I

103D CONGRESS

2D SESSION H. R. 4754

To provide for the exchange of lands within Gates of the Arctic National

Park and Preserve, and for other purposes.

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

JULY 13, 1994

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

Committee on Natural Resources

A BILL

To provide for the exchange of lands within Gates of the

Arctic National Park and Preserve, 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 ‘‘Anaktuvuk Pass Land

5 Exchange and Wilderness Redesignation Act of 1994’’.

6 SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

7 The Congress makes the following findings:

8 (a) On December 2, 1980, the Alaska National

9 Interest Lands Conservation Act (94 Stat. 2371) es10 tablished Gates of the Arctic National Park and
2

HR 4754 IH

1 Preserve and Gates of the Arctic Wilderness. The

2 village of Anaktuvuk Pass, located in the highlands

3 of the central Brooks Range, is virtually surrounded

4 by these national park and wilderness lands and is

5 the only village located within the boundary of a Na6 tional Park System unit in Alaska.

7 (b) Unlike most other Alaskan Native commu8 nities, the village of Anaktuvuk Pass is not located

9 on a major river, lake, or coastline that can be used

10 as a means of access. The residents of Anaktuvuk

11 Pass have relied increasingly on snow machines in

12 winter and all-terrain vehicles in summer as their

13 primary means of access to pursue caribou and

14 other subsistence resources.

15 (c) In a 1983 land exchange agreement, linear

16 easements were reserved by the Inupiat Eskimo peo17 ple for use of all-terrain vehicles across certain na18 tional park lands, mostly along stream and river

19 banks. These linear easements proved unsatisfactory,

20 because they provided inadequate access to subsist21 ence resources while causing excessive environmental

22 impact from concentrated use.

23 (d) The National Park Service and the

24 Nunamiut Corporation initiated discussions in 1985

25 to address concerns over the use of all-terrain vehi-
3

HR 4754 IH

1 cles on park and wilderness land. Those discussions

2 resulted in an agreement, originally executed in

3 1992 and thereafter amended in 1993 and 1994,

4 among the National Park Service, the Nunamiut

5 Corporation, the City of Anaktuvuk Pass, and the

6 Arctic Slope Regional Corporation. Full effectuation

7 of this agreement, as amended, requires ratification

8 by the Congress.

9 SEC. 3. RATIFICATION OF AGREEMENT.

10 (a) RATIFICATION.—

11 (1) IN GENERAL.—The terms, conditions, pro12 cedures, covenants, reservations and other provisions

13 set forth in the document entitled ‘‘Donation, Ex14 change of Lands and Interests in Lands and Wilder15 ness Redesignation Agreement Among Arctic Slope

16 Regional Corporation, Nunamiut Corporation, City

17 of Anaktuvuk Pass and the United States of Amer18 ica’’ (hereinafter referred to in this Act as ‘‘the

19 Agreement’’), executed by the parties on December

20 17, 1992, as amended, are hereby incorporated in

21 this Act, are ratified and confirmed, and set forth

22 the obligations and commitments of the United

23 States, Arctic Slope Regional Corporation,

24 Nunamiut Corporation and the City of Anaktuvuk

25 Pass, as a matter of Federal law.
4

HR 4754 IH

1 (2) LAND ACQUISITION.—Lands acquired by

2 the United States pursuant to the Agreement shall

3 be administered by the Secretary of the Interior

4 (hereinafter referred to as the ‘‘Secretary’’) as part

5 of the Gates of the Arctic National Park and Pre6 serve, subject to the laws and regulations applicable

7 thereto.

8 (b) MAPS.—The maps set forth as Exhibits C1, C2,

9 and D through I to the Agreement depict the lands subject

10 to the conveyances, retention of surface access rights, ac11 cess easements and all-terrain vehicle easements. These

12 lands are depicted in greater detail on a map entitled

13 ‘‘Land Exchange Actions, Proposed Anaktuvuk Pass Land

14 Exchange and Wilderness Redesignation, Gates of the

15 Arctic National Park and Preserve’’, Map No. 185/80,039,

16 dated April 1994, and on file at the Alaska Regional Of17 fice of the National Park Service and the offices of Gates

18 of the Arctic National Park and Preserve in Fairbanks,

19 Alaska. Written legal descriptions of these lands shall be

20 prepared and made available in the above offices. In case

21 of any discrepancies, Map No. 185/80,039, shall be con22 trolling.

23 SEC. 4. NATIONAL PARK SYSTEM WILDERNESS.

24 (a) REDESIGNATION.—Section 701(2) of the Alaska

25 National Interest Lands Conservation Act (94 Stat. 2371,
5

HR 4754 IH

1 2417) establishing the Gates of the Arctic Wilderness is

2 hereby amended with the addition of approximately fifty3 six thousand eight hundred and twenty-five acres as wil4 derness and the rescission of approximately seventy-three

5 thousand nine hundred and ninety-three acres as wilder6 ness, thus revising the Gates of the Arctic Wilderness to

7 approximately seven million thirty-four thousand eight

8 hundred and thirty-two acres.

9 (b) MAPS.—The lands redesignated in subsection (a)

10 are depicted on a map entitled ‘‘Wilderness Actions, Pro11 posed Anaktuvuk Pass Land Exchange and Wilderness

12 Redesignation, Gates of the Arctic National Park and Pre13 serve’’, Map No. 185/80,040, dated April 1994 and on file

14 at the Alaska Regional Office of the National Park Service

15 and the office of Gates of the Arctic National Park and

16 Preserve in Fairbanks, Alaska.

17 SEC. 5. CONFORMANCE WITH OTHER LAW.

18 (a) ALASKA NATIVE CLAIMS SETTLEMENT ACT.—All

19 of the lands, or interests therein, conveyed to and received

20 by Arctic Slope Regional Corporation or Nunamiut Cor21 poration pursuant to the Agreement shall be deemed con22 veyed and received pursuant to exchanges under section

23 22(f) of the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act, as

24 amended (43 U.S.C. 1601, 1621(f)). All of the lands or
6

HR 4754 IH

1 interests in lands conveyed pursuant to the Agreement

2 shall be conveyed subject to valid existing rights.

3 (b) ALASKA NATIONAL INTEREST LANDS CONSERVA4 TION ACT.—Nothing in this Act or in the Agreement shall

5 be construed to enlarge or diminish the rights, privileges

6 or obligations of any person, except to the extent specifi7 cally set forth in this Act or the Agreement, including spe8 cifically the preference for subsistence uses and access to

9 subsistence resources provided under title VIII of the

10 Alaska National Interest Lands Conservation Act, as

11 amended (94 Stat. 2371, 2422).

Æ