[Congressional Bills 112th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 2110 Introduced in Senate (IS)]

112th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                S. 2110

  To settle claims of the Northern Cheyenne Tribe by authorizing the 
  Secretary of the Interior to convey mineral rights in the State of 
                    Montana, and for other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                           February 15, 2012

Mr. Baucus (for himself and Mr. Tester) introduced the following bill; 
   which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Energy and 
                           Natural Resources

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
  To settle claims of the Northern Cheyenne Tribe by authorizing the 
  Secretary of the Interior to convey mineral rights 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 ``Northern Cheyenne Land Consolidation 
Act''.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

    Congress finds that--
            (1) in 1877, the United States forcibly relocated members 
        of the Northern Cheyenne Tribe from the Montana Territory to 
        Oklahoma;
            (2) soon thereafter, in the face of great hardship and 
        suffering significant loss of life, the Tribe walked back to 
        the Montana Territory to reclaim the ancestral homeland of the 
        Tribe;
            (3) in 1884, President Arthur established a 371,200-acre 
        reservation for the Tribe extending eastward from the eastern 
        boundary of the Crow Indian Reservation to approximately 12 
        miles east of Rosebud Creek in Montana;
            (4) the Tongue River Indian Reservation, as the reservation 
        was known as at the time of establishment, included within the 
        boundaries of the Reservation--
                    (A) tracts occupied legally and illegally by non-
                Indian settlers; and
                    (B) tracts (including the subsurface rights) owned 
                by the Northern Pacific Railway;
            (5) in addition to the Northern Cheyenne individuals living 
        on the Tongue River Indian Reservation, Northern Cheyenne 
        families, with encouragement and assistance from the United 
        States military, settled on land to the east of the Reservation 
        and on both sides of the Tongue River;
            (6) in 1898, at the direction of Congress, the Secretary of 
        the Interior dispatched Indian Inspector James McLaughlin to 
        southeastern Montana to report on opportunities for reducing 
        hostilities between the Northern Cheyenne and non-Indian 
        settlers;
            (7) in 1900, in accordance with the recommendations of 
        McLaughlin--
                    (A) President McKinley expanded the Tongue River 
                Indian Reservation from the Crow Indian Reservation on 
                the west to the middle of the Tongue River on the east; 
                and
                    (B) Congress appropriated funds--
                            (i) to purchase settler land and claims and 
                        the Northern Pacific Railway land within the 
                        expanded Reservation; and
                            (ii) to relocate to the expanded 
                        reservation 46 Northern Cheyenne families who 
                        had settled on land to the east of the Tongue 
                        River;
            (8) however, when McLaughlin negotiated to purchase the 
        tracts held by the Northern Pacific Railway within the expanded 
        Northern Cheyenne Reservation, McLaughlin neglected to purchase 
        the subsurface rights of the Railway in 8 sections totaling 
        approximately 5,000 acres;
            (9) the subsurface rights described in paragraph (8)--
                    (A) are currently owned by Great Northern 
                Properties; and
                    (B) constitute the only subsurface within the 
                Reservation not owned by the Tribe;
            (10) the Tribe asserts that the Tribe retains claims 
        against the United States arising from the continuing failure 
        of the United States to acquire the subsurface rights described 
        in paragraph (8) as directed by Congress;
            (11) in 2002, the Tribe brought suit against the Secretary, 
        asserting that the proposed conveyances of the extensive 
        Federal coal tracts to the State under the Department of the 
        Interior and Related Agencies Appropriations Act, 1998 (Public 
        Law 105-83; 111 Stat. 1543) would violate--
                    (A) the Federal trust responsibility to the Tribe; 
                and
                    (B) several Federal laws;
            (12) although the Northern Cheyenne tribal community 
        chronically suffers harsh economic conditions and severe 
        deficits in public services and facilities, the community does 
        not share in any significant portion of the public revenues 
        generated by surrounding energy development;
            (13) subsequently, the Tribe withdrew the 2002 suit against 
        the United States, with prejudice, based in large part on 
        commitments that legislation substantially in the form of this 
        Act (and further legislation providing funding to the Tribe to 
        address the impacts of coal development in areas adjoining the 
        Reservation) would be introduced and pursued with support from 
        the State, Great Northern Properties, and others; and
            (14) if the conveyances of mineral rights authorized by 
        this Act are carried out, the Tribe will waive all legal claims 
        against the United States arising from the longstanding and 
        continuing loss to the Tribe of the Reservation mineral rights 
        owned by Great Northern Properties.

SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS.

    In this Act:
            (1) Cheyenne tracts.--The term ``Cheyenne tracts'' means 
        the aggregate tract of land that--
                    (A) is located in the eastern portion of the State 
                within the boundaries of the Reservation;
                    (B) comprises approximately 5,000 acres;
                    (C) is generally depicted on the map entitled 
                ``Cheyenne Coal Land Conveyance'' and dated April 7, 
                2010; and
                    (D) is comprised of land located in--
                            (i) T. 2 S., R. 44 E., sec. 17;
                            (ii) T. 2 S., R. 44 E., sec. 19, E\1/2\ and 
                        E\1/2\W\1/2\, Lots 1-4;
                            (iii) T. 3 S., R. 44 E., sec. 5, S\1/2\ and 
                        S\1/2\N\1/2\, Lots 1-4;
                            (iv) T. 3 S., R. 44 E., sec. 7, E \1/2\ and 
                        E\1/2\W\1/2\, Lots 1-4;
                            (v) T. 3 S., R. 44 E., sec. 9, N\1/2\, 
                        SW\1/4\, and W\1/2\SE\1/4\, Lots 2-4;
                            (vi) T. 3 S., R. 44 E., sec. 17;
                            (vii) T. 3 S., R. 44 E., sec. 19, E\1/2\ 
                        and E\1/2\W\1/2\, Lots 1-4; and
                            (viii) T. 3 S., R. 44 E., sec. 21, N\1/2\, 
                        SW\1/4\, and SW\1/4\ SE\1/4\, Lots 1 and 2.
            (2) Federal tracts.--The term ``Federal tracts'' means the 
        tracts of land that--
                    (A) are located in the State;
                    (B) are located outside of the boundaries of the 
                Reservation;
                    (C) consist of approximately 4,500 acres;
                    (D) are generally depicted on the map entitled 
                ``Federal Coal Land Conveyance'' and dated November 30, 
                2011; and
                    (E) are comprised of land located in the following 
                2 areas:
                            (i) The area commonly known as ``Bridge 
                        Creek'', which is comprised of land located 
                        in--
                                    (I) T. 3 S., R. 44 E., sec. 26, 
                                S\1/2\;
                                    (II) T. 3 S., R. 44 E., sec. 34;
                                    (III) T. 3 S., R. 45 E., sec. 30, 
                                E\1/2\SW\1/4\ and SE\1/4\, Lots 3-4; 
                                and
                                    (IV) T. 4 S., R. 44 E., sec. 2, 
                                SE\1/4\NW\1/4\ , SW\1/4\NE\1/4\, Lots 
                                2-4.
                            (ii) The area commonly known as the ``Bull 
                        Mountains'', which is comprised of land located 
                        in--
                                    (I) T. 6 N., R. 27 E., sec. 4, S\1/
                                2\N\1/2\ and S\1/2\, Lots 1-4;
                                    (II) T. 6 N., R. 27 E., sec. 8;
                                    (III) T. 6 N., R. 27 E., sec. 10;
                                    (IV) T. 6 N., R. 27 E., sec. 14; 
                                and
                                    (V) T. 6 N., R. 27 E., sec. 22, 
                                S\1/2\NW\1/4.\
            (3) Great northern properties.--The term ``Great Northern 
        Properties'' means--
                    (A) the Great Northern Properties Limited 
                Partnership, which is a Delaware limited partnership; 
                and
                    (B) any successor to the ownership interest of 
                Great Northern Properties in any coal or iron that 
                underlies the Cheyenne tracts.
            (4) Reservation.--The term ``Reservation'' means the 
        Northern Cheyenne Reservation.
            (5) Secretary.--The term ``Secretary'' means the Secretary 
        of the Interior.
            (6) Signal peak energy.--The term ``Signal Peak Energy'' 
        means Signal Peak Energy, LLC, a Delaware limited liability 
        company.
            (7) State.--The term ``State'' means the State of Montana.
            (8) Tribe.--The term ``Tribe'' means the Northern Cheyenne 
        Tribe.

SEC. 4. MINERAL RIGHTS CONVEYANCES.

    (a) In General.--Not later than 60 days after the date on which the 
Secretary receives all notifications described in subsection (b), the 
following shall be completed in a single transaction:
            (1) Great Northern Properties shall convey to the Tribe all 
        mineral interests of Great Northern Properties underlying the 
        Cheyenne tracts.
            (2) The Secretary shall terminate any existing Federal 
        lease to Signal Peak Energy for the coal underlying the Federal 
        tracts described in section 3(2)(E)(ii).
            (3) The Secretary shall convey to Great Northern Properties 
        all right, title, and interest of the United States in and to 
        the coal underlying the Federal tracts.
    (b) Notifications.--As a condition of the conveyances authorized 
under subsection (a)--
            (1) Great Northern Properties and the Tribe shall provide 
        joint written notification to the Secretary that Great Northern 
        Properties and the Tribe have agreed on a revenue sharing 
        formula for all coal produced from the Federal tracts; and
            (2) Great Northern Properties and Signal Peak Energy shall 
        provide joint written notification to the Secretary that Great 
        Northern Properties and Signal Peak Energy have agreed on terms 
        and conditions for the lease of coal in the Federal tracts 
        described in section 3(2)(E)(ii).
    (c) Bonus Payments.--All bonus payments required in a Federal lease 
sale for coal underlying the Federal tracts described in section 
3(2)(E)(ii) shall be retained by the United States and distributed in 
accordance with the Mineral Leasing Act (30 U.S.C. 181 et seq.), 
regardless of the termination of the lease under subsection (a)(2).
    (d) Immunities.--The mineral interests underlying the Cheyenne 
tracts conveyed to the Tribe under subsection (a) shall not be subject 
to taxation by the State (including any political subdivision of the 
State).
    (e) Waiver of Legal Claims.--In return for the mineral conveyances 
and termination of Federal leases under subsection (a)--
            (1) the Tribe shall waive each claim relating to the 
        failure of the United States to acquire in trust for the Tribe 
        as part of the Reservation the private mineral interests 
        underlying the Cheyenne tracts;
            (2) Great Northern Properties shall waive any claim against 
        the United States relating to the value or completion of the 
        conveyances under this section; and
            (3) Signal Peak Energy shall waive any claim against the 
        United States relating to the terms or termination of the lease 
        of coal in the Federal tracts described in section 3(2)(E)(ii).
    (f) Rescission of Mineral Conveyances.--If any portion of the 
mineral conveyances under subsection (a) is invalidated by a Federal 
district court, and the judgment of the Federal district court is not 
vacated or reversed on appeal--
            (1) not later than 1 year after the date on which there is 
        a final judgment, the Secretary or Great Northern Properties 
        may rescind completely each mineral conveyance under subsection 
        (a); and
            (2) if the Secretary or Great Northern Properties carries 
        out the rescission under paragraph (1), the waiver of the Tribe 
        under subsection (e) shall be considered to be rescinded.
    (g) Prohibition of Strip Mining in the Bull Mountains Federal 
Tracts.--On completion of the mineral conveyances authorized by 
subsection (a), the coal underlying the Bull Mountains Federal tracts 
described in section 3(2)(E)(ii) shall not be strip mined.

SEC. 5. SYSTEMATIC SUBSIDENCE EVALUATION REPORT.

    (a) In General.--After the completion of the mineral conveyances 
authorized under section 4(a), but not later than December 31, 2013, 
and every 2 years thereafter, Signal Peak Energy shall, as a condition 
of the conveyances, prepare a report on the effects of subsidence in 
the Federal tracts described in section 3(2)(E)(ii).
    (b) Requirements.--The report prepared under subsection (a) shall, 
with respect to the tracts described in subsection (a)--
            (1) summarize subsidence monitoring data required by the 
        State pursuant to the regulatory program that implements an 
        approved cooperative agreement, as described in section 740.4 
        of title 30, Code of Federal Regulations (or successor 
        regulations);
            (2) describe the occurrence and severity of cracking, 
        fissure development, rock toppling, erosion, slope failure, 
        sloughing, and landslide risks;
            (3) describe the potential for subsidence-related surface 
        hazards for humans, livestock, and wildlife; and
            (4) evaluate the accuracy of the predictive subsidence 
        model applied pursuant to the State regulatory program that 
        implements an approved cooperative agreement, as described in 
        section 740.4 of title 30, Code of Federal Regulations (or 
        successor regulations).
    (c) Public Availability.--Signal Peak Energy shall submit to, and 
make available for public inspection at, the Montana Department of 
Environmental Quality the reports prepared under subsection (a).

SEC. 6. ELIGIBILITY FOR OTHER FEDERAL BENEFITS.

    No sums or other benefits provided to the Tribe under this Act 
shall result in the reduction or denial of any Federal services, 
benefits, or programs to the Tribe or to any member of the Tribe to 
which the Tribe or member is entitled or eligible because of--
            (1) the status of the Tribe as a federally recognized 
        Indian tribe; or
            (2) the status of the member as a member of the Tribe.

SEC. 7. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.

    There are authorized to be appropriated such sums as are necessary 
to carry out this Act.
                                 <all>