[Senate Report 104-360]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]



                                                       Calendar No. 572
104th Congress                                                   Report
                                 SENATE

 2d Session                                                     104-360
_______________________________________________________________________


 
PROVIDING FOR THE SETTLEMENT OF ISSUES AND CLAIMS RELATED TO THE TRUST 
  LANDS OF THE TORRES-MARTINEZ DESERT CAHUILLA INDIANS, AND FOR OTHER 
                                PURPOSES

                                _______
                                

               September 3, 1996.--Ordered to be printed

_______________________________________________________________________


    Mr. McCain, from the Committee on Indian Affairs, submitted the 
                               following

                              R E P O R T

                         [To accompany S. 1893]

    The Committee on Indian Affairs, to which was referred the 
bill (S. 1893) to provide for the settlement of issues and 
claims related to the trust lands of the Torres-Martinez Desert 
Cahuilla Indians, and for other purposes, having considered the 
same, reports favorably thereon without amendment and 
recommends that the bill do pass.

                                purpose

    The purpose of S. 1893 is to provide for the settlement of 
issues and claims related to the trust lands of the Torres-
Martinez Desert Cahuilla Indians of California.

                               background

    The Torres-Martinez Desert Cahuilla Indians have lived in 
the Coachella Valley area of Southern California for hundreds 
of years. The Tribe currently numbers more than 500 members, 
who live on or in the vicinity of the more than 40 separate 
land parcels that comprise the Torres-Martinez Reservation.
    The Torres-Martinez Indian Reservation was created in 1876 
in Coachella Valley north of the Salton Sink. In 1891, an 
Executive Order expanded the original 640-acre reservation by 
about 12,000 acres. Between 1905 and 1907, flood waters of the 
Colorado River filled the Salton Sink, creating the Salton Sea 
and inundating about 2,000 acres of the 1891 reservation lands. 
In 1909, a Secretarial Order transferred another 12,000 acres 
of land to the Reservation. About 9,000 acres of these lands 
were submerged under the Salton Sea; however, it was expected 
at the time of the transfer that the Salton Sea would recede 
from these lands within 25 years. Contrary to expectations, the 
Salton Sea did not recede, in large part due to natural runoff 
and drainage water flowing into it from the irrigation systems 
of the Imperial, Coachella, and Mexicali Valleys. This 
irrigation drainage was facilitated by various actions by the 
federal government, including construction of the Coachella 
Canal in the 1940's. Currently, 11,800 acres of the Tribe's 
25,000-acre reservation are either under water or are not 
irrigable due to lack of proper drainage.
    In 1982, the United States brought an action in trespass in 
the Federal District Court of Southern California on behalf of 
the Tribe and its affected allottee landowners against the 
Imperial Irrigation District and the Coachella Valley Water 
District. This suit sought damages related to the inundation of 
Indian lands and injunctive relief against further flooding of 
those lands. On August 25, 1992, the court entered a final 
judgment which found the two districts liable for trespass but 
denied the United States' request for injunctive relief and 
ejectment. The Court ordered the two districts to pay the Tribe 
a total of $3,008,602 in past and future damages in lieu of a 
permanent injunction against continued flooding of the 
submerged lands.
    The United States, the two districts and the Tribe appealed 
the District Court's decision to the Ninth Circuit Court of 
Appeals. Subsequently, the Interior and Justice Departments 
entered into negotiations with the Tribe and the two districts 
in an effort to avoid a lengthy and costly appellate process 
and finally to resolve the dispute. Another objective of the 
negotiations was to resolve similar claims brought by the Tribe 
and affected allottees in a separate lawsuit against the United 
States and the two districts. To facilitate settlement 
negotiations, the court stayed action on the appeals as well as 
initial action on the Indians' separate suit.
    On June 18, 1996, after months of difficult negotiations, 
representatives of the United States, the Tribe, the Imperial 
Irrigation District and the Coachella Valley Water District 
signed a Settlement Agreement that resolves their conflicting 
claims and provides for dismissal of litigation. Enactment of 
Federal legislation is necessary to ratify this Agreement and 
to authorize the actions and appropriations necessary for its 
implementation. Accordingly, on June 16, 1996, Representative 
Sonny Bono (R-CA) introduced H.R. 3640 in the House of 
Representatives, and on June 18, 1996, Senators Diane Feinstein 
(D-CA) and Barbara Boxer (D-CA) introduced S. 1893 in the 
Senate.

                    summary of settlement provisions

    S. 1893 ratifies the Settlement Agreement and provides for 
its implementation. The bill provides for the establishment of 
trust accounts in the U.S. Treasury for the benefit of the 
Tribe and its affected allottee landowners. It authorizes 
payment of $10,200,000 in federal funds--$4.2 million from the 
Justice Department's Judgment Fund and $6 million in 
appropriated funds, to be paid into the tribal and allottee 
trust accounts. Coachella Valley Water District will pay 
$388,000 and Imperial Irrigation District will pay $3,671,000 
into these accounts, making the settlement payments total 
$14,200,000.
    The Settlement Agreement and S. 1893 provide for the 
Interior Department to take into trust status up to 11,800 
acres of land (an amount equal to the flooded area) purchased 
or otherwise acquired by the Tribe within two separate 
acquisition areas located roughly within the west and east 
boundaries of the Coachella Valley, subject to certain 
conditions. Trust acquisitions within the secondary area are 
limited to 640 acres and must be consolidated into not more 
than two separate parcels. Trust acquisitions in the primary 
area are limited to 11,800 acres minus the number of acres 
acquired in the secondary acquisition area.
    The settlement further provides that land acquired by the 
Tribe in the secondary acquisition area will be taken into 
trust only if the governing body of a city in whose 
incorporated area the land is located, or Riverside County if 
the land is located in an unincorporated area, does not object 
to such trust acquisition. The same restriction will apply to 
land acquired by the Tribe within the boundaries of an 
incorporated city or an unincorporated area located in the 
primary acquisition area. Lands located within either area and 
situated within a one mile radius of the reservation lands of 
any other Indian tribe will not be eligible for conveyance into 
trust absent the consent of the affected Indian tribe.
    The Tribe's right to conduct gaming on lands taken into 
trust pursuant to the settlement is limited and restricted to 
one gaming operation on one physical site. Any gaming on these 
lands must be conducted consistent with the requirements of the 
Indian Gaming Regulatory Act (25 U.S.C. 2701; 102 Stat. 2467). 
Lands taken into trust for the Tribe shall be considered as if 
they were acquired in 1909 except with respect to water rights. 
Lands acquired by the Tribe will be subject to all valid water 
rights existing at the time of acquisition, and the Tribe will 
obtain all valid water rights appurtenant to acquired lands.
    The settlement also provides that the Tribe and the United 
States will convey to the water districts a permanent flowage 
easement over all Indian trust lands (approximately 11,800 
acres), and all Federal lands (approximately 110,000 acres) 
located within and below the minus 220, contour of the Salton 
Sink.

                          legislative history

    S. 1893 was introduced by Senators Diane Feinstein (D-CA) 
and Barbara Boxer (D-CA) on June 19, 1996. The Committee on 
Indian Affairs held a hearing on the bill on July 18, 1996, at 
which supporting testimony was received from Senator Feinstein, 
Representative Sonny Bono (R-CA), Michael Anderson, Deputy 
Assistant Secretary for Indian Affairs, Bureau of Indian 
Affairs, Mary Belardo, Chairwoman, Torres-Martinez Tribe, Tom 
Levy, General Manager, Coachella Valley Water District, and 
William R. Condit, President, Board of Directors, Imperial 
Irrigation District. The Committee also received resolutions or 
letters of support for the legislation from the Riverside 
County Board of Supervisors, the City of Coachella, the City of 
Desert Hot Springs, Cathedral City, the Agua Caliente Band of 
Cahuilla Indians, and the Augustine, Cahuilla, Jamul, 
Manzanita, Morongo, Soboba, and Twenty-Nine Palms Bands of 
Mission Indians. Four of these Indian bands currently operate 
gaming facilities in the Coachella Valley. The Committee also 
received letters from the Coachella Valley. The Committee also 
received letters from the City of Palm Desert and the City of 
Indian Wells expressing conditional support for the settlement, 
and letters from the Cabazon Band of Mission Indians, which 
also operates a gaming facility in the Coachella Valley, 
opposing the trust land selection provisions of S. 1893.
    In the House of Representatives, Congressman Sonny Bono (R-
CA) inroduced H.R. 3640 on June 16, 1996. The bill was referred 
to the Committee on Resources. On June 19, 1996, the 
Subcommittee on Native American and Insular Affairs held a 
hearing on H.R. 3640. The Full Committee on Resources marked up 
and ordered the bill favorably reported to the House of 
Representatives on August 1, 1996.

            committee recommendation and tabulation of vote

    On July 24, 1996, the Committee on Indian Affairs, in an 
open business session, considered S. 1893 and ordered it 
reported, without amendment, with a recommendation that the 
bill be passed.

                      section-by-section analysis

Section 1. Short title

    This section cites the short title of S. 1893 as the 
``Torres-Martinez Desert Cahuilla Indians Claims Settlement Act 
of 1996''.

Section 2. Congressional findings and purpose

    This section sets forth Congressional findings and purpose. 
Subsection (a) states findings and declarations that:
    (1) in 1876, 640 acres north of the Salton Sink in the 
Coachella Valley, California, were designated as the Torres-
Martinez Indian Reservation; in 1891, an Executive Order issued 
pursuant to the Mission Relief Act of 1891 added another 12,000 
acres to the reservation;
    (2) between 1905 and 1907, Colorado River flood waters 
filled the Salton Sink, creating the Salton Sea and inundating 
approximately 2,000 acres of the 1891 reservation lands;
    (3) in 1909, a Secretarial Order, issued pursuant to a 1907 
amendment to the Mission Relief Act, added 12,000 acres of 
land, 9,000 of which were then submerged under the Salton Sea, 
to the reservation, with the expectation that the sea would 
recede from the submerged acreage within 25 years;
    (4) a majority of the lands added to the reservation in 
1909 remain inundated due in part to the flowage of natural 
runoff and drainage water from irrigation systems of the 
Imperial, Coachella, and Mexicali Valleys into the Salton Sea;
    (5) in addition to the inundated lands, other tribal and 
individual Indian lands located on the perimeter of the Salton 
Sea are not irrigable due to the lack of proper drainage;
    (6) in 1982, the United States, in its own right and on 
behalf of the Tribe and Allottees, brought an action in 
trespass seeking damages and injunctive relief (the United 
States Suit) against the Imperial Irrigation District (IID) and 
Coachella Valley Water District (CVWD);
    (7) in 1992, a federal court entered judgment in the United 
States Suit requiring CVWD to pay $212,908, and IID to pay 
$2,795,694, in past and future damages to the Tribe in lieu of 
a permanent injunction against continued flooding of submerged 
lands;
    (8) the United States, CVWD and IID and the Tribe filed 
notices of appeal regarding the United States Suit;
    (9) the Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit stayed 
further action on appeals pending the outcome of settlement 
negotiations;
    (10) in 1991, the Tribe, for itself and for an individual 
Allottee in her own right and as class representative of all 
other affected Indian allottees, brought suit (the Indian Suit) 
against the two water districts;
    (11) the Indian Suit was stayed by the court to facilitate 
settlement negotiations;
    Subsection (b) states the purpose of the bill is to 
facilitate and implement the Settlement Agreement reached by 
the United States, the Tribe, CVWD and IID.

Section 3. Definitions

    This section provides definitions of the terms 
``allottees''; ``permanent flowage easement''; ``Salton Sea''; 
``Secretary''; ``Settlement Agreement''; and ``Tribe''.

Section 4. Ratification of Settlement Agreement

    This section states that the United States approves, 
ratifies and confirms the Settlement Agreement.

Section 5. Settlement funds

    Subsection (a) provides for one tribal and two allottee 
settlement trust fund accounts to be established in the United 
States Treasury for the Tribe and Allottees, deposits into 
which shall be available to the Secretary for distribution to 
the Tribe and Allottees in accordance with subsection 5(c).
    Subsection (b) provides for CVWD to pay $337,908 and IID to 
pay $3,670,694 to the United States for the benefit of the 
Tribe and Allottees; for such payments to be allocated to the 
three trust fund accounts pursuant to the Settlement Agreement; 
for the United States to pay $4,200,000 from the Department of 
Justice Judgment Fund and $6,000,000 to be appropriated by 
Congress into the three trust fund accounts; for CVWD or IID to 
pay an additional amount on any delinquent payment; and for 
CVWD, IID and the United States to be severally, not jointly, 
liable for its respective obligations to make payments under 
this subsection (b).
    Subsection (c) requires the Secretary to administer the 
three trust fund accounts established under subsection (a) in 
accordance with the terms and conditions of the Settlement 
Agreement.

Section 6. Trust land acquisition and status

    Subsection (a) provides that the Tribe shall have the right 
to acquire and to have conveyed into trust status up to 11,800 
acres of land in accordance with the Settlement Agreement, an 
that such lands shall be considered as if they were acquired in 
1909 except with respect to water rights.
    Lands may be acquired in a primary area, next to existing 
Tribal land, and a secondary acquisition area, north of the 
reservation. Not more than 640 acres of the total 11,800 acres 
can be acquired in the secondary acquisition area. The 
Secretary shall not convey proposed trust lands located in the 
primary acquisition area into trust if by majority vote of the 
governing body of the city in whose incorporated city 
boundaries the proposed trust lands lie objects to the proposed 
acquisition and notifies the Secretary of such objection within 
60 days of receiving the Tribe's proposal.
    Lands in the secondary acquisition area shall not be 
conveyed into trust if by majority vote of either the city in 
whose incorporated boundaries the proposed trust lands lie, or 
of the governing body of Riverside County (if the proposed 
trust lands do not lie within incorporated boundaries) objects 
to the proposed acquisition and notifies the Secretary within 
60 days of receiving the Tribe's proposal.
    Subsection (b) provides that the Tribe may conduct gaming 
on only one site within the lands acquired under this section 
using the acquisition process established under the Settlement 
Agreement.
    Subsection (c) provides that all lands acquired by the 
Tribe shall be subject: (1) to all valid water rights existing 
at the time of acquisition; (2) to the paramount rights of any 
person who recharges or stores water in a groundwater basin; 
and (3) to all valid water rights appurtenant to the land at 
the time immediately prior to tribal acquisition.

Section 7. Permanent flowage easements

    This section provides that the United States, as trustee 
for the Tribe and individual Indian allotment owners, and the 
Tribe shall convey to the CVWD and to the IID a permanent 
flowage easement as to all Indian trust lands (approximately 
11,800 acres) located within and below the minus 200-foot 
contour of the Salton Sink. It further provides that the United 
States, in its own right, shall convey to CVWD and the IID a 
permanent flowage easement as to all Federal lands 
(approximately 110,000 acres), located within and below the 
minus 200-foot contour of the Salton Sink, all in accordance 
with the terms and conditions of the Settlement Agreement.

Section 8. Satisfaction of claims, waivers, and releases

    This section states that the benefits available to the 
Tribe and allottees under the Settlement Agreement and this Act 
shall constitute full and complete satisfaction of all claims 
by the Tribe and the allottees arising from or related to the 
inundation and lack of drainage of tribal and allottee lands. 
The section states that the United States approves and confirms 
the releases and waivers required by the Settlement Agreement 
and this Act.

Section 9. Miscellaneous provisions

    Subsection (a) provides that nothing in the Act or the 
Settlement Agreement shall affect the eligibility of the Tribe 
or its members for any federal program or diminish the trust 
responsibility of the United States to the Tribe and its 
members.
    Subsection (b) provides that no payment made pursuant to 
this Act shall result in the reduction or denial of any Federal 
services or programs to the Tribe or its members to which they 
are entitled or eligible because of their status as a federally 
recognized Tribe or member thereof.
    Subsection (c) provides that except for rights specially 
waived in the Act or the Settlement Agreement, nothing in this 
Act shall affect or diminish any right to which the Tribe is 
entitled under existing law.
    Subsection (d) provides that none of the moneys to be paid 
to or lands acquired by the Tribe or allottees under this Act 
shall be taxable under federal or state law.
    Subsection (e) states that the Settlement Agreement may be 
amended in accordance with its own terms.

Section 10. Authorization of appropriations

    This section authorizes the appropriation of such sums as 
are necessary to carry out this Act.

Section 11. Effective dates

    This section provides that this Act shall become effective 
on the date of enactment, except that Sections 4, 5, 6, 7, and 
8 shall take effect on the date on which the Secretary 
determines that the Tribe, CVWD, and IID have agreed to the 
Settlement Agreement and the provisions of this Act, and that 
the Tribe has executed the waivers and releases required by the 
Settlement Agreement and this Act.

                    cost and budgetary consideration

    The cost and budgetary impact of S. 1893, as evaluated by 
the Congressional Budget Office, is set forth below:

                                     U.S. Congress,
                               Congressional Budget Office,
                                    Washington, DC, August 9, 1996.
Hon. John McCain,
Chairman, Committee on Indian Affairs,
U.S. Senate, Washington, DC.
    Dear Mr. Chairman: The Congressional Budget Office has 
prepared the enclosed cost estimate for S. 1893, the Torres-
Martinez Desert Cahuilla Indians Claims Settlement Act.
    Enacting S. 1893 would not affect direct spending or 
receipts. Therefore, pay-as-you-go procedures would not apply 
to the bill.
    If you wish further details on this estimate, we will be 
pleased to provide them.
            Sincerely,
                                              James L. Blum
                                   (For June E. O'Neill, Director).
    Enclosure.

               congressional budget office cost estimate

    1. Bill number: S. 1893.
    2. Bill title: Torres-Martinez Desert Cahuilla Indians 
Claims Settlement Act.
    3. Bill status: As ordered reported by the Senate Committee 
on Indian Affairs on July 24, 1996.
    4. Bill purpose: S. 1893 would ratify a settlement 
agreement entered into by the Department of Justice, the 
Imperial Irrigation District, the Coachella Valley Water 
District, and the Torres-Martinez Desert Cahuilla Indian Tribe. 
The settlement agreement is designed to provide compensation to 
the tribe for the flooding of reservation lands and relief 
against further inundation of those lands. According to the 
agreement, the tribe would receive monetary compensation from 
the United States and the two water districts. In addition, the 
Interior Department would take into trust up to 11,800 acres of 
land acquired by the tribe, and the tribe would be permitted to 
conduct gaming on lands taken into trust pursuant to the 
agreement.
    5. Estimated cost to the Federal Government: The bill would 
authorize an appropriation of $6 million to the tribe and its 
member landowners. Assuming enactment by the end of fiscal year 
1996 and appropriation of the funds for fiscal year 1997, CBO 
estimates that the tribe would spend out the money over the 
next three years.

                                    [By fiscal years, in millions of dollars]                                   
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                                              1997     1998     1999     2000     2001     2002 
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                        SPENDING SUBJECT TO APPROPRIATION                                       
                                                                                                                
Authorization level.......................................        6  .......  .......  .......  .......  .......
Estimated outlays.........................................        3        2        1  .......  .......  .......
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

    The costs of this bill fall within budget function 450.
    The tribe also would receive a payment of $4.2 million from 
the Claims and Judgments Fund. This payment would not represent 
a new obligation of the U.S. government, but would simply 
satisfy a commitment already made. That commitment stems from 
court action begun in 1982 and ultimately resolved by the 
settlement agreement negotiated by the parties to two separate 
suits, both of which have been suspended pending the outcome of 
such negotiations. The agreement entered into by the Department 
of Justice, the water districts, and the tribe calls for 
payment by the U.S. government of $4.2 million to the tribe. 
(The agreement also calls for payments by the two water 
districts to the tribe). Because the settlement agreement 
commits the U.S. government to the $4.2 million payment, 
enacting S. 1893 would not cause any increase in direct 
spending from the Claims and Judgments Fund.
    6. Basis of estimate: Funds that the tribe would receive 
may be spent on attorney fees, per capita payments, land 
acquisition, and other activities as stipulated by the 
settlement agreement. CBO expects that some of the funds would 
be spent quickly, while other activities such as the purchase 
of land would take longer. As a result, we estimate that about 
one-half of the $6 million would be spent in the year that 
funds are appropriated, with the remainder spread over the 
subsequent two years.
    7. Pay-as-you-go considerations: None.
    8. Estimated impact on State, local, and tribal 
governments: S. 1983 contains no intergovernmental mandates as 
defined in the Unfunded Mandates Reform Act of 1995 (Public Law 
104-4) and would impose no costs on state, local, or tribal 
governments. Any costs resulting from the settlement agreement 
covered by this bill would incurred voluntarily by state, 
local, and tribal governments as parties to the agreement.
    9. Estimated impact on the private sector: This bill would 
impose no new private-sector mandates as defined in Public Law 
104-4.
    10. Previous CBO estimate: None.
    11. Estimate prepared by: Federal Cost Estimate: Rachel 
Robertson. Impact on State, Local, and Tribal Governments: 
Marjorie Miller. Impact on the Private Sector: Amy Downs.
    12. Estimate approved by: Paul N. Van de Water, Assistant 
Director for Budget Analysis.

                      regulatory impact statement

    Paragraph 11(b) of rule XXVI of the Standing Rules of the 
Senate requires each report accompanying a bill to evaluate the 
regulatory and paperwork impact that would be incurred in 
carrying out the bill. The Committee believes that S. 1893 will 
have no regulatory or paperwork impact.

                        executive communications

    The statement presented by the Department of the Interior 
at the July 18, 1996 hearing is set forth below:

  Testimony of Michael Anderson, Deputy Assistant Secretary of Indian 
                  Affairs, Department of the Interior

    Mr. Chairman, I am here today on behalf of the 
Administration to testify in favor of S. 1893, which, if 
enacted, will ratify the June 18, 1996 settlement agreement 
resolving claims and issues related to lands held in trust by 
the United States for the benefit of the Torres-Martinez 
Indians. Before I begin, I would like to first thank you and 
the Committee for so promptly holding this hearing after the 
introduction of S. 1893. The resolution of this long-standing 
dispute between the tribe and two water districts in Southern 
California is long overdue and the Committee is to be commended 
for its efforts to implement the underlying agreement as is 
Senator Feinstein for her efforts in introducing S. 1893.
    H.R. 3640, the House companion bill to S. 1893 introduced 
last month by Congressman Bono, is expected to be favorably 
voted out of the House Committee on Natural Resources within 
the next few days. Given the spirit of bipartisanship 
demonstrated by the House committee and reflected in the 
sponsorship of the two bills, we are confident that S. 1893 
will receive the same broad support given to H.R. 3640. Indeed, 
everyone involved in the effort to reach a settlement of this 
matter has gone to great lengths to secure this support of 
those parties who stand to be affected by implementation of the 
agreement. For its part, the Department of the Interior engaged 
in widespread discussions with federal, tribal and local 
governmental authorities on the impact of the settlement. 
Letters of support for the settlement have been received by 
each of the neighboring tribes to the Torres-Martinez 
reservation, with the exception of the Cabazon Tribe which was 
inadvertently omitted from the list of tribes contacted about 
the settlement. Since the hearing on this bill before the House 
Native American Affairs subcommittee, the Department has 
explained the settlement to officials of the Cabazon Tribe.
    The Torres-Martinez Indian Reservation, located in the 
vicinity of the Salton Sink in the Coachella Valley, 
California, was first established by executive order in 1876 
and enlarged under executive orders in 1891 and 1909. The 
origins of the dispute may be traced back to the years 1905 to 
1907 when flood waters of the Colorado River filled the Salton 
Sink, inundating a portion of the Torres-Martinez Reservation 
and creating what is today known as the Salton Sea. At the 
time, it was expected that the water level of the Salton Sea 
would recede through the process of evaporation within a period 
of twenty five years and that previously flooded lands would 
dry out. However, due to natural runoff and agricultural 
drainage water from the Imperial, Coachella Valley and Mexicali 
irrigation systems that flow into the Salton Sea, approximately 
11,800 acres of tribal and allotted lands were, and have 
remained, inundated from as early as 1924.
    In 1982, the United States brought an action in trespass 
against the Imperial Irrigation District and Coachella Valley 
Water District on behalf of the Torres-Marrtinez Tribe. On 
August 25, 1992, the court entered a final judgment which found 
the irrigation districts liable for trespass but denied the 
United States' request for injunctive relief and ejectment. 
Subsequent to the judgment, the Department and the Department 
of Justice engaged in negotiations with the tribe and 
irrigation districts in an effort to correct what the agencies 
believe is an inequitable judicial result and to avoid a 
lengthy and costly appeal. A second objective of the settlement 
negotiations was the resolution of claims brought by the tribe 
in a separate lawsuit against the United States and the 
districts, as well as potential claims against the United 
States.
    After several years of difficult and contentious 
negotiations among the parties and countless discussions with 
entities that stand to be affected by resolution of this 
historical wrong, the parties have reached a settlement which 
the Department believes is a significant step toward fulfilling 
the Torres-Martinez Tribe's quest for self sufficiency.
    In its present form, S. 1893 accurately reflects the 
essential provisions of the settlement agreement negotiated and 
executed by the parties. In addition to approving, ratifying, 
and confirming the settlement agreement in its entirety, the 
bill specifically provides for the following essential terms of 
the agreement:

          Monetary contribution of approximately $14 million 
        from the U.S. and irrigation districts to the tribe. Of 
        the $10.2 million to be paid by the U.S., the bill 
        authorizes a payment of $4.2 million from the Judgment 
        Fund and $6 million from appropriated monies.
          Subject to certain conditions specified in the bill 
        and Agreement, the Department would take into trust up 
        to 11,800 acres of land (any amount equal to the 
        flooded area) purchased or otherwise acquired by the 
        Tribe within two separate acquisition areas. The 
        primary area of acquisition extends from the Riveside--
        Imperial County line north to just north of the thermal 
        airport. The secondary acquisition area extends from 
        the northern boundary of the primary area to just south 
        of Cathedral City. Both areas lie roughly within the 
        west and east boundaries of the Coachella Valley. Trust 
        acquisitions within the secondary area is limited to 
        640 acres and must be consolidated into no more than 
        two separate parcels. Trust acquisitions in the primary 
        area would be limited to 11,800 acres minus the number 
        of acres acquired in trust in the secondary acquisition 
        area.
          Land purchased or otherwise acquired by the Tribe in 
        the secondary acquisition area would be taken into 
        trust only if the local governing body or Riverside 
        County did not object to such trust acquisition. The 
        same restriction for taking land into trust would apply 
        to land acquired by the Tribe within the boundaries of 
        an incorporated city located in the primary acquisition 
        area. In this regard, it is noted that both the 
        Agreement and the bill are intended to provide the 
        Tribe and local authorities the opportunity and 
        flexibility required to reach agreements to address 
        particular concerns related to taking land into trust. 
        For instance, nothing in the bill prohibits the Tribe 
        and a particular city from negotiating an agreement 
        providing for the rights and obligations of each with 
        regard to certain issues that may arise after the land 
        is in trust. Such an agreement, properly entered into, 
        would be an enforceable contract in a court of 
        competent jurisdiction.
          Lands located within either area and situated within 
        a one mile radius of the reservation lands of any other 
        Indian tribe would be eligible for conveyance into 
        trust only with the consent of the affected Indian 
        tribe.
          The irrigation districts would be granted an easement 
        in perpetuity as to all lands within the -220, contour 
        of the Salton Sink. The Agreement would not affect the 
        ability of the United States to initiate actions to 
        enforce applicable water rights or environmental laws.
          The Tribe's right to conduct gaming on lands taken 
        into trust pursuant to the Agreement is limited and 
        restricted to one gaming operation on one physical 
        site.

    Any and all rights which the Tribe now enjoys under 
existing law are not affected by the bill or the provisions of 
the Agreement.
    This concludes my statement. I will be happy to answer any 
questions the Committee may have.

                        CHANGES IN EXISTING LAW

    S. 1893, as reported, makes no changes in existing law.
                               APPENDIX I

                              ----------                              

    The text of the Agreement of Compromise and Settlement 
Concerning Claims to Lands of the United States Within and on 
the Perimeter of the Salton Sea Drainage Reservoir Held in 
Trust for the Torres-Martinez Indians, dated June 18, 1996, is 
set forth below:

 Agreement of Compromise and Settlement Concerning Claims to Lands of 
    the United States Within and on the Perimeter of the Salton Sea 
    Drainage Reservoir Held in Trust for the Torres-Martinez Indians

    This Agreement of Compromise and Settlement (hereinafter 
``Agreement'') is made this 18th day of June, 1996 between the 
United States of America, in its own right and as Trustee on 
behalf of the Torres-Martinez Band of Mission Indians and 
affected Indian allotment owners (hereinafter ``United 
States''), acting through the Secretary of the Interior 
(hereinafter ``Secretary''); the Torres-Martinez Desert 
Cahuilla Indians (hereinafter ``Tribe''); the Imperial 
Irrigation District (hereinafter ``IID''); the Coachella Valley 
Water District (hereinafter ``CVWD''); and Mary Resvaloso, in 
her own right and as class representative of all other affected 
Indian allotment owners; sometimes referred to collectively as 
the ``Parties.''

                                recitals

    WHEREAS, the Torres-Martinez Indian Reservation 
(hereinafter ``Reservation''), located in the Coachella Valley, 
California, at the northern end of the Salton Basin, was 
established by Executive Order on May 15, 1876, reserving a 
single section (640 acres) of land for the use and benefit of 
the Tribe; and
    WHEREAS, the Reservation was expanded by an Executive Order 
issued on December 19, 1891, pursuant to the Mission Indian 
Relief Act of 1891, adding to the Reservation about 12,000 
acres of lands situated between the mountain foothills and the 
Salton Sink which at its lowest point measures at approximately 
275 feet below sea level; and
    WHEREAS, from 1905-1907, the flood waters of the Colorado 
River filled the Salton Sink, creating the Salton Sea and 
inundating a portion of the 1891 reservation lands; and
    WHEREAS, in 1909 an additional 12,000 acres of land, 9,000 
of which were then submerged under the Salton Sea, were added 
to the Reservation under an Executive Order issued pursuant to 
a 1907 amendment of the Mission Indian Relief Act; and
    WHEREAS, due to receding water levels in the Salton Sea 
through the process of evaporation at the time of the second 
enlargement of the Reservation in 1909, there were some 
expectations that the Salton Sea would recede within a period 
of 25 years; and
    WHEREAS, the United States, the Tribe and the affected 
Indian allotment owners contend that agricultural drainage 
waters from the Imperial, Mexicali and Coachella Valleys 
irrigation systems flow into the Salton Sea, and that these 
waters commingle with natural runoff and precipitation causing 
both inundation of Reservation and allottee-owned lands under 
the Salton Sea (approximately 11,800 acres) and damages to 
Reservation and allottee-owned lands on or near the perimeter 
of the Salton Sea (approximately 4,700 acres) due to saturation 
(hereinafter ``perimeter lands''); and
    WHEREAS, in 1982, the U.S. brought an action in trespass 
entitled United States of America, in its own right and on 
behalf of Torres-Martinez Band of Mission Indians and the 
Allottees therein v. The Imperial Irrigation District and 
Coachella Valley Water District, Case No. 82-1790 K (M) 
(hereinafter ``U.S. Suit'') on behalf of the Torres-Martinez 
Indian Tribe and affected Indian allottees against IID and CVWD 
for past damages related to the inundation of Reservation and 
allottee-owned lands and injunctive relief to prevent future 
discharge of water on such lands; and
    Whereas, on August 20, 1992, the Federal District Court, 
Southern District of California entered a judgment in the U.S. 
Suit requiring CVWD to pay $70,238.41 in past damages and 
$142,670 in future damages for a total of $212,908.41 and IID, 
$940,984,33 in past damages and $1,854,710 in future damages, 
for a total of $2,795,694.33, resulting in a combined total of 
$3,008,608.74; and
    Whereas, the United States, IID and CVWD have filed notices 
of appeal with United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth 
Circuit from the district court's judgment in the U.S. Suit 
(No's. 93-55389, 93-55398 and 93-55402) and the Tribe has filed 
a notice of appeal from the district court's denial of its 
motion to intervene as a matter of right (No. 92-55129);
    Whereas, the Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit has 
stayed further action on the appeals pending the outcome of 
settlement negotiations; and
    Whereas, in 1991, the Tribe brought its own lawsuit, 
Torres-Martinez Desert Cahuilla Indians, et al., v. Imperial 
Irrigation District, et al., Case No. 91-1670 J (LSP) 
(hereinafter ``Indian Suit'') in the United States District 
Court, Southern District of California against the two 
districts, and amended the complaint to include as an 
additional plaintiff, Mary Resvaloso, in her own right and as 
class representative of all other affected Indian allotment 
owners; and
    Whereas, the Indian Suit has been stayed by the District 
Court to facilitate settlement negotiations.
    Whereas, The United States, the Tribe, IID, CVWD and Mary 
Resvaloso on behalf of all affected Indian allotment owners, 
believe it is in their best interests to enter into this 
Agreement as a compromise and final settlement of all issues 
and claims in both the U.S. Suit and the Indian Suit;
    Now Therefore, in consideration of the following terms, 
conditions, and promises, the Parties agree as follows:

                           terms of agreement

I. Effectiveness of Agreement

    The Parties hereby agree that this Agreement shall take 
effect and be binding upon the Parties on the date the 
Secretary issues a written notice to all parties stating that 
all of the following actions have been performed and completed:
          (a) the Agreement is approved and duly executed by 
        the Secretary;
          (b) the Agreement is approved and duly executed by 
        the Chairperson of the Tribe on behalf of the Tribe in 
        accordance with and pursuant to a tribal resolution 
        authorizing the Chairperson of the Tribe to execute the 
        Agreement;
          (c) the Agreement is approved and duly executed by 
        IID;
          (d) the Agreement is approved and duly executed by 
        CVWD;
          (e) the Agreement is approved and duly executed by 
        Mary Resvaloso and the procedures set forth in section 
        XI of the Agreement have been accomplished;
          (f) the United States Congress enacts and the 
        President signs legislative acts (i) authorizing and 
        ratifying the Agreement (hereinafter ``Settlement 
        Legislation'') and (ii) appropriating the funds called 
        for by subsection II(c)(ii) of the Agreement 
        (hereinafter, ``Appropriation Legislation''), provided 
        that such legislative acts do not alter the essential 
        terms and conditions of the Agreement;
          (g) the Parties file and the U.S. Court of Appeals 
        for the Ninth Circuit grants, motions to dismiss their 
        respective appeals;
          (h) the United States, IID and CVWD, upon dismissal 
        of their respective appeals, file a joint motion in the 
        district court requesting that the court vacate its 
        judgment in the U.S. Suit; and
          (i) the Tribe files and the U.S. District Court, 
        Southern District of California grants, a motion to 
        dismiss with prejudice the Indian suit.

II. Monetary contributions

    (a) Cash Payments by CVWD. (1) Not later than thirty (30) 
days following the date on which the Agreement becomes 
effective, CVWD shall deliver to the Secretary a warrant in the 
amount of $337,908.41, payable to the United States, for the 
benefit of the Tribe and any affected Indian allotment owners.
    (2) Such amount shall be deposited by the United States 
into the appropriate trust account(s) provided for and in 
accordance with section IX of the Agreement.
    (3) If any portion of the sum described in subparagraph 
(a)(i) is not paid by the date that payment of such sum is due, 
CVWD shall pay an additional amount equal to ten percent (10%) 
interest per annum on the amount outstanding, compounded yearly 
on the thirty-first of December of each respective year until 
all amounts due are paid.
    (4) Upon delivery of the amount(s) described in 
subparagraphs (a)(1) and/or (a)(3) above to the Secretary, CVWD 
shall have no further liability, obligation, or responsibility 
to any party for handling, disposition or distribution of the 
said amount(s), including, without limitation, disposition of 
such amount(s) in the trust account(s) provided for in section 
IX of this Agreement.
    (5) CVWD shall have no liability or obligation to any party 
for the amounts agreed to be paid by either IID pursuant to 
paragraph (b) of this section or the United States, pursuant to 
paragraph (c) of this section.
    (b) Cash Payments by IID. (1) Not later than thirty (30) 
days following the date on which the Agreement becomes 
effective, IID shall deliver to the Secretary a warrant in the 
amount of $3,670,694.33, payable to the United States, for the 
benefit of the Tribe and any affected Indian allotment owners.
    (2) Such amount shall be deposited by the United States 
into the appropriate trust account(s) provided for and in 
accordance with section IX of this Agreement.
    (3) If any portion of the sum described in subparagraph 
(b)(i) is not paid by the date that payment of such sum is due, 
IID shall pay an additional amount equal to ten percent (10%) 
interest per annum on the amount outstanding, compounded yearly 
on the thirty-first of December of each respective year until 
all amounts due are paid.
    (4) Upon delivery of the amount(s) described in 
subparagraphs (b)(1) and/or (b)(3) above to the Secretary, IID 
shall have no further liability, obligation, or responsibility 
to any party for handling, disposition or distribution of the 
said amount(s), including, without limitation, disposition of 
such amount(s) in the trust account(s) provided for in section 
IX of this Agreement.
    (5) IID shall have no liability or obligation to any party 
for the amounts agreed to be paid by either CVWD pursuant to 
paragraph (b) of this section or the United States, pursuant to 
paragraph (c) of this section.
    (c) Cash Payments by the United States. Subject to the 
authorization and appropriation of funds, the United States 
agrees to contribute to the Tribe and any affected allottees 
the sum of $10,200,000 in settlement of potential money claim 
exposure against the United States as follows:
          (1) The sum of $4,200,000 shall be contributed by the 
        United States in settlement of potential money claim 
        exposure against the United States. This amount will be 
        deposited into the appropriate trust accounts provided 
        for and in accordance with section IX of this 
        Agreement, no later than one hundred and twenty (120) 
        days following the effective date of this Agreement or 
        as soon thereafter as the deposits of said amount 
        reasonably can be accomplished.
          (2) The sum of $6,000,000 shall be contributed by the 
        United States from funds appropriated to the Department 
        of the Interior for this purpose and deposited into the 
        appropriate trust accounts provided for and in 
        accordance with section IX of this Agreement, no later 
        than one hundred and twenty (120) days after the date 
        on which legislation appropriating said funds is 
        enacted into law.
          (3) The United States shall have no liability or 
        obligation to any party for the amounts agreed to be 
        paid by CVWD and IID under paragraphs (a) and (b) of 
        this section.

III. Stays of court proceedings

    The parties shall cooperate in securing court approval to 
stay or continue all proceedings in the pending lawsuits, until 
such time as the lawsuits shall have been dismissed as provided 
in sections I and IV of this Agreement or the Agreement shall 
have terminated.

IV. Mutual release and satisfaction of all claims

    (a) The Parties mutually understand and agree that the 
benefits to be received under the Agreement and the Settlement 
Legislation shall constitute full and complete satisfaction of 
all claims by each Party against any other Party alleged in 
either the U.S. Suit or the Indian Suit. More particularly, (1) 
the United States agrees to refrain forever from instituting, 
maintaining, prosecuting, or continuing to maintain or 
prosecute any suit or action against CVWD or IID (and their 
respective administrators, successors, agents, assign, 
representatives, employees, officers, and directors) based upon 
either (1) any claim, demand, action, cause of action or 
liability that was alleged in the U.S. Suit or the Indian Suit 
or (ii) past or future damages to the perimeter lands; (2) the 
Tribe agrees to refrain forever from instituting, maintaining, 
prosecuting, or continuing to maintain or prosecute any suit or 
action against CVWD or IID (and their respective 
administrative, employees, officers and directors) based upon 
either (i) any claim, demand, action, cause of action or 
liability that was alleged in the U.S. Suit or the Indian Suit 
or (ii) past or future damages to the perimeter lands; (3) the 
Tribe agrees to refrain forever from instituting, maintaining, 
prosecuting, or continuing to maintain or prosecute any suit or 
action against the United States based upon either (i) any 
claim, demand, action, cause of action or liability that was 
the subject of either the U.S. Suit or the Indian Suit or (ii) 
past or future damages to the perimeter lands; (4) CVWD and IID 
agree to refrain forever from instituting, maintaining, 
prosecuting, or continuing to maintain or prosecute any suit or 
action against the United States or the Tribe (and their 
respective administrators, successors, agents, assigns, 
representatives and employees), based upon either (i) any 
claim, demand, action, cause of action or liability that was 
alleged in the U.S. Suit or the Indian Suit or (ii) past or 
future damages to the perimeter lands; and (5) Mary Resvaloso 
on her own behalf and as class representative of all other 
affected Indian allotment owners, agrees to refrain forever 
from instituting, maintaining, prosecuting, or continuing to 
maintain or prosecute any suit or action against the United 
States, CVWD or IID (and their respective administrators, 
successors, agents, assigns, representatives, employees, 
officers or directors), based upon either (i) any claim, 
demand, action, cause of action or liability that was alleged 
in the U.S. Suit or the Indian Suit or (ii) past or future 
damages to the perimeter lands.
    (b) The Parties mutually understand and agree that the 
disputes giving rise to and being resolved by this Agreement 
and the Settlement Legislation have concerned the inundation of 
specified Indian lands, and have not concerned either water 
rights or the enforcement of federal or state environmental 
laws, statutes, and regulations. Further, the parties mutually 
understand and agree that nothing in this section or any other 
section of this Agreement may be construed as barring the 
initiation of suits or actions to enforce applicable water 
rights, environmental laws, statutes, or regulations.
    (c) The Parties mutually understand and agree that nothing 
in this Agreement is intended to compromise the collateral 
estoppel or res judicata effect of the district court's 
judgment in the U.S. Suit as if said judgment was not vacated.
    (d) The Parties agree to file [a] motions[s] to dismiss the 
U.S. Suit and the Indian Suit as, where and in a manner and 
form appropriate and necessary to accomplish the dismissal of 
the suits, within 30 days following either the date this 
Agreement is enacted into law by the Settlement Legislation, or 
the date this Agreement is approved by the District Court in 
accordance with Section XI, whichever of the two dates is 
later.

V. Permanent flowage easement

    Not later than thirty (30) days following the effective 
date of this Agreement:
    (a) The United States, in its capacity as trustee for the 
Tribe as well as for any affected Indian allotment owners, and 
their successors and assigns, and the Tribe in its own right 
and that of its successors and assigns, shall grant and convey 
to CVWD a permanent flowage easement as to all lands in trust 
for the benefit of the Tribe and any affected Indian allotment 
owners located within and below the -220, contour of the Salton 
Sink (approximately 11,800 acres), in the form attached hereto 
as Exhibit ``A'', which upon acceptance by CVWD pursuant to 
California Government Code Sec. 27281 shall be recorded in the 
Office of County Recorder of Riverside County, California and 
the Office of County Recorder of Imperial County, California, 
and evidence of said easement shall be entered upon the land 
records of the Bureau of Land Management and the Bureau of 
Indian Affairs; and
    (b) The United States, in its own right shall, 
notwithstanding any prior or present reservation or withdrawal 
of land of any kind, grant and convey to CVWD a permanent 
flowage easement as to all Federal lands located within and 
below the -220, contour of the Salton Sink (approximately 
110,000 acres), in the form attached hereto as Exhibit ``A'', 
which upon acceptance by CVWD pursuant to California Government 
Code Sec. 27281 shall be recorded in the Office of County 
Recorder of Riverside County, California and the Office of 
County Recorder of Imperial County, California, and evidence of 
said easement shall be entered upon the land records of the 
Bureau of Land Management and the Bureau of Indian Affairs.
    (c) The United States, in its capacity as trustee for the 
Tribe as well as for any affected Indian allotment owners, and 
their successors and assigns, and the Tribe in its own right 
and that of its successors and assigns, shall grant and convey 
to IID a permanent flowage easement as to all lands held in 
trust for the benefit of the Tribe and any affected Indian 
allotment owners located within and below the -220, contour of 
the Salton Sink (approximately 11,800 acres), in the form 
attached hereto as Exhibit ``A'', which upon acceptance by IID 
pursuant to California Government Code Sec. 27281 shall be 
recorded in the Office of County Recorder of Riverside County, 
California and the Office of County Recorder of Imperial 
County, California, and evidence of said easement shall be 
entered upon the land records of the Bureau of Land Management.
    (d) The United States, in its own right shall, 
notwithstanding any prior or present reservation or withdrawal 
of land of any kind, grant and convey to IID a permanent 
flowage easement as to all Federal lands located within and 
below the -220, contour of the Salton Sink (approximately 
110,000 acres), in the form attached hereto as Exhibit ``A'', 
which upon acceptance by IID pursuant to California Government 
Code Sec. 27281 shall be recorded in the Office of County 
Recorder of Riverside County, California and the Office of 
County Recorder of Imperial County, California, and evidence of 
said easement shall be entered upon the land records of the 
Bureau of Land Management.
    (e) For this purposes of this Agreement, the term 
``permanent flowage easement'' shall mean the perpetual right 
by the water districts to use the prescribed lands within and 
below the -220, contour as a drainage reservoir to receive and 
store water from their respective water and drainage systems 
including flood water, return flows from irrigation, tail 
water, leach water, operational spills, and any other water 
which overflows and floods said lands originating from lands 
within said water districts.

VI. Acquisition and placement of lands into trust status

    The United States, acting through the Secretary, shall 
convey into trust status for the benefit of the Tribe certain 
lands which the Tribe may purchase or otherwise acquire 
pursuant to this agreement subject to the limitations, terms 
and conditions of this Agreement and the provisions of the 
Settlement Legislation.
    (a) The Secretary, in accordance with the terms and 
conditions of this Agreement and the provisions of the 
Settlement Legislation, shall convey up to 11,800 acres of land 
into trust status for the benefit of the Tribe.
    (b) The Tribe and the United States understand and agree 
that only lands purchased or otherwise acquired by the Tribe 
within either of the two designated acquisition areas defined 
and described in paragraphs (c) and (d) of this section shall 
be eligible for conveyance into trust status under the terms 
and conditions of this Agreement and the Settlement 
Legislation.
    (c) Primary Acquisition Area. The Primary Acquisition Area 
shall lie within the area bounded on the south by the Riverside 
County Line commencing at the northwest corner of Section 6, T 
9 S, R 9 E; thence running east along the Riverside County Line 
to the point at which the Riverside County Line intersects the 
western shoreline of the Salton Sea; thence running north along 
the western shoreline of the Salton Sea; thence running in an 
easterly direction along the northern shoreline of the Salton 
Sea and continuing until its intersection with the northwest 
corner of the southwest quarter of Section 34, T 7 S, R 10 E; 
thence running northeasterly in a straight line to northeast 
corner of Section 26, T 7 S, R 10 E; then continuing in a 
northeasterly direction to its intersection with the Coachella 
Canal; thence running northwesterly along the Coachella Canal 
until its intersection with the northern boundary of Section 
19, T 6 S, R 9 E; thence running west in a straight line to the 
northwest corner of Section 20, T 6 S, R 7 E (hereinafter, 
``northern boundary of the Primary Acquisition Area''); thence 
running southeasterly in a straight line to the northwest 
corner of Section 6, T 9 S, R 9 E. Attached hereto and 
incorporated herein as Exhibit ``B'' is a map outlining the 
Primary Acquisition Area. The total number of acres of land 
within the Primary Acquisition Area that may be conveyed into 
trust status in accordance with this Agreement and pursuant to 
the Settlement Legislation shall not exceed 11,800 less the 
number of acres of land situated within the Secondary 
Acquisition Area and conveyed into trust status in accordance 
with this Agreement and pursuant to the Settlement Legislation.
    (d) Secondary Acquisition Area. The Secondary Acquisition 
Area shall lie within the area bounded on the south by the 
northern boundary of the Primary Acquisition Area; thence 
commencing at the point at which the Coachella Canal intersects 
the northern boundary of Section 19, T 6 S, R 9 E running 
northwesterly along the Coachella Canal to its intersection 
with the eastern boundary of Section 3, T 5 S, R 7 E; thence 
running north along the eastern boundary of Section 3, T 5 S, R 
7 E and continuing north in a straight line into Section 34, T 
4 S, R 7 E to its intersection with the powerline; thence 
running northwesterly along the powerline until its 
intersection with the eastern boundary of Section 15, T 4 S, R 
6 E; thence running northwesterly in a straight line to the 
northwest corner of Section 15, T 4 S, R 6 E; thence running 
southwesterly in a straight line to the southwest corner of 
Section 17, T 5 S, R 5 E; thence running southeasterly in a 
straight line to the southwest corner of Section 18, T 6 S, R 7 
E; thence running east along the southern boundary of Section 
18, T 6 S, R 7 E, to the northwest corner of Section 20, T 6 S, 
R 7 E. Attached hereto and incorporated herein as Exhibit ``B'' 
is a map outlining the Secondary Acquisition Area. The total 
number of acres of land within the Secondary Acquisition Area 
that may be conveyed into trust status in accordance with this 
Agreement and pursuant to the Settlement Legislation shall not 
exceed 640.
    (e) With regard to all lands which the Tribe purchases or 
otherwise acquires within the Primary and Secondary Acquisition 
Areas for purposes of having said lands placed into trust 
status in accordance with this Agreement and pursuant to the 
Settlement Legislation, the Tribe shall submit to the Secretary 
a written request to convey such lands into trust. Such request 
shall include the following information: the identity of the 
parties from whom the land was acquired; the location and legal 
description of the land at issue; a description of how the 
Tribe plans to use the land; a statement concerning the 
financial impact, if any, which the removal of such lands from 
the tax rolls may have on local government; and any other 
information which the Secretary may deem necessary or 
appropriate. The Secretary shall provide a copy of such request 
to (a) the local government whose incorporated boundaries the 
subject lands are situated within or (b) the County of 
Riverside California, in the event such lands are located 
within unincorporated areas.
    (f) With regard to lands acquired by the Tribe within the 
Primary Acquisition Area for conveyance into trust status 
pursuant to this Agreement, the Tribe agrees to acquire 
contiguous parcels of land which are contiguous to the Tribe's 
reservation lands to the maximum extent practicable. To the 
extent the Tribe acquires lands within the Primary Acquisition 
Area pursuant to this Agreement which are not contiguous to its 
reservation lands, the Tribe further agrees to acquire parcels 
of at least 40 acres in size and to cluster such parcels as 
close as possible to one another to the maximum extent 
practicable.
    (g) Lands acquired by the Tribe in the Primary Acquisition 
Area pursuant to and in accordance with the terms and 
conditions of this Agreement shall be conveyed and held by the 
United States in trust for the sole use and benefit of the 
Tribe within 180 days following the date on which all of the 
following conditions and actions have been demonstrated to have 
been satisfied, performed and/or completed:
          (1) the Tribe files with the Secretary a written 
        request to convey such lands into trust in accordance 
        with paragraph (e) of this section;
          (2) the number of acres per request for conveyance 
        into trust equals or exceeds 160 acres;
          (3) compliance with part 151.12 of title 25, Code of 
        Federal Regulations;
          (4) the Secretary has not received written 
        notification from the local governing body of any 
        incorporated city which is incorporated on or prior to 
        the date of this Agreement whose incorporated 
        boundaries (as those boundaries were established as of 
        the date of this Agreement) the subject lands are 
        situated within, formally notifying the Secretary that 
        such governing body, by majority vote, objects to the 
        Tribe's request to convey the subject lands into trust 
        and so notifies the Secretary within sixty (60) days of 
        receiving a copy of the Tribe's request from the 
        Secretary in accordance with paragraph (e) of this 
        section; and
          (5) compliance with all applicable provisions of this 
        section.
    (h) With regard to lands that may be acquired by the Tribe 
within the Secondary Acquisition Area for conveyance into trust 
status pursuant to this Agreement, the Tribe agrees that it 
shall limit its acquisitions to parcels of lands which are 
contiguous to one another and to consolidate such parcels in no 
more than two separate composite clusters of contiguous parcels 
of land, the combined total acreage of which shall not exceed 
640 acres.
    (i) All lands acquired by the Tribe in the Secondary 
Acquisition Area pursuant to and in accordance with the terms 
and conditions of this Agreement shall be conveyed and held by 
the United States in trust for the sole use and benefit of the 
Tribe within 180 days following the date on which all of the 
following conditions and actions have been demonstrated to have 
been satisfied, performed and/or completed:
          (1) the Tribe files with the Secretary a written 
        request to convey such lands into trust in accordance 
        with paragraph (g) of this section;
          (2) compliance with part 151.12 of title 25, Code of 
        Federal Regulations;
          (3) compliance with all applicable provisions of this 
        section;
          (4) the Secretary has not received written 
        notification from (a) the local governing body of the 
        incorporated city whose incorporated boundaries the 
        subject lands are situated within or (b) the governing 
        body of Riverside County, California, in the event that 
        such lands are located within an unincorporated area, 
        formally notifying the Secretary that such governing 
        body, by majority vote, objects to the Tribe's request 
        to convey the subject lands into trust and so notifies 
        the Secretary of such objection within sixty days (60) 
        of receiving a copy of the Tribe's request from the 
        Secretary in accordance with paragraph (e) of this 
        section; and
          (5) compliance with all applicable provisions of this 
        section.

It is further agreed and understood that the Tribe shall submit 
no more than three separate written requests to convey lands it 
has acquired within the Secondary Acquisition Area into trust 
status and that the Secretary shall grant no more than three 
such requests.
    (j) The provisions of paragraphs (g) and (i) 
notwithstanding, the United States and the Tribe understand and 
agree that lands located within either the Primary or Secondary 
Acquisition Areas and situated within a one (1) mile radius of 
the reservation lands of any other federally-recognized Indian 
tribe shall not be conveyed into trust for the benefit of the 
Tribe absent the consent of the appropriate officials or 
governing body of the affected Indian tribe or tribes.
    (k) With respect to the acreage and contiguity standards 
established by this section as prerequisites to the conveyance 
of land into trust, the Secretary may in his discretion waive 
such requirements upon request of the Tribe and upon a 
satisfactory showing that such waiver is reasonably necessary 
to facilitate the Tribe's proposed use of the lands at issue.
    (l) Concurrently with the submission of any written request 
to the Secretary to convey lands into trust in accordance with 
paragraph (e), the Tribe agrees to record an acknowledgment in 
the form of Exhibit ``C''.
    (m) The United States and the Tribe hereby acknowledge and 
agree that IID and CVWD have no responsibility or liability 
with respect to the purchase or acquisition of lands, 
including, without limitation, the responsibility to convey 
such lands into trust or any other responsibility set forth in 
this section.

VII. Status of lands taken into trust

    The Secretary and the Tribe agree that any and all lands 
which are conveyed into trust for the benefit of the Tribe 
pursuant to and in accordance with the terms and conditions of 
this Agreement shall be deemed to have been taken into trust as 
of 1909, subject to the following exceptions, conditions, 
restrictions and limitations:
    (a) With respect to any gaming that may be conducted by the 
Tribe on such lands, the Tribe agrees:
          (1) that the conduct of any gaming on such lands 
        shall forever be limited and restricted to occur on no 
        more than one specific site at any one time;
          (2) to provide the Secretary with a tribal resolution 
        which states that the Tribe is exercising its right 
        under this Agreement to conduct gaming on a single site 
        situated on lands acquired and conveyed into trust 
        pursuant to this Agreement and identifies the site by 
        location and size in terms of acreage;
          (3) to submit such resolution to the Secretary at the 
        time the Tribe submits to the Secretary its request to 
        convey the subject land into trust in accordance with 
        Section VI of this Agreement; and
          (4) the Tribe shall have the right to relocate any 
        such gaming operation from a site situated on lands 
        acquired and conveyed into trust pursuant to this 
        Agreement to any other site situated on such lands, 
        provided that all gaming activity at the first site is 
        terminated prior to or simultaneously with the 
        commencement of gaming activity on the second site.
    (b) With respect to water rights, all lands taken into 
trust pursuant to this Agreement shall be:
          (1) subject to all valid water rights existing at the 
        time such lands are acquired by the Tribe, including, 
        but not limited to, all rights under any permit or 
        license issued under the laws of the State of 
        California to commence an appropriation of water, to 
        appropriate water, or to increase the amount of water 
        appropriated;
          (2) subject to all paramount rights of any person who 
        at any time recharges or stores water in a groundwater 
        basin to recapture or recover the recharged or stored 
        water or to authorize others to recapture or recover 
        the recharged or stored water; and
          (3) entitled to the benefit of all valid water rights 
        appurtenant to the land existing immediately prior to 
        the time the Tribe acquires such lands.

VIII. Water issues

    (a) Groundwater Replenishment Assessments. The Tribe hereby 
agrees that it shall be subject to all applicable groundwater 
replenishment assessments levied by or on behalf of CVWD or the 
United States government, by and through CVWD, for all lands 
owned by or on behalf of the Tribe, whether in fee or 
otherwise, which are acquired after the effective date of this 
Agreement, provided that:
          (1) the land is situated within the boundaries of 
        Improvement District No. 1, is such as defined and 
        described in paragraph (b) of this section; and
          (2) the assessments are uniform and nondiscriminatory 
        as established from time to time by the Board of 
        Directors of CVWD, in accordance with CVWD's rules and 
        regulations.
    (b) Improvement District No. 1. With regard to Improvement 
District No. 1, formed by CVWD on or about October 15, 1934, 
and set out in the map attached hereto and incorporated herein 
as Exhibit ``D'', CVWD and the Tribe hereby agree that:
          (1) the Tribe shall use canal water, instead of 
        domestic water or well water, for any land acquired by 
        or on behalf of the Tribe or any allotment owners of 
        the Tribe when CVWD determines in its sole discretion 
        to provide canal water for irrigation purposes; 
        provided that:
                  (A) such land is within the boundaries of 
                Improvement District No. 1; and
                  (B) the assessments are uniform and 
                nondiscriminatory as established from time to 
                time by the Board of Directors of CVWD, in 
                accordance with CVWD's rules and regulations;
          (2) the Tribe shall use canal water when CVWD 
        determines in its sole discretion to provide canal 
        water in place of ground water for irrigation purposes. 
        Provided CVWD provides canal water, as set forth 
        herein, the Tribe shall not pump or allow others, 
        except CVWD, to pump water from wells on land owned or 
        controlled by the Tribe, excepting only to the extent 
        that such canal water is of insufficient quality for 
        particular uses to be made of such land which 
        determination shall be made by CVWD in its reasonable 
        discretion;
          (3) CVWD shall serve canal water to the Tribes 
        pursuant to CVWD's prevailing policies, rules and 
        regulations governing the provision of service of canal 
        water, as they may be amended from time to time by 
        CVWD's Board of Directors;
          (4) all charges for delivery of canal water to the 
        Tribe shall be paid by the Tribe based on the uniform 
        and non-discriminatory rate schedules estimated from 
        time to time by the Board of Directors of CVWD, in 
        accordance with the CVWD rules and regulations; and
          (5) the Tribe shall accept full and exclusive 
        responsibility for the management and use of the canal 
        water delivered by CVWD to the Tribe, at the point of 
        delivery agreed to by the Tribe.
    (c) Assessments Outside of Improvement District No. 1. 
Notwithstanding anything contained to the contrary herein, the 
Tribe hereby agrees that the Tribe shall be subject to all 
replenishment assessments levied by the CVWD outside of 
Improvement District No. 1 and within Riverside County for any 
lands acquired by or on behalf of the Tribe on or after the 
effective date of this Agreement; provided, that the 
assessments are uniform and nondiscriminatory established from 
time to time by the Board of Directors of CVWD, in accordance 
with CVWD's rules and regulations.

IX. Trust accounts and disposition of funds

    (a) Tribal Settlement Trust Funds Account. No later than 
thirty (30) days following the enactment of the Settlement 
Legislation, the United States shall establish in the Treasury 
of the United States a trust funds account for the benefit of 
the Tribe to be know as the ``Torres Martinez Settlement Trust 
Funds Account'' (hereinafter, ``Tribal Settlement Account'').
    (b) Allottees Settlement Trust Funds Accounts. No later 
than thirty (30) days following the enactment of the Settlement 
Legislation, the United States shall establish in the Treasury 
of the United States the following two trust funds account:
          (1) ``Torres Martinez Allottees Settlement Account 
        I'' for the benefit of those allottees having a 
        property interest in trust lands located within and 
        below the -220, contour of the Salton Sink 
        (hereinafter, ``Allotees Account I''); and
          (2) ``Torres Martinez Allottees Settlement Account 
        II'' for the benefit of those allottees having property 
        interest in those certain trust lands located on the 
        perimeter of the Salton Sink about the -220, contour 
        which were damaged due to the raised watertable 
        (hereinafter, ``Allottees Account II'').
    (c) Allocation and Deposit of Monetary Contributions. The 
Parties understand and agree that the Indian trust lands which 
are at issue in the U.S. Suit and the Indian Suit are comprised 
of both tribal lands and allotted lands and that the monetary 
contributions made by CVWD, IID, and the United States for the 
benefit of the Tribe and affected allottees pursuant to section 
II of the Agreement shall be allocated between the Tribe and 
affected allottees on a proportionate acreage basis and 
deposited into the appropriate trust funds accounts as follows:
          (1) 75% of the total amount of monetary payments paid 
        to the United States for the benefit of the Tribe and 
        affected allottees by CVWD and IID pursuant to section 
        II of the Agreement shall be deposited in the Tribal 
        Settlement Account and Allottees Account I in amounts 
        proportionate to the total number of acres in which the 
        beneficiaries of such trust accounts have a property 
        interest.
          (2) 25% of the total amount of monetary payments paid 
        to the United States for the benefit of the Tribe and 
        affected allottees by CVWD and IID pursuant to section 
        II of the Agreement shall be deposited into the Tribal 
        Settlement Account, Allottees Account I and Allottees 
        Account II in amounts proportionate to the total number 
        of affected acres in which the beneficiaries of such 
        trust account have a property interest.
          (3) 50% of the total amount of monetary payments paid 
        by the United States for the benefit of the Tribe and 
        affected allottees pursuant to subsection II(c)(i) of 
        the Agreement shall be deposited into the Tribal 
        Settlement Account and Allottees Account I in amounts 
        proportionate to the total number of affected area in 
        which the beneficiaries of such trust accounts have a 
        property interest.
          (4) 50% of the total amount of monetary payments paid 
        by the United States for the benefit of the Tribe and 
        affected allottees pursuant to subsection II(c)(i) of 
        the Agreement shall be deposited into the Tribal 
        Settlement Account, Allottees Account I and Allottees 
        Account II in amounts proportionate to the total number 
        of affected acres in which the beneficiaries of such 
        trust accounts have a property interest.
          (5) 100% of the total amount of monetary payments 
        paid by the United States for the benefit of the Tribe 
        and affected allottees pursuant to subsection II(c)(ii) 
        of the Agreement shall be deposited into the Tribal 
        Settlement Account, Allottees Account I and Allottees 
        Account II in amounts proportionate to the total number 
        of affected acres in which the beneficiaries of such 
        trust account have property interest.
    (d) Investment of Monetary Contributions. The Secretary 
agrees to invest all sums deposited into, accruing to, and 
remaining in, the Tribal Trust Account, Suspension Account I 
and Suspension Account II in accordance with 25 U.S.C. Sec. 
162(a).
    (e) Distribution of Sums Held in Trust Accounts.
          (1) The Secretary and the Tribe agree that any and 
        all sums held in the Tribal Settlement Account shall be 
        available for distribution to the Tribe as may be 
        requested by the Tribe subject to the following terms 
        and conditions:
                  (A) The Tribe shall use such sums only for 
                the purposes of education, land acquisition, 
                economic development, youth and elderly 
                programs, or other tribal purposes, including, 
                but not limited to, the payment of attorney 
                fees for legal services rendered to the Tribe 
                in connection with the U.S. Suit, the Indian 
                Suit and the settlement of the same, in 
                accordance with plans and budgets developed by 
                the Tribe and approved by the Secretary.
                  (B) Nothing in this subsection or other 
                section of this Agreement may be construed as 
                prohibiting the Tribe from using a portion of 
                the sums held for the purpose of making per-
                capita payments to members of the Tribe; 
                provided, that such portion shall not exceed 
                twenty five percent (25%) of the total amount 
                of the sum held in the Tribal Settlement 
                Account.
          (2) The Secretary agrees to promptly distribute the 
        sums held in Allottees Account I and Allottees Account 
        II to owners of the allotted lands at issue in the U.S. 
        Suit, and the Indian Suit, as their interests appear on 
        the date the Agreement is executed. In order to make 
        such distributions as promptly as possible the 
        Secretary further agrees to take appropriate action to 
        identify all eligible allottees and to calculate their 
        appropriate shares expeditiously.
    (f) Waiver. The Parties understand and agree that IID and 
CVWD shall have no responsibility or liability for the Tribal 
Settlement Account, Allottees Account I, or Allottees Account 
II, including but not limited to, the establishment of such 
accounts, determination of the allocation of funds between such 
accounts, distribution of monies to or from such accounts, and 
the investment of monies in such accounts.

X. Settlement legislation

    All parties agree to support the introduction and enactment 
of legislation to implement this Agreement which is 
substantially the same in text and form as that proposed 
legislation attached hereto as Exhibit ``E''. This Agreement 
shall be effective only if the Settlement Legislation does not 
alter the essential terms of the Agreement.

XI. Settlement litigation

    (a) The Parties all mutually intend that this Agreement 
shall fully, fairly and finally resolve all claims pertaining 
to all Indian trust lands covered by this Agreement, including 
not only tribal lands owned by the Tribe but also allotted 
lands owned by a large number of individual Indian trust 
beneficiaries or their assigns. Some of the affected allottees 
are represented in the U.S. Suit by their federal trustee, the 
United States. All affected allottees are represented in the 
Indian Suit by Mary Resvaloso, an individual allottee and class 
representative. The party representatives of the absent 
allottees are satisfied that the Agreement fully and fairly 
compensates all affected landowners, whether tribal or 
individual, and that it is necessary and proper to make this 
agreement finally conclusive and binding upon all such 
landowners. Consequently, the Parties to the Agreement 
stipulate that:
          (1) within 5 days of signing the Agreement or as soon 
        thereafter as is possible, they shall file a joint 
        motion in the United States Court of Appeals for the 
        Ninth Circuit for a limited remand of the U.S. Suit for 
        purposes of class certification and approval of 
        settlement;
          (2) within 5 days of an order by the court of appeals 
        granting a limited remand, the Parties shall file a 
        motion or joint motions in the United States District 
        Court for the Southern District of California, seeking 
        the following actions from the court:
                  (A) Consolidation of the U.S. Suit and the 
                Indian Suit for purposes of class certification 
                for settlement purpose only, approval of 
                settlement and notice of same.
                  (B) Approval by the court of a form of notice 
                to be given to allottee class members pursuant 
                to the notice requirements of Federal Rule of 
                Civil Procedure 23(c) (``Rule 23(c)'') and Rule 
                23(e), concerning future actions to be taken in 
                the two consolidated lawsuits, including the 
                certification of a class for settlement 
                purposes only under Rule 23(b)(3) and approval 
                of the Agreement under Rule 23(e).
                  (C) Issuance of an order requiring all 
                interested parties and putative class members 
                to appear at a time certain and show cause why 
                the court should not certify for settlement 
                purposes only a defined class of affected 
                allottee landowners under Rule 23(b)(3) and 
                approve the Agreement under Rule 23(e).
                  (D) Conduct of a hearing by the court with 
                respect to the matters set forth in preceding 
                subparagraph (C), to be held no sooner than 
                sixty (60) days after notice to the parties of 
                the date set by the court for such hearings.
                  (E) Entry by the court of orders certifying 
                for settlement purposes only a defined allottee 
                class under Rule 23(b)(3) and approving the 
                Agreement under Rule 23(e).
    (b) Within five days of receiving notice of the hearing 
referred to in subparagraph (a)(2)(D) above, the United States 
shall provide notice to putative class members in the form 
approved by the court pursuant to subparagraph (a)(2)(B) above, 
which notice the United States presently expects will require 
publication and individual mailings to the last known addresses 
of all owners of affected allotments (or of fractional 
interests therein), as revealed by the Bureau of Indian Affairs 
(BIA) realty records regarding such allottee ownership. At the 
hearing, the United States shall be prepared to describe to the 
court the manner in which it attempted to notify all affected 
allotment owners.
    (c) If a significant number of the putative class whose 
interests in the perimeter lands elect to be excluded from the 
class, the Parties retain the right to repudiate the Agreement. 
For purposes of this paragraph, ``a significant number'' is 
equal to those allottees or their heirs whose interests in 
these lands aggregates to a total of 470 acres, or more, which 
is 10 percent or more of the total perimeter lands.
    (d) If within one hundred twenty (120) days following the 
date on which the court issues an order approving the form of 
notice filed by the Parties with the motion set forth in 
paragraph (a)(2) above, the court shall fail to certify a class 
of affected allottees for settlement purposes only under Rule 
23(b)(3) or should fail to approve the Agreement under Rule 
23(e) as being fair and reasonable, each party reserves the 
right to timely withdraw from the Agreement after the 
expiration of such four-month period, by giving written notice 
to the other parties of such withdrawal; provided, that if no 
notice of withdrawal is given by any party within five months 
of the filing of said motion or motions, the Parties shall be 
deemed to have waived their right of withdrawal under this 
paragraph.

XII. General provisions

    (a) Compromise Agreement. The Parties understand and agree 
that this Agreement is the result of a compromise among the 
Parties and shall not at any time or for any purpose be 
considered as an admission of liability or responsibility, nor 
shall the payment of money in consideration for the execution 
of this Agreement constitute or be construed as an admission of 
any liability whatsoever by any of the Parties.
    (b) Modification of Agreement. The terms and conditions of 
this Agreement may be modified by mutual agreement of the 
Parties provided that the modifications are duly approved by 
each of the Parties and that any such modifications are not 
inconsistent with the settlement legislation enacted by the 
United States Congress.
    (c) Existing Rights. This Agreement is not intended to 
diminish rights which the Tribe would otherwise have under 
existing law, either with respect to the Tribe's present right 
to acquire trust land under currently applicable federal 
statutes and regulations or with respect to the Tribe's present 
right to conduct gaming on trust land within or contiguous to 
the boundaries of the Tribe's reservation as said boundaries 
existed in 1988 provided such land is acquired in trust under 
currently applicable federal statutes and regulations.
    (d) Parties To Bear Own Expenses. Each party shall bear its 
own costs, attorney's fees and expenses in connection with the 
pending lawsuits, this Agreement and the implementation 
thereof.

    Dated: June 13, 1996, United States of America.
                                                    By Ada E. Deer.

    Dated: June 18, 1996, United States of America.
                                                By Lois J. Shiffer.

    Dated: June 17, 1996, Torres-Martinez Desert Cahuilla 
Indians.
                                                By Mary E. Belardo.

    Dated: June 17, 1996, Imperial Irrigation District.
                                                 By Jesse P. Silva.

    Dated: June 17, 1996, Coachella Valley Water District.
                                                       By Tom Levy.
                                                 Mary L. Resvaloso.
                                      Mary L. Resvaloso for
                                   other affected Indian allottees.

    This instrument was acknowledged before me on this 13 day 
of June, 1996 by Ada Deer as Assistant Secretary-Indian 
Affairs, Department of the Interior of the United States of 
America.
                                                  Barbara J. Diehl.
    My Commission Expires: November 30, 1998.

    This instrument was acknowledged before me on this 18th day 
of June, 1996 by Lois J. Schiffer, Assistant Attorney General, 
Department of Justice, United States of America.
                                              Georgia A. Kowlessor.
    My Commission Expires September 14, 2000.

    This instrument was acknowledged before me on this 17th day 
of June, 1996 by Mary Belardo, Chairperson, Torres-Martinez 
Band of Mission Indians.
                                                   Jorge E. Zuniga.
    My Commission Expires: November 2, 1998.

    This instrument was acknowledged before me on this 17th day 
of June, 1996 by Jesse P. Silva, Deputy General Manager, 
Imperial Irrigation District.
                                                  Gloria A. Rivera.
    My Commission Expires: April 25, 1997.

    This instrument was acknowledged before me on this 17th day 
of June, 1996 by Tom Levy, general manager-chief engineer, 
Coachella Valley Water District.
                                                  Cynthia R. Parks.
    My Commission Expires: February 26, 1997.

    This instrument was acknowledged before me on this 17th day 
of June, 1996 by Mary Resvaloso, in her own right and as class 
representative of all other affected Indian allotment owners.
                                                   Jorge E. Zuniga.
    My Commission Expires: November 2, 1998.




