Alaska Federal Lands Management Demonstration Project

Summary: Requires the Secretary to: (1) select not less than six eligible Alaska Native tribes or tribal organizations per year to participate in the Project in FY 2000 and 2001; and (2) negotiate and enter into a contract with each participant to plan, conduct, and administer requested programs and services related to the administration of a conservation system unit or other public land unit substantially located within the respective Indian tribe's or tribal organization's geographic region.
Requires contracts to include, at the participant's request, the operation and support of the regional advisory councils, biological research, harvest monitoring, and other technical research related to conservation and allocation actions by the regional councils and such other programs and services reasonably necessary to carry out title VIII of the Alaska National Interests Lands Conservation Act (ANILCA). Makes available the benefits, privileges, terms, and conditions of agreements entered into pursuant to titles I and IV of the Indian Self-Determination and Education Assistance Act for inclusion in the contract, at the request of the contracting tribe or tribal organization.
Prohibits the separation of any career Federal employee employed at the time of the transfer of an operation or program from Federal service to a tribe or tribal organization. Directs the Secretary to provide each tribe or tribal organization funds that would have otherwise been provided for the operation of the requested programs and services.
Specifies that contracts shall not include revenue producing visitor services unless an agreement is reached with the most directly affected Alaska Native corporations.
Exempts Denali National Park from the provisions of this Act.
Requires the Secretary, upon application, to award a planning grant to any participating Alaska Native tribe or tribal organization to plan for the contracting of programs and services authorized under this Act.
Authorizes appropriations.
Requires transmittal by the Secretary to the appropriate congressional committees of a report on the progress that the Department of the Interior has made in the implementation of ANILCA provisions concerning: (1) the continuation of existing visitor services in areas established as or added to a conservation system unit; and (2) establishment of a program for hiring individuals who, by reason of having lived or worked in or near public lands, have special knowledge or expertise concerning the natural or cultural resources of public lands, without regard to certain civil service training requirements, employment preferences, or numerical limitations.

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Alaska Federal Lands Management 
Demonstration Project''.

SEC. 2. CONGRESSIONAL FINDINGS; PURPOSES.

    (a) Findings.--Congress finds and declares the following:
            (1) The Alaska National Interest Lands Conservation Act (16 
        U.S.C. 3101 et seq.) established new and expanded units of the 
        National Park System and the National Wildlife System in many 
        areas of Alaska. The purposes of these conservation system 
        units were, among other purposes, to protect habitat for fish 
        and wildlife, to conserve fish and wildlife populations in 
        their natural state, to provide continued opportunity for 
        subsistence uses by local residents, and to protect 
        archaeological sites associated with Native cultures.
            (2) Many rural Alaskan communities are in close proximity 
        to conservation system lands, and the purposes of these units 
        are uniquely relevant to the culture and ways of Native 
        Alaskans and other residents of rural Alaskan communities. 
        Congress recognized this close relationship in sections 1306, 
        1307 and 1308 of the Alaska National Interest Lands 
        Conservation Act, which directed the Secretary of Interior to 
        establish programs whereby Native lands were given preference 
        for the siting of conservation service unit facilities, Native 
        corporations and local residents were given preference for the 
        provision of visitor services, and local residents were given 
        preferences for employment. Despite these provisions, little 
        progress has been made in increasing related employment 
        opportunities for Native Alaskan and other local residents.
            (3) In much of rural Alaska, Indian tribes and tribal 
        organizations have a long history of contracting to operate 
        Federal programs and provide Federal services to resident 
        Alaskan Natives and have demonstrated the capacity to provide 
        other kinds of Federal programs and services.
    (b) Purposes.--The purposes of this demonstration project are to 
design innovative management strategies that will lead to greater 
efficiency in conservation system unit management, expand Native 
contracting opportunities, increase local employment, and further the 
unique purposes of these units as they relate to subsistence practices, 
Alaska Native cultures, and the preservation of fish and wildlife 
habitat and populations.

SEC. 3. AUTHORIZATION OF DEMONSTRATION PROJECT.

    The Secretary of the Interior shall, for a period not to exceed 5 
years following the date of the enactment of this Act, conduct an 
Alaska Federal Lands Management Demonstration Project.

SEC. 4. ALASKA FEDERAL LANDS MANAGEMENT DEMONSTRATION PROJECT.

    (a) Participation.--The Secretary shall select, upon request and in 
a manner to achieve geographic representation, not less than 6 eligible 
Alaska Native tribes or tribal organizations per year to participate in 
the Demonstration Project in fiscal years 2000 and 2001.
    (b) Eligibility.--To be eligible to participate in the 
Demonstration Project, each Indian tribe or tribal organization shall--
            (1) request participation by resolution or other official 
        action of the governing body of the tribal organization;
            (2) demonstrate financial and management stability and 
        capability;
            (3) demonstrate significant use of or dependency upon the 
        relevant conservation system unit or other public land unit for 
        which programs, functions, services, and activities are 
        requested to be placed under contract;
            (4) where the Secretary receives a request to contract 
        specific conservation system unit programs, services, 
        functions, and activities, or portions thereof, from more than 
        1 Indian tribe or tribal organization meeting the criteria set 
        forth in paragraphs (1) through (3), the Secretary shall apply 
        the priority selection criteria applied by the Juneau Area 
        Bureau of Indian Affairs for contracting pursuant to the Indian 
        Self-Determination and Education Assistance Act. If, after 
        applying such criteria, there remains more than one eligible 
        participant and such participants have overlapping requests to 
        negotiate and contract for the same programs, services, 
        functions, and activities, or portions thereof, the Secretary 
        may require such Indian tribes or organizations to agree which 
        entity shall have the ability to contract, or to submit a joint 
        request prior to entering into negotiations.
    (c) Contracts.--
            (1) In general.--Upon request, the Secretary shall 
        negotiate and enter into a contract with each participating 
        Indian tribe or tribal organization to plan, conduct and 
        administer requested programs, services, functions and 
        activities, or portions thereof, related to the administration 
        of a conservation system unit or other public land unit that is 
        substantially located within the geographic region of the 
        respective Indian tribe or tribal organization.
            (2) Technical support.--Contracts authorized by this Act 
        shall include, at the request of the Indian tribe or tribal 
        organization, the operation and support of the regional 
advisory councils, biological research, harvest monitoring, and other 
technical research related to conservation and allocation actions by 
the regional councils, and such other programs, functions, services, 
and activities reasonably necessary to carry out title VIII of the 
Alaska National Interests Lands Conservation Act.
            (3) Time limitation for negotiation of contracts.--Not 
        later than 90 days after selection by the Secretary of 
        participating Indian tribes or tribal organizations, the 
        Secretary shall initiate and conclude negotiations, unless an 
        alternative negotiation and implementation schedule is 
        otherwise mutually agreed to by the parties. The declination 
        and appeals provisions of the Indian Self-Determination and 
        Education Assistance Act, including section 110 of such Act, 
        shall apply to contracts and agreements requested and 
        negotiated under this Act.
    (d) Contract Administration.--
            (1) Inclusion of certain terms.--At the request of the 
        contracting Indian tribe or tribal organization, the benefits, 
        privileges, terms, and conditions of agreements entered into 
        pursuant to titles I and IV of the Indian Self-Determination 
        and Education Assistance Act shall be available for inclusion 
        in a contract entered into under this Act. If any provisions of 
        the Indian Self-Determination and Education Assistance Act are 
        incorporated they shall have the same force and effect as if 
        set out in full in this Act and shall apply notwithstanding any 
        other provision of law. The parties may include such other 
        terms and conditions as are mutually agreed to and not 
        otherwise contrary to law.
            (2) Audit.--Contracts entered into under this Act shall 
        provide for a single-agency audit report to be filed as 
        required by chapter 75 of title 31, United States Code.
            (3) Transfer of employees.--Any career Federal employee 
        employed at the time of the transfer of an operation or program 
        to an Indian tribe or tribal organization shall not be 
        separated from Federal service by such transfer. 
        Intergovernmental Personnel Actions may be used to transfer 
        supervision of such employees to the contracting Indian tribe 
        or tribal organization. Such transferred employees shall be 
        given priority placement for any available position within 
        their respective agency, notwithstanding any priority 
        reemployment lists, directives, rules, regulations or other 
        orders from the Department of the Interior, the Office of 
        Management and Budget, or other Federal agencies.
    (e) Available Funding; Payment.--Under the terms of a contract 
negotiated pursuant to subsection (a), the Secretary shall provide each 
Indian tribe or tribal organization funds in an amount not less than 
the Secretary would have otherwise provided for the operation of the 
requested programs, services, functions, and activities. Contracts 
entered into under this Act shall provide for advance payments to the 
tribal organizations in the form of annual or semiannual installments.
    (f) Timing.--Indian tribes and tribal organizations selected to 
participate shall be entitled to begin implementation of any requested 
contracts no later than the first fiscal year following the year in 
which the Indian tribe or tribal organization is selected for 
participation, unless the Indian tribe or tribal organization and the 
Secretary, by mutual agreement, shall agree to an alternate 
implementation schedule.
    (g) Report.--Not later than 90 days after the close of fiscal years 
2000 and 2001 and the end of this Demonstration Project, the Secretary 
shall present to the Congress detailed reports, including a narrative, 
findings, and conclusions on the costs and benefits of the 
Demonstration Project. The reports shall identify remaining 
institutional and legal barriers to the contracting of conservation 
system unit management to Alaska Native entities and shall contain 
suggestions for improving, continuing, and expanding the Demonstration 
Project. The reports shall be authored jointly with, and shall include 
the separate views of, all participating Alaska Native tribes and 
tribal organizations.
    (h) Limitations.--
            (1) Revenue producing visitor services.--Contracts 
        authorized under this Act shall not include revenue producing 
        visitor services unless an agreement is reached with the most 
        directly affected Alaskan Native corporations to allow such 
        services to be included in the contract. Such contracts shall 
        not otherwise repeal, alter, or otherwise modify the any other 
        existing provision of sections 1307 and 1308 of the Alaska 
        National Interests Lands Conservation Act.
            (2) Denali national park.--The Denali National Park shall 
        not be subject to any of the provisions of this Act.
    (i) Grants.--
            (1) In general.--Upon application, the Secretary shall 
        award a planning grant in the amount of $100,000 to any 
        participating Alaska Native tribe or tribal organization to 
plan for the contracting of programs, functions, services, and 
activities authorized under this Act.
            (2) Authorization of appropriations.--There is authorized 
        to be appropriated $600,000 in each of the 2 fiscal years 
        immediately following the date of the enactment of this Act to 
        fund planning grants authorized under this subsection.

SEC. 5. ANILCA SECTION 1307 AND 1308 IMPLEMENTATION PROGRESS REPORT.

    (a) Report Required.--Not later than 6 months after the date of the 
enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall transmit to the Committee on 
Energy and Natural Resources of the United States Senate and the 
Committee on Resources of the United States House of Representatives a 
report detailing the progress that the Department of the Interior has 
made in the implementation of the provisions of sections 1307 and 1308 
of the Alaska National Interests Lands Conservation Act. The report 
shall--
            (1) include a detailed action plan on the future 
        implementation of the provisions of sections 1307 and 1308 of 
        that Act;
            (2) describe in detail the measures and actions that will 
        be taken to implement such sections, along with a description 
        of the anticipated results to be achieved during the 3 fiscal 
        years following the submission of the report;
            (3) address any laws, rules, regulations, and policies 
        which limit or deter the goal of Alaska Native hiring or 
        contracting to perform and conduct activities and programs of 
        Department agencies and bureaus other than those currently 
        available through the Bureau of Indian Affairs.
    (b) Funding.--The report required under subsection (a) shall be 
completed within existing appropriations.

SEC. 6. DEFINITIONS.--

    For the purposes of this Act:
            (1) Conservation system unit.--The term ``conservation 
        system unit'' shall have the meaning given that term in section 
        102(4) of the Alaska National Interest Lands Conservation Act.
            (2) Indian tribe.--The term ``Indian tribe'' shall have the 
        meaning given that term in subsection 4(e) of the Indian Self-
        Determination and Education Assistance Act.
            (3) Secretary.--The term ``Secretary'' means the Secretary 
        of the Interior.
            (4) Tribal organization.--The term ``tribal organization'' 
        shall have the meaning given that term in subsection 4(l) of 
        the Indian Self-Determination and Education Assistance Act.