[House Report 117-163]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]


117th Congress     }                                   {      Report
                        HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
 1st Session       }                                   {      117-163

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



 
         PALA BAND OF MISSION INDIANS LAND TRANSFER ACT OF 2021

                                _______
                                

November 1, 2021.--Committed to the Committee of the Whole House on the 
              State of the Union and ordered to be printed

                                _______
                                

 Mr. Grijalva, from the Committee on Natural Resources, submitted the 
                               following

                              R E P O R T

                        [To accompany H.R. 1975]

    The Committee on Natural Resources, to whom was referred 
the bill (H.R. 1975) to take certain land located in San Diego 
County, California, into trust for the benefit of the Pala Band 
of Mission Indians, and for other purposes, having considered 
the same, reports favorably thereon without amendment and 
recommends that the bill do pass.

                          PURPOSE OF THE BILL

    The purpose of H.R. 1975 is to take certain land located in 
San Diego County, California, into trust for the benefit of the 
Pala Band of Mission Indians.

                  BACKGROUND AND NEED FOR LEGISLATION

    The Pala Band of Mission Indians is located in northern San 
Diego County on a reservation home to 918 enrolled members. The 
rancheria encompasses over 12,000 acres, including 4,000 acres 
of forests, 6 acres of wetlands, 8 acres of lake, and over 38 
miles of streams. Members of the Pala Band belong to the Cupeno 
and Luiseno tribes, who were forced together by Spanish 
Franciscan missionaries during the 1800s.
    The Pala Band recently purchased property that includes the 
remaining portion of Gregory Mountain that is not on the 
existing Pala Reservation and other sacred and culturally 
significant sites in Gregory Canyon. The land was purchased to 
protect and preserve Gregory Mountain (Chokla), Medicine Rock, 
and other sites considered sacred by Luiseno Tribes.
    H.R. 1975 takes the purchased 721.12 acres into trust for 
the benefit of the Pala Band, ensuring that the sacred sites 
and cultural history will be appropriately honored and 
safeguarded. The bill also stipulates that current land and 
water rights are not affected by its enactment, nor are any 
rights-of-way or rights-of-use currently permitted. Lastly, the 
Pala Band may not conduct any gaming activities on the land.

                            COMMITTEE ACTION

    H.R. 1975 was introduced on March 17, 2021, by 
Representative Darrell Issa (R-CA). The bill was referred 
solely to the Committee on Natural Resources, and within the 
Committee to the Subcommittee for Indigenous Peoples of the 
United States. On October 13, 2021, the Natural Resources 
Committee met to consider the bill. The Subcommittee was 
discharged by unanimous consent. No amendments were offered. 
The bill was adopted and ordered favorably reported to the 
House of Representatives by unanimous consent.

                                HEARINGS

    For the purposes of clause 3(c)(6) of House rule XIII, the 
following hearing was used to develop or consider this measure: 
full Committee markup held on October 13, 2021.

            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 AND CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET ACT

    1. Cost of Legislation and the Congressional Budget Act. 
With respect to the requirements of 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 and with respect to 
requirements of clause (3)(c)(3) of rule XIII of the Rules of 
the House of Representatives and section 402 of the 
Congressional Budget Act of 1974, the Committee has requested 
but not received a cost estimate for this bill from the 
Director of Congressional Budget Office. The Committee adopts 
as its own cost estimate the forthcoming cost estimate of the 
Director of the Congressional Budget Office, should such cost 
estimate be made available before House passage of the bill.
    The Committee has requested but not received from the 
Director of the Congressional Budget Office a statement as to 
whether this bill contains any new budget authority, spending 
authority, credit authority, or an increase or decrease in 
revenues or tax expenditures.
    The Committee notes that CBO's analysis of H.R. 1031 
(116th), last Congress's version of the legislation, is 
available and shows the bill as having no effect on direct 
spending and no effect on revenues.\1\
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    \1\https://www.cbo.gov/system/files/2020-11/hr1031.pdf.
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    Congressional Budget Office staff have informed the 
Committee on a preliminary, informal, nonbinding basis that the 
bill will likely have no direct spending or revenue effects, 
and that the bill would increase discretionary costs by an 
insignificant amount over the 2022-2026 period.
    2. General Performance Goals and Objectives. As required by 
clause 3(c)(4) of rule XIII, the general performance goals and 
objectives of this bill are to take certain land located in San 
Diego County, California, into trust for the benefit of the 
Pala Band of Mission Indians.

                           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.

                 UNFUNDED MANDATES REFORM ACT STATEMENT

    An estimate of Federal mandates prepared by the Director of 
the Congressional Budget Office pursuant to section 423 of the 
Unfunded Mandates Reform Act was not made available to the 
Committee in time for the filing of this report. The Chair of 
the Committee shall cause such estimate to be printed in the 
Congressional Record upon its receipt by the Committee.
    The Committee notes that CBO's analysis of H.R. 1031 
(116th), last Congress's version of the legislation, is 
available\2\ and shows the bill as not creating a private-
sector mandate for purposes of UMRA. The analysis states that 
H.R. 1031 (116th) would have imposed an intergovernmental 
mandate as defined in UMRA, but below the statutory threshold. 
Per CBO: ``The bill would prohibit state and local governments 
from taxing land taken into trust for the Pala Band of Mission 
Indians. Based on information from San Diego County, the 
taxable value of the land that would be placed into trust is 
approximately $2.3 million. That taxable value indicates that 
foregone property tax and fee revenues would fall significantly 
below the annual threshold established in UMRA ($84 million in 
2020, adjusted annually for inflation).''\3\
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                           EXISTING PROGRAMS

    This bill does not establish or reauthorize a program of 
the federal government known to be duplicative of another 
program.

                  APPLICABILITY TO LEGISLATIVE BRANCH

    The Committee finds that the legislation does not relate to 
the terms and conditions of employment or access to public 
services or accommodations within the meaning of section 
102(b)(3) of the Congressional Accountability Act.

               PREEMPTION OF STATE, LOCAL, OR TRIBAL LAW

    Any preemptive effect of this bill over state, local, or 
tribal law is intended to be consistent with the bill's 
purposes and text and the Supremacy Clause of Article VI of the 
U.S. Constitution.

                        CHANGES IN EXISTING LAW

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

        SUPPLEMENTAL, MINORITY, ADDITIONAL, OR DISSENTING VIEWS

    None.

                                  [all]