[Congressional Record Volume 142, Number 135 (Thursday, September 26, 1996)]
[House]
[Pages H11262-H11263]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




           PRAIRIE ISLAND INDIAN COMMUNITY CHARTER REVOCATION

  Mr. SAXTON. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and concur in 
the Senate amendment to the bill (H.R. 3068) to accept the request of 
the Prairie Island Indian Community to revoke their charter of 
incorporation issued under the Indian Reorganization Act.
  The Clerk read as follows:

       Senate Amendment: Strike out all after the enacting clause 
     and insert:

     SECTION 1. REVOCATION OF CHARTER OF INCORPORATION OF THE 
                   PRAIRIE ISLAND INDIAN COMMUNITY UNDER THE 
                   INDIAN REORGANIZATION ACT.

       (a) Acceptance of Request To Revoke Charter.--The request 
     of the Prairie Island Indian Community to surrender the 
     charter of incorporation issued to that community on July 23, 
     1937, pursuant to section 17 of the Act of June 18, 1934, 
     commonly known as the ``Indian Reorganization Act'' (48 Stat. 
     988, chapter 576; 25 U.S.C. 477) is hereby accepted.
       (b) Revocation of Chapter.--The charter of incorporation 
     referred to in subsection (a) is hereby revoked.

     SEC. 2. AMENDMENT TO THE JICARILLA APACHE TRIBE WATER RIGHTS 
                   SETTLEMENT ACT.

       Section 8(e)(3) The Jicarilla Apache Tribe Water Rights 
     Settlement Act (106 Stat. 2241) is amended by striking 
     ``December 31, 1996'' and inserting ``December 31, 1998''.

     SEC. 3. AMENDMENT TO THE SAN CARLOS APACHE TRIBE WATER RIGHTS 
                   SETTLEMENT ACT OF 1992.

       Section 3711(b)(1) of the San Carlos Apache Tribe Water 
     Rights Settlement Act of 1992 (106 Stat. 4752) is amended by 
     striking ``December 31, 1996'' and inserting ``June 30, 
     1997''.

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from New 
Jersey [Mr. Saxton] and the gentleman from American Samoa [Mr. 
Faleomavaega] each will control 20 minutes.
  The Chair recognizes the gentleman from New Jersey [Mr. Saxton].
  Mr. SAXTON. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
  (Mr. SAXTON asked and was given permission to revise and extend his 
remarks.)

[[Page H11263]]

  Mr. SAXTON. Mr. Speaker, H.R. 3068 was passed by the House on May 16, 
amended by the other body on September 19, and sent back to us for 
further action.
  The amendment added by the other body consists of section 2 and 
section 3.
  Section 2 would amend the Jicarilla Apache Tribe Water Rights 
Settlement Act by extending, for 2 years, the time during which the 
tribe, the State of New Mexico, and other parties to the suit must work 
out various details to this water settlement and have those details 
included in a court decree adjudicating the water rights in question.
  Section 2 of H.R. 3068 is important, is fair, and should be supported 
by the House.
  Section 3, added by amendment by the other body, would amend the San 
Carlos Apache Tribe Water Rights Settlement Act of 1992 by extending to 
June 30, 1997, the date for the parties to this settlement to reach 
agreement on certain matters which are part of that settlement.
  This amendment to H.R. 3068 is important, is fair, and should be 
supported by the House.
  In summary, Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to vote ``yes'' on H.R. 
3068, as amended by the other body.

                              {time}  1345

  Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. FALEOMAVAEGA. Mr. Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the distinguished 
gentleman from New Mexico [Mr. Richardson].
  (Mr. RICHARDSON asked and was given permission to revise and extend 
his remarks.)
  Mr. RICHARDSON. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman for yielding me 
time, and commend the subcommittee for this good piece of legislation, 
which has, in my judgment, been made more important by the addition of 
the Jicarilla Water Rights Settlement Act, because this is a provision 
that affects one of the tribes in my congressional district.
  The Senate Indian Affairs Committee added this provision extending 
the water rights settlement of the Jicarilla by 2 years. So what we 
have is an ability for the tribe now to have access to water and water 
settlement funds under the act, and with this provision. This is 
contingent upon dismissal of actions by the tribe against the U.S. 
Government and a waiver of the tribe's reserve water rights claims in 
State courts with respect to the Rio Chama and San Juan Rivers.
  This bill also requires the U.S. Government and the State of New 
Mexico to enter into partial final decrees by December 31, 1996. State 
court proceedings have been delayed, however, and all parties, that is, 
the tribe, the U.S. Government and the State, requested a 2-year 
extension to finalize the settlement.
  This has been an important settlement. It needs to be settled. More 
time is needed. Hopefully these 2 years will avoid litigation in the 
future, for the Jicarilla's water rights are critically important. For 
the State of New Mexico this is a paramount issue, and for the Federal 
Government, we are getting a good bang for the buck. So this is a good 
bill, and it has been enhanced, in my judgment, by this Senate 
amendment, which extends the Jicarilla Water Rights Act by 2 years.

  Mr. SAXTON. Mr. Speaker, I yield such time as he may consume to the 
gentleman from Rochester, MN [Mr. Gutknecht].
  Mr. GUTKNECHT. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman from New Jersey for 
yielding me time.
  Mr. Speaker, today, I am pleased that the House is giving final 
consideration to a H.R. 3068, a bill to repeal the corporate charter of 
the Prairie Island Dakota Community in Minnesota. The Senate added two 
noncontroversal amendments to this bill which extend the deadline to 
complete water rights settlements for tribes in New Mexico and Arizona.
  The Prairie Island Tribe contacted me last June requesting revocation 
of their 1934 charter. By law, revoking this 62-year-old document can 
only be done by an act of Congress.
  In its entire tribal government history, Prairie Island has never 
used its corporate charter in the management of its enterprises.
  H.R. 3068 passed the House and Senate by voice vote. The bill 
acknowledges that the people of Prairie Island know best how to handle 
their business activities. It is another example of this Congress 
sending control back to local communities, and I am proud to be part of 
that process.
  Mr. FALEOMAVAEGA. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may 
consume.
  (Mr. FALEOMAVAEGA asked and was given permission to revise and extend 
his remarks.)
  Mr. FALEOMAVAEGA. Mr. Speaker, I, too, support this bill and urge its 
passage. We revisit this bill a second time because of two 
noncontroversial Senate amendments to our original bill which passed 
this House under suspension of rules on May 22 of this year.
  This bill takes the long overdue step of revoking the Prairie Island 
Indian community of Minnesota's Federal charter of incorporation issued 
under the archaic Indian Reorganization Act [IRA] in 1937. We take this 
step because only Congress can revoke this charter. Congress created 
the IRA in an attempt to remake tribal governments by giving them 
boilerplate constitutions and bylaws including provisions allowing 
tribal councils to conduct business enterprises pursuant to charters 
issued under section 17 of the IRA. The tribe received its charter in 
1937. The charter has proven to be more of a hindrance than a help. For 
instance, the charter prevents the tribe from entering into contracts 
of more than $100 without secretarial approval. Basically, the charter 
is outmoded, burdensome, and more a vestige of 1930's paternalism than 
the current Federal policy of self-determination. Thus, the tribe has 
asked us to revoke their charter and we do so today.
  The Senate Indian Affairs Committee added a provision extending the 
Jicarilla Water Rights Settlement Act of 1992 by 2 years. The tribe's 
access to water and settlement funds under the act are contingent upon 
dismissal of actions by the tribe against the United States and a 
waiver of the tribe's reserved water rights claims in State courts with 
respect to the Rio Chama and San Juan Rivers. The act also requires the 
United States and New Mexico to enter into partial final decrees by 
December 31, 1996. State court proceedings have been delayed, however, 
and all parties--the tribe, the United States and the State--request a 
2-year extension to finalize the settlement.
  The Senate Indian Affairs Committee also added a provision extending 
the San Carlos Apache Water Rights Settlement Act of 1992 by 6 months. 
The 1992 act imposed a deadline of December 31, 1995, for completion of 
agreements between the tribe and other parties. Because the tribe, the 
city of Globe, AZ, and the Phelps Dodge Corp. had not reached an 
agreement by the deadline, Congress extended the settlement deadline by 
1 year, to December 31, 1996, earlier this session--Pub. Law 104-91 
(H.R. 1358). Unfortunately, the parties have still not reached an 
agreement and have asked for an additional extension of 6 months, until 
June 30, 1997. The administration supports this request.
  These amendments have our support and will assist these tribes in 
furthering their own economic self-dependence and help settle 
longstanding water disputes. Again, I urge my colleagues to support 
these measures.
  Mr. Speaker, I have no further requests for time, and I yield back 
the balance of my time.
  Mr. SAXTON. Mr. Speaker, I have no further requests for time, and I 
yield back the balance of my time.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The question is on the motion offered by the 
gentleman from New Jersey [Mr. Saxton] that the House suspend the rules 
and concur in the Senate amendment to the bill, H.R. 3068.
  The question was taken; and (two-thirds having voted in favor 
thereof) the rules were suspended and the Senate amendment was 
concurred in.
  A motion to reconsider was laid on the table.

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