[Senate Report 118-2]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]


                                                        Calendar No. 31

118th Congress }                                            { Report
                                 SENATE
 1st Session   }                                            { 118-2

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



 
         PALA BAND OF MISSION INDIANS LAND TRANSFER ACT OF 2023

                                _______
                                

                 March 21, 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. 277]

      [Including cost estimate of the Congressional Budget Office]

    The Committee on Indian Affairs, to which was referred the 
bill (S. 277), 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

    The purpose of S. 277 is to authorize the Secretary of the 
Interior to take 721.12 acres in San Diego County, California, 
into trust for the benefit of the Pala Band of Mission Indians.

                               BACKGROUND

    Originally established through Executive Order,\1\ the 
reservation for the Pala Band of Mission Indians encompasses 
over 12,000 acres, including 4,000 acres of forests, six acres 
of wetlands, eight acres of lake, and over 38 miles of streams 
in Northern San Diego County. It is currently home to more than 
900 enrolled Pala Band members belonging to the Cupeno and 
Luiseno Tribes.
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    \1\Exec. Order of December 27, 1875.
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    In 2016, the Pala Band acquired the 721.12 acres of 
property that was originally purchased by developers to create 
a landfill. This property is adjacent, but not currently 
located within the Tribe's existing reservation boundaries, and 
includes a portion of Gregory Mountain (Chok'la), Medicine 
Rock, and other places sacred to the Pala Band and other 
Luiseno Tribes.

                          NEED FOR LEGISLATION

    S. 277 ensures the Pala Band of Mission Indians will be 
able to manage and steward their sacred sites and cultural 
history.

                          LEGISLATIVE HISTORY

    S. 277 was introduced by Senator Padilla (D-CA) on February 
7, 2023 and referred to the Committee on Indian Affairs on the 
same day. The Committee held a business meeting to consider S. 
277 on February 15, 2023. The Committee ordered the bill 
reported without amendment.
    On January 20, 2023, Representatives Issa (R-CA) and Vargas 
(D-CA) introduced H.R. 423, a bill identical to S. 277. On the 
same day, the bill was referred to the House Committee on 
Natural Resources. On February 6, 2023, Representative 
Westerman (R-AR) successfully moved to suspend the rules and 
pass the bill. The House of Representatives considered the bill 
and agreed to its passage by voice vote on the same day. H.R. 
423 was received in the Senate on February 7, 2023.
    117th Congress. On March 17, 2021, H.R. 1975 was introduced 
by Representatives Issa (R-CA) and Vargas (D-CA) and referred 
to the House Committee on Natural Resources. On May 17, 2021, 
H.R. 1975 was referred to the Subcommittee for Indigenous 
Peoples of the United States and was discharged on October 13, 
2021. On the same day, the Committee ordered the bill reported 
by unanimous consent; the Committee reported the bill favorably 
on November 2, 2021. On November 1, 2021 Rep. Leger Fernandez 
(D-NM) moved to suspend the rules and pass the bill; the House 
passed H.R. 1975 on November 2, 2021 by a vote of 397-25.
    H.R. 1975 was received in the Senate on November 3, 2021 
and referred to the Committee on Indian Affairs the same day. 
The Committee held a hearing on H.R. 1975 on November 17, 2021, 
during which the Department of the Interior testified in 
support. The Committee held a business meeting on April 6, 2022 
and ordered the bill reported without amendment favorably. On 
June 23, 2022, the Committee reported the bill without 
amendment and H.R. 1975 was placed on the Senate calendar the 
same day. No further action was taken on H.R. 1975 before the 
conclusion of the 117th Congress.

       SECTION-BY-SECTION ANALYSIS OF S. 277 AS ORDERED REPORTED

Section 1--Short title

    This section sets forth the short title as the ``Pala Band 
of Mission Indians Land Transfer Act of 2023.''

Section 2--Transfer of Land in Trust for the Pala Band of Mission 
        Indians

    Subsection 2(a) sets forth the definitions to be used in 
the bill.
    Subsection 2(b) provides that the Tribe has 180 days to 
transfer the land to the Department of the Interior and that 
the Department must take those lands into trust for the benefit 
of the Pala Band of Mission Indians no later than 180 days 
following transfer to the Department. It also clarifies that 
the land transferred to the Tribe shall be made part of its 
reservation and administered in accordance with the laws and 
regulations generally applicable to land held in trust by the 
United States for an Indian Tribe.
    Subsection 2(c) provides a description of the land to be 
transferred into trust.
    Subsection 2(d) clarifies that nothing in the bill shall 
enlarge or impart the rights or claims of Tribe in existence 
prior to the transfer, affect pre-existing water rights, or 
terminate or limit access in any rights-of-way or rights-of-use 
issued prior to enactment.
    Subsection 2(e) prohibits gaming on the lands to be taken 
into trust, either as a matter of claimed inherent authority or 
under federal law.

                   COST AND BUDGETARY CONSIDERATIONS

                                                    March 14, 2023.




    S. 277 would direct the Department of the Interior (DOI) to 
take into trust approximately 720 acres of land in San Diego 
County, California, owned by the Pala Band of Mission Indians. 
Under the bill, DOI would hold title to that land for the 
benefit of the tribe. 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. 277 would not be significant.
    S. 277 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 Pala Band of Mission Indians. Information 
from San Diego County about taxes and other receipts associated 
with the land indicates that those forgone revenues would total 
less than $13,000 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.
    The CBO staff contact for this estimate is Julia Aman (for 
federal costs) and Rachel Austin (for mandates). The estimate 
was reviewed by H. Samuel Papenfuss, Deputy Director of 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. 277 will 
have minimal impact on regulatory or paperwork requirements.

                        EXECUTIVE COMMUNICATIONS

    The Committee has received no communications from the 
Executive Branch regarding S. 277.

                        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.