[Senate Prints 108-65]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]


108th Congress 
 2d Session                 COMMITTEE PRINT                     S. Prt.
                                                                 108-65
_______________________________________________________________________
 
                   HISTORY, JURISDICTION, AND SUMMARY

                       OF LEGISLATIVE ACTIVITIES

                                 OF THE

                          UNITED STATES SENATE

                      COMMITTEE ON INDIAN AFFAIRS

                               DURING THE

                      ONE HUNDRED EIGHTH CONGRESS

                               2003-2004


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               COMMITTEE ON INDIAN AFFAIRS


          BEN NIGHTHORSE CAMPBELL, Colorado, Chairman

                DANIEL K. INOUYE, Hawaii, Vice Chairman

JOHN McCAIN, Arizona,                KENT CONRAD, North Dakota
PETE V. DOMENICI, New Mexico         HARRY REID, Nevada
CRAIG THOMAS, Wyoming                DANIEL K. AKAKA, Hawaii
ORRIN G. HATCH, Utah                 BYRON L. DORGAN, North Dakota
JAMES M. INHOFE, Oklahoma            TIM JOHNSON, South Dakota
GORDON SMITH, Oregon                 MARIA CANTWELL, Washington
LISA MURKOWSKI, Alaska

         Paul Moorehead, Majority Staff Director/Chief Counsel

        Patricia M. Zell, Minority Staff Director/Chief Counsel

                                  (ii)


                  I. HISTORY AND JURISDICTION

    A. Summary. In 1977, the Senate re-established the 
Committee on Indian Affairs, making it a temporary select 
committee [February 4, 1977, S. Res. 4, Sec.  105, 95th 
Congress., 1st Sess. (1977), as amended]. The select committee 
was to disband at the close of the 95th Congress, but following 
several term extensions, the Senate voted to make the committee 
permanent on June 6, 1984. The committee has jurisdiction to 
study the unique problems of American Indian, Native Hawaiian, 
and Alaska Native peoples and to propose legislation to 
alleviate these difficulties. These issues include, but are not 
limited to, Indian education, economic development, land 
management, trust responsibilities, health care, and claims 
against the United States. Additionally, all legislation 
proposed by Members of the Senate that specifically pertains to 
American Indians, Native Hawaiians, or Alaska Natives is under 
the jurisdiction of the committee.
    B. History. Until 1946, when a legislative reorganization 
act abolished both the House and Senate Committees on Indian 
Affairs, the Senate Committee on Indian Affairs had been in 
existence since the early 19th century. After 1946, Indian 
affairs legislative and oversight jurisdiction was vested in 
subcommittees of the Interior and Insular Affairs Committees of 
the House of Representatives and the Senate. While this 
subcommittee arrangement may not have specifically reflected a 
diminishment of the consideration given Indian affairs by the 
Congress, the revised arrangement historically coincided with a 
20-year hiatus in Indian affairs known as the ``Termination 
Era''--a period in which the prevailing policy of the United 
States was to terminate the Federal relationship with Indian 
tribes, including the transfer of jurisdiction over tribal 
lands to the States.
    By the mid-1960's, this termination philosophy was in 
decline as a failed policy and the Congress began to include 
Indian tribes in legislation designed to rebuild the social 
infrastructure of the Nation and provide economic opportunities 
for economically-depressed areas. In the early 1970's the 
termination era was decisively ended with the enactment of the 
Menominee Restoration Act of 1973. Although a number of 
important legislative initiatives affecting Indians were 
enacted in the early 1970's, it became clear that the existing 
subcommittee structure was not providing an adequate forum for 
legislating appropriate solutions to problems confronting 
Indian country. Legislative jurisdiction over Indian affairs 
was fragmented among a number of committees. Overall, more than 
10 committees in the Congress were responsible for Indian 
affairs, a situation which resulted in a sometimes disjointed 
treatment of Indian affairs and in an often haphazard 
development of Federal Indian
policy.
    C. Re-establishment of committee. In 1973, Senator James 
Abourezk introduced S.J. Res. 133 to establish a Federal 
commission to review all aspects of policy, law, and 
administration relating to affairs of the United States with 
American Indian tribes and people. The Senate and the House of 
Representatives both adopted S.J. Res. 133 and on January 2, 
1975, the resolution was signed into law by the President, thus 
establishing the American Indian Policy Review Commission 
[Public Law 93-580]. As the work of this Commission progressed, 
it became readily apparent that a Senate committee with full 
legislative and oversight authority was needed to receive the 
report of the American Indian Policy Review Commission and to 
act upon its recommendations. Indeed, one of the final 
recommendations of the Commission was that a full-fledged 
Indian affairs committee be established in the Senate.
    At the same time the Commission was formulating its 
recommendation for the establishment of an Indian affairs 
committee, the Senate was developing a far-reaching proposal 
for reorganization of the entire Senate committee system. Under 
this proposal, the Subcommittee on Indian Affairs under the 
Committee on Interior and Insular Affairs was to be abolished 
with its natural resource functions to be distributed among 
other newly formed Senate committees and its human resources 
functions to be transferred to the Senate Committee on Labor 
and Human Resources.
    In view of the pending report of the American Indian Policy 
Review Commission and its anticipated recommendations, however, 
the Senate revamped its committee reorganization proposal to 
include the establishment of a temporary select committee to 
receive the Commission's report and to act on its 
recommendations. Thus, there was included within S. Res. 4 of 
February 4, 1977, the Committee System Reorganization 
Amendments of 1977, a provision to establish a select committee 
on Indian affairs with full jurisdiction over all proposed 
legislation and other matters relating to Indian affairs. With 
the commencement of the 96th Congress, the Select Committee on 
Indian Affairs was to expire and jurisdiction over Indian 
matters was to be transferred to the Senate Committee on Labor 
and Human Resources.
    As the Select Committee on Indian Affairs grappled with the 
report of the American Indian Policy Review Commission and the 
many other Indian issues that were presented to it during the 
95th Congress, it became increasingly evident that if the 
Congress was to continue to meet its constitutional, legal, and 
historical responsibilities in the area of Indian affairs, an 
ongoing legislative committee with adequate expertise and 
resources should be re-established in the Senate.
    S. Res. 405, to make the Select Committee on Indian Affairs 
a permanent committee of the Senate, was introduced by Senator 
Abourezk on February 22, 1978. The measure was amended by the 
Rules Committee to extend the life of the committee for 2 years 
until January 2, 1981, and was agreed to by the Senate on 
October 14, 1978. In the 96th Congress, Senator John Melcher, 
who was at the time chairman of the Select Committee on Indian 
Affairs, introduced S. Res. 448 to make it a permanent 
committee. The resolution had 28 cosponsors, and was reported 
by the Rules Committee with an amendment to extend the Select 
Committee on Indian Affairs to January 2, 1984, and to expand 
the membership to seven members commencing in the 97th 
Congress. S. Res. 448 was adopted by the Senate on December 11, 
1980.
    D. Permanent Committee. On April 28, 1983, Senator Mark 
Andrews, chairman of the Select Committee on Indian Affairs in 
the 98th Congress, introduced S. Res. 127 to make the committee 
a permanent committee. This resolution had 28 cosponsors. On 
November 1, 1983, the Committee on Rules and Administration 
voted unanimously to report the resolution without amendment, 
and the resolution was so reported on November 2, 1983 [S. 
Rept. 98-294]. On November 18, the last day of the first 
session of the 98th Congress, the Senate agreed to an extension 
of the select committee to July 1, 1984, in order to allow time 
for later debate. By the time the resolution was brought to the 
floor for consideration there were 60 cosponsors. On June 4, 
1984, the Select Committee on Indian Affairs was made a 
permanent committee of the Senate [S. Res. 127, 98th Congress, 
2d Sess.]. In 1993, the Select Committee on Indian Affairs was 
re-designated as the Committee on Indian Affairs [Sec.  25, S. 
Res. 71, 103d Cong., 1st Sess.].
    E. Committee Membership. The number of members serving on 
the committee has expanded since its formation in 1977. At the 
time the committee was formed in the 95th Congress, there were 
five members. The membership remained at five in the 96th 
Congress, but grew to seven in the 97th Congress and the 98th 
Congress. The membership increased to 9 in the 99th Congress, 
decreased to 8 in the 100th Congress and, in the 101st Congress 
grew to 10. In the 102d Congress the membership of the 
committee expanded to 16 members. A further increase occurred 
in the beginning of the 103d Congress when the membership was 
expanded to 18.
    In the 104th Congress, the Senate intially named 17 of its 
members to serve on the committee, and elected Senator John 
McCain as chairman and Senator Daniel K. Inouye as vice 
chairman. The 104th Congress subsequently reduced the committee 
to 16 members. In the 105th Congress, membership was decreased 
to 14. The number of members assigned to the committee in the 
Rules has not since been amended. In the 106th Congress, 14 
members were appointed to the committee. In the 107th Congress, 
there were intially 14 members.
    In May 2001 Senator Jim Jeffords left the Republican Party 
to become an Independent. At that time Senator Campbell 
relinquished the chairmanship of the committee and Senator 
Inouye became chairman, then presiding over the 15-member 
committee. In the 108th Congress, Senator Campbell re-assumed 
the chairmanship and Senator Inouye served as vice chairman of 
the 14-member committee.
 II. JURISDICTION AND RULES OF THE COMMITTEE ON INDIAN AFFAIRS

      A. Excerpts from Senate Resolution 4. The Committee System 
  Reorganization Amendments of 1977 as amended and revised to reflect 
     membership and designations applicable to the 108th Congress.

    Committee on Indian Affairs, to which committee shall be 
referred all proposed legislation, messages, petitions, 
memorials, and other matters relating to Indian affairs:
        Sec. 105(a)(1) There is established a Committee on 
        Indian Affairs [hereafter in this section referred to 
        as the committee] which shall consist of 14 members, 8 
        to be appointed by the President of the Senate, upon 
        the recommendation of the majority leader, from among 
        members of the majority party and 6 to be appointed by 
        the President of the Senate, upon recommendation of the 
        minority leader, from among the members of the minority 
        party. The committee shall select a chairman from among 
        its members.
        (2) A majority of the members of the committee shall 
        constitute a quorum thereof for the transaction of 
        business, except that the committee may fix a lesser 
        number as a quorum for the purpose of taking testimony. 
        The committee shall adopt rules of procedure not 
        inconsistent with this section and the rules of the 
        Senate governing standing committees of the Senate.
        (3) Vacancies in the membership of the committee shall 
        not affect the authority of the remaining members to 
        execute the functions of the committee.
        (4) For purposes of paragraph 6 of rule XXV of the 
        Standing Rules of the Senate, service of a Senator as a 
        member or chairman of the committee shall not be taken 
        into account.
        (b)(1) All proposed legislation, messages, petitions, 
        memorials, and other matters relating to Indian affairs 
        shall be referred to the committee.
        (2) It shall be the duty of the committee to conduct a 
        study of any and all matters pertaining to problems and 
        opportunities of Indians, including but not limited to, 
        Indian land management and trust responsibilities, 
        Indian education, health, special services, and loan 
        programs, and Indian claims against the United States.
        (3) The committee shall from time to time report to the 
        Senate, by bill or otherwise within its jurisdiction.
        (c)(1) For the purposes of this resolution, the 
        committee is authorized, in its discretion, (A) to make 
        investigations into any matter within its jurisdiction, 
        (B) to make expenditures from the contingent fund of 
        the Senate, (C) to employ personnel, (D) to hold 
        hearings, (E) to sit and act at any time or place 
        during the sessions, recesses, and adjourned periods of 
        the Senate, (F) to require, by subpoena or otherwise, 
        the attendance of witnesses and the production of 
        correspondence, books, papers, and documents, (G) to 
        take depositions and other testimony, (H) to procure 
        the services of individual consultants or organizations 
        thereof, in accordance with the provisions of section 
        202(I) of the Legislative Reorganization Act of 1946, 
        and (I) with the prior consent of the Government 
        department or agency concerned and the Committee on 
        Rules and Administration, to use on a reimbursable 
        basis the services of personnel of any such department 
        or agency.
        (2) The chairman of the committee or any member thereof 
        may administer oaths to witnesses.
        (3) Subpoenas authorized by the committee may be issued 
        over the signature of the chairman, or any member of 
        the committee designated by the chairman, and may be 
        served by any person designated by the chairman or any 
        member signing the subpoena.

              B. Rules of the Committee on Indian Affairs

    Senate Standing Rule XXVI requires each committee to adopt 
rules to govern the procedures of the committee and to publish 
those rules in the Congressional Record not later than March 1 
of the first year of each Congress. On January 29, 2003, the 
Committee on Indian Affairs held a business meeting during 
which the members of the committee unanimously adopted rules to 
govern the procedures of the committee. The rules as adopted 
follow.

                            committee rules

    Rule 1. The Standing Rules of the Senate, S. Res. 4, and 
the provisions of the Legislative Reorganization Act of 1946, 
as amended by the Legislative Reorganization Act of 1970, to 
the extent the provisions of such act are applicable to the 
committee on Indian Affairs and supplemented by these rules, 
are adopted as the rules of the committee.

                       meetings of the committee

    Rule 2. The committee shall meet on the first Tuesday of 
each month while the Congress is in session for the purpose of 
conducting business, unless for the convenience of the members, 
the chairman shall set some other day for a meeting. Additional 
meetings may be called by the chairman as he may deem 
necessary.

                       open hearings and meetings

    Rule 3. Hearings and business meetings of the committee 
shall be open to the public except When the chairman by a 
majority vote orders a closed hearing or meeting.

                           hearing procedure

    Rule 4(a). Public notice shall be given of the date, place 
and subject matter of any hearing to be held by the committee 
at least 1 week in advance of such hearing unless the chairman 
of the committee determines that the hearing is 
noncontroversial or that special circumstances require 
expedited procedures and a majority of the committee involved 
concurs. In no case shall a hearing be conducted with less than 
24 hours notice.
    (b). Each witness who is to appear before the committee 
shall file with the committee, at least 72 hours in advance of 
the hearing, an original, printed version of his or her written 
testimony. In addition, each witness shall provide an 
electronic copy of the testimony on a computer disk formatted 
and suitable for use by the committee. Further, each witness is 
required to submit by way of electronic mail, one copy of his 
or her testimony in a format determined by the committee and 
sent to an electronic mail address specified by the committee.
    (c). Each member shall be limited to 5 minutes in 
questioning of any witness until such times as all members who 
so desire have had an opportunity to question the witness 
unless the committee shall decide otherwise.
    (d). The chairman and vice chairman or the ranking majority 
and minority members present at the hearing may each appoint 
one committee staff member to question each witness. Such staff 
member may question the witness only after all members present 
have completed their questioning of the witness or at such time 
as the chairman and vice chairman or the ranking majority and 
minority members present may agree.

                        business meeting agenda

    Rule 5(a). A legislative measure or subject shall be 
included in the agenda of the next following business meeting 
of the committee if a written request by a member for such 
inclusion has been filed with the chairman of the committee at 
least 1 week prior to such meeting. Nothing in this rule shall 
be construed to limit the authority of the chairman of the 
committee to include legislative measures or subject on the 
committee agenda in the absence of such request.
    (b). Notice of, and the agenda for, any business meeting of 
the committee shall be provided to each member and made 
available to the public at least 2 days prior to such meeting, 
and no new items may be added after the agenda is published 
except by the approval of a majority of the members of the 
committee. The clerk shall promptly notify absent members of 
any action taken by the committee on matters not included in 
the published agenda.

                                 quorum

    Rule 6(a). Except as provided in subsections (b) and (c), 8 
members shall constitute a quorum for the conduct of business 
of the committee. Consistent with Senate rules, a quorum is 
presumed to be present unless the absence of a quorum is noted 
by a member.
    (b). A measure may be ordered reported from the committee 
unless an objection is made by a member, in which case a 
recorded vote of the members shall be required.
    (c). One member shall constitute a quorum for the purpose 
of conducting a hearing or taking testimony on any measure 
before the committee.

                                 voting

    Rule 7(a). A recorded vote of the members shall be taken 
upon the request of any member.
    (b). Proxy voting shall be permitted on all matters, except 
that proxies may not be counted for the purpose of determining 
the presence of a quorum. Unless further limited, a proxy shall 
be exercised only for the date for which it is given and upon 
the terms published in the agenda for that date.

                sworn testimony and financial statements

    Rule 8. Witnesses in committee hearings may be required to 
give testimony under oath whenever the chairman or vice 
chairman of the committee deems it to be necessary. At any 
hearing to confirm a Presidential nomination, the testimony of 
the nominee, and at the request of any member, any other 
witness, shall be under oath.
    Every nominee shall submit a financial statement, on forms 
to be perfected by the committee, which shall be sworn to by 
the nominee as to its completeness and accuracy. All such 
statements shall be made public by the committee unless the 
committee, in executive session, determines that special 
circumstances require a full or partial exception to this rule. 
Members of the committee are urged to make public a complete 
disclosure of their financial interests on forms to be 
perfected by the committee in the manner required in the case 
of Presidential nominees.

                         confidential testimony

    Rule 9. No confidential testimony taken by, or confidential 
material presented to the committee or any report of the 
proceedings of a closed committee hearing or business meeting 
shall be made public in whole or in part by way of summary, 
unless authorized by a majority of the members of the committee 
at a business meeting called for the purpose of making such a 
determination.

                         defamatory statements

    Rule 10. Any person whose name is mentioned or who is 
specifically identified in, or who believes that testimony or 
other evidence presented at, an open committee hearing tends to 
defame him or her or otherwise adversely affect his or her 
reputation may file with the committee for its consideration 
and action a sworn statement of facts relevant to such 
testimony of evidence.

                  broadcasting of hearings or meetings

    Rule 11. Any meeting or hearing by the committee which is 
open to the public may be covered in whole or in part by 
television, radio broadcast, or still photography. 
Photographers and reporters using mechanical recording, 
filming, or broadcasting devices shall position their equipment 
so as not to interfere with the sight, vision, and hearing of 
members and staff on the dais or with the orderly process of 
the meeting or hearing.

                           amending the rules

    Rule 12. These rules may be amended only by a vote of a 
majority of all the members of the committee in a business 
meeting of the committee; provided, that no vote may be taken 
on any proposed amendment unless such amendment is reproduced 
in full in the committee agenda for such meeting at least 7 
days in advance of such meeting.
  III. SUMMARY OF COMMITTEE ACTIVITIES FOR THE 108th CONGRESS

    A. Overview. In the 108th Congress, a total of 80 bills and 
7 resolutions were referred to the Committee on Indian Affairs 
for consideration. The committee reported to the Senate for 
action a total of 37 bills and 5 resolutions; 8 of the bills 
and 1 resolution reported by the committee became public law. 
The committee also reported the nomination of 4 Presidential 
appointees who were subsequently confirmed by the Senate. The 
committee held 61 hearings, 19 of which were oversight 
hearings.
    B. Legislation reported and enacted into law. A number of 
the bills over which the committee exercised its jurisdiction 
were reported by the committee and signed into law by the 
President. These included a bill to provide for the use or 
distribution of certain funds awarded to the Gila River Pima-
Maricopa Indian Community, S. 162, Public Law 108-22; a bill to 
approve the settlement of the water rights claims of the Zuni 
Indian Tribe in Apache County, AZ, S. 222, Public Law 108-034; 
a bill to provide for adjustments to the Central Arizona 
Project in Arizona, to authorize the Gila River Indian 
Community water rights settlement, and to reauthorize and amend 
the Southern Arizona Water Rights Settlement Act of 1982, S. 
437, Public Law 108-451; a technical corrections bill relating 
to laws affecting Native Americans, S. 523, Public Law 108-204; 
a bill authorizing construction of a health care facility on 
the Fort Berthold Indian Reservation, S. 1146, Public Law 108-
437; a bill to amend the Indian Land Consolidation Act to 
improve provisions relating to probate of trust and restricted 
land, S. 1721, Public Law 108-374; a bill to reaffirm the 
inherent sovereign rights of the Osage Tribe to determine its 
membership and form of government, H.R. 2912, Public Law 108-
431; and a bill to clarify the loan guarantee authority under 
title VI of the Native American Housing Assistance and Self-
Determination Act of 1996, H.R. 4471, Public Law 108-393.
    C. Legislation reported by the committee. A number of the 
bills over which the committee has jurisdiction were reported 
by the committee but were not enacted into law. These measures 
include: A bill to establish a direct line of authority for the 
Office of Trust Reform Implementation and Oversight to oversee 
the management and reform of Indian trust funds and assets 
under the jurisdiction of the Department of the Interior, and 
to advance tribal management of such funds and assets, pursuant 
to the Indian Self-Determination Act [S. 175]; a bill to amend 
the Transportation Equity Act for the 21st Century to make 
certain amendments with respect to Indian tribes, to provide 
for training and technical assistance to Native Americans who 
are interested in commercial vehicle driving careers [S. 281]; 
a bill to authorize the integration and consolidation of 
alcohol and substance abuse programs and services provided by 
Indian tribal governments [S. 285]; a bill to provide reforms 
and resources to the Bureau of Indian Affairs to improve the 
Federal acknowledgment process [S. 297]; a bill expressing the 
policy of the United States regarding the United States 
relationship with Native Hawaiians and to provide a process for 
the recognition by the United States of the Native Hawaiian 
governing entity [S. 344]; a bill to provide for the 
acknowledgment of the Lumbee Tribe of North Carolina [S. 420]; 
a bill to provide for the distribution of judgment funds to the 
Assiniboine and Sioux Tribes of the Fort Peck Reservation [S. 
428]; a bill to establish a Native American-owned financial 
entity to provide financial services to Indian tribes, Native 
American organizations, and Native Americans [S. 519]; a bill 
to amend the act of August 9, 1955, to extend the terms of 
leases of certain restricted Indian land [S. 521]; a bill to 
amend the Energy Policy Act of 1992 to assist Indian tribes in 
developing energy resources [S. 522]; a bill to establish the 
Native American Health and Wellness Foundation [S. 555]; a bill 
to amend the Indian Health Care Improvement Act to revise and 
extend that act [S. 556]; a bill to elevate the position 
Director of the Indian Health Service within the Department of 
Health and Human Services to Assistant Secretary for Indian 
Health [S. 558]; a bill to provide for the use and distribution 
of the funds awarded to the Western Shoshone identifiable group 
under Indian Claims Commission Docket Numbers 326-A-1, 326-A-3, 
326-K [S. 618]; a bill to amend the Native Hawaiian Health Care 
Improvement Act to revise and extend that act [S. 702]; a bill 
to extend Federal recognition to the Chickahominy Indian Tribe, 
the Chickahominy Indian Tribe-Eastern Division, the Upper 
Mattaponi Tribe, the Rappahannock Tribe, Inc., the Monacan 
Indian Nation, and the Nansemond Indian Tribe [S. 1423]; a bill 
to provide for equitable compensation of the Spokane Tribe of 
Indians of the Spokane Reservation in settlement of claims of 
the tribe concerning the contribution of the tribe to the 
production of hydropower by the Grand Coulee Dam [S. 1438]; a 
bill to amend the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act to include 
provisions relating to the payment and administration of gaming 
fees [S. 1529]; a bill to provide compensation to the Lower 
Brule and Crow Creek Sioux Tribes of South Dakota for damage to 
tribal land caused by Pick-Sloan projects along the Missouri 
River [S. 1530]; a bill to amend the Indian Child Protection 
and Family Violence Prevention Act to provide for the reporting 
and reduction of child abuse and family violence incidences on 
Indian reservations [S. 1601]; a bill to amend the Indian Self-
Determination and Education Assistance Act to provide further 
self-governance by Indian tribes [S. 1696]; a bill to amend the 
Indian Self-Determination and Education Assistance Act to 
provide further self-governance by Indian tribes [S. 1715]; a 
bill to provide habitable living quarters for teachers, 
administrators, other school staff, and their households in 
rural areas of Alaska located in or near Alaska Native Villages 
[S. 1905]; a bill to make technical corrections to laws 
relating to Native Americans [S. 1955]; a bill to enhance and 
provide to the Oglala Sioux Tribe and Angostura Irrigation 
Project certain benefits of the Pick-Sloan Missouri River basin 
program [S. 1996]; a bill to amend the act of November 2, 1966 
[80 Stat. 1112], to allow binding arbitration clauses to be 
included in all contracts affecting the land within the Salt 
River Pima-Maricopa Indian Reservation [S. 2277]; a bill to 
establish grant programs for the development of 
telecommunications capacities in Indian country [S. 2382]; a 
bill to reauthorize the Native American Programs Act of 1974 
[S. 2436]; a bill to clarify the loan guarantee authority under 
title VI of the Native American Housing Assistance and Self-
Determination Act of 1996 [S. 2571]; a bill to direct the 
Secretary of the Interior and the heads of other Federal 
agencies to carryout an agreement resolving major issues 
relating to the adjudication of water rights in the Snake River 
Basin, Idaho [S. 2605]; and a bill to make technical 
corrections to laws relating to Native Americans [S. 2843].
    D. Legislation given active consideration. A wide variety 
of bills were given active consideration by the committee. In 
the 108th Congress, the committee held several hearings on 
bills addressing the Department of the Interior, Bureau of 
Indian Affairs, potential settlement of the Cobell lawsuit, 
National Indian Gaming Commission regulation. Health care, 
probate reform, transportation, energy development, Native 
American languages, fish and wildlife management, child 
protection, and economic development were also the subject of 
hearings. The committee also held hearings on bills affecting 
specific tribes, including construction of a health care 
facility at Fort Berthold Indian Reservation; a Lumbee 
Acknowledgment Act; Spokane Reservation Grand Coulee Dam 
Equitable Compensation Settlement Act; Coos, Lower Umpqua, and 
Siuslaw Restoration Amendments Act; Nez Perce Water Rights Act; 
and a hearing on water problems on the Standing Rock Sioux 
Reservation.
    E. Legislation referred to the committee. A wide variety of 
measures were introduced and referred to the committee 
including:
    1. S. Res. 64, An original resolution authorizing 
expenditures by the Senate Committee on Indian Affairs.
    2. S. Res. 246, A resolution expressing the sense of the 
Senate that November 22, 1983, the date of the restoration by 
the Federal Government of Federal recognition to the 
Confederated Tribes of the Grand Ronde Community of Oregon, 
should be memorialized.
    3. S. Res. 248, A resolution expressing the sense of the 
Senate concerning the individual Indian money account trust 
funds.
    4. S. 162, a bill to provide for the use of distribution of 
certain funds awarded to the Gila River Pima-Maricopa Indian 
Community. lawsuit.
    5. S. 175, a bill to establish a direct line of authority 
for the Office of Trust Reform Implementation and Oversight to 
oversee the management and reform of Indian trust funds and 
assets under the jurisdiction of the Department of the 
Interior, and to advance tribal management of such funds and 
assets, pursuant to the Indian Self-Determination Act.
    6. S. 222, a bill to approve the settlement of the water 
rights claims of the Zuni Indian Tribe in Apache County, AZ.
    7. S. 281, a bill to amend the Transportation Equity Act 
for the 21st Century to make certain amendments with respect to 
Indian tribes, to provide for training and technical assistance 
to Native Americans who are interested in commercial vehicle 
driving
careers.
    8. S. 285, a bill to authorize the integration and 
consolidation of alcohol and substance abuse programs and 
services provided by Indian tribal governments.
    9. S. 297, a bill to provide reforms and resources to the 
Bureau of Indian Affairs to improve the Federal acknowledgment 
process.
    10. S. 344, a bill expressing the policy of the United 
States regarding the United States relationship with Native 
Hawaiians and to provide a process for the recognition by the 
United States of the Native Hawaiian governing entity.
    11. S. 420, a bill to provide for the acknowledgment of the 
Lumbee Tribe of North Carolina.
    12. S. 428, a bill to provide for the distribution of 
judgment funds to the Assiniboine and Sioux Tribes of the Fort 
Peck Reservation.
    13. S. 437, a bill to provide for adjustments to the 
Central Arizona Project in Arizona, to authorize the Gila River 
Indian Community water rights settlement, and to reauthorize 
and amend the Southern Arizona Water Rights Settlement Act of 
1982.
    14. S. 519, a bill to establish a Native American-owned 
financial entity to provide financial services to Indian 
tribes, Native American organizations, and Native Americans.
    15. S. 521, a bill to amend the act of August 9, 1955, to 
extend the terms of leases of certain restricted Indian land.
    16. S. 522, a bill to amend the Energy Policy Act of 1992 
to assist Indian tribes in developing energy resources.
    17. S. 523, a technical corrections bill relating to laws 
affecting Native Americans.
    18. S. 555, a bill to establish the Native American Health 
and Wellness Foundation.
    19. S. 556, a bill to amend the Indian Health Care 
Improvement Act to revise and extend that Act.
    20. S. 558, a bill to elevate the position Director of the 
Indian Health Service within the Department of Health and Human 
Services to Assistant Secretary for Indian Health.
    21. S. 618, a bill to provide for the use and distribution 
of the funds awarded to the Western Shoshone identifiable group 
under Indian Claims Commission Docket Numbers 326-A-1, 326-A-3, 
326-K.
    22. S. 702, a bill to amend the Native Hawaiian Health Care 
Improvement Act to revise and extend that act.
    23. S. 1146, a bill authorizing construction of a health 
care facility on the Fort Berthold Indian Reservation
    24. S. 1423, a bill to extend Federal recognition to the 
Chickahominy Indian Tribe, the Chickahominy Indian Tribe-
Eastern Division, the Upper Mattaponi Tribe, the Rappahannock 
Tribe, Inc., the Monacan Indian Nation, and the Nansemond 
Indian Tribe.
    25. S. 1438, a bill to provide for equitable compensation 
of the Spokane Tribe of Indians of the Spokane Reservation in 
settlement of claims of the tribe concerning the contribution 
of the tribe to the production of hydropower by the Grand 
Coulee Dam.
    26. S. 1529, a bill to amend the Indian Gaming Regulatory 
Act to include provisions relating to the payment and 
administration of gaming fees.
    27. S. 1530, a bill to provide compensation to the Lower 
Brule and Crow Creek Sioux Tribes of South Dakota for damage to 
tribal land caused by Pick-Sloan projects along the Missouri 
River.
    28. S. 1601, a bill to amend the Indian Child Protection 
and Family Violence Prevention Act to provide for the reporting 
and reduction of child abuse and family violence incidences on 
Indian reservations.
    29. S. 1696, a bill to amend the Indian Self-Determination 
and Education Assistance Act to provide further self-governance 
by Indian tribes.
    30. S. 1715, a bill to amend the Indian Self-Determination 
and Education Assistance Act to provide further self-governance 
by Indian tribes.
    31. S. 1721, a bill to amend the Indian Land Consolidation 
Act to improve provisions relating to probate of trust and 
restricted land.
    32. S. 1905, a bill to provide habitable living quarters 
for teachers, administrators, other school staff, and their 
households in rural areas of Alaska located in or near Alaska 
Native Villages.
    33. S. 1955, a bill to make technical corrections to laws 
relating to Native Americans.
    34. S. 1996, a bill to enhance and provide to the Oglala 
Sioux Tribe and Angostura Irrigation Project certain benefits 
of the Pick-Sloan Missouri River basin program.
    35. S. 2277, a bill to amend the act of November 2, 1966 
[80 Stat. 1112], to allow binding arbitration clauses to be 
included in all contracts affecting the land within the Salt 
River Pima-Maricopa Indian Reservation.
    36. S. 2382, a bill to establish grant programs for the 
development of telecommunications capacities in Indian country.
    37. S. 2436, a bill to reauthorize the Native American 
Programs Act of 1974.
    38. S. 2571, a bill to clarify the loan guarantee authority 
under title VI of the Native American Housing Assistance and 
Self-Determination Act of 1996.
    39. S. 2605, a bill to direct the Secretary of the Interior 
and the heads of other Federal agencies to carry out an 
agreement resolving major issues relating to the adjudication 
of water rights in the Snake River Basin, Idaho.
    40. S. 2843, a bill to make technical corrections to laws 
relating to Native Americans.
    41. H.R. 2912, a bill to reaffirm the inherent sovereign 
rights of the Osage Tribe to determine its membership and form 
of government
    42. H.R. 4471, a bill to clarify the loan guarantee 
authority under title VI of the Native American Housing 
Assistance and Self-Determination Act of 1996.
    F. Oversight activity. A substantial portion of the 
committee's hearing and investigatory energy was devoted to 
carrying out its authority and responsibility to provide 
oversight of the executive branch's implementation of Federal 
Indian law and policy and to investigate all matters pertaining 
to Indian affairs.
    The hearings touched on a wide range of issues, including 
the role and funding of the National Indian Gaming Commission; 
proposed reorganization of the Bureau of Indian Affairs; status 
of telecommunications in Indian country; status of tribal fish 
and wildlife management; Native American sacred places; Indian 
Gaming Regulatory Act; potential settlement of Cobell v. 
Norton; status of completion of the National Museum of the 
American Indian, proposed reorganization of major agencies and 
functions related to Indian trust reform matters within the 
Department of the Interior; Inter-Tribal Timber Council's 
Indian Forest Management Assessment Team report; No Child Left 
Behind Act, Indian tribal detention facilities; implementation 
of the American Indian Religious Freedom Act of 1978; 
legislation to reauthorize the Indian Health Care Improvement 
Act, contributions of Native American codetalkers in American 
military history; water problems on the Standing Rock Sioux 
Reservation; and the Native Graves Protection and Repatriation 
Act.
    In addition, the committee also devoted substantial energy 
to investigating the activities of certain individuals and 
entities and their relationships and dealings with various 
tribes. Pursuant to this investigation [the first formal 
investigation conducted by the committee since the 101st 
Congress], subpoenas were issued to individuals and entities 
with pertinent knowledge of the facts underlying the subject 
matter of the investigation, while other information was 
voluntarily submitted to the committee by tribes, individuals, 
and entities. Two hearings were held at which appeared the 
individuals central to the activities under investigation. 
Based on the hearings, and information subpoenaed and 
voluntarily submitted, the committee determined that the 
investigation merited continuation during the upcoming 109th 
Congress.
                    IV. COMMITTEE ACTIVITIES

                     108th Congress, First Session

A. Committee Hearings and Markups

    January 29, 2003.--Business/Organizational Meeting to 
Select the Chairman and Vice Chairman.
    February 12, 2003.--Hearing on nomination of Ross O. 
Swimmer to be Special Trustee-Indian Affairs within Department 
of the Interior.
    February 25, 2003.--Hearing on S. 344, a bill expressing 
the policy of the United States regarding the United States 
relationship with Native Hawaiians.
    February 26 2003.--Business Meeting on confirmation of Ross 
O. Swimmer; S. 162, a bill to provide for the use of 
distribution of certain funds awarded to Gila River Pima-
Maricopa Indian Community; and S. 222, a bill to approve 
settlement of water rights claims of the Zuni Indian Tribe.
    February 26 2003.--Hearing on President's Fiscal Year 2004 
Budget Request.
    March 5, 2003.--Business Meeting on confirmation of Ross O. 
Swimmer.
    March 5, 2003.--Hearing on President's Fiscal Year 2004 
Budget Request.
    March 11, 2003.--Business Meeting to consider the 
committee's views and estimates on the President's fiscal year 
2004 Budget Request for Indian Programs.
    March 19, 2003.--Hearing on S. 424, the ``Tribal Energy 
Self-Sufficiency Act and S. 522, the Native American Energy 
Development and Self Determination Act of 2003.''
    April 2, 2003.--Hearing on S. 556, the Indian Health Care 
Reauthorization Act.
    April 10, 2003.--Business Meeting for mark up S. 521, S. 
522, and S. 523.
    April 30, 2003.--Hearing on S. 519, the Native American 
Capital formation and Economic Development Act of 2003.
    May 7, 2003.--Hearing on S. 550, the American Indian 
Probate Reform Act.
    May 14, 2003.--Business Meeting on S. 285, S. 344, S. 555, 
S. 558, and S. 702
    May 14, 2003.Oversight Hearing on the role and funding of 
the Federal National Indian Gaming Commission.
    May 15, 2003.--Hearing on S. 575, a bill to amend the 
Native American Languages Act to provide for the support of 
Native American language survival schools.
    May 21, 2003.--Oversight Hearing on the proposed 
reorganization of the Bureau of Indian Affairs.
    May 22, 2003.--Oversight Hearing on S. 550, the American 
Indian Probate Reform Act.
    June 3, 2003.--Oversight Hearing on the status of tribal 
fish and wildlife management programs.
    June 4, 2003.--Hearing on S. 281, the Indian Tribal Surface 
Transportation Improvement Act of 2003, and S. 725, the tribal 
Transportation Program Improvement Act of 2003.
    June 4, 2003.--Oversight Hearing on the impacts on tribal 
fish and wildlife management programs in the Pacific Northwest.
    June 11, 2003.--Confirmation Hearing of Dr. Charles Grim to 
be director of the Indian Health Service, U.S. Department of 
Health and Human Services.
    June 11, 2003.--Hearing on S. 1146, a bill to implement the 
recommendations of the Garrison Unit Joint Tribal Advisory 
Committee by providing authorization for the construction of a 
rural health care facility on the Fort Berthold Indian 
Reservation, North Dakota.
    June 18, 2003.--Oversight hearing on Native American sacred 
places.
    June 26, 2003.--Business Meeting on S. 281, the Indian 
Tribal Surface Transportation Improvement Act of 2003, 
nomination of Dr. Charles Grim to be Director of the Indian 
Health Services and nominations of Lisa Nason, Georgianna 
Ignace, and John Grimes to the Board of the Institute of 
American Indian and Alaska Native Culture and Arts Development.
    July 9, 2003.--Oversight Hearing on the Indian Gaming 
Regulatory Act.
    July 16, 2003.--Business Meeting on S. 618 and S. 1146.
    July 16, 2003.--Joint Hearing with House Resources 
Committee on S. 556, a Bill to Reauthorize the Indian Health 
Care Improvement Act.
    July 23, 2003.--Hearing on S. 556, a bill to reauthorize 
the Indian Health Care Improvement Act.
    July 30, 2003.--Business Meeting to consider S. 428, 
Oversight Hearing on potential settlement mechanisms of Cobell 
v. Norton, and Hearing on S. 578, The Tribal Government 
Amendments to the Homeland Security Act of 2002.
    September 17, 2003.--Hearing on S. 420, the Lumbee 
Acknowledgment Act of 2003.
    September 24, 2003.--Hearing on S. 1601, the Indian Child 
Protection and Family Violence Prevention Act of 2003.
    September 25, 2003.--Hearing on reauthorization of the Head 
Start program.
    September 30, 2003.--Joint Hearing with the Committee on 
Energy and Natural Resources subcommittee on Water and Power, 
and on S. 437, the Arizona Water Settlements Acts.
    October 2, 2003.--Hearing on S. 1438, the Spokane Tribe of 
Indians of the Spokane Reservation Grand Coulee Dam Equitable 
Compensation Settlement Act.
    October 15, 2003.--Hearing on S. 550, the American Indian 
Probate Reform Act of 2003.
    October 16, 2003.--Hearing on the Missouri River Master
Manual.
    October 22, 2003.--Hearing on the nomination of David W. 
Anderson to be Assistant Secretary--Indian Affairs.
    October 29, 2003.--Business Meeting to consider S. 420, the 
Lumbee Acknowledgment Act of 2003, S. 1423, the Thomasina E. 
Jordan Indian Tribes of Virginia Federal Recognition Act of 
2003, and S. 1601, the Indian Child Protection and Family 
Violence Prevention Reauthorization Act of 2003.
    October 29, 2003.--Legislative Hearing on S. 1770, the 
Indian Money Account Claims Satisfaction Act of 2003.

                     108th Congress, Second Session

B. Committee Hearings and Markups

    January 28, 2004.--Business Meeting to consider S. 1721, 
the American Indian Probate Reform Act of 2004.
    February 11, 2004.--Hearing on the President's Fiscal Year 
2005 Budget Request.
    February 25, 2004.--Hearing on the President's Fiscal Year 
2005 Budget Request.
    March 3, 2004.--Business Meeting on pending committee 
business.
    March 3, 2004.--Oversight Hearing on the Status of the 
Completion of the National Museum of the American Indian.
    March 16, 2004.--Field Hearing on S. 1905, the Rural 
Teacher Housing Act of 2003.
    March 24, 2004.--Legislative Hearing on S. 1529, the Indian 
Gaming Regulatory Act Amendments of 2003.
    March 30, 2004.--Oversight Hearing on the Inter-Tribal 
Timber Council's Indian Forest Management Assessment Team 
report and Legislative Hearing on S. 868, the Coos, Lower 
Umpqua, and Siuslaw Restoration Amendments Act of 2003.
    April 7, 2004.--Business Meeting to consider S. 1529 and S. 
1955.
    April 21, 2004.--Business Meeting to consider S. 344 and S. 
1721.
    April 21, 2004.--Hearing on S. 297, a bill to provide 
reforms and resources to the Bureau of Indian Affairs to 
improve the Federal acknowledgment process.
    April 28, 2004.--Hearing on S. 2172, a bill to make 
technical amendments to the provisions of the Indian Self 
Determination and Education Assistance Act relating to contract 
support costs.
    April 29, 2004.--Hearing on S. 2301, the Native American 
Fish and Wildlife Resource Management Act of 2004.
    May 12, 2004.--Hearing on S. 1713, the Department of the 
Interior Tribal Self Governance Act of 2003.
    May 19, 2004.--Hearing on S. 1696, the Department of Health 
and Human Services Tribal Self Governance Act of 2003.
    May 20, 2004.--Hearing on S. 2382, the Native American 
Connectivity Act.
    June 8, 2004.--Hearing on S. 2436, the Native American 
Programs Act Reauthorization.
    June 15, 2004.--Hearing on S. 1530, the Tribal Parity Act.
    June 16, 2004.--Business Meeting on S.J. Res. 37, a 
resolution to acknowledge a long history of official 
depredations and ill-conceived policies by the U.S. Government 
regarding Indian tribes, S. 297, the Federal Acknowledgment 
Process Reform Act of 2003, S. 1529, the Indian Gaming 
Regulatory Act Amendments of 2003, S. 1696, a bill to amend the 
Indian Self-Determination and Education Assistance Act to 
provide further self-governance by Indian tribes, S. 1715, the 
Department of the Interior Tribal Self Governance Act of 2004, 
S. 2172, a bill to make technical amendments to the provisions 
of the Indian Self Determination and Education Assistance Act 
relating to contract support costs, S. 2277, a bill to amend 
the act of November 2, 1966 [80 Stat. 1112], to allow binding 
arbitration clauses to be included in all contracts affecting 
the land within the Sale River Pima-Maricopa Indian 
Reservation, S. 2436, a bill to reauthorize the Native American 
Programs Act of 1974, and a motion to authorize the chairman to 
issue subpoenas in Regarding Tribal Lobbying Matters.
    June 16, 2004.--Oversight Hearing on No Child Left Behind 
Act.
    June 16, 2004.--Hearing on S. 1996, the Oglala Sioux Tribe 
Angostura Irrigation Project Rehabilitation and Development 
Act.
    June 23, 2004.--Business Meeting on S.J. Res. 37, a 
resolution to acknowledge a long history of official 
depredations and ill-conceived policies by the U.S. Government 
regarding Indian tribes; and S. 1996, the Oglala Sioux Tribe 
Angostura Irrigation Project Rehabilitation and Development 
Act.
    June 23, 2004.--Oversight Hearing on Indian Tribal 
Detention Facilities.
    July 20, 2004.--Hearing on S. 2605, the Nez Perce Water 
Rights Act of 2004.
    July 21, 2004.--Business Meeting on Issuance of Additional 
Subpoenas in Re Tribal Lobbying Matters; S. 2301, the Native 
American Fish and Wildlife Resources Management Act of 2004; 
and S. 2382, the Native American Connectivity Act.
    July 21, 2004.--Hearing on S. 519, the Native American 
Capital Formation and Economic Development Act of 2003.
    July 21, 2004.--Oversight Hearing on pending legislation to 
reauthorize the Indian Health Care Improvement Act.
    September 22, 2004.--Business Meeting on S. 1438, S. 2605, 
and S. 556.
    September 22, 2004.--Oversight Hearing on the Contributions 
of Native American Codetalkers in American Military History.
    September 29, 2004.--Business Meeting on S. 519, the Native 
American Capital Formation and Economic Development Act of 
2003, S. 1905, the Rural Teacher Housing Act of 2004, and S. 
2843, the Native American Technical Corrections Act of 2004,
    September 29, 2004.--Oversight Hearing on Lobbying 
Practices Involving Indian Tribes.
    November 17, 2004.--Business Meeting on S. 2734, the Indian 
Tribal Detention Facility Reform Act of 2004.
    November 17, 2004.--Oversight Hearing on lobbying practices 
involving Indian tribes.
    November 18, 2004.--Oversight Hearing on the water problems 
on the Standing rock Sioux Reservation.
    December 8, 2004.--Oversight Hearing on the Native Graves 
Protection and Repatriation Act.

                                    
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