89–010 

Calendar No. 280 

111TH CONGRESS REPORT " ! SENATE 2d Session 111–130 

SALMON LAKE LAND SELECTION RESOLUTION ACT 

MARCH 2, 2010.—Ordered to be printed 

Mr. BINGAMAN, from the Committee on Energy and Natural 

Resources, submitted the following 

R E P O R T 

[To accompany S. 522] 

The Committee on Energy and Natural Resources, to which was 

referred the bill (S. 522) to resolve the claims of the Bering Straits 

Native Corporation and the State of Alaska to land adjacent to 

Salmon Lake in the State of Alaska and to provide for the conveyance to the Bering Straits Native Corporation of certain other public land in partial satisfaction of the land entitlement of the Corporation under the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act, having 

considered the same, reports favorably thereon with an amendment 

and recommends that the bill, as amended, do pass. 

The amendment is as follows: 

Strike all after the enacting clause and insert the following: 

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Salmon Lake Land Selection Resolution Act’’. 

SEC. 2. PURPOSE. 

The purpose of this Act is to ratify the Salmon Lake Area Land Ownership Consolidation Agreement entered into by the United States, the State of Alaska, and 

the Bering Straits Native Corporation. 

SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS. 

In this Act: 

(1) AGREEMENT.—The term ‘‘Agreement’’ means the document between the 

United States, the State, and the Bering Straits Native Corporation that— 

(A) is entitled the ‘‘Salmon Lake Area Land Ownership Consolidation 

Agreement’’; 

(B) had an initial effective date of July 18, 2007, which was extended 

until January 1, 2011 by agreement of the parties to the Agreement effective January 1, 2009; and 

(C) is on file with Department of the Interior, the Committee on Energy 

and Natural Resources of the Senate, and the Committee on Natural Resources of the House of Representatives. 


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(2) BERING STRAITS NATIVE CORPORATION.—The term ‘‘Bering Straits Native 

Corporation’’ means an Alaskan Native Regional Corporation formed under the 

Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act (43 U.S.C. 1601 et seq.) for the Bering 

Straits region of the State. 

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

(4) STATE.—The term ‘‘State’’ means the State of Alaska. 

SEC. 4. RATIFICATION AND IMPLEMENTATION OF AGREEMENT. 

(a) IN GENERAL.—Subject to the provisions of this Act, Congress ratifies the 

Agreement. 

(b) EASEMENTS.—The conveyance of land to the Bering Straits Native Corporation, 

as specified in the Agreement, shall include the reservation of the easements that— 

(1) are identified in Appendix E to the Agreement; and 

(2) were developed by the parties to the Agreement in accordance with section 

17(b) of the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act (43 U.S.C. 1616(b)). 

(c) CORRECTIONS.—Beginning on the date of enactment of this Act, the Secretary, 

with the consent of the other parties to the Agreement, may only make typographical or clerical corrections to the Agreement and any exhibits to the Agreement. 

(d) AUTHORIZATION.—The Secretary shall carry out all actions required by the 

Agreement. 

PURPOSE

The purpose of S. 522 is to ratify an agreement entered into by 

the Secretary of the Interior, the State of Alaska, and the Bering 

Straits Native Corporation to resolve certain land selections under 

the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act and the Alaska Statehood Act. 

BACKGROUND AND NEED

Salmon Lake is one of the largest bodies of fresh water on the 

Seward Peninsula and has been an important source of food and 

resources for Native Alaskans since ancient times. The lake is located approximately 40 miles northeast of Nome and is a popular 

recreation destination with campgrounds and other lands that are 

managed by the Bureau of Land Management (BLM). 

The Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act (ANCSA) created Regional Native Corporations with the right to select certain Federal 

land as part of a settlement of aboriginal land claims in Alaska. 

The Bering Straits Native Corporation (BSNC) exercised its rights 

under ANCSA by selecting land around Salmon Lake. The State of 

Alaska also selected some of the same land under the Alaska Statehood Act, which granted the State the opportunity to select certain 

Federal land in Alaska for the benefit of the State. 

To resolve the conflicting claims and avoid further administrative 

and legal challenges, the State, BSNC and the BLM entered into 

negotiations and subsequently signed the ‘‘Salmon Lake Area Land 

Ownership Consolidation Agreement’’ in 2007. Both the State and 

BSNC relinquished certain claims in order to settle the dispute. 

The Agreement provides for the conveyance of approximately 3,084 

acres of land in the Salmon Lake area to the State and approximately 14,644 acres of land in the Salmon Lake, Imuruk Basin, 

and Windy Cove areas to BSNC. The BLM would maintain ownership of a nine acre campground with access to other important Federal lands nearby and retain a number of public access easements 

and other appropriate reservations. 

The initial effective date of the negotiated agreement was July 

18, 2007, and it was set to expire by its own terms on January 1, 

2009. The term of the Agreement was extended until January 1, 


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2011, unless legislation is enacted ratifying the terms of the Agreement or the parties agree to further extend the term of the Agreement. 

LEGISLATIVE HISTORY

S. 522 was introduced by Senators Murkowski and Begich on 

March 4, 2009. The Subcommittee on Public Lands and Forests 

held a hearing on the bill on October 8, 2009. At its business meeting on December 16, 2009, the Committee on Energy and Natural 

Resources ordered S. 522 favorably reported with an amendment in 

the nature of a substitute. 

COMMITTEE RECOMMENDATION

The Committee on Energy and Natural Resources, in open business session on December 16, 2009, by a voice vote of a quorum 

present, recommends that the Senate pass S. 522, if amended as 

described herein. 

COMMITTEE AMENDMENT

During its consideration of S. 522, the Committee adopted an 

amendment in the nature of a substitute. The amendment clarifies 

and adds a number of definitions to the bill, includes specific direction on the reservation of easements by the United States, and limits future modifications to the Agreement. The amendment is explained in detail in the section-by-section analysis below. 

SECTION-BY-SECTION ANALYSIS

Sections 1, 2, and 3 provide the short title, purpose, and definitions for the bill. 

Section 4(a) ratifies the Agreement. 

Subsection (b) requires the conveyance of land to BSNC to be 

subject to the reservation of certain easements specified in the 

Agreement. Paragraph 4.b.(3)(B) of the Agreement provides that 

the conveyances to the State shall be ‘‘subject to appropriate reservations, exceptions, exclusions, and limitations.’’ Paragraph 

4.b.(3)(C) of the Agreement has identical language in relation to 

the conveyances to BSNC, but it also provides for the reservation 

of specific easements (identified in Appendix E to the Agreement), 

which ‘‘shall be reserved pursuant to the legislation ratifying this 

Agreement.’’ Subsection (b) specifically provides for those easements to be reserved pursuant to terms of the bill, while at the 

same time clarifying that the easements are substantively the 

same as easements reserved pursuant to section 17(b) of ANCSA. 

Subsection (c) limits modifications to the Agreement after the 

date of enactment of the bill to typographical and clerical corrections. 

Subsection (d) directs the Secretary of the Interior to carry out 

all actions required by the Agreement. 

COST AND BUDGETARY CONSIDERATIONS

The following estimate of costs of this measure has been provided 

by the Congressional Budget Office: 


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S. 522—Salmon Lake Land Selection Resolution Act 

S. 522 would ratify an agreement settling a land dispute between 

the state of Alaska and the Bering Straits Native Corporation (a 

native-owned regional corporation established to administer land 

given to Alaska Natives under the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act). Based on information from the Bureau of Land Management (BLM), CBO expects that implementing the legislation would 

have a negligible impact on the federal budget. 

Under the bill, the federal government would convey about 

18,000 acres of land located in western Alaska to the Bering Straits 

Native Corporation and the state of Alaska to satisfy claims made 

by those parties under the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act 

and the Alaska Statehood Act. The federal government currently 

collects about $1,500 per year from a lease on the affected land. 

Based on information from BLM, CBO estimates that implementing the bill would reduce federal receipts by less than $20,000 

over the 2010–2020 period. 

S. 522 contains no intergovernmental or private-sector mandates 

as defined in the Unfunded Mandates Reform Act and would impose no costs on state, local, or tribal governments. 

The CBO staff contact for this estimate is Jeff LaFave. The estimate was approved by Theresa Gullo, Deputy Assistant Director 

for Budget Analysis. 

REGULATORY IMPACT EVALUATION

In compliance with paragraph 11(b) of rule XXVI of the Standing 

Rules of the Senate, the Committee makes the following evaluation 

of the regulatory impact which would be incurred in carrying out 

S. 522. 

The bill is not a regulatory measure in the sense of imposing 

Government-established standards or significant economic responsibilities on private individuals and businesses. 

No personal information would be collected in administering the 

program. Therefore, there would be no impact on personal privacy. 

Little, if any, additional paperwork would result from the enactment of S. 522, as ordered reported. 

CONGRESSIONALLY DIRECTED SPENDING

S. 522, as reported, does not contain any congressionally directed 

spending items, limited tax benefits, or limited tariff benefits as defined in rule XLIV of the Standing Rules of the Senate. 

EXECUTIVE COMMUNICATIONS

The testimony provided by the Bureau of Land Management at 

the subcommittee hearing on S. 522 on October 8, 2009 follows: 

STATEMENT OF MARCILYNN A. BURKE, DEPUTY DIRECTOR, 

BUREAU OF LAND MANAGEMENT, DEPARTMENT OF INTERIOR

Thank you for the opportunity to testify on S. 522, the 

Salmon Lake Land Selection Resolution Act. As a party to 

the Salmon Lake Area Land Ownership Consolidation 

Agreement, the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) has 

supported efforts between the State of Alaska and the Bering Straits Native Corporation (BSNC) to resolve overlapVerDate Nov 24 2008 06:13 Mar 04, 2010 Jkt 089010 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6659 Sfmt 6969 E:\HR\OC\SR130.XXX SR130

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ping land selections at Salmon Lake. As such, the BLM 

supports S. 522 because it will ratify the agreement between the BLM, BSNC, and the State of Alaska, and allow 

for a reasonable and practicable conveyance of lands in the 

Salmon Lake area. 

BACKGROUND

Salmon Lake is located on the Seward Peninsula, approximately 40 miles northeast of Nome. The lake is one 

of the largest bodies of fresh water on the peninsula, and 

has long been an important source of food and resources 

for the Native people. Because the area contains significant fisheries and other subsistence resources, it remains 

a popular resource and destination for local communities. 

The BLM is responsible for expediting the conveyance of 

Federal lands to Native corporations, including the BSNC, 

under the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act (ANCSA), 

and to the State of Alaska under the Alaska Statehood Act 

of 1958. 

The BSNC, the Native regional corporation for the Bering Straits area, and the State of Alaska each sought to 

gain title to the Salmon Lake area through selection applications filed under respective provisions of ANCSA and the 

Alaska Statehood Act. However, the land addressed by the 

two applications overlapped. The BSNC and the State negotiated a resolution to this issue whereby each entity 

would receive title to distinct lands. The BLM supported 

this resolution, and the three parties signed the Salmon 

Lake Area Land Ownership Consolidation Agreement on 

July 18, 2007. Legislation is now required to ratify the 

Agreement between the United States (acting through the 

Department of Interior, BLM), the BSNC, and the State of 

Alaska. The Agreement would have expired on January 1, 

2009, but its term was extended to January 1, 2011 in anticipation of ratifying legislation. 

S. 522

S. 522 represents an opportunity to resolve the overlapping land selections between the BSNC and the State. The 

bill would ratify the Agreement between the BLM, the 

BSNC, and the State, and allow for finalization of land 

conveyances in the Salmon Lake area. The lands would be 

transferred in accordance with the terms of the signed 

Agreement. 

As noted, the BLM supported the efforts between the 

BSNC and State, and signed the Agreement to recognize 

the desires of the entities. The bill would also further the 

intent of the Alaska Land Transfer Acceleration Act of 

2004 (PL 108–452), expediting the transfer of title to federal lands to Native corporations and the State of Alaska. 

CONCLUSION

Thank you for the opportunity to testify in support of S. 

522. I am happy to answer any questions. 


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CHANGES IN EXISTING LAW

In compliance with paragraph 12 of rule XXVI of the Standing 

Rules of the Senate, the Committee notes that no changes in existing law are made by S. 522, as ordered reported. 


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