[Congressional Record Volume 161, Number 133 (Wednesday, September 16, 2015)]
[House]
[Pages H5993-H5994]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




             MIAMI TRIBE OF OKLAHOMA LAND LEASE OR TRANSFER

  Mr. McCLINTOCK. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the 
bill (H.R. 487) to allow the Miami Tribe of Oklahoma to lease or 
transfer certain lands.
  The Clerk read the title of the bill.
  The text of the bill is as follows:

                                H.R. 487

       Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of 
     the United States of America in Congress assembled,

     SECTION 1. APPROVAL NOT REQUIRED TO VALIDATE LAND 
                   TRANSACTIONS.

       (a) In General.--Notwithstanding any other provision of 
     law, without further approval, ratification, or authorization 
     by the United States, the Miami Tribe of Oklahoma may lease, 
     sell, convey, warrant, or otherwise transfer all or any part 
     of its interests in any real property that is not held in 
     trust by the United States for the benefit of such tribe.
       (b) Trust Land Not Affected.--Nothing in this section 
     shall--
       (1) authorize the Miami Tribe of Oklahoma to lease, sell, 
     convey, warrant, or otherwise transfer all or any part of an 
     interest in any real property that is held in trust by the 
     United States for the benefit of such tribe; or
       (2) affect the operation of any law governing leasing, 
     selling, conveying, warranting, or otherwise transferring any 
     interest in such trust land.

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from 
California (Mr. McClintock) and the gentlewoman from Michigan (Mrs. 
Dingell) each will control 20 minutes.
  The Chair recognizes the gentleman from California.


                             General Leave

  Mr. McCLINTOCK. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members 
may have 5 days to revise and extend their remarks and include 
extraneous materials on the bill under consideration.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the 
gentleman from California?
  There was no objection.
  Mr. McCLINTOCK. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may 
consume.
  Mr. Speaker, H.R. 487 is a noncontroversial, one-page bill that would 
exempt lands held in fee by the Miami Tribe of Oklahoma from the 
limitations imposed by the Indian Nonintercourse Act. According to the 
tribe, these limitations may hinder economic development.
  Specifically, H.R. 487 would allow the tribe to lease, sell, convey, 
warrant, or transfer all or any portion of interest in any real 
property not held in trust for the tribe. The bill also states that the 
legislation does not authorize the tribe to lease, sell, convey, 
warrant, or otherwise transfer all or any portion of any interest in 
any real property that is held in trust.
  In accordance with the expressed wishes of the tribe's leadership, 
Congressman Markwayne Mullin, who represents the tribe in the House, 
sponsored H.R. 487. The Department of the Interior supports this bill, 
which passed the Natural Resources Committee by unanimous consent 
earlier this year.
  I commend my colleague from Oklahoma for his hard work, and I urge my 
colleagues to pass the bill.
  I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mrs. DINGELL. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
  H.R. 487 will allow the Miami Tribe of Oklahoma to effectively manage 
their nontrust lands by providing relief from the Indian Nonintercourse 
Act. The Indian Nonintercourse Act was intended to protect Indian 
tribes by preventing the loss of their lands, except by treaty. 
Historically, the act has generally not interfered with the tribe's 
ability to buy, sell, or lease land that it owns in fee simple.

                              {time}  1530

  But uncertainties raised by the act can be a hindrance when securing 
purchase agreements from outside parties.
  Therefore, relief from the act is at times necessary for a tribe to 
successfully manage their lands and to sell fee

[[Page H5994]]

parcels that are determined to be in excess of the tribe's needs or 
were purchased for investment purposes.
  Mr. Speaker, H.R. 487 would simply allow the Miami Tribe to convey 
all the land that the tribe holds in fee simple without further Federal 
approval to facilitate those future transactions. I agree with the 
goals of this legislation, and I ask my colleagues to support it.
  Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. McCLINTOCK. Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to yield such time as he 
may consume to the gentleman from Oklahoma (Mr. Mullin), the author of 
this measure.
  Mr. MULLIN. Mr. Chairman, thank you for allowing us to bring this to 
the floor. This is one of those commonsense bills that, unfortunately, 
requires Congress to act. Several tribes before us have obtained 
legislation like this from Congress to authorize them to sell or 
mortgage specific lands. The lands we are talking about are lands that 
aren't needed anymore; it is outside of the trust. But in order for the 
tribes such as the Miami and other tribes that are out there to 
effectively manage their lands, Congress is required to act.
  Mr. Speaker, I would like to thank Chairmen Bishop and Young for 
advancing this legislation, and I urge support for the passage of H.R. 
487.
  Mrs. DINGELL. Mr. Speaker, I want to thank Mr. Mullin for his 
leadership.
  Mr. Speaker, in closing, I urge all Members to support H.R. 487, and 
I yield back the balance of my time.
  Mr. McCLINTOCK. Mr. Speaker, I, too, would urge adoption of the 
measure, and I yield back the balance of my time.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The question is on the motion offered by the 
gentleman from California (Mr. McClintock) that the House suspend the 
rules and pass the bill, H.R. 487.
  The question was taken; and (two-thirds being in the affirmative) the 
rules were suspended and the bill was passed.
  A motion to reconsider was laid on the table.

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