[Congressional Bills 114th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 3014 Introduced in Senate (IS)]

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114th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                S. 3014

    To improve the management of Indian forest land, and for other 
                               purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                              May 26, 2016

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

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
    To improve the management of Indian forest land, 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 ``Tribal Forestry Participation and 
Protection Act of 2016''.

SEC. 2. PROTECTION OF TRIBAL FOREST ASSETS THROUGH USE OF STEWARDSHIP 
              END RESULT CONTRACTING AND OTHER AUTHORITIES.

    (a) Prompt Consideration of Tribal Requests.--Section 2(b) of the 
Tribal Forest Protection Act of 2004 (25 U.S.C. 3115a(b)) is amended--
            (1) in paragraph (1), by striking ``Not later than 120 days 
        after the date on which an Indian tribe submits to the 
        Secretary'' and inserting ``In response to the submission by an 
        Indian tribe to the Secretary of''; and
            (2) by adding at the end the following:
            ``(4) Time periods for consideration.--
                    ``(A) Initial response.--Not later than 90 days 
                after the date on which the Secretary receives a tribal 
                request under paragraph (1), the Secretary shall 
                provide an initial response to the Indian tribe 
                regarding whether the request may meet the selection 
                criteria described in subsection (c).
                    ``(B) Notice of denial.--A notice under subsection 
                (d) of the denial of a tribal request under paragraph 
                (1) shall be provided to the Indian tribe by not later 
                than 1 year after the date on which the Secretary 
                receives the request.
                    ``(C) Completion.--Not later than 2 years after the 
                date on which the Secretary receives a tribal request 
                under paragraph (1), other than a tribal request denied 
                under subsection (d), the Secretary shall--
                            ``(i) complete all environmental reviews 
                        necessary in connection with the agreement or 
                        contract and proposed activities under the 
                        agreement or contract; and
                            ``(ii) enter into the agreement or contract 
                        with the Indian tribe in accordance with 
                        paragraph (2).''.
    (b) Conforming and Technical Amendments.--Section 2 of the Tribal 
Forest Protection Act of 2004 (25 U.S.C. 3115a) is amended--
            (1) in subsections (b)(1) and (f)(1), by striking ``section 
        347 of the Department of the Interior and Related Agencies 
        Appropriations Act, 1999 (16 U.S.C. 2104 note; Public Law 105-
        277) (as amended by section 323 of the Department of the 
        Interior and Related Agencies Appropriations Act, 2003 (117 
        Stat. 275))'' each place it appears and inserting ``section 604 
        of the Healthy Forests Restoration Act of 2003 (16 U.S.C. 
        6591c)''; and
            (2) in subsection (d), in the matter preceding paragraph 
        (1), by striking ``subsection (b)(1), the Secretary may'' and 
        inserting ``paragraphs (1) and (4)(B) of subsection (b), the 
        Secretary shall''.

SEC. 3. PILOT AUTHORITY FOR RESTORATION OF FEDERAL FOREST LAND BY 
              INDIAN TRIBES.

    (a) In General.--Section 305 of the National Indian Forest 
Resources Management Act (25 U.S.C. 3104) is amended by adding at the 
end the following:
    ``(c) Inclusion of Certain National Forest System Land and Public 
Land.--
            ``(1) Purposes.--The purposes of this subsection are--
                    ``(A) to maximize the effective management of 
                Federal forest land and to assist in the restoration of 
                that land in accordance with the principles of 
                sustained yield; and
                    ``(B) to reduce insect, disease, or wildfire risk 
                to communities, municipal water supplies, and other at-
                risk Federal land by providing for the implementation 
                by Indian tribes of forest restoration projects.
            ``(2) Definitions.--In this subsection:
                    ``(A) Federal forest land.--
                            ``(i) In general.--The term `Federal forest 
                        land' means--
                                    ``(I) National Forest System land; 
                                and
                                    ``(II) public lands (as defined in 
                                section 103 of the Federal Land Policy 
                                and Management Act of 1976 (43 U.S.C. 
                                1702)), including--
                                            ``(aa) Coos Bay Wagon Road 
                                        Grant land reconveyed to the 
                                        United States pursuant to the 
                                        first section of the Act of 
                                        February 26, 1919 (40 Stat. 
                                        1179, chapter 47); and
                                            ``(bb) Oregon and 
                                        California Railroad Grant land.
                            ``(ii) Exclusions.--The term `Federal 
                        forest land' does not include--
                                    ``(I) a component of the National 
                                Wilderness Preservation System;
                                    ``(II) a component of the National 
                                Wild and Scenic Rivers System;
                                    ``(III) a congressionally 
                                designated wilderness study area; or
                                    ``(IV) an inventoried roadless area 
                                within the National Forest System.
                    ``(B) Forest land management activities.--The term 
                `forest land management activities' means activities 
                performed in the management of Indian forest land 
                described in subparagraphs (C), (D), and (E) of section 
                304(4).
                    ``(C) Secretary concerned.--The term `Secretary 
                concerned' means--
                            ``(i) the Secretary of Agriculture, with 
                        respect to the Federal forest land referred to 
                        in subparagraph (A)(i)(I); and
                            ``(ii) the Secretary of the Interior, with 
                        respect to the Federal forest land referred to 
                        in subparagraph (A)(i)(II).
            ``(3) Authority.--
                    ``(A) In general.--At the request of an Indian 
                tribe, the Secretary concerned may treat Federal forest 
                land as Indian forest land for purposes of planning and 
                conducting forest land management activities under this 
                section if the Federal forest land is located within, 
                or mostly within, a geographical area that presents a 
                feature or involves circumstances principally relevant 
                to that Indian tribe, such as Federal forest land--
                            ``(i) ceded to the United States by treaty 
                        or other agreement with that Indian tribe;
                            ``(ii) within the boundaries of a current 
                        or former reservation of that Indian tribe; or
                            ``(iii) adjudicated by the Indian Claims 
                        Commission or a Federal court to be the tribal 
                        homeland of that Indian tribe.
                    ``(B) Management.--Federal forest land treated as 
                Indian forest land for purposes of planning and 
                conducting management activities pursuant to 
                subparagraph (A) shall--
                            ``(i) be managed exclusively under this 
                        Act; and
                            ``(ii) remain under the ownership of the 
                        Federal agency that owned the Federal forest 
                        land on the day before the date of enactment of 
                        this subsection.
            ``(4) Requirements.--As part of an agreement to treat 
        Federal forest land as Indian forest land under paragraph (3), 
        the Secretary concerned and the Indian tribe making the request 
        shall--
                    ``(A) provide for continued public access and 
                recreation applicable to the Federal forest land as in 
                existence prior to the agreement, except that the 
                Secretary concerned may limit or prohibit that access 
                only for the purpose of--
                            ``(i) protecting human safety; or
                            ``(ii) preventing harm to natural 
                        resources;
                    ``(B) continue sharing revenue generated by the 
                Federal forest land with State and local governments on 
                the terms applicable to the Federal forest land prior 
                to the agreement, including, as applicable--
                            ``(i) 25-percent payments under the Secure 
                        Rural Schools and Community Self-Determination 
                        Act of 2000 (16 U.S.C. 7101 et seq.); or
                            ``(ii) 50-percent payments under the Act of 
                        August 28, 1937 (43 U.S.C. 1181a et seq.);
                    ``(C) comply with applicable prohibitions on the 
                export of unprocessed logs harvested from the Federal 
                forest land;
                    ``(D) recognize all right-of-way agreements in 
                place on Federal forest land as in existence prior to 
                the commencement of tribal management activities;
                    ``(E) ensure that any county road within the 
                Federal forest land as in existence prior to the 
                agreement is not adversely impacted; and
                    ``(F) ensure that all commercial timber removed 
                from the Federal forest land is sold on a competitive 
                bid basis.
            ``(5) Prompt consideration of tribal requests.--Not later 
        than 180 days after the date on which the Secretary receives a 
        request from an Indian tribe under paragraph (3)(A), the 
        Secretary shall--
                    ``(A) approve or deny the request; and
                    ``(B) if the Secretary approves the request, begin 
                exercising the authority under that paragraph.
            ``(6) Consultation.--To the extent consistent with the laws 
        governing the administration of public lands (as defined in 
        section 103 of the Federal Land Policy and Management Act of 
        1976 (43 U.S.C. 1702)), the Secretary concerned shall consult 
        with each State and unit of local government within which 
        Federal forest land is located--
                    ``(A) before entering into an agreement to treat 
                the Federal forest land as Indian forest land under 
                paragraph (3); and
                    ``(B) with respect to an agreement described in 
                subparagraph (A), in planning and conducting forest 
                land management activities under this section.
            ``(7) Forest management plans.--All forest land management 
        activities under this subsection on National Forest System land 
        shall be consistent with the applicable forest plan.
            ``(8) Limitations.--The treatment of Federal forest land as 
        Indian forest land for purposes of planning and conducting 
        management activities pursuant to paragraph (3)--
                    ``(A) shall not be considered to designate the 
                Federal forest land as Indian forest land for any other 
                purpose; and
                    ``(B) shall be in accordance with all relevant 
                Federal laws applicable to Federal forest land, 
                including--
                            ``(i) the National Environmental Policy Act 
                        of 1969 (42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.);
                            ``(ii) the Endangered Species Act of 1973 
                        (16 U.S.C. 1531 et seq.);
                            ``(iii) the Federal Water Pollution Control 
                        Act (33 U.S.C. 1251 et seq.); and
                            ``(iv) the Clean Air Act (42 U.S.C. 7401 et 
                        seq.).
            ``(9) Applicability of nepa.--The execution of, but not the 
        decision to enter into, an agreement to treat Federal forest 
        land as Indian forest land under paragraph (3) shall constitute 
        a Federal action for purposes of the National Environmental 
        Policy Act of 1969 (42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.).
            ``(10) Termination of authority.--The authority provided by 
        this subsection terminates on the date that is 10 years after 
        the date of enactment of this subsection.''.
    (b) Effect.--Nothing in this section or an amendment made by this 
section--
            (1) prohibits, restricts, or otherwise adversely affects 
        any permit, lease, or similar agreement in effect on or after 
        the date of enactment of this Act for the use of Federal land 
        for the purpose of recreation, utilities, logging, mining, oil, 
        gas, grazing, water rights, or any other purpose;
            (2) negatively impacts private land; or
            (3) prohibits, restricts, or otherwise adversely affects 
        the authority, jurisdiction, or responsibility of a State to 
        manage, control, or regulate under State law fish and wildlife 
        on land or in water in the State, including on Federal public 
        land.

SEC. 4. TRIBAL FOREST MANAGEMENT DEMONSTRATION PROJECT.

    The Secretary of the Interior and the Secretary of Agriculture may 
carry out demonstration projects pursuant to which federally recognized 
Indian tribes or tribal organizations may enter into contracts to carry 
out administrative, management, and other functions under the Tribal 
Forest Protection Act of 2004 (25 U.S.C. 3115a et seq.), through 
contracts entered into under the Indian Self-Determination and 
Education Assistance Act (25 U.S.C. 450 et seq.).

SEC. 5. FUNDING.

    The Secretary of the Interior and the Secretary of Agriculture 
shall use to carry out this Act and amendments made by this Act such 
amounts as are necessary from other amounts available to the Secretary 
of the Interior or the Secretary of Agriculture, respectively, that are 
not otherwise obligated.
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