I

103D CONGRESS

1ST SESSION H. R. 2874

To improve the management of Indian fish and wildlife resources on Indian

lands, and for other purposes.

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

AUGUST 4, 1993

Mr. RICHARDSON (for himself and Mr. THOMAS of Wyoming) introduced the

following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Natural Resources

A BILL

To improve the management of Indian fish and wildlife

resources on Indian lands, 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 ‘‘Indian Fish and Wild5 life Resource Enhancement Act of 1993’’.

6 SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

7 The Congress finds and declares that—

8 (1) the United States and Indian tribes have a

9 government-to-government relationship;
2

•HR 2874 IH

1 (2) the United States has a trust responsibility

2 to protect, conserve, and enhance Indian fish and

3 wildlife resources consistent with its fiduciary obliga4 tion to and its unique relationship with Indian

5 tribes. This trust responsibility extends to all Fed6 eral agencies and departments and absent a clear ex7 pression of congressional intent to the contrary, the

8 United States has a duty to administer Federal fish

9 and wildlife conservation laws in a manner consist10 ent with the treaty rights of Indian tribes;

11 (3) Federal statutes and regulations affecting

12 Indian fish and wildlife resources and tribal resource

13 management activities shall be interpreted in accord14 ance with the trust responsibility set forth in this

15 Act;

16 (4) fish and wildlife resources located on Indian

17 lands and treaty-ceded territory continue to provide

18 a resource base for the subsistence, cultural enrich19 ment, and economic support of Indian tribes and in20 dividual Indians;

21 (5) Indian tribes have jurisdiction over Indian

22 and non-Indian hunting and fishing activities on In23 dian reservations and function as comanagers with

24 tribal, States, and Federal authorities to carry out

25 shared management responsibilities for fish and
3

•HR 2874 IH

1 wildlife resources arising from treaties, statutes, or

2 court orders;

3 (6) the United States has an obligation to pro4 vide assistance to Indian tribes to monitor and regu5 late Indian hunting and fishing activities, to protect

6 and conserve populations and habitats of tribal fish

7 and wildlife resources, and to maintain fish hatch8 eries and other facilities required for the prudent

9 management, enhancement, and mitigation of fish

10 and wildlife resources; and

11 (7) increased and improved management of In12 dian fish and wildlife resources will yield increased

13 economic returns, enhance Indian self-determination,

14 promote employment opportunities, and improve the

15 social and economic well-being of Indian and sur16 rounding communities.

17 SEC. 3. PURPOSES.

18 The purposes of this Act are—

19 (1) to reaffirm and protect Indian hunting,

20 fishing, and gathering rights and to provide for the

21 conservation, prudent management, enhancement,

22 orderly development and use of the resources upon

23 which the meaningful exercise of such rights depend;

24 (2) to maximize tribal capability and flexibility

25 in managing fish and wildlife resources for the con-
4

•HR 2874 IH

1 tinuing benefit of Indian people, and in comanaging

2 shared resources for the benefit of the Nation, in a

3 manner consistent with Indian trust and rights pro4 tection responsibilities;

5 (3) to support Indian self-determination and

6 tribal self-governance by authorizing and encourag7 ing government-to-government communications and

8 cooperative agreements between Federal, State, and

9 local governments and to foster tribal participation

10 in multijurisdictional fish and wildlife resource deci11 sionmaking; and

12 (4) to establish an Indian Fish and Wildlife Re13 source Management Education Assistance Program

14 within the Bureau of Indian Affairs to promote and

15 develop full tribal capability and multidisciplinary

16 competence in managing fish and wildlife resource

17 programs.

18 SEC. 4. DEFINITIONS.

19 For the purposes of this Act:

20 (1) The term ‘‘Bureau’’ means the Bureau of

21 Indian Affairs within the Department of the Inte22 rior.

23 (2) The term ‘‘Indian fish hatchery’’ means any

24 multi- or single-purpose facility owned or operated

25 by an Indian tribe or the Bureau, or by the United
5

•HR 2874 IH

1 States Fish and Wildlife Service on an Indian res2 ervation, which is engaged in the spawning, hatch3 ing, rearing, holding or caring for or stocking of

4 fish, including any related research and diagnostic

5 fish health facility.

6 (3) The term ‘‘fish hatchery maintenance’’

7 means work that is required at periodic intervals to

8 prolong the life of a fish hatchery and its compo9 nents and associated equipment.

10 (4) The term ‘‘fish hatchery rehabilitation’’

11 means work that is required to address the physical

12 deterioration or functional obsolescence of a fish

13 hatchery building, structure or other facility compo14 nent, or to repair, modify, or improve a fish hatch15 ery building, structure or other facility component.

16 (5) The term ‘‘forest land management activ17 ity’’ has the same meaning given to such term by

18 section 304(4) of the Indian Forest Resources Man19 agement Act (25 U.S.C. 3103(4)).

20 (6) The term ‘‘Indian fish and wildlife re21 source’’ means any species of animal or plant life lo22 cated on Indian reservations or in which Indians

23 have a right protected by Federal law to fish, hunt,

24 trap, or gather for subsistence, ceremonial, rec25 reational or commercial purposes, or for which an
6

•HR 2874 IH

1 Indian tribe has management or comanagement re2 sponsibilities.

3 (7) The term ‘‘Indian’’ means a member of an

4 Indian tribe as defined in section 4 of the Indian

5 Self-Determination and Education Assistance Act

6 (25 U.S.C. 450b).

7 (8) The term ‘‘Indian land’’ means land, the

8 title to which is held by—

9 (A) the United States in trust for an In10 dian or Indian tribe; or

11 (B) an Indian or Indian tribe, and is sub12 ject to restrictions against alienation.

13 (9) The term ‘‘Indian reservation’’ includes res14 ervations established pursuant to treaties, Acts of

15 Congress or Executive orders, and public domain In16 dian allotments, and former Indian reservations in

17 the State of Oklahoma.

18 (10) The term ‘‘Indian tribe’’ means any Indian

19 tribe, band, nation, pueblo, or other organized group

20 or community which is recognized as eligible for the

21 special programs and services provided by the Unit22 ed States to Indians because of their status as Indi23 ans.

24 (11) The term ‘‘integrated resource manage25 ment plan’’ means the plan developed pursuant to
7

•HR 2874 IH

1 the process used by tribal governments to assess

2 available resources and to provide identified holistic

3 management objectives that include quality of life,

4 production goals and landscape descriptions of all

5 designated resources that may include (but not be

6 limited to) water, fish, wildlife, forestry, agriculture,

7 minerals, and recreation, as well as community and

8 municipal resources, and may include any previously

9 adopted tribal codes and plans related to such re10 sources.

11 (12) The term ‘‘resource management activi12 ties’’ means all activities performed in managing In13 dian fish and wildlife resources. This term shall not

14 include forest land management activities.

15 (13) The term ‘‘Secretary’’ means the Secretary

16 of the Interior.

17 (14) The term ‘‘treaty ceded territory’’ means

18 the land ceded to the United States by treaty upon

19 which the ceding tribe or tribes retain hunting, fish20 ing, and gathering rights.

21 (15) The term ‘‘tribal organization’’ has the

22 meaning given to such term by section 4 of the In23 dian Self-Determination and Education Assistance

24 Act (25 U.S.C. 450b).
8

•HR 2874 IH

1 SEC. 5. INDIAN FISH AND WILDLIFE RESOURCE MANAGE2 MENT PROGRAM.

3 (a) MANAGEMENT OBJECTIVES.—Consistent with

4 the provisions of the Indian Self-Determination and Edu5 cation Assistance Act (Public Law 93–638), the Secretary

6 shall provide for the management of Indian fish and wild7 life resources to achieve the following objectives:

8 (1) To protect, conserve, and enhance fish and

9 wildlife resources that are important to Indian tribes

10 for subsistence, cultural enrichment, and economic

11 development and to promote the development of

12 these resources for the benefit of Indian tribes and

13 their members.

14 (2) To protect Indian hunting, fishing, and

15 gathering rights guaranteed to Indian tribes by the

16 United States through treaty, statute, or Executive

17 order.

18 (3) To provide for the development and en19 hancement of the capacities of Indian tribes to man20 age Indian fish and wildlife resources.

21 (4) To selectively develop and increase produc22 tion of certain fish and wildlife resources in order to

23 provide for the subsistence, economic, and employ24 ment needs of Indian tribes.

25 (5) To manage Indian fish and wildlife re26 sources consistent with integrated resource manage-
9

•HR 2874 IH

1 ment plans in order to protect and maintain other

2 values such as Indian forest resources, Indian agri3 cultural resources, cultural resources, aesthetics,

4 recreation, and other traditional values.

5 (b) MANAGEMENT PROGRAM.—(1) The Secretary, in

6 full consultation with Indian tribes, shall establish the In7 dian Fish and Wildlife Resource Management Program in

8 order to achieve the objectives set forth in subsection (a).

9 (2) The Secretary shall promote and provide assist10 ance for the tribal management of Indian fish and wildlife

11 resources through contracts, cooperative agreements, or

12 grants under the Indian Self-Determination Act (25

13 U.S.C. 450 et seq.).

14 (3) The Secretary, upon the request of any Indian

15 tribe or tribal organization, shall enter into a contract with

16 the tribe or tribal organization to plan, conduct, and ad17 minister any program within the Department of the Inte18 rior which affects Indian fish and wildlife resources and

19 is currently administered by the Secretary.

20 (c) MANAGEMENT ACTIVITIES.—Indian fish and

21 wildlife resource management activities carried out under

22 the program established under subsection (b) may include

23 (but shall not be limited to)—
10

•HR 2874 IH

1 (1) the development, implementation, and en2 forcement of tribal codes, ordinances, and regula3 tions;

4 (2) the development and implementation of re5 source and management plans, surveys, and inven6 tories;

7 (3) conducting fish and wildlife population and

8 life history investigations, habitat investigations,

9 habitat restoration, harvest management, and use

10 studies;

11 (4) fish production and hatchery management;

12 (5) the development of tribal conservation pro13 grams, including employment and training of tribal

14 conservation enforcement officers; and

15 (6) participation in joint or cooperative man16 agement fish and wildlife resources on a regional

17 basis with Federal, State, Tribal, and local authori18 ties.

19 (d) ASSISTANCE.—The Secretary is authorized to

20 provide financial and technical assistance to enable Indian

21 tribes to—

22 (1) conduct a review of existing tribal codes, or23 dinances, and regulations governing the management

24 of fish and wildlife resources;
11

•HR 2874 IH

1 (2) update and revise tribal codes, ordinances,

2 and regulations governing tribal fish and wildlife re3 source protection and use;

4 (3) determine and document the need for tribal

5 conservation officers, tribal fisheries and wildlife bi6 ologists, and other professionals to administer In7 dian fish and wildlife resource management pro8 grams;

9 (4) provide training to and develop curricula for

10 Indian fish and wildlife resource personnel, including

11 tribal conservation officers, which incorporate law

12 enforcement, fish and wildlife conservation, identi13 fication and resource management principles and

14 techniques; and

15 (5) determine and document the condition of

16 the Indian fish and wildlife resources.

17 (e) INDIAN FISH AND WILDLIFE RESOURCE MAN18 AGEMENT PLANS.—(1) To meet the management objec19 tives set forth in subsection (a), an Indian fish and wildlife

20 resource management plan shall be developed and imple21 mented as follows:

22 (A) Pursuant to a self-determination contract

23 or self-governance compact under the Indian Self24 Determination Act, an Indian tribe may develop or

25 implement an Indian fish and wildlife management
12

•HR 2874 IH

1 plan. Subject to the provisions of subparagraph (C),

2 the tribe shall have broad discretion in designing

3 and carrying out the planning process.

4 (B) If a tribe chooses not to contract the devel5 opment or implementation to plan, the Secretary

6 shall develop or implement the plan in close con7 sultation with the affected tribe.

8 (C) Whether developed directly by the tribe or

9 by the Secretary, the plan shall—

10 (i) determine the condition of fish and

11 wildlife resources and habitat conditions,

12 (ii) identify specific tribal fish and wildlife

13 resource goals and objectives,

14 (iii) establish management objectives for

15 the resources,

16 (iv) define critical values of the Indian

17 tribe and its members and provide identified ho18 listic management objectives,

19 (v) be developed through public meetings,

20 (vi) use the public meeting records, exist21 ing survey documents, reports, and other re22 search from Federal agencies and tribal com23 munity colleges, and

24 (vii) be completed within three years of the

25 initiation of activity to establish the plan.
13

•HR 2874 IH

1 (2) Indian fish and wildlife management plans devel2 oped and approved under this section shall govern the

3 management and administration of Indian fish and wild4 life resources by the Bureau and the Indian tribal govern5 ment.

6 SEC. 6. TRIBAL CONSULTATION.

7 The Secretary, in any departmental action which af8 fects Indian fish and wildlife resources, shall fully consult

9 with and seek the participation of Indian tribes in a man10 ner consistent with the Federal trust responsibility and

11 the government-to-government relationship between In12 dian tribes and the Federal Government.

13 SEC. 7. INDIAN FISH HATCHERY PROGRAM.

14 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.—The Secretary, with the full

15 and active participation of Indian tribes, shall establish

16 and administer an Indian Fish Hatchery Program within

17 the Bureau of Indian Affairs to produce and distribute

18 to Indian tribes a variety of species of fish to assist Indian

19 tribes to develop tribal hatcheries and enhance fish re20 sources on the reservation.

21 (b) NEEDS REPORT.—Within one year after the date

22 of enactment of this Act, the Secretary, with the full and

23 active participation of Indian tribes, shall transmit a re24 port to the Congress identifying the facilities which com25 prise the Indian Fish Hatchery Program, the mainte-
14

•HR 2874 IH

1 nance, rehabilitation, and construction needs of such fa2 cilities, and providing a plan for their administration and

3 cost-effective operation.

4 SEC. 8. INDIAN BISON CONSERVATION PROGRAM.

5 (a) GENERAL AUTHORIZATION.—The Secretary is

6 authorized to enter into contracts with or make grants to

7 Indian tribes and tribal organizations to develop and

8 maintain an Indian Bison Conservation Program to meet

9 tribal subsistence, ceremonial, commercial, and resource

10 needs.

11 (b) REQUIRED CONTENT.—An Indian Bison Con12 servation Program established under this section shall pro13 vide for the preservation, restoration, production, care and

14 management of bison.

15 (c) USE OF FUNDS.—Funds provided under this sec16 tion may be used to—

17 (1) develop and implement bison management

18 plans, surveys, and inventories;

19 (2) conduct research on bison populations and

20 habitat;

21 (3) undertake habitat restoration; and

22 (4) develop range ecology and conservation pro23 grams.
15

•HR 2874 IH

1 SEC. 9. EDUCATION IN FISH AND WILDLIFE RESOURCE

2 MANAGEMENT.

3 (a) FISH AND WILDLIFE RESOURCES INTERN PRO4 GRAM.—(1) The Secretary shall establish a Fish and Wild5 life Resources Intern Program within the Bureau, for at

6 least 20 Indian fish and wildlife intern positions. Such po7 sitions shall be in addition to the forester intern positions

8 authorized in section 314(a) of the National Indian Forest

9 Resources Management Act (25 U.S.C. 3113(a)). Individ10 uals selected as interns shall be enrolled full-time in ap11 proved post-secondary or graduate schools in curricula

12 leading to advanced degrees in fish and wildlife resource

13 management related fields.

14 (2) The Secretary shall pay all costs for tuition,

15 books, fees, and living expenses incurred by Indian fish

16 and wildlife interns while attending approved study pro17 grams.

18 (3) An Indian fish and wildlife resource intern shall

19 be required to enter into an obligated service agreement

20 to serve in a professional fish and wildlife management

21 related capacity with an Indian tribe or tribal organiza22 tion, or with the Bureau of Indian Affairs or the United

23 States Fish and Wildlife Service serving or benefiting In24 dian lands for one year for each year of education that

25 the Secretary pays the intern’s educational costs under

26 paragraph (1).
16

•HR 2874 IH

1 (4) An Indian fish and wildlife resource intern shall

2 be required to report for service to his employing entity

3 during any break in attendance at school of more than

4 3 weeks duration. Time spent in such service shall be

5 counted toward satisfaction of the intern’s obligated serv6 ice agreement.

7 (b) COOPERATIVE EDUCATION PROGRAM.—(1) The

8 Secretary shall maintain, through the Bureau of Indian

9 Affairs, a cooperative education program for the purpose

10 of recruiting promising Indian students who are enrolled

11 in secondary schools, tribally controlled community col12 leges, and other postsecondary or graduate schools for em13 ployment as professional fisheries and wildlife biologists,

14 or other related professional with an Indian tribe, tribal

15 organization, or with the Bureau or with the United

16 States Fish and Wildlife Service serving or benefiting In17 dian lands.

18 (2) Under this program, the Secretary shall pay all

19 costs for tuition, books and fees of an Indian student who

20 is enrolled in a course of study at an education institution

21 with which the Secretary has entered into a cooperative

22 agreement and who is interested in a career with an In23 dian tribe, tribal organization, or the Bureau or with the

24 United States Fish and Wildlife Service serving or benefit25 ing Indian lands.
17

•HR 2874 IH

1 (3) A recipient of assistance under this program shall

2 be required to enter into an obligated service agreement

3 to serve as a professional fish or wildlife biologist or other

4 related professional position with an Indian tribe, tribal

5 organization, the Bureau, or the United States Fish and

6 Wildlife Service for one year for each year that the Sec7 retary pays the recipient’s educational costs pursuant to

8 paragraph (2).

9 (c) SCHOLARSHIP PROGRAM.—(1) The Secretary is

10 authorized to grant fish and wildlife management scholar11 ships to Indians enrolled in accredited programs for post12 secondary and graduate fish and wildlife resource manage13 ment related fields of study as full-time students.

14 (2) A recipient of a fish and wildlife management

15 scholarship shall be required to enter into an obligated

16 service agreement in which the recipient agrees to accept

17 employment following completion of the recipient’s course

18 of study with an Indian tribe, a tribal organization, the

19 Bureau, or the United States Fish and Wildlife Service

20 for one year for each year the recipient received a scholar21 ship.

22 (3) The Secretary shall not deny scholarship assist23 ance under this subsection solely on the basis of an appli24 cant’s scholastic achievement if the applicant has been ad-
18

•HR 2874 IH

1 mitted to and remains in good standing in an accredited

2 post-secondary or graduate institution.

3 (d) FISH AND WILDLIFE EDUCATION OUTREACH.—

4 The Secretary shall conduct, through the Bureau of In5 dian Affairs, with the full and active participation of In6 dian tribes, a fish and wildlife resource and education out7 reach program to explain and stimulate interest in all as8 pects of fish and wildlife management and to generate in9 terest in careers as fisheries and wildlife biologists.

10 (e) POSTGRADUATE RECRUITMENT.—The Secretary

11 shall establish and maintain a program to attract profes12 sional Indian fish and wildlife biologists who have grad13 uated from post-secondary or graduate schools for employ14 ment by Indian tribes, tribal organizations, the Bureau,

15 or the United States Fish and Wildlife Service, in ex16 change for the assumption by the Secretary of all or a

17 portion of the outstanding student loans of the employee,

18 depending upon the period of employment involved.

19 (f) ADEQUACY OF PROGRAMS.—The Secretary shall

20 administer the programs described in this section until a

21 sufficient number of personnel are available to administer

22 tribal fish and wildlife resource management programs on

23 Indian lands.

24 (g) OBLIGATED SERVICE.—Where an individual en25 ters into an agreement for obligated service in return for
19

•HR 2874 IH

1 financial assistance under any provision of this section,

2 the Secretary shall adopt such regulations as are nec3 essary to provide for an offer of employment to the recipi4 ent of such assistance as required by such provision.

5 Where an offer of employment is not reasonably made, the

6 regulations shall provide that such service shall no longer

7 be required.

8 (h) BREACH OF CONTRACT.—Where an individual

9 fails to accept a reasonable offer of employment in fulfill10 ment of such obligated service or unreasonably terminates

11 or fails to perform the duties of such employment, the Sec12 retary shall require a repayment of the financial assistance

13 provided, pro rated for the amount of time of obligated

14 service that was performed, together with interest on such

15 amount which would be payable if at the time the amounts

16 were paid they were loans bearing interest at the maxi17 mum legal prevailing rate, as determined by the Secretary

18 of the Treasury.

19 SEC. 10. REGULATIONS.

20 Except as otherwise provided by this Act, the Sec21 retary shall promulgate final regulations for the imple22 mentation of the Act within 18 months from the date of

23 its enactment. All regulations promulgated pursuant to

24 this Act shall be developed by the Secretary with the full

25 and active participation of Indian tribes.
20

•HR 2874 IH

1 SEC. 11. SEVERABILITY.

2 If any provision of this Act, or the application of any

3 provision of this Act to any person or circumstance, is held

4 invalid, the application of such provision or circumstance

5 and the remainder of this Act shall not be affected there6 by.

7 SEC. 12. TRUST RESPONSIBILITY.

8 Nothing in this Act shall be construed to—

9 (1) diminish or expand the trust responsibility

10 of the United States toward Indian fish and wildlife

11 resources, or any legal obligation or remedy result12 ing therefrom; or

13 (2) abrogate, restrict, modify, alter, or diminish

14 any treaty-reserved right of any Indian tribe, or any

15 other rights of Indian tribes under existing Federal

16 laws.

17 SEC. 13. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.

18 There are authorized to be appropriated such sums

19 as may be necessary to carry out the purposes of this Act.

Æ

HR 2874 IH——2