[Congressional Record Volume 154, Number 69 (Tuesday, April 29, 2008)]
[House]
[Page H2771]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
TUOLUMNE ME-WUK LAND TRANSFER ACT OF 2008
Mr. RAHALL. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the
bill (H.R. 3490) to transfer administrative jurisdiction of certain
Federal lands from the Bureau of Land Management to the Bureau of
Indian Affairs, to take such lands into trust for Tuolumne Band of Me-
Wuk Indians of the Tuolumne Rancheria, and for other purposes, as
amended.
The Clerk read the title of the bill.
The text of the bill is as follows:
H.R. 3490
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 ``Tuolumne Me-Wuk Land
Transfer Act of 2008''.
SEC. 2. FINDINGS.
Congress finds that--
(1) the Tuolumne Band of Me-Wuk Indians of the Tuolumne
Rancheria, California (referred to in this Act as the
``Tribe''), is a federally recognized Indian tribe;
(2) 3 tracts of Federal lands managed by the Bureau of Land
Management are adjacent to the Tuolumne Rancheria of
California, a federally recognized Indian Reservation held in
trust for the benefit of the Tribe;
(3) one such tract is a cemetery within which are buried
the remains of ancestors of the Tribe and other Indians;
(4) another such tract is needed for use by the Tribe for a
cultural center and other public uses of the Tribe;
(5) the remaining tract is needed for use by the Tribe for
agricultural, housing, and open space needs;
(6) none of the foregoing 3 tracts are to be used by the
Tribe for gaming purposes;
(7) certain parcels of lands adjacent to the Tuolumne
Rancheria were taken into trust for the benefit of the Tribe;
and
(8) 2 parcels of fee lands owned by the Tribe and adjacent
to the Tuolumne Rancheria, commonly referred to as the
``Thomas and Coenenburg properties'', have been approved and
are pending transfer into trust status by the Bureau of
Indian Affairs for the benefit of the Tribe.
SEC. 3. LANDS TO BE TAKEN INTO TRUST.
(a) In General.--
(1) Federal lands.--Subject to valid existing rights, all
right, title, and interest (including improvements and
appurtenances) of the United States in and to the Federal
lands described in subsection (b), immediately after the
Secretary of the Interior has confirmed that the National
Environmental Policy Act of 1969 has been complied with
regarding the trust acquisition of those Federal lands, the
Federal lands shall be declared to be held in trust by the
United States for the benefit of the Tribe for nongaming
purposes, and shall be subject to the same terms and
conditions as those lands described in the California Indian
Land Transfer Act of 2000 (title IX, Public Law 106-568; 114
Stat. 2868, 2921).
(2) Trust lands.--Lands described in subsection (c) of this
section that are taken or to be taken in trust by the United
States for the benefit of the Tribe shall be subject to
subsection (c) of section 903 of the California Indian Land
Transfer Act of 2000.
(b) Federal Lands Described.--The Federal lands described
in this subsection, comprising approximately 66 acres, are as
follows:
(1) Township 1 North, Range 16 East, Section 6, Lots 10 and
12, MDM, containing 50.24 acres more or less.
(2) Township 1 North, Range 16 East, Section 5, Lot 16,
MDM, containing 15.35 acres more or less.
(3) Township 2 North, Range 16 East, Section 32, Indian
Cemetery Reservation within Lot 22, MDM, containing 0.4 acres
more or less.
(c) Trust Lands Described.--The trust lands described in
this subsection, comprising approximately 357 acres, are
commonly referred to as follows:
(1) Thomas property, pending trust acquisition, 104.50
acres.
(2) Coenenburg property, pending trust acquisition, 192.70
acres, subject to existing easements of record, including but
not limited to a non-exclusive easement for ingress and
egress for the benefit of adjoining property as conveyed by
Easement Deed recorded July 13, 1984, in Volume 755, Pages
189 to 192, and as further defined by Stipulation and
Judgment entered by Tuolumne County Superior Court on
September 2, 1983, and recorded June 4, 1984, in Volume 751,
Pages 61 to 67.
(3) Assessor Parcel No. 620505300, 1.5 acres, trust land.
(4) Assessor Parcel No. 620505400, 19.23 acres, trust land.
(5) Assessor Parcel No. 620505600, 3.46 acres, trust land.
(6) Assessor Parcel No. 620505700, 7.44 acres, trust land.
(7) Assessor Parcel No. 620401700, 0.8 acres, trust land.
(8) A portion of Assessor Parcel No. 620500200, 2.5 acres,
trust land.
(9) Assessor Parcel No. 620506200, 24.87 acres, trust land.
(d) Survey.--As soon as practicable after the date of the
enactment of this Act, the Office of Cadastral Survey of the
Bureau of Land Management shall complete fieldwork required
for a survey of the lands described in subsections (b) and
(c) for the purpose of incorporating those lands within the
boundaries of the Tuolumne Rancheria. Not later than 90 days
after that fieldwork is completed, that office shall complete
the survey.
(e) Legal Descriptions.--
(1) Publication.--On approval by the Community Council of
the Tribe of the survey completed under subsection (d), the
Secretary of the Interior shall publish in the Federal
Register--
(A) a legal description of the new boundary lines of the
Tuolumne Rancheria; and
(B) a legal description of the land surveyed under
subsection (d).
(2) Effect.--Beginning on the date on which the legal
descriptions are published under paragraph (1), such legal
descriptions shall be the official legal descriptions of
those boundary lines of the Tuolumne Rancheria and the lands
surveyed.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from
West Virginia (Mr. Rahall) and the gentleman from Utah (Mr. Bishop)
each will control 20 minutes.
The Chair recognizes the gentleman from West Virginia.
General Leave
Mr. RAHALL. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may
have 5 legislative days in which to revise and extend their remarks and
include extraneous material on the resolution under consideration.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the
gentleman from West Virginia?
There was no objection.
Mr. RAHALL. Mr. Speaker, this measure introduced by our colleague
from California, George Radanovich, would transfer approximately 66
acres of land from the Bureau of Land Management to the Bureau of
Indian Affairs.
This land would be held in trust for the Tuolumne band of Me-Wuk
Indians of the Tuolumne Rancheria. The BLM land is adjacent to land
held in trust for the tribe or that is owned in fee by the tribe.
Included on this land is a cemetery where the tribe has historically
buried its ancestors.
Other areas of this land would be used for a cultural center,
agricultural activities, housing, and open-space needs. The legislation
prohibits these lands from being used for gaming.
In addition, approximately 357 acres of land which the tribe already
owns would be deemed to be within the tribe's reservation boundaries.
Essentially, the purpose of this legislation is to make this tribe
whole.
I urge my colleagues to support the measure.
I reserve the balance of my time.
Mr. BISHOP of Utah. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may
consume.
Mr. Speaker, H.R. 3490 takes 66 acres of Federal land into trust for
the tribe's existing reservation for nongaming purposes. In addition,
it deems three tracts of adjacent land part of the tribe's reservation
in the Sierra Nevada. The tribe will use the lands to alleviate
overcrowded housing, to build a cultural center, for agriculture, and
for open space. They will also continue to use the land as a cemetery.
Congressman Radanovich should be commended for his work on this bill,
and I urge my colleagues to join the administration in support of this
particular piece of legislation.
I yield back my time.
Mr. RAHALL. I yield back my time.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. The question is on the motion offered by the
gentleman from West Virginia (Mr. Rahall) that the House suspend the
rules and pass the bill, H.R. 3490, as amended.
The question was taken; and (two-thirds being in the affirmative) the
rules were suspended and the bill, as amended, was passed.
A motion to reconsider was laid on the table.
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