19–006 

112TH CONGRESS REPORT " ! HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 1st Session 112–299 

MONTANA MINERAL CONVEYANCE ACT 

DECEMBER 1, 2011.—Committed to the Committee of the Whole House on the State 

of the Union and ordered to be printed 

Mr. HASTINGS of Washington, from the Committee on Natural 

Resources, submitted the following 

R E P O R T 

together with 

ADDITIONAL VIEWS 

[To accompany H.R. 1158] 

[Including cost estimate of the Congressional Budget Office] 

The Committee on Natural Resources, to whom was referred the 

bill (H.R. 1158) to authorize the conveyance of mineral rights by 

the Secretary of the Interior in the State of Montana, and for other 

purposes, having considered the same, report favorably thereon 

with an amendment and recommend that the bill as amended do 

pass. 

The amendment is as follows: 

Strike all after the enacting clause and insert the following: 

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Montana Mineral Conveyance Act’’. 

SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 

Congress finds that— 

(1) under section 503(a)(2) of the Department of the Interior and Related 

Agencies Appropriations Act, 1998 (Public Law 105–83; 111 Stat. 1617), the 

Secretary of the Interior has conveyed mineral rights in certain very large 

tracts of coal to the State of Montana, the tracts of which lie as near as 3 or 

4 miles east of the Northern Cheyenne Indian Reservation; 

(2) development of the coal tracts and other existing and proposed major developments of Federal, State, and private energy resources in areas surrounding 

the Northern Cheyenne Indian Reservation yield substantial public revenues to 

the State (including political subdivisions of the State), thereby assisting the 

State (including political subdivisions of the State) in addressing the impacts of 

the development; 


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(3) although the Northern Cheyenne tribal community chronically suffers 

harsh economic conditions and severe deficits in public services and facilities, 

the community does not share in any significant portion of the public revenues 

generated by surrounding energy development; 

(4) the Northern Cheyenne Tribe has few, if any, sources of revenue available 

to address development impacts; 

(5) in 2002, the Tribe brought suit against the Secretary, asserting that the 

proposed conveyances of the extensive Federal coal tracts to the State under the 

Department of the Interior and Related Agencies Appropriations Act, 1998 

(Public Law 105–83; 111 Stat. 1543) would violate— 

(A) several Federal laws (including regulations); and 

(B) the Federal trust responsibility to the Tribe; 

(6) subsequently, the Tribe withdrew the suit described in paragraph (5) with 

prejudice, based in substantial part on commitments that legislation substantially in the form of this Act (and further legislation providing funding to the 

Tribe to address the impacts of coal development in areas adjoining the Reservation) would be introduced and pursued with support from the State, Great 

Northern Properties, and others; 

(7) the Tribe asserts that the Tribe retains claims against the United States 

arising from the failure of the United States to acquire mineral rights underlying approximately 5,000 acres of Reservation land when the Reservation, at 

the direction of Congress, was expanded eastward to the Tongue River in 1900, 

the mineral rights of which, as of the date of enactment of this Act, are owned 

by Great Northern Properties; and 

(8) if the conveyances of mineral rights are carried out under this Act, the 

Tribe will waive all legal claims against the United States arising from the 

longstanding and continuing loss of the Tribe of mineral rights relating to the 

Reservation land. 

SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS. 

In this Act: 

(1) CHEYENNE TRACTS.—The term ‘‘Cheyenne tracts’’ means the aggregate 

tract of land that— 

(A) is located in the eastern portion of the State within the boundaries 

of the Reservation; 

(B) comprises approximately 5,000 acres; 

(C) is generally depicted on the map entitled ‘‘Cheyenne Coal Land Conveyance’’ and dated April 7, 2010; and 

(D) is comprised of land located in— 

(i) T. 2 S., R. 44 E., sec. 17; 

(ii) T. 2 S., R. 44 E., sec. 19, E1⁄2 and E1⁄2W1⁄2, Lots 1–4; 

(iii) T. 3 S., R. 44 E., sec. 5, S1⁄2 and S1⁄2N1⁄2, Lots 1–4; 

(iv) T. 3 S., R. 44 E., sec. 7, E 1⁄2 and E1⁄2W1⁄2, Lots 1–4; 

(v) T. 3 S., R. 44 E., sec. 9, N1⁄2, SW1⁄4, and W1⁄2SE1⁄4, Lots 2–4; 

(vi) T. 3 S., R. 44 E., sec. 17; 

(vii) T. 3 S., R. 44 E., sec. 19, E1⁄2 and E1⁄2W1⁄2, Lots 1–4; and 

(viii) T. 3 S., R. 44 E., sec. 21, N1⁄2, SW1⁄4, and SW1⁄4 SE1⁄4, Lots 1 

and 2. 

(2) FEDERAL TRACTS.—The term ‘‘Federal tracts’’ means the unleased tracts 

of land that— 

(A) are located in the State; 

(B) are located outside of the boundaries of the Reservation; 

(C) consist of approximately 5,000 acres; 

(D) are generally depicted on the map entitled ‘‘Federal Coal Land Conveyance’’ and dated March 18, 2011; and 

(E) are comprised of land located in— 

(i) T. 3 S., R. 44 E., sec. 26, S1⁄2; 

(ii) T. 3 S., R. 44 E., sec. 34; 

(iii) T. 3 S., R. 45 E., sec. 30, E1⁄2SW1⁄4 and SE1⁄4, Lots 1–4; 

(iv) T. 4 S., R. 44 E., sec. 2, S1⁄2N1⁄2 and S1⁄2, Lots 1–4; 

(v) T. 6 N., R. 27 E., sec. 4, S1⁄2N1⁄2 and S1⁄2, Lots 1–4; 

(vi) T. 6 N., R. 27 E., sec. 8; 

(vii) T. 6 N., R. 27 E., sec. 10; 

(viii) T. 6 N., R. 27 E., sec. 14; and 

(ix) T. 6 N., R. 27 E., sec. 22. 

(3) GREAT NORTHERN PROPERTIES.—The term ‘‘Great Northern Properties’’ 

means— 

(A) the Great Northern Properties Limited Partnership, which is a Delaware limited partnership; and 


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(B) any successor to the ownership interest of Great Northern Properties 

in any coal or iron that underlies the Cheyenne tracts. 

(4) RESERVATION.—The term ‘‘Reservation’’ means the Northern Cheyenne 

Reservation. 

(5) SECRETARY.—The term ‘‘Secretary’’ means the Secretary of the Interior. 

(6) STATE.—The term ‘‘State’’ means the State of Montana. 

(7) TRIBE.—The term ‘‘Tribe’’ means the Northern Cheyenne Tribe. 

SEC. 4. MINERAL RIGHTS CONVEYANCES. 

(a) IN GENERAL.—Notwithstanding any other Federal law (including regulations) 

that otherwise applies to the conveyance of any Federal coal right, title, or interest, 

if Great Northern Properties conveys to the Tribe all mineral interests of Great 

Northern Properties underlying the Cheyenne tracts in accordance with this Act, 

the Secretary shall convey to Great Northern Properties all right, title, and interest 

of the United States in and to the coal underlying the Federal tracts. 

(b) IMMUNITIES.—The mineral interests underlying the Cheyenne tracts conveyed 

to the Tribe under subsection (a) shall not be subject to taxation by the State (including any political subdivision of the State). 

SEC. 5. TERMS AND CONDITIONS OF MINERAL CONVEYANCES. 

(a) WAIVER OF LEGAL CLAIMS.—In return for the mineral conveyances under section 4(a), the Tribe shall waive any and all claims arising from the continuing failure of the United States to acquire in trust for the Tribe as part of the Reservation 

the mineral rights underlying approximately 5,000 acres of Reservation land (the 

Cheyenne Tracts) as directed by Congress in 1900. 

(b) CONDITION.—As a condition of the mineral conveyances by the Secretary under 

section 4(a), the Tribe and Great Northern Properties shall jointly notify the Secretary in writing that the Tribe and Great Northern Properties have agreed on a 

formula for the sharing of revenue from coal produced from any portion of the Federal tracts. 

(c) COMPLETION OF MINERAL CONVEYANCES.—Notwithstanding any other Federal 

law (including regulations) that otherwise applies to the conveyance of any Federal 

coal right, title, or interest, after satisfaction of the condition described in subsection 

(b) and not later than 90 days after the date on which the Secretary receives written 

notification under subsection (b), the mineral conveyances under section 4(a) shall 

be completed in a single transaction. 

(d) RESCISSION OF MINERAL CONVEYANCES.— 

(1) IN GENERAL.—If any portion of the mineral conveyances under section 4(a) 

is invalidated by a Federal district court, and the judgment of the Federal district court is not vacated or reversed on appeal, the Secretary or Great Northern 

Properties may rescind completely each mineral conveyance under section 4(a). 

(2) EFFECT.—If the Secretary or Great Northern Properties carries out a rescission under paragraph (1), the waiver of the Tribe under subsection (a) shall 

be considered to be rescinded. 

SEC. 6. ELIGIBILITY FOR OTHER FEDERAL BENEFITS. 

No benefits provided to the Tribe under this Act shall result in the reduction or 

denial of any Federal services, benefits, or programs to the Tribe or to any member 

of the Tribe to which the Tribe or member is entitled or eligible because of— 

(1) the status of the Tribe as a federally recognized Indian tribe; or 

(2) the status of the member as a member of the Tribe. 

PURPOSE OF THE BILL

The purpose of H.R. 1158, as ordered reported, is to authorize 

the conveyance of mineral rights by the Secretary of the Interior 

in the State of Montana. 

BACKGROUND AND NEED FOR LEGISLATION

In 1900, President William McKinley and Congress expanded the 

Northern Cheyenne Reservation, located in the State of Montana. 

At the time, the federal government purchased the eight sections 

of land from the Northern Pacific Railway Company within the 

Northern Cheyenne Reservation extension area, but failed to also 

buy the railway company’s underlying subsurface rights. Those 

eight tracts of subsurface land (5,120 acres) are now owned by 

Great Northern Properties (GNP) and are the only subsurface 


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tracts not held in trust for the Tribe by the United States. Securing 

into tribal ownership those eight sections of land has been a priority of the Northern Cheyenne Tribe for decades, and H.R. 1158 

would finally accomplish that goal. 

If enacted, this bill would fulfill an obligation by the U. S. Government to correct an error that has gone on for 111 years. The enactment would consolidate the ownership of mineral estate on the 

Northern Cheyenne Reservation, allowing the Tribe to control the 

development of its resources at its discretion. 

H.R. 1158 would provide for a land exchange; in return the 

Northern Cheyenne Reservation would waive its legal claims relating to the failure of the United States to acquire subsurface mineral rights on the Tribe’s reservation for the Tribe. Under the exchange, the Secretary of the Interior would transfer to GNP the 

subsurface ownership rights to eight sections of federal coal tracts. 

These federal coal tracts are located several miles from the Northern Cheyenne Tribe. GNP would transfer to the Northern Cheyenne Tribe ownership of the eight sections of surface rights that 

GNP owns on the Tribe’s Reservation. 

In addition to the transferring of the lands, the bill would require 

the Northern Cheyenne Tribe to waive each legal claim relating to 

the failure of the United States to acquire in trust for the Tribe the 

private mineral interests underlying the Cheyenne Reservation. 

Additionally, GNP and the Tribe would jointly notify the Secretary 

of the Interior when they agree on a revenue sharing formula from 

the coal produced from the federal tracts. As it currently stands, 

the Tribe would receive 40% interest in GNP’s royalties. 

COMMITTEE ACTION

H.R. 1158 was introduced on March 17, 2011, by Congressman 

Denny Rehberg (R–MT). The bill was referred to the Committee on 

Natural Resources, and within the Committee to the Subcommittees on Indian and Alaska Native Affairs, and Energy and Mineral 

Resources. On June 22, 2011, the Subcommittee on Indian and 

Alaska Native Affairs held a hearing on the bill. On July 20, 2011, 

the Full Resources Committee met to consider the bill. The Subcommittees on Indian and Alaska Native Affairs, and Energy and 

Mineral Resources were discharged by unanimous consent. Congressman Don Young (R–AK) offered an amendment; the amendment was adopted by unanimous consent. The bill, as amended, 

was ordered favorably reported to the House of Representatives by 

unanimous consent. 

COMMITTEE OVERSIGHT FINDINGS AND RECOMMENDATIONS

Regarding clause 2(b)(1) of rule X and clause 3(c)(1) of rule XIII 

of the Rules of the House of Representatives, the Committee on 

Natural Resources’ oversight findings and recommendations are reflected in the body of this report. 

COMPLIANCE WITH HOUSE RULE XIII

1. Cost of Legislation. Clause 3(d)(1) of rule XIII of the Rules of 

the House of Representatives requires an estimate and a comparison by the Committee of the costs which would be incurred in carrying out this bill. However, clause 3(d)(2)(B) of that rule provides 


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that this requirement does not apply when the Committee has included in its report a timely submitted cost estimate of the bill prepared by the Director of the Congressional Budget Office under section 402 of the Congressional Budget Act of 1974. Under clause 

3(c)(3) of rule XIII of the Rules of the House of Representatives and 

section 403 of the Congressional Budget Act of 1974, the Committee has received the following cost estimate for this bill from the 

Director of the Congressional Budget Office: 

H.R. 1158—Montana Mineral Conveyance Act 

Summary: H.R. 1158 would require the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) to convey 5,000 acres of land containing coal deposits 

to Great Northern Properties, a private company, if the company 

conveys certain mineral rights to the Northern Cheyenne Tribe. 

The land conveyances would not be finalized unless the tribe 

waived all claims related to the failure of the United States to acquire certain mineral rights underlying reservation land. 

Based on information provided by BLM, the tribe, and firms operating in the coal industry, CBO estimates that implementing the 

legislation would reduce net offsetting receipts (thus increasing direct spending) by $17 million over the 2012–2021 period; therefore, 

pay-as-you-go procedures apply. Enacting the bill would not affect 

revenues and would have no significant impact on discretionary 

spending. 

H.R. 1158 contains no intergovernmental or private-sector mandates as defined in the Unfunded Mandates Reform Act (UMRA) 

and would impose no costs on state, local, or tribal governments. 

Estimated cost to the Federal Government: The estimated budgetary impact of H.R. 1158 is shown in the following table. The costs 

of this legislation fall within budget function 300 (natural resources 

and environment). 

By fiscal year, in millions of dollars— 

2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021 2011– 

2016 

2011– 

2021 

CHANGES IN DIRECT SPENDING 

Forgone Receipts from Bonus Bids: 

Estimated Budget Authority ............. 1 3 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 4 4 

Estimated Outlays ............................ 1 3 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 4 4 

Forgone Receipts from Royalties: 

Estimated Budget Authority ............. 0 0 0 1 2 3 3 4 1 0 3 13 

Estimated Outlays ............................ 0 0 0 1 2 3 3 4 1 0 3 13 

Total Changes: 

Estimated Budget Authority .... 1 3 0 1 2 3 3 4 1 0 7 17 

Estimated Outlays ................... 1 3 0 1 2 3 3 4 1 0 7 17 

Note: Components may not sum to totals because of rounding. 

Basis of estimate: For this estimate, CBO assumes that the legislation will be enacted near the end of fiscal year 2011. 

H.R. 1158 would authorize BLM to convey eight tracts of federal 

land totaling 5,000 acres and containing coal deposits to Great 

Northern Properties. Five of those tracts are located in the Bull 

Mountains area, and three of those tracts are located in the Bridge 

Creek area. Based on information from BLM and the coal industry, 

CBO estimates that conveying those tracts would reduce gross offsetting receipts by $33 million over the 2012–2021 period because 

those properties would have otherwise been leased to the highest 


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bidder for coal production. Because the federal government distributes 50 percent of receipts from coal mining activities to the state 

where those activities occur, we estimate that enacting the bill 

would reduce net offsetting receipts by $17 million over the 2012– 

2021 period. 

Bull Mountains tracts 

In April 2011, BLM issued a decision to lease the five tracts of 

federal land in the Bull Mountains area that would be conveyed to 

Great Northern Properties under the bill. Based on information 

from the agency, CBO expects that, under current law, BLM will 

conduct the lease sale early in fiscal year 2012 and that the company awarded the tracts will pay the full bonus bid within two 

years. We also expect that production—from underground mining— 

and receipts from associated royalty payments will begin within 

three years of the lease sale based on information from firms operating in the coal industry. 

Forgone Receipts from Bonus Bids. Based on information from 

BLM and firms operating in the coal industry, CBO estimates that 

the Bull Mountains tracts contain about 35 million tons of recoverable coal. Under current law, we estimate that gross bonus bid payments for leasing those tracts will total about $7 million (between 

10 and 30 cents per ton). The bonus bid will probably be paid in 

two installments, an initial payment of 20 percent of the total 

amount and a subsequent payment of the remaining 80 percent of 

that amount. Because half of the total bonus bid receipts will be 

paid to Montana, the net amount of offsetting receipts deposited in 

the Treasury from the bonus bid will total roughly $4 million over 

the 2012–2013 period under current law. 

Forgone Receipts from Royalties. Based on information from 

firms operating in the coal industry, CBO expects that coal production from the Bull Mountains tracts will begin in 2015 and total 

about 14 million tons over the 2015–2021 period. Estimated annual 

production and royalty receipts (equal to 8 percent of the annual 

production) vary from year-to-year because the federal tracts are 

not contiguous and production will alternate between federal lands 

and private lands over that period. In total, CBO estimates that 

gross royalty receipts from coal production within the Bull Mountains tracts will total about $26 million over the 2015–2021 period 

under current law. Of that amount, $13 million will be paid to 

Montana and $13 million will be deposited in the Treasury as offsetting receipts. 

Bridge Creek tracts 

H.R. 1158 would direct BLM to convey three tracts of federal 

land in the Bridge Creek area of Montana to Great Northern Properties. Based on information from BLM and firms operating in the 

coal industry, CBO expects that, under current law, those tracts 

would not be leased within the next 10 years and would not generate any receipts for the federal government over that period. 

Thus, we estimate that conveying the Bridge Creek tracts to Great 

Northern Properties would not affect direct spending over the 

2012–2021 period. 


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Waiver of claims 

The Northern Cheyenne Tribe asserts claims against the federal 

government because the government did not acquire mineral rights 

on lands that were added to the reservation in 1900. Under the 

bill, the tribe would waive those claims. Because the tribe has not 

filed a lawsuit related to those claims, CBO expects that any litigation related to the claims would not be completed or settled within 

the next 10 years. Therefore, we estimate that the waiver of those 

claims would not affect direct spending during the next decade. 

Pay-as-you-go considerations: The Statutory Pay-As-You-Go Act 

of 2010 establishes budget-reporting and enforcement procedures 

for legislation affecting direct spending or revenues. H.R. 1158 

would reduce the amount of offsetting receipts that would be deposited in the Treasury from certain coal leases and related royalty 

payments; therefore, pay-as-you-go procedures apply. The net 

changes in outlays that are subject to those pay-as-you-go procedures are shown in the following table. 

CBO ESTIMATE OF PAY-AS-YOU GO EFFECTS FOR H.R. 1158, THE MONTANA MINERAL CONVEYANCE ACT, AS ORDERED REPORTED BY THE HOUSE COMMITTEE ON NATURAL RESOURCES ON 

JULY 20, 2011 

By fiscal year, in millions of dollars— 

2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021 2011– 

2016 

2011– 

2021 

NET INCREASE OR DECREASE (-) IN THE DEFICIT 

Statutory Pay-As-You-Go Impact .. 0 1 3 0 1 2 3 3 4 1 0 7 17 

Intergovernmental and private-sector impact: H.R. 1158 contains 

no intergovernmental or private-sector mandates as defined in 

UMRA and would impose no costs on state, local, or tribal governments. 

Estimate prepared by: Federal costs: Jeff LaFave; Impact on 

state, local, and tribal governments: Melissa Merrell; Impact on the 

private sector: Amy Petz. 

Estimate approved by: Theresa Gullo, Deputy Assistant Director 

for Budget Analysis. 

2. Section 308(a) of Congressional Budget Act. As required by 

clause 3(c)(2) of rule XIII of the Rules of the House of Representatives and section 308(a) of the Congressional Budget Act of 1974, 

this bill does not contain any new budget authority, credit authority, or an increase or decrease in revenues or tax expenditures. 

Based on information provided by the Bureau of Land Management, the tribe, and firms operating in the coal industry, CBO estimates that implementing the legislation would reduce net offsetting receipts (thus increasing direct spending) by $17 million over 

the 2012–2021 period; therefore, pay-as-you-go procedures apply. 

Enacting the bill would not affect revenues and would have no significant impact on discretionary spending. 

3. General Performance Goals and Objectives. As required by 

clause 3(c)(4) of rule XIII, the general performance goal or objective 

of this bill, as ordered reported, is to authorize the conveyance of 

mineral rights by the Secretary of the Interior in the State of Montana. 


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EARMARK STATEMENT

This bill does not contain any Congressional earmarks, limited 

tax benefits, or limited tariff benefits as defined under clause 9(e), 

9(f), and 9(g) of rule XXI of the Rules of the House of Representatives. 

COMPLIANCE WITH PUBLIC LAW 104–4

This bill contains no unfunded mandates. 

PREEMPTION OF STATE, LOCAL OR TRIBAL LAW

This bill is not intended to preempt any State, local or tribal law. 

CHANGES IN EXISTING LAW

If enacted, this bill would make no changes in existing law. 


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1 The bill would also authorize a revenue sharing agreement between GNP and the Tribe 

under which GNP will pay the Tribe a percentage of the revenues it receives from the development of coal located on the federal tracts. It is anticipated that the federal tracts will produce 

revenue for the Tribe in the near and long term. 

ADDITIONAL VIEWS OF HON. EDWARD J. MARKEY 

H.R. 1158 would restore complete ownership to the Northern 

Cheyenne Tribe of the surface and subsurface mineral estate within its Reservation borders. The Tribe was deprived of such ownership due to federal error for over 100 years. The bill as written 

would address this error by affecting a three way trade of mineral 

rights between the Tribe, the United States and Great Northern 

Properties, a privately held corporation. 

While we support the aim of this legislation and the proposed 

trade as a means of achieving that aim, we have noteworthy concerns relating to key provisions of the bill. Majority and Minority 

Committee staffs continue to seek common ground on the following 

issues: 

Waiver of Liability. H.R. 1158 requires the Northern Cheyenne 

Tribe to waive legal claims related to the failure of the United 

States to acquire in trust for the Tribe the subsurface mineral estate on specific tracts located on the reservation. The Administration testified at a hearing on the bill that this waiver should be in 

the text of the bill. The Administration also recommended that 

Great Northern Properties (GNP) waive its potential claims against 

the U.S. 

Language in Section 4(a) and 5(c) of the bill. H.R. 1158 requires 

the conveyance be carried out ‘‘notwithstanding any other federal 

law (including regulations).’’ The Administration is concerned that 

the language is overly broad and as a result could affect a waiver 

of the National Environment Protection Act (NEPA). 

Language that requires the conveyance to be carried out within 

90 days. The bill requires the three way trade between the parties 

to be completed within 90 days of the Secretary receiving a revenue-sharing agreement between GNP and the Tribe.1 The Administration is concerned not only that 90 days is not enough time to 

conduct its own internal processes, such as tribal consultation on 

sacred sites, but also that such a time period is too restrictive in 

light of pending litigation involving Signal Peak Energy, the current operators of an underground mine adjacent to one of the GNPselected areas of federal land called Bull Mountains. Signal Peak 

Energy initiated a ‘‘lease by application’’ (LBA) process for the Bull 

Mountains area, which opened it up to competitive bidding from 

other entities. However, the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) 

has not awarded the lease to any entity as the LBA process is 

being challenged in federal court by various environmental groups. 

The bill would remove the possibility of any other entity from receiving a coal lease as a result of the LBA process because it would 


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require conveyance of the Bull Mountains coal estate directly to 

GNP. 

Accordingly, the Administration is concerned that the bill would 

not only thwart pending litigation but also provide an unfair advantage to Signal Peak Energy since it has already worked out an 

agreement with GNP for lease of the Bull Mountains area to continue its current underground mining operations. 

Potential Budgetary Impacts. Testimony received from the Administration indicated that there could be pending coal leases on 

some of the tracts involved. Transferring those parcels out of federal ownership could have budgetary impacts. Another concern is 

that such a conveyance would prevent the government from receiving a ‘‘bonus payment’’ per its regulations governing the LBA process. 

Lack of appraisal language. The bill does not require an appraisal of the GNP-selected federal lands and simply affects an 

acre-for-acre exchange of federal land for the Reservation tracts. 

The Administration estimated that the federal coal rights that the 

bill would require BLM convey to GNP may contain, based on preliminary estimates, ‘‘nearly twice as much coal’’ as the subsurface 

tracts on the Tribe’s Reservation. As a result, BLM is concerned 

that the bill favors GNP over tribal interests. Moreover, for a subsurface mineral estate exchange, the Administration also noted 

that appraisals are a matter of course so any bill that would bypass 

this requirement would set a negative precedent. 

EDWARD J. MARKEY. 

Æ 


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