally depicted on the Map entitled
``Wilderness Boundary -- Lake Crescent Addition,
Olympic National Park, Washington'', numbered 149/
60,471a, and dated May 2010, is hereby designated as
wilderness. The boundary along Lake Crescent shall be
set back a sufficient distance to allow management of
the historic World War I Spruce Railroad grade as the
Olympic Discovery Trail, and to allow for operation and
maintenance of the existing county road. The World War
II Pyramid Peak lookout shall be included in the
wilderness and be managed and maintained as a historic
structure.
(B) Certain Federal land comprising approximately
11 acres as generally depicted on the Map entitled
``Wilderness Boundary -- Boulder Creek Addition,
Olympic National Park, Washington'', numbered 149/
60,470, and dated May 2009, is hereby designated as a
potential wilderness addition.
(2) Management.--Except as provided in paragraph (3), and
subject to valid existing rights, the Secretary shall manage
each area designated as wilderness or potential wilderness in
accordance with the Wilderness Act (16 U.S.C. 1131 et seq.),
except that any reference in the Wilderness Act to the
effective date of the Wilderness Act shall be considered to be
a reference to the date of enactment of this Act.
(3) Ecological restoration.--For purposes of ecological
restoration (including the elimination of nonnative species,
removal of decommissioned roads, and any other activity
necessary to restore the natural ecosystems in the potential
wilderness area) and construction of a foot/stock trail, the
Secretary may use motorized equipment and mechanized transport
in the potential wilderness area until the date on which the
potential wilderness area is incorporated into the Olympic
Wilderness, whereupon wilderness minimum requirement practices
shall be implemented in accordance with the Wilderness Act.
(4) Boulder creek addition wilderness designation.--The
Boulder Creek Addition, consisting of the Boulder Creek Trail
and the Boulder Creek campground potential wilderness area,
approximately 15 acres as shown on the Map titled ``Wilderness
Boundary -- Boulder Creek Addition, Olympic National Park,
Washington'', numbered 149/60,470, and dated May 2009, shall be
designated as wilderness and incorporated in the Olympic
Wilderness on the date on which the Secretary publishes notice
in the Federal Register that conditions in the potential
wilderness areas that are incompatible with the Wilderness Act
(16 U.S.C. 1131 et seq.) have been removed.
(5) Map and legal description.--
(A) Submission of map and legal description.--As
soon as practicable, after the date of enactment of
this section, the Secretary shall file a map and legal
description of each area designated as wilderness and
potential wilderness by this subtitle with--
(i) the Senate Committee on Energy and
Natural Resources; and
(ii) the House Committee on Natural
Resources.
(B) Force and effect.--The map and legal
description filed under subparagraph (A) shall have the
same force and effect as if included in this subtitle,
except that the Secretary may correct any clerical or
typographical errors in the map or legal description.
(C) Public availability.--The map and legal
description filed under subparagraph (A) shall be on
file and available for public inspection in the Office
of the Secretary.
(d) Redesignation of Federal Wilderness Land, Olympic National Park
Conveyance.--
(1) Redesignation of wilderness.--Certain Federal land in
the Park that was designated as part of the Olympic Wilderness
under title I of the Washington Park Wilderness Act of 1988
(Public Law 100-668; 102 Stat. 3961; 16 U.S.C. 1132 note) and
comprises approximately 222 acres, as generally depicted on the
Map is hereby no longer designated as wilderness, and is no
longer a component of the National Wilderness Preservation
System under the Wilderness Act (16 U.S.C. 1131 et seq.).
(2) Lands to be held in trust.--All right, title, and
interest of the United States in and to the approximately 510
acres generally depicted on the Map as ``Northern Lands'', and
the approximately 275 acres generally depicted on the Map as
``Southern Lands'', are declared to be held in trust by the
United States for the benefit of the Tribe without any further
action by the Secretary.
(3) Boundary adjustment; survey.--The Secretary shall--
(A) adjust the boundaries of Olympic Wilderness and
the Park to reflect the change in status of Federal
lands under paragraph (2); and
(B) as soon as practicable after the date of
enactment of this section, conduct a survey, defining
the boundaries of the Reservation and Park, and of the
Federal lands taken into and held in trust that are
adjacent to the north and south bank of the Quillayute
River as depicted on the Map as ``Northern Lands''.
(4) Law applicable to certain land.--The land taken into
trust under this subsection shall not be subject to any
requirements for valuation, appraisal, or equalization under
any Federal law.
(e) Non-Federal Land Conveyance.--Upon completion and acceptance of
an environmental hazard assessment, the Secretary shall take into trust
for the benefit of the Tribe certain non-Federal land owned by the
Tribe, consisting of approximately 184 acres, as depicted on the Map as
``Eastern Lands'', such non-Federal land shall be designated as part of
the Reservation.
(f) Map Requirements.--
(1) Availability of initial map.--The Secretary shall make
the Map available for public inspection in appropriate offices
of the National Park Service. The Map shall also depict any
non-Federal land currently owned by the Tribe which is being
placed in trust under this section.
(2) Revised map.--Not later than one year after the date of
the land transaction in subsections (d) and (e), the Secretary
shall submit to the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources
of the Senate and Committee on Natural Resources of the House
of Representatives a revised map that depicts--
(A) the Federal and non-Federal land taken into
trust under this section and the Second Beach Trail;
and
(B) the actual boundaries of the Park as modified
by the land conveyance.
(g) Jurisdiction.--The land conveyed to the Tribe by this section
shall be designated as part of the Quileute Reservation and placed in
the following jurisdictions:
(1) Trust land.--The same Federal, State, and Tribe
jurisdiction as on all other trust lands within the
Reservation, so long as the exercise of such jurisdiction does
not conflict with the terms of the easement described in
subsection (h) below.
(2) Tribe jurisdiction.--Park visitors shall remain subject
to the jurisdiction of the Tribe while on the Second Beach
parking lot, on those portions of the Second Beach Trail on the
Reservation, and Rialto Spit, to the same extent that such
visitors are subject to the Tribe's jurisdiction elsewhere on
the Reservation.
(h) Grant of Easement in Connection With Land Conveyance.--
(1) Easement required.--The conveyances under subsection
(d)(2) shall be subject to the conditions described in this
subsection.
(2) Required rights under easement.--Any easement granted
under this subsection must contain the following express terms:
(A) No impact on existing rights.--An easement
shall not limit the Tribe's treaty rights or other
existing rights.
(B) Retention of rights.--The Tribe retains the
right to enforce its rules against visitors for
disorderly conduct, drug and alcohol use, use or
possession of firearms, and other disruptive behaviors.
(C) Monitoring of easement conditions.--The Park
has the right, with prior notice to the Tribe, to
access lands conveyed to the Tribe for purposes of
monitoring compliance with any easement made under this
subsection.
(3) Exemption for subsection (e) land.--The non-Federal
land owned by the Tribe and being placed into trust by the
Secretary in accordance with subsection (e) shall not be
included in, or subject to, any easement or condition specified
in this subsection.
(4) Required terms and conditions.--The following specified
land areas shall be subject to the following easement
conditions:
(A) Conditions on northern land.--Certain land that
will be added to the northern boundary of the
Reservation by the land conveyance, from Rialto Beach
to the east line of Section 23, shall be subject to an
easement, which shall contain the following
requirements:
(i) The Tribe may lease or encumber the
land, consistent with their status as trust
lands, provided that the Tribe expressly
subjects the conveyance or authorized use to
the terms of the easement.
(ii) The Tribe may place temporary,
seasonal camps on the land, but shall not place
or construct commercial residential,
industrial, or other permanent buildings or
structures.
(iii) Roads on the land on the date of
enactment of this Act may be maintained or
improved, but no major improvements or road
construction may occur, and any road
improvements, temporary camps, or other uses of
these lands shall not interfere with its use as
a natural wildlife corridor.
(iv) The Tribe may authorize Tribe members
and third parties to engage in recreational,
ceremonial, or treaty uses of the land provided
that the Tribe adopts and enforces regulations
permanently prohibiting the use of firearms in
the Thunder Field area, and any areas south of
the Quillayute River as depicted on the Map.
(v) The Tribe may exercise its sovereign
right to fish and gather along the Quillayute
River in the Thunder Field area.
(vi) The Tribe may, consistent with any
applicable Federal law, engage in activities
reasonably related to the restoration and
protection of the Quillayute River and its
tributaries and streams, weed control, fish and
wildlife habitat improvement, Quillayute River
or streambank stabilization, and flood control.
The Tribe and the Park shall conduct joint
planning and coordination for Quillayute River
restoration projects, including streambank
stabilization and flood control.
(vii) Park officials and visitors shall
have access to engage in activities along and
in the Quillayute River and Dickey River that
are consistent with past recreational uses, and
the Tribe shall allow the public to use and
access the Dickey River, and Quillayute River
along the north bank, regardless of future
changes in the Quillayute River or Dickey River
alignment.
(viii) Park officials and visitors shall
have access to, and shall be allowed to engage
in, activities on Tribal lands at Rialto Spit
that are consistent with past recreational
uses, and the Tribe shall have access to Park
lands at Rialto Beach so that the Tribe may
access and use the jetty at Rialto Beach.
(B) Conditions on second beach trail and access.--
Certain Quileute Reservation land along the boundary
between the Park and the southern portion of the
Reservation, encompassing the Second Beach trailhead,
parking area, and Second Beach Trail, shall be subject
to a conservation and management easement, as well as
any other necessary agreements, which shall implement
the following provisions:
(i) The Tribe shall allow Park officials
and visitors to park motor vehicles at the
Trail parking area existing on the date of
enactment of this Act and to access the portion
of the Trail located on Tribal lands, and the
Park shall be responsible for the costs of
maintaining existing parking access to the
Trail.
(ii) The Tribe shall grant Park officials
and visitors the right to peacefully use and
maintain the portion of the Trail that is on
Tribal lands, and the Park shall be responsible
for maintaining the Trail and shall seek
advance written approval from the Tribe before
undertaking any major Trail repairs.
(iii) The Park officials and the Tribe
shall conduct joint planning and coordination
regarding any proposed relocation of the Second
Beach trailhead, the parking lot, or other
portions of the Trail.
(iv) The Tribe shall avoid altering the
forested landscape of the Tribe-owned headlands
between First and Second Beach in a manner that
would adversely impact or diminish the
aesthetic and natural experience of users of
the Trail.
(v) The Tribe shall reserve the right to
make improvements or undertake activities at
the Second Beach headlands that are reasonably
related to enhancing fish habitat, improving or
maintaining the Tribe's hatchery program, or
alterations that are reasonably related to the
protection of the health and safety of Tribe
members and the general public.
(vi) The Park officials, after consultation
with the Tribe, may remove hazardous or fallen
trees on the Tribal-owned Second Beach
headlands to the extent necessary to clear or
safeguard the Trail, provided that such trees
are not removed from Tribal lands.
(vii) The Park officials and the Tribe
shall negotiate an agreement for the design,
location, construction, and maintenance of a
gathering structure in the Second Beach
headlands overlook for the benefit of Park
visitors and the Tribe, if such a structure is
proposed to be built.
(C) Southern lands exempt.--All other land conveyed
to the Tribe along the southern boundary of the
Reservation under this section shall not be subject to
any easements or conditions, and the natural conditions
of such land may be altered to allow for the relocation
of Tribe members and structures outside the tsunami and
Quillayute River flood zones.
(D) Protection of infrastructure.--Nothing in this
Act is intended to require the modification of the
parklands and resources adjacent to the transferred
Federal lands. The Tribe shall be responsible for
developing its lands in a manner that reasonably
protects its property and facilities from adjacent
parklands by locating buildings and facilities an
adequate distance from parklands to prevent damage to
these facilities from such threats as hazardous trees
and wildfire.
(i) Effect of Land Conveyance on Claims.--
(1) Claims extinguished.--Upon the date of the land
conveyances under subsections (d) and (e) and the placement of
conveyed lands into trust for the benefit of the Tribe, any
claims of the Tribe against the United States, the Secretary,
or the Park relating to the Park's past or present ownership,
entry, use, surveys, or other activities are deemed fully
satisfied and extinguished upon a formal Tribal Council
resolution, including claims related to the following:
(A) Land along quillayute river.--The lands along
the sections of the Quillayute River, starting east of
the existing Rialto Beach parking lot to the east line
of Section 22.
(B) Second beach.--The portions of the Federal or
Tribal lands near Second Beach.
(C) Southern boundary portions.--Portions of the
Federal or Tribal lands on the southern boundary of the
Reservation.
(2) Rialto beach.--Nothing in this section shall create or
extinguish claims of the Tribe relating to Rialto Beach.
(j) Authorization of Appropriations.--There is authorized to be
appropriated to the Secretary such sums as may be necessary to carry
out this Act.
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