[Senate Report 106-31]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]





                                                        Calendar No. 69

106th Congress                                                   Report
  1st Session                    SENATE                          106-31

=======================================================================



 
       KAKE TRIBAL CORPORATION PUBLIC INTEREST LAND EXCHANGE ACT

                                _______
                                

                 March 22, 1999.--Ordered to be printed

                                _______


  Mr. Murkowski, from the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources, 
                        submitted the following

                              R E P O R T

                         [To accompany S. 430]

    The Committee on Energy and Natural Resources, to which was 
referred the bill (S. 430) to amend the Alaska Native Claims 
Settlement Act, to provide for a land exchange between the 
Secretary of Agriculture and the Kake Tribal Corporation, and 
for other purposes, having considered the same, reports 
favorably thereon with amendments and recommends that the bill, 
as amended, do pass.
    The amendments are as follows:
    1. On page 1, line 5, strike ``Public Interest''.
    2. On page 2, lines 10 and 11, strike ``: Lands exchanged 
pursuant to this section shall be on the basis of equal 
value.'' and insert in lieu thereof ``. The values of the lands 
and interests therein exchanged pursuant to this section shall 
be equal.''.

                         Purpose of the Measure

    The purpose of S. 430, as ordered reported, is to direct 
the Secretary of Agriculture to enter into an equal value 
exchange of lands and interests therein, in the Tongass 
National Forest with the Kake Tribal Corporation and Sealaska 
Corporation.

                          Background and Need

    The Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act (ANCSA) authorized 
the transfer of 23,040 acres of land from the U.S. Government 
to the Kake Tribal Corporation.
    ANCSA required all village corporations to select all 
public land in the core township area. This core township area 
included the present day municipal watershed. The Kake Tribal 
Corporation did not know that it would not be able to make 
economic use of the watershed in the future. During the 70's it 
was commonly assumed that logging in these watersheds would not 
be a problem because the Forest Service allowed it at the time. 
Only after the Kake Tribal Corporation made its selections 
under ANCSA did the problems caused by excessive logging in 
municipal watersheds and near anadromous fish streams become 
better understood.
    In the 1980's, Congress took measures to protect drinking 
water sources by amending legislation, including the Safe 
Drinking Water Act, which contains provisions such as the Sole 
Aquifer Program and the Wellhead Protection Program, to protect 
public water supplies. These protective measures were 
implemented long after the Kake Tribal Corporation had selected 
lands in the municipal watershed area. Therefore, to provide 
the Kake Tribal Corporation the opportunity to maximize the 
benefits from its ANCSA land selections and to protect the 
community watershed something needed to be done.
    To resolve this problem, S. 430 would require the Kake 
Tribal Corporation to convey ownership of approximately 2,427 
acres of land used for the municipal watershed to the U.S. 
Forest Service. In exchange, the Kake Tribal Corporation will 
be allowed to select other lands in the Saginaw and Hamilton 
Bay areas. This legislation requires this exchange of lands, 
and interests therein, to be of equal value. The legislation 
also directs the Secretary of Agriculture to enter into a 
Memorandum of Agreement with the city of Kake for the 
management of the watershed. Lastly, the legislation requires 
that any timber harvested from land acquired by the Kake Tribal 
Corporation not be available for export.

                          Legislative History

    S. 430 was introduced by Senator Murkowski on February 22, 
1999. On March 4, 1999, S. 430 was ordered, as amended, 
favorably reported. Except for minor technical changes made in 
S. 430, an identical bill was considered by the Full Committee 
during the 105th Congress. The Full Committee held a hearing on 
September 17, 1997; and the bill was favorably reported as 
amended on September 24, 1997. Senator Murkowski offered a 
floor amendment in the nature of a substitute and the bill 
passed the Senate, as amended, on June 25, 1998. No further 
action was taken in the House.

                       Committee Recommendations

    The Committee on Energy and Natural Resources, in open 
business session on March 4, 1999, by a unanimous voice vote of 
a quorum present, recommends that the Senate pass S. 430, if 
amended as described herein.

                          Committee Amendments

    During consideration of S. 430, the Committee adopted minor 
technical changes.

                      Section-by-Section Analysis

    Section 1 states that the Short Title is the ``Kake Tribal 
Corporation Land Exchange Act''.
    Section 2(a) directs the Secretary of Agriculture to convey 
to the Kake Tribal Corporation the surface estate and to 
Sealaska Corporation the subsurface estate to certain lands as 
described in subsection (c). This subsection also requires that 
the values of the exchanges be equal.
    Subsection (b) contains a legal description of lands to be 
conveyed by the Kake Tribal Corporation and Sealaska 
Corporation to the Secretary along with a reference to maps 
showing the municipal watershed.
    Subsection (c) directs that, within 90 days after receipt 
by the United States of the conveyances owned by the Kake 
Tribal Corporation and Sealaska Corporation, the Kake Tribal 
Corporation shall be entitled to identify lands in the Saginaw 
Bay and Hamilton Bay areas in writing to the Secretary.
    Subsection (d) requires that, within 90 days after the list 
of identified lands is submitted by the Kake Tribal 
Corporation, the conveyance of lands by the Secretary shall 
occur.
    Subsection (e) requires the Secretary to enter into a 
Memorandum of Agreement with the city of Kake, Alaska, to 
provide for management of the municipal watershed.
    Subsection (f) requires that any timber harvested from the 
lands conveyed to the Kake Tribal Corporation under this 
subsection not be available for the purpose of exporting that 
timber from the State of Alaska. This subsection also prohibits 
any party to which the Kake Tribal Corporation may sell, trade, 
exchange, substitute, or convey any of the timber from the 
lands it receives under this section from using the timber for 
the purpose of export.
    Subsection (g) requires the land conveyed to the Kake 
Tribal Corporation and Sealaska Corporation, to be, for all 
purposes, considered land conveyed under ANCSA.
    Subsection (h) directs the maps referred to in this section 
to be maintained on file in the Office of the Chief, Forest 
Service, and in the Office of the Secretary of the Interior, 
Washington, DC. Should a discrepancy arise between cited 
acreage and lands on the maps this section dictates that the 
maps control.

                   Cost and Budgetary Considerations

    The following estimate of costs of the measure has been 
provided by the Congressional Budget Office.

                                     U.S. Congress,
                               Congressional Budget Office,
                                    Washington, DC, March 11, 1999.
Hon. Frank H. Murkowski,
Chairman, Committee on Energy and Natural Resources,
U.S. Senate, Washington, DC.
    Dear Mr. Chairman: The Congressional Budget Office has 
prepared the enclosed cost estimate for S. 430, the Kake Tribal 
Corporation Public Interest Land Exchange Act.
    If you wish further details on this estimate, we will be 
pleased to provide them. The CBO staff contact is Victoria Heid 
Hall.
            Sincerely,
                                          Barry B. Anderson
                                    (For Dan L. Crippen, Director).
    Enclosure.

               congressional budget office cost estimate

S. 430--Kake Tribal Corporation Public Interest Land Exchange Act

    CBO estimates that enacting this bill would not have a 
significant impact on the federal budget. Because the bill 
could affect offsetting receipts (a credit against direct 
spending), pay-as-you-go procedures would apply, but we 
estimate that any increase in direct spending would total less 
than $500,000 a year. S. 430 contains no intergovernmental or 
private-sector mandates as defined in the Unfunded Mandates 
Reform Act and would impose no significant costs on the budgets 
of state, local, or tribal governments.
    S. 430 would direct the Secretary of Agriculture to convey 
to the Kake Tribal Corporation and Sealaska Corporation the 
surface and subsurface estate of lands in the Hamilton Bay and 
Saginaw Bay areas within the Tongass National Forest. The lands 
to be conveyed would be selected by the two corporations from 
federal lands depicted on the maps identified in the bill and 
dated September 1, 1997. In exchange, the Kake Tribal 
Corporation and Sealaska Corporation would convey to the United 
States surface and subsurface estate comprising about 2,400 
acres of municipal watershed land. The bill would direct the 
Secretary of Agriculture to enter into a Memorandum of 
Agreement with the city of Kake, Alaska, to provide for 
management of the municipal watershed.
    S. 430 does not specify the federal land to be conveyed to 
the Kake Tribal Corporation, but it provides that the exchange 
be on the basis of equal value. Because the federal budget is 
on a cash basis, the budgetary impact of the laid exchange is 
measured by its effect on the government's cash flow, such as 
changes in offsetting receipts from timber harvests. The land 
exchanges could decrease offsetting receipts to the federal 
government because, according to the Forest Service, the 
federal land to be conveyed to the corporation would likely 
include areas with merchantable timber, whereas some of the 
land to be acquired from the corporation has been harvested and 
would thus be unavailable for further harvest for at least 
several more years. Furthermore, the Forest Service would 
consider the acquired area unsuitable for future harvesting 
because it lies within the municipal watershed for the city of 
Kake. CBO estimates that any net increase in direct spending 
from forgoing timber receipts would total less than $500,000 a 
year over the 2000-2009 period.
    Based on information from the Forest Service, CBO estimates 
that the agency could incur additional administrative costs to 
manage the municipal watershed, such as upgrading some roads, 
obliterating and revegetating other roads, and surveying the 
area. However, we estimate that such costs would total less 
than $500,000 a year, subject to the availability of 
appropriated funds.
    The CBO staff contact for this estimate is Victoria Heid 
Hall. This estimate was approved by Robert A. Sunshine, Deputy 
Assistant Director for Budget Analysis.

                      Regulatory Impact Evaluation

    In compliance with paragraph 11(b) of rule XXVI of the 
Standing Rules of the Senate, the Committee makes the following 
evaluation of the regulatory impact which would be incurred in 
carrying out S. 430. The bill is not a regulatory measure in 
the sense of imposing Government-established standards or 
significant economic responsibilities on private individuals 
and businesses.
    No personal information would be collected in administering 
the program. Therefore, there would be no impact on personal 
privacy.
    Little, if any, additional paperwork would result from the 
enactment of S. 430, as ordered reported.

                        Executive Communications

    The pertinent legislative report received by the Committee 
from the Department of Agriculture setting forth Executive 
agency recommendation relating to S. 430 are set forth below:

                    U.S. Department of Agriculture,
                                   Office of the Secretary,
                                     Washington, DC, March 4, 1999.
Hon. Frank H. Murkowski,
Chairman, Committee on Energy and Natural Resources, U.S. Senate, 
        Washington, DC.
    Dear Frank: I write to express the Administration's strong 
opposition to S. 426, the Huna Totem Corporation Land Exchange 
Act, and S. 430, the Kake Tribal Corporation Land Exchange Act, 
which are scheduled for consideration by the Committee on 
Energy and Natural Resources today. The bills would direct the 
Secretary of Agriculture to enter into land exchanges with Huna 
Totem Corporation and Kake Tribal Corporation, which own 
surface estates, and Sealaska, which owns subsurface estates in 
southeast Alaska.
    The Administration strongly opposed these two bills (S. 
1158 and S. 1159) during the 105th Congress. Because both bills 
would set unacceptable precedents by reopening native 
entitlements under the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act 
(ANCSA), the Secretary of the Interior and I would recommend 
that the President veto the bill.
    ANCSA granted more than 200 village corporations the right 
to select public lands in Alaska for a variety of uses. Each 
corporation was required to select the public lands within the 
township in which it was located. ANCSA was a final settlement 
and, as such, represented many trade-offs and compromise by all 
parties.
    If either S. 426 or S. 430 were enacted, all of Alaska's 
village corporations could argue that they too were entitled to 
exchange land selected under ANCSA for more desirable land. 
This precedent would threaten to unravel ANCSA's historic 
settlement through piece-meal amendments. In turn, Federal land 
management throughout Alaska would be severely disrupted with 
significant costs and consequences for all taxpayers.
    Beyond the question of precedent, the land exchanges 
proposed by these two bills would not be in the public 
interest. The primary reason the U.S. Forest Service pursues 
land exchanges is to provide more efficient land management 
through consolidation of existing Federal ownership and to 
dispose of isolated parcels that are uneconomical to manage, S. 
426 and S. 430 are in direct conflict with these goals.
    Both bills are based on the premise that because some of 
the land the Kake Tribal Corporation and Huna Totem Corporation 
received within their townships under ANCSA is municipal 
watershed land not subject to development, the United States 
should provide the corporations with replacement land 
elsewhere. ANCSA, however, contemplated that villages would 
obtain all land within their ``core'' townships regardless of 
its development potential.
    The Federal Government should not administer municipal 
watershed lands in Alaska, as would be required by S. 430. 
Rather, such lands should be managed by those communities which 
derive benefit from the land. Federal ownership of municipal 
watersheds is inconsistent with the ownership patterns 
envisioned by ANCSA, whereby native corporations had to select 
lands within their core townships.
    The Office of Management and Budget advises that there is 
no objection to the presentation of this report from the 
standpoint of the Administration's program.
            Sincerely,
                                           Dan Glickman, Secretary.

                        Changes in Existing Law

    In compliance with paragraph 12 of rule XXVI of the 
Standing Rules of the Senate, changes in existing law made by 
the bill S. 430, as ordered reported, are shown as follows 
(existing law proposed to be omitted is enclosed in black 
brackets, new matter is printed in italic, existing law in 
which no change is proposed is shown in roman):

 ALASKA NATIVE CLAIMS SETTLEMENT ACT OF 1971 (43 U.S.C. 1601, et seq., 
                              as amended)

SEC. __. KAKE TRIBAL CORPORATION LAND EXCHANGE.

    (a) General.--In exchange for lands and interests therein 
described in subsection (b), the Secretary of Agriculture 
shall, subject to valid existing rights, convey to the Kake 
Tribal Corporation the surface estate and to Sealaska 
Corporation the subsurface estate of the Federal land 
identified by Kake Tribal Corporation pursuant to subsection 
(c). The value of the lands and interests therein exchanged to 
this section shall be equal.
    (b) The surface estate to be conveyed by Kake Tribal 
Corporation and the subsurface estate to be conveyed by 
Sealaska Corporation to the Secretary of Agriculture are the 
municipal watershed lands as shown on the map dated September 
1, 1997, and labled Attachment A, and are further described as 
follows:



Municipal Watershed, Copper River Meridian, T56S, R72E

        Section                                        Approximate acres
13............................................................        82
23............................................................       118
24............................................................       635
25............................................................       640
26............................................................       346
34............................................................         9
35............................................................       349
36............................................................       248
                    --------------------------------------------------------------
                    ____________________________________________________

      Approximate total.......................................     2,427

    (c) Within ninety (90) days of the receipt by the United 
States of the conveyances of the surface estate and the 
subsurface estate described in subsection (b), Kake Tribal 
Corporation shall be entitled to identify lands in the Hamilton 
Bay and Saginaw Bay areas, as depicted on the maps dated 
September 1, 1997, and labeled Attachments B and C. Kake Tribal 
Corporation shall notify the Secretary of Agriculture in 
writing which lands Kake Tribal Corporation has identified.
    (d) Timing of Conveyance and Valuation.--The conveyance 
mandated by subsection (a) by the Secretary of Agriculture 
shall occur within ninety (90) days after the list of 
identified lands is submitted by Kake Tribal Corporation 
pursuant to subsection (c).
    (e) Management of Watershed.--The Secretary of Agriculture 
shall enter into a Memorandum of Agreement with the City of 
Kake, Alaska, to provide for management of the municipal 
watershed.
    (f) Timber Manufacturing; Export Restriction.--
Notwithstanding any other provision of law, timber harvested 
from land conveyed to Kake Tribal Corporation under this 
section shall not be exported as unprocessed logs from Alaska, 
nor may Kake Tribal Corporation sell, trade, exchange, 
substitute, or otherwise convey that timber to any person for 
the purpose of exporting that timber from the State of Alaska.
    (g) Relation to Other Requirements.--The land conveyed to 
Kake Tribal Corporation and Sealaska Corporation under this 
section shall be considered, for all purposes, land conveyed 
under the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act.
    (h) Maps.--The maps referred to in this section shall be 
maintained on file in the Office of the Chief, United States 
Forest Service, and in the Office of the Secretary of the 
Interior, Washington, D.C. The acreage cited in this section is 
approximate, and if there is any discrepancy between cited 
acreage and the land depicted on the specified maps, the maps 
shall control. The maps do not constitute an attempt by the 
United States to convey State or private land.

                                
