[Senate Report 111-245]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
Calendar No. 507
111th Congress Report
SENATE
2d Session 111-245
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TO AMEND THE ACT OF AUGUST 9, 1955, TO AUTHORIZE THE COQUILLE INDIAN
TRIBE, THE CONFEDERATED TRIBES OF THE SILETZ INDIANS, THE CONFEDERATED
TRIBES OF COOS, LOWER UMPQUA, AND SIUSLAW, THE KLAMATH TRIBES, AND THE
BURNS PAIUTE TRIBE TO OBTAIN 99-YEAR LEASE AUTHORITY FOR TRUST LAND
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August 3, 2010.--Ordered to be printed
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Mr. Dorgan, from the Committee on Indian Affairs, submitted the
following
R E P O R T
[To accompany S. 1448]
The Committee on Indian Affairs, to which was referred the
bill (S. 1448) to amend the Act of August 9, 1955, to authorize
the Coquille Indian Tribe, the Confederated Tribes of the
Siletz Indians, the Confederated Tribes of the Coos, Lower
Umpqua, and Siuslaw, the Klamath Tribes, and the Burns Paiute
Tribe to obtain 99-year lease authority for trust land, having
considered the same, reports favorably thereon, and recommends
that the bill do pass.
Purpose
The purpose of S. 1448 is to amend the Act of August 9,
1955, to authorize the Coquille Indian Tribe, the Confederated
Tribes of the Siletz Indians, the Confederated Tribes of the
Coos, Lower Umpqua, and Siuslaw, the Klamath Tribes, and the
Burns Paiute Tribe to obtain 99-year lease authority for trust
land.
Background
Since the enactment of the Act of June 30, 1834, 4 Stat.
730, codified as 25 U.S.C. Sec. 177, and predecessor statutes,
land transactions with Indian tribes were prohibited unless
specifically authorized by Congress. This law is commonly known
as the Non-intercourse Act.
Congress enacted the Act of August 9, 1955, codified at 25
U.S.C. Sec. 415, commonly known as the Long-Term Leasing Act,
to overcome the prohibition of the Non-intercourse Act. The
Long-Term Leasing Act permitted some land transactions between
Indian tribes and nonfederal parties--specifically, the leasing
of Indian lands. The Act required that leases of Indian lands
be approved by the Secretary of the Interior and limited lease
terms to 25 years.
As business opportunities and economic considerations
changed over time, leases longer than 25 years were desired. To
facilitate economic development on trust lands, over the years,
a number of tribes have obtained amendments to the Long-Term
Leasing Act so that they could enter into leases for terms
longer than 25 years. Approximately 50 tribes have obtained
these amendments and all are listed in the Long-Term Leasing
Act as having authority to enter into leases for terms as long
as 99 years.
S. 1448 would further amend the Long-Term Leasing Act by
adding five additional tribes to the list. H.R. 1448 adds the
Coquille Indian Tribe, the Confederated Tribes of the Siletz
Indians, the Confederated Tribes of the Coos, Lower Umpqua, and
Siuslaw, the Klamath Tribes, and the Burns Paiute Tribe to the
list of tribes that may enter into 99 years leases.
Legislative History
S. 1448 was introduced on July 14, 2009, by Senator Merkley
for himself and Senator Wyden. The bill was referred to the
Committee on Indian Affairs and a business meeting was held on
June 10, 2010. House companion bills were introduced in the
111th Congress and both were referred to the House Natural
Resources Committee. H.R. 4010 was introduced on November 3,
2009, by Representative Schrader of Oregon and H.R. 4916 was
introduced on March 3, 2010, by Representative DeFazio of
Oregon.
Section-By-Section Analysis of S. 1448 as Amended
Section 1. Leases of restricted land
This section amends subsection (a) of the first section of
the Act of August 9, 1955, in the second sentence by inserting
``land held in trust for the Coquille Indian Tribe, land held
in trust for the Confederated Tribes of Siletz Indians, land
held in trust for the Confederated Tribes of the Coos, Lower
Umpqua, and Siuslaw Indians, land held in trust for the Klamath
Tribes, and land held in trust for the Burns Paiute Tribe''
after ``lands held in trust for the Confederated Tribes of the
Warm Springs Reservation of Oregon,''.
Committee Recommendation
On June 10, 2010, at an open business meeting, the
Committee approved S. 1448 without amendment by voice vote. The
Committee ordered the bill reported to the full Senate with the
recommendation that it do pass.
Cost and Budgetary Considerations
The following cost estimate, as provided by the
Congressional Budget Office, dated June 24, 2010, was prepared
for S. 1448:
Congressional Budget Office Cost Estimate
S. 1448--A bill to amend the Act of August 9, 1955, to authorize the
Coquille Indian Tribe, the Confederated Tribes of Siletz
Indians, the Confederated Tribes of the Coos, Lower Umpqua, and
Siuslaw, the Klamath Tribes, and the Burns Paiute Tribe to
obtain 99-year lease authority for trust land
S. 1448 would authorize the Coquille Indian Tribe, the
Confederated Tribes of the Siletz Indians, the Confederated
Tribes of the Coos, Lower Umpqua, and Siuslaw, the Klamath
Tribes, and the Burns Paiute Tribe to lease lands held in trust
for up to 99 years. In general, under current law, the tribes
can lease trust lands to schools, businesses, and public
entities for 25-year terms, subject to the approval of the
Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA). The Burns Paiute Tribe
currently has the authority to lease its reservation land for
up to 99 years.
CBO estimates that implementing S. 1448 would have no
significant impact on the federal budget. Any additional
proceeds from such leases would accrue to the owners of the
trust land and would have no effect on the federal budget. CBO
also estimates that implementing the bill would have a
negligible effect on BIA's workload. Enacting S. 1448 would not
affect direct spending or revenues; therefore, pay-as-you-go
procedures would not apply.
S. 1448 contains no intergovernmental or private-sector
mandates as defined in the Unfunded Mandates Reform Act and
would impose no costs on state, local, or tribal governments.
The CBO staff contact for this estimate is Jeff LaFave. The
estimate was approved by Theresa Gullo, Deputy Assistant
Director for Budget Analysis.
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 has concluded that the
regulatory and paperwork impact of S. 1448 should be de
minimis.
Executive Communications
The Committee has received no official communication from
the Administration on the provisions of S. 1448.
Changes in Existing Law
In compliance with subsection 12 of rule XXVI of the
Standing Rules of the Senate, changes in existing law made by
S. 1448, as ordered to be reported, are shown as follows
(existing law proposed to be omitted is enclosed in black
brackets, new language to be added in italic, existing law to
which no change is proposed is shown in roman):
25 U.S.C. 415(a). Authorized purposes; term; approval by
Secretary.
ACT OF AUGUST 9, 1955
(a) Authorized purposes; term; approval by Secretary
Any restricted Indian lands, whether tribally, or
individually owned, may be leased by the Indian owners, with
the approval of the Secretary of the Interior, for public,
religious, educational, recreational, residential, or business
purposes, including the development or utilization of natural
resources in connection with operations under such leases, for
grazing purposes, and for those farming purposes which require
the making of a substantial investment in the improvement of
the land for the production of specialized crops as determined
by said Secretary. All leases so granted shall be for a term of
not to exceed twenty-five years, except leases of land located
outside the boundaries of Indian reservations in the State of
New Mexico, leases of land on the Agua Caliente (Palm Springs)
Reservation, the Dania Reservation, the Pueblo of Santa Ana
(with the exception of the lands known as the ``Santa Ana
Pueblo Spanish Grant''), the reservation of the Confederated
Tribes of the Warm Springs Reservation of Oregon, land held in
trust for the Coquille Indian Tribe, land held in trust for the
Confederated Tribes of Siletz Indians, land held in trust for
the Confederated Tribes of the Coos, Lower Umpqua, and Siuslaw
Indians, land held in trust for the Klamath Tribes, and land
held in trust for the Burns Paiute Tribe, the Moapa Indian
Reservation, the Swinomish Indian Reservation, . . .
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