[Congressional Record Volume 172, Number 93 (Tuesday, June 2, 2026)]
[House]
[Pages H3745-H3746]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
TRANSFER OF LAND INTO TRUST FOR THE PECHANGA BAND OF INDIANS
Mr. WESTERMAN. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the
bill (H.R. 5682) to take certain land in the State of California into
trust for the benefit of the Pechanga Band of Indians, and for other
purposes, as amended.
The Clerk read the title of the bill.
The text of the bill is as follows:
H.R. 5682
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of
the United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. TRANSFER OF LAND INTO TRUST FOR THE PECHANGA BAND
OF INDIANS.
(a) In General.--Subject to valid existing rights and the
conditions described in subsection (c), the covered land is
hereby taken into trust for the benefit of the Tribe.
(b) Administration.--The land taken into trust under
subsection (a) shall be--
(1) part of the reservation of the Tribe; and
(2) administered in accordance with the laws and
regulations generally applicable to property held in trust by
the United States for the benefit of an Indian Tribe.
(c) Conditions.--
(1) In general.--The land taken into trust under subsection
(a) shall be--
(A) subject to all valid encumbrances, liens, rights-of-
way, reciprocal road rights-of-way agreements, licenses,
leases, permits, and easements existing on the date of the
enactment of this Act;
(B) maintained as open space; and
(C) used only for--
(i) purposes consistent with the maintenance of the land as
open space; and
(ii) the protection, preservation, and maintenance of the
archaeological, cultural, and wildlife resources on the land.
(2) Construction and maintenance.--Nothing in this
paragraph prohibits the construction or maintenance of
utilities or structures that are--
(A) consistent with the maintenance of the land taken into
trust under subsection (a) as open space; and
(B) constructed for the protection, preservation, and
maintenance of the archaeological, cultural, and wildlife
resources on the land.
(3) Prohibition on gaming.--The land taken into trust under
subsection (a) shall not be used for any class II gaming or
class III gaming under the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act (as
those terms are defined in section 4 of that Act (25 U.S.C.
2703)).
(d) Rights and Agreements.--Nothing in this Act shall
alter, or require the alteration of, any existing water
rights or service agreements.
(e) Map on File.--The Map shall be kept on file and
available for public inspection in the appropriate offices of
the Bureau of Land Management.
(f) Definitions.--In this Act:
(1) Covered land.--The term ``covered land'' means all
right, title, and interest of the United States in and to the
approximately 860 acres of land in Riverside County,
California, administered by the Bureau of Land Management and
generally depicted as ``Proposed Pechanga Land Conveyance
Parcel'' on the Map.
(2) Map.--The term ``Map'' means the map titled ``BLM Lands
into Trust for the Pechanga Band of Indians'', and dated
August 21, 2025.
(3) Secretary.--The term ``Secretary'' means the Secretary
of the Interior.
(4) Tribe.--The term ``Tribe'' means the Pechanga Band of
Indians.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from
Arkansas (Mr. Westerman) and the gentlewoman from New Mexico (Ms.
[[Page H3746]]
Stansbury) each will control 20 minutes.
The Chair recognizes the gentleman from Arkansas.
General Leave
Mr. WESTERMAN. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members
have 5 legislative days to revise and extend their remarks and to
include extraneous material on H.R. 5682, the bill under consideration.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the
gentleman from Arkansas?
There was no objection.
Mr. WESTERMAN. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may
consume.
I rise to support H.R. 5682, introduced by Congressman Issa, which
would place approximately 860 acres of Bureau of Land Management land
into trust for the Pechanga Band of Indians.
Located in Temecula, California, the Pechanga Band has a deep desire
to protect its ancestral and cultural land. This includes the Pu'eska
Mountain, which is central to the Pechanga's creation stories and
spiritual life. The Pechanga Band was able to purchase Pu'eska Mountain
in 2012 and placed it into trust in 2015.
The 860 acres of BLM-managed land conveyed in this legislation are
interspersed within the Pechanga Band's existing holdings, including
the Pu'eska Mountain. This unwieldy checkerboard pattern of land
ownership has complicated the Pechanga Band's access to and stewardship
of its sacred land.
With this transfer, however, the Tribe will consolidate its ownership
and will reasonably maintain the land. The legislation requires that
the land remain as open space and be used only for cultural and
conservation purposes. The bill also includes an explicit prohibition
on gaming, pursuant to the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act.
I want to thank my friend Mr. Issa for working diligently with the
Pechanga Band to develop H.R. 5682, and I reserve the balance of my
time.
Ms. STANSBURY. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may
consume.
I rise in support of H.R. 5682, which will return ancestral homelands
in southern California to the Pechanga Band of Indians. The lands that
would be returned under this bill are located within the Pu'eska
Mountain, a sacred site with cultural, historic, and religious
significance to the Tribe.
In the mid-2000s, the Tribe fought tirelessly to protect these lands
from destructive mining that would have destroyed the mountain. They
ultimately purchased and took into trust much of these lands.
In addition to the Tribe, the Bureau of Land Management holds several
parcels on the mountain, including approximately 1,261 acres adjacent
to the Tribe's trust land.
H.R. 5682 will take these lands into trust for the benefit of the
Tribe, consolidating most of the mountain into Tribal trust land and
allowing the Tribe to steward their ancestral lands.
I urge my colleagues to support the passage of this legislation, and
I reserve the balance of my time.
Mr. WESTERMAN. Mr. Speaker, I yield 5 minutes to the gentleman from
California (Mr. Issa), the lead sponsor of this bill.
Mr. ISSA. I thank the chairman for yielding.
Mr. Speaker, this is not the first or the second time the Pechanga
have reached out to expand these historic and ancestral lands and to
preserve them. We have a long track history now of the Pechanga Indians
taking into trust and improving the lands that they have purchased or
that are transferred.
Previously, the Bureau of Land Management came to us and said: We
have land we cannot afford to maintain. It has no value. It is a
mountainside. Is there any interest in it by the Native American Tribes
in the area? We were pleasantly surprised to discover that, yes, there
was. And, in fact, they had for years been clandestinely trying to do
what they could to preserve the land.
As many people know, California's Native Americans were landless for
many years, displaced by the Spaniards, taken away, and not until
Ulysses S. Grant did they begin returning to their ancestral homes.
As a result, there are massive amounts of their historic lands that
either lie in private hands or public hands.
Pechanga has bought at its own expense private lands, in this case
public lands which are not able to be maintained properly and which
would have a cost to the Federal Government. These lands will be taken
over and maintained by the Pechanga Band of Native American Indians.
That means that the Federal Government saves money through this
transfer.
More importantly, their stewardship has, in fact, been good for the
surrounding area. As many people know, fires rage in southern
California on a regular basis. Land that is not properly maintained,
especially with low-lying, highly flammable shrubbery, burns quickly
and spreads to surrounding areas. Under the Pechanga stewardship, that
will be partially abated and, in fact, managed.
Lastly, Pechanga at its own expense has built a large fire
department, one that maintains these lands as well or better than the
surrounding communities. That means for Temecula, Riverside County, and
other areas, again, this is a savings at the expense of the Tribe. They
do this because of the importance of the land to their people.
For that reason, I ask that this be moved forward positively on
behalf of the Federal Government's benefit and the benefit of our
Native Americans.
Mr. WESTERMAN. Mr. Speaker, I have no further requests for time. I am
prepared to close, and I reserve the balance of my time.
Ms. STANSBURY. Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to support this
legislation, and I yield back the balance of my time.
Mr. WESTERMAN. Mr. Speaker, again, the Pechanga Band of Indians have
worked to consolidate their ancestral and cultural land for years. The
conveyance authorized by this legislation will unwind much of the
checkerboard pattern that has prevented the Pechanga Band from readily
accessing its lands, including its most sacred site, the Pu'eska
Mountain.
I thank Mr. Issa for his work on this straightforward but important
legislation. I support H.R. 5682, and I yield back the balance of my
time.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. The question is on the motion offered by the
gentleman from Arkansas (Mr. Westerman) that the House suspend the
rules and pass the bill, H.R. 5682, 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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