[Congressional Record Volume 142, Number 136 (Friday, September 27, 1996)]
[Senate]
[Pages S11561-S11562]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




            NAVAJO-HOPI LAND DISPUTE SETTLEMENT ACT OF 1996

 Mr. McCAIN. Mr. President, I rise today to urge my colleagues 
to support this important legislation which will resolve a longstanding 
dispute between the Hopi Tribe, the Navajo Nation and the United 
States. This legislation marks the culmination of 4 years of mediation 
efforts of the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals involving the Hopi Tribe, 
the Navajo Nation, representatives of the Navajo families residing on 
Hopi partitioned lands, and the U.S. Department of Justice. S. 1973 
provides for the settlement of four claims of the Hopi Tribe against 
the United States and provides the necessary authority to the Hopi 
Tribe to issue 75-year lease agreements to Navajo families residing on 
the Hopi partitioned land. This legislation will ratify the settlement 
and accommodation agreements made by the Department of Justice, the 
Hopi Tribe, the Navajo Nation, and the Navajo families residing on the 
Hopi partitioned lands.
  The settlement marks an important first step in bringing this 
longstanding dispute between the Hopi Tribe, the Navajo Nation, and the 
United States to an orderly and peaceful conclusion. These agreements 
are the product of many, many hours of negotiation under the auspices 
of the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals mediation process. While I 
understand that there are factions in both the Hopi Tribe and the 
Navajo Nation who have voiced their opposition to the settlement, I 
believe that these agreements represent the only realistic way to 
settle the claims of the Hopi Tribe against the United States and to 
provide an accommodation for the hundreds of Navajos residing on Hopi 
partitioned lands.
  I believe it is imperative that the Congress take this step before 
the close of this session in order to bring this longstanding dispute 
to a final resolution. It has been over 22 years since the Navajo-Hopi 
Settlement Act was passed with the intention of settling the disputes 
between the Navajo Nation and the Hopi Tribe. Since that time, the 
Federal Government has spent over $350 million to fund the Navajo-Hopi 
Relocation Program. That funding exceeded the original cost estimates 
by more than 900 percent. And yet, there are over 130 appeals still 
pending, which raises a great deal of uncertainty regarding who is and 
is not eligible for further relocation benefits under the act. I am 
convinced that future Federal budgetary pressures will force closure of 
the Navajo-Hopi Relocation Housing Program. I intend to ensure that 
this be done in an orderly fashion. I will introduce separate 
legislation in the near future that will provide for a measured phase 
out of the Navajo-Hopi Relocation Housing Program in 5 years. As an 
important first step, it is critical that the Congress pass legislation 
to settle the outstanding claims of the Hopi Tribe against the United 
States.
  There are several important clarifications that have been made to the 
legislation as part of our committee's deliberation on the bill. S. 
1973 has been amended to make clear that the Hopi Tribe has the 
authority to renew leases entered into under the settlement for 
additional terms of 75 years. The bill makes clear that the Hopi Tribe 
cannot place land into trust that is located within a 5 mile radius of 
an incorporated town or city in northern Arizona and that prior to 
placing lands into trust for the Hopi Tribe, the Secretary shall 
certify that no more than 15 percent of the eligible Navajo households 
remain on the HPL without having an accommodation agreement with the 
Hopi Tribe. These clarifications will help ensure that this settlement 
will achieve a greater degree of finality.

  Mr. President, I am also proposing several amendments which further 
clarify provisions in the settlement and its potential impacts on 
communities in northern Arizona. The first amendment clarifies that the 
provisions prohibiting the Secretary from taking lands into trust 
within 5 miles of an incorporated town also apply to cities in northern 
Arizona. The second amendment adds a finding to the bill that 
recognizes that the Navajo Nation and the Navajo families did not 
participate in the settlement between the Hopi Tribe and the United 
States. The third amendment adds a new definition for newly acquired 
trust lands. The fourth amendment pertains to the potential impacts of 
the settlement provisions on ongoing water rights negotiations in 
northern Arizona. It would make clear that the settlement agreements 
provisions would not prejudice or adversely impact existing water users 
and more senior water rights holders along the Little Colorado River. 
This provision also makes clear that any water rights covered in the 
settlement agreement are a part of, and bound by, the adjudication of 
the court presiding over the Little Colorado River adjudication. 
Finally, the amendment makes clear that nothing in the Act or the 
amendments made by the act shall preclude, limit, or endorse actions by 
the Navajo Nation to seek, in court, an offset from judgments for 
payments received by the Hopi Tribe.
  It is my understanding that as part of the negotiations on provisions 
in the bill relating to the Little Colorado River adjudication, the 
Hopi Tribe and the city of Flagstaff have commenced discussions to 
resolve the water rights of the city of Flagstaff. I am very

[[Page S11562]]

pleased that the city of Flagstaff has communicated its support for 
this settlement and its desire to work with the Hopi Tribe to resolve 
the outstanding issues related to their respective claims to scarce 
water resources. I am also pleased that the Hopi Tribe has pledged to 
work diligently with the city to resolve these difficult issues. It is 
my hope that both the Hopi Tribe and the city of Flagstaff will be able 
to resolve these issues amicably in the near future. To that end, let 
me assure the parties that I will provide whatever assistance I can in 
working with the Hopi Tribe and the city of Flagstaff to resolve these 
important issues.
  Mr. President, this long overdue legislation marks an important first 
step toward the resolution of the disputes between the Hopi Tribe, the 
Navajo Nation, and the United States which have been the subject of 
over 35 years of litigation and acrimony. For the first time since this 
dispute began, a mechanism will be provided that permits Navajo 
families to legally remain on homesites within the Hopi partitioned 
lands. It is vitally important that Congress pass this legislation in 
order to settle these long-standing claims against the United States 
and to provide an opportunity for many Navajo families to remain on 
their homesites.
  Finally, Mr. President, this legislation is supported by the Navajo 
Nation, the Hopi Tribe, the administration, the State of Arizona, and 
representatives of the Navajo families residing on the Hopi partitioned 
lands. Accordingly, I strongly urge the Senate to pass S. 1973.

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