I 

112TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION H. R. 3973 

To facilitate the development of energy on Indian lands by reducing Federal 

regulations that impede tribal development of Indian lands, and for 

other purposes. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

FEBRUARY 7, 2012 

Mr. YOUNG of Alaska introduced the following bill; which was referred to the 

Committee on Natural Resources 

A BILL 

To facilitate the development of energy on Indian lands by 

reducing Federal regulations that impede tribal development of Indian lands, 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 Act’’. 

6 SEC. 2. TABLE OF CONTENTS. 

7 The table of contents for this Act is as follows: 

Sec. 1. Short title. 

Sec. 2. Table of Contents. 

Sec. 3. Appraisals. 

Sec. 4. Standardization. 


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Sec. 5. Environmental reviews of major Federal actions on Indian lands. 

Sec. 6. Indian Energy Development Offices. 

Sec. 7. BLM Oil and Gas Fees. 

Sec. 8. Bonding requirements and nonpayment of attorneys’ fees to promote indian energy projects. 

Sec. 9. Tribal biomass demonstration project. 

Sec. 10. Tribal Resource Management Plans. 

Sec. 11. Leases of Restricted Lands for the Navajo Nation. 

1 SEC. 3. APPRAISALS. 

2 (a) AMENDMENT.—Title XXVI of the Energy Policy 

3 Act of 1992 (25 U.S.C. 3501 et seq.) is amended by add4 ing at the end the following: 

5 ‘‘SEC. 2608. APPRAISAL REFORMS. 

6 ‘‘(a) OPTIONS TO INDIAN TRIBES.—With respect to 

7 a transaction involving Indian land or the trust assets of 

8 an Indian tribe that requires the approval of the Sec9 retary, any appraisal relating to fair market value required 

10 to be conducted under applicable law, regulation, or policy 

11 may be completed by— 

12 ‘‘(1) the Secretary; 

13 ‘‘(2) the affected Indian tribe; or 

14 ‘‘(3) a certified, third-party appraiser pursuant 

15 to a contract with the Indian tribe. 

16 ‘‘(b) TIME LIMIT ON SECRETARIAL REVIEW AND AC17 TION.—Not later than 30 days after the date on which 

18 the Secretary receives an appraisal conducted by or for 

19 an Indian tribe pursuant to paragraphs (2) or (3) of sub20 section (a), the Secretary shall— 

21 ‘‘(1) review the appraisal; and 


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1 ‘‘(2) provide to the Indian tribe a written notice 

2 of approval or disapproval of the appraisal. 

3 ‘‘(c) FAILURE OF SECRETARY TO APPROVE OR DIS4 APPROVE.—If, after 60 days, the Secretary has failed to 

5 approve or disapprove any appraisal received, the ap6 praisal shall be deemed approved. 

7 ‘‘(d) OPTION TO INDIAN TRIBES TO WAIVE AP8 PRAISAL.— 

9 ‘‘(1) An Indian tribe wishing to waive the re10 quirements of subsection (a), may do so after it has 

11 satisfied the requirements of subsections (2) and (3) 

12 below. 

13 ‘‘(2) An Indian tribe wishing to forego the ne14 cessity of a waiver pursuant to this section must 

15 provide to the Secretary a written resolution, state16 ment, or other unambiguous indication of tribal in17 tent, duly approved by the governing body of the In18 dian tribe. 

19 ‘‘(3) The unambiguous indication of intent pro20 vided by the Indian tribe to the Secretary under 

21 paragraph (2) must include an express waiver by the 

22 Indian tribe of any claims for damages it might have 

23 against the United States as a result of the lack of 

24 an appraisal undertaken. 


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1 ‘‘(e) DEFINITION.—For purposes of this subsection, 

2 the term ‘appraisal’ includes appraisals and other esti3 mates of value. 

4 ‘‘(f) REGULATIONS.—The Secretary shall develop 

5 regulations for implementing this section, including stand6 ards the Secretary shall use for approving or disapproving 

7 an appraisal.’’. 

8 (b) CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—The table of con9 tents of the Energy Policy Act of 1992 (42 U.S.C. 13201 

10 note) is amended by adding at the end of the items relat11 ing to title XXVI the following: 

‘‘Sec. 2608. Appraisal Reforms.’’. 

12 SEC. 4. STANDARDIZATION. 

13 As soon as practicable after the date of the enactment 

14 of this Act, the Secretary of the Interior shall implement 

15 procedures to ensure that each agency within the Depart16 ment of the Interior that is involved in the review, ap17 proval, and oversight of oil and gas activities on Indian 

18 lands shall use a uniform system of reference numbers and 

19 tracking systems for oil and gas wells. 

20 SEC. 5. ENVIRONMENTAL REVIEWS OF MAJOR FEDERAL 

21 ACTIONS ON INDIAN LANDS. 

22 Section 102 of the National Environmental Policy 

23 Act of 1969 (42 U.S.C. 4332) is amended by inserting 

24 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—’’ before the first sentence, and by 

25 adding at the end the following: 


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1 ‘‘(b) REVIEW OF MAJOR FEDERAL ACTIONS ON IN2 DIAN LANDS.— 

3 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—For any major Federal ac4 tion on Indian lands of an Indian tribe requiring the 

5 preparation of a statement under subsection 

6 (a)(2)(C), the statement shall only be available for 

7 review and comment by the members of the Indian 

8 tribe and by any other individual residing within the 

9 affected area. 

10 ‘‘(2) REGULATIONS.—The Chairman of the 

11 Council on Environmental Quality shall develop reg12 ulations to implement this section, including descrip13 tions of affected areas for specific major Federal ac14 tions, in consultation with Indian tribes. 

15 ‘‘(3) DEFINITIONS.—In this subsection, each of 

16 the terms ‘Indian land’ and ‘Indian tribe’ has the 

17 meaning given that term in section 2601 of the En18 ergy Policy Act of 1992 (25 U.S.C. 3501). 

19 ‘‘(4) CLARIFICATION OF AUTHORITY.—Nothing 

20 in the Native American Energy Act, except section 

21 8 of that Act, shall give the Secretary any additional 

22 authority over energy projects on Alaska Native 

23 Claims Settlement Act lands.’’. 


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1 SEC. 6. INDIAN ENERGY DEVELOPMENT OFFICES. 

2 Section 2602(a) of the Energy Policy Act of 1992 

3 (25 U.S.C. 3502(a)) is amended— 

4 (1) by redesignating paragraph (3) as para5 graph (4); 

6 (2) by inserting after paragraph (2) the fol7 lowing: 

8 ‘‘(3) INDIAN ENERGY DEVELOPMENT OF9 FICES.— 

10 ‘‘(A) ESTABLISHMENT.—To assist the Sec11 retary in carrying out the Program, the Sec12 retary shall establish within the Department of 

13 the Interior not less than 5 offices. 

14 ‘‘(B) NAMING.—Each office established 

15 under subparagraph (A) shall be known as an 

16 ‘Indian Energy Development Office’. 

17 ‘‘(C) LOCATION.—The Secretary shall lo18 cate each Indian Energy Development Office— 

19 ‘‘(i) within a regional or agency office 

20 of the Bureau of Indian Affairs; and 

21 ‘‘(ii) to the maximum extent prac22 ticable, in an area in which there exists a 

23 high quantity of tribal energy development 

24 opportunities, as determined by the Sec25 retary in consultation with Indian tribes. 


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1 ‘‘(D) DIRECTORS.—Each Indian Energy 

2 Development Office established under this para3 graph shall be headed by a director. 

4 ‘‘(E) DUTIES.—The director of each In5 dian Energy Development Office shall— 

6 ‘‘(i) provide energy-related informa7 tion and resources to Indian tribes and 

8 tribal members; 

9 ‘‘(ii) coordinate meetings and out10 reach among Indian tribes, tribal members, 

11 energy companies, and relevant Federal, 

12 State, and tribal agencies; 

13 ‘‘(iii) oversee, and ensure the timely 

14 processing of, Indian energy applications, 

15 permits, licenses, and other documents 

16 that are subject to development, review, or 

17 processing by— 

18 ‘‘(I) the Bureau of Indian Af19 fairs; 

20 ‘‘(II) the Bureau of Land Man21 agement; 

22 ‘‘(III) the National Park Service; 

23 ‘‘(IV) the United States Fish and 

24 Wildlife Service; 

25 ‘‘(V) the Bureau of Reclamation; 


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1 ‘‘(VI) the Minerals Management 

2 Service; or 

3 ‘‘(VII) the Office of Special 

4 Trustee for American Indians of the 

5 Department of the Interior; and 

6 ‘‘(iv) consult with Indian tribes that 

7 will be served by an Indian Energy Devel8 opment Office to determine what services, 

9 information, facilities, or programs would 

10 best expedite the responsible development 

11 of energy resources. 

12 ‘‘(F) STAFF.—Each Indian Energy Devel13 opment Office established under this paragraph 

14 shall be adequately staffed to meet the demand 

15 for energy permitting in the region or agency 

16 where the office is established.’’. 

17 SEC. 7. BLM OIL AND GAS FEES. 

18 The Secretary of the Interior, acting through the Bu19 reau of Land Management, shall not collect any fee for 

20 any of the following: 

21 (1) For an application for a permit to drill on 

22 Indian land. 

23 (2) To conduct any oil or gas inspection activity 

24 on Indian land. 


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1 (3) On any oil or gas lease for nonproducing 

2 acreage on Indian land. 

3 SEC. 8. BONDING REQUIREMENTS AND NONPAYMENT OF 

4 ATTORNEYS’ FEES TO PROMOTE INDIAN EN5 ERGY PROJECTS. 

6 (a) IN GENERAL.—A plaintiff who obtains a prelimi7 nary injunction or administrative stay in an energy related 

8 action, but does not ultimately prevail on the merits of 

9 the energy related action, shall be liable for damages sus10 tained by a defendant who— 

11 (1) opposed the preliminary injunction or ad12 ministrative stay; and 

13 (2) was harmed by the preliminary injunction 

14 or administrative stay. 

15 (b) BOND.—Unless otherwise specifically exempted 

16 by Federal law, a court may not issue a preliminary in17 junction and an agency may not grant an administrative 

18 stay in an energy related action until the plaintiff posts 

19 with the court or the agency a surety bond or cash equiva20 lent— 

21 (1) in an amount the court or agency decides 

22 is 30 percent of that amount that the court or agen23 cy considers is sufficient to compensate each defend24 ant opposing the preliminary injunction or adminis25 trative stay for damages, including but not limited 


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1 to preliminary development costs, additional develop2 ment costs, and reasonable attorney fees, that each 

3 defendant may sustain as a result of the preliminary 

4 injunction or administrative stay; 

5 (2) written by a surety licensed to do business 

6 in the state in which the Indian Land or other land 

7 where the activities are undertaken is situated; and 

8 (3) payable to each defendant opposing the pre9 liminary injunction or administrative stay, in the 

10 event that the plaintiff does not prevail on the mer11 its of the energy related action, Provided, that, if 

12 there is more than one plaintiff, the court or agency 

13 shall establish the amount of the bond required by 

14 this Subsection for each plaintiff in a fair and equi15 table manner. 

16 (c) LIMITATION ON CERTAIN PAYMENTS.—Notwith17 standing section 1304 of title 31, United States Code, no 

18 award may be made under section 504 of title 5, United 

19 States Code, or under section 2412 of title 28, United 

20 States Code, and no amounts may be obligated or ex21 pended from the Claims and Judgment Fund of the 

22 United States Treasury to pay any fees or other expenses 

23 under such sections to any plaintiff related to an energy 

24 related action. 


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1 (d) DEFINITIONS.—For the purposes of this section, 

2 the following definitions apply: 

3 (1) ADMINISTRATIVE STAY.—The term ‘‘Ad4 ministrative Stay’’ means a stay or other temporary 

5 remedy issued by a Federal agency, including the 

6 Department of the Interior, the Department of Agri7 culture, the Department of Energy, the Department 

8 of Commerce, and the Environmental Protection 

9 Agency. 

10 (2) INDIAN LAND.—The term ‘‘Indian Land’’ 

11 has the same meaning given such term in section 

12 203(c)(3) of the Energy Policy Act of 2005 (Public 

13 Law 109–58; 25 U.S.C. 3501), including lands 

14 owned by Native Corporations under the Alaska Na15 tive Claims Settlement Act (Public Law 92–203; 43 

16 U.S.C. 1601). 

17 (3) ENERGY RELATED ACTION.—The term ‘‘en18 ergy related action’’ means a cause of action that— 

19 (A) is filed on or after the effective date of 

20 this Act; and 

21 (B) seeks judicial review of a final agency 

22 action (as defined in section 702 of title 5, 

23 United States Code), to issue a permit, license, 

24 or other form of agency permission allowing: 


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1 (i) any person or entity to conduct ac2 tivities on Indian Land, which activities in3 volve the exploration, development, produc4 tion or transportation of oil, gas, coal, 

5 shale gas, oil shale, geothermal resources, 

6 wind or solar resources, underground coal 

7 gasification, biomass, or the generation of 

8 electricity, or 

9 (ii) any Indian Tribe, or any organiza10 tion of two or more entities, at least one 

11 of which is an Indian tribe, to conduct ac12 tivities involving the exploration, develop13 ment, production or transportation of oil, 

14 gas, coal, shale gas, oil shale, geothermal 

15 resources, wind or solar resources, under16 ground coal gasification, biomass, or the 

17 generation of electricity, regardless of 

18 where such activities are undertaken. 

19 (C) ULTIMATELY PREVAIL ON THE MER20 ITS.—The phrase ‘‘Ultimately prevail on the 

21 merits’’ means, in a final enforceable judgment 

22 on the merits, the court rules in the plaintiff’s 

23 favor on at least one cause of action which is 

24 an underlying rationale for the preliminary in25 junction, and does not include circumstances 


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1 where the final agency action is modified or 

2 amended by the issuing agency unless such 

3 modification or amendment is required pursu4 ant to a final enforceable judgment of the court 

5 or a court-ordered consent decree. 

6 SEC. 9. TRIBAL BIOMASS DEMONSTRATION PROJECT. 

7 The Tribal Forest Protection Act of 2004 (25 U.S.C. 

8 3115a) is amended by inserting after section 2 the fol9 lowing: 

10 ‘‘SEC. 3. TRIBAL BIOMASS DEMONSTRATION PROJECT. 

11 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—For each of fiscal years 2013 

12 through 2017, the Secretary shall enter into stewardship 

13 contracts or other agreements, other than agreements that 

14 are exclusively direct service contracts, with Indian tribes 

15 to carry out demonstration projects to promote biomass 

16 energy production (including biofuel, heat, and electricity 

17 generation) on Indian forest land and in nearby commu18 nities by providing reliable supplies of woody biomass from 

19 Federal land. 

20 ‘‘(b) DEFINITIONS.—The definitions in section 2 

21 shall apply to this section. 

22 ‘‘(c) DEMONSTRATION PROJECTS.—In each fiscal 

23 year for which projects are authorized, the Secretary shall 

24 enter into contracts or other agreements described in sub25 section (a) to carry out at least 4 new demonstration 


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1 projects that meet the eligibility criteria described in sub2 section (d). 

3 ‘‘(d) ELIGIBILITY CRITERIA.—To be eligible to enter 

4 into a contract or other agreement under this subsection, 

5 an Indian tribe shall submit to the Secretary an applica6 tion— 

7 ‘‘(1) containing such information as the Sec8 retary may require; and 

9 ‘‘(2) that includes a description of— 

10 ‘‘(A) the Indian forest land or rangeland 

11 under the jurisdiction of the Indian tribe; and 

12 ‘‘(B) the demonstration project proposed 

13 to be carried out by the Indian tribe. 

14 ‘‘(e) SELECTION.—In evaluating the applications 

15 submitted under subsection (c), the Secretary— 

16 ‘‘(1) shall take into consideration the factors set 

17 forth in paragraphs (1) and (2) of section 2(e) of 

18 Public Law 108–278; and whether a proposed dem19 onstration project would— 

20 ‘‘(A) increase the availability or reliability 

21 of local or regional energy; 

22 ‘‘(B) enhance the economic development of 

23 the Indian tribe; 


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1 ‘‘(C) improve the connection of electric 

2 power transmission facilities serving the Indian 

3 tribe with other electric transmission facilities; 

4 ‘‘(D) improve the forest health or water5 sheds of Federal land or Indian forest land or 

6 rangeland; or 

7 ‘‘(E) otherwise promote the use of woody 

8 biomass; and 

9 ‘‘(2) shall exclude from consideration any mer10 chantable logs that have been identified by the Sec11 retary for commercial sale. 

12 ‘‘(f) IMPLEMENTATION.—The Secretary shall— 

13 ‘‘(1) ensure that the criteria described in sub14 section (c) are publicly available by not later than 

15 120 days after the date of enactment of this section; 

16 and 

17 ‘‘(2) to the maximum extent practicable, consult 

18 with Indian tribes and appropriate intertribal orga19 nizations likely to be affected in developing the ap20 plication and otherwise carrying out this section. 

21 ‘‘(g) REPORT.—Not later than September 20, 2015, 

22 the Secretary shall submit to Congress a report that de23 scribes, with respect to the reporting period— 

24 ‘‘(1) each individual tribal application received 

25 under this section; and 


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1 ‘‘(2) each contract and agreement entered into 

2 pursuant to this section. 

3 ‘‘(h) INCORPORATION OF MANAGEMENT PLANS.—In 

4 carrying out a contract or agreement under this section, 

5 on receipt of a request from an Indian tribe, the Secretary 

6 shall incorporate into the contract or agreement, to the 

7 extent practicable, management plans (including forest 

8 management and integrated resource management plans) 

9 in effect on the Indian forest land or rangeland of the re10 spective Indian tribe. 

11 ‘‘(i) TERM.—A stewardship contract or other agree12 ment entered into under this section— 

13 ‘‘(1) shall be for a term of not more than 20 

14 years; and 

15 ‘‘(2) may be renewed in accordance with this 

16 section for not more than an additional 10 years.’’. 

17 SEC. 10. TRIBAL RESOURCE MANAGEMENT PLANS. 

18 Unless otherwise explicitly exempted by Federal law 

19 enacted after the date of the enactment of this Act, any 

20 activity conducted or resources harvested or produced pur21 suant to a tribal resource management plan or an inte22 grated resource management plan approved by the Sec23 retary of the Interior under the National Indian Forest 

24 Resources Management Act (25 U.S.C. 3101 et seq.) or 

25 the American Indian Agricultural Resource Management 


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1 Act (25 U.S.C. 3701 et seq.), shall be considered a sus2 tainable management practice for purposes of any Federal 

3 standard, benefit, or requirement that requires a dem4 onstration of such sustainability. 

5 SEC. 11. LEASES OF RESTRICTED LANDS FOR THE NAVAJO 

6 NATION. 

7 Subsection (e)(1) of the first section of the Act of 

8 August 9, 1955, (25 U.S.C. 415(e)(1); commonly referred 

9 to as the ‘‘Long-Term Leasing Act’’) is amended— 

10 (1) by striking ‘‘, except a lease for’’ and insert11 ing ‘‘, including leases for’’; 

12 (2) in subparagraph (A), by striking ‘‘25’’ and 

13 all that follows and inserting ‘‘99 years;’’; 

14 (3) in subparagraph (B), by striking the period 

15 and inserting ‘‘; and’’; and 

16 (4) by adding at the end the following: 

17 ‘‘(C) in the case of a lease for the explo18 ration, development, or extraction of mineral re19 sources, including geothermal resources, 25 

20 years, except that any such lease may include 

21 an option to renew for one additional term not 

22 to exceed 25 years.’’. 

Æ 


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