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“USE OF TRUST LAND AND RESOURCES OF CONFEDERATED TRIBES OF WARM SPRINGS RESERVATION OF OREGON” mentioning the Department of Interior was published in the House of Representatives section on pages H7379-H7380 on Oct. 30, 2001.
The publication is reproduced in full below:
USE OF TRUST LAND AND RESOURCES OF CONFEDERATED TRIBES OF WARM SPRINGS
RESERVATION OF OREGON
Mr. WALDEN of Oregon. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (H.R. 483) regarding the use of the trust land and resources of the Confederated Tribes of the Warm Springs Reservation of Oregon, as amended.
The Clerk read as follows:
H.R. 483
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. AUTHORIZATION FOR 99-YEAR LEASES.
The first section of the Act entitled ``An Act to authorize the leasing of restricted Indian lands for public, religious, educational, residential, business, and other purposes requiring the grant of long-term leases'', approved August 9, 1955 (25 U.S.C. 415(a)), is amended--
(1) by inserting ``, the reservation of the Confederated Tribes of the Warm Springs Reservation of Oregon,'' after
``Spanish Grant'')''; and
(2) by inserting ``lands held in trust for the Confederated Tribes of the Warm Springs Reservation of Oregon'' before ``, lands held in trust for the Cherokee Nation of Oklahoma''.
SEC. 2. USE OF CERTAIN TRUST LANDS AND RESOURCES FOR ECONOMIC
DEVELOPMENT.
(a) Approval of Agreement.--The use of tribal lands, resources, and other assets described in the document entitled ``Long-Term Global Settlement and Compensation Agreement'', dated April 12, 2000 (hereafter referred to as the ``GSA''), entered into by the Department of the Interior, the Confederated Tribes of the Warm Springs Reservation of Oregon (in this section referred to as the ``Tribes''), and the Portland General Electric Company, and in the Included Agreements, as attached to the GSA on April 12, 2000, and delivered to the Department of the Interior on that date, is approved and ratified. The authorization, execution, and delivery of the GSA is approved. In this section, the GSA and the Included Agreements are collectively referred to as the
``Agreement''. Any provision of Federal law which applies to tribal land, resources, or other assets (including proceeds derived therefrom) as a consequence of the Tribes' status as a federally recognized Indian tribe shall not--
(1) render the Agreement unenforceable or void against the parties; or
(2) prevent or restrict the Tribes from pledging, encumbering, or using funds or other assets that may be paid to or received by or on behalf of the Tribes in connection with the Agreement.
(b) Authority of Secretary.--
(1) In general.--Congress hereby deems that the Secretary of the Interior had and has the authority--
(A) to approve the Agreement; and
(B) to implement the provisions of the Agreement under which the Secretary has obligations as a party thereto.
(2) Other agreements.--Any agreement approved by the Secretary prior to or after the date of the enactment of this Act under the authority used to approve the Agreement shall not require Congressional approval or ratification to be valid and binding on the parties thereto.
(c) Rules of Construction.--
(1) Scope of section.--This section shall be construed as addressing only--
(A) the validity and enforceability of the Agreement with respect to provisions of Federal law referred to in section 2(a) of this Act; and
(B) approval for provisions of the Agreement and actions that are necessary to implement provisions of the Agreement that the parties may be required to obtain under Federal laws referred to in section 2(a) of this Act.
(2) Authority.--Nothing in this Act shall be construed to imply that the Secretary of the Interior did not have the authority under Federal law as in effect immediately before the enactment of this Act to approve the use of tribal lands, resources, or other assets in the manner described in the Agreement or in the implementation thereof.
SEC. 3. EFFECTIVE DATE.
This Act shall take effect as of April 12, 2000.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from Oregon (Mr. Walden) and the gentlewoman from the Virgin Islands (Mrs. Christensen) each will control 20 minutes.
The Chair recognizes the gentleman from Oregon (Mr. Walden).
Mr. WALDEN of Oregon. Mr. Speaker, on April 12 of 2000, the Warm Springs Tribe, Portland General Electric Company, and the Department of the Interior as the Tribe's trustee entered into an agreement for the Tribe to buy one-third or more of the 440-megawatt Pelton Hydroelectric Project on Oregon's Deschutes River. About one-third of that project is on the Warm Springs Tribal trust land.
The Tribe plans to use bonds to finance the $30 million initial one-
third acquisition of the project. A Federal law requires that any encumbrance of Indian trust resources be approved by the Interior Secretary. Interior asserts its current authorities are sufficient to authorize that approval for the Warm Springs trust resources. However, bond counsel asserts current authority is not express enough to allow for an unqualified opinion needed to issue those bonds. The Tribe and PGE also believe more express authority will help secure their agreement.
H.R. 483 addresses this situation by providing express approval specifically for the Pelton agreement so the bonds can be issued and the agreement is more secure. At the same time, it provides that this single case instance of approval is not to diminish Interior's existing authority to approve similar agreements.
The bill also authorizes Warm Springs trust land leases of up to 99 years at the Secretary's discretion.
Mr. Speaker, I hope that the House can unanimously support this piece of legislation. It is cosponsored by the entire Oregon delegation, and it will provide a needed economic development for the Warm Springs Tribes.
Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
Mrs. CHRISTENSEN. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
Mr. Speaker, this legislation will permit the Confederated Tribes of the Warm Springs Reservation of Oregon to enter into various leases concerning their trust lands for up to 99 years.
Over the years, and at the specific request of the affected Indian tribe, we have passed numerous similar bills in order to give Indian tribes more flexibility to develop trust lands for the benefit of their members. What is different about this bill, however, is that we are also giving Congressional approval to a settlement and business agreement entered into among the Tribe, the Department of the Interior, and the Portland General Electric Company. The agreement benefits all parties and will help bring needed economic development to the reservation.
Similar agreements between Indian tribes and private companies occur upon the approval of the Secretary of the Interior. While I support the passage of this bill today, it is important to stress that in doing so we are not questioning the Secretary's authority over such matters nor the validity of agreements bearing her approval.
With that, Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to support the passage of H.R. 483.
{time} 1600
Mr. WALDEN of Oregon. Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
Mrs. CHRISTENSEN. Mr. Speaker, I yield such time as he may consume to the gentleman from Oregon (Mr. Blumenauer).
Mr. BLUMENAUER. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentlewoman from yielding me this time.
Mr. Speaker, I rise to join my colleague from eastern Oregon in support of this legislation, and I am pleased to cosponsor it along with the gentleman.
Mr. Speaker, we have a special obligation as Members of this assembly to be sensitive to the needs of Native Americans. Sadly, the history of the United States brings no great credit to the Government or this body, and there have been many lost opportunities. I rise in support of H.R. 483 because it is one way to seize an opportunity and do the right thing.
H.R. 483 gives the Warm Springs Tribe the same control over their sovereign lands that other governments already enjoy. This act will allow the Warm Springs Tribal Government to lease its own land in the same manner that the Cherokee Nation and State and local jurisdictions have for years.
Certainly the Confederated Tribes of the Warm Springs Reservation in Oregon have shown that they have earned this right. They are located on the largest land holding in our State. They have a long history of excellent official relationships with State and Federal authorities in Oregon. They operate their own tribal courts, health system, educational facilities, and law enforcement agencies. They have been leaders in economic development initiatives of which this provision would enable another chapter to move forward.
I have been pleased to work with the tribe in times past. I think it is high time for us to allow the tribe to express similar leadership that they have over their own land. The second provision approves the agreement by the tribes with General Electric to regulate projects on its land. As has been pointed out, this has been a long time in the making. It was approved a year and a half ago, and its time for Congress to add its seal of approval. I strongly urge my colleagues to vote for passage of H.R. 483.
Mrs. CHRISTENSEN. Mr. Speaker, I have no further requests for time, and I yield back the balance of my time.
Mr. WALDEN of Oregon. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
Mr. Speaker, in closing, I thank the gentleman from Oregon (Mr. Blumenauer) for his kind comments and his generous support of this legislation and express my appreciation to the tribes and to Jefferson County and to Portland General Electric for their continuous work as we have wordsmithed this bill, probably more than any other bill I have been around, to make it conform to the needs of all of the parties involved. They have been quite patient and helpful in this process. I urge passage of this bill.
Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.
The SPEAKER pro tempore (Mr. Petri). The question is on the motion offered by the gentleman from Oregon (Mr. Walden) that the House suspend the rules and pass the bill, H.R. 483, as amended.
The question was taken; and (two-thirds having voted in favor thereof) the rules were suspended and the bill, as amended, was passed.
A motion to reconsider was laid on the table.
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