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S. HRG. 108–61

TRIBAL ENERGY SELF-SUFFICIENCY ACT AND THE

NATIVE AMERICAN ENERGY DEVELOPMENT

AND SELF-DETERMINATION ACT

HEARING

BEFORE THE

COMMITTEE ON INDIAN AFFAIRS

UNITED STATES SENATE

ONE HUNDRED EIGHTH CONGRESS

FIRST SESSION

ON

S. 424

TO ESTABLISH, REAUTHORIZE, AND IMPROVE ENERGY PROGRAMS

RELATING TO INDIAN TRIBES

AND

S. 522

TO AMEND THE ENERGY POLICY ACT OF 1992 TO ASSIST INDIAN

TRIBES IN DEVELOPING ENERGY RESOURCES

MARCH 19, 2003

WASHINGTON, DC

(
COMMITTEE ON INDIAN AFFAIRS

BEN NIGHTHORSE CAMPBELL, Colorado, Chairman

DANIEL K. INOUYE, Hawaii, Vice Chairman

JOHN McCAIN, Arizona,

PETE V. DOMENICI, New Mexico

CRAIG THOMAS, Wyoming

ORRIN G. HATCH, Utah

JAMES M. INHOFE, Oklahoma

GORDON SMITH, Oregon

LISA MURKOWSKI, Alaska

KENT CONRAD, North Dakota

HARRY REID, Nevada

DANIEL K. AKAKA, Hawaii

BYRON L. DORGAN, North Dakota

TIM JOHNSON, South Dakota

MARIA CANTWELL, Washington

PAUL MOOREHEAD, Majority Staff Director/Chief Counsel

PATRICIA M. ZELL, Minority Staff Director/Chief Counsel

(II)
(III)

C O N T E N T S

Page

S. 424 and S. 522 text of ......................................................................................... 2

Statements:

Bailey, Vicky, assistant secretary for Policy and Intertribal Affairs, Department of Energy, Washington, DC ......................................................... 73

Bingaman, Hon. Jeff, U.S. Senator from New Mexico .................................. 75

Campbell, Hon. Ben Nighthorse, U.S. Senator from Colorado, chairman,

Committee on Indian Affairs ....................................................................... 1

Gough, Bob, secretary, Intertribal Council on Utility Policy [COUP] Rosebud, SD .......................................................................................................... 89

Hill, Vernon, chairman, Eastern Shoshone, Business Council, Fort

Washakie, WY ............................................................................................... 82

Inouye, Hon. Daniel K., U.S. Senator from Hawaii, vice chairman, Committee on Indian Affairs ............................................................................... 70

Lester, David, executive director, Council for Energy Resource Tribes

[CERT], Denver, CO ..................................................................................... 87

Maynes, Frank E., tribal attorney, on behalf of, the Southern Ute Indian

tribal chairman, Howard D. Richards, Sr., Durango, CO .......................... 84

Rosier, Theresa, counselor to the Assistant Secretary for Indian Affairs,

Department of the Interior, Washington, DC ............................................. 70

Roubidoux, Victor, board member, Council of Energy Resource Tribes ....... 89

Thomas, Hon. Craig Thomas, U.S. Senator from Wyoming ......................... 76

Trujillo, Arvin, Director, Navajo Natural Resources ..................................... 80

APPENDIX

Prepared statements:

Adamson, Rebecca L. ........................................................................................ 139

Affiliated Tribes of Northwest Indians (with attachments) .......................... 141

Bailey, Vicky ..................................................................................................... 95

Buccino, Sharon, senior attorney, Natural Resources Defense Council ....... 150

Gough, Bob (with attachments) ....................................................................... 130

Hill, Vernon ....................................................................................................... 114

Lester, David ..................................................................................................... 124

Richards, Sr., Howard D., chairman, Southern Ute Indian Tribal Council

(with attachments) ........................................................................................ 153

Rosier, Theresa ................................................................................................. 93

Roubidoux, Victor ............................................................................................. 127

Shimek, Robert ................................................................................................. 170

Thomas, Hon. Craig, U.S. Senator from Wyoming ........................................ 93

Shirley, Joe, president, Navajo Nation (with attachments) .......................... 98

Additional material submitted for the record:

Richardson, Bill, Governor, New Mexico (letter) ........................................... 171

(1)

INDIAN ENERGY LEGISLATION, S. 434, THE

TRIBAL ENERGY SELF-SUFFICIENCY ACT,

AND S. 522, THE NATIVE AMERICAN ENERGY

DEVELOPMENT AND SELF-DETERMINATION

ACT OF 2003

WEDNESDAY, MARCH 19, 2003

U.S. SENATE,

COMMITTEE ON INDIAN AFFAIRS,

Washington, DC.

The Committee met, pursuant to notice, at 2:30 p.m. in room

485, Senate Russell Building, Hon. Ben Nighthorse Campbell,

(chairman of the committee) presiding.

Present: Senators Campbell, Inouye, and Thomas.

STATEMENT OF HON. BEN NIGHTHORSE CAMPBELL, U.S. SENATOR FROM COLORADO, CHAIRMAN, COMMITTEE ON INDIAN AFFAIRS

The CHAIRMAN. The Committee on Indian Affairs will be in session.

Good afternoon, and welcome to the committee’s hearing on two

Indian energy bills, S. 424 introduced on February 14 by Senator

Bingaman, and S. 522, which I introduced on March 5. Within

hours, our Nation will be embroiled in apparently a major ground

war in the Middle East and in recent weeks, world oil prices have

soared to $40 per barrel. I think America has to kick the habit on

depending on foreign energy and start producing more of its own

energy. One answer to our energy future is in the domestic production, and I just don’t mean in ANWR either. That is going to be

subject to a vote at 3 o’clock, by the way.

Indian-owned energy resources are still largely undeveloped—

1.81 million acres are being explored or in production, but about 15

million more acres of energy resources are undeveloped. I believe

the chart out front here shows a little bit more of what I am trying

to describe.

There are 90 tribes that own significant energy resources, both

renewable and nonrenewable. Many of them want to develop those

resources. Today we will hear from the Bush administration and

tribal witnesses. I certainly welcome all committee members.

[Text of S. 424 and S. 522 follow:]
2

1

II

108TH CONGRESS

1ST SESSION S. 424

To establish, reauthorize, and improve energy programs relating to Indian

tribes.

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

FEBRUARY 14, 2003

Mr. BINGAMAN (for himself, Mr. INOUYE, Mr. CAMPBELL, and Mr. DASCHLE)

introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the

Committee on Indian Affairs

A BILL

To establish, reauthorize, and improve energy programs

relating to Indian tribes.

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE; TABLE OF CONTENTS.

4 (a) SHORT TITLE.—This Act may be cited as the

5 ‘‘Tribal Energy Self-Sufficiency Act’’.

6 (b) TABLE OF CONTENTS.—The table of contents of

7 this Act is as follows:

Sec. 1. Short title; table of contents.

Sec. 2. Definition of Secretary.

TITLE I—INDIAN ENERGY

Sec. 101. Comprehensive Indian energy program.
3

2

•S 424 IS

Sec. 102. Office of Indian Energy Policy and Programs.

Sec. 103. Siting of energy facilities on tribal land.

Sec. 104. Indian mineral development review.

Sec. 105. Renewable energy study.

Sec. 106. Federal power marketing administrations.

Sec. 107. Feasibility study for combined wind and hydropower demonstration

project.

Sec. 108. Transmission line demonstration project.

TITLE II—RENEWABLE ENERGY AND RURAL CONSTRUCTION

GRANTS

Sec. 201. Renewable energy production incentive.

TITLE III—ENERGY EFFICIENCY AND ASSISTANCE TO LOWINCOME CONSUMERS

Sec. 301. Low-income community energy efficiency pilot program.

Sec. 302. Rural and remote community electrification grants.

1 SEC. 2. DEFINITION OF SECRETARY.

2 In this Act, the term ‘‘Secretary’’ means the Sec3 retary of Energy.

4 TITLE I—INDIAN ENERGY

5 SEC. 101. COMPREHENSIVE INDIAN ENERGY PROGRAM.

6 Title XXVI of the Energy Policy Act of 1992 (25

7 U.S.C. 3501 et seq.) is amended by adding after section

8 2606 the following:

9 ‘‘SEC. 2607. COMPREHENSIVE INDIAN ENERGY PROGRAM.

10 ‘‘(a) DEFINITIONS.—In this section:

11 ‘‘(1) DIRECTOR.—The term ‘Director’ means

12 the Director of the Office of Indian Energy Policy

13 and Programs of the Department of Energy.

14 ‘‘(2) INDIAN LAND.—The term ‘Indian land’

15 means—

16 ‘‘(A) any land within the limits of an In17 dian reservation, pueblo, or rancheria;
4

3

•S 424 IS

1 ‘‘(B) any land not within the limits of an

2 Indian reservation, pueblo, or rancheria, title to

3 which is held—

4 ‘‘(i) in trust by the United States for

5 the benefit of an Indian tribe;

6 ‘‘(ii) by an Indian tribe subject to re7 striction by the United States against

8 alienation; or

9 ‘‘(iii) by a dependent Indian commu10 nity; and

11 ‘‘(C) land conveyed to an Alaska Native

12 corporation under the Alaska Native Claims

13 Settlement Act (43 U.S.C. 1601 et seq.).

14 ‘‘(b) INDIAN ENERGY EDUCATION PLANNING AND

15 MANAGEMENT ASSISTANCE.—

16 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Director shall establish

17 programs within the Office of Indian Energy Policy

18 and Programs to assist Indian tribes in meeting en19 ergy education, research and development, planning,

20 and management needs.

21 ‘‘(2) GRANTS.—In carrying out this section, the

22 Director may provide grants, on a competitive basis,

23 to an Indian tribe for use in carrying out—
5

4

•S 424 IS

1 ‘‘(A) renewable energy, nonrenewable en2 ergy, energy efficiency, and energy conservation

3 programs;

4 ‘‘(B) studies and other activities support5 ing tribal acquisition of energy supplies, serv6 ices, and facilities;

7 ‘‘(C) planning, construction, development,

8 operation, maintenance, and improvement of

9 tribal electrical generation, transmission, and

10 distribution facilities located on Indian land;

11 and

12 ‘‘(D) development, construction, and inter13 connection of electric power transmission facili14 ties located on Indian land with other electric

15 transmission facilities.

16 ‘‘(3) FORMULA.—

17 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The Director may de18 velop, in consultation with Indian tribes, a for19 mula for providing grants under this section.

20 ‘‘(B) CONSIDERATIONS.—In developing a

21 formula under subparagraph (A), the Director

22 may take into account—

23 ‘‘(i) the number of acres of Indian

24 land owned by an Indian tribe;
6

5

•S 424 IS

1 ‘‘(ii) the number of households on the

2 Indian land of an Indian tribe;

3 ‘‘(iii) the number of households on the

4 Indian land of an Indian tribe that have no

5 electric service or are underserved; and

6 ‘‘(iv) financial or other assets avail7 able to the Indian tribe from any source.

8 ‘‘(4) PRIORITY.—In providing a grant under

9 this subsection, the Director shall give priority to an

10 application received from an Indian tribe with inad11 equate electric service (as determined by the Direc12 tor).

13 ‘‘(5) REGULATIONS.—The Secretary may pro14 mulgate such regulations as the Secretary deter15 mines are necessary to carry out this subsection.

16 ‘‘(6) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—

17 There is authorized to be appropriated to the Sec18 retary to carry out this section $20,000,000 for each

19 of fiscal years 2003 through 2010.

20 ‘‘(c) LOAN GUARANTEE PROGRAM.—

21 ‘‘(1) AUTHORITY.—Subject to paragraph (3),

22 the Secretary may provide loan guarantees (as de23 fined in section 502 of the Federal Credit Reform

24 Act of 1990 (2 U.S.C. 661a) for not more than 90
7

6

•S 424 IS

1 percent of the unpaid principal and interest due on

2 any loan made to any Indian tribe for—

3 ‘‘(A) energy development (including the

4 planning, development, construction, and main5 tenance of electrical generation plants); and

6 ‘‘(B) for transmission and delivery mecha7 nisms for electricity produced on Indian land.

8 ‘‘(2) LENDERS.—A loan guaranteed under this

9 subsection shall be made by—

10 ‘‘(A) a financial institution subject to ex11 amination by the Secretary; or

12 ‘‘(B) an Indian tribe, from funds of the In13 dian tribe.

14 ‘‘(3) LIMITATION ON AMOUNT.—The aggregate

15 outstanding amount guaranteed by the Secretary of

16 Energy at any time under this subsection shall not

17 exceed $2,000,000,000.

18 ‘‘(4) REGULATIONS.—The Secretary may pro19 mulgate such regulations as the Secretary deter20 mines are necessary to carry out this subsection.

21 ‘‘(5) FUNDING.—

22 ‘‘(A) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIA23 TIONS.—There are authorized to be appro24 priated such sums as are necessary to carry out

25 this subsection.
8

7

•S 424 IS

1 ‘‘(B) AVAILABILITY.—Funds made avail2 able under subparagraph (A) shall remain avail3 able until expended.

4 ‘‘(d) INDIAN ENERGY PREFERENCE.—

5 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—A Federal agency or de6 partment may give, in the purchase of electricity, oil,

7 gas, coal, or any other energy product or byproduct,

8 preference in the purchase to an energy and re9 source production enterprise, partnership, corpora10 tion, or other type of business organization the ma11 jority of the interest in which is owned and con12 trolled by an Indian tribe.

13 ‘‘(2) PRICE OF PRODUCTS.—In carrying out

14 this subsection, a Federal agency or department

15 shall—

16 ‘‘(A) pay not more than the prevailing

17 market price for an energy product or byprod18 uct; and

19 ‘‘(B) shall obtain not less than existing

20 market terms and conditions.’’.

21 SEC. 102. OFFICE OF INDIAN ENERGY POLICY AND PRO22 GRAMS.

23 (a) IN GENERAL.—Title II of the Department of En24 ergy Organization Act (7 U.S.C. 7131 et seq.) is amended

25 by adding at the end the following:
9

8

•S 424 IS

1 ‘‘SEC. 217. OFFICE OF INDIAN ENERGY POLICY AND PRO2 GRAMS.

3 ‘‘(a) ESTABLISHMENT.—

4 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—There is established within

5 the Department an Office of Indian Energy Policy

6 and Programs (referred to in this section as the ‘Of7 fice’).

8 ‘‘(2) DIRECTOR.—The Office shall be headed by

9 a Director, who shall be—

10 ‘‘(A) appointed by the Secretary; and

11 ‘‘(B) compensated at a rate equal to that

12 of level IV of the Executive Schedule under sec13 tion 5315 of title 5, United States Code.

14 ‘‘(b) DUTIES OF DIRECTOR.—The Director shall—

15 ‘‘(1) in accordance with Federal policies for the

16 promotion of tribal sovereignty and self-determina17 tion, provide, direct, foster, coordinate, and imple18 ment energy planning, education, management, con19 servation, and delivery programs of the Department

20 that—

21 ‘‘(A) promote tribal energy efficiency and

22 use;

23 ‘‘(B) modernize and develop, for the bene24 fit of Indian tribes, tribal energy and economic

25 infrastructure relating to natural resource de26 velopment and electrification;
10

9

•S 424 IS

1 ‘‘(C) lower or stabilize energy costs; and

2 ‘‘(D) electrify tribal land and the homes of

3 tribal members; and

4 ‘‘(2) carry out the duties assigned to the Sec5 retary or the Director under title XXVI of the En6 ergy Policy Act of 1992 (25 U.S.C. 3501 et seq.).’’.

7 (b) CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.—

8 (1) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—

9 Section 2603 of the Energy Policy Act of 1992 (25

10 U.S.C. 3503) is amended by striking subsection (c)

11 and inserting the following:

12 ‘‘(c) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There

13 is authorized to be appropriated to the Secretary to carry

14 out this section $10,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2003

15 through 2010.’’.

16 (2) TABLE OF CONTENTS.—The table of con17 tents of the Department of Energy Organization Act

18 (42 U.S.C. prec. 7101) is amended—

19 (A) in the item relating to section 209, by

20 striking ‘‘Section’’ and inserting ‘‘Sec.’’; and

21 (B) by striking the items relating to sec22 tions 213 through 216 and inserting the follow23 ing:

‘‘Sec. 213. Establishment of policy for National Nuclear Security Administration.

‘‘Sec. 214. Establishment of security, counterintelligence, and intelligence policies.

‘‘Sec. 215. Office of Counterintelligence.
11

10

•S 424 IS

‘‘Sec. 216. Office of Intelligence.

‘‘Sec. 217. Office of Indian Energy Policy and Programs.’’.

1 (3) EXECUTIVE SCHEDULE.—Section 5315 of

2 title 5, United States Code, is amended by inserting

3 ‘‘Director, Office of Indian Energy Policy and Pro4 grams, Department of Energy.’’ after ‘‘Inspector

5 General, Department of Energy.’’.

6 SEC. 103. SITING OF ENERGY FACILITIES ON TRIBAL LAND.

7 (a) DEFINITIONS.—In this section:

8 (1) INDIAN TRIBE.—

9 (A) IN GENERAL.—The term ‘‘Indian

10 tribe’’ means any Indian tribe, band, nation, or

11 other organized group or community that is rec12 ognized as being eligible for the special pro13 grams and services provided by the United

14 States to Indians because of their status as In15 dians.

16 (B) EXCLUSIONS.—The term ‘‘Indian

17 tribe’’ does not include any Regional Corpora18 tion or Native Corporation (as those terms are

19 defined in section 3 of the Alaska Native

20 Claims Settlement Act (43 U.S.C. 1602)).

21 (2) INTERESTED PARTY.—The term ‘‘interested

22 party’’ means a State or other person the interests

23 of which could be adversely affected by a decision of
12

11

•S 424 IS

1 an Indian tribe to grant a lease or right-of-way in

2 accordance with this section.

3 (3) PETITION.—The term ‘‘petition’’ means a

4 written request submitted to the Secretary for the

5 review of an action (including inaction) of an Indian

6 tribe that is claimed to be in violation of tribal regu7 lations approved under subsection (f).

8 (4) RESERVATION.—The term ‘‘reservation’’

9 means—

10 (A) with respect to a reservation in a State

11 other than the State of Oklahoma, all land that

12 has been set aside or that has been acknowl13 edged as having been set aside by the United

14 States for the use of an Indian tribe, the exte15 rior boundaries of which are more particularly

16 defined in a final tribal treaty, agreement, exec17 utive order, Federal statute, secretarial order,

18 or judicial determination; and

19 (B) with respect to a reservation in the

20 State of Oklahoma, all land that is—

21 (i) within the jurisdictional area of an

22 Indian tribe; and

23 (ii) within the boundaries of the last

24 reservation of the Indian tribe that was es-
13

12

•S 424 IS

1 tablished by treaty, executive order, or sec2 retarial order.

3 (5) SECRETARY.—The term ‘Secretary’ means

4 the Secretary of the Interior.

5 (6) TRIBAL LAND.—The term ‘tribal land’

6 means any—

7 (A) tribal trust land; or

8 (B) other land owned by an Indian tribe

9 that is located within the reservation of the In10 dian tribe.

11 (b) LEASES INVOLVING ELECTRIC GENERATION,

12 TRANSMISSION, DISTRIBUTION, OR PROCESSING FACILI13 TIES.—

14 (1) IN GENERAL.—An Indian tribe may grant

15 a lease of tribal land for—

16 (A) an electric generation, transmission, or

17 distribution facility; or

18 (B) a facility to refine or otherwise process

19 renewable or nonrenewable energy resources de20 veloped on tribal land.

21 (2) APPROVAL NOT REQUIRED.—A lease de22 scribed in paragraph (1) shall not require the ap23 proval of the Secretary if—
14

13

•S 424 IS

1 (A) the lease is executed under tribal regu2 lations approved by the Secretary under this

3 subsection; and

4 (B) the term of the lease does not exceed

5 30 years.

6 (c) RIGHTS-OF-WAY FOR ELECTRIC GENERATION,

7 TRANSMISSION, DISTRIBUTION, OR PROCESSING FACILI8 TIES.—An Indian tribe may grant a right-of-way over trib9 al land for a pipeline or an electric transmission or dis10 tribution line without separate approval by the Secretary

11 if—

12 (1) the right-of-way is executed under and com13 plies with tribal regulations approved by the Sec14 retary;

15 (2) the term of the right-of-way does not exceed

16 30 years; and

17 (3) the pipeline or electric transmission or dis18 tribution line serves—

19 (A) an electric generation, transmission or

20 distribution facility located on tribal land; or

21 (B) a facility located on tribal land that re22 fines or otherwise processes renewable or non23 renewable energy resources developed on tribal

24 land.
15

14

•S 424 IS

1 (d) VALIDITY OF LEASES AND RIGHTS-OF-WAY.—No

2 lease or right-of-way granted under this section shall be

3 valid unless authorized in compliance with applicable tribal

4 regulations approved under subsection (f).

5 (e) RENEWALS.—Leases or rights-of-way entered

6 into under this section may be renewed at the discretion

7 of the Indian tribe making the grant of the lease or right8 of-way in accordance with this section.

9 (f) TRIBAL REGULATION REQUIREMENTS.—

10 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall approve

11 or disapprove tribal regulations required under this

12 subsection.

13 (2) CONDITIONS FOR APPROVAL.—The Sec14 retary shall approve tribal regulations described in

15 paragraph (1) if the Secretary determines that the

16 regulations—

17 (A) are comprehensive in nature;

18 (B) include provisions that address—

19 (i) securing necessary information

20 from the lessee or right-of-way applicant;

21 (ii) the term of any conveyance;

22 (iii) amendments and renewals;

23 (iv) consideration for a lease or right24 of-way;
16

15

•S 424 IS

1 (v) technical or other relevant require2 ments;

3 (vi) requirements for environmental

4 review as described in paragraph (3);

5 (vii) requirements for complying with

6 all applicable environmental laws;

7 (viii) the identification of final ap8 proval authority; and

9 (ix) the provision of public notification

10 of final approvals; and

11 (C) establish a process for consultation

12 with any affected States concerning potential

13 off-reservation impacts associated with a lease

14 or right-of-way proposed to be granted.

15 (3) ENVIRONMENTAL REVIEW PROCESS.—An

16 Indian tribe shall establish an environmental review

17 process that includes—

18 (A) an identification and evaluation of all

19 significant environmental impacts of the pro20 posed action as compared to a no action alter21 native;

22 (B) identification of proposed mitigation;

23 (C) a process for ensuring that the public

24 is informed of and has an opportunity to com-
17

16

•S 424 IS

1 ment on the proposed action prior to tribal ap2 proval of the lease or right-of-way; and

3 (D) sufficient administrative support and

4 technical capability to carry out the environ5 mental review process.

6 (4) PERIOD FOR APPROVAL OR DISAPPROVAL.—

7 (A) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 270

8 days after the date of submission by an Indian

9 tribe to the Secretary of tribal regulations

10 under this subsection, the Secretary—

11 (i) may provide notice and an oppor12 tunity for public comment on the regula13 tions; and

14 (ii) shall approve or disapprove the

15 regulations.

16 (B) FORM OF DISAPPROVAL.—Any dis17 approval by the Secretary of tribal regulations

18 described in subparagraph (A) shall be accom19 panied by—

20 (i) written documentation that de21 scribes the basis for the disapproval; and

22 (ii) a description of changes or other

23 actions required to address concerns of the

24 Secretary.
18

17

•S 424 IS

1 (C) EXTENSION.—The Secretary may ex2 tend the deadline specified in subparagraph (A)

3 for an Indian tribe after consultation with the

4 Indian tribe.

5 (5) DUTIES OF INDIAN TRIBE.—If an Indian

6 tribe executes a lease or right-of-way in accordance

7 with tribal regulations required under this sub8 section, the Indian tribe shall provide to the

9 Secretary—

10 (A) a copy of the lease or right-of-way doc11 ument (including all amendments and renewals

12 to the lease or document); and

13 (B) in the case of tribal regulations or a

14 lease or right-of-way that permits payment to

15 be made directly to the Indian tribe, docu16 mentation of the payments sufficient to enable

17 the Secretary to discharge the trust responsibil18 ity of the United States as appropriate under

19 applicable law.

20 (6) NO LIABILITY FOR LOSSES.—The United

21 States shall not be liable for any loss sustained by

22 any party (including any Indian tribe or member of

23 an Indian tribe) to a lease executed in accordance

24 with tribal regulations under this subsection.

25 (7) VIOLATIONS.—
19

18

•S 424 IS

1 (A) PETITIONS.—

2 (i) IN GENERAL.—An interested party

3 may, after exhaustion of tribal remedies,

4 submit to the Secretary, in a timely man5 ner, a petition for the review of compliance

6 of an Indian tribe with any tribal regula7 tions approved under this subsection.

8 (ii) DEADLINE FOR CONDUCT OF RE9 VIEW.—The Secretary shall conduct any

10 such review under clause (i) as the Sec11 retary determines to be necessary not later

12 than 90 days after the date of receipt of

13 a petition described in clause (i).

14 (B) DETERMINATION OF VIOLATION.—If,

15 on completion of a review of tribal regulations

16 under subparagraph (A), the Secretary deter17 mines that the regulations were violated, the

18 Secretary may take such action as the Sec19 retary determines to be necessary to remedy the

20 violation, including—

21 (i) rescinding or holding any applica22 ble lease or right-of-way in abeyance until

23 the violation is cured; and

24 (ii)(I) rescinding the approval of the

25 tribal regulations; and
20

19

•S 424 IS

1 (II) reassuming responsibility for ap2 proval of leases or rights-of-way associated

3 with the facilities covered by those leases

4 or rights-of-way.

5 (C) ACTIONS OF SECRETARY.—If the Sec6 retary seeks to remedy a violation described in

7 subparagraph (A), the Secretary shall—

8 (i) make a written determination with

9 respect to the regulations that have been

10 violated;

11 (ii) provide to the applicable Indian

12 tribe a written notice of the violation and

13 a copy of the written determination de14 scribed in clause (i); and

15 (iii) prior to the exercise of any rem16 edy or the rescission of the approval of the

17 regulations involved and reassumption of

18 responsibility for approval of any lease or

19 right-of-way, provide for the Indian tribe a

20 hearing and a reasonable opportunity to

21 cure the alleged violation.

22 (D) APPEAL.—An Indian tribe that is de23 termined by the Secretary under this paragraph

24 to have violated tribal regulations under this

25 subsection shall retain all rights to appeal as
21

20

•S 424 IS

1 provided by regulations promulgated by the

2 Secretary.

3 (g) AGREEMENTS.—

4 (1) IN GENERAL.—An agreement between an

5 Indian tribe and a business entity that is directly as6 sociated with the development of an electric genera7 tion, transmission, or distribution facility, or a facil8 ity to refine or otherwise process renewable or non9 renewable energy resources developed on tribal land,

10 shall not require the separate approval of the Sec11 retary in accordance with section 2103 of the Re12 vised Statutes (25 U.S.C. 81) if the activity that is

13 the subject of the agreement has been the subject of

14 an environmental review process under subsection

15 (f)(3).

16 (2) NO LIABILITY FOR LOSS.—The United

17 States shall not be liable for any loss sustained by

18 any party (including any Indian tribe or member of

19 an Indian tribe) associated with an agreement en20 tered into under this subsection.

21 (h) NO EFFECT ON OTHER LAW.—Nothing in this

22 section modifies or otherwise affects the applicability of

23 any provision of—
22

21

•S 424 IS

1 (1) the Act of May 11, 1938 (commonly known

2 as the ‘‘Indian Mineral Leasing Act of 1938’’) (25

3 U.S.C. 396a et seq.);

4 (2) the Indian Mineral Development Act of

5 1982 (25 U.S.C. 2101 et seq.);

6 (3) the Surface Mining Control and Reclama7 tion Act of 1977 (30 U.S.C. 1201 et seq.); or

8 (4) any environmental law of the United States.

9 SEC. 104. INDIAN MINERAL DEVELOPMENT REVIEW.

10 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary of the Interior shall

11 conduct a review of the activities that, as of the date of

12 enactment of this Act, have been carried out by govern13 ments of Indian tribes under the Indian Mineral Develop14 ment Act of 1982 (25 U.S.C. 2101 et seq.).

15 (b) REPORT.—Not later than 1 year after the date

16 of enactment of this Act, the Secretary of the Interior

17 shall submit to the Committee on Indian Affairs and the

18 Committee on Energy and Natural Resources of the Sen19 ate and the Committee on Resources of the House of Rep20 resentatives a report that describes—

21 (1) the results of the review;

22 (2) recommendations to ensure that Indian

23 tribes have the opportunity to develop nonrenewable

24 energy resources; and
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1 (3) an analysis of the barriers to the develop2 ment of energy resources on Indian land, including

3 Federal policies and regulations and recommenda4 tions regarding the removal of those barriers.

5 (c) CONSULTATION.—In developing the report and

6 recommendations under this section, the Secretary of the

7 Interior shall consult with Indian tribes on a government8 to-government basis.

9 SEC. 105. RENEWABLE ENERGY STUDY.

10 (a) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 2 years after the

11 date of enactment of this Act, and once every 2 years

12 thereafter, the Secretary shall submit to the Committee

13 on Energy and Natural Resources and the Committee on

14 Indian Affairs of the Senate and the Committee on Energy

15 and Commerce and the Committee on Resources of the

16 House of Representatives a report that—

17 (1) describes energy consumption and renew18 able energy development potential on Indian land;

19 (2) identifies barriers to the development of re20 newable energy by Indian tribes, including Federal

21 policies and regulations; and

22 (3) makes recommendations regarding the re23 moval of those barriers.

24 (b) CONSULTATION.—In developing the report and

25 recommendations under this section, the Secretary shall
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23

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1 consult with Indian tribes on a government-to-government

2 basis.

3 SEC. 106. FEDERAL POWER MARKETING ADMINISTRA4 TIONS.

5 Title XXVI of the Energy Policy Act of 1992 (25

6 U.S.C. 3501 et seq.) (as amended by section 101) is

7 amended by adding at the end the following:

8 ‘‘SEC. 2608. FEDERAL POWER MARKETING ADMINISTRA9 TIONS.

10 ‘‘(a) DEFINITIONS.—In this section:

11 ‘‘(1) ADMINISTRATOR.—The term ‘Adminis12 trator’ means—

13 ‘‘(A) the Administrator of the Bonneville

14 Power Administration; and

15 ‘‘(B) the Administrator of the Western

16 Area Power Administration.

17 ‘‘(2) POWER MARKETING ADMINISTRATION.—

18 The term ‘power marketing administration’ means—

19 ‘‘(A) the Bonneville Power Administration;

20 ‘‘(B) the Western Area Power Administra21 tion; and

22 ‘‘(C) any other power administration the

23 power allocation of which is used by or for the

24 benefit of an Indian tribe located in the service

25 area of the administration.
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24

•S 424 IS

1 ‘‘(b) ENCOURAGEMENT OF INDIAN TRIBAL ENERGY

2 DEVELOPMENT.—Each Administrator shall encourage In3 dian tribal energy development by taking such actions as

4 are appropriate, including administration of programs of

5 the Bonneville Power Administration and the Western

6 Area Power Administration, in accordance with this sec7 tion.

8 ‘‘(c) ACTION BY THE ADMINISTRATOR.—In carrying

9 out this section—

10 ‘‘(1) each Administrator shall consider the

11 unique relationship that exists between the Federal

12 Government and Indian tribes;

13 ‘‘(2) power allocations from the Western Area

14 Power Administration to Indian tribes may be used

15 to firm Indian-owned renewable energy projects for

16 delivery of loads located on Indian land; and

17 ‘‘(3) the Administrator of the Western Area

18 Power Administration may purchase renewable or

19 nonrenewable power from Indian tribes to meet the

20 firming requirements of the Western Area Power

21 Administration.

22 ‘‘(d) ASSISTANCE FOR TRANSMISSION SYSTEM

23 USE.—

24 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—An Administrator may pro25 vide technical assistance to Indian tribes seeking to
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25

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1 use the high-voltage transmission system for delivery

2 of electric power.

3 ‘‘(2) COSTS.—The costs of technical assistance

4 provided under paragraph (1) shall be funded—

5 ‘‘(A) by the Administrator using non6 reimbursable funds appropriated for that pur7 pose; or

8 ‘‘(B) by the applicable Indian tribes.

9 ‘‘(3) PRIORITY FOR ASSISTANCE FOR TRANS10 MISSION STUDIES.—In providing discretionary as11 sistance to Indian tribes under paragraph (1), each

12 Administrator shall give priority in funding to In13 dian tribes that have limited financial capability to

14 acquire that assistance.

15 ‘‘(e) POWER ALLOCATION STUDY.—

16 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 2 years

17 after the date of enactment of this section, the Sec18 retary of Energy shall submit to the Committee on

19 Energy and Natural Resources and the Committee

20 on Indian Affairs of the Senate and the Committee

21 on Energy and Commerce and the Committee on

22 Resources of the House of Representatives a report

23 that—

24 ‘‘(A) describes the use by Indian tribes of

25 Federal power allocations of the Western Area
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26

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1 Power Administration (or power sold by the

2 Southwestern Power Administration) and the

3 Bonneville Power Administration to or for the

4 benefit of Indian tribes in service areas of those

5 administrations; and

6 ‘‘(B) identifies—

7 ‘‘(i) the quantity of power allocated to

8 Indian tribes by the Western Area Power

9 Administration;

10 ‘‘(ii) the quantity of power sold to In11 dian tribes by other power marketing ad12 ministrations; and

13 ‘‘(iii) barriers that impede tribal ac14 cess to and use of Federal power, including

15 an assessment of opportunities—

16 ‘‘(I) to remove those barriers;

17 and

18 ‘‘(II) improve the ability of power

19 marketing administrations to facilitate

20 the use of Federal power by Indian

21 tribes.

22 ‘‘(2) CONSULTATION.—In developing the report

23 under paragraph (1), each power marketing admin24 istration shall consult with Indian tribes on a gov25 ernment-to-government basis.
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27

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1 ‘‘(f) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There

2 is authorized to be appropriated to the Secretary of En3 ergy to carry out this section $750,000 for each of fiscal

4 years 2003 through 2013.’’.

5 SEC. 107. FEASIBILITY STUDY FOR COMBINED WIND AND

6 HYDROPOWER DEMONSTRATION PROJECT.

7 (a) STUDY.—The Secretary, in coordination with the

8 Secretary of the Army and the Secretary of the Interior,

9 shall conduct a study of the cost and feasibility of develop10 ing a demonstration project that would use wind energy

11 generated by Indian tribes and hydropower generated by

12 the Army Corps of Engineers on the Missouri River to

13 supply firming power to the Western Area Power Adminis14 tration.

15 (b) SCOPE OF STUDY.—The study shall—

16 (1) determine the feasibility of the blending of

17 wind energy and hydropower generated from the

18 Missouri River dams operated by the Army Corps of

19 Engineers;

20 (2) review historical purchase requirements and

21 projected purchase requirements for firming and the

22 patterns of availability and use of firming energy;

23 (3) assess the wind energy resource potential on

24 tribal land and projected cost savings through a

25 blend of wind and hydropower over a 30-year period;
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28

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1 (4) include a preliminary interconnection study

2 and a determination of resource adequacy of the

3 Upper Great Plains Region of the Western Area

4 Power Administration;

5 (5) determine seasonal capacity needs and asso6 ciated transmission upgrades for integration of tribal

7 wind generation; and

8 (6) include an independent tribal engineer as a

9 study team member.

10 (c) REPORT.—Not later than 1 year after the date

11 of enactment of this Act, the Secretary and Secretary of

12 the Army shall submit to Congress a report that describes

13 the results of the study, including—

14 (1) an analysis of the potential energy cost sav15 ings to the customers of the Western Area Power

16 Administration through the blend of wind and hy17 dropower;

18 (2) an evaluation of whether a combined wind

19 and hydropower system can reduce reservoir fluctua20 tion, enhance efficient and reliable energy produc21 tion, and provide Missouri River management flexi22 bility;

23 (3) recommendations for a demonstration

24 project that could be carried out by the Western

25 Area Power Administration in partnership with an
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29

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1 Indian tribal government or tribal government en2 ergy consortium to demonstrate the feasibility and

3 potential of using wind energy produced on Indian

4 land to supply firming energy to the Western Area

5 Power Administration or any other Federal power

6 marketing agency; and

7 (4) an identification of—

8 (A) the economic and environmental bene9 fits to be realized through such a Federal-tribal

10 partnership; and

11 (B) the manner in which such a partner12 ship could contribute to the energy security of

13 the United States.

14 (d) CONSULTATION.—In developing the report and

15 recommendations under this section, the Secretary and the

16 Secretary of the Army shall consult with applicable Indian

17 tribes on a government-to-government basis.

18 (e) FUNDING.—

19 (1) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—

20 There is authorized to be appropriated to carry out

21 this section $500,000, to remain available until ex22 pended.

23 (2) NONREIMBURSABILITY OF COSTS.—All

24 costs incurred by the Western Area Power Adminis-
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30

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1 tration in carrying out this section shall be non2 reimbursable.

3 SEC. 108. TRANSMISSION LINE DEMONSTRATION PROJECT.

4 The Dine Power Authority, an enterprise of the Nav5 ajo Nation, shall be eligible to receive grants and other

6 assistance under the demonstration program authorized

7 by section 2603 of the Energy Policy Act of 1992 (25

8 U.S.C. 3503) for activities associated with the develop9 ment of a transmission line from the Four Corners Area

10 to southern Nevada, including related power generation

11 opportunities.

12 TITLE II—RENEWABLE ENERGY

13 AND RURAL CONSTRUCTION

14 GRANTS

15 SEC. 201. RENEWABLE ENERGY PRODUCTION INCENTIVE.

16 (a) INCENTIVE PAYMENTS.—Section 1212(a) of the

17 Energy Policy Act of 1992 (42 U.S.C. 13317(a)) is

18 amended in the third and fourth sentences by striking

19 ‘‘payment and which satisfies’’ and all that follows

20 through ‘‘Secretary shall establish.’’ and inserting the fol21 lowing: ‘‘payment. The Secretary shall establish other pro22 cedures necessary for efficient administration of the pro23 gram. The Secretary shall not establish any criteria or

24 procedures that have the effect of assigning to proposals

25 a higher or lower priority for eligibility or allocation of
32

31

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1 appropriated funds on the basis of the energy source pro2 posed.’’.

3 (b) QUALIFIED RENEWABLE ENERGY FACILITY.—

4 Section 1212(b) of the Energy Policy Act of 1992 (42

5 U.S.C. 13317(b)) is amended—

6 (1) by striking ‘‘a State or any political’’ and

7 all that follows through ‘‘nonprofit electrical cooper8 ative’’ and inserting the following: ‘‘a nonprofit elec9 trical cooperative, a public utility, a State, territory,

10 or possession of the United States, the District of

11 Columbia (or a political subdivision of a State, terri12 tory, or possession or the District of Columbia), or

13 an Indian tribal government (or subdivision of an

14 Indian tribal government),’’; and

15 (2) by inserting ‘‘landfill gas, incremental hy16 dropower, ocean’’ after ‘‘wind, biomass,’’.

17 (c) ELIGIBILITY WINDOW.—Section 1212(c) of the

18 Energy Policy Act of 1992 (42 U.S.C. 13317(c)) is

19 amended by striking ‘‘during the 10-fiscal year period be20 ginning with the first full fiscal year occurring after the

21 enactment of this section’’ and inserting ‘‘before October

22 1, 2013’’.

23 (d) PAYMENT PERIOD.—Section 1212(d) of the En24 ergy Policy Act of 1992 (42 U.S.C. 13317(d)) is amended

25 in the second sentence by inserting ‘‘or in which the Sec-
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32

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1 retary determines that all necessary Federal and State au2 thorizations have been obtained to begin construction of

3 the facility’’ after ‘‘eligible for such payments’’.

4 (e) AMOUNT OF PAYMENT.—Section 1212(e)(1) of

5 the Energy Policy Act of 1992 (42 U.S.C. 13317(e)(1))

6 is amended in the first sentence by inserting ‘‘landfill gas,

7 incremental hydropower, ocean’’ after ‘‘wind, biomass,’’.

8 (f) TERMINATION OF AUTHORITY.—Section 1212(f)

9 of the Energy Policy Act of 1992 (42 U.S.C. 13317(f))

10 is amended by striking ‘‘the expiration of’’ and all that

11 follows through ‘‘of this section’’ and inserting ‘‘Septem12 ber 30, 2023’’.

13 (g) INCREMENTAL HYDROPOWER; AUTHORIZATION

14 OF APPROPRIATIONS.—Section 1212 of the Energy Policy

15 Act of 1992 (42 U.S.C. 13317) is amended by striking

16 subsection (g) and inserting the following:

17 ‘‘(g) INCREMENTAL HYDROPOWER.—

18 ‘‘(1) DEFINITION OF INCREMENTAL HYDRO19 POWER.—In this subsection, the term ‘incremental

20 hydropower’ means additional generating capacity

21 achieved from increased efficiency or an addition of

22 new capacity at a hydroelectric facility in existence

23 on the date of enactment of this paragraph.

24 ‘‘(2) PROGRAMS.—Subject to subsection (h)(2),

25 if an incremental hydropower program meets the re-
34

33

•S 424 IS

1 quirements of this section, as determined by the Sec2 retary, the incremental hydropower program shall be

3 eligible to receive incentive payments under this sec4 tion.

5 ‘‘(h) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—

6 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Subject to paragraph (2),

7 there are authorized to be appropriated such sums

8 as are necessary to carry out this section for each

9 of fiscal years 2003 through 2023.

10 ‘‘(2) LIMITATION ON FUNDS USED FOR INCRE11 MENTAL HYDROPOWER PROGRAMS.—Not more than

12 30 percent of the amounts made available under

13 paragraph (1) shall be used to carry out programs

14 described in subsection (g)(2).

15 ‘‘(3) AVAILABILITY OF FUNDS.—Funds made

16 available under paragraph (1) shall remain available

17 until expended.’’.

18 TITLE III—ENERGY EFFICIENCY

19 AND ASSISTANCE TO LOW-IN20 COME CONSUMERS

21 SEC. 301. LOW-INCOME COMMUNITY ENERGY EFFICIENCY

22 PILOT PROGRAM.

23 (a) DEFINITION OF INDIAN TRIBE.—

24 (1) IN GENERAL.—In this section, the term

25 ‘‘Indian tribe’’ means any Indian tribe, band, nation,
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34

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1 or other organized group or community that is rec2 ognized as being eligible for the special programs

3 and services provided by the United States to Indi4 ans because of their status as Indians.

5 (2) INCLUSIONS.—In this section, the term ‘‘In6 dian tribe’’ includes an Alaskan Native village, Re7 gional Corporation, and Village Corporation (as de8 fined in or established under the Alaska Native

9 Claims Settlement Act (43 U.S.C. 1601 et seq.)).

10 (b) GRANTS TO LOCAL GOVERNMENT, NONPROFIT,

11 AND TRIBAL ENTITIES.—The Secretary may provide

12 grants to units of local government, private, nonprofit

13 community development organizations, and tribal eco14 nomic development entities for use in—

15 (1) improving energy efficiency;

16 (2) identifying and developing alternative re17 newable and distributed energy supplies; and

18 (3) increasing energy conservation in low-in19 come rural and urban communities.

20 (c) COMPETITIVE GRANTS.—In addition to grants de21 scribed in subsection (b), the Secretary may provide

22 grants on a competitive basis for—

23 (1) investments that develop alternative renew24 able and distributed energy supplies;
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35

•S 424 IS

1 (2) energy efficiency projects and energy con2 servation programs;

3 (3) studies and other activities that improve en4 ergy efficiency in low-income rural and urban com5 munities;

6 (4) planning and development assistance for in7 creasing the energy efficiency of buildings and facili8 ties; and

9 (5) technical and financial assistance to local

10 government and private entities on developing new

11 renewable and distributed sources of power or com12 bined heat and power generation.

13 (d) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There

14 are authorized to be appropriated to carry out this section

15 $20,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2003 through 2005.

16 SEC. 302. RURAL AND REMOTE COMMUNITY ELECTRIFICA17 TION GRANTS.

18 Section 313 of the Rural Electrification Act of 1936

19 (7 U.S.C. 940c) is amended by adding at the end the fol20 lowing:

21 ‘‘(c) RURAL AND REMOTE COMMUNITIES ELEC22 TRIFICATION GRANTS.—

23 ‘‘(1) DEFINITIONS.—In this subsection:

24 ‘‘(A) ELIGIBLE ENTITY.—The term ‘eligi25 ble entity’ means—
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36

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1 ‘‘(i) a unit of local government of a

2 State or Territory;

3 ‘‘(ii) an Indian tribe; and

4 ‘‘(iii) a tribal college or university.

5 ‘‘(B) INDIAN TRIBE.—

6 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—The term ‘Indian

7 tribe’ means any Indian tribe, band, na8 tion, or other organized group or commu9 nity that is recognized as being eligible for

10 the special programs and services provided

11 by the United States to Indians because of

12 their status as Indians.

13 ‘‘(ii) INCLUSIONS.—The term ‘‘Indian

14 tribe’’ includes a Alaskan Native village,

15 Regional Corporation, and Village Corpora16 tion (as defined in or established under the

17 Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act (43

18 U.S.C. 1601 et seq.)).

19 ‘‘(C) TRIBAL COLLEGE OR UNIVERSITY.—

20 The term ‘tribal college or university’ has the

21 meaning given the term in section 316(b)(3) of

22 the Higher Education Act (20 U.S.C.

23 1059c(b)(3))).

24 ‘‘(2) GRANTS.—The Secretary, in consultation

25 with the Secretary of Energy and the Secretary of
38

37

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1 the Interior, may provide to an eligible entity 1 or

2 more grants for the purpose of—

3 ‘‘(A) increasing energy efficiency;

4 ‘‘(B) siting or upgrading transmission and

5 distribution lines; or

6 ‘‘(C) providing or modernizing electric fa7 cilities.

8 ‘‘(3) GRANT CRITERIA.—The Secretary shall

9 provide grants under this subsection based on a de10 termination of the most effective and cost-efficient

11 use of the funds to achieve the purposes of this sub12 section.

13 ‘‘(4) PRIORITY.—In providing grants under this

14 subsection, the Secretary shall give priority to re15 newable energy facilities.

16 ‘‘(5) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—

17 There is authorized to be appropriated to carry out

18 this subsection $20,000,000 for each of the 7 fiscal

19 years following the fiscal year in which this sub20 section is enacted.’’.

Æ
39

1

II

108TH CONGRESS

1ST SESSION S. 522

To amend the Energy Policy Act of 1992 to assist Indian tribes in developing

energy resources, and for other purposes.

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

MARCH 5, 2003

Mr. CAMPBELL (for himself and Mr. DOMENICI) introduced the following bill;

which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Indian Affairs

A BILL

To amend the Energy Policy Act of 1992 to assist Indian

tribes in developing energy resources, and for other purposes.

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Native American En5 ergy Development and Self-Determination Act of 2003’’.

6 SEC. 2. INDIAN ENERGY.

7 (a) IN GENERAL.—Title XXVI of the Energy Policy

8 Act of 1992 (25 U.S.C. 3501 et seq.) is amended to read

9 as follows:
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2

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1 ‘‘TITLE XXVI—INDIAN ENERGY

2 ‘‘SEC. 2601. FINDINGS; PURPOSES.

3 ‘‘(a) FINDINGS.—Congress finds that—

4 ‘‘(1) the energy resources of Indians and Indian

5 tribes are among the most valuable natural re6 sources of Indians and Indian tribes;

7 ‘‘(2) there exists a special legal and political re8 lationship between the United States and Indian

9 tribes as expressed in treaties, the Constitution,

10 Federal statutes, court decisions, executive orders,

11 and course of dealing;

12 ‘‘(3) Indian land comprises approximately 5

13 percent of the land area of the United States, but

14 contains an estimated 10 percent of all energy re15 serves in the United States, including—

16 ‘‘(A) 30 percent of known coal deposits lo17 cated in the western portion of the United

18 States;

19 ‘‘(B) 5 percent of known onshore oil depos20 its of the United States; and

21 ‘‘(C) 10 percent of known onshore natural

22 gas deposits of the United States;

23 ‘‘(4) coal, oil, natural gas, and other energy

24 minerals produced from Indian land represent more
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3

•S 522 IS

1 than 10 percent of total nationwide onshore produc2 tion of energy minerals;

3 ‘‘(5) in 2000, 9,300,000 barrels of oil,

4 299,000,000,000 cubic feet of natural gas, and

5 21,400,000 tons of coal were produced from Indian

6 land, representing $700,000,000 in Indian energy

7 revenue;

8 ‘‘(6) the Department of the Interior estimates

9 that only 25 percent of the oil and less than 20 per10 cent of all natural gas reserves on Indian land have

11 been developed;

12 ‘‘(7) the Department of Energy estimates that

13 the wind resources of the Great Plains could meet

14 75 percent of the electricity demand in the contig15 uous 48 States;

16 ‘‘(8) the development of Indian energy re17 sources would assist—

18 ‘‘(A) Indian communities in carrying out

19 community development efforts; and

20 ‘‘(B) the United States in securing a

21 greater degree of independence from foreign

22 sources of energy; and

23 ‘‘(9) the United States, in accordance with Fed24 eral Indian self-determination laws and policies,
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4

•S 522 IS

1 should assist Indian tribes and individual Indians in

2 developing Indian energy resources.

3 ‘‘(b) PURPOSES.—The purposes of this title are—

4 ‘‘(1) to assist Indian tribes and individual Indi5 ans in the development of Indian energy resources;

6 and

7 ‘‘(2) to further the goal of Indian self-deter8 mination, particularly through the development of

9 stronger tribal governments and greater degrees of

10 tribal economic self-sufficiency.

11 ‘‘SEC. 2602. DEFINITIONS.

12 ‘‘In this title:

13 ‘‘(1) COMMISSION.—The term ‘Commission’

14 means the Indian Energy Resource Commission es15 tablished by section 2606(a).

16 ‘‘(2) DIRECTOR.—The term ‘Director’ means

17 the Director of the Office of Indian Energy Policy

18 and Programs.

19 ‘‘(3) INDIAN.—The term ‘Indian’ means an in20 dividual member of an Indian tribe who owns land

21 or an interest in land, the title to which land—

22 ‘‘(A) is held in trust by the United States;

23 or

24 ‘‘(B) is subject to a restriction against

25 alienation imposed by the United States.
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1 ‘‘(4) INDIAN LAND.—The term ‘Indian land’

2 means—

3 ‘‘(A) any land located within the bound4 aries of an Indian reservation, pueblo, or

5 rancheria;

6 ‘‘(B) any land not located within the

7 boundaries of an Indian reservation, pueblo, or

8 rancheria, the title to which is held—

9 ‘‘(i) in trust by the United States for

10 the benefit of an Indian tribe;

11 ‘‘(ii) by an Indian tribe, subject to re12 striction by the United States against

13 alienation; or

14 ‘‘(iii) by a dependent Indian commu15 nity; and

16 ‘‘(C) land conveyed to a Native Corpora17 tion under the Alaska Native Claims Settlement

18 Act (43 U.S.C. 1601 et seq.).

19 ‘‘(5) INDIAN RESERVATION.—The term ‘Indian

20 reservation’ includes—

21 ‘‘(A) an Indian reservation in existence as

22 of the date of enactment of this paragraph;

23 ‘‘(B) a public domain Indian allotment;

24 ‘‘(C) a former reservation in the State of

25 Oklahoma;
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6

•S 522 IS

1 ‘‘(D) a parcel of land owned by a Native

2 Corporation under the Alaska Native Claims

3 Settlement Act (43 U.S.C. 1601 et seq.); and

4 ‘‘(E) a dependent Indian community lo5 cated within the borders of the United States,

6 regardless of whether the community is

7 located—

8 ‘‘(i) on original or acquired territory

9 of the community; or

10 ‘‘(ii) within or outside the boundaries

11 of any particular State.

12 ‘‘(6) INDIAN TRIBE.—The term ‘Indian tribe’

13 has the meaning given the term in section 4 of the

14 Indian Self-Determination and Education Assistance

15 Act (25 U.S.C. 450b).

16 ‘‘(7) NATIVE CORPORATION.—The term ‘Native

17 Corporation’ has the meaning given the term in sec18 tion 3 of the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act

19 (43 U.S.C. 1602).

20 ‘‘(8) PROGRAM.—The term ‘Program’ means

21 the Indian energy resource development program es22 tablished under section 2603(a).

23 ‘‘(9) SECRETARY.—The term ‘Secretary’ means

24 the Secretary of Energy.
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1 ‘‘(10) TRIBAL CONSORTIUM.—The term ‘tribal

2 consortium’ means an organization that consists of

3 at least 3 entities, 1 of which is an Indian tribe.

4 ‘‘(11) VERTICAL INTEGRATION OF ENERGY RE5 SOURCES.—The term ‘vertical integration of energy

6 resources’ means—

7 ‘‘(A) the discovery and development of re8 newable and nonrenewable energy resources;

9 ‘‘(B) electricity transmission; and

10 ‘‘(C) any other activity that is carried out

11 to achieve the purposes of this title, as deter12 mined by the Secretary.

13 ‘‘SEC. 2603. INDIAN ENERGY RESOURCE DEVELOPMENT

14 PROGRAM.

15 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall establish

16 and implement an Indian energy resource development

17 program to assist Indian tribes and tribal consortia in

18 achieving the purposes of this title.

19 ‘‘(b) GRANTS AND LOANS.—In carrying out the Pro20 gram, the Secretary shall, at a minimum—

21 ‘‘(1) provide development grants to Indian

22 tribes and tribal consortia for use in developing or

23 obtaining the managerial and technical capacity

24 needed to develop energy resources on Indian land;
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8

•S 522 IS

1 ‘‘(2) provide grants to Indian tribes and tribal

2 consortia for use in carrying out projects to promote

3 the vertical integration of energy resources, and to

4 process, use, or develop those energy resources, on

5 Indian land; and

6 ‘‘(3) provide low-interest loans to Indian tribes

7 and tribal consortia for use in the promotion of en8 ergy resource development and vertical integration

9 or energy resources on Indian land.

10 ‘‘(c) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There

11 are authorized to be appropriated to carry out this section

12 such sums as are necessary for each of fiscal years 2004

13 through 2014.

14 ‘‘SEC. 2604. INDIAN TRIBAL RESOURCE REGULATION.

15 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary may provide to

16 Indian tribes and tribal consortia, on an annual basis,

17 grants for use in developing, administering, implementing,

18 and enforcing tribal laws (including regulations) governing

19 the development and management of energy resources on

20 Indian land.

21 ‘‘(b) USE OF FUNDS.—Funds from a grant provided

22 under this section may be used by an Indian tribe or tribal

23 consortium for—

24 ‘‘(1) the development of a tribal energy resource

25 inventory or tribal energy resource;
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9

•S 522 IS

1 ‘‘(2) the development of a feasibility study or

2 other report necessary to the development of energy

3 resources;

4 ‘‘(3) the development of tribal laws and tech5 nical infrastructure to protect the environment

6 under applicable law; or

7 ‘‘(4) the training of employees that—

8 ‘‘(A) are engaged in the development of en9 ergy resources; or

10 ‘‘(B) are responsible for protecting the en11 vironment.

12 ‘‘(c) OTHER ASSISTANCE.—To the maximum extent

13 practicable, the Secretary and the Secretary of the Interior

14 shall make available to Indian tribes and tribal consortia

15 scientific and technical data for use in the development

16 and management of energy resources on Indian land.

17 ‘‘SEC. 2605. LEASES, BUSINESS AGREEMENTS, AND RIGHTS18 OF-WAY INVOLVING ENERGY DEVELOPMENT

19 OR TRANSMISSION.

20 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—Notwithstanding any other pro21 vision of law—

22 ‘‘(1) an Indian or Indian tribe may enter into

23 a lease or business agreement for the purpose of en24 ergy development, including a lease or business

25 agreement for—
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1 ‘‘(A) exploration for, extraction of, process2 ing of, or other development of energy re3 sources; and

4 ‘‘(B) construction or operation of—

5 ‘‘(i) an electric generation, trans6 mission, or distribution facility located on

7 tribal land; or

8 ‘‘(ii) a facility to process or refine en9 ergy resources developed on tribal land;

10 and

11 ‘‘(2) a lease or business agreement described in

12 paragraph (1) shall not require the approval of the

13 Secretary if—

14 ‘‘(A) the lease or business agreement is ex15 ecuted under tribal regulations approved by the

16 Secretary under subsection (e); and

17 ‘‘(B) the term of the lease or business

18 agreement does not exceed 30 years.

19 ‘‘(b) RIGHTS-OF-WAY FOR PIPELINES OR ELECTRIC

20 TRANSMISSION OR DISTRIBUTION LINES.—An Indian

21 tribe may grant a right-of-way over the tribal land of the

22 Indian tribe for a pipeline or an electric transmission or

23 distribution line without specific approval by the Secretary

24 if—
49

11

•S 522 IS

1 ‘‘(1) the right-of-way is executed under and

2 complies with tribal regulations approved by the Sec3 retary under subsection (e);

4 ‘‘(2) the term of the right-of-way does not ex5 ceed 30 years; and

6 ‘‘(3) the pipeline or electric transmission or dis7 tribution line serves—

8 ‘‘(A) an electric generation, transmission,

9 or distribution facility located on tribal land; or

10 ‘‘(B) a facility located on tribal land that

11 processes or refines renewable or nonrenewable

12 energy resources developed on tribal land.

13 ‘‘(c) RENEWALS.—A lease or business agreement en14 tered into or a right-of-way granted by an Indian tribe

15 under this section may be renewed at the discretion of the

16 Indian tribe in accordance with this section.

17 ‘‘(d) VALIDITY.—No lease, business agreement, or

18 right-of-way under this section shall be valid unless the

19 lease, business agreement, or right-of-way is authorized in

20 accordance with tribal regulations approved by the Sec21 retary under subsection (e).

22 ‘‘(e) TRIBAL REGULATORY REQUIREMENTS.—

23 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—An Indian tribe may sub24 mit to the Secretary for approval tribal regulations
50

12

•S 522 IS

1 governing leases, business agreements, and rights-of2 way under this section.

3 ‘‘(2) APPROVAL OR DISAPPROVAL.—

4 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 120

5 days after the date on which the Secretary re6 ceives tribal regulations submitted by an Indian

7 tribe under paragraph (1) (or such later date as

8 may be agreed to by the Secretary and the In9 dian tribe), the Secretary shall approve or dis10 approve the regulations.

11 ‘‘(B) CONDITIONS FOR APPROVAL.—The

12 Secretary shall approve tribal regulations sub13 mitted under paragraph (1) only if the regula14 tions include provisions that, with respect to a

15 lease, business agreement, or right-of-way

16 under this section—

17 ‘‘(i) ensure the acquisition of nec18 essary information from the applicant for

19 the lease, business agreement, or right-of20 way;

21 ‘‘(ii) address the term of the lease or

22 business agreement or the term of convey23 ance of the right-of-way;

24 ‘‘(iii) address amendments and renew25 als;
51

13

•S 522 IS

1 ‘‘(iv) address consideration for the

2 lease, business agreement, or right-of-way;

3 ‘‘(v) address technical or other rel4 evant requirements;

5 ‘‘(vi) establish requirements for envi6 ronmental review in accordance with sub7 paragraph (C);

8 ‘‘(vii) ensure compliance with all ap9 plicable environmental laws;

10 ‘‘(viii) identify final approval author11 ity;

12 ‘‘(ix) provide for public notification of

13 final approvals; and

14 ‘‘(x) establish a process for consulta15 tion with any affected States concerning

16 potential off-reservation impacts associated

17 with the lease, business agreement, or

18 right-of-way.

19 ‘‘(C) ENVIRONMENTAL REVIEW PROC20 ESS.—Tribal regulations submitted under para21 graph (1) shall establish, and include provisions

22 to ensure compliance with, an environmental re23 view process that, with respect to a lease, busi24 ness agreement, or right-of-way under this sec25 tion, provides for—
52

14

•S 522 IS

1 ‘‘(i) the identification and evaluation

2 of all significant environmental impacts (as

3 compared with a no-action alternative);

4 ‘‘(ii) the identification of proposed

5 mitigation;

6 ‘‘(iii) a process for ensuring that the

7 public is informed of and has an oppor8 tunity to comment on any proposed lease,

9 business agreement, or right-of-way before

10 tribal approval of the lease, business agree11 ment, or right-of-way (or any amendment

12 to or renewal of a lease, business agree13 ment, or right-of-way); and

14 ‘‘(iv) sufficient administrative support

15 and technical capability to carry out the

16 environmental review process.

17 ‘‘(3) PUBLIC PARTICIPATION.—The Secretary

18 may provide notice and opportunity for public com19 ment on tribal regulations submitted under para20 graph (1).

21 ‘‘(4) DISAPPROVAL.—If the Secretary dis22 approves tribal regulations submitted by an Indian

23 tribe under paragraph (1), the Secretary shall—

24 ‘‘(A) notify the Indian tribe in writing of

25 the basis for the disapproval;
53

15

•S 522 IS

1 ‘‘(B) identify what changes or other ac2 tions are required to address the concerns of

3 the Secretary; and

4 ‘‘(C) provide the Indian tribe with an op5 portunity to revise and resubmit the regula6 tions.

7 ‘‘(5) EXECUTION OF LEASE OR BUSINESS

8 AGREEMENT OR GRANTING OF RIGHT-OF-WAY.—If

9 an Indian tribe executes a lease or business agree10 ment or grants a right-of-way in accordance with

11 tribal regulations approved under this subsection,

12 the Indian tribe shall provide to the Secretary—

13 ‘‘(A) a copy of the lease, business agree14 ment, or right-of-way document (including all

15 amendments to and renewals of the document);

16 and

17 ‘‘(B) in the case of tribal regulations or a

18 lease, business agreement, or right-of-way that

19 permits payment to be made directly to the In20 dian tribe, documentation of those payments

21 sufficient to enable the Secretary to discharge

22 the trust responsibility of the United States as

23 appropriate under applicable law.

24 ‘‘(6) LIABILITY.—The United States shall not

25 be liable for any loss or injury sustained by any
54

16

•S 522 IS

1 party (including an Indian tribe or any member of

2 an Indian tribe) to a lease, business agreement, or

3 right-of-way executed in accordance with tribal regu4 lations approved under this subsection.

5 ‘‘(7) COMPLIANCE REVIEW.—

6 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—After exhaustion of

7 tribal remedies, any person may submit to the

8 Secretary, in a timely manner, a petition to re9 view compliance of an Indian tribe with tribal

10 regulations of the Indian tribe approved under

11 this subsection.

12 ‘‘(B) ACTION BY SECRETARY.—The Sec13 retary shall—

14 ‘‘(i) not later than 60 days after the

15 date on which the Secretary receives a pe16 tition under subparagraph (A), review

17 compliance of an Indian tribe described in

18 subparagraph (A); and

19 ‘‘(ii) on completion of the review, if

20 the Secretary determines that an Indian

21 tribe is not in compliance with tribal regu22 lations approved under this subsection,

23 take such action as is necessary to compel

24 compliance, including—
55

17

•S 522 IS

1 ‘‘(I)(aa) rescinding a lease, busi2 ness agreement, or right-of-way under

3 this section; or

4 ‘‘(bb) suspending a lease, busi5 ness agreement, or right-of-way under

6 this section until an Indian tribe is in

7 compliance with tribal regulations;

8 and

9 ‘‘(II) rescinding approval of the

10 tribal regulations and reassuming the

11 responsibility for approval of leases,

12 business agreements, or rights-of-way

13 associated with an energy pipeline or

14 distribution line described in sub15 section (b).

16 ‘‘(C) COMPLIANCE.—If the Secretary seeks

17 to compel compliance of an Indian tribe with

18 tribal regulations under subparagraph (B)(ii),

19 the Secretary shall—

20 ‘‘(i) make a written determination

21 that describes the manner in which the

22 tribal regulations have been violated;

23 ‘‘(ii) provide the Indian tribe with a

24 written notice of the violation together

25 with the written determination; and
56

18

•S 522 IS

1 ‘‘(iii) before taking any action de2 scribed in subparagraph (B)(ii) or seeking

3 any other remedy, provide the Indian tribe

4 with a hearing and a reasonable oppor5 tunity to attain compliance with the tribal

6 regulations.

7 ‘‘(D) APPEAL.—An Indian tribe described

8 in subparagraph (C) shall retain all rights to

9 appeal as provided in regulations promulgated

10 by the Secretary.

11 ‘‘(f) AGREEMENTS.—

12 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Any agreement by an In13 dian tribe that relates to the development of an elec14 tric generation, transmission, or distribution facility,

15 or a facility to process or refine renewable or non16 renewable energy resources developed on tribal land,

17 shall not require the specific approval of the Sec18 retary under section 2103 of the Revised Statutes

19 (25 U.S.C. 81) if the activity that is the subject of

20 the agreement is carried out in accordance with this

21 section.

22 ‘‘(2) LIABILITY.—The United States shall not

23 be liable for any loss or injury sustained by any per24 son (including an Indian tribe or any member of an

25 Indian tribe) resulting from an action taken in per-
57

19

•S 522 IS

1 formance of an agreement entered into under this

2 subsection.

3 ‘‘(g) NO EFFECT ON OTHER LAW.—Nothing in this

4 section affects the application of any provision of—

5 ‘‘(1) the Act of May 11, 1938 (commonly

6 known as the ‘Indian Mineral Leasing Act of 1938’)

7 (25 U.S.C. 396a et seq.);

8 ‘‘(2) the Indian Mineral Development Act of

9 1982 (25 U.S.C. 2101 et seq.);

10 ‘‘(3) the Surface Mining Control and Reclama11 tion Act of 1977 (30 U.S.C. 1201 et seq.); or

12 ‘‘(4) any Federal environmental law.

13 ‘‘SEC. 2606. INDIAN ENERGY RESOURCE COMMISSION.

14 ‘‘(a) ESTABLISHMENT.—There is established a com15 mission to be known as the ‘Indian Energy Resource Com16 mission’.

17 ‘‘(b) MEMBERS.—The Commission shall consist of—

18 ‘‘(1) 8 members appointed by the Secretary of

19 Interior, based on recommendations submitted by

20 Indian tribes with developable energy resources, at

21 least 4 of whom shall be elected tribal leaders;

22 ‘‘(2) 3 members appointed by the Secretary of

23 Interior, based on recommendations submitted by

24 the Governors of States in which are located—

25 ‘‘(A) 1 or more Indian reservations; or
58

20

•S 522 IS

1 ‘‘(B) Indian land with developable energy

2 resources;

3 ‘‘(3) 2 members appointed by the Secretary of

4 Interior from among individuals in the private sector

5 with expertise in tribal and State taxation of energy

6 resources;

7 ‘‘(4) 2 members appointed by the Secretary of

8 Interior from among individuals with expertise in oil

9 and gas royalty management administration, includ10 ing auditing and accounting;

11 ‘‘(5) 2 members appointed by the Secretary of

12 Interior from among individuals in the private sector

13 with expertise in energy development;

14 ‘‘(6) 1 member appointed by the Secretary of

15 Interior, based on recommendations submitted by

16 national environmental organizations;

17 ‘‘(7) the Secretary of the Interior; and

18 ‘‘(8) the Secretary.

19 ‘‘(c) APPOINTMENTS.—Members of the Commission

20 shall be appointed not later than 120 days after the date

21 of enactment of the Native American Energy Development

22 and Self-Determination Act of 2003.

23 ‘‘(d) VACANCIES.—A vacancy in the Commission—

24 ‘‘(1) shall be filled in the same manner as the

25 original appointment was made; and
59

21

•S 522 IS

1 ‘‘(2) shall not affect the powers of the Commis2 sion.

3 ‘‘(e) CHAIRPERSON.—The members of the Commis4 sion shall elect a Chairperson from among the members

5 of the Commission.

6 ‘‘(f) QUORUM.—Eleven members of the Commission

7 shall constitute a quorum, but a lesser number may hold

8 hearings and convene meetings.

9 ‘‘(g) ORGANIZATIONAL MEETING.—Not later than 30

10 days after the date on which at least 11 members have

11 been appointed to the Commission, the Commission shall

12 hold an organizational meeting to establish the rules and

13 procedures of the Commission.

14 ‘‘(h) COMPENSATION OF MEMBERS.—

15 ‘‘(1) NON-FEDERAL EMPLOYEES.—A member

16 of the Commission who is not an officer or employee

17 of the Federal Government shall be compensated at

18 a rate equal to the daily equivalent of the annual

19 rate of basic pay prescribed for level IV of the Exec20 utive Schedule under section 5315 of title 5, United

21 States Code, for each day (including travel time)

22 during which the member is engaged in the perform23 ance of the duties of the Commission.

24 ‘‘(2) FEDERAL EMPLOYEES.—A member of the

25 Commission who is an officer or employee of the
60

22

•S 522 IS

1 Federal Government shall serve without compensa2 tion in addition to the compensation received for the

3 services of the member as an officer or employee of

4 the Federal Government.

5 ‘‘(i) TRAVEL EXPENSES.—A member of the Commis6 sion shall be allowed travel expenses, including per diem

7 in lieu of subsistence, at rates authorized for an employee

8 of an agency under subchapter I of chapter 57 of title

9 5, United States Code, while away from the home or regu10 lar place of business of the member in the performance

11 of the duties of the Commission.

12 ‘‘(j) STAFF.—

13 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Chairperson of the

14 Commission may, without regard to the civil service

15 laws (including regulations), appoint and terminate

16 an executive director and such other additional per17 sonnel as are necessary to enable the Commission to

18 perform the duties of the Commission.

19 ‘‘(2) CONFIRMATION OF EXECUTIVE DIREC20 TOR.—The employment of an executive director shall

21 be subject to confirmation by the Commission.

22 ‘‘(3) COMPENSATION.—

23 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in

24 subparagraph (B), the Chairperson of the Com25 mission may fix the compensation of the execu-
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23

•S 522 IS

1 tive director and other personnel without regard

2 to the provisions of chapter 51 and subchapter

3 III of chapter 53 of title 5, United States Code,

4 relating to classification of positions and Gen5 eral Schedule pay rates.

6 ‘‘(B) MAXIMUM RATE OF PAY.—The rate

7 of pay for the executive director and other per8 sonnel shall not exceed the rate payable for

9 level IV of the Executive Schedule under section

10 5316 of title 5, United States Code.

11 ‘‘(4) EXPERTS AND CONSULTANTS.—With the

12 approval of the Commission, the executive director

13 may retain and fix the compensation of experts and

14 consultants as the executive director considered nec15 essary to carry out the duties of the Commission.

16 ‘‘(5) DETAIL OF FEDERAL GOVERNMENT EM17 PLOYEES.—

18 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—An employee of the

19 Federal Government may be detailed to the

20 Commission without reimbursement.

21 ‘‘(B) CIVIL SERVICE STATUS.—The detail

22 of the employee shall be without interruption or

23 loss of civil service status or privilege.

24 ‘‘(k) DUTIES OF COMMISSION.—The Commission

25 shall—
62

24

•S 522 IS

1 ‘‘(1) develop proposals to address dual taxation

2 by Indian tribes and States of the extraction of en3 ergy minerals on Indian land;

4 ‘‘(2) make recommendations to improve the

5 management, administration, accounting, and audit6 ing of royalties associated with the production of en7 ergy minerals on Indian land;

8 ‘‘(3) develop alternatives for the collection and

9 distribution of royalties associated with the produc10 tion of energy minerals on Indian land;

11 ‘‘(4) develop proposals for incentives to foster

12 the development of energy resources on Indian land;

13 ‘‘(5) identify barriers or obstacles to the devel14 opment of energy resources on Indian land, and

15 make recommendations designed to foster the devel16 opment of energy resources on Indian land, in order

17 to promote economic development;

18 ‘‘(6) develop proposals for the promotion of ver19 tical integration of energy resources on Indian land;

20 and

21 ‘‘(7) develop proposals on taxation incentives to

22 foster the development of energy resources on Indian

23 land, including investment tax credits and enterprise

24 zone credits.
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25

•S 522 IS

1 ‘‘(l) POWERS OF COMMISSION.—The Commission or,

2 at the direction of the Commission, any subcommittee or

3 member of the Commission, may, for the purpose of carry4 ing out this title—

5 ‘‘(1) hold such hearings, meet and act at such

6 times and places, take such testimony, receive such

7 evidence, and administer such oaths;

8 ‘‘(2) secure directly from any Federal agency

9 such information; and

10 ‘‘(3) require, by subpoena or otherwise, the at11 tendance and testimony of such witnesses and the

12 production of such books, records, correspondence,

13 memoranda, papers, documents, tapes, and mate14 rials;

15 as the Commission, subcommittee, or member considers

16 advisable.

17 ‘‘(m) COMMISSION REPORT.—

18 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 2 years

19 after the date of enactment of the Native American

20 Energy Development and Self-Determination Act of

21 2003, the Commission shall submit to the President,

22 the Committee on Resources of the House of Rep23 resentatives, and the Committee on Indian Affairs

24 and the Committee on Energy and Natural Re25 sources of the Senate, a report that describes the
64

26

•S 522 IS

1 proposals, recommendations, and alternatives de2 scribed in subsection (k).

3 ‘‘(2) REVIEW AND COMMENT.—Before submis4 sion of the report required under this subsection, the

5 Chairperson of the Commission shall provide to each

6 interested Indian tribe and each State in which is lo7 cated 1 or more Indian reservations or Indian land

8 with developable energy resources, a draft of the re9 port for review and comment.

10 ‘‘(n) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There

11 are authorized to be appropriated to the Commission such

12 sums as are necessary to carry out this section, to remain

13 available until expended.

14 ‘‘(o) TERMINATION.—The Commission shall termi15 nate 30 days after the date of submission of the report

16 under subsection (m)(1).

17 ‘‘SEC. 2607. ENERGY EFFICIENCY AND STRUCTURES ON IN18 DIAN LAND.

19 ‘‘(a) TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE TO NONPROFIT AND

20 COMMUNITY ORGANIZATIONS.—The Secretary of Housing

21 and Urban Development, in cooperation with Indian tribes

22 or tribally-designated housing entities of Indian tribes,

23 shall provide, to eligible (as determined by the Secretary

24 of Housing and Urban Development) nonprofit and com-
65

27

•S 522 IS

1 munity organizations, technical assistance to initiate and

2 expand the use of energy-saving technologies in—

3 ‘‘(1) new home construction;

4 ‘‘(2) housing rehabilitation; and

5 ‘‘(3) housing in existence as of the date of en6 actment of the Native American Energy Develop7 ment and Self-Determination Act of 2003.

8 ‘‘(b) REVIEW.—The Secretary of Housing and Urban

9 Development and the Secretary of the Interior, in con10 sultation with Indian tribes or tribally-designated housing

11 entities of Indian tribes, shall—

12 ‘‘(1) complete a review of regulations promul13 gated by the Secretary of Housing and Urban Devel14 opment and the Secretary of the Interior to identify

15 any feasible measures that may be taken to promote

16 greater use of energy efficient technologies in hous17 ing for which Federal assistance is provided under

18 the Native American Housing Assistance and Self19 Determination Act of 1996 (25 U.S.C. 4101 et

20 seq.);

21 ‘‘(2) develop energy efficiency and conservation

22 measures for use in connection with housing that

23 is—

24 ‘‘(A) located on Indian land; and
66

28

•S 522 IS

1 ‘‘(B) constructed, repaired, or rehabilitated

2 using assistance provided under any law or pro3 gram administered by the Secretary of Housing

4 and Urban Development or the Secretary of the

5 Interior, including—

6 ‘‘(i) the Native American Housing As7 sistance and Self-Determination Act of

8 1996 (25 U.S.C. 4101 et seq.); and

9 ‘‘(ii) the Indian Home Improvement

10 Program of the Bureau of Indian Affairs;

11 and

12 ‘‘(3) promote the use of the measures described

13 in paragraph (2) in programs administered by the

14 Secretary of Housing and Urban Development and

15 the Secretary of the Interior, as appropriate.

16 ‘‘SEC. 2608. INDIAN MINERAL DEVELOPMENT REVIEW BY

17 SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR.

18 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—As soon as practicable after the

19 date of enactment of the Native American Energy Devel20 opment and Self-Determination Act of 2003, the Secretary

21 of the Interior shall conduct and provide to the Secretary

22 a review of all activities being conducted under the Indian

23 Mineral Development Act of 1982 (25 U.S.C. 2101 et

24 seq.) as of that date.
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29

•S 522 IS

1 ‘‘(b) REPORT.—Not later than 1 year after the date

2 of enactment of the Native American Energy Development

3 and Self-Determination Act of 2003, the Secretary shall

4 submit to the Committee on Resources and the Committee

5 on Energy and Commerce of the House of Representatives

6 and the Committee on Indian Affairs and the Committee

7 on Energy and Natural Resources of the Senate a report

8 that includes—

9 ‘‘(1) the results of the review;

10 ‘‘(2) recommendations to ensure that Indian

11 tribes have the opportunity to develop Indian energy

12 resources; and

13 ‘‘(3)(A) an analysis of the barriers to the devel14 opment of energy resources on Indian land (includ15 ing legal, fiscal, market, and other barriers); and

16 ‘‘(B) recommendations for the removal of those

17 barriers.

18 ‘‘SEC. 2609. INDIAN ENERGY STUDY BY SECRETARY OF EN19 ERGY.

20 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 2 years after the

21 date of enactment of the Native American Energy Devel22 opment and Self-Determination Act of 2003, and every 2

23 years thereafter, the Secretary shall submit to the Com24 mittees on Energy and Commerce and Resources of the

25 House of Representatives and the Committee on Energy
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30

•S 522 IS

1 and Natural Resources and the Committee on Indian Af2 fairs of the Senate a report on energy development poten3 tial on Indian land.

4 ‘‘(b) REQUIREMENTS.—The report shall—

5 ‘‘(1) identify barriers to the development of re6 newable energy by Indian tribes (including legal,

7 regulatory, fiscal, and market barriers); and

8 ‘‘(2) include recommendations for the removal

9 of those barriers.

10 ‘‘SEC. 2610. CONSULTATION WITH INDIAN TRIBES.

11 ‘‘In carrying out this title, the Secretary and the Sec12 retary of Interior shall, as appropriate and to the maxi13 mum extent practicable, involve and consult with Indian

14 tribes in a manner that is consistent with the Federal

15 trust and the government-to-government relationships be16 tween Indian tribes and the Federal Government.’’.

17 (b) ENERGY EFFICIENCY IN FEDERALLY-ASSISTED

18 HOUSING.—

19 (1) FINDING.—Congress finds that the Sec20 retary of Housing and Urban Development should

21 promote energy conservation in housing that is lo22 cated on Indian land and assisted with Federal re23 sources through—

24 (A) the use of energy-efficient technologies

25 and innovations (including the procurement of
69

31

•S 522 IS

1 energy-efficient refrigerators and other appli2 ances);

3 (B) the promotion of shared savings con4 tracts; and

5 (C) the use and implementation of such

6 other similar technologies and innovations as

7 the Secretary of Housing and Urban Develop8 ment considers to be appropriate.

9 (2) AMENDMENT.—Section 202(2) of the Na10 tive American Housing and Self-Determination Act

11 of 1996 (25 U.S.C. 4132(2)) is amended by insert12 ing ‘‘improvement to achieve greater energy effi13 ciency,’’ after ‘‘planning,’’.

Æ
70

The CHAIRMAN. I will put my full statement in the record because we do have a vote at 3 o’clock. What we will probably have

to do is try to get through the first panel, take a break and then

come back for the second panel.

With that, I would like to turn to our Vice Chairman, Senator

Inouye.

STATEMENT OF HON. DANIEL K. INOUYE, U.S. SENATOR FROM

HAWAII, VICE CHAIRMAN, COMMITTEE ON INDIAN AFFAIRS

Senator INOUYE. Thank you very much, Mr. Chairman, for scheduling this hearing, because these initiatives are very important and

intended to provide support to tribal governments in the development of energy resources on Indian lands, and to provide incentives

for partnership with tribes that want to develop their resources.

With the vast untapped resources on tribal lands throughout the

United States, it is clear that Indian country has an important contribution to make to our Nation’s energy reserves.

I am pleased that our colleague from New Mexico, and the author of one of the measures we consider today, Senator Bingaman,

will be with us a little later in the hearing to address this bill. I

thank you very much, Mr. Chairman.

The CHAIRMAN. Thank you. Senator Bingaman might wait until

after the vote to be here to introduce his bill.

We will go ahead and start with Panel I. Theresa Rosier, counselor to the Assistant Secretary for Indian Affairs, Department of

the Interior, and Vicky Bailey, Assistant Secretary for Policy and

International Affairs, Department of Energy, please come forward.

Theresa, if you would like to start, go ahead.

STATEMENT OF THERESA ROSIER, COUNSELOR TO THE ASSISTANT SECRETARY FOR INDIAN AFFAIRS, DEPARTMENT

OF THE INTERIOR, WASHINGTON, DC

Ms. ROSIER. Good afternoon, Mr. Chairman, Vice Chairman, and

members of the committee. My name is Theresa Rosier, and I am

counselor to the Assistant Secretary for Indian Affairs.

I am pleased today to present the Department of the Interior’s

views on S. 522, the Native American Energy Development and

Self-Determination Act of 2003, and S. 424, the Tribal Energy SelfSufficiency Act.

I will abbreviate my testimony and submit my complete written

testimony for the record.

The CHAIRMAN. Without objection, that will be fine.

[Prepared statement of Ms. Rosier appears in appendix.]

Ms. ROSIER. The Bureau of Indian Affairs manages approximately 56 million acres of land in trust for individual Indians and

Indian tribes. Currently there are 1.81 million acres of actively

leased oil, gas, and coal in various phases of exploration and development. In fact, production of energy minerals from Indian tribes

continues to represent over 10 percent of the total Federal onshore

production.

Moreover, production from Indian lands in the year 2001 was

13.1 billion barrels of oil, 280 billion cubic feet of gas, and 29.4 million short tons of coal. It is estimated that an additional 15 million

acres of undeveloped energy resources exists on individual and trib-
71

al land. The potential for further energy development in Indian

country is exciting.

Increased energy development in Indian country means increased

jobs. In many Indian and Alaska Native communities, joblessness

and underemployment are painfully acute. More than ever, tribes

need the job and training opportunities that go hand-in-hand with

expanded mineral and energy development.

One of the tragic ironies of life in Indian communities is that

tribes often possess substantial energy resources but yet they often

pay very high, or the highest electrical costs, and sometimes lack

complete access to electricity. As the Navajo tribe will testify to

later today, over 37 percent of their tribe does not have access to

electricity.

Consistent with the President’s National Energy Policy to secure

America’s energy future, increased energy development in Indian

and Alaska native communities will help the Nation increase its

domestic energy resources. S. 522 promotes increased and efficient

energy development and production in an environmentally sound

manner.

While the administration supports the goals and objectives of S.

522, which are the promotion of self-determination and economic

development, there are there several provisions which we want to

work with the committee on before this bill moves forward.

Because this legislation has programs that affect both the Department of the Interior, the Department of Energy, and the Department of Housing and Urban Development, my testimony today

will only focus on the Department of the Interior and how the bill

relates to them.

S. 522 bills upon the self-determination principles of the Indian

Mineral Development Act of 1982. It focuses on tribal control and

tribal flexibility for the exploration, extraction, processing, and development of fossil and renewable resources. S. 522 would authorize individual Indians and tribal governments to enter into energy

development leases or business agreements without Federal review, as long as two certain preconditions have been met.

One, that the Secretary has already approved the tribal regulations which govern these leases and business agreements, and two,

that these leases and business agreements do not exceed 30 years.

Moreover, this bill authorizes tribes to grant rights-of-way over

tribal land for electrical, pipeline, and distribution lines. There

must be three conditions before these rights-of-way could be granted.

First, that the Secretary has approved the regulations which govern the rights-of-way; second, that the rights-of-way does not exceed 30 years, and third, that the pipeline, transmission, or distribution lines serve either a facility located on Indian land or energy that was produced on Indian land. The Department supports

increased tribal regulation and expedited review of these regulatory

processes.

As drafted, however, it is unclear whether this section would

apply to the Department of the Interior or the Department of Energy. The Department believes that it is most appropriate for the

Secretary of the Interior to approve tribal regulations which govern

the leasing of trust or restricted land, conveyances of rights-of-way,
72

and business agreements because documentations necessary to

prove such tribal regulations involve trust records and trust payments and are under the purview of the Department of the Interior.

Generally the Department is supportive of the creation of the Indian Energy Resource Commission. We look to the Commission to

recommend ways to facilitate economic development and Indian

and Alaska Native communities. Hopefully this will mean that

there will be more tribal joint ventures, greater tribal participation

in the building of transmission and distribution lines, and increased tribal ownership of power plant and utility companies.

The Department, however, is opposed to the power of the Commission to subpoena testimony and records. This Commission

should not be an investigatory body. Instead, we look to this Commission to look to future goals for Indian economic development. As

we understand it, the General Accounting Office does not have the

authority to subpoena records from Federal Government agencies.

Now I will discuss S. 424, the Tribal Energy Self-Sufficiency Act.

Both renewable and nonrenewable energy is uniquely positioned to

play a critical role as the Nation starts to look at domestic energy

supplies. In addition to traditional energy resources, alternative

and renewable energies play a critical part in the President’s energy policy.

My testimony today will focus on the provisions of S. 424 which

deal directly with the Department of the Interior. S. 424 would also

increase tribal self-determination. It would authorize Indian tribes

to lease land for electrical generation, transmission, or distribution,

and for facilities to refine renewable and non-renewable energy

sources. There are two preconditions that must be met here.

First, that the lease was approved by regulations which the Secretary of the Interior approved and, second, that the lease did not

exceed 30 years. Moreover, tribes are also authorized to grant a

right-of-way over tribal lands without the Secretary of the Interior

approval if the rights-of-way was executed with regulations pre-approved by the Secretary, the rights-of-way does not exceed 30

years, and that the transmission or distribution facilities serve as

a facility on Indian lands, or that the energy was produced on Indian lands.

Also, S. 424 authorizes the approval of energy business agreements without Secretarial review if a comprehensive environmental

review process has already been completed. These provisions promote increased tribal self-determination as tribes administer and

regulate their own tribal energy policy.

Moreover, efficient locally-controlled regulatory structures and

Indian communities create a business-friendly environment that

promotes exciting partnerships between the tribes, the private sector, and the Federal Government.

Second, the bill also requires review of the Indian Mineral Development Act. It has been over 20 years since IMDA was enacted.

The Department is already working with tribes to review IMDA

and to improve energy development in Indian country.

For example, in November or December 2001, the Department

held an Indian Energy Summit. From this Summit, we have had

six scoping meetings around the country this past year from April
73

2002 until December 2002. The Department talked with tribes and

started pre-consultations an a National Indian Energy Policy. What

the Department is looking to do next is to establish formal consultations with the tribes to work on an National Indian Energy

Policy.

Thank you for the opportunity to testify before you. I welcome

any questions.

The CHAIRMAN. Thank you.

Ms. Bailey.

STATEMENT OF VICKY BAILEY, ASSISTANT SECRETARY FOR

POLICY AND INTERNATIONAL AFFAIRS, DEPARTMENT OF

ENERGY, WASHINGTON, DC

Ms. BAILEY. Thank you, Mr. Chairman, Mr. Vice Chairman, and

members of the committee. I, too, am pleased to be here to discuss

proposed legislation, S. 424, and S. 522, regarding the Indian Energy Policy and to provide you information on the Department’s

current structure and ongoing programs.

Our activities reflect Secretary Abraham’s affirmation of the Department’s commitment to meet its responsibilities to Indian country in a manner consistent with the government-to-government relationship that exists between federally-recognized tribes and the

Department.

Before I begin my formal testimony, I would like to commend

you, Mr. Chairman, and the entire committee on your leadership

in addressing the challenging issues before us. We all know that

the United States is better served when the Federal Government

and Indian tribes work together to meet common objectives.

From an energy perspective, Native American reservations contain large reserves of oil and gas. There are an estimated 890 million barrels of oil and natural gas liquids, and 5.5 trillion cubic feet

of gas on tribal lands. This translates into huge potential revenues

for the tribes even when conservative production estimates are

used.

Indian energy resource development and energy policy, in general, are areas where the Department and the Indian tribes share

many mutual interests and can together influence America’s future

in a constructive manner.

As Secretary Abraham has stated, the Administration wants to

work with Congress on provisions that facilitate energy development on tribal lands while enhancing and protecting the environment.

The Administration’s commitment to a comprehensive and balanced national energy policy is in the best interest of all Americans. That is why the President announced his National Energy

Policy in May 2001, less than 4 months after he took office. We face

many energy challenges that require attention now. Enacting an effective National Energy Policy during the 108th Congress is one of

the President’s top priorities. We are pleased that both houses of

Congress are moving forward.

As you know, today a key House subcommittee is marking up

comprehensive energy legislation. The short and long-term energy

supply and demand issues are before us, in addition to posing chal-
74

lenges, providing an opportunity for us to improve our environment

and our economy, while enhancing our energy future.

Americans share many common concerns regarding that energy

future. Those shared concerns may not offer one-size-fits-all solutions. Some issues will require different approaches that recognize

the unique dynamics at play due to any number of factors and circumstances. Certainly there are issues unique to Indian country,

and we must have the tools to address them within our National

Energy Policy framework.

I would like to provide an overview of the Department’s energy

structure in order to provide a reference point for the proposed legislation in implementing Secretary Abraham’s written direction to

department heads requesting that they honor the government-togovernment relationship that exists between the Federal Government and federally-recognized Indian tribes. Tribal points of contact have been established. These 50 points of contact focus on relations with Native American tribes and Alaska Natives.

In addition, within DOE’s Office of Congressional and Intergovernmental Affairs, a Director of Indian Affairs serves as the Department’s primary point-of-contact on Native American issues. A

recent vacancy in that position should be filled in the very near future, but the work of that office and that director continues to be

performed through our Office of Intergovernmental and External

Affairs.

To give some examples of DOE’s tribal activity within selected

programs at DOE sites, DOE and our power marketing administrations are committed to continuing our work with tribal governments on the many issues in which we have a common interest.

Mr. Chairman, in the interest of time I will not list those representative activities in my oral statement. They are included in

my formal testimony, and include programs and projects within the

following three DOE offices: The Office of Economic Impact and Diversity, the Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy, and

Western Area Power Administration, commonly known as WAPA.

Regarding the legislation pending before the committee, the Department is reviewing the provisions of S. 424 and S. 522. These

two bills are comprehensive and we support the goal of maximizing

environmentally sound resource development on tribal lands. We

will continue to study the specific provisions of the legislation and

look forward to working with you toward achievement of our mutual objectives.

This concludes my oral statement, Mr. Chairman. I hope that my

testimony provides you and the other members of the committee

with a good understanding of the importance this Administration

attaches to our work with American Indian tribes and Alaska Natives in the context of the President’s National Energy Policy.

I will be pleased to respond to any questions you may have and

ask that my written testimony be placed in the record in its entirety.

[Prepared statement of Ms. Bailey appears in appendix.]

The CHAIRMAN. Thank you.

Just listening to the both of you, I have to tell you, it sounds like

the Energy Department is going to be a lot more supportive of Indian programs that the Interior Department. One of the big prob-
75

lems that we hear from tribes is that Interior either doesn’t approve the documents that the tribes need or the Department scuttles the deal, or the Department was so slow in doing it that the

tribes or its business partner loses interest.

After hearing your comments, Ms. Rosier, I think I should have

kept you on staff here and not let you go over there to Interior.

[Laughter.]

I’ll pass on that for 1 minute and ask you some questions.

Senator Bingaman, did you want to talk about your bill for a moment?

STATEMENT OF HON. JEFF BINGAMAN, U.S. SENATOR FROM

NEW MEXICO

Senator BINGAMAN. Thank you very much, Mr. Chairman, for inviting me here. I do appreciate the chance to say a few words about

S. 424, that I introduced with your support, Senator Inouye’s support, and Senator Daschle’s support as well.

This essentially is the title that we included in the comprehensive energy bill that we passed through the Senate last year. We

put a title in there related to development of energy resources on

Indian lands. We have taken those provisions and included them

here.

We think they are important that as we develop this comprehensive energy policy in ensuring that there be sufficient emphasis on

the opportunity that we have, not only to develop resources that

are on Indian American lands, but also to be sure that the benefits

of those resources accrue to the Indian community.

We have a terrible problem in my State and in various States

around the country. Although some of our reservations are rich in

energy resources, we have many people living on those reservations

who, for example, have no electricity. We need to help both in the

development of the resources and help to ensure that the benefits

of that development inures to the actual tribal members.

That is one of the things we are trying to do in S. 424. We do

call for setting up in that legislation an Office of Indian Energy

Policy and Programs within the Department of Energy. We expand

DOE’s authority to assist tribes to help ensure that the Federal

Government, as a whole, is working with tribes in a way that is

consistent with the Federal Trust responsibility.

We do have additional help there. There are provisions in the bill

intended to help facilitate the citing of certain energy projects on

Indian land consistent with the sovereign authority of the tribes.

We have a lot of other provisions.

There is one area that has become a little controversial that I

will just call to the attention of the committee so you can perhaps

address it before you pass on this legislation. There are concerns

with language in the bill that limits the liability of the Federal

Government with respect to leases and rights-of-way approved by

tribes under the citing provisions of the bill.

We are glad to work with you, Mr. Chairman, to be sure that

those concerns are addressed. We think there is a way to do that.

I encourage the committee to look closely at that issue before you

finally pass on the bill. That is something that should be corrected

at the committee and there is no reason that we cannot do that.
76

I think that sums up the points I had to make on the legislation.

I look forward to working with you not only on this bill but on your

companion bill, S. 522. I hope that your committee here can move

ahead and we can move ahead in the Energy Committee as well

and see to it that it gets to the President’s desk.

The CHAIRMAN. Thank you.

Senator Thomas, as a cosponsor of S. 522 do you have any comments on either bill?

STATEM,ENT OF HON. CRAIG THOMAS, U.S. SENATOR FROM

WYOMING

Senator THOMAS. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. I am sorry that I

was not able to be here earlier. I do thank you for having this hearing. I particularly wanted to be here because Chairman Vernon

Hill from the Eastern Shoshone Business Council is here. I want

to welcome him.

I am on the Energy Committee, as you are, and certainly as we

develop a comprehensive energy bill, the resources should not be

overlooked in the Indian lands. I think it is something we really

ought to do in Wyoming where we have large reservations—over 2

million acres. The opportunity is there for both our tribes to get

some economic benefit, as well as benefit to the whole country.

I was a cosponsor of your bill, Senator Campbell, and certainly

support what you were seeking to do there. Quite a few of members

of this Committee are also on the Energy Committee. We ought to

be able to put something together and do it very soon. I look forward to working with all of you.

I would ask that my full statement be inserted in the record.

[prepared statement of Senator Thomas appears in appendix.]

The CHAIRMAN. Thank you. Maybe before we are called to vote,

we can ask a few questions.

Theresa, ever since the Nixon days there has been a clear trend

in Indian country and Indian policy favoring tribes and letting

them exercise more authority themselves and more control over

their own programs. But as I hear your statement, it sounds to me

that Interior is very concerned over their own ability to keep control over what the tribe does with their energy.

Can you tell me if the Department is really interested in making

sure that the Indians move forward with their own extraction process and exploration and the things I think they ought to be able

to do?

Ms. ROSIER. Absolutely. The Department of the Interior strongly

supports your bill, S. 522. We are supportive of having tribes have

more self-determination and have more responsibility in the development of renewable and nonrenewable energies on their lands. We

are strongly supportive of that provision.

We would like to comment and work with you just to refine the

language, but we are supportive of improvement self-determination.

The CHAIRMAN. Do you have any specific examples of how we can

encourage the Department to provide scientific geologic and technical expertise, but at the same time being able to allow the tribes

to have more latitude?
77

Ms. ROSIER. In this year’s fiscal year 2004 budget, President

Bush asked for a $2-million increase in the grants program that

our Division of Energy and Mineral Resources runs. What these

grant programs do is they award to tribes grants which the tribes

use to explore their energy potential—generally it’s mineral. That

is part of our budget request. But the Department wants to support

tribes to explore their energy resources and renewable and nonrenewable resources.

The CHAIRMAN. The Indian Energy Commission would look at

ways to remedy issues like dual taxation. If we retain that Commission, what commitments are there that the Department would

seek funding for it and make it a priority?

Ms. ROSIER. If this bill is enacted, the Department would work

with this Committee to support and help fund this Commission.

The CHAIRMAN. Okay. Good.

Ms. Bailey, we didn’t get your comments until about 21⁄2 hours

ago. Neither the staff nor I had time to read them so I don’t have

any specific questions. I think you missed an opportunity to be able

to answer some of those. What we are going to do is to put them

in writing to you. If you could give those answers back for the full

committee, I would appreciate it.

Ms. BAILEY. Most certainly. I would be pleased to do so.

The CHAIRMAN. Senator Inouye.

Senator INOUYE. Thank you.

In both bills, the tribes have the authority to execute and approve their own leases, rights-of-way and agreements with others.

If they adopt their own environmental regulations, the National

Environmental Policy Act review does not apply; is that correct?

Ms. ROSIER. NEPA would apply when the Secretary is approving

the initial regulations. Whether it is a general NEPA review or

specific NEPA review depends on what the regulations say. But

you are right. After the initial approval of the Secretary, whatever

is in the purview of that plan, NEPA would not apply.

Senator INOUYE. However, when that happens, in both bills the

Government of the United States will disclaim all liability; is that

correct?

Ms. ROSIER. In both bills the language does say that any business agreement or lease that is conveyed under these tribal regulations, that the Government would not have liability for damages;

yes.

Senator INOUYE. In your opinion, or the opinion of your Department, would these provisions have any impact upon what we call

the trust relationship between Indian country and the Government

of the United States?

Ms. ROSIER. The Government would have a trust responsibility

and the Secretary would approve these leases and rights-of-way in

the initial review of the tribal regulations. After that, it would follow the recent Supreme Court Case, United States v. Navajo. There

is a limited trust responsibility as defined by the language in the

bills.

Senator INOUYE. It would permit the Government of the United

States to wash its hands and say, ‘‘It’s none of our business;’’ is

that correct?
78

Ms. ROSIER. In the vein of tribal self-determination as the Supreme Court ruled in Navajo, if there is not a specific duty of management or obligation, then the Government is not liable for damages.

Senator INOUYE. Is that desirable to the Government of the

United States?

Ms. ROSIER. The Government supports the language in these

bills. The Department of the Interior supports the language in

these bills.

Senator INOUYE. What is the position of the Department of Energy? You mentioned the government-to-government relationship.

Ms. BAILEY. Very committed to government-to-government relationships. We have various projects going on at different sites.

They are very site specific. But our analysis as it relates to S. 424

and S. 522 and some of the provisions you are speaking to, we really haven’t had the opportunity to get an opinion. We are continuing

to look at that and trying to come together on what our thoughts

and responses are. But we haven’t had an opportunity to get a Department opinion as yet.

Senator INOUYE. As both of you are aware, many years ago private enterprise began constructing hydroelectric dams in Indian

Country and have been operating them for about 50 years. They

have 50-year leases. They are coming up for re-licensing. They impact upon tribal lands and on tribal cultural resources.

If the tribes are going to participate in their re-licensing, I have

been told that the cost may be prohibitive. Is the Government of

the United States and the Department of the Interior available to

assist and participate in these proceedings, such as providing funding to the tribes to participate in the Federal Energy Regulatory

Commission [FERC] re-licensing process?

Ms. ROSIER. Off the top of my head, I don’t know our numbers

for the FERC program this year and what or budget numbers are.

We do work with the tribes rather closely when issuing mandatory

conditions. I can follow up in a written answer to you.

Senator INOUYE. I am not an expert. I ask this question because

I have been told that many of these licenses were acquired at a

time when Indian country was at a disadvantage. The Indians were

told, ‘‘You take it or else. You like it or don’t like it. It makes no

difference to us.’’

Now if they wish to play a significant role in the management

of these dams, it is going to cost a whole lot of money which they

do not have. Would you check to see if Interior is ready to help the

Indians?

Ms. ROSIER. I will.

Senator INOUYE. Mr. Chairman, I have several more questions,

but if I may, I would like to submit them.

The CHAIRMAN. Without objection.

Let me ask just one follow-up question since Senator Inouye has

touched this subject about managerial control and liability.

If the tribe has managerial control over its resources and it

makes the decisions, shouldn’t the tribe and not the United States

retain the liability over those decisions, too?
79

Ms. ROSIER. Yes; the Department of the Interior would. It is

similar to the language of these bills. We would support those

tenents.

The CHAIRMAN. Okay.

Senator Thomas, did you have some questions?

Senator THOMAS. Just one, and it is pretty basic. As we look at

ways to change things, to make them work better, what would you

say have been the major obstacles as to why there hasn’t been

more energy development on the tribal lands?

Ms. BAILEY. I will try that first. I think DOE’s involvement has

been ongoing. I think there have been many ongoing activities. As

I have had a chance to prepare my testimony and look at our different offices and the projects in which they are involved, there

have been a lot of technology-related and probably environmentalrelated work with the tribes.

But as it relates to energy, probably the one I know the best is

probably the hydroelectric from the standpoint of being a former

Commissioner at FERC and from the issue of re-licensing of dams

and working with the tribes in that respect. I know that FERC is

trying to streamline that process. They recently issued a proposed

rule that would make some administrative changes. I believe Congress is also considering legislative reforms.

But probably a lot of it has to do with coming up with a comprehensive plan and obviously funding, making sure that the resources are there as well.

Senator THOMAS. You know, the developers provide the money in

energy development. Why can’t that be the case here?

Ms. BAILEY. I’m not saying that it probably couldn’t be. I have

very limited expertise.

Senator THOMAS. It is a puzzle to me. There are obviously opportunities on the tribal lands. Yet years have gone by and not much

has happened. As you prepare to fix it, you have to define what you

think the major obstacles have been.

Ms. ROSIER. For the Department of the Interior, one of obstacles,

as you all aware of being on this committee, is that we are very

slow and we are very bureaucratic. I think we have a cumbersome

and time consuming process. S. 522 would expedite the regulatory

process.

Senator THOMAS. Thank you.

The CHAIRMAN. Okay. We appreciate your being here. There may

be further questions from other people on the committee that might

be submitted in writing to you both. If you could get those back to

us, we would appreciate it. Thank you.

We will now proceed with the second panel as far as we can go

until we are called to vote.

Our second panel will be: Joe Shirley, Jr., president of the Navajo Nation; Vernon Hill, chairman of the Eastern Shoshone Business Council; and Robert Santistevan, director, Southern Ute

Growth Fund from Ignacio, CO, my home town.

Your complete written testimony will be included in the record

if you want to divert from that.

We will start in that order with Mr. Shirley.
80

STATEMENT OF ARVIN TRUJILLO, DIRECTOR OF NAVAJO

NATURAL RESOURCES

Mr. TRUJILLO. Thank you, Mr. Chairman, and members of the

Senate Indian Affairs Committee. My name is Arvin Trujillo. I am

the executive director for the Division of Natural Resources. I am

here representing President Joe Shirley from the Navajo Nation. I

would like to extend my greetings to the chairman and members

of the committee from the president and vice president of the Navajo Nation.

Again, I want to thank the committee for the opportunity to

make the presentation before the committee as well as the work

that has been done on S. 424 and S. 522. As noted, we have submitted our testimony.

[Prepared statement of Mr. Shirley appears in appendix.]

Mr. TRUJILLO. What I want to basically focus on, Mr. Chairman,

is the purpose of our meeting here today. The Navajo Nation has

long been involved in energy development. Since 1921, the Nation

has been involved in the development of its resources, starting with

oil. In the 1940’s and 1950’s, we extended that toward the development of uranium. In the 1950’s and 1970’s, we again further our

developed our oil. In the 1960’s and 1970’s we expanded that into

coal.

There are a number of stakeholders involved in the work that we

do in terms of the development of our energy. The written testimony begins to look at three basic factors that we are beginning

to focus on. No. 1, who benefits from this number? No. 2, who controls the effort? No. 3, who is accountable?

Again, there are a number of stakeholders involved. The Navajo

Nation itself, the size of the nation, and the fact that yes, we do

have a number of different resources—and I named a few. In essence, we also are very much involved in lighting up the southwestern portion of the United States as well as Southern California.

There are tribal members involved. We are beginning to see the impacts on the communities as resources are developed.

We are also looking at the tribal membership in terms of the government as a whole. There are investors involved—the private sector—and how we begin to interact with those investors. The Federal Government itself is involved because of the agencies that are

included. That has been noted in the bills that have been developed.

I guess the bottomline is basically looking at the stakeholders.

They are seeking a safe and stable environment in which to live

and to do business. For the Navajo people, this simply means clean

air, water, the ability to continue traditional practices, and the opportunity to improve their quality of life.

For the private sector this is looking at clear rules of finality to

help them in their business aspects so that they can better define

how to develop their business practices. For the Navajo Government, it means clearly to define a regulatory landscape or environment. For the taxpayers themselves, this means the advancement

of the general welfare in the investment in tribes and to get a return—in this case—of energy.

With that in mind, there is a new paradigm, Mr. Chairman and

members of the committee, that is beginning to develop. That is
81

what the Navajo Nation has been focused on for these past 2 years.

The paradigm has switched for us as of March 4 of this year.

The goal is to create a return on the public investment to advance tribal self-determination and self-sufficiency and to wean

American off foreign oil. Then the Navajo Nation is a major player

who has the experience to form a basis of comment because of our

experience, because of our location, and because of our size.

We are beginning to learn new aspects on how we can begin to

develop our natural resources not only for the benefit of our people

and our own government, but also for the benefit of the regional

area, as well as the southwestern portion of the United States.

Why I come before this committee and to you, Mr. Chairman, is

to look at some basic principles, fundamental principles, that tribes

are different. We can’t fit all tribes in one box. There is a continuum that we have to begin to address. There needs to be a sliding

scale. That sliding scale must recognize a tribe’s ability to be selfdeterminant in certain areas.

How much control does the government have with the tribe? How

effective and how efficient are we as tribes in developing our own

energy, looking at our own regulatory aspects, and in addressing

our own environmental concerns? That sliding scale changes as you

look at the different types of development within Indian country.

The second piece is looking at the recent decision by the Supreme

Court and begin to address trust responsibilities and how to define

this in terms that support self-determination. In the opinion of the

Supreme Court there is one statement in there that states: ‘‘The

ideal of Indian self-determination is directly at odds with Secretarial control.’’

We are beginning to see a new philosophy beginning to emerge.

The honorable Senator from Hawaii has touched on the issue of liability. Again, we are looking on how does that liability touch our

abilities to enhance our efforts to advance energy development

within our own tribes.

With that new paradigm the Nation begins to again focus on the

Supreme Court hearing on March 4, the decision that came down.

That has changed. The members of your staff have been given copies of this.

The Navajo Nation is moving forward with an effort toward developing an energy policy for itself. We have done a tremendous

amount of research into the area. It has changed a lot of our ideas

and assumptions. Our Navajo Nation Council at this point is beginning to address this new paradigm. How do we begin to look at energy development? We have not looked at it from a pragmatic point

of view, but bringing it all together.

The Navajo Nation is reanalyzing things that were develop as recently as last year. We support the efforts of the Senators—both

yourself, Mr. Chairman, and Senator Bingaman. We support the efforts that were developed in S. 424 and S. 522. But we have to reanalyze those bills in view of the decision that was given down

with the Supreme Court.

In closing, Senator Craig Thomas asked about development. I

used the analogy of the triangle, saying that you have to have

three pieces if you are going to develop anywhere. You have to
82

have land. You have to have water. And you have to have power.

If you miss any of those aspects, development will not happen.

The way I explain it to my own constituents at the Chapter

House is that it is like fire. You have to have heat. You have to

have a fuel source. You have to have an ignition point, or oxygen.

If you take any one of those pieces out, you won’t have fire. That

is where we stand at this point.

Respectfully, members of the committee, that is what we are

working on at this point from the Navajo Nation. We would like

to request that we submit further detailed testimony relevant to

each of the bills in lieu of the decision that has been said. The

president of the Navajo Nation, as well as the council, are looking

very closely at these issues. We would like to bring back a position

of the nation that is consistent with the decisions that have been

made and with some of the new directions that we are beginning

we move as the Navajo Nation.

Thank you, Mr. Chairman.

The CHAIRMAN. That is our second bell to vote. With that, we are

going to take a 15-minute recess.

[Recess.]

The CHAIRMAN. The committee will come to order.

Senator Inouye has been detained and won’t be back. We will go

ahead and continue with Vernon Hill.

STATEMENT OF VERNON HILL, CHAIRMAN, EASTERN

SHOSHONE BUSINESS COUNCIL, FORT WASHAKIE, WY

Mr. HILL. Good afternoon, Mr. Chairman, and members of the

committee. My name is Vernon Hill. I am the chairman of the

Eastern Shoshone Business Council in Wyoming. I would like to

thank you for the invitation to be here.

My remarks and written statement are submitted on behalf of

both the Eastern Shoshone Tribe and the Northern Arapaho Tribe.

I would request that they be submitted into the record.

The CHAIRMAN. Without objection, it will be in the record.

[Prepared statement of Mr. Hill appears in appendix.]

Mr. HILL. We generate nearly $180 million annually in economic

activity, primarily from oil and gas production. We provide 1,600

jobs, revenue from our oil and gas operations; 85 percent of the royalty income is paid out to tribal members. This provides food, heat,

electricity, and other basic needs. For some tribal members, this is

their only income.

We have 850 producing wells. Our oil production totals over 20

percent of all royalties paid from Indian reservations in the lower

48 States. Our natural gas totals nearly 10 percent of royalties

paid based on known data. We have significantly more untapped

reserves.

An ongoing obstacle is the State of Wyoming’s 14 percent taxation on the production. These taxes on top of the tribe’s 8 percent

creates a severe tax burden of 22 percent and is primarily a disincentive for additional development. Therefore, we strongly urge

Congress to address the double taxation problem.

In the 107th Congress we supported S. 1106 introduced by Senator Domenici to establish a Federal tax credit based on the volume

of production of oil and gas from Indian lands. This type of credit
83

would stimulate tribal economies and increase the overall domestic

oil and gas supplies, thereby reducing our country’s dependence on

foreign sources of energy.

We believe that any comprehensive energy legislation must include meaningful tax incentives to encourage, promote, and foster

energy production on Indian lands. In addition, both our tribes own

fee lands and have energy potential. Therefore, we believe these

bills should provide some preference or direction to the Secretary

of the Interior in processing and approving fee to trust applications

for energy development purposes.

With respect to the provisions of S. 424 and S. 522, we offer the

following comments. We support creating a comprehensive Indian

Energy and Policy Program in the Department of Energy. This program, with appropriate funding, will have a positive impact on energy development in Indian country.

We support S. 424’s approach establishing criteria for awarding

funding to tribes. We have concern with a factor which involves assessing tribes’ financial assets. We believe that the income from

natural resources not be weighed against the tribe, especially in

cases where the tribe depends on the income from natural resources for over 50 percent of its government operations. We recommend that this provision either be revised or excluded.

We support S. 424’s assignment to priority in awarding grants

for inadequate electric service that can be demonstrated. We suggest, however, that this factor be clarified to reflect the housing demand and the lack of affordable energy to serve this need. Moreover, due to the specific concerns regarding the location of our

tribes on a single indian reservation, our tribes recommend

changes in the bill to reflect this circumstance.

On our reservation there is a large, unmet housing need. However, the primary barrier for our members to face in building new

homes is the cost of the delivery of electricity. We recommend that

the loan guarantee amount in S. 424 be increased from $2 million

to $5 million due to the enormous need for capital in Indian Country. We support S. 522’s provisions that recognize and strengthen

the enforcement of tribal laws.

We believe the provision of benefit of wind energy production on

the Wind River Reservation would be streamlined. For oil and gas

leasing activities, we are not prepared to undertake this approach.

We are concerned with the cost and liability associated with the

streamlining approach. As a policy matter, we are concerned about

releasing the Federal Government from the responsibilities over

energy resource development.

The current Federal regulatory regime for oil and gas leasing

places the responsibilities on the BIA, BLM, and MMS. Until we

gain a better understanding of the streamlining process and its impact on oil and gas leasing, we are not prepared to release these

Federal agencies from their responsibilities. Perhaps the pilot

project to examine the impact on oil and gas leasing would be advisable as a way to assess this more fully.

Our written testimony includes comments on the specific streamlining requirements of both bills as well as comments on other provisions.
84

This concludes my statement. I would be happy to answer any

questions. Thank you.

The CHAIRMAN. Thank you.

We will go on with Sam Maynes for the Southern Ute Growth

Fund.

STATEMENT OF FRANK E. MAYNES, TRIBAL ATTORNEY FOR

THE SOUTHERN UTE INDIAN TRIBAL CHAIRMAN, HOWARD

D. RICHARDS, SR., DURANGO, CO

Mr. MAYNES. Thank you, Mr. Chairman.

The good news is that we are getting a lot of needed moisture

in Colorado. The bad news is that the chairman of the Southern

Ute Indian Tribe couldn’t make it out of Denver to be here. So he

asked me to speak to the committee.

The CHAIRMAN. The last part of that bad news is that you probably won’t get home with 4 feet of snow in Denver. [Laughter.]

Mr. MAYNES. I was going to speak for some time about the success story of the Southern Ute Indian Tribe with which you are

well aware. The Southern Ute Indian Tribe has developed its natural resources over the last 20 years within the system that we

have. However, we have analyzed for the Southern Ute Indian

Tribe, S. 424 and S. 522. We have submitted a written statement

to the committee that summarizes and compares the proposed legislation. We make several suggested changes which we feel are

needed to improve the proposals.

No. 1. S. 522 provisions that address loans and rights-of-way are

much broader in scope than S. 424. Therefore, we believe that

those types of provisions in S. 522 would be a greater help to the

tribes. However, there is one provision in S. 424 that we would

suggest be included in any legislation and that would be the Indian

Preference Provisions in that legislation.

No. 2. The leasing and rights-of-way proposals of both pieces of

legislation propose a trade that may be unacceptable to some

tribes. You eliminate the Secretarial approval in exchange for

tribes’ regulations that require consultation with State officials,

some type of public notification, and ultimately private citizen challenges of approved leases and rights-of-way. Traditional notions of

tribal sovereignty protect tribes from incursion of States and nonmembers in the decisionmaking process.

The Southern Ute Tribe believes this is the wrong approach. We

think that Congress should be concerned with whether or not the

tribes are capable of making informed decisions in the first place

and if they are capable of making those informed decisions, they

should take the responsibility for their mistakes as well as for their

good decisions.

No. 3. Tribes generally do not oppose Federal environmental

laws. But the proposed legislation shouldn’t treat tribal lands like

public lands. For example, NEPA requirements and public comment are inconsistent with the internal decisionmaking aspect of

tribal sovereignty. We suggested changes to correspond with

IMDA—the Indian Mineral Development Act—confidentiality provisions. This is set forth in our written statement.

No. 4. The Southern Ute Indian Tribe joins with this gentleman

in saying that this legislation should take issue with the dual tax-
85

ation caused by the Cotton Petroleum Supreme Court case. Cotton

Petroleum makes a disincentive to production on tribal lands. We

propose and add some legislative language in our written statement that would exempt future Indian energy development from

State taxation to level the playing field.

Finally, something that is not in the proposed legislation would

be a revision of the ambiguities that are contained in the Nonintercourse Act which was originally passed in 1790. The present

language that is in the law came about in 1834. Many of the statutes affecting Indian tribes have the phrase in there, ‘‘Lands subject to a restriction by the United States against alienation.’’ There is no distinction between lands held in trust or lands held

in fee. We give several examples, Mr. Chairman, of the problems

caused by this in terms of trying to do economic development deals

and mineral development deals with outside interests, outside the

reservation—the banks and commercial lenders.

The Non-intercourse Act should not apply to interests in lands

owned by tribes in fee unless that land is subsequently put in

trust. If it is not clarified, the Non-intercourse language will continue to cause uncertainty as to its applicability and continued

problems in commercial dealings.

I can tell you, Mr. Chairman, we have run into that time and

time again in dealings that the Southern Ute Indian Tribe has had

with various independent oil and gas companies and other oil and

gas companies putting together deals where that becomes one of

the big bones of contention as to whether or not the tribe has the

power to do it or not.

In conclusion, Mr. Chairman, the Southern Ute Indian Tribe appreciates the opportunity to comment on this proposed legislation

which is of such critical importance to all energy producing Indian

tribes. We pledge our support to help this committee to work out

suitable language that can be considered by the entire body.

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. I would be glad to try to answer any

questions. I would ask that our written testimony be inserted in

the record in its entirety.

The CHAIRMAN. Without objection.

[Prepared statement of Chairman Howard D. Richards, Sr. appears in appendix.]

The CHAIRMAN. Thank you.

Most of the questions will probably be submitted in writing as

neither Senator Inouye nor Senator Thomas have been able to get

back.

I want to just to ask one of each of you.

Mr. Trujillo, you mentioned 37 percent of the Navajos do not

have electricity, as I understood you to say. That is certainly a sad

commentary. What efforts is the tribe doing to bring that number

down? Are you getting any help from the utilities?

Mr. TRUJILLO. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. Right now what we are

doing is working with our utility organization, the Navajo Tribal

Utility Authority. We have a bill which is called the Navajo Electrification Demonstration Program which was authorized for $75

million over 5 years.

Up to this point we have received $3 million. We have been able

to bring 500 homes electricity. What we are looking at, too, is
86

through our new paradigm as we begin to develop new generation

capabilities, we are looking at developing a criteria that would also

help support rural electrification for our own tribes. This would

break that ironic situation where we have a generating station that

is producing up to 1,500 megawatts of power. We have homes 1,500

feet away that do not have electricity.

We are working to improve that, Mr. Chairman.

The CHAIRMAN. You provide power for Los Angeles but some of

your own people cannot get it right next door?

Mr. TRUJILLO. That is correct, sir.

The CHAIRMAN. That is sad.

Mr. Hill, your testimony indicates that you oppose some provisions in S. 424 and S. 522 that I thought would streamline the

mineral lease approval process to put tribes in charge more than

the Administration.

The current problem we have with the Bureau, the BLM, and the

MMS, I thought the goal really was to try to replace that with tribal regulations and tribal control.

Would you like to expand on that just a moment? What would

you do to modify the existing process to make sure that tribes do

have more control?

Mr. HILL. I guess where we have the biggest problem in that basically is in the leasing process as the tribes go through the approval of sites, or in areas that we are going to develop oil and gas.

It is basically in the areas of title. From our area we send it to the

regional office in Billings. That takes a long time to do a title

search on the lands. That is what seems to hold us back. That is

basically the biggest problem that I see in that.

The CHAIRMAN. Maybe the last question to Mr. Maynes.

Living there I know very well how progressive the Southern Utes

are and what a terrific energy story they have to tell. I understand

other tribes are now visiting the Southern Utes to see how they develop their own natural resources. I think that is terrific. They

have become a model for a lot of Indian tribes.

I just want to say that I am just very proud to have been living

in that area and watching the development of the Southern Ute

Tribe. Just for the information for the committee and any interested people, that tribe has now become the largest employer in

Southwest Colorado, not just the county of LaPlata, but in about

a four or five country area. They are the largest employer.

More than one-half the employees are non-Indians. So with all

of the development that has gone on with that Tribe, they have

helped everybody, not just the tribal members. They have helped

everybody in the area. I would like to think that is a standard that

we should have all tribes follow in a traditional way of Indian sharing, that they not only provide for their own people, but in fact

they have been good enough to provide for a lot of other people, too.

Thank you all for appearing here. There will probably be some

questions in writing that will be submitted to you.

Now we will go to the last panel. Unfortunately, we only have

about 15 or 20 minutes before I have to go to another meeting.

David Lester, executive director, council for Energy Resource

Tribes, and Bob Gough, secretary of the Intertribal Council on Utility Policy, please come forward.
87

We will start with David. Your complete testimony will be included in the record and if you would like to abbreviate your testimony, that would be good for us. It is nice to see you again.

STATEMENT OF DAVID LESTER, EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, COUNCIL FOR ENERGY RESOURCE TRIBES [CERT], DENVER, CO,

ACCOMPANIED BY VICTOR ROUBIDOUX, BOARD MEMBER,

COUNCIL OF ENERGY RESOURCE TRIBES

Mr. LESTER. It is nice to see you, Mr. Chairman.

Thank you very much for the opportunity to come before the

committee to say a few words about the two bills that we are very

excited about. We are very grateful for the work that your staff has

done in working with us, Indian tribes, and other tribal organizations in pulling together a national perspective on this.

Outside of the remarks that I have prepared, I was very taken

by the discussion about what will it take to increase Indian production for domestic tribal use within their own economies for their

own people, as well as energy to sell to make America more secure

in her energy needs.

The key word, I think, is ‘‘incentives.’’ Increased production follows increased incentives. We want to increase the exercise of our

sovereignty, but we don’t want a decrease in trust protection or in

the efficient administration of the trust responsibility. Right now

the administration of trust responsibility within the Department of

the Interior falls across four separate agencies. That is a decision

that was made some 20 years ago.

If the Commission is established, as the Department’s remarks

indicated that they are committed to do, a revisit of how it carries

out the administration of its trust responsibilities would be very

welcome, particularly if that were staffed or at least the Commissioners came from energy producing tribes. We hope that the Commission could increase the accountability of the trust.

There has not been enough emphasis in recent discussions of

trust. The trust has a protection or enforcement component to it as

well. It is all well and good to say that the tribe can negotiate the

best deal it can across the table if that table is even, is equitable,

and is not asymmetrical in terms of the tilt of the table against the

tribe. If we have a fair negotiating table, then the tribe can negotiate very fair deals.

The question, though, is: Who is monitoring to assure that the

deals that they won at the table are actually being fulfilled in operation? That is a trust responsibility.

We support leveling the tax field as well. There are disincentives

in the tax structure against the production of Indian energy resources in this country.

The trust responsibility makes it clear that need should be met

with support from both the Department of Energy and the Department of the Interior for technical assistance, both in terms of building tribal institutional capacity and technical assistance in doing

the resource assessments.

Information in this business is power. He who has the best information at the negotiation table has the best advantage in terms of

coming out with a deal favorable to their interests. Tribes are often

disadvantaged in information about their own resources. They are
88

relying on companies to come in with their own data collection and

their own resource assessments.

As we saw in the Navajo case, the companies have no obligation

to put all the information on the table for the tribes to know. We

believe that is a violation of the trust. We think that the trust requires that the tribe be given assistance so that the asymmetrical

nature of the negotiations is removed and we have a level playing

field.

We also mentioned strengthening the role of the Federal Government as they market for tribal energy, both fuel and electricity produced from Indian energy resources. The U.S. Government is the

largest consumer of energy in the world, both in fuels and in electricity.

The tribes have gone to agencies, have gone to facilities, and

have gone to Federal agencies, often with no success in terms of

coming together as partners in development of projects. It is hard

to get a generation project going. It is hard to get a refinery going.

It is hard to develop a project if you don’t have some assurance

that you have a customer at the other end of the deal. Investors

walk away unless they can see that there is a customer.

The Federal Government could play an important role in igniting

this by being the customer of first choice for many of these tribal

projects.

We are also encouraged by the role that energy efficiency could

play in Indian country because our homes, our facilities, our public

buildings, have not been built with energy efficiency in mind.

We are not only the poorest communities in America, but a higher percentage of our disposable income is going out the smokestack,

our windows, and the cracks in the doors of our homes and our facilities.

Again, the incentives should be that the savings stay within

those programs to increase and improve services. The beneficiary

should not be the U.S. Treasury but rather improved services to

local Indians.

We have comments on particular parts of the bill. We will expand on those because we think this is really important that we

bring energy policy in Indian country into and integrated with national energy policy. We need to integrate this into the policy

framework. We also need to be sure that we can access transmission and that we can access the market place and be players

in the biggest energy market in the world.

I would ask that my written testimony be placed in the record.

[Prepared statement of Mr. Lester appears in appendix.]

The CHAIRMAN. Obviously there are some good in each of these

bills and maybe some not quite so good. What we hope to do is take

the best of both. I have suggestions to try to make it a better bill.

Mr. LESTER.

Mr. Chairman, the treasurer of the Iowa Tribe of Oklahoma, who

is a member of the CERT Board of Directors and the chairman of

the CERT Board could not be with us. I would like to introduce

Victor Roubidoux who is accompanying me today.

The CHAIRMAN. Good afternoon.

If you have some comments, go ahead and present them.

Your name for the record?
89

STATEMENT OF VICTOR ROUBIDOUX, BOARD MEMBER,

COUNCIL OF ENERGY RESOURCE TRIBES

Mr. ROUBIDOUX. Good afternoon, Mr. Chairman and members of

the committee. I would like to thank the committee for holding this

hearing and to give the tribes the opportunity to testify on their

energy visions and their plans for the future.

My name is Victor Roubidoux and I am a board member of the

Council of Energy Resource Tribes. I am also the tribal treasurer

for the Iowa Tribe of Oklahoma. I am pleased to be here today to

offer brief comments regarding the importance of the proposed Indian energy legislation.

The Iowa Tribe of Oklahoma is working with CERT for the advancement of all tribes toward the National Tribal Energy Vision

adopted by CERT tribes which states that each sovereign Indian

tribe will have a sufficient and reliable supply of electricity at reasonable costs to support his social and economic well being.

The Iowa Tribe and CERT strongly support S. 424 and S. 522

and urge its enactment. Each tribe is distinct in their energy development to achieve their energy vision. The Iowa energy plan focuses on three areas: Energy development on our tribal lands; energy procurement opportunities with our tribally-owned energy

marketing company; and energy efficiency and tribal member energy programs.

The legislation to be considered will provide assistance for capacity building and to bring down Federal policy, regulatory, and financial barriers for tribes to become full partner participants in the

electricity market place. From my tribe’s projects, we would directly benefit by the grants to further enhance a hybrid wind and

natural gas distributive generation project to serve the load of our

tribal headquarters and the potential generation project on our

tribal trust lands.

Also, our tribally-owned energy marketing company, BKJ Energy, has partnered with Cintroleum, an Oklahoma energy research company. BKJ Energy will provide natural gas, feed stock,

to gas to liquid production, and demonstration project under the

DOE’s Ultraclean Fuels Program. The pilot demonstration facility

at the Port of Catoosa near Tulsa, Oklahoma, is under construction, and production of the clean diesel is expected this summer.

This partnership aligns itself with the tribe’s overall environmental policy. Producing a clean and efficient fuel is a cornerstone

and philosophy. We strongly urge the creation of the Office of Indian Energy Policy and Programs at DOE. This Office would be essential to promote tribal sovereignty and economic self-sufficiency

and move these proposals into reality.

Thank you, Mr. Chairman, for your time and attention.

The CHAIRMAN. Thank you.

Mr. Gough.

STATEMENT OF BOB GOUGH, SECRETARY OF THE INTERTRIBAL COUNCIL ON UTILITY POLICY [COUP], ROSEBUD, SD

Mr. GOUGH. Thank you, Mr. Chairman, and members of the committee. My name is Bob Gough. I serve as the Secretary of the

Intertribal Council on Utility Policy. I also am part of the Rosebud
90

Sioux Tribe Utilities Commission. Both are headquartered out

there.

Rosebud, as you may know, has very recently joined a very small

group of energy generators in being able to be the first tribe as a

commercial generator of wind energy in the United States. We are

delighted to be able to say that.

It has taken us eight years to go through all the hoops and hurdles to try to get this one project up. We think there are a number

of things in this bill that could certain speed that process up. We

have very detailed comments in our written testimony.

There are a couple of things that I would like to go over with the

Committee and bring to their attention. In your packet there are

some maps that we have provided and some materials that show

the tremendous energy resources, particularly the renewable energy resources, in Indian country—wind, solar, geothermal, and

biomass. There is a tremendous opportunity for these to be the

foundations for sustainable homeland economic development for

tribes today.

When we start looking at the time it takes to actually put in renewables, we are talking a matter of months rather than a matter

of years. There is no reason that these kinds of things cannot be

expedited. I just agree with the comments of David Lester that

there is a need for integration for tribal energy into the larger system. But it may not mean that we have to wait for an Indian energy bill to go through the whole process with a complete new Federal energy policy. There are things that need to be done today.

If you look at incentives, tribes are the only group that the Federal Government has a trust responsibility for, and yet it is the

only group in terms of renewables that there are no incentives for.

The renewables incentives go to production tax credit for those

businesses and for-profit operations. It goes for municipalities and

subdivisions of States. Tribes are left out of the picture in terms

of incentives.

In our case we are not asking for increased incentives. We are

asking to be able to participate in the incentives that already exists. This bill does that with regard to REPI, the Renewable Energy

Productive Incentive. We would like to see that bill also do that in

terms of making the production tax credit available either as

tradeable, assignable, or as an offset.

When you look at the renewable potential, particularly wind in

the Northern Plains, 12 reservations have something on the order

of 300 gigawatts of wind power potential. To put that in perspective, that’s 100 times more than all of the Missouri River produced.

It is about half of the installed electrical capacity in the United

States. It is a tremendous resource.

But we need to be able to get it on the grid. That grid is run and

owned by the Federal Government, the Western Area Power Administration. We need Federal help to work as full treaty partners,

and to be able to get our product on that farm-to-market road.

Right now there are disincentives for tribes and for renewables

to get on that grid. We are the new kids on the block in a very old

industry. We are going to need to have some of those rules changed

in a fair way to make sure that we have a level playing field to

be able to bring this kind of production on board.
91

The Rosebud Tribe is very excited. Our 8-year planning to go in

to produce a single turbine of 750 kilowatts has taught us many

lessons. We have taken it through many hurdles. We are ready to

spread that information with the other tribes and share that. Development can now take place in a much more rapid pace because

of that.

We have appreciated the opportunities of working with the various Federal agencies. RUS had terms of access for loan money

that have been available for 50 or 60 years to co-ops but not to

tribes and not for renewables. They are today because of this process.

What we would ask also is to see if this bill can be done in a

way that meets the criticism and concerns, and addresses those

issues brought out in this hearing. It may be moved as a stand

alone. I think that is very important. There are things that could

be done today and not hold tribal energy hostage to more divisive

energy debate that may take years to ultimately resolve.

Many of the provisions of this bill were approved, as I understand it, in conference committee last year but the overall bill

didn’t move forward. We have both sides of the aisle recognizing a

trust responsibility to tribes. We think this is one way to do it.

The Federal Government has a tremendous role to play in jump

starting the purchase of tribal power, particularly renewables. By

the year 2005, 19 months ago, 2.5 percent of the entire Federal

Government’s electrical energy purchase consumption is supposed

to come from renewable energy. Can tribes be first in line for that

kind of market?

That kind of power purchase agreement and interconnection

agreements, that the Federal Government can work with the tribes

as full treaty partners, can really make the difference in moving

tribes ahead for producing sustainable homeland economic development, energy independence for the United States, and a new economic opportunity for Indian tribes.

With that, I will take questions or yield the time to the other

members here. I would ask that my statement be placed in the

record in its entirety.

[Prepared statement of Mr. Gough appears in appendix.]

The CHAIRMAN. We will have to submit our questions because we

are running out of time.

It is my intention to try to bring a consensus bill up for a vote

in the committee just as quickly as we can meld it, hopefully within a couple of weeks. But we will keep the record open at least for

two weeks if you have any additional comments or suggestions as

to how we can improve them. I would appreciate your doing that.

Mr. LESTER. With your permission, Mr. Chairman, we would like

to work with your staff to help blend the two bills and come out

with the strongest possible bill in support of the tribal vision.

The CHAIRMAN. I think the timing is right for it, very frankly.

I don’t think that there is anyone in the country that doesn’t have

energy on their mind now, with paying up to $2 and more per gallon of gasoline on the West Coast, and the dependency on the very

country that we are about to get engaged in a war. It is just unbelievable that we could do that. So, I think the timing is really right.
92

Mr. GOUGH. Mr. Chairman, if I may, I have the honor of inviting

you, the other members of the committee, and your staff, to the

Rosebud Sioux Indian Reservation on May 1, for our dedication of

the beginning of the revolution of new renewable energy in Indian

Country. Please come.

The CHAIRMAN. I have always been interested in revolutions, so

I will try to get out there. [Laughter.]

Thank you. With that, this committee is adjourned.

[Whereupon, at 4:04 p.m., the committee was adjourned, to reconvene at the call of the Chair.]
(93)

APPENDIX

ADDITIONAL MATERIAL SUBMITTED FOR THE RECORD

PREPARED STATEMENT OF HON. CRAIG THOMAS, U.S. SENATOR FROM WYOMING

Thank you Mr. Chairman. I would like to welcome Theresa Rosier, Counselor to

the Assistant Secretary for Indian Affairs at the Department of the Interior, Vicky

Bailey, Assistant Secretary for Policy and International Affairs at the Department

of Energy, and tribal leaders, including Chairman Vernon Hill of the Eastern Shoshone Business Council, for being here with us today.

As Congress continues to develop a comprehensive energy bill, Indian resources

should not be overlooked. American Indian lands contain a significant amount of the

nation’s natural resources. The Eastern Shoshone and the Northern Arapaho tribes

both rely on revenue derived from natural resources—oil and gas in particular—to

fund governmental operations and provide services to their members. Although oil

and gas are important to these tribes, energy development potential has not been

fully recognized on the Wind River Reservation, which is over 2 million acres in

size. It is in our country’s best interest to develop these resources in an environmentally responsible manner.

I am pleased to be a cosponsor of Senator Campbell’s energy bill because it establishes an Indian energy resource development program within the Department of

Energy. Senators Inouye and Bingaman have also introduced legislation to address

the energy needs of American Indians. It is interesting to note that 9 of the 15

members on the Indian Affairs Committee are also members of the Senate Energy

Committee. Clearly, Indian energy is a priority for me and my western colleagues

and I look forward to working with them to develop a bipartisan measure that will

help American Indian economies and provide our country with reliable sources of

energy Thank you, Mr. Chairman.

PREPARED STATEMENT OF THERESA ROSIER, COUNSELOR TO THE ASSISTANT

SECRETARY—INDIAN AFFAIRS DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

Good afternoon, chairman, vice chairman and members of the committee. My

name is Theresa Rosier and I am the counselor to the Assistant Secretary—Indian

Affairs within the Department of the Interior. I am pleased to be here today to

present the Department of the Interior’s views on S. 522, the Native American Energy Development and Self-Determination Act of 2003 and S. 424, the Tribal Energy

Self-Sufficiency Act.

The Bureau of Indian Affairs [BIA] manages approximately 56 million acres of

land held in trust for individual Indians and Indian tribes in the lower 48 States

and Alaska. Currently, there are 1.81 million acres of actively leased oil, gas and

coal in various phases of exploration and development. It is estimated that an additional 15 million acres of undeveloped energy resources exist on individual and tribal land. Indian energy development plays an important role in the domestic production of fossil and renewable energy. In fact, production of energy minerals from Indian lands continues to represent over 10 percent of the total Federal onshore pro-
94

duction. Moreover, the production from Indian lands in the year 2001 was 13.1 million barrels of oil, 285 billion cubic feet of gas and 29.4 million short tons of coal.

Since most Indian lands are located in sedimentary basins possessing geophysical

features frequently associated with natural gas and oil, the potential for further energy development on Indian lands is exciting.

Increased energy development in Indian and Alaska Native communities means

increased jobs in these communities. In many Indian and Alaska Native communities, joblessness and underemployment are painfully acute. This dismal state of

affairs has impeded tribal economic development and self-sufficiency. More than

ever, tribes need the job and training opportunities that come hand-in-hand with

expanded mineral and energy development.

One of the tragic ironies of life in Indian communities is that tribes possess substantial energy resources yet pay some of the highest electrical costs or even lack

complete access to electricity. The Navajo, for example, reside on lands abundant

in minerals. They have coal, hydrocarbons, and photovoltaic assets. Yet a huge proportion of the Navajo people lack access to any electricity at all. Unfortunately,

blackouts, brownouts, and other kinds of energy disruptions are quite common in

many Indian communities.

Consistent with the President’s National Energy Policy to secure America’s energy

future, increased energy development in Indian and Alaska Native communities

could help the Nation have more reliable home grown energy supplies. S. 522 promotes increased and efficient energy development and production in an environmentally sound manner.

While the Administration supports the goals and objectives of S. 522, the promotion of both tribal self-determination and economic development, there are several provisions that we look forward to working with the committee on prior to moving forward in the legislative process. Because this legislation has programs for the

Department of Energy, the Department of the Interior, and Housing and Urban Development, my testimony is appropriately focused on those provisions relating to the

Department of the Interior.

S. 522 builds upon the self-determination principles of the Indian Mineral Development Act of 1982 to increase tribal control over the exploration, extraction, processing and development of fossil and renewable resources. Indian tribes are in the

best position to determine how and when minerals are to be extracted from their

lands. After all, increased tribal regulation and responsibility for their resources is

consistent with tribal sovereignty.

S. 552 would authorize individual Indians and tribal governments to enter into

energy development leases or business agreements without Federal review as long

as certain preconditions have been met. The preconditions are that the ‘‘Secretary’’ has already approved tribal regulations which govern these leases and business

agreements, and that these leases and agreements do not exceed 30 years. Moreover, the bill authorizes tribes to grant rights-of-way over tribal lands for pipelines,

electrical transmission or distribution lines without Federal review if the ‘‘Secretary’’ has approved the tribal regulations which govern the right-of-way, the rightof-way does not exceed 30 years, and the pipeline, transmission or distribution lines

serve a facility located on Indian lands or the energy has been produced on Indian

land. The Department supports tribal regulation and expedited review of these regulatory processes.

As drafted, it is unclear whether this section would apply to the Department of

the Interior or the Department of Energy. The Department believes that it is more

appropriate for the Secretary of the Interior to approve tribal regulations which govern the leasing of trust or restricted lands, business agreements, and rights-of-way

conveyance because the documentation necessary to approve such tribal regulations

requires trust records and payments that are under the purview of the Department

of the Interior.

Generally, the Department is also supportive of the creation of the Indian Energy

Resource Commission. Among other things, the Commission is tasked to recommend

improvements to the current tax structure governing Indian energy production. The

current tax structure in Indian country imposes multiple severance and ad valorem

taxes on those who extract and operate energy enterprises in Indian country.

We look to the Commission to recommend ways to facilitate economic growth in

Indian and Alaska Native communities. Hopefully, this will mean more tribal joint

ventures, greater tribal participation in the building of transmission and distribution lines, and increased tribal ownership of power plants and utility companies.

The Department is strongly opposed to the proposed power of the Commission to

subpoena testimony and records. We do not believe it is necessary for the Commission’s mission. The Commission should not be an investigatory body, but rather an

entity that looks to what the future can hold for Indian energy development. In ad-
95

dition, as we understand it, even the General Accounting Office does not have authority to subpoena records from Federal agencies.

President Bush’s National Energy Policy report established a comprehensive,

long-term energy strategy for securing America’s energy future. Both renewable and

nonrenewable Indian energy is uniquely positioned to play a vital role as the Nation

begins to curb its dependence on foreign energy supplies. In addition to traditional

energy sources, alternative and renewable energy sources are also a fundamental

component to the President’s energy policy. Geothermal, wind, hydro, and solar energy, while a small percentage of total U.S. energy supply and consumption, are important to the long-term energy security of this Nation.

The purposes of S. 424 are to establish an Office of Indian Energy Policy and Programs at the Department of Energy; to encourage greater tribal self-determination

in the regulation of Indian energy leases, rights-of-way, and business agreements;

to assess and evaluate the Indian Mineral Development Act of 1982; to conduct various studies and feasibility analysis related to Indian renewable and nonrenewable

energy; and to authorize certain Indian energy related provisions. My testimony will

focus on those provisions pertaining to the Department of the Interior.

S. 424 would authorize Indian tribes to lease tribal land for electric generation,

transmission or distribution, and for a facility to refine renewable or nonrenewable

energy without Department of the Interior approval. This expedited leasing process

is available to a tribe if two preconditions have been met: (1) the lease was carried

out under regulations which were already approved by the Secretary of the Interior

pursuant to provisions in the bill, and (2) the lease does not exceed 30 years. Moreover, tribes are also authorized to grant a right-of-way across tribal lands without

Secretary of the Interior approval if the right-of way is executed with regulations

pre-approved by the Secretary, the right-of-way does not exceed 30 years, and the

transmission or distribution line serves a facility located on Indian land, or aids the

processing of energy developed on Indian lands. In addition, S. 424 authorizes the

approval of energy business agreements without Secretarial review if a comprehensive environmental review process has been completed.

These provisions promote increased tribal self-determination as tribes administer

and regulate their tribal energy policy. Moreover, energy development promotes increased economic opportunities in Indian communities. An efficient, locally controlled regulatory structure in Indian communities creates a business friendly environment that encourages exciting partnerships between tribes, the private sector

and the Federal Government.

This section of the bill requires the Secretary of the Interior to conduct a review

of the Indian Mineral Development Act [IMDA] of 1982 and report to Congress within 1 year. The IMDA represented a fundamental shift in Indian energy development. Since its enactment, Indian tribes have become more proactive in developing

their energy resources. Since it has been 20 years since its enactment, assessing the

IMDA is important as tribes and Department begin to develop a national Indian energy plan. Currently, the BIA is planning a framework for formal consultation with

tribal leaders regarding a national Indian energy policy. These consultations will

build upon the groundwork that the BIA has recently completed. Since April the

BIA has held six Indian energy policy meetings throughout the United States with

representatives from more than 100 tribes to discuss the development of a tribally

driven energy policy.

Thank you for the opportunity to testify before you today to speak on a subject

that is a priority for this Administration, tribal leaders and the American public.

It is a very exciting and opportune time to focus on increased Indian energy development. I welcome any questions that the committee may have.

PREPARED STATEMENT OF VICKY BAILEY, ASSISTANT SECRETARY FOR POLICY AND

INTERNATIONAL AFFAIRS

Thank you, Mr. Chairman and members of the committee. I am pleased to be here

to discuss proposed legislation, S. 424 and S. 522, regarding Indian energy policy

and to provide you information on the Department’s current structure and ongoing

program. These activities recognize Secretary Abraham’s affirmation of the Department’s commitment to meet its responsibilities to Indian country in a manner consistent with the government-to-government relationship that exists between federally recognized tribes and the Department.

Introduction Before I begin my formal testimony, I would like to commend you,

Mr. Chairman, and the entire committee on your leadership in addressing the challenging issues before us. We all know that the United States is better served when

the Federal Government and Indian tribes work together to meet common objectives.
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From an energy perspective, Native American reservations contain large reserves

of oil and gas. There are an estimated 890 million barrels of oil and natural-gas liquids, and 5.6 trillion cubic feet of gas on tribal lands. This translates into huge potential revenues for the tribes even when conservative production estimates are

used.

President Bush recognizes the importance of energy to America: In his second

week in office, when the President established a group to draft a national energy

policy, he said that he wanted to ‘‘promote dependable, affordable, and environmentally sound production and distribution of energy for the future.’’ Indian energy

resource development and energy policy in general are areas where the Department

and Indian tribes share many mutual interests and can together influence America’s

future in a constructive manner. As Secretary Abraham has stated, the Administration wants to work with Congress on provisions that facilitate energy development

on tribal lands while enhancing and protecting the environment.

The Administration’s commitment to a comprehensive and balanced national energy policy is in the best interest of all Americans, and that is why the President

announced his National Energy Policy in May 2001, less than 4 months after he

took office. We face many energy challenges that require attention now. Enacting

an effective national energy policy during the 108th Congress is one of the President’s top priorities, and we are pleased that both houses of Congress are moving

forward. As you know, today, a key House subcommittee is marking up comprehensive energy legislation. The short- and long-term energy supply and demand issues

before us, in addition to posing challenges, provide an opportunity for us to improve

our environment and our economy while enhancing our energy future.

Americans share many common concerns regarding that energy future. Even

shared concerns may not offer one-size-fits-all solutions. Some issues will require

different approaches that recognize the unique dynamics at play due to any number

of factors and circumstances. Certainly there are issues unique to Indian country,

and we must have the tools to address them within our national energy policy

framework.

I would like to provide an overview of the Department of Energy’s structure in

order to provide a reference point for the proposed legislation. In implementing Secretary Abraham’s written direction to Department heads requesting that they honor

the government-to-government relationship that exists between the Federal Government and federally recognized Indian tribes, tribal points of contact have been established. These 50 points of contact focus on relations with Native American tribes

and Alaska Natives.

In addition, within DOE’s Office of Congressional and Intergovernmental affairs,

a Director of Indian Affairs serves as the Department’s primary point of contact on

Native American issues. A recent vacancy in that position should be filled in the

very near future, but the work of the Director continues to be performed through

our Office of Intergovernmental and External Affairs.

DOE and our power marketing administrations are committed to continuing our

work with tribal governments on the many issues in which we have a common interest. At this time, I would like to provide some insight into how DOE’s relationships

with American Indians work at the program and at the site levels. These representative examples of program activities and projects are intended to highlight our continuing efforts to improve the energy future specifically for Native American Tribes.

Office of Economic Impact and Diversity [ED]

ED supports nine Native American/Tribal-owned financial institutions through

the Bank Deposit Financial Assistance Program. These banks are located in a

seven-state area: California, Kansas, Missouri, Montana, North Carolina, and Oklahoma, and hold a total of $19.8 million in certificates of deposit to provide development loans to minority and women-owned business enterprises. The Native American National Bank is the first tribal owned American owned bank to serve as a

‘‘Trustee’’ for the Department’s Bank Deposit Financial Assistance Program, and

manages $3.7 million in for the Department of Energy.

ED provides financial support for the National Center for American Indian Enterprise Development, which educates and brings together Indian individuals, business

owners and corporations seeking business relationships with the Indian business

community.

Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy [EE]

EE is developing a Web-based tool to aid tribes in addressing their energy needs.

The site is intended to provide information on the process of developing energy resources, case studies, and other information.
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EE has participated in numerous tribal conferences, developed a brochure, and developed a website as a means of promoting the program and renewable energy technology transfer.

EE has completed installation of a 750 kW turbine on the Rosebud Sioux Indian

Reservation (Rosebud, SD). The project successfully demonstrated the use of ‘‘green

tags’’ to finance the installation and was the first tribe to obtain a USDA Rural Utility Service loan for commercial wind development.

Western Area Power Administration [WAPA]

WAPA’s 15-State service area includes more than 300 tribes, each with distinct

histories, values, issues and priorities. Transmission line rights-of-way cross 900

miles of reservation and tribal lands—a total of approximately 10,500 acres. In view

of the importance of WAPA’s work with Native Americans, a full-time Native American Liaison [NAL] position has been established at the Corporate Services Office.

The NAL will provide consultation guidance to all WAPA Regional offices and business functions to develop manage and coordinate Native American-related initiatives.

WAPA is currently allocating power, entering sales contracts and negotiating delivery arrangements to ensure Native Americans receive the benefit of Federal

power. WAPA modified its qualification requirements to make it possible for Indian

tribes to become new customers. WAPA continues to extend power allocations to Native American beneficiaries as old contracts expire throughout its service territory.

Western will continue its negotiations to put in place power contracts with 90 Indian tribes and Pueblos in 11 States.

The Department is reviewing the provisions of S. 424 and S. 522. These two bills

are comprehensive, and we support the goal of maximizing environmentally sound

resource development on tribal lands. We will continue to study the specific provisions of the legislation and look forward to working with you toward achievement

of our mutual objectives.

That concludes my prepared statement, Mr. Chairman. I hope that my testimony

provides you and the other members of the committee with a good understanding

or the importance this Administration attaches to our work with American Indian

tribes and Alaska Natives in the context of the President’s National Energy Policy.

I would be pleased to respond to any questions you may have.
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