[Congressional Record Volume 145, Number 64 (Wednesday, May 5, 1999)]
[Senate]
[Pages S4801-S4803]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]

      By Mr. DASCHLE:
  S. 964. A bill to provide for equitable compensation for the Cheyenne 
River Sioux Tribe, and for other purposes; to the Committee on Indian 
Affairs.


  CHEYENNE RIVER SIOUX TRIBE INFRASTRUCTURE DEVELOPMENT TRUST FUND ACT

  Mr. DASCHLE. Mr. President, today I am introducing legislation to 
compensate the Cheyenne River Sioux Tribe for losses the tribe suffered 
when the Oahe dam was constructed in central South Dakota and over 
100,000 acres of tribal land was flooded. Its passage will help the 
tribe rebuild their infrastructure and their economy, which was 
seriously crippled by the Oahe project during the 1950s. It is 
extraordinary that it has taken four decades to reach this point. The 
importance of passing this long-overdue legislation as soon as possible 
cannot be stated too strongly.
  This legislation was developed with the assistance of Chairman Gregg

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Bourland and Council Member Louis Dubray of the Cheyenne River Sioux 
Tribe. Both men have worked tirelessly to bring us to this point and I 
am grateful for their assistance. This legislation represents one 
element of their progressive vision for providing the members of the 
Cheyenne River Sioux Tribe with greater opportunities for economic 
development and to fulfill the debts owned to the tribe by the federal 
government.
  The Cheyenne River Sioux Tribe Equitable Compensation Act is the 
companion bill to the Lower Brule Sioux Tribe Infrastructure 
Development Trust Fund Act, which passed by unanimous consent in 
November of 1997, and the Crow Creek Sioux Tribe Infrastructure 
Development Trust Fund Act of 1996, which passed the Congress 
unanimously in 1996.
  The bill is based on an extensive analysis of the imp[act of the 
Pick-Sloan Dam Projects on the Cheyenne River Sioux Tribe which was 
performed by the Robert McLaughlin Company. The McLaughlin report was 
reviewed by the General Accounting Office, which found that the losses 
suffered by the tribe justify the establishment of a $290 million trust 
fund, which is the amount called for in this legislation.
  It represents an important step in our continuing effort to fairly 
compensate the tribes of South Dakota for the sacrifices they made 
decades ago for the construction of the dams along the Missouri River 
and will further the goal of improving the lives of Native Americans 
living on those reservations.
  To fully appreciate the need for this legislation, it is important 
for the committee to understand the historic events that are prologue 
to its development. The Oahe dam was constructed in South Dakota 
pursuant to the Flood Control Act (58 Stat. 887) of 1944. That 
legislation authorized implementation of the Missouri River Basin Pick-
Sloan Plan for water development and flood control for downstream 
states.
  The Oahe dam flooded 104,000 acres of tribal land, forcing the 
relocation of roughly 30 percent of the tribe's population, including 
four entire communities. Equally as important, the tribe lost 80 
percent of its fertile river bottom lands--lands that represented the 
basis for the tribal economy. Prior to the flooding, the tribe relied 
on these lands for firewood and building material, game wild fruits and 
berries, as well as cover from the severe storms that characterize 
winters in South Dakota and shelter from the heat of the prairie 
summer. Indian ranchers no longer had places to shelter their cattle in 
the wintertime, causing a significant loss in the value of their 
operations.

  The loss of these important river bottom lands can be felt today. 
During the extreme winter of 1996-1997, the tribe lost roughly 30,000 
head of livestock, including 25,000 head of cattle. Without adequate 
natural shelter, the remaining Indian ranchers along this stretch of 
river can expect to continue to have difficulty scratching out a living 
in future years when the winter turns particularly hard.
  Mr. President, the damage caused by the Pick-Sloan projects touched 
every aspect of life on the Cheyenne River reservation. Ninety percent 
of the timber on the reservation was wiped out, causing shortages of 
building material and firewood. Wildlife, once abundant in the river 
bottom, became more scarce. The entire lifestyle of the tribe changed 
as it was forced to relocate much of its people from the lush river 
bottom lands to the windswept prairie.
  Most Americans, if not all, are familiar with the many broken 
promises of the United States Government to Native Americans during the 
1800's. For Indian tribes located along the Missouri River in the state 
of South Dakota, the United States Government still has not met its 
responsibilities for compensation for losses suffered as a result of 
the construction of the Pick-Sloan dams. This proposed legislation is 
intended to correct that situation as it applies to the Cheyenne River 
Sioux Tribe.
  We cannot, of course, remake the lost lands and return the tribe to 
its former existence. We can, however, help provide the resources 
necessary to the tribe to improve the infrastructure on the Cheyenne 
River reservation. This, in turn, will enhance opportunities for 
economic development which will benefit all members of the tribe. 
Perhaps most importantly, it will fulfill part of our commitment to 
improve the lives of Native Americans--in this case the Cheyenne River 
Sioux.
  I strongly urge my colleagues to approve this legislation this year. 
Providing compensation to the Cheyenne River Sioux Tribe for past harm 
inflicted by the federal government is long-overdue and any further 
delay only compounds that harm. I ask unanimous consent that the bill 
be printed in the Record.
  There being no objection, the bill was ordered to be printed in the 
Record, as follows:

                                 S. 964

       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 ``Cheyenne River Sioux Tribe 
     Equitable Compensation Act''.

     SEC. 2. FINDINGS AND PURPOSES.

       (a) Findings.--Congress finds that--
       (1) by enacting the Act of December 22, 1944, (58 Stat. 
     887, chapter 665; 33 U.S.C. 701-1 et seq.), commonly known as 
     the ``Flood Control Act of 1944'', Congress approved the 
     Pick-Sloan Missouri River Basin program (referred to in this 
     section as the ``Pick-Sloan program'')--
       (A) to promote the general economic development of the 
     United States;
       (B) to provide for irrigation above Sioux City, Iowa;
       (C) to protect urban and rural areas from devastating 
     floods of the Missouri River; and
       (D) for other purposes;
       (2) the Oahe Dam and Reservoir project--
       (A) is a major component of the Pick-Sloan program, and 
     contributes to the economy of the United States by generating 
     a substantial amount of hydropower and impounding a 
     substantial quantity of water;
       (B) overlies the eastern boundary of the Cheyenne River 
     Sioux Indian Reservation; and
       (C) has not only contributed little to the economy of the 
     Tribe, but has severely damaged the economy of the Tribe and 
     members of the Tribe by inundating the fertile, wooded bottom 
     lands of the Tribe along the Missouri River that constituted 
     the most productive agricultural and pastoral lands of the 
     Tribe and the homeland of the members of the Tribe;
       (3) the Secretary of the Interior appointed a Joint Tribal 
     Advisory Committee that examined the Oahe Dam and Reservoir 
     project and correctly concluded that--
       (A) the Federal Government did not justify, or fairly 
     compensate the Tribe for, the Oahe Dam and Reservoir project 
     when the Federal Government acquired 104,492 acres of land of 
     the Tribe for that project; and
       (B) the Tribe should be adequately compensated for the land 
     acquisition described in subparagraph (A);
       (4) after applying the same method of analysis as is used 
     for the compensation of similarly situated Indian tribes, the 
     Comptroller General of the United States (referred to in this 
     Act as the ``Comptroller General'') determined that the 
     appropriate amount of compensation to pay the Tribe for the 
     land acquisition described in paragraph (3)(A) would be 
     $290,722,958;
       (5) the Tribe is entitled to receive additional financial 
     compensation for the land acquisition described in paragraph 
     (3)(A) in a manner consistent with the determination of the 
     Comptroller General described in paragraph (4); and
       (6) the establishment of a trust fund to make amounts 
     available to the Tribe under this Act is consistent with the 
     principles of self-governance and self-determination.
       (b) Purposes.--The purposes of this Act are as follows:
       (1) To provide for additional financial compensation to the 
     Tribe for the acquisition by the Federal Government of 
     104,492 acres of land of the Tribe for the Oahe Dam and 
     Reservoir project in a manner consistent with the 
     determinations of the Comptroller General described in 
     subsection (a)(4).
       (2) To provide for the establishment of the Cheyenne River 
     Sioux Tribal Recovery Fund, to be managed by the Secretary of 
     the Treasury in order to make payments to the Tribe to carry 
     out projects under a plan prepared by the Tribe.

     SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS.

       In this Act:
       (1) Tribe.--The term ``Tribe'' means the Cheyenne River 
     Sioux Tribe, which is comprised of the Itazipco, Siha Sapa, 
     Minniconjou, and Oohenumpa bands of the Great Sioux Nation 
     that reside on the Cheyenne Reservation, located in central 
     South Dakota.
       (2) Tribal council.--The term ``Tribal Council'' means the 
     governing body of the Tribe.

     SEC. 4. CHEYENNE RIVER SIOUX TRIBAL RECOVERY TRUST FUND.

       (a) Cheyenne River Sioux Tribal Recovery Trust Fund.--There 
     is established in the Treasury of the United States a fund to 
     be known as the ``Cheyenne River Sioux Tribal Recovery Trust 
     Fund'' (referred to in this Act as the ``Fund''). The Fund 
     shall consist of any amounts deposited into the Fund under 
     this Act.
       (b) Funding.--Out of any money in the Treasury not 
     otherwise appropriated, the

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     Secretary of the Treasury shall deposit $290,722,958 into the 
     Fund not later than 60 days after the date of enactment of 
     this Act.
       (c) Investment of Trust Fund.--It shall be the duty of the 
     Secretary of the Treasury to invest such portion of the Fund 
     as is not, in the Secretary of Treasury's judgment, required 
     to meet current withdrawals. Such investments may be made 
     only in interest-bearing obligations of the United States or 
     in obligations guaranteed as to both principal and interest 
     by the United States. The Secretary of the Treasury shall 
     deposit interest resulting from such investments into the 
     Fund.
       (d) Payment of Interest to Tribe.--
       (1) In general.--
       (A) Withdrawal of interest.--Beginning at the end of the 
     first fiscal year in which interest is deposited into the 
     Fund, the Secretary of the Treasury shall withdraw the 
     applicable percentage amount of the aggregate amount of 
     interest deposited into the Fund for that fiscal year (as 
     determined under subparagraph (B)) and transfer that amount 
     to the Secretary of the Interior for use in accordance with 
     paragraph (2). Each amount so transferred shall be available 
     without fiscal year limitation.
       (B) Applicable percentage amounts.--The applicable 
     percentage amount referred to in subparagraph (A) shall be as 
     follows:
       (i) 10 percent for the first fiscal year for which interest 
     is deposited into the Fund.
       (ii) 20 percent for the 2d such fiscal year.
       (iii) 30 percent for the 3rd such fiscal year.
       (iv) 40 percent for the 4th such fiscal year.
       (v) 50 percent for the 5th such fiscal year.
       (vi) 60 percent for the 6th such fiscal year.
       (vii) 70 percent for the 7th such fiscal year.
       (viii) 80 percent for the 8th such fiscal year.
       (ix) 90 percent for the 9th such fiscal year.
       (x) 100 percent for the 10th such fiscal year, and for each 
     such fiscal year thereafter.
       (2) Payments to tribe.--
       (A) In general.--The Secretary of the Interior shall use 
     the amounts transferred under paragraph (1) only for the 
     purpose of making payments to the Tribe, as such payments are 
     requested by the Tribe pursuant to tribal resolution.
       (B) Limitation.--Payments may be made by the Secretary of 
     the Interior under subparagraph (A) only after the Tribe has 
     adopted a plan under subsection (f).
       (C) Use of payments by tribe.--The Tribe shall use the 
     payments made under subparagraph (B) only for carrying out 
     projects and programs under the plan prepared under 
     subsection (f).
       (D) Pledge of future payments.--
       (i) In general.--Subject to clause (ii), the Tribe may 
     enter into an agreement under which the Tribe pledges future 
     payments under this paragraph as security for a loan or other 
     financial transaction.
       (ii) Limitations.--The Tribe--

       (I) may enter into an agreement under clause (i) only in 
     connection with the purchase of land or other capital assets; 
     and
       (II) may not pledge, for any year under an agreement 
     referred to in clause (i), an amount greater than 40 percent 
     of any payment under this paragraph for that year.

       (e) Transfers and Withdrawals.--Except as provided in 
     subsections (c) and (d)(1), the Secretary of the Treasury may 
     not transfer or withdraw any amount deposited under 
     subsection (b).
       (f) Plan.--
       (1) In general.--Not later than 18 months after the date of 
     enactment of this Act, the governing body of the Tribe shall 
     prepare a plan for the use of the payments to the Tribe under 
     subsection (d) (referred to in this subsection as the 
     ``plan'').
       (2) Contents of plan.--The plan shall provide for the 
     manner in which the Tribe shall expend payments to the Tribe 
     under subsection (d) to promote--
       (A) economic development;
       (B) infrastructure development;
       (C) the educational, health, recreational, and social 
     welfare objectives of the Tribe and its members; or
       (D) any combination of the activities described in 
     subparagraphs (A) through (C).
       (3) Plan review and revision.--
       (A) In general.--The Tribal Council shall make available 
     for review and comment by the members of the Tribe a copy of 
     the plan before the plan becomes final, in accordance with 
     procedures established by the Tribal Council.
       (B) Updating of plan.--The Tribal Council may, on an annual 
     basis, revise the plan to update the plan. In revising the 
     plan under this subparagraph, the Tribal Council shall 
     provide the members of the Tribe opportunity to review and 
     comment on any proposed revision to the plan.
       (C) Consultation.--In preparing the plan and any revisions 
     to update the plan, the Tribal Council shall consult with the 
     Secretary of the Interior and the Secretary of Health and 
     Human Services.
       (4) Audit.--
       (A) In general.--The activities of the Tribe in carrying 
     out the plan shall be audited as part of the annual single-
     agency audit that the Tribe is required to prepare pursuant 
     to the Office of Management and Budget circular numbered A-
     133.
       (B) Determination by auditors.--The auditors that conduct 
     the audit described in subparagraph (A) shall--
       (i) determine whether funds received by the Tribe under 
     this section for the period covered by the audit were 
     expended to carry out the plan in a manner consistent with 
     this section; and
       (ii) include in the written findings of the audit the 
     determination made under clause (i).
       (C) Inclusion of findings with publication of proceedings 
     of tribal council.--A copy of the written findings of the 
     audit described in subparagraph (A) shall be inserted in the 
     published minutes of the Tribal Council proceedings for the 
     session at which the audit is presented to the Tribal 
     Council.
       (g) Prohibition on Per Capita Payments.--No portion of any 
     payment made under this Act may be distributed to any member 
     of the Tribe on a per capita basis.

     SEC. 5. ELIGIBILITY OF TRIBE FOR CERTAIN PROGRAMS AND 
                   SERVICES.

       No payment made to the Tribe under this Act shall result in 
     the reduction or denial of any service or program with 
     respect to which, under Federal law--
       (1) the Tribe is otherwise entitled because of the status 
     of the Tribe as a federally recognized Indian tribe; or
       (2) any individual who is a member of the Tribe is entitled 
     because of the status of the individual as a member of the 
     Tribe.

     SEC. 6. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.

       There are authorized to be appropriated such funds as may 
     be necessary to carry out this Act, including such funds as 
     may be necessary to cover the administrative expenses of the 
     Fund.
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