[Congressional Record Volume 172, Number 103 (Thursday, June 18, 2026)]
[Senate]
[Page S2941]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
SA 5857. Ms. SMITH submitted an amendment intended to be proposed by
her to the bill S. 4784, to authorize appropriations for fiscal year
2027 for military activities of the Department of Defense, for military
construction, and for defense activities of the Department of Energy,
to prescribe military personnel strengths for such fiscal year, and for
other purposes; which was ordered to lie on the table; as follows:
At the appropriate place, insert the following:
SEC. __. TRANSFER OF ADDITIONAL FEDERAL LAND TO THE LEECH
LAKE BAND OF OJIBWE.
(a) Findings.--Section 2(a)(5) of the Leech Lake Band of
Ojibwe Reservation Restoration Act (Public Law 116-255; 134
Stat. 1140) is amended by striking subparagraph (B) and
inserting the following:
``(B) does not intend immediately to modify the use of the
Federal land.''.
(b) Inclusion of Additional Federal Land.--Section 2 of the
Leech Lake Band of Ojibwe Reservation Restoration Act (Public
Law 116-255; 134 Stat. 1139) is amended--
(1) in subsection (b)(1)--
(A) in subparagraph (A)--
(i) by striking ``means the approximately'' and inserting
``means--
``(i) the approximately'';
(ii) in clause (i) (as so designated), by striking the
period at the end and inserting ``; and''; and
(iii) by adding at the end the following:
``(ii) any other land managed by the Secretary, through the
Chief of the Forest Service, located in the Chippewa National
Forest in Cass County, Minnesota, which records maintained by
the Bureau of Indian Affairs show was sold without the
unanimous consent of the rightful landowners.''; and
(B) in subparagraph (B)--
(i) by redesignating clauses (i) and (ii) as clauses (ii)
and (iii), respectively; and
(ii) by inserting before clause (ii) (as so redesignated)
the following:
``(i) any land transferred pursuant to an agreement entered
into between the Secretary and the Tribe under subsection
(c)(2);'';
(2) in subsection (c)--
(A) in paragraph (1), by striking ``paragraph (2)'' and
inserting ``paragraphs (2) and (3)'';
(B) by redesignating paragraph (2) as paragraph (3); and
(C) by inserting after paragraph (1) the following:
``(2) Agreement.--
``(A) In general.--On agreement between the Secretary and
the Tribe, the Secretary shall substitute, for purposes of
the transfer under paragraph (1), alternative National Forest
System land located in Cass County, Minnesota, on an acre-
for-acre basis, for those parcels of Federal land to be
transferred under that paragraph in a manner that avoids in-
holdings and provides a preference for land adjacent to or
near existing Leech Lake trust lands and lands of cultural
importance to the Tribe, to the maximum extent practicable.
``(B) Frequency of transfers.--Pursuant to an agreement
entered into under subparagraph (A), the Secretary may
transfer land to the Secretary of the Interior on a rolling
basis as that land is identified and surveys are
completed.''; and
(3) in subsection (d)--
(A) in paragraph (1)--
(i) in subparagraph (A), by inserting ``described in
subsection (b)(1)(A)(i)'' after ``Federal land''; and
(ii) in subparagraph (B), in the matter preceding clause
(i), by striking ``submit a map and legal description of the
Federal land'' and inserting ``submit maps and legal
descriptions of the Federal land transferred pursuant to
paragraphs (1) and (2) of subsection (c), as applicable,'';
(B) in paragraph (2)--
(i) by striking ``map and legal description'' and inserting
``maps and legal descriptions''; and
(ii) by striking ``map or legal description'' and inserting
``maps or legal descriptions''; and
(C) in paragraph (3), by striking ``map and legal
description'' and inserting ``maps and legal descriptions''.
(c) Reaffirmation.--Congress reaffirms the applicability of
section 97A.151 of the Minnesota Statutes, including the
settlement agreement ratified by that section, for purposes
of ensuring that the hunting, fishing, and recreation rights
of non-Tribal members remain unchanged by the Leech Lake Band
of Ojibwe Reservation Restoration Act (Public Law 116-255;
134 Stat. 1139) and the amendments made to that Act by this
section.
(d) Implementation.--In implementing the amendments made by
this section, the Secretary of Agriculture, acting through
the Chief of the Forest Service, shall provide for public
engagement and comment in accordance with applicable laws
(including regulations).
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