[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 156 (2010), Part 13]
[Senate]
[Page 19164]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                         CLAIMS RESOLUTION ACT

  Mr. BINGAMAN. Mr. President, I rise today to commemorate President 
Obama's signing of the historic Claims Resolution Act of 2010. The act 
contains measures that resolve long-standing claims against the United 
States including claims relating to three Indian water rights 
adjudication cases in New Mexico. In addition, the act provides 
significant funding to implement the settlement agreements. The signing 
of the Claims Resolution Act of 2010 represents a significant 
achievement for the people of New Mexico.
  I would like to express my gratitude to the many New Mexicans who 
have worked on these settlement agreements over many years. I would 
also like to commend the Obama administration for its efforts to engage 
with the settlement parties to finalize the settlements in ways that 
will strengthen the relationship between the Federal Government and the 
tribes and protect the non-Indian residents in the settlement areas. 
Having the full support of the administration was a very important part 
of our success.
  The Aamodt and Abeyta settlements represent agreements that end long-
standing litigation and provide numerous benefits that could never have 
been possible through the courts. The funding we have provided will 
ensure that the projects can move forward quickly. It is my hope that 
the settlement parties will continue to make swift progress toward 
implementation so that the Pueblo and non-Pueblo residents of Taos and 
the Pojoaque Valley will soon have access to more secure drinking water 
and improved ligation systems. In addition, the $180 million in funding 
provided for the Navajo settlement will expedite the construction 
necessary to bring drinking water to Navajo citizens who currently haul 
water to their homes from watering stations many miles away. The 
Navajo-Gallup project will also provide water to the city of Gallup and 
the Jicarilla Apache Tribe. I am pleased the Bureau of Reclamation's 
planning for the project is well underway and that construction may 
commence as early as 2012, providing hundreds of jobs for New Mexicans 
for years to come.
  The Aamodt case involves the water rights claims of the Nambe, 
Pojoaque, San Ildefonso, and Tesuque Pueblos in the Rio Pojoaque stream 
system north of Santa Fe. It is my understanding that the case, which 
was filed in 1966, is the longest active Federal case in the country. 
The Aamodt settlement represents an agreement that quantifies the 
present and future water rights of the four Pueblos involved in the 
litigation. The settlement also protects the interests and water rights 
of non-Indian water users, including the historic acequias irrigation 
systems that have existed for centuries. The Aamodt settlement will 
bring new water into the basin for municipal and domestic needs for 
Pueblo and non-Pueblo residents throughout the Pojoaque basin. I 
commend the Aamodt settlement parties for their commitment to the 
negotiation process which will provide benefits to the basin for 
generations to come.
  The Abeyta settlement resolves Taos Pueblo's water rights claims in 
the Rio Pueblo de Taos stream system. The Abeyta adjudication case is 
also over 40 years old and the settlement parties have been working 
toward this result for decades. I commend them for their hard work and 
dedication. The Abeyta settlement will quantify the water rights of 
Taos Pueblo and will protect the interests of the other citizens 
throughout the Taos region. The Abeyta settlement provides for the 
construction of mutually beneficial projects designed to modernize 
water infrastructure and protect historic landscapes. The settlement 
will help to preserve the region's historic irrigation systems and 
provide security to domestic water users as well.
  The Aamodt and Abeyta settlements represent fair and reasonable 
conclusions to protracted, contentious litigation. They are the product 
of countless hours of hard work and determination. Numerous individuals 
have worked on these issues for decades like Nelson Cordova, Gil Suazo, 
Palemon Martinez and John Painter in the Taos Valley and David Ortiz, 
Maxine Goad, Herbert Yates, Ernest Mirabal, Charlie Dorame, James Hena, 
Perry Martinez, and George Rivera from the Aamodt case. I am grateful 
to those individuals and the many others who made these settlements 
possible. I would like to provide a special acknowledgment to Michael 
Connor, the Commissioner of Reclamation, for his longstanding 
commitment to resolving Indian water rights claims in ways that promote 
sound federal policy and fairness to the parties involved. Finally, I 
would like to recognize both Tanya Trujillo, my water expert on the 
Committee on Energy and Natural Resources, and Trudy Vincent, my 
legislative director, for their wise counsel and hard work in passing 
this important legislation.
  Thank you for the opportunity to make these remarks.

                          ____________________