[Congressional Record Volume 164, Number 152 (Wednesday, September 12, 2018)]
[House]
[Pages H8134-H8136]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                     STIGLER ACT AMENDMENTS OF 2018

  Mr. GIANFORTE. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the 
bill (H.R. 2606) to amend the Act of August 4, 1947 (commonly known as 
the Stigler Act), with respect to restrictions applicable to Indians of 
the Five Civilized Tribes of Oklahoma, and for other purposes, as 
amended.
  The Clerk read the title of the bill.
  The text of the bill is as follows:

                               H.R. 2606

       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 ``Stigler Act Amendments of 
     2018''.

[[Page H8135]]

  


     SEC. 2. IN GENERAL.

       The first section of the Act of August 4, 1947 (61 Stat. 
     731, chapter 458), is amended--
       (1) in the matter before subsection (a), by striking ``That 
     all restrictions'' and all that follows through subsection 
     (a) and inserting the following:
       ``Sec. 1. (a) All restrictions against alienation, 
     conveyance, lease, mortgage, creation of liens, or other 
     encumbrances upon all lands, including oil and gas or other 
     mineral interests, in Oklahoma belonging to a lineal 
     descendant by blood of an original enrollee whose name 
     appears on the Final Indian Rolls of the Five Civilized 
     Tribes in Indian Territory, whether acquired by allotment, 
     inheritance, devise, gift, purchase, exchange, partition, 
     partition sale, or by purchase with restricted funds, of 
     whatever degree of Indian blood, and whether enrolled or 
     unenrolled, shall be and are hereby, extended until an Act of 
     Congress determines otherwise.
       ``(b) The extension of restrictions described in subsection 
     (a) shall include without limitation, those interests in the 
     estate of a decedent Indian who died before the date of 
     enactment of the Stigler Act Amendments of 2018--
       ``(1) if such interests were acquired by an heir or devisee 
     of one-half or more degree of Indian blood, as computed from 
     the nearest enrolled lineal ancestors of Indian blood 
     enrolled on the Final Rolls described in subsection (a), by 
     final order issued by an Oklahoma district court or a United 
     States district court determining the decedent's heirs or 
     devisees or otherwise determining the ownership of said 
     interests before said date; or
       ``(2) if such interests were, immediately prior to the 
     decedent's death, subject to restrictions and had not, as of 
     said date, been--
       ``(A) the subject of a final order issued by an Oklahoma 
     district court or a United States district court determining 
     the decedent's heirs or devisees or otherwise determining the 
     ownership of said interests;
       ``(B) conveyed by the decedent's undetermined heirs or 
     devisees by deed approved by an Oklahoma district court; or
       ``(C) conveyed by the decedent's undetermined heirs or 
     devisees of less than one-half degree of Indian blood with or 
     without Oklahoma district court approval.
       ``Sec. 2. (a) Except as provided in subsection (f), 
     subsection (g), subsection (h), and subsection (i), no 
     conveyance, including an oil and gas or mineral lease, of any 
     interest in the restricted lands described in this section 
     shall be valid unless approved in open court by the district 
     court of the county in Oklahoma in which the land is 
     situated;'';
       (2) in subsection (b)--
       (A) by striking ``county judge'' and inserting ``district 
     judge''; and
       (B) by striking ``Proceedings for approval of conveyances 
     by restricted heirs or devisees'' and inserting ``Proceedings 
     for approval of conveyances'';
       (3) in subsection (c), by striking ``best interest of the 
     Indian'' and inserting ``best interest of the grantor''; and
       (4) by adding before the period at the end the following: 
     ``; (h) nothing contained in this section shall limit or 
     affect the right of an Indian owner of restricted lands 
     described in this Act to seek and obtain Secretarial removal 
     of restrictions on all or any portion of said restricted 
     lands in accordance with any applicable Federal law; (i) 
     nothing contained in this section shall invalidate the 
     alienation, conveyance, lease, including oil and gas or other 
     mineral leases, mortgage, creation of liens, or other 
     encumbrance of any lands, if such action was effective before 
     the date of enactment of the Stigler Act Amendments of 2018 
     and valid under the law then in effect; and (j) in 
     determining the quantum of Indian blood of any Indian heir or 
     devisee, the Final Indian Rolls of the Five Civilized Tribes 
     in Indian Territory as to such heir or devisee, if enrolled, 
     shall be conclusive of his or her quantum of Indian blood. If 
     unenrolled, his or her degree of Indian blood shall be 
     computed from the nearest enrolled lineal ancestors of Indian 
     blood enrolled on the Final Indian Rolls of the Five 
     Civilized Tribes in Indian Territory''.

     SEC. 3. TECHNICAL AMENDMENTS.

       The Act of August 4, 1947 (61 Stat. 731, chapter 458), is 
     amended--
       (1) in section 5, by striking ``of one-half or more Indian 
     blood,'';
       (2) in section 6(c)--
       (A) by inserting ``purchase, partition sale,'' after 
     ``gift,'' each place it appears; and
       (B) by striking ``of one-half or more Indian blood''; and
       (3) in section 8, by striking ``of one-half or more Indian 
     blood,''.

     SEC. 4. REPEALS.

       The following are repealed:
       (1) The first section of the Act of August 11, 1955 (69 
     Stat. 666, chapter 768).
       (2) Section 2 of the Act of August 4, 1947 (61 Stat. 731, 
     chapter 458).

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from 
Montana (Mr. Gianforte) and the gentlewoman from Massachusetts (Ms. 
Tsongas) each will control 20 minutes.
  The Chair recognizes the gentleman from Montana.


                             General Leave

  Mr. GIANFORTE. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members 
may have 5 legislative 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 Montana?
  There was no objection.
  Mr. GIANFORTE. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself as much time as I may 
consume.
  Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of H.R. 2606, the Stigler Act 
Amendments of 2018.
  The bill would amend the 1947 Stigler Act to remove the Indian blood 
quantum requirement for certain land to be maintained in restricted fee 
status for any member of the Cherokee Nation, Chickasaw Nation, Choctaw 
Nation, Muscogee Creek Nation, and the Seminole Nation, which are 
collectively known as the Five Civilized Tribes of Oklahoma.
  Under current law, when a person of less than one-half degree Indian 
blood from one of the Five Tribes inherits an interest of an allotment 
of land, the land can be taxed and be conveyed without approval of the 
Secretary of the Interior.
  Under H.R. 2606, restricted fee land currently owned by members of 
the Five Tribes would remain in restricted status regardless of the 
blood quantum of the owners.
  Mr. Speaker, I want to thank the sponsor of this legislation, the 
gentleman from Oklahoma (Mr. Cole) for his tireless work on issues 
impacting Indian Country, including this bill.
  Mr. Speaker, I urge adoption of the measure, and I reserve the 
balance of my time.
  Ms. TSONGAS. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I might 
consume.
  Mr. Speaker, like other Native American tribes, the land base of the 
Five Civilized Tribes of Oklahoma was devastated during the allotment 
and assimilation period of the late 1800s. During this period, tribal 
governments were dissolved and community-held lands were distributed as 
160-acre parcels to individual tribal members. The remaining lands were 
made available for non-Indian settlement.
  Congress eventually reversed its policy and, in 1936, enacted the 
Oklahoma Indian Welfare Act in order to rebuild Indian tribal societies 
and rightfully return land back to the tribes.
  Under that act, any previously allotted Indian land remained with its 
current owner in restricted fee status. This status has significant 
benefits, as restricted fee lands are under tribal jurisdiction and are 
exempt from certain Federal and State taxes.
  However, in 1947, additional and arbitrary constraints were placed 
upon the lands of the Five Civilized Tribes.
  The enactment of this 1947 law, known as the Stigler Act, set a 
minimum blood quantum level that must be met by an Indian landowner in 
order for the lands to remain in restricted fee status. That is to say, 
if the total percentage of Indian blood of a landowner falls below a 
certain minimum threshold, the land loses its tax-exempt status.
  Over the years, with subsequent generations and intermarriage, 
landowners often no longer meet the minimum blood quantum level. The 
lands then lose their restricted fee status and often are sold off.
  This has resulted in a drastic reduction of all the lands owned by 
members of the Five Civilized Tribes.
  No other Native American Tribe is required to meet this blood quantum 
minimum in order to preserve their land fee status, and it seems that 
this was the main intent of the Stigler Act in 1947, to further reduce 
Indian land holdings in Oklahoma.
  Under the changes proposed in H.R. 2606, we can right this wrong.
  Enactment of this legislation will ensure that restricted fee land 
owned by citizens of the Five Civilized Tribes will remain in that 
status regardless of blood quantum levels. This will bring parity to 
the Five Civilized Tribes and allow their citizens to own restricted 
fee land just like the citizens of other tribes.
  Mr. Speaker, I support H.R. 2606 and urge my colleagues to vote in 
favor of this bill.
  Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. GIANFORTE. Mr. Speaker, I yield 5 minutes to the gentleman from 
Oklahoma (Mr. Cole).
  Mr. COLE. Mr. Speaker, I certainly thank the gentleman from Montana 
for yielding, and I want to thank him for moving this legislation 
through his committee and onto the floor.
  I rise in support, Mr. Speaker, of H.R. 2606, the Stigler Act 
Amendments of

[[Page H8136]]

2018, and on behalf of the citizens of the Cherokee Nation; my own 
tribe, the Chickasaw Nation; the Choctaw Nation of Oklahoma; the 
Muscogee Creek Nation; and the Seminole Nation of Oklahoma, commonly 
known as the Five Civilized Tribes.
  The bill before us only addresses and affects these Five Tribes and 
the lands owned by their citizens within the State of Oklahoma. The 
passage of this legislation is critical to maintaining the inherited 
land of the citizens of the five aforementioned tribes.
  The infamous Dawes Act of 1887 authorized the Federal Government to 
survey tribal lands and divide them into allotted parcels for 
individual Native Americans. Title to these allotment parcels was set 
forth in the Stigler Act of 1947.
  The Stigler Act provided that, upon probate, if the heirs and 
devisees of an original allottee from the Five Tribes had passed out of 
one-half Native American blood quantum, the allotment loses its 
restricted fee status.
  Restricted land is not subject to State taxation, and Federal law 
does not dictate a minimum Native American blood degree requirement to 
any other tribe.
  The original Stigler Act itself was an egregious violation of tribal 
sovereignty and previous agreements between the Five Civilized Tribes 
and the government. The provisions of the Dawes Act that protected 
individual Native allottees, frankly, were effectively neutered by the 
passage of the Stigler Act.

  This legislation seeks to amend the original Stigler Act and remove 
the one-half degree requirement of Native American blood. In doing so, 
it would provide the opportunity for heirs and devisees to take title 
to the land and allow the parcel to maintain its restricted status.
  This legislation will also create parity in Federal law in the 
treatment of Native American allotted land by removing the minimum 
blood degree requirement, which only applies to the citizens of the 
Five Civilized Tribes.
  As Native Americans, we take great pride in our heritage and the land 
that our ancestors maintained before us. The Stigler Act would allow 
Natives to pass on their restricted land to future generations who may 
not meet the one-half degree blood requirement. Many of Oklahoma's 
citizens have passed out of the one-half blood lineage but remain 
vested in their Native American heritage and citizens of their 
respective tribal governments.
  This bill will help preserve the rights and legacy of Native American 
tribes and their inheritance in the State of Oklahoma.
  Mr. Speaker, I encourage my colleagues to support and pass H.R. 2606 
to remove this outdated and discriminatory law and to preserve what 
Native American land is left in Oklahoma's Indian Country.
  Mr. Speaker, again, I want to thank my friend for moving this through 
the committee. Also, obviously, I want to thank the chairman of the 
full committee, Mr. Bishop, for his help in this matter.
  Ms. TSONGAS. Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.
  Mr. GIANFORTE. Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.
  Mr. MULLIN. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of H.R. 2606, the 
Stigler Act Amendments of 2018.
  This legislation would end a discriminatory blood quantum requirement 
for members of the Five Civilized Tribes: the Cherokee, Chickasaw, 
Choctaw, Muskogee (Creek), and Seminole Nations.
  The Stigler Act of 1947 mandated that restricted land owned by a 
member of the Five Tribes must have \1/2\ blood quantum in order for it 
to remain restricted. If the land is handed down to a relative with 
less than \1/2\ blood quantum, the land is no longer restricted.
  No other Native American tribe in the United States is subject to the 
Stigler Act, and in no other tribe in the United States do the lands of 
tribal citizens lose their restricted status due to the blood quantum 
of an individual Native American.
  H.R. 2606 would do away with the blood quantum requirement so 
restricted fee land owned by citizens of the Five Tribes could remain 
restricted, regardless of blood quantum. By removing the blood quantum 
requirements in the Stigler Act, native land could remain within 
families and heirs despite individual Native American landowners 
falling below \1/2\ blood quantum.
  Tribes are sovereign nations and H.R. 2606 would treat them as such. 
This bill would create parity in federal law so that the government 
would not be able to unfairly dictate a minimum blood quantum 
requirement for certain tribes.
  It would also bring equality to members of the Five Tribes. For 
decades, their members have lived under a law so that applied to only 
their lands.
  As Native Americans, we take great pride in our heritage and the land 
that our ancestors maintained before us. The Stigler Act Amendments of 
2018 would allow Natives to pass on their restricted land to future 
generations who may not meet the \1/2\ blood degree requirement.
  Members of the Five Tribes who seek to carry on their ancestors' 
heritage should be able to and this legislation ensures that members of 
the Five Tribes can continue to preserve restricted status of their 
land and reap all of the benefits that come along with it.
  The Five Tribes held more than 15 million acres of restricted land a 
century ago. Today, they hold just 380,000 acres.
  While H.R. 2606 will not reverse 70 years of land loss, it will 
certainly help prevent additional tribal land from falling out of 
restricted status.
  I am proud to be an original cosponsor of the Stigler Act Amendments 
of 2018 and am honored to speak in support of the legislation before 
the United States House of Representatives today. I urge its passage.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The question is on the motion offered by the 
gentleman from Montana (Mr. Gianforte) that the House suspend the rules 
and pass the bill, H.R. 2606, 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.

                          ____________________