[Congressional Record Volume 146, Number 64 (Monday, May 22, 2000)]
[House]
[Pages H3481-H3482]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




               KAKE TRIBAL CORPORATION LAND TRANSFER ACT

  Mr. YOUNG of Alaska. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and 
pass the Senate bill (S. 430) to amend the Alaska Native Claims 
Settlement Act to provide for a land exchange between the Secretary of 
Agriculture and the Kake Tribal Corporation, and for other purposes, as 
amended.
  The Clerk read as follows:

                                 S. 430

       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 ``Kake Tribal Corporation Land 
     Transfer Act''.

     SEC. 2. DECLARATION OF PURPOSE.

       The purpose of this Act is to authorize the reallocation of 
     lands and selection rights between the State of Alaska, Kake 
     Tribal Corporation, and the City of Kake, Alaska, in order to 
     provide for the protection and management of the municipal 
     watershed.

     SEC. 3. AMENDMENT OF ALASKA NATIVE CLAIMS SETTLEMENT ACT.

       The Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act (43 U.S.C. 1601 
     note) is amended by adding at the end the following new 
     section:


                ``KAKE TRIBAL CORPORATION LAND TRANSFER

       ``Sec. 42. (a) In General.--If--
       ``(1) the State of Alaska relinquishes its selection rights 
     under the Alaska Statehood Act (Public Law 85-508) to lands 
     described in subsection (c)(2) of this section; and
       ``(2) Kake Tribal Corporation and Sealaska Corporation 
     convey all right, title, and interest to lands described in 
     subsection (c)(1) to the City of Kake, Alaska,

     then the Secretary of Agriculture (hereinafter referred to as 
     `Secretary') shall, not later than 180 days thereafter, 
     convey to Kake Tribal Corporation title to the surface estate 
     in the land identified in subsection (c)(2) of this section, 
     and convey to Sealaska Corporation title to the subsurface 
     estate in such land.
       ``(b) Effect on Selection Totals.--(1) Of the lands to 
     which the State of Alaska relinquishes selection rights and 
     which are conveyed to the City of Kake pursuant to subsection 
     (a), 694.5 acres shall be charged against lands to be 
     selected by the State of Alaska under section 6(a) of the 
     Alaska Statehood Act and 694.5 acres against lands to be 
     selected by the State of Alaska under section 6(b) of the 
     Alaska Statehood Act.
       ``(2) The land conveyed to Kake Tribal Corporation and to 
     Sealaska Corporation under this section is, for all purposes, 
     considered to be land conveyed under this Act. However, the 
     conveyance of such land to Kake Tribal Corporation shall not 
     count against or otherwise affect the Corporation's remaining 
     entitlement under section 16(b).
       ``(c) Lands Subject to Exchange.--(1) The lands to be 
     transferred to the City of Kake under subsection (a) are the 
     surface and subsurface estate to approximately 1,430 acres of 
     land owned by Kake Tribal Corporation and Sealaska 
     Corporation, and depicted as `KTC Land to City of Kake' on 
     the map entitled `Kake Land Exchange-2000', dated May 2000.
       ``(2) The lands subject to relinquishment by the State of 
     Alaska and to conveyance to Kake Tribal Corporation and 
     Sealaska Corporation under subsection (a) are the surface and 
     subsurface estate to approximately 1389 acres of Federal 
     lands depicted as `Jenny Creek-Land Selected by the State of 
     Alaska to KTC' on the map entitled `Kake Land Exchange-2000', 
     dated May 2000.
       ``(3) In addition to the transfers authorized under 
     subsection (a), the Secretary may acquire from Sealaska 
     Corporation the subsurface estate to approximately 1,127 
     acres of land depicted as `KTC Land-Conservation Easement to 
     SEAL Trust' on the map entitled `Kake Land Exchange-2000', 
     dated May 2000, through a land exchange for the subsurface 
     estate to approximately 1,168 acres of Federal land in 
     southeast Alaska that is under the administrative 
     jurisdiction of the Secretary. Any exchange under this 
     paragraph shall be subject to the mutual consent of the 
     United States Forest Service and Sealaska Corporation.
       ``(d) Withdrawal.--Subject to valid existing rights, the 
     lands described in subsection (c)(2) are withdrawn from all 
     forms of location, entry, and selection under the mining and 
     public land laws of the United States and from leasing under 
     the mineral and geothermal leasing laws. This withdrawal 
     expires 18 months after the effective date of this section.
       ``(e) Maps.--The maps referred to in this Act shall be 
     maintained on file in the Office of the Chief, United States 
     Forest Service, the Office of the Secretary of the Interior, 
     and the Office of the Petersburg Ranger District, Alaska.
       ``(f) Watershed Management.--The United States Forest 
     Service may cooperate with Kake Tribal Corporation and the 
     City of Kake in developing a watershed management plan that 
     provides for the protection of the watershed in the public 
     interest. Grants may be made, and contracts and cooperative 
     agreements may be entered into, to the extent necessary to 
     assist the City of Kake and Kake Tribal Corporation in the 
     preparation and implementation of a watershed management plan 
     for the land within the City of Kake's municipal watershed.
       ``(g) Effective Date.--This section is effective upon the 
     execution of one or more conservation easements that, subject 
     to valid existing rights of third parties--
       ``(1) encumber all lands depicted as `KTC Land to City of 
     Kake' and `KTC Land-Conservation Easement to SEAL Trust' on a 
     map entitled `Kake Land Exchange-2000' dated May 2000;
       ``(2) provide for the relinquishment by Kake Tribal 
     Corporation of the Corporation's development rights on lands 
     described in paragraph (1); and
       ``(3) provide for perpetual protection and management of 
     lands depicted as `KTC Land to City of Kake' and `KTC Land-
     Conservation Easement to SEAL Trust' on the map described in 
     paragraph (1) as--
       ``(A) a watershed;
       ``(B) a municipal drinking water source in accordance with 
     the laws of the State of Alaska;
       ``(C) a source of fresh water for the Gunnuk Creek 
     Hatchery; and
       ``(D) habitat for black bear, deer, birds, and other 
     wildlife.
       ``(h) Timber Manufacturing; Export Restriction.--
     Notwithstanding any other provision of law, timber harvested 
     from lands conveyed to Kake Tribal Corporation under this 
     section shall not be available for export as unprocessed logs 
     from Alaska, nor may Kake Tribal Corporation sell, trade, 
     exchange, substitute, or otherwise convey such timber to any 
     person for the purpose of exporting that timber from the 
     State of Alaska.
       ``(i) Authorization of Appropriations.--There are 
     authorized such sums as may be necessary to carry out this 
     Act, including to compensate Kake Tribal Corporation for 
     relinquishing its development rights pursuant to subsection 
     (g)(2) and to provide assistance to Kake Tribal Corporation 
     to meet the requirements of subsection (h). No funds 
     authorized under this section may be paid to Kake Tribal 
     Corporation unless Kake Tribal Corporation is a party to the 
     conservation easements described in subsection (g).''.

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from 
Alaska (Mr. Young) and the gentleman from Guam (Mr. Underwood) each 
will control 20 minutes.

[[Page H3482]]

  The Chair recognizes the gentleman from Alaska (Mr. Young).


                             General Leave

  Mr. YOUNG of Alaska. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all 
Members may have 5 legislative days within which to revise and extend 
their remarks and include extraneous material on S. 430.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the 
gentleman from Alaska?
  There was no objection.
  Mr. YOUNG of Alaska. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may 
consume.
  Mr. Speaker, S. 430 provides for a land exchange to resolve a problem 
faced by a town in Tongass National Forest. The Committee on Resources 
favorably reported S. 430 with an amendment. The bill under 
consideration today contains further changes to the reported bill.
  The purpose of S. 430 is to protect the watershed of the City of 
Kake, Alaska, and to maintain the value of private native lands that 
form this watershed. The watershed lands are owned by the Kake Tribal 
Corporation, an Alaska Native Corporation.
  Kake Tribal owns about 2,500 acres of land forming the watershed for 
a creek that supplies the city residents a fish hatchery with clean, 
fresh water.
  The property has valuable timber, but its location on the watershed 
has persuaded the corporation's board of directors not to authorize 
logging it, in keeping with the wishes of the city residents.
  Last year, the Kake Tribal Corporation filed for bankruptcy, the 
victim of a controversial lawsuit. As a result, the board may have to 
log the watershed to pay anxious creditors.
  Alaska strongly supports timber harvest, but only when it makes 
sense. While the city of Kake has made it clear that logging should not 
occur on the municipal watershed, the corporation finds itself in a no-
win situation and may have to log the property because of the 
bankruptcy.
  S. 430, as supported by the Committee on Resources, offers a 
reasonable solution. The bill authorizes a land exchange, in 
combination with a conservation easement, to fulfill three basic 
purposes: protect the watershed lands from harmful development, 
maintain the full value of the Kake Natives' lands and interest, and 
enable them to generate revenues in a way that should satisfy its 
creditors.
  This bill is the product of lengthy negotiation and the gentleman 
from California (Mr. George Miller), ranking Democrat, and his staff; 
and I would commend all of them for their sound advice and assistance.
  S. 430 is a practical solution to a present problem affecting a small 
town in the Nation's largest national forest. I urge its passage.
  Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. UNDERWOOD. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may 
consume.
  (Mr. UNDERWOOD asked and was given permission to revise and extend 
his remarks.)
  Mr. UNDERWOOD. Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of the legislation as 
amended by the Committee on Resources. At issue here is a bankrupt 
Alaska Native village corporation which is unable to log 2,500 acres of 
its lands which are adjacent to the community of Kake in southeast 
Alaska. Most of the corporation's 23,000-plus acres of lands have 
already been intensely logged, and the remaining uncut lands provide 
the watershed for the Kake residents and habitat for salmon and black 
bears.
  In settlement of the 1984 lawsuit brought because logging operations 
were polluting the community's drinking water, the Kake Corporation and 
the city of Kake agreed not to allow additional logging in the 
watershed lands.
  As passed by the Senate, S. 430 would have forced the Forest Service 
to exchange additional lands from the Tongass National Forest to the 
Kake Corporation. The administration has opposed this legislation. We 
share their concerns and do not think that the national forest should 
serve as a land bank to be drawn upon whenever Native corporations face 
financial problems and want new Federal lands containing old-growth 
timber.
  But this bill has been greatly improved by the committee amendment 
and working closely together.
  Instead of Tongass National Forest lands being conveyed out of public 
ownership as set forth in the Senate bill, the State of Alaska will now 
participate in the resolution of a local problem by exchanging State 
selected lands with the Kake Corporation.
  The 1,430 acres obtained from Kake Corporation will, in turn, be 
transferred by the State of Alaska to the city of Kake to protect the 
municipal watershed. The amended bill also authorizes the purchase 
using funds to be appropriated by Congress of a conservation easement 
for an additional 1,127 acres of Kake Corporation-owned lands within 
the municipal watershed.
  Under the conservation easement, these lands would be managed by the 
Southeast Alaska Land Trust to assure clean drinking water for the 
residents of Kake and to provide a fish and wildlife reserve for black 
bear and salmon.
  Mr. Speaker, I especially want to recognize the gentleman from Alaska 
(Mr. Young), the chairman of the Committee on Resources, for his 
pragmatic approach in this legislation.
  The Kake Tribal Corporation, the U.S. Forest Service, Alaska Governor 
Tony Knowles, and the Southeast Alaska Conservation Council all deserve 
credit for their efforts to negotiate a constructive resolution in this 
matter.
  I urge all Members to support S. 430, as amended.
  Mr. Speaker, I have no requests for time, and I yield back the 
balance of my time.
  Mr. YOUNG of Alaska. 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 Alaska (Mr. Young) that the House suspend the rules and 
pass the Senate bill, S. 430, as amended.
  The question was taken; and (two-thirds having voted in favor 
thereof) the rules were suspended and the Senate bill, as amended, was 
passed.
  A motion to reconsider was laid on the table.

  

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