[Senate Report 111-246]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
Calendar No. 508
111th Congress Report
SENATE
2d Session 111-246
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TO AMEND THE ACT OF AUGUST 9, 1955, TO MODIFY A PROVISION RELATING TO
LEASES INVOLVING CERTAIN INDIAN TRIBES
_______
August 3, 2010.--Ordered to be printed
_______
Mr. Dorgan, from the Committee on Indian Affairs, submitted the
following
R E P O R T
[To accompany S. 2906]
The Committee on Indian Affairs, to which was referred the
bill (S. 2906) to modify a provision relating to leases
involving certain Indian tribes, orders the bill be reported to
the full Senate and recommends that the bill, as amended, do
pass.
Purpose
The purpose of S. 2906 is to amend the Act of August 9,
1955, to modify a provision relating to leases involving
certain Indian tribes.
Background
Since the enactment of the Act of June 30, 1834, 4 Stat.
730, codified as 25 U.S.C. Sec. 177, and predecessor statutes,
land transactions with Indian tribes were prohibited unless
specifically authorized by Congress. This law is commonly known
as the Non-intercourse Act.
Congress enacted the Act of August 9, 1955, codified at 25
U.S.C. Sec. 415, commonly known as the Long-Term Leasing Act,
to overcome the prohibition of the Non-intercourse Act. The
Long-Term Leasing Act permitted some land transactions between
Indian tribes and nonfederal parties--specifically, the leasing
of Indian lands. The Act required that leases of Indian lands
be approved by the Secretary of the Interior and limited lease
terms to 25 years.
As business opportunities and economic considerations
changed over time, leases longer than 25 years were desired. To
facilitate economic development on trust lands, over the years,
a number of tribes have obtained amendments to the Long-Term
Leasing Act so that they could enter into leases for terms
longer than 25 years. Approximately 50 tribes have obtained
these amendments and all are listed in the Long-Term Leasing
Act as having authority to enter into leases for terms as long
as 99 years.
S. 2906 would further amend the Long-Term Leasing Act by
adding two additional tribes to the list. H.R. 2906 adds two
Washington State tribes, the Kalispel Tribe of Indians and the
Puyallup Tribe of Indians to the list of tribes that may enter
into 99 years leases. S. 2906 also authorizes the Puyallup
Tribe of Indians, the Swinomish Indian Tribal Community, and
the Kalispel Tribe of Indians to enter into business and
residential surface leases without approval by the Secretary of
the Interior, provided the term of the lease meets certain
restrictions.
Legislative History
S. 2906 was introduced on December 18, 2009, by Senator
Cantwell for herself and Senator Murray and referred to the
Committee on Indian Affairs. A companion bill, H.R. 4401, was
introduced on December 16, 2009, by Congressman Adam Smith for
himself and Congressman Norman Dicks and referred to the
Committee on Natural Resources.
Summary of the Amendment
Senator Cantwell introduced an amendment at a business
meeting on June 10, 2009, adding the Puyallup Tribe of Indians
to the list of tribes with the authority to enter into 99-year
leases and other technical amendments. The amendment was
accepted by voice vote.
Section-by-Section of S. 1448, as Amended
Section I. Leases involving certain Indian tribes
This section amends subsection (a) of the first section of
the Act of August 9, 1955, in the second sentence by inserting
``and land held in trust for the Kalispel Tribe of Indians, the
Puyallup Tribe of Indians,'' after ``the Kalispel Indian
Reservation''.
This section also amends subsection (b) of the first
section by inserting ``the Puyallup Tribe of Indians, the
Swinomish Indian Tribal Community, or the Kalispel Tribe of
Indians'' after ``Tulalip Tribes.'' This would allow these
tribal communities to be able to enter into leases, except a
lease for the exploitation of any natural resource, without
approval by the Secretary of the Interior provided the term of
the lease does not exceed fifteen years with no option to
renew; thirty years with no option to renew if the lease is
executed pursuant to tribal regulations previously approved by
the Secretary of the Interior; or seventy-five years (including
options to renew, and the lease is executed under tribal
regulations approved by the Secretary of the Interior under
clause (3) of section (b).
Committee Recommendation
On June 10, 2010, the Committee on Indian Affairs held a
business meeting to consider S. 2906 and other measures.
Senator Cantwell introduced an amendment which was accepted by
voice vote. S. 2906, as amended, passed by voice vote. The
Committee ordered the bill, as amended, reported to the full
Senate with the recommendation that it do pass.
Cost and Budgetary Considerations
The following cost estimate, as provided by the
Congressional Budget Office, dated June 24, 2010, was prepared
for S. 2906:
S. 2906--A bill to amend the Act of August 9, 1955, to modify a
provision relating to leases involving certain Indian tribes
S. 2906 would authorize the Kalispel Tribe of Indians and
the Puyallup Tribe of Indians to lease lands held in trust for
up to 99 years. In general, under current law, the tribes can
lease trust lands to schools, businesses, and public entities
for 25-year terms, subject to the approval of the Bureau of
Indian Affairs (BIA). The Kalispel Tribe currently has the
authority to lease its reservation land for up to 99 years. The
bill also would allow the Kalispel Tribe, the Puyallup Tribe,
and the Swinomish Indian Tribal Community to lease lands held
in trust for up to 15 years without prior approval from the
Secretary of the Interior as long as no natural resources are
extracted from the leased lands.
CBO estimates that implementing S. 2906 would have no
significant impact on the federal budget. Any additional
proceeds from such leases would accrue to the owners of the
trust land and would have no effect on the federal budget. CBO
also estimates that implementing the bill would have a
negligible effect on BIA's workload. Enacting S. 2906 would not
affect direct spending or revenues; therefore, pay-as-you-go
procedures would not apply.
S. 2906 contains no intergovernmental or private-sector
mandates as defined in the Unfunded Mandates Reform Act and
would impose no costs on state, local, or tribal governments.
The CBO staff contact for this estimate is Jeff LaFave. The
estimate was approved by Sam Papenfuss, Unit Chief for Income
Security and Education Cost Estimates Unit, Budget Analysis
Division.
Regulatory and Paperwork Impact Statement
Paragraph 11(b) of rule XXVI of the Standing Rules of the
Senate requires that each report accompanying a bill evaluate
the regulatory and paperwork impact that would be incurred in
carrying out the bill. The Committee has concluded that the
regulatory and paperwork impact of S. 2906 should be de
minimis.
Executive Communications
The Committee has received no official communication from
the Administration on the provisions of S. 2906.
Changes in Existing Law
In compliance with subsection 12 of rule XXVI of the
Standing Rules of the Senate, changes in existing law made by
S. 2906, as ordered to be reported, are shown as follows
(existing law proposed to be omitted is enclosed in black
brackets, new language to be added in italic, existing law to
which no change is proposed is shown in roman):
25 U.S.C. 415
ACT OF AUGUST 9, 1955
(a) Authorized purposes; term; approval by Secretary
Any restricted Indian lands, whether tribally, or
individually owned, may be leased by the Indian owners, with
the approval of the Secretary of the Interior, for public,
religious, educational, recreational, residential, or business
purposes, including the development or utilization of natural
resources in connection with operations under such leases, for
grazing purposes, and for those farming purposes which require
the making of a substantial investment in the improvement of
the land for the production of specialized crops as determined
by said Secretary. All leases so granted shall be for a term of
not to exceed twenty-five years, except leases of land located
outside the boundaries of Indian reservations in the State of
New Mexico, leases of land on the Agua Caliente (Palm Springs)
Reservation, the Dania Reservation, the Pueblo of Santa Ana
(with the exception of the lands known as the ``Santa Ana
Pueblo Spanish Grant''), the reservation of the Confederated
Tribes of the Warm Springs Reservation of Oregon, the Moapa
Indian Reservation, the Swinomish Indian Reservation, the
Southern Ute Reservation, the Fort Mojave Reservation, the
Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla Indian Reservation, the
Burns Paiute Reservation, the Coeur d'Alene Indian Reservation,
the Kalispel Indian Reservation, and land held in trust for the
Kalispel Tribe of Indians, the Puyallup Tribe of Indians, the
pueblo of Cochiti, the pueblo of Pojoaque, ....
* * * * * * *
(b) Leases involving Tulalip Tribes
Any lease by the Tulalip Tribes, the Puyallup Tribe of
Indians, the Swinomish Indian Tribal Community, or the Kalispel
Tribe of Indians under subsection (a) of this section, except a
lease for the exploitation of any natural resource, shall not
require the approval of the Secretary of the Interior (1) if
the term of the lease does not exceed fifteen years, with no
option to renew, (2) if the term of the lease does not exceed
thirty years, with no option to renew, and the lease is
executed pursuant to tribal regulations previously approved by
the Secretary of the Interior, or (3) if the term does not
exceed seventy-five years (including options to renew), and the
lease is executed under tribal regulations approved by the
Secretary under this clause (3).