89–010 

1 In 1855, upon execution of the original 1855 Treaty these tribes were collectively referred 

to as the Confederated Tribes and Bands of Middle Oregon. In 1937, three Indian tribes, the 

Warm Springs, Wasco, and Paiute organized as the Confederated Tribes of the Warm Springs 

Reservation of Oregon by adopting a constitution and by-laws for tribal government under the 

Indian Reorganization Act. 2 Article II, Section 2, Clause 2 of the United States Constitution. 

Calendar No. 110 

116TH CONGRESS REPORT " ! SENATE 1st Session 116–45 

TO NULLIFY THE SUPPLEMENTAL TREATY BETWEEN THE UNITED 

STATES OF AMERICA AND THE CONFEDERATED TRIBES AND BANDS OF 

INDIANS OF MIDDLE OREGON, CONCLUDED ON NOVEMBER 15, 1865 

JUNE 10, 2019.—Ordered to be printed 

Mr. HOEVEN, from the Committee on Indian Affairs, 

submitted the following 

R E P O R T 

[To accompany S. 832] 

[Including cost estimate of the Congressional Budget Office] 

The Committee on Indian Affairs, to which was referred the bill 

(S. 832) to nullify the Supplemental Treaty Between the United 

States of America and the Confederated Tribes and Bands of Indians of Middle Oregon, concluded on November 15, 1865, having 

considered the same, reports favorably thereon without amendment 

and recommends that the bill do pass. 

PURPOSE

The purpose of S. 832 is to nullify the Supplemental Treaty between the United States and the Confederated Tribes and Bands 

of Indians of Middle Oregon,1 which was executed on November 15, 

1865. 

NEED FOR LEGISLATION

S. 832 will repeal and nullify the Supplemental 1865 Treaty between the United States of America and the Confederated Tribes 

and Bands of Indians of Middle Oregon, thereby leaving the 1855 

Treaty intact. 

The Constitution grants powers to the President to negotiate 

treaties, which are subject to ratification by the Senate.2 The ConVerDate Sep 11 2014 22:54 Jun 11, 2019 Jkt 089010 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6659 Sfmt 6602 E:\HR\OC\SR045.XXX SR045

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3 Herrera v. Wyoming, --U.S. --, No. 17–532 (May 20, 2019). 

stitutional authority to ratify treaties can also grant Congress the 

authority to abrogate treaties. The Supreme Court has held that 

when abrogating a treaty between the United States and an Indian 

tribe, Congress must do so explicitly.3

Congress is the only body with constitutional authority to nullify 

the Supplemental 1865 Treaty, ensuring that it does not have any 

legal effect. 

BACKGROUND

1855 Treaty. In 1855, the Confederated Tribes of Warm Springs 

Tribe (Tribe) entered into a treaty with the United States government that ceded the Tribe’s territorial interests in exchange for 

consideration that included a reservation and monetary compensation. 

In addition to providing certainty of the Tribe’s territorial interests, the 1855 treaty also contemplated certain off-reservation 

hunting and fishing rights; specifically, the right of the Tribe to 

fish ‘‘at all other usual and accustomed stations, in common with 

citizens of the United States,’’ and ‘‘the privilege of hunting . . . on 

unclaimed lands, in common with citizens.’’ 

Supplemental 1865 Treaty. In 1865, the Superintendent of Indian 

Affairs for Oregon, J.W. Perit Hunting, drafted a supplemental 

treaty to amend the 1855 treaty. During a legislative hearing before the Committee on S. 832, Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary 

for Indian Affairs at the Department of the Interior, John Tahsuda, 

testified that the Supplemental 1865 Treaty provided terms that 

created ‘‘unreasonable restrictions on the rights of the Warm 

Springs people.’’ 

The Supplemental 1865 Treaty with the Tribe contained provisions that led to the relinquishment of previously reserved off-reservation hunting and fishing rights, and physically restricted the 

Tribe to its reservation unless written permission was granted by 

the federal superintendent of Indian Affairs for Oregon to travel 

outside the boundaries of the reserve. 

On June 20, 1997, the U.S. Forest Service produced a report that 

concluded, among other things, that the tribal leaders’ signatures 

on the Supplemental 1865 Treaty were obtained by fraudulent 

means. 

Actions by the State of Oregon. On January 31, 2019, Governor 

of the State of Oregon, Kate Brown, issued a formal policy to the 

Tribe regarding the Supplemental 1865 Treaty. In a letter to the 

Tribe, Governor Brown wrote to affirm that it will be the ‘‘[P]olicy 

of the office of the Governor . . . to regard the 1865 treaty as a 

nullity with no effect whatsoever.’’ Governor Brown’s letter provided that ‘‘[N]o state agency or official under . . . shall assert on 

behalf of the State that the fraudulent Huntington Treaty of 1865 

has now, or ever has had, any legal effect whatsoever.’’ 

LEGISLATIVE HISTORY

On March 14, 2019, Senator Merkley introduced S. 832 with Senator Wyden co-sponsoring. The bill was referred to the Committee. 

On May 01, 2019, the Committee held a legislative hearing on the 

bill. Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary for Indian Affairs, John 


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Tahsuda, testified the Department does not object to the bill. Councilman Ron Suppah from the Confederated Tribes of Warms 

Springs provided testimony in favor of the bill. On May 15, 2019, 

the Committee held a duly called business meeting to consider S. 

832. No amendments were offered, and the bill was ordered to be 

reported favorably. 

An identical companion bill, H.R. 1803, was introduced in the 

House of Representatives by Congressman Walden on March 14, 

2019. The bill was referred to the Subcommittee on Indigenous 

Peoples of the United States, and on June 5, 2019 the Subcommittee held a legislative hearing on the bill. 

In the 104th Congress, Senator Hatfield introduced an identical 

version of S. 832 on September 20, 1996. The bill was placed on 

the Senate Legislative Calendar, but no further action was taken 

on it. 

SECTION-BY-SECTION ANALYSIS OF S. 832

Section 1. Nullification of Treaty 

This section directs that the Supplemental Treaty concluded on 

November 15, 1865, and entered into pursuant to the Senate resolution of ratification dated March 2, 1867 (14 Stat. 751), shall have 

no force or effect. 

COST AND BUDGETARY CONSIDERATIONS

Hon. JOHN HOEVEN, 

Chairman, Committee on Indian Affairs, 

U.S. Senate, Washington, DC. 

DEAR MR. CHAIRMAN: The Congressional Budget Office has prepared the enclosed cost estimate for S. 832, a bill to nullify the 

Supplemental Treaty Between the United States of America and 

the Confederated Tribes and Bands of Indians of Middle Oregon, 

concluded on November 15, 1865. 

If you wish further details on this estimate, we will be pleased 

to provide them. The CBO staff contact is Jon Sperl. 

Sincerely, 

KEITH HALL, Director. 

Enclosure. 

S. 832 would nullify a treaty between the United States and the 

Confederated Tribes of Warm Springs, a federally recognized Indian tribe in the state of Oregon that was signed in 1865. According to the Department of the Interior the treaty has never been enforced. Based on that information, CBO estimates that enacting S. 

832 would have no effect on the federal budget. 


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The CBO staff contact for this estimate is Jon Sperl. The estimate was reviewed by H. Samuel Papenfuss, Deputy Assistant Director for Budget Analysis. 

EXECUTIVE COMMUNICATIONS

The Committee has received no communications from the Executive Branch regarding S. 832. 

REGULATORY AND PAPERWORK IMPACT STATEMENT

Paragraph 11(b) of rule XXVI of the Standing Rules of the Senate requires each report accompanying a bill to evaluate the regulatory and paperwork impact that would be incurred in carrying 

out the bill. The Committee believes that S. 832 will have a minimal impact on regulatory or paperwork requirements. 

CHANGES IN EXISTING LAW

On February 6, 2019, the Committee unanimously approved a 

motion to waive subsection 12 of rule XXVI of the Standing Rules 

of the Senate. In the opinion of the Committee, it is necessary to 

dispense with subsection 12 of rule XXVI of the Standing Rules of 

the Senate to expedite the business of the Senate. 

Æ 


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