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Senate Bill 1322
118th Congress(2023-2024)
Unlocking Native Lands and Opportunities for Commerce and Key Economic Developments Act of 2023
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Passed Senate on Nov 21, 2024
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S. 1322 (Reported-in-Senate)

Calendar No. 342

118th CONGRESS
2d Session
S. 1322

[Report No. 118–159]


To amend the Act of August 9, 1955, to modify the authorized purposes and term period of tribal leases, and for other purposes.

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

April 26, 2023

Mr. Schatz (for himself and Ms. Murkowski) introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Indian Affairs

March 12, 2024

Reported by Mr. Schatz, with an amendment

[Strike out all after the enacting clause and insert the part printed in italic]

A BILL

To amend the Act of August 9, 1955, to modify the authorized purposes and term period of tribal leases, and for other purposes.

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. Short title.

This Act may be cited as the “Unlocking Native Lands and Opportunities for Commerce and Key Economic Developments Act of 2023”.

SEC. 2. Modification of tribal leases and rights-of-way across Indian land.

(a) Extension of tribal lease period.—The first section of the Act of August 9, 1955 (69 Stat. 539, chapter 615; 25 U.S.C. 415) (commonly known as the “Long-Term Leasing Act”), is amended—

(1) by striking “That (a)” and all that follows through the end of subsection (a) and inserting the following:

“SECTION 1. Leases of Restricted Land.

“(a) Authorized purposes; term; approval by Secretary.—

“(1) IN GENERAL.—Any restricted Indian lands, regardless of whether that land is tribally or individually owned, may be leased by the Indian owner of the land, with the approval of the Secretary, for—

“(A) a public, religious, educational, recreational, residential, business, or grazing purposes; or

“(B) a farming purpose that requires the making of a substantial investment in the improvement of the land for the production of 1 or more specialized crops as determined by the Secretary.

“(2) INCLUSIONS.—A lease under paragraph (1) may include the development or use of natural resources in connection with operations under that lease.

“(3) TERM.—

“(A) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in subparagraph (B), a lease under paragraph (1) shall be for a term of not more than 99 years, including any renewals.

“(B) EXCEPTION FOR GRAZING PURPOSES.—A lease under paragraph (1) for grazing purposes may be for a term of not more than 10 years, including any renewals.

“(4) REQUIREMENT.—Each lease and renewal under this subsection shall be made in accordance with such terms and regulations as may be prescribed by the Secretary.

“(5) CONDITIONS FOR APPROVAL.—Before the approval of any lease or renewal of an existing lease pursuant to this subsection, the Secretary shall determine that adequate consideration has been given to—

“(A) relationship between the use of the leased lands and the use of neighboring land;

“(B) the height, quality, and safety of any structures or other facilities to be constructed on the leased land;

“(C) the availability of police and fire protection and other services on the leased land;

“(D) the availability of judicial forums for all criminal and civil causes of action arising on the leased land; and

“(E) the effects on the environment of the uses to which the leased lands will be subject.”;

(2) in subsection (b)—

(A) by striking “(b) Any lease” and inserting the following:

“(b) Exception for Secretary approval.—Any lease”;

(B) by striking “of the Interior” each place it appears; and

(C) by striking “clause (3)” and inserting “paragraph”;

(3) by redesignating subsections (a), (b), (c), and (d) as subsections (b), (c), (d), and (a), respectively, and moving the subsections so as to appear in alphabetical order; and

(4) by striking “subsection (a)” each place it appears and inserting “subsection (b)”.

(b) Technical correction.—Section 2 of the Act of August 9, 1955 (69 Stat. 539, chapter 615; 25 U.S.C. 415a) (commonly known as the “Long-Term Leasing Act”), is amended by inserting “of the Interior” after “Secretary” each place it appears.

(c) Modification of rights-of-Way across Indian land.—The first section of the Act of February 5, 1948 (62 Stat. 17, chapter 45; 25 U.S.C. 323), is amended—

(1) by striking “That the Secretary of the Interior be, and he is empowered to” and inserting the following:

“SECTION 1. Rights-of-way for All Purposes Across Indian Land.

“(a) Rights-of-Way.—Except as provided in subsection (b), the Secretary of the Interior may”; and

(2) by adding at the end the following:

“(b) Exception.—A right-of-way granted by an Indian tribe for the purposes authorized under this section shall not require the approval of the Secretary of the Interior, subject to the condition that—

“(1) the right-of-way approval process by the Indian tribe substantially complies with subsection (h) of the first section of the Act of August 9, 1955 (69 Stat. 539, chapter 615; 25 U.S.C. 415(h)); or

“(2) the Indian tribe has tribal regulations approved by the Secretary of the Interior under that subsection.”.

SECTION 1. Short title.

This Act may be cited as the “Unlocking Native Lands and Opportunities for Commerce and Key Economic Developments Act of 2023”.

SEC. 2. Modification of tribal leases and rights-of-way across Indian land.

(a) Extension of tribal lease period.—The first section of the Act of August 9, 1955 (69 Stat. 539, chapter 615; 25 U.S.C. 415) (commonly known as the “Long-Term Leasing Act”), is amended—

(1) by striking “That (a)” and all that follows through the end of subsection (a) and inserting the following:

“SECTION 1. Leases of Restricted Land.

“(a) Authorized purposes; term; approval by Secretary.—

“(1) IN GENERAL.—Any restricted Indian lands, regardless of whether that land is tribally or individually owned, may be leased by the Indian owner of the land, with the approval of the Secretary, for—

“(A) a public, religious, educational, recreational, residential, business, or grazing purposes; or

“(B) a farming purpose that requires the making of a substantial investment in the improvement of the land for the production of 1 or more specialized crops as determined by the Secretary.

“(2) INCLUSIONS.—A lease under paragraph (1) may include the development or use of natural resources in connection with operations under that lease.

“(3) TERM.—

“(A) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in subparagraph (B), a lease under paragraph (1) shall be for a term of not more than 99 years, including any renewals.

“(B) EXCEPTION FOR GRAZING PURPOSES.—A lease under paragraph (1) for grazing purposes may be for a term of not more than 10 years, including any renewals.

“(4) REQUIREMENT.—Each lease and renewal under this subsection shall be made in accordance with such terms and regulations as may be prescribed by the Secretary.

“(5) CONDITIONS FOR APPROVAL.—Before the approval of any lease or renewal of an existing lease pursuant to this subsection, the Secretary shall determine that adequate consideration has been given to—

“(A) relationship between the use of the leased lands and the use of neighboring land;

“(B) the height, quality, and safety of any structures or other facilities to be constructed on the leased land;

“(C) the availability of police and fire protection and other services on the leased land;

“(D) the availability of judicial forums for all criminal and civil causes of action arising on the leased land; and

“(E) the effects on the environment of the uses to which the leased lands will be subject.”;

(2) in subsection (b)—

(A) by striking “(b) Any lease” and inserting the following:

“(b) Exception for Secretary approval.—Any lease”;

(B) by striking “of the Interior” each place it appears; and

(C) by striking “clause (3)” and inserting “paragraph”;

(3) by redesignating subsections (a), (b), (c), and (d) as subsections (b), (c), (d), and (a), respectively, and moving the subsections so as to appear in alphabetical order;

(4) by striking “subsection (a)” each place it appears and inserting “subsection (b)”; and

(5) in subsection (h)(1)—

(A) in the matter preceding subparagraph (A), by striking “and the term of the lease does not exceed—” and inserting a period; and

(B) by striking subparagraphs (A) and (B).

(b) Technical correction.—Section 2 of the Act of August 9, 1955 (69 Stat. 539, chapter 615; 25 U.S.C. 415a) (commonly known as the “Long-Term Leasing Act”), is amended by inserting “of the Interior” after “Secretary” each place it appears.

(c) Modifications of rights-of-way across Indian land.—The Act of February 5, 1948 (62 Stat. 17, chapter 45), is amended—

(1) in the first section (62 Stat. 17, chapter 45; 25 U.S.C. 323), by striking “That the Secretary of the Interior be, and he is hereby, empowered to” and inserting the following:

“SECTION 1. Rights-of-way for all purposes across Indian Land.

“(a) Rights-of-Way.—The Secretary of the Interior may”;

(2) in section 2 (62 Stat. 18, chapter 45; 25 U.S.C. 324), by striking “organized under the Act of June 18, 1934 (48 Stat. 984), as amended; the Act of May 1, 1936 (49 Stat. 1250); or the Act of June 26, 1936 (49 Stat. 1967),”; and

(3) by adding at the end the following:

“SEC. 8. Tribal grants of rights-of-way.

“(a) Rights-of-way.—

“(1) IN GENERAL.—Subject to paragraph (2), an Indian tribe may grant a right-of-way over and across the Tribal land of the Indian tribe for any purpose.

“(2) AUTHORITY.—A right-of-way granted under paragraph (1) shall not require the approval of the Secretary of the Interior or a grant by the Secretary of the Interior under the section 1 if the right-of-way granted under paragraph (1) is executed in accordance with a Tribal regulation approved by the Secretary of the Interior under subsection (b).

“(b) Review of Tribal regulations.—

“(1) TRIBAL REGULATION SUBMISSION AND APPROVAL.—

“(A) SUBMISSION.—An Indian tribe seeking to grant a right-of-way under subsection (a) shall submit for approval a Tribal regulation governing the granting of rights-of-way over and across the Tribal land of the Indian tribe.

“(B) APPROVAL.—Subject to paragraph (2), the Secretary of the Interior shall have the authority to approve or disapprove any Tribal regulation submitted under subparagraph (A).

“(2) CONSIDERATIONS FOR APPROVAL.—

“(A) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary of the Interior shall approve a Tribal regulation submitted under paragraph (1)(A), if the Tribal regulation—

“(i) is consistent with any regulations (or successor regulations) issued by the Secretary of the Interior under section 4;

“(ii) provides for an environmental review process that includes—

“(I) the identification and evaluation of any significant impacts the proposed action may have on the environment; and

“(II) a process for ensuring—

“(aa) that the public is informed of, and has a reasonable opportunity to comment on, any significant environmental impacts of the proposed action identified by the Indian tribe under subclause (I); and

“(bb) the Indian tribe provides a response to each relevant and substantive public comment on the significant environmental impacts identified by the Indian tribe under subclause (I) before the Indian tribe approves the right-of-way.

“(B) STATUTORY EXEMPTIONS.—The Secretary of the Interior, in making an approval decision under this subsection, shall not be subject to—

“(i) the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.);

“(ii) section 306108 of title 54, United States Code; or

“(iii) the Endangered Species Act of 1973 (16 U.S.C. 1531 et seq.).

“(3) REVIEW PROCESS.—

“(A) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 180 days after the date on which the Indian tribe submits a Tribal regulation to the Secretary of the Interior under paragraph (1)(A), the Secretary of the Interior shall—

“(i) review the Tribal regulation;

“(ii) approve or disapprove the Tribal regulation; and

“(iii) notify the Indian tribe that submitted the Tribal regulation of the approval or disapproval.

“(B) WRITTEN DOCUMENTATION.—If the Secretary of the Interior disapproves a Tribal regulation submitted under paragraph (1)(A), the Secretary of the Interior shall include with the disapproval notification under subparagraph (A)(iii) written documentation describing the basis for the disapproval.

“(C) EXTENSION.—The Secretary of the Interior may, after consultation with the Indian tribe that submitted a Tribal regulation under paragraph (1)(A), extend the 180-day period described in subparagraph (A).

“(4) FEDERAL ENVIRONMENTAL REVIEW.—Notwithstanding paragraphs (2) and (3), if an Indian tribe carries out a project or activity funded by a Federal agency, the Indian tribe may rely on the environmental review process of the applicable Federal agency rather than any Tribal environmental review process required under this subsection.

“(c) Documentation.—An Indian tribe granting a right-of-way under subsection (a) shall provide to the Secretary of the Interior—

“(1) a copy of the right-of-way, including any amendments or renewals; and

“(2) if the right-of-way allows for compensation to be made directly to the Indian tribe, documentation of payments that are sufficient, as determined by the Secretary of the Interior, as to enable the Secretary of the Interior to discharge the trust responsibility of the United States under subsection (d).

“(d) Trust responsibility.—

“(1) IN GENERAL.—The United States shall not be liable for losses sustained by any party to a right-of-way granted under subsection (a).

“(2) AUTHORITY OF THE SECRETARY.—

“(A) IN GENERAL.—Pursuant to the authority of the Secretary of the Interior to fulfill the trust obligation of the United States to the applicable Indian tribe under Federal law (including regulations), the Secretary of the Interior may, on reasonable notice from the applicable Indian tribe and at the discretion of the Secretary of the Interior, enforce the provisions of, or cancel, any right-of-way granted by the Indian tribe under subsection (a).

“(B) AUTHORITY.—The enforcement or cancellation of a right-of-way under subparagraph (A) shall be conducted using regulatory procedures issued under section 6.

“(e) Compliance.—

“(1) IN GENERAL.—An interested party, after exhaustion of any applicable Tribal remedies, may submit a petition to the Secretary of the Interior, at such time and in such form as determined by the Secretary of the Interior, to review the compliance of an applicable Indian tribe with a Tribal regulation approved by the Secretary of the Interior under subsection (b).

“(2) VIOLATIONS.—If the Secretary of the Interior determines that a Tribal regulation was violated after conducting a review under paragraph (1), the Secretary of the Interior may take any action the Secretary of the Interior determines to be necessary to remedy the violation, including rescinding the approval of the Tribal regulation and reassuming responsibility for approving rights-of-way through the trust land of the applicable Indian tribe.

“(3) DOCUMENTATION.—If the Secretary of the Interior determines that a Tribal regulation was violated after conducting a review under paragraph (1), the Secretary of the Interior shall—

“(A) provide written documentation, with respect to the Tribal regulation that has been violated, to the appropriate interested party and Indian tribe;

“(B) provide the applicable Indian tribe with a written notice of the alleged violation; and

“(C) prior to the exercise of any remedy, including rescinding the approval for the applicable Tribal regulation or reassuming responsibility for approving rights-of-way through the trust land of the applicable Indian tribe, provide the applicable Indian tribe with—

“(i) a hearing that is on the record; and

“(ii) a reasonable opportunity to cure the alleged violation.

“(f) Savings clause.—Nothing in this section affects the application of any Tribal regulations issued under Federal environmental law.

“(g) Effect of Tribal regulations.—An approved Tribal regulation under subsection (b) shall not preclude an Indian tribe from, in the discretion of the Indian tribe, consenting to the grant of a right-of-way by the Secretary of the Interior under the section 1.

“(h) Terms of right-of-way.—The compensation for, and terms of, a right-of-way granted under subsection (a) will be determined by—

“(1) negotiations by the Indian tribe; or

“(2) the regulations of the Indian tribe.

“(i) Jurisdiction.—The grant of a right-of-way under subsection (a) does not waive the sovereign immunity of the Indian tribe or diminish the jurisdiction of that Indian tribe over the Tribal land subject to the right-of-way, unless otherwise provided in—

“(1) the grant of the right-of-way; or

“(2) the regulations of the Indian tribe.”.

Calendar No. 342

118th CONGRESS
     2d Session
S. 1322
[Report No. 118–159]
A BILL
To amend the Act of August 9, 1955, to modify the authorized purposes and term period of tribal leases, and for other purposes.
March 12, 2024
Reported with an amendment