[Senate Report 108-311]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]



                                                       Calendar No. 654
108th Congress                                                   Report
                                 SENATE
 2d Session                                                     108-311

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

 
    TO ENHANCE AND PROVIDE TO THE OGLALA SIOUX TRIBE AND ANGOSTURA 
 IRRIGATION PROJECT CERTAIN BENEFITS OF THE PICK-SLOAN MISSOURI RIVER 
                             BASIN PROGRAM

                                _______
                                

                 July 20, 2004.--Ordered to be printed

                                _______
                                

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

                              R E P O R T

                         [To accompany S. 1996]

    The Committee on Indian Affairs, to which was referred the 
bill (S. 1996) to enhance and provide to the Oglala Sioux Tribe 
and Angostura Irrigation Project certain benefits of the Pick-
Sloan Missouri River basin program, having considered the same, 
reports favorably thereon with an amendment in the nature of a 
substitute and recommends that the bill (as amended) do pass.

                                PURPOSE

    The purpose of S. 1996, the Oglala Sioux Tribe Angostura 
Irrigation Project Modernization and Development Act, is to 
provide funds for the modernization and development of the 
Angostura Unit of the Pick-Sloan Missouri River basin program 
in the State of South Dakota and to establish a trust fund 
benefitting the Oglala Sioux Tribe of the Pine Ridge Indian 
Reservation.

                               BACKGROUND

    The Angostura Unit is an irrigation project operated by the 
Bureau of Reclamation, U.S. Department of the Interior, and is 
located on the Cheyenne River in southwestern South Dakota. 
Part of the Pick-Sloan Missouri River Basin Project authorized 
under the Flood Control Act of 1944, 33 U.S.C. Sec. Sec. 701-1 
et seq., the Unit includes the 193-foot Angostura Dam, which 
impounds up to 130,000 acre-feet of water in the Angostura 
Reservoir, and associated irrigation works. This reservoir, 
with a surface area of 4,612 acres, provides water for 
irrigation of up to 12,218 acres of farmland in the Angostura 
Irrigation District through a 30-mile main canal, 39 miles of 
lateral canals, and 21 miles of drains serving individual 
farms. Up to 48,000 acre-feet of water are diverted annually 
for irrigation purposes. Alfalfa and corn are the principal 
crops, along with wheat, barley, oats, pasture, and forage. 
Construction of the Angostura Dam began in 1946 and was 
completed in 1949. The first delivery of irrigation water was 
made in 1953. The Bureau of Reclamation estimates that its 
operation provides $7.1 million of national economic 
development benefits annually in recreation on the reservoir 
and an additional $3.41 million in agriculture.
    The Angostura Unit is located about twenty miles upstream 
of the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation, home of the Oglala Sioux 
Tribe. Notwithstanding the economic benefits provided by the 
Angostura Unit to the people of southwestern South Dakota, the 
operation of the Unit provides no economic development benefit 
to the Oglala Sioux Tribe, which experiences extremely high 
rates of unemployment and poverty. Additionally, the operation 
of the Angostura Unit has an adverse impact on water quality 
and on fish and wildlife resources within the Oglala Sioux 
Tribe's Reservation.
    A 40-year water service contract between the U.S. Bureau of 
Reclamation and the Angostura Irrigation District expired in 
1996. The Final Environmental Impact Statement, Angostura Unit 
Contract Negotiation and Water Management (August 2002) 
(``Final EIS'') prepared by the Bureau of Reclamation in 
connection with the proposed renewal of that water service 
contract identified four alternatives: (1) the No Action 
Alternative, continuing essentially unchanged the expiring 
water service contract and the management regime of water in 
the reservoir; (2) the Reestablishment of Natural Flows Below 
the Dam Alternative, reestablishing natural flows in the 
Cheyenne River downstream of the dam to the extent possible; 
(3) the Improved Efficiencies Alternative, instituting measures 
to save irrigation water and a public process to determine the 
use of the saved water, and (4) the Reservoir Recreation and 
Fisheries Alternative, giving priority to recreational use and 
fisheries at the reservoir. The Final EIS identified the 
Improved Efficiencies Alternative as the Preferred Alternative.
    The Improved Efficiencies Alternative would increase both 
efficiency of the Angostura Irrigation District's water 
delivery system and on-farm efficiencies. The measures proposed 
in the Improved Efficiencies Alternative would include the 
lining of canals and laterals, putting laterals into pipes, 
improving water measuring systems, leveling fields, irrigating 
by gated pipe or sprinkler, installing automated turnouts, 
providing education on irrigation practices, and instituting 
Best Management Practices. The water saved by these proposed 
increases in efficiency could be used for recreation, 
fisheries, downstream flows, or other uses. The Improved 
Efficiencies Alternative would save an estimated 1,870-3,200 AF 
of water by improving delivery system efficiencies by 
approximately 5% and another 4,320-6,160 AF by increasing on-
farm efficiencies by approximately 10%.
    Title I of S. 1996 authorizes the appropriation of 
$4,660,000 to carry out the modernization and improvement of 
the Angostura Unit and associated facilities as set forth in 
the Improved Efficiencies Alternative in the Final EIS, with 
the funding to remain available until expended and activities 
to be carried out on a non-reimbursable basis. It directs the 
Secretary of the Interior to provide for the delivery of the 
water saved as a result of the proposed increased efficiencies 
to be used for fish and wildlife purposes and environmental 
restoration on the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation.
    Title II of S. 1996 establishes the Oglala Sioux Tribal 
Development Trust Fund in the Treasury of the United States and 
provides that income from the Fund shall be transferred to the 
Oglala Sioux Tribe and expended pursuant to a Development Plan 
to be developed by the Tribe in consultation with the Secretary 
of the Interior and the Secretary of Health and Human Services 
for the purposes of economic development, infrastructure 
development, the educational, health, recreational, and social 
welfare objectives of the Tribe and its members, or any 
combination of these activities. S. 1996 provides that, on the 
first day of the 11th fiscal year that begins after the date of 
its enactment, the Secretary of the Treasury shall deposit the 
sum of $92,500,000 from the General Fund of the Treasury into 
the Fund, together with the interest that would have accrued on 
that sum if it had been invested in interest-bearing 
obligations of the United States on the first day of the fiscal 
year beginning after the date of enactment of S. 1996, with the 
interest being compounded annually thereafter. Nothing in S. 
1996 shall be interpreted or construed to affect any rights, 
privileges, or claims, including water rights or claims 
thereto, of the Oglala Sioux Tribe, whether located within or 
without the external boundaries of the Pine Ridge Indian 
Reservation, and whether based on treaty, Executive Order, 
agreement, Act of Congress, aboriginal title, the Winters 
Doctrine, or other authority.

                          LEGISLATIVE HISTORY

    S. 1996 was introduced by Senator Daschle on December 9, 
2003, and was referred to the Committee on Indian Affairs. 
Senator Johnson became a cosponsor on February 12, 2004, and 
Senator Inouye became a cosponsor on June 16, 2004. The 
Committee held a legislative hearing on S. 1996 on June 16, 
2004.

            COMMITTEE RECOMMENDATION AND TABULATION OF VOTE

    The Committee on Indian Affairs, in an open business 
session on June 23, 2004, approved an amendment in the form of 
a substitute to S. 1996 by voice vote and ordered the bill 
reported favorably to the Senate.

                      SECTION-BY-SECTION ANALYSIS

Section 1--Short title

    Section 1 states that this Act may be cited as the ``Oglala 
Sioux Tribe Angostura Irrigation Project Modernization and 
Development Act.''

Section 2--Findings

    Section 2 states the findings of Congress that: (1) 
Congress approved the Pick-Sloan Missouri River Basin Program 
with the December 22, 1944, enactment of the Flood Control Act 
of 1944, codified at 33 U.S.C. Sec. Sec. 701-1 et seq., to 
promote the economic development of the United States, to 
provide for irrigation in regions north of Sioux City, Iowa, to 
protect urban and rural areas from floods of the Missouri 
River, and for other purposes; (2) the Angostura Unit is a 
component of the Pick-Sloan Program and provides for irrigation 
of 12,218 acres of productive farm land in South Dakota, as 
well as substantial recreation and fish and wildlife benefits; 
(3) the Commissioner of the Bureau of Reclamation has 
determined that the national economic development benefits of 
irrigation at the Angostura Unit total approximately $3,410,000 
annually and the national economic development benefits of 
recreation at Angostura Reservoir total approximately 
$7,100,000 annually; (4) the Angostura Unit impounds the 
Cheyenne River twenty miles upstream of the Pine Ridge Indian 
Reservation in South Dakota; (5) the Reservation experiences 
extremely high rates of unemployment and poverty and is in need 
of economic development; (6) the national economic development 
benefits of the Angostura Unit do not extend to the 
Reservation; (7) the Angostura Unit may negatively affect water 
quality and ripparian vegetation along the Cheyenne River on 
the Reservation; (8) modernization of the irrigation facilities 
at the Angostura Unit would enhance the national economic 
development benefits of the Angostura Unit and would achieve 
improved water efficiency and environmental restoration 
benefits on the Reservation; and (9) the establishment of a 
trust fund for the Oglala Sioux Tribe would produce economic 
development benefits for the Reservation comparable to the 
benefits produced at the Angostura Unit and would provide 
resources necessary for the restoration of the Cheyenne River 
corridor on the Reservation.

Section 3--Definitions

    Section 3 provides definitions for the terms ``Angostura 
Unit,'' ``Fund,'' ``Pick-Sloan Program,'' ``Plan,'' 
``Reservation,'' ``Secretary,'' ``Tribe,'' and ``Tribal 
Council.''

                         TITLE I--MODERNIZATION


Section 101--Modernization of facilities at Angostura Unit

    Section 101 directs the Secretary to conduct the 
modernization and improvement of the facilities of the 
Angostura Unit as described in the report entitled ``Final 
Environmental Impact Statement, Angostura Unit Contract 
Negotiation and Water Management (August 2002).'' The cost of 
this modernization and improvement is to be carried out on a 
nonreimbursable basis.

Section 102--Delivery of water to Pine Ridge Indian Reservation

    Section 102 states that the Secretary shall provide for the 
delivery of the water saved through the modernization and 
improvement of the facilities of the Angostura Unit to be used 
for fish and wildlife purposes and environmental restoration on 
the Reservation.

Section 103--Authorization of appropriations

    Section 103 authorizes the appropriation of $4,660,000 to 
carry out the modernization and improvement of facilities as 
provided for in section 101, and provides that these funds are 
to remain available until expended.

                         TITLE II--DEVELOPMENT


Section 201--Oglala Sioux Tribal Development Trust Fund

    Subsection 201(a) provides for the establishment in the 
United States Treasury of a fund to be known as the ``Oglala 
Sioux Tribal Development Trust Fund'' that shall consist of any 
amounts deposited into the Fund pursuant to this Title.
    Subsection 201(b) provides that, on the first day of the 
11th fiscal year that begins after the date of enactment of 
this Act, the Secretary of the Treasury shall, from the General 
Fund of the Treasury, deposit into the Fund established under 
subsection (a) the sum of $92,500,000 plus an amount equal to 
the amount of interest that would have accrued on $92,500,000 
if that amount had been invested in interest-bearing 
obligations of the United States on the first day of the fiscal 
year that begins after the date of enactment of this Act and 
compounded annually thereafter.
    Subsection 201(c) requires the Secretary of the Treasury to 
invest that portion of the Fund that in his judgment is not 
required to meet current withdrawals, and provides that the 
investments are to be made only in interest-bearing obligations 
of the United States. The section further directs the Secretary 
of the Treasury shall deposit interest resulting from the 
investments into the Fund.
    Subsection 201(d) provides that, beginning on the first day 
of the 11th fiscal year after the date of enactment of this 
Act, and on the first day of each fiscal year thereafter, the 
Secretary of the Treasury shall withdraw the aggregate amount 
of interest deposited into the Fund for that fiscal year and 
shall transfer that amount to the Secretary of the Interior for 
use, without fiscal year limitation, in accordance with 
paragraph (d)(3). The section provides that the Secretary of 
the Interior is to use the amounts transferred under subsection 
(d)(1) only for the purpose of making payments to the Oglala 
Sioux Tribe as such payments are requested by the Tribe by 
trial resolution, but only after the Tribe has adopted a tribal 
development plan (``Plan'') under subsection (f). The section 
provides that the funds so transferred may be expended only to 
carry out projects and programs under that Plan.
    Subsection 201(e) bars the Secretary of the Treasury from 
transferring or withdrawing any amount deposited under 
subsection (b) of this section except as provided in 
subsections (c) and (d)(1) of this section.
    Subsection 201(f) sets forth the requirements for the 
tribal development plan and provides that, not later than 18 
months after the date of enactment of this Act, the governing 
body of the Tribe shall prepare a Plan for the use of the 
payments made to the Tribe under this section. The Plan shall 
provide for the manner in which the Tribe shall expend payments 
made to it under this section to promote economic development, 
infrastructure development, and the educational, health, 
recreational, and social welfare objectives of the Tribe and 
its members, or any combination of these activities. The Tribal 
Council shall make copies of the proposed Plan available to 
tribal members for review and comment before the Plan becomes 
final, in accordance with procedures established by the Tribal 
Council, and may, on an annual basis, revise and update the 
Plan. In revising the Plan, the Tribal Council shall provide 
the members of the Tribe opportunity to review and comment on 
any proposed revision. The Tribal Council shall consult with 
the Secretary of the Interior and the Secretary of Health and 
Human Services in preparing the Plan and any revisions to 
update the Plan. The activities of the Tribe in carrying out 
the Plan shall be audited as part of the annual single-agency 
audit that the Tribe is required to prepare pursuant to the 
Office of Management and Budget circular numbered A-133. The 
auditors that conduct this audit shall determine whether funds 
received by the Tribe for the period covered by the audit were 
expended to carry out the Plan in a manner consistent with this 
section, and shall include this determination in the written 
findings of the audit. A copy of the written findings of the 
audit shall be inserted in the published minutes of the Tribal 
Council's proceedings for the session at which the audit is 
presented to the Tribal Council.
    Subsection 201(g) prohibits any portion of any payment made 
under this Act from being distributed to any member of the 
Tribe on a per capita basis.

Section 202--Eligibility of Tribe for certain programs and services

    Section 202 provides that no payment made to the Tribe 
pursuant to this Act shall result in the reduction or denial of 
any service or program to which, pursuant to Federal law, the 
Tribe is otherwise entitled because of its status as a 
Federally recognized Indian tribe, or to which any individual 
tribal member is otherwise entitled because of that 
individual's status as a tribal member.

Section 203--Authorization of appropriations

    Section 203 authorizes the appropriation of such sums as 
are necessary to pay the administrative expenses of the Fund.

Section 204--Water rights

    Section 204 states that nothing in this Act shall be 
interpreted or construed to affect any rights, privileges, or 
claims, including water rights or claims thereto, of the Oglala 
Sioux Tribe, whether located within or without the external 
boundaries of the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation, and whether 
based on treaty, Executive Order, agreement, Act of Congress, 
aboriginal title, the Winters Doctrine, or other authority, or 
to validate or invalidate any assertion of the existence, 
nonexistence, or extinguishment of any water rights, or claims 
thereto, held by the Oglala Sioux Tribe, or any other Indian 
tribe or individual Indian under Federal or State law, or any 
other water rights in existence on the date of enactment of 
this Act held by any person or entity.

                   COST AND BUDGETARY CONSIDERATIONS

    The cost estimate for S. 1996, as provided by the 
Congressional Budget Office, is set forth below.

                                     U.S. Congress,
                               Congressional Budget Office,
                                      Washington, DC, July 8, 2004.
Hon. Ben Nighthorse Campbell,
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. 1996, the Oglala 
Sioux Tribe Angostura Irrigation Project Modernization and 
Development Act.
    If you wish further details on this estimate, we will be 
pleased to provide them. The CBO staff contact is Lanette J. 
Walker.
            Sincerely,
                                      Elizabeth M. Robinson
                               (For Douglas Holtz-Eakin, Director).
    Enclosure.

S. 1996--Oglala Sioux Tribe Angostura Irrigation Project Rehabilitation 
        and Development Act

    Summary: S. 1996 would authorize the appropriation of $4.66 
million for the Bureau of Reclamation to modernize the 
irrigation facilities of the Angostura Unit, which is a part of 
the Pick-Sloan Missouri River Basin Program. In addition, the 
bill would allow the Oglala Sioux Tribe to use any water saved 
through the modernization effort for environmental restoration 
on the tribe's reservation. CBO estimates that modernizing the 
irrigation facilities would cost about $5 million over the 
2005-2007 period, assuming appropriation of the authorized 
funds.
    S. 1996 also would compensate the Oglala Sioux Tribe for 
the damage caused by the Angostura Dam operated by the Bureau 
of Reclamation on the Cheyenne River. CBO estimates that 
enacting this provision would have no significant impact on the 
federal budget over the 2004-2014 period; however, it would 
increase direct spending by an estimated $158 million in 2015. 
Enacting the bill would not affect revenues.
    S. 1996 contains no intergovernmental or private-sector 
mandates as defined in the Unfunded Mandates Reform Act (UMRA) 
and would impose no costs on state, local, or tribal 
governments. The funds authorized by this bill would benefit 
the Oglala Sioux Tribe, and any costs to fulfill the 
requirements associated with those funds would be incurred 
voluntarily.
    Estimated cost to the Federal Government: The estimated 
budgetary impact of S. 1996 is shown in the following table. 
The costs of this legislation fall within budget functions 450 
(community and regional development) and 300 (natural resources 
and environment).

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                                                       By fiscal year, in millions of dollars--
                                                                    --------------------------------------------
                                                                       2005     2006     2007     2008     2009
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                 CHANGES IN SPENDING SUBJECT TO APPROPRIATION\1\

Authorization level................................................        5        0        0        0        0
Estimated outlays..................................................        3        1        1        0        0
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
\1\ Enactment of S. 1996 also would increase direct spending by $158 million in 2015.

    Basis of estimate: For this estimate, CBO assumes that S. 
1996 will be enacted near the end of fiscal year 2004 and that 
the authorized amount will be appropriated in fiscal year 2005.

Spending subject to appropriation

    This bill would authorize the appropriation of $4.66 
million to modernize the irrigation facilities of the Angostura 
Unit. Based on historical spending of similar projects, CBO 
estimates that implementing the modernization project 
authorized by S. 1996 would cost about $5 million over the 
2005-2007 period, assuming appropriation of the authorized 
funds.

Direct spending

    S. 1996 would provide compensation to the Oglala Sioux 
Tribe for the damage caused by the Angostura Dam on the 
Cheyenne River 20 miles upstream from the tribe's reservation. 
The bill would establish the Oglala Sioux Tribe Development 
Trust Fund and would direct the Secretary of the Treasury to 
deposit a total of $92.5 million into interest-bearing accounts 
to benefit the tribes on the first day of the 11th fiscal year 
that begins after the date of enactment. An additional deposit 
equal to the amount of interest that the fund would have earned 
if the fund had been capitalized and invested in 2005 would be 
made at the same time. CBO estimates that this additional 
payment would be $65 million, for a total deposit of $158 
million in 2015. Starting in 2015, the bill would allow the 
tribes to spend earnings on amounts in the fund pursuant to a 
tribal spending plan.
    Payments to certain trust funds that are held and managed 
in a fiduciary capacity by the federal government on behalf of 
Indian tribes are treated as payments to a nonfederal entity. 
As a result, CBO expects that the entire amount deposited to 
the fund in 2015 would be recorded as budget authority and 
outlays in that year. Because the trust funds would be 
nonbudgetary, the subsequent use of such funds by the tribe 
would not affect federal outlays.
    Intergovernmental and private-sector impact: S. 1996 
contains no intergovernmental or private-sector mandates as 
defined in UMRA and would impose no costs on state, local, or 
tribal governments. The funds authorized by this bill would 
benefit the Oglala Sioux Tribe, and any costs to fulfill the 
requirements associated with those funds would be incurred 
voluntarily.
    Estimate prepared by: Federal Costs: Lanette J. Walker and 
Julie Middleton. Impact on State, Local, and Tribal 
Governments: Marjorie Miller. Impact on the Private Sector: 
Selena Caldera.
    Estimate approved by: Peter H. Fontaine, Deputy Assistant 
Director for Budget Analysis.

                        EXECUTIVE COMMUNICATIONS

    The views of the Administration on S. 1996 as introduced 
are set forth in the Statement of David Anderson, Assistant 
Secretary of the Interior--Indian Affairs, United States 
Department of the Interior, dated July 8, 2004, and are set 
forth below:

                        Department of the Interior,
                                   Office of the Secretary,
                                      Washington, DC, July 8, 2004.
Hon. Ben Nighthorse Campbell,
Chairman, Committee on Indian Affairs,
U.S. Senate, Washington, DC.
    Dear Mr. Chairman: The following sets forth the views of 
the Department of the Interior on S. 1996, the ``Oglala Sioux 
Tribe Angostura Irrigation Project Modernization and 
Development Act.'' S. 1996 would enhance and provide certain 
project benefits for the Oglala Sioux Tribe in connection with 
water conservation improvements on the Angostura Irrigation 
Project. The Department cannot support the bill.
    Title I of S. 1996 would authorize the Secretary to 
rehabilitate and improve the facilities of the Angostura 
Project, a component of the multi-state Pick-Sloan Missouri 
Basin Program. Furthermore, Title I would provide that the 
Secretary shall, to the maximum extent practicable, deliver 
water saved through the rehabilitation and improvement of the 
facilities of the Angostura Project to the Pine Ridge Indian 
Reservation, and provide that the use of that water be used for 
environmental restoration.
    Title II of the bill would create a Tribal Development 
Trust Fund to promote economic development, infrastructure 
development, and the education, health, recreational, and 
social welfare objectives of the Tribe and members of the 
Tribe.
    While the Department recognizes the economic challenges 
that many Tribes in Indian Country face, the establishment of a 
Trust Fund to address these issues does not seem warranted at 
this time. The bill infers there ``may'' be impacts caused by 
the development of the Angostura Unit of the Pick-Sloan 
Project, yet we are not aware of what those specific impacts 
are. Unlike other legislative propositions regarding 
compensation for land impacted by the Pick-Sloan Project, no 
specific impacts have been cited here nor any evaluation of 
appropriate compensation completed. The Department shares the 
concern of the Tribes about the need to improve economic, 
educational, and health systems on the reservation and will 
continue to work with the Tribe to seek solutions to promote 
these reforms.
    In addition, Title II establishes a Trust Fund consisting 
of $92.5 million to be deposited in the Fund in the 11th year 
following enactment of S. 1996 and requires a retroactive 
annual interest payment on this amount. If a stream of payments 
to the Tribe is found to be warranted, such benefits should be 
provided by authorizing appropriations for this purpose.
    The Department is also concerned that the proposal would 
exclude all the stakeholders, other than the Oglala Sioux 
Tribe, from the ongoing public process collaboratively 
developed during the Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) 
process to recommend the most beneficial use of saved water.
    In August 2002, the Bureau of Reclamation (Reclamation), in 
collaboration with a host of stakeholders, completed and 
published the Final Environmental Impact Statement (FEIS) for 
Contract Negotiation and Water Management of the Angostura 
Unit. The EIS was prepared in cooperation with the:
           Angostura Irrigation District;
           Oglala Sioux Tribe;
           Cheyenne River Sioux Tribe;
           Lower Brule Sioux Tribe;
           South Dakota Department of Game, Fish, and 
        Parks;
           US. Geological Survey;
           U.S. Natural Resources Conservation Service;
           U.S. Bureau of Indian Affairs; and
           The South Dakota Department of Environment 
        and Natural Resources.
    In January 2003, the Record of Decision (ROD) was signed 
for renewal of a long-term water service contract for the 
Angostura Unit, Cheyenne River Basin, South Dakota. Reclamation 
is concerned that provisions of Title I are inconsistent with 
understandings spelled out in the ROD that involved input from 
many key stakeholders. These provisions include the requirement 
that the Secretary deliver saved water for the purposes of 
environmental restoration on the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation, 
and the finding that the Angostura Unit may be associated with 
negative effects on water quality and riparian vegetation in 
the Cheyenne River on the Reservation.
    With regard to the authority in Section 101 to carry out 
rehabilitation and improvement at the Angostura Project, 
Reclamation already has authority to undertake such work.
    While the Department cannot support S. 1996, we share the 
sponsor's goal of finding innovative solutions for economic, 
education, health, recreational, and social welfare 
improvements on the Reservation. Indeed, the Department has 
already committed significant resources to the ongoing 
construction of the Mni Wiconi rural water project, which 
addresses many of the needs identified in this legislation. The 
Department stands ready to work with the Tribe, the Committee, 
and the South Dakota delegation on these activities including 
examining if there are quantifiable impacts caused by the Pick-
Sloan project.
    The Office of Management and Budget has advised that there 
is no objection to the presentation of this report from the 
standpoint of the Administration's program.
            Sincerely,
                                            David Anderson,
                               Assistant Secretary--Indian Affairs.

               REGULATORY AND PAPERWORK IMPACT STATEMENT

    Paragraph 11(b) of rule XXVI of the Standing Rules of the 
Senate requires that each report accompanying a bill evaluate 
the regulatory and paperwork impact that would be incurred in 
carrying out the bill. The Committee believes that the 
regulatory and paperwork impact of S. 1996 will be minimal.

                        CHANGES IN EXISTING LAW

    In compliance with subsection 12 of rule XXVI of the 
Standing Rules of the Senate, the Committee finds that the 
enactment of S. 1996 will not effect any changes in existing 
law.

                                  
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