[Senate Report 118-130]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
Calendar No. 273
118th Congress} { Report
SENATE
1st Session } { 118-130
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PUYALLUP TRIBE OF INDIANS LAND INTO TRUST CONFIRMATION ACT OF 2023
_______
December 12, 2023.--Ordered to be printed
_______
Mr. Schatz, from the Committee on Indian Affairs,
submitted the following
R E P O R T
[To accompany S. 382]
[Including cost estimate of the Congressional Budget Office]
The Committee on Indian Affairs, to which was referred the
bill (S. 382), to take certain land in the State of Washington
into trust for the benefit of the Puyallup Tribe of the
Puyallup Reservation, and for other purposes, having considered
the same, reports favorably thereon, without amendment, and
recommends that the bill do pass.
PURPOSE
The purpose of S. 382 is to transfer into trust three
separate parcels of land, totaling approximately 17.264 acres,
currently owned in fee simple by the Puyallup Tribe of the
Puyallup Reservation.
BACKGROUND
The Puyallup Tribe of the Puyallup Reservation (Tribe) is a
federally recognized Indian Tribe with a 28 square mile
reservation that encompasses parts of the towns of Tacoma and
Fife, Washington. Under the 1854 Treaty of Medicine Creek with
the United States,\1\ the Tribe reserved approximately 20,000
acres of land for its reservation, which was formally
established by two subsequent Executive Orders.\2\ Over a
course of 50 years, however, the Tribe's reservation was
reduced through Acts of Congress, sales of reservation land,
and theft.\3\ By 1989, the Tribe's reservation was reduced to
only a few acres of trust land.
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\1\10 Stat. 1132 (1854).
\2\Exec. Order Jan. 20, 1857; Exec. Order Sept. 6, 1873.
\3\See, H.R. Rep. No. 101-57, at 3 (1989).
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Through the Puyallup Settlement Act of 1989,\4\
approximately 1,000 acres of the Tribe's original reservation
was restored. Currently, 1,252.7 acres of land are held in
trust for the Tribe, and an additional 1,383.8 acres of land
are owned by the Tribe in fee simple.
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\4\P.L. No. 101-41 (1989).
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NEED FOR LEGISLATION
The transfer of these 17.264 acres of land from fee to
trust will enable the Tribe to continue its land restoration
activities and support further economic development and growth.
SUMMARY OF THE BILL
S. 382 takes into trust approximately 17.264 acres of land
currently owned by the Tribe in fee simple, prohibits the lands
from being used for classes II and III gamining purposes,
clarifies the jurisdiction over the lands, and relieves the
United States of liability for any environmental contamination
occurring on the lands.
LEGISLATIVE HISTORY
On February 9, 2023, Senators Cantwell (D-WA) and Murray
(D-WA) introduced S. 382, the Puyallup Tribe of Indians Land
Into Trust Confirmation Act of 2023. On the same day, the
Senate referred the bill to the Committee on Indian Affairs
(Committee). On May 3, 2023, the Committee held a legislative
hearing to receive testimony on S. 382. On July 19, 2023, the
Committee held a duly convened business meeting and ordered S.
382 reported favorably, without amendment, by voice vote.
On February 9, 2023, Representatives Kilmer (D-WA) and
Strickland (D-WA) introduced H.R. 929, an identical companion
bill to S. 382. On the same day, the House of Representatives
referred the bill to the Committee on Natural Resources. On
February 21, 2023, H.R. 929 was further referred to the
Subcommittee on Indian and Insular Affairs of the Committee on
Natural Resources (Subcommittee). On July 12, 2023, the
Subcommittee held a hearing to receive testimony on H.R. 929.
On September 20, 2023, the Subcommittee discharged the bill and
the Committee on Natural Resources held a mark-up session. On
the same day, the Committee on Natural Resources ordered the
bill to be reported by unanimous consent. To date, the House
has taken no further action on H.R. 929.
117th Congress. On September 22, 2022, Senators Cantwell
(D-WA) and Murray (D-WA) introduced S. 4933, the Puyallup Tribe
of Indians Land Into Trust Confirmation Act of 2022. On the
same day, the Senate referred the bill to the Committee. The
Senate took no further action on S. 4933 in the 117th Congress.
On September 22, 2022, Representatives Kilmer (D-WA) and
Strickland (D-WA) introduced H.R. 8967, an identical companion
bill to S. 4933. On the same day, the House of Representatives
referred the bill to the Committee on Natural Resources. The
House took no further action on H.R. 8967 in the 117th
Congress.
SECTION-BY-SECTION ANALYSIS OF S. 382 AS ORDERED REPORTED
Section 1--Short title
This section sets forth the short title as the ``Puyallup
Tribe of Indians Land Into Trust Confirmation Act of 2023.''
Section 2--Land to be taken into trust for the benefit of the Puyallup
Tribe of the Puyallup Reservation
Section 2(a) takes into trust approximately 17.264 acres of
land owned in fee simple by the Puyallup Tribe of the Puyallup
Reservation.
Section 2(b) provides descriptions of the three parcels of
land to be taken into trust.
Section 2(c) clarifies that the lands to be taken into
trust shall be part of the Tribe's reservation and shall be
administered according to the laws and regulations applicable
to Indian trust lands.
Section 2(d) relieves the United States of any liability
for any environmental contamination occurring on or before the
date on which the lands are taken into trust under this Act.
Section 2(e) prohibits the lands taken into trust under
this Act from being used for class II or class III gaming under
the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act (25 U.S.C. 2703).
COST AND BUDGETARY CONSIDERATIONS
S. 382 would direct the Department of the Interior (DOI) to
take into trust approximately 17 acres of land in Pierce
County, Washington, owned by the Puyallup Tribe. Under the
bill, DOI would hold title to that land for the benefit of the
tribe, and the United States would not be liable for any
environmental contamination that occurred on or before the date
the land would be taken into trust. The legislation also would
prohibit certain types of gaming on those lands. Using
information from DOI, CBO estimates that the administrative
costs to implement S. 382 would not be significant; any
spending would be subject to the availability of appropriated
funds.
S. 382 would impose an intergovernmental mandate as defined
in the Unfunded Mandates Reform Act (UMRA). The bill would
prohibit state and local governments from taxing land taken
into trust for the Puyallup Tribe. Information from Pierce
County about taxes and other receipts associated with the land
indicates that those foregone revenues would total less than
$100,000 annually, well below the annual intergovernmental
threshold established in UMRA ($99 million in 2023, adjusted
annually for inflation).
The bill contains no private-sector mandates.
On October 20, 2023, CBO transmitted a cost estimate for
H.R. 929, the Puyallup Tribe of Indians Land Into Trust
Confirmation Act of 2023, as ordered reported by the House
Committee on Natural Resources on September 20, 2023. The two
bills are similar, and CBO's estimates of their budgetary
effects are the same.
The CBO staff contacts for this estimate are Julia Aman
(for federal costs) and Rachel Austin (for mandates). The
estimate was reviewed by Emily Stern, Senior Adviser for Budget
Analysis.
Phillip L. Swagel,
Director, Congressional Budget Office.
REGULATORY AND PAPERWORK IMPACT STATEMENT
Paragraph 11(b) of rule XXVI of the Standing Rules of the
Senate requires each report accompanying a bill to evaluate the
regulatory and paperwork impact that would be incurred in
carrying out the bill. The Committee believes that S. 382 will
have minimal impact on regulatory or paperwork requirements.
EXECUTIVE COMMUNICATIONS
The Committee has received no communications from the
Executive Branch regarding S. 382.
CHANGES IN EXISTING LAW
On February 9, 2023, the Committee unanimously approved a
motion to waive subsection 12 of rule XXVI of the Standing
Rules of the Senate. In the opinion of the Committee, it is
necessary to dispense with subsection 12 of rule XXVI of the
Standing Rules of the Senate to expedite the business of the
Senate.
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