Page 109 TITLE 25—INDIANS § 399

ment in advance of a rental of $1 per acre, the

rental paid for any one year to be credited

against the royalties as they may accrue for

that year, with the preferential right in the lessee to renew the same for successive periods of

ten years upon such reasonable terms and conditions as may be prescribed by the Secretary of

the Interior. The applicant shall also be entitled

to a preference right to a lease for the remainder of the land in his application at a royalty of

not less than 121

⁄2 per centum in amount or value

of the production, the royalty to be determined

by competitive bidding or fixed by such other

methods as the Secretary of the Interior may by

regulations prescribe: Provided further, That the

Secretary of the Interior shall have the right to

reject any or all bids.

(Mar. 3, 1927, ch. 299, §5, 44 Stat. 1347.)

REFERENCES IN TEXT

Act of February 25, 1920, referred to in text, probably

means act Feb. 25, 1920, ch. 85, 41 Stat. 437, as amended,

known as the Mineral Leasing Act, which is classified

generally to chapter 3A (§181 et seq.) of Title 30, Mineral Lands and Mining. For complete classification of

this Act to the Code, see Short Title note set out under

section 181 of Title 30 and Tables.

§ 399. Leases of unallotted mineral lands withdrawn from entry under mining laws

Authority of Secretary of the Interior to lease—

The Secretary of the Interior is authorized and

empowered, under general regulations to be

fixed by him and under such terms and conditions as he may prescribe, not inconsistent with

the terms of this section, to lease to citizens of

the United States, or to any association of such

persons, or to any corporation organized under

the laws of the United States or of any State or

Territory thereof, any part of the unallotted

lands within any Indian reservation within the

States of Arizona, California, Idaho, Montana,

Nevada, New Mexico, Oregon, Washington, or

Wyoming withdrawn prior to June 30, 1919, from

entry under the mining laws for the purpose of

mining for deposits of gold, silver, copper, and

other valuable metalliferous minerals, and nonmetalliferous minerals, not including oil and

gas, which leases shall be irrevocable, except as

herein provided, but which may be declared null

and void upon breach of any of their terms.

Location of mining claims—Unallotted lands, or

such portion thereof as the Secretary of the Interior shall determine, within Indian reservations withheld prior to June 30, 1919, from disposition under the mining laws may be declared

by the Secretary of the Interior to be subject to

exploration for the discovery of deposits of gold,

silver, copper, and other valuable metalliferous

minerals and nonmetalliferous minerals, not including oil and gas, by citizens of the United

States, and after such declaration mining claims

may be located by such citizens in the same

manner as mining claims are located under the

mining laws of the United States.

Preference right of locators of claims to lease of

lands—The locators of all such mining claims, or

their heirs, successors, or assigns, shall have a

preference right to apply to the Secretary of the

Interior for a lease, under the terms and conditions of this section, within one year after the

date of the location of any mining claim, and

any such locator who shall fail to apply for a

lease within one year from the date of location

shall forfeit all rights to such mining claim.

Filing copies of location notices—Duplicate copies of the location notice shall be filed within

sixty days with the superintendent in charge of

the reservation on which the mining claim is located, and application for a lease under this section may be filed with such superintendent for

transmission, through official channels, to the

Secretary of the Interior.

Lands excepted from entry as mining claims—

Lands containing springs, water holes, or other

bodies of water needed or used by the Indians for

watering livestock, irrigation, or water-power

purposes shall not be designated by the Secretary of the Interior as subject to entry under

this section.

Term of lease; renewal—Leases under this section shall be for a period of twenty years, with

the preferential right in the lessee to renew the

same for successive periods of ten years, upon

such reasonable terms and conditions as may be

prescribed by the Secretary of the Interior, unless otherwise provided by law at the time of the

expiration of such periods.

Relinquishment of rights by lessee—The lessee

may, in the discretion of the Secretary of the

Interior, be permitted at any time to make written relinquishment of all rights under such a

lease and upon acceptance thereof be thereby relieved of all future obligations under said lease.

Lease of additional land for camp sites and other

purposes—In addition to areas of mineral land to

be included in leases under this section the Secretary of the Interior, in his discretion, may

grant to the lessee the right to use, during the

life of the lease, subject to the payment of an

annual rental of not less than $1 per acre, a

tract of unoccupied land, not exceeding forty

acres in area, for camp sites, milling, smelting,

and refining works, and for other purposes connected with and necessary to the proper development and use of the deposits covered by the

lease.

Reservation of surface of leased land to United

States; easements—The Secretary of the Interior,

in his discretion, in making any lease under this

section, may reserve to the United States the

right to lease for a term not exceeding that of

the mineral lease, the surface of the lands embraced within such lease under existing law or

laws hereafter enacted, insofar as said surface is

not necessary for use of the lessee in extracting

and removing the deposits therein: Provided,

That the said Secretary, during the life of the

lease, is hereby authorized to issue such permits

for easements herein provided to be reserved.

Rights and duties of successors to lessees—Any

successor in interest or assignee of any lease

granted under this section, whether by voluntary transfer, judicial sale, foreclosure sale,

or otherwise, shall be subject to all the conditions of the lease under which such rights are

held and also subject to all the provisions and

conditions of this section to the same extent as

though such successor or assign were the original lessee hereunder.

Forfeiture of leases; notice—Any lease granted

under this section may be forfeited and canceled
§ 399 TITLE 25—INDIANS Page 110

by appropriate proceedings in the United States

district court for the district in which said property or some part thereof is situated whenever

the lessee, after reasonable notice in writing, as

prescribed in the lease, shall fail to comply with

the terms of this section or with such conditions

not inconsistent herewith as may be specifically

recited in the lease.

Royalties payable by lessees—For the privilege

of mining or extracting the mineral deposits in

the ground covered by the lease the lessee shall

pay to the United States, for the benefit of the

Indians, a royalty which shall not be less than 5

per centum of the net value of the output of the

minerals at the mine, due and payable at the

end of each month succeeding that of the extraction of the minerals from the mine, and an annual rental, payable at the date of such lease

and annually thereafter on the area covered by

such lease, at the rate of not less than 25 cents

per acre for the first calendar year thereafter;

not less than 50 cents per acre for the second,

third, fourth, and fifth years, respectively; and

not less than $1 per acre for each and every year

thereafter during the continuance of the lease,

except that such rental for any year shall be

credited against the royalties as they accrue for

that year.

Development work by locators or lessees; damage

to land—In addition to the payment of the royalties and rentals as herein provided the lessee

shall expend annually not less than $100 in development work for each mining claim located

or leased in the same manner as an annual expenditure for labor or improvements is required

to be made under the mining laws of the United

States: Provided, That the lessee shall also agree

to pay all damages occasioned by reason of his

mining operations to the land or allotment of

any Indian or to the crops or improvements

thereon.

Cutting timber by lessees—No timber shall be

cut upon the reservation by the lessee except for

mining purposes and then only after first obtaining a permit from the superintendent of the

reservation and upon payment of the fair value

thereof.

Examination of books and accounts of lessees—

The Secretary of the Interior is authorized to

examine the books and accounts of lessees, and

to require them to submit statements, representations, or reports, including information as to

cost of mining, all of which statements, representations, or reports so required shall be

upon oath, unless otherwise specified, and in

such form and upon such blanks as the Secretary of the Interior may require; and any person making any false statement, representation,

or report under oath or in any declaration, certificate, verification, or statement under penalty of perjury as permitted under section 1746

of title 28 shall be subject to punishment as for

perjury.

Disposition of rentals and royalties—All moneys

received from royalties and rentals under the

provisions of this section shall be deposited in

the Treasury of the United States to the credit

of the Indians belonging and having tribal rights

on the reservation where the leased land is located, which moneys shall be at all times subject to appropriation by Congress for their benefit, unless otherwise provided by treaty or

agreement ratified by Congress: Provided, That

such moneys shall be subject to the laws authorizing the pro rata distribution of Indian tribal

funds.

Protection of interests of Indians—The Secretary

of the Interior is authorized to perform any and

all acts and to make such rules and regulations

not inconsistent with this section as may be

necessary and proper for the protection of the

interests of the Indians and for the purpose of

carrying the provisions of this section into full

force and effect: Provided, That nothing in this

section shall be construed or held to affect the

right of the States or other local authority to

exercise any rights which they may have to levy

and collect taxes upon improvements, output of

mines, or other rights, property, or assets of any

lessee.

Mining locations by and leases to Indians declared competent—Mining locations, under the

terms of this section, may be made on unallotted lands within Indian reservations by Indians who have heretofore or may hereafter be

declared by the Secretary of the Interior to be

competent to manage their own affairs; and the

said Secretary is authorized and empowered to

lease such lands to such Indians in accordance

with the provisions of this section.

Mining locations by and leases to other Indians—

The Secretary of the Interior is authorized to

permit other Indians to make locations and obtain leases under the provisions of this section,

under such rules and regulations as he may prescribe in regard to the working, developing, disposition, and selling of the products, and the

disposition of the proceeds thereof of any such

mine by such Indians.

‘‘Metalliferous’’ defined—Wherever the term

‘‘metalliferous’’ is used in this section it shall

be defined and construed by the Secretary of the

Interior to include magnesite, gypsum, limestone, and asbestos.

(June 30, 1919, ch. 4, §26, 41 Stat. 31; Mar. 3, 1921,

ch. 119, 41 Stat. 1231; Dec. 16, 1926, ch. 12, 44 Stat.

922; Pub. L. 94–550, §10, Oct. 18, 1976, 90 Stat.

2536.)

REFERENCES IN TEXT

The mining laws of the United States, referred to in

text, are classified generally to Title 30, Mineral Lands

and Mining.

CODIFICATION

Act Mar. 3, 1921, defined the term ‘‘metalliferous’’.

AMENDMENTS

1976—Pub. L. 94–550 inserted ‘‘or in any declaration,

certificate, verification, or statement under penalty of

perjury as permitted under section 1746 of title 28’’

after ‘‘under oath’’ in paragraph authorizing Secretary

of the Interior to examine books and accounts of lessees.

1926—Act Dec. 16, 1926, inserted ‘‘and nonmetalliferous minerals, not including oil and gas’’ after ‘‘metalliferous minerals’’ in first and second paragraphs and

reenacted third, fourth, and fifth paragraphs without

change.

TRANSFER OF FUNCTIONS

For transfer of functions of other officers, employees,

and agencies of Department of the Interior, with cer-
Page 111 TITLE 25—INDIANS § 403a

tain exceptions, to Secretary of the Interior, with

power to delegate, see Reorg. Plan No. 3 of 1950, §§1,2,

eff. May 24, 1950, 15 F.R. 3174, 64 Stat. 1262, set out in

the Appendix to Title 5, Government Organization and

Employees.

CROSS REFERENCES

Ute Indians, division of trust funds deposited in

Treasury pursuant to this section, see section 672 of

this title.

SECTION REFERRED TO IN OTHER SECTIONS

This section is referred to in section 672 of this title.

§ 400. Leases for mining purposes of reserved

and unallotted lands in Fort Peck and Blackfeet Indian Reservations

Lands reserved for school and agency purposes

and all other unallotted lands on the Fort Peck

and Blackfeet Indian Reservations, in the State

of Montana, reserved from allotment or other

disposition, may be leased for mining purposes

under regulations prescribed by the Secretary of

the Interior.

(Sept. 20, 1922, ch. 347, 42 Stat. 857.)

§ 400a. Lease for mining purposes of land reserved for agency or school; disposition of

proceeds; royalty

The Secretary of the Interior is authorized

under such rules and regulations as he may prescribe, to lease at public auction upon not less

than thirty days’ public notice for mining purposes land on any Indian reservation reserved

for Indian agency or school purposes, in accordance with existing law applicable to other lands

in such reservation, and the proceeds arising

therefrom shall be deposited in the Treasury of

the United States to the credit of the Indians for

whose benefit the lands are reserved subject to

appropriation by Congress for educational work

among the Indians or in paying expenses of administration of agencies: Provided, That a royalty of at least one-eighth shall be reserved in

all leases.

(Apr. 17, 1926, ch. 156, 44 Stat. 300.)

TRANSFER OF FUNCTIONS

For transfer of functions of other officers, employees,

and agencies of Department of the Interior, with certain exceptions, to Secretary of the Interior, with

power to delegate, see Reorg. Plan No. 3 of 1950, §§1,2,

eff. May 24, 1950, 15 F.R. 3174, 64 Stat. 1262, set out in

the Appendix to Title 5, Government Organization and

Employees.

§ 401. Leases for mining purposes of unallotted

lands in Kaw Reservation

The Secretary of the Interior is authorized to

lease for mining purposes lands reserved from

allotment to be used as a cemetery and not

needed for that purpose, and lands reserved for

school and agency purposes in the Kaw Reservation in the State of Oklahoma, and for the use

and benefit of the members of the Kansas or

Kaw Tribe of Indians, at public auction, upon

such terms and conditions and under such rules

and regulations as he may prescribe: Provided,

That the production of oil and gas and other

minerals on such lands may be taxed by the

State in which said lands are located in all respects the same as production on unrestricted

lands, and the Secretary of the Interior is hereby authorized and directed to cause to be paid

the tax so assessed against the royalty interests

on said lands: Provided, however, That such tax

shall not become a lien or charge of any kind or

character against the land or the property of the

Indian owner.

(Apr. 28, 1924, ch. 135, 43 Stat. 111.)

§ 402. Leases of surplus lands

The surplus lands of any tribe may be leased

for farming purposes by the council of such tribe

under the same rules and regulations and for the

same term of years as was on August 15, 1894, allowed in the case of leases for grazing purposes.

(Aug. 15, 1894, ch. 290, §1, 28 Stat. 305.)

CROSS REFERENCES

Lease on unallotted irrigable lands for farming purposes, see section 402a of this title.

§ 402a. Lease of unallotted irrigable lands for

farming purposes

The unallotted irrigable lands on any Indian

reservation may be leased for farming purposes

for not to exceed ten years with the consent of

the tribal council, business committee, or other

authorized body representative of the Indians,

under such rules and regulations as the Secretary of the Interior may prescribe.

(July 3, 1926, ch. 787, 44 Stat. 894.)

§ 403. Leases of lands held in trust

Any Indian allotment held under a trust patent may be leased by the allottee for a period

not to exceed five years, subject to and in conformity with such rules and regulations as the

Secretary of the Interior may prescribe, and the

proceeds of any such lease shall be paid to the

allottee or his heirs, or expended for his or their

benefit, in the discretion of the Secretary of the

Interior.

(June 25, 1910, ch. 431, §4, 36 Stat. 856.)

CROSS REFERENCES

Leases of restricted allotments and arid allotted

lands, see sections 393, 394 of this title.

SECTION REFERRED TO IN OTHER SECTIONS

This section is referred to in sections 353, 406, 564h,

697, 747 of this title; title 43 section 1617.

§ 403a. Lease of lands on Port Madison and Snohomish or Tulalip Indian Reservations in

Washington

Notwithstanding any other provision of law,

any Indian lands on the Port Madison and Snohomish or Tulalip Indian Reservations in the

State of Washington, may be leased by the Indians with the approval of the Secretary of the Interior, and upon such terms and conditions as he

may prescribe, for a term not exceeding twentyfive years: Provided, however, That such leases

may provide for renewal for an additional term

not exceeding twenty-five years, and the Secretary of the Interior is hereby authorized to

prescribe such rules and regulations as may be

necessary to carry out the provisions of this section.