[House Report 117-164]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
117th Congress } { Report
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
1st Session } { 117-164
======================================================================
EASTERN BAND OF CHEROKEE HISTORIC LANDS REACQUISITION ACT
_______
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. 2088]
The Committee on Natural Resources, to whom was referred
the bill (H.R. 2088) to take certain Federal lands in Tennessee
into trust for the benefit of the Eastern Band of Cherokee
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. 2088 is to take certain Federal lands
in Tennessee into trust for the benefit of the Eastern Band of
Cherokee Indians.
BACKGROUND AND NEED FOR LEGISLATION
The Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians is one of three
federally recognized Cherokee tribes and is the only federally
recognized tribe in North Carolina. The Eastern Band's
ancestral homeland includes substantial parts of seven eastern
states, including Tennessee. The 57,000-acre ``Qualla
Boundary'' is the name of the Cherokee Indian Reservation in
North Carolina.
H.R. 2088 will transfer approximately 76 acres of
historically significant lands from the Tennessee Valley
Authority (TVA) to the United States to be held in trust for
the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians. It also grants two
permanent easements over TVA property to be held in trust for
the Tribe to create recreational trails between the sites.
The properties are located in Monroe County, Tennessee,
near the town of Vonore, and are adjacent to Tellico Lake, the
reservoir behind TVA's Tellico Dam. The Tribe currently manages
most of these properties under two permanent easements granted
in 1984 and 1986. These easements were a result of an informal
agreement to address the Tribe's objections to TVA's
construction of the Tellico Dam and Reservoir in 1979, which
inundated the sacred sites and archaeological remains of
historic Overland Cherokee towns, including the Cherokee
capitals of the 1700s, along the lower Little Tennessee and
Tellico Rivers.
COMMITTEE ACTION
H.R. 2088 was introduced on March 19, 2021, by
Representative Chuck Fleischmann (R-TN). 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. 146
(115th), the version of the bill from the 115th Congress, is
available and shows the bill as having a ``negligible'' effect
on direct spending and no effect on revenues.\1\
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\1\https://www.cbo.gov/system/files/115th-congress-2017-2018/
costestimate/hr146.pdf.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
Congressional Budget Office staff have informed the
Committee on a preliminary, informal, nonbinding basis that the
bill likely: would not affect revenues, would have an
insignificant net effect on direct spending over the 2022-2031
period, and 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 Federal lands in
Tennessee into trust for the benefit of the Eastern Band of
Cherokee 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. 146
(115th), the version of the bill from the 115th Congress, is
available and shows the bill as not creating any mandates for
purposes of UMRA.\2\
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\2\Id.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
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]