49–010 

Calendar No. 543 

113TH CONGRESS REPORT " ! SENATE 2d Session 113–267 

TO REQUIRE THE SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR TO TAKE INTO TRUST 

FOUR PARCELS OF FEDERAL LAND FOR THE BENEFIT OF CERTAIN INDIAN PUEBLOS IN THE STATE OF NEW MEXICO 

OCTOBER 1, 2014.—Ordered to be printed 

Filed, under authority of the order of the Senate of September 18, 2014 

Mr. TESTER, from the Senate Committee on Indian Affairs, 

submitted the following 

R E P O R T 

[To accompany S. 2465] 

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

(S. 2465) to require the Secretary of the Interior to take into trust 

4 parcels of Federal land for the benefit of certain Indian Pueblos 

in the State of New Mexico, having considered the same, reports 

favorably thereon with amendments and recommends that the bill, 

as amended, do pass. 

PURPOSE

The purpose of S. 2465 is to require the Secretary of the Interior 

to take into trust four parcels of Federal land for the benefit of the 

19 Indian Pueblos in the State of New Mexico (Acoma, Cochiti, 

Isleta, Jemez, Laguna, Nambe, Ohkay Owingeh, Picuris, Pojoaque, 

San Felipe, San Ildefonso, Sandia, Santa Ana, Santa Clara, Santo 

Domingo, Taos, Tesuque, Zia, and Zuni). 

BACKGROUND

In 1881, the Federal government established the Albuquerque 

Indian School in Albuquerque, New Mexico to serve as a boarding 

school for Native American children. After Federal policies shifted 

away from operating boarding schools to instead supporting Indian 

self-determination, the Albuquerque Indian School was closed in 

1979. 

In 1981, the 19 Pueblos of New Mexico petitioned the BIA to 

transfer the 44 acres of the former Indian School site. In 1984 the 

Assistant Secretary—Indian Affairs, Department of the Interior, 

approved the request and held ownership of those acres in trust for 


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the collective benefit of the 19 Pueblos of New Mexico. The Pueblos 

have since used this tract of land for the establishment of the Indian Pueblo Cultural Center and for the creation of business and 

government offices. 

In 2003, the 19 Pueblos petitioned the Secretary of the Interior 

to convert roughly 18 additional acres of the former Indian School 

site from Federal land to trust land. In 2008, Senator Domenici introduced the Albuquerque Indian School Act, which required those 

tracts to be placed into trust for the Pueblos collectively. That bill 

was favorably reported out by the Committee on Indian Affairs and 

signed into law in December 2008 (Public Law No: 110–453). 

This legislation, S. 2465, would allow the Secretary of the Interior to take four more tracts of this property into trust for the 19 

Pueblos. 

NEED FOR LEGISLATION

Since 1995, Federal regulations have limited the ability of the 

Secretary of the Interior to take land into trust for the benefit of 

multiple Indian tribes without specific legislation (see 25 CFR Part 

151). This legislation, S. 2465, will allow a trust acquisition for the 

collective benefit of the 19 Pueblos. The addition of these four 

tracts of land will allow the 19 Pueblos of New Mexico to expand 

their economic development projects for the benefit of both the 

Pueblos’ citizens and the larger Albuquerque community. 

LEGISLATIVE HISTORY

This legislation, S. 2465, was introduced on June 11, 2014, by 

Senators Tom Udall (D–NM) and Martin Heinrich (D–NM). The 

bill was referred to the Committee on Indian Affairs. On July 9, 

2014, the Committee held a hearing on the bill. On July 30, 2014, 

the Committee met at a business meeting to consider the bill. One 

amendment was offered and adopted, and the bill, as amended, was 

ordered to be reported favorably to the Senate by voice vote. 

SUMMARY OF THE AMENDMENT

Senator Udall of New Mexico offered an amendment at the July 

30, 2014, business meeting, which makes two changes to S. 2465. 

First, the amendment incorporates by reference a different map of 

the property identified in Section 2 of the bill, to address the BIA’s 

request to clarify the boundaries of the land to be taken into trust. 

Second, at the request of the BIA, Section 3 is amended to include 

a new Section 3(f), which requires the Pueblos to allow the BIA to 

continue using its existing facilities on the lands being transferred. 

The BIA currently uses several parcels within the four tracts being 

transferred to house equipment used for fire, roads, and natural resource programs carried out by the BIA’s Southwest Region and 

Southern Pueblo Agency offices. 

SECTION–BY–SECTION ANALYSIS OF BILL AS ORDERED REPORTED

Section 1. Short title 

The Act may be cited as the ‘Albuquerque Indian School Land 

Transfer Act.’ 


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Section 2. Definitions 

Section 2 defines the key terms used throughout this Act. 

Section 3. Land taken into trust for the benefit of 19 Pueblos 

Section 3 requires the Secretary of the Interior to take the land 

into trust, and to take any action which she determines is necessary to document the transfer. Section 3 also provides a legal description, in conjunction with a map, of the property to be transferred. The Secretary is required to conduct a land survey and may 

make any minor corrections to the survey and legal description as 

necessary to correct clerical, typographical and surveying errors. 

The land taken into trust is to be used for the educational, health, 

cultural, business, and economic benefit of the 19 Pueblos identified in the bill. The property remains subject to any private or municipal encumbrance, right-of-way, restriction, easement of record, 

or utility service agreement in effect on the date of enactment of 

this Act, and the 19 Pueblos must allow the BIA to continue to use 

facilities located on the property until the Secretary determines 

they are no longer needed by the BIA. 

Section 4. Effect of other laws 

The land taken into trust shall be subject to Federal laws otherwise applicable to or relating to Indian Land. No Class I gaming, 

Class II gaming, or Class III gaming shall be carried out on this 

parcel of land. 

COST AND BUDGETARY CONSIDERATIONS

The following cost estimate, as provided by the Congressional 

Budget Office, September 5, 2014, was prepared for S. 2465: 

SEPTEMBER 5, 2014. 

Hon. JON TESTER, 

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. 2465, the Albuquerque Indian School Land Transfer Act. 

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

to provide them. The CBO staff contact is Martin von Gnechten. 

Sincerely, 

DOUGLAS W. ELMENDORF. 

Enclosure. 

S. 2465—Albuquerque Indian School Land Transfer Act 

S. 2465 would authorize the Secretary of the Interior to place 

four parcels consisting of about 11 acres of federal land in Albuquerque, New Mexico, into trust for the benefit of 19 Indian Pueblos in New Mexico. Under the bill, those Pueblos would be authorized to use the land for educational, health, cultural, business, or 

economic purposes. The bill would prohibit gaming activities on the 

affected properties. 

CBO estimates that implementing the legislation would have no 

significant effect on the federal budget. Enacting S. 2465 would not 


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affect direct spending or revenues; therefore, pay-as-you-go procedures do not apply. 

S. 2465 contains no intergovernmental or private-sector mandates as defined in the Unfunded Mandates Reform Act. 

The CBO staff contact for this estimate is Martin von Gnechten. 

The estimate was approved by Theresa Gullo, Deputy Assistant Director for Budget Analysis. 

EXECUTIVE COMMUNICATIONS

The Committee has received no communications from the Executive Branch regarding S. 2465. 

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. 2465 will have a minimal impact on regulatory or paperwork requirements. 

CHANGES IN EXISTING LAW (CORDON RULE)

In compliance with subsection 12 of rule XXVI of the Standing 

Rules of the Senate, the Committee finds that the enactment of S. 

2465 will not make any changes in existing law. 

Æ 


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