[House Report 114-314]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]


114th Congress    }                                    {        Report
                        HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
 1st Session      }                                    {       114-314

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

 
  TO TAKE CERTAIN FEDERAL LANDS LOCATED IN LASSEN COUNTY, CALIFORNIA, 
INTO TRUST FOR THE BENEFIT OF THE SUSANVILLE INDIAN RANCHERIA, AND FOR 
                             OTHER PURPOSES

                                _______
                                

October 27, 2015.--Committed to the Committee of the Whole House on the 
              State of the Union and ordered to be printed

                                _______
                                

Mr. Bishop of Utah, from the Committee on Natural Resources, submitted 
                             the following

                              R E P O R T

                        [To accompany H.R. 2212]

      [Including cost estimate of the Congressional Budget Office]

    The Committee on Natural Resources, to whom was referred 
the bill (H.R. 2212) to take certain Federal lands located in 
Lassen County, California, into trust for the benefit of the 
Susanville Indian Rancheria, and for other purposes, having 
considered the same, report favorably thereon with an amendment 
and recommend that the bill as amended do pass.
    The amendment is as follows:
  Strike all after the enacting clause and insert the 
following:

SECTION 1. LAND INTO TRUST FOR THE SUSANVILLE INDIAN RANCHERIA.

  (a) In General.--The land described in subsection (b) is hereby taken 
into trust for the benefit of the Susanville Indian Rancheria, subject 
to valid existing rights.
  (b) Land Description.--The land taken into trust pursuant to 
subsection (a) is the approximately 301 acres of Federal land under the 
administrative jurisdiction of the Bureau of Land Management identified 
as ``Conveyance Boundary'' on the map titled ``Susanville Indian 
Rancheria Land Conveyance'' and dated December 31, 2014.
  (c) Gaming.--Class II and class III gaming under the Indian Gaming 
Regulatory Act (25 U.S.C. 2701 et seq.) shall not be allowed at any 
time on the land taken into trust pursuant to subsection (a).

                          PURPOSE OF THE BILL

    The purpose of H.R. 2212 is to take certain Federal lands 
located in Lassen County, California, into trust for the 
benefit of the Susanville Indian Rancheria.

                  BACKGROUND AND NEED FOR LEGISLATION

    The Susanville Indian Rancheria is located in northeastern 
California at the juncture of the Cascade Range and the Sierra 
Nevada mountains. The original Rancheria was created under the 
Landless and Homeless Indian Act in 1923 when the U.S. 
purchased 30 acres in Lassen County, California. The Rancheria 
was a nontribal specific assignment, though members of the 
Susanville community claim tribal associations to the Maidu, 
Paiute, Pit River, and Washoe Tribes of California.
    The Tribe elected to charter under the authority of the 
Indian Reorganization Act of 1934 and in 1969 the Secretary of 
the Interior approved the initial Rancheria constitution and 
bylaws. Under Public Law 95-459, Congress placed 120 acres of 
land in trust for the Rancheria. With additions to the Tribe's 
land base, today the Rancheria has approximately 1,101 acres 
held in trust and 240 acres of fee land in six locations.
    In 2005, the local Bureau of Land Management (BLM) office 
at Eagle Lake identified a 300-acre parcel in Lassen County, 
California, as suitable for disposal, and in 2007 BLM included 
the parcel its proposed Resource Management Plan and Final 
Environmental Impact Statement.\1\ The 300-acre parcel, which 
is adjacent to existing tribal lands, is isolated from other 
BLM-managed lands and has become difficult for BLM to continue 
to manage.
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    \1\See http://www.blm.gov/ca/st/en/fo/eaglelake/propRMP-FEIS.html.
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    The Rancheria has indicated that if H.R. 2212 is enacted, 
the Tribe will build a recreational area, Pow Wow grounds, and 
cultural center and museum on the land being transferred under 
the bill. The BLM field office has expressed a commitment to 
assist with the land transfer provided under this bill.
    H.R. 2212 directs the Secretary of the Interior to take 
approximately 300 acres of public land administered by BLM into 
trust for the Susanville Indian Rancheria. The transfer of the 
BLM lands into trust would be subject to valid existing rights 
and management agreements related to easements and rights-of-
way. Additionally, under the bill, class II and class III 
gaming under the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act is prohibited on 
these lands. The legislation is necessary as the Department of 
the Interior does not have the authority to administratively 
transfer public land into trust for a tribe.

                            COMMITTEE ACTION

    H.R. 2212 was introduced on May 1, 2015, by Congressman 
Doug LaMalfa (R-CA). The bill was referred to the Committee on 
Natural Resources, and within the Committee to the Subcommittee 
on Indian, Insular and Alaska Native Affairs. On June 10, 2015, 
the Subcommittee held a hearing on the bill. On October 7, 
2015, the Natural Resources Committee met to consider the bill. 
The Subcommittee was discharged by unanimous consent. 
Congressman LaMalfa offered an amendment designated #1; it was 
adopted by unanimous consent. No additional amendments were 
offered and the bill, as amended, was ordered favorably 
reported to the House of Representatives by unanimous consent 
on October 8, 2015.

            COMMITTEE OVERSIGHT FINDINGS AND RECOMMENDATIONS

    Regarding clause 2(b)(1) of rule X and clause 3(c)(1) of 
rule XIII of the Rules of the House of Representatives, the 
Committee on Natural Resources' oversight findings and 
recommendations are reflected in the body of this report.

                    COMPLIANCE WITH HOUSE RULE XIII

    1. Cost of Legislation. Clause 3(d)(1) of rule XIII of the 
Rules of the House of Representatives requires an estimate and 
a comparison by the Committee of the costs which would be 
incurred in carrying out this bill. However, clause 3(d)(2)(B) 
of that Rule provides that this requirement does not apply when 
the Committee has included in its report a timely submitted 
cost estimate of the bill prepared by the Director of the 
Congressional Budget Office under section 402 of the 
Congressional Budget Act of 1974. Under clause 3(c)(3) of rule 
XIII of the Rules of the House of Representatives and section 
403 of the Congressional Budget Act of 1974, the Committee has 
received the following cost estimate for this bill from the 
Director of the Congressional Budget Office:

H.R. 2212--A bill to take certain Federal lands located in Lassen 
        County, California, into trust for the benefit of the 
        Susanville Indian Rancheria, and for other purposes

    H.R. 2212 would require the Secretary of the Interior to 
take 300 acres of federal lands in California into trust for 
the benefit of the Susanville Indian Rancheria. The bill also 
would prohibit certain gaming activities on the affected lands. 
CBO estimates that implementing the bill would have no 
significant effect on the federal budget.
    Based on information from the Department of the Interior, 
CBO estimates the affected lands will generate receipts of 
about $2,000 a year from leasing rights-of-way. Because 
transferring the affected lands to the Rancheria would reduce 
offsetting receipts by that amount (such receipts are treated 
as reductions in direct spending), pay-as-you-go procedures 
apply. Enacting the bill would not affect revenues.
    CBO estimates that enacting H.R. 2212 would not increase 
on-budget deficits or net direct spending by more than $5 
billion in any of the four consecutive 10-year periods 
beginning in 2026.
    H.R. 2212 contains no intergovernmental or private-sector 
mandates as defined in the Unfunded Mandates Reform Act and 
would benefit the tribe.
    The CBO staff contact for this estimate is Jeff LaFave. The 
estimate was approved by H. Samuel Papenfuss, Deputy Assistant 
Director for Budget Analysis.
    2. Section 308(a) of Congressional Budget Act. As required 
by clause 3(c)(2) of rule XIII of the Rules of the House of 
Representatives and section 308(a) of the Congressional Budget 
Act of 1974, this bill does not contain any new budget 
authority, spending authority, credit authority, or an increase 
or decrease in revenues or tax expenditures. According to the 
Congressional Budget Office, enactment of this bill could 
reduce offsetting receipts of $2,000 a year (attributed to 
right-of-way leasing).
    3. General Performance Goals and Objectives. As required by 
clause 3(c)(4) of rule XIII, the general performance goal or 
objective of this bill is to take certain Federal lands located 
in Lassen County, California, into trust for the benefit of the 
Susanville Indian Rancheria.

                           EARMARK STATEMENT

    This bill does not contain any Congressional earmarks, 
limited tax benefits, or limited tariff benefits as defined 
under clause 9(e), 9(f), and 9(g) of rule XXI of the Rules of 
the House of Representatives.

                    COMPLIANCE WITH PUBLIC LAW 104-4

    This bill contains no unfunded mandates.

                       COMPLIANCE WITH H. RES. 5

    Directed Rule Making. The Chairman does not believe that 
this bill directs any executive branch official to conduct any 
specific rule-making proceedings.
    Duplication of Existing Programs. This bill does not 
establish or reauthorize a program of the federal government 
known to be duplicative of another program. Such program was 
not included in any report from the Government Accountability 
Office to Congress pursuant to section 21 of Public Law 111-139 
or identified in the most recent Catalog of Federal Domestic 
Assistance published pursuant to the Federal Program 
Information Act (Public Law 95-220, as amended by Public Law 
98-169) as relating to other programs.

                PREEMPTION OF STATE, LOCAL OR TRIBAL LAW

    This bill is not intended to preempt any State, local or 
tribal law.

                        CHANGES IN EXISTING LAW

    If enacted, this bill would make no changes in existing 
law.

                                  [all]