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[Congressional Bills 104th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 537 Introduced in Senate (IS)]

104th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                 S. 537

    To amend the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act, and for other 
                               purposes.

_______________________________________________________________________

                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

               March 10 (legislative day, March 6), 1995

 Mr. Murkowski (for himself and Mr. Stevens) introduced the following 
bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Energy and 
                           Natural Resources

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL

 
    To amend the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act, and for other 
                               purposes.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. RATIFICATION OF CERTAIN CASWELL AND MONTANA CREEK NATIVE 
              ASSOCIATIONS CONVEYANCES.

    The conveyance of approximately 11,520 acres to Montana Creek 
Native Association, Inc., and the conveyance of approximately 11,520 
acres to Caswell Native Association, Inc., by Cook Inlet Region, Inc. 
in fulfillment of the agreement of February 3, 1976, and subsequent 
letter agreement of March 26, 1982, among the 3 parties are hereby 
adopted and ratified as a matter of Federal law. The conveyances shall 
be deemed to be conveyances pursuant to section 14(h)(2) of the Alaska 
Native Claims Settlement Act (43 U.S.C. 1613(h)(2)). The group 
corporations for Montana Creek and Caswell are hereby declared to have 
received their full entitlement and shall not be entitled to receive 
any additional lands under the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act. The 
ratification of these conveyances shall not have any effect on section 
14(h) of the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act (43 U.S.C. 1613(h)) or 
upon the duties and obligations of the United States to any Alaska 
Native Corporation. This ratification shall not be for any claim to 
land or money by the Caswell or Montana Creek group corporations or any 
other Alaska Native Corporation against the State of Alaska, the United 
States, or Cook Inlet Region, Incorporated.

SEC. 2. MINING CLAIMS ON LANDS CONVEYED TO ALASKA REGIONAL 
              CORPORATIONS.

    Section 22(c) of the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act (43 U.S.C. 
1621(c)) is amended by adding at the end the following:
            ``(3) This section shall apply to lands conveyed by interim 
        conveyance or patent to a regional corporation pursuant to this 
        Act which are made subject to a mining claim or claims located 
        under the general mining laws, including lands conveyed prior 
        to enactment of this paragraph. Effective upon the date of 
        enactment of this paragraph, the Secretary, acting through the 
        Bureau of Land Management and in a manner consistent with 
        section 14(g), shall transfer to the regional corporation 
        administration of all mining claims determined to be entirely 
        within lands conveyed to that corporation. Any person holding 
        such mining claim or claims shall meet such requirements of the 
        general mining laws and section 314 of the Federal Land 
        Management and Policy Act of 1976 (43 U.S.C. 1744), except that 
        any filings that would have been made with the Bureau of Land 
        Management if the lands were within Federal ownership shall be 
        timely made with the appropriate regional corporation. The 
        validity of any such mining claim or claims may be contested by 
        the regional corporation, in place of the United States. All 
        contest proceedings and appeals by the mining claimants of 
        adverse decision made by the regional corporation shall be 
        brought in Federal District Court for the District of Alaska. 
        Neither the United States nor any Federal agency or official 
        shall be named or joined as a party in such proceedings or 
        appeals. All revenues from such mining claims received after 
        passage of this paragraph shall be remitted to the regional 
        corporation subject to distribution pursuant to section 7(i) of 
        this Act, except that in the event that the mining claim or 
        claims are not totally within the lands conveyed to the 
        regional corporation, the regional corporation shall be 
        entitled only to that proportion of revenues, other than 
        administrative fees, reasonably allocated to the portion of the 
        mining claim so conveyed.''.

SEC. 3. SETTLEMENT OF CLAIMS ARISING FROM HAZARDOUS SUBSTANCE 
              CONTAMINATION OF TRANSFERRED LANDS.

    The Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act (43 U.S.C. 1601 et seq.) is 
amended by adding at the end the following:

        ``claims arising from contamination of transferred lands

    ``Sec. 40. (a) As used in this section--
            ``(1) the term `contaminant' means hazardous substance 
        harmful to public health or the environment, including 
        asbestos; and
            ``(2) the term `land' means real property transferred to an 
        Alaska Native Corporation pursuant to this Act.
    ``(b) Within 18 months of enactment of this section, and after 
consultation with the Secretary of Agriculture, State of Alaska, and 
appropriate Alaska Native corporations and organizations, the Secretary 
shall submit to the Committee on Resources of the House of 
Representatives and the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources of 
the Senate, a report addressing issues presented by the presence of 
hazardous substances on lands conveyed or prioritized for conveyance to 
such corporations pursuant to this Act. Such report shall consist of--
            ``(1) existing information concerning the nature and types 
        of contaminants present on such lands prior to conveyance to 
        Alaska Native corporations;
            ``(2) existing information identifying the existence and 
        availability of potentially responsible parties for the removal 
or amelioration of the effects of such contaminants;
            ``(3) identification of existing remedies; and
            ``(4) recommendations for any additional legislation that 
        the Secretary concludes is necessary to remedy the problem of 
        contaminants on the lands.''.

SEC. 4. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS FOR THE PURPOSES OF 
              IMPLEMENTING REQUIRED RECONVEYANCES.

    Section 14(c) of the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act (43 U.S.C. 
1613(c)) is amended by adding at the end the following:
    ``There is authorized to be appropriated such sums as may be 
necessary for the purpose of providing technical assistance to Village 
Corporations established pursuant to this Act in order that they may 
fulfill the reconveyance requirements of section 14(c) of this Act. The 
Secretary may make funds available as grants to ANCSA or nonprofit 
corporations that maintain in-house land planning and management 
capabilities.''.

SEC. 5. NATIVE ALLOTMENTS.

    Section 1431(o) of the Alaska National Interest Lands Conservation 
Act (94 Stat. 2542) is amended by adding at the end the following:
            ``(5) Following the exercise by Arctic Slope Regional 
        Corporation of its option under paragraph (1) to acquire the 
        subsurface estate beneath lands within the National Petroleum 
        Reserve--Alaska selected by Kuukpik Corporation, where such 
        subsurface estate entirely surrounds lands subject to a Native 
        allotment application approved under 905 of this Act, and the 
        oil and gas in such lands have been reserved to the United 
        States, Arctic Slope Regional Corporation, at its further 
        option and subject to the concurrence of Kuukpik Corporation, 
        shall be entitled to receive a conveyance of the reserved oil 
        and gas, including all rights and privileges therein reserved 
        to the United States, in such lands. Upon the receipt of a 
        conveyance of such oil and gas interests, the entitlement of 
        Arctic Slope Regional Corporation to in-lieu subsurface lands 
        under section 12(a)(1) of the Alaska Native Claims Settlement 
        Act (43 U.S.C. 1611(a)(1)) shall be reduced by the amount of 
        acreage determined by the Secretary to be conveyed to Arctic 
        Slope Regional Corporation pursuant to this paragraph.''.

SEC. 6. REPORT CONCERNING OPEN SEASON FOR CERTAIN NATIVE ALASKA 
              VETERANS FOR ALLOTMENTS.

    (a) In General.--No later than 6 months after the date of enactment 
of this Act, the Secretary of the Interior, in consultation with the 
Secretary of Agriculture, the State of Alaska and appropriate Native 
corporations and organizations, shall submit to the Committee on 
Resources of the House of Representatives and the Committee on Energy 
and Natural Resources of the Senate a report which shall include, but 
not be limited to, the following:
            (1) The number of Vietnam era veterans, as defined in 
        section 101 of title 38, United States Code, who were eligible 
        for but did not apply for an allotment of not to exceed 160 
        acres under the Act of May 17, 1906 (chapter 2469, 34 Stat. 
        197), as the Act was in effect before December 18, 1971.
            (2) An assessment of the potential impacts of additional 
        allotments on conservation system units as that term is defined 
        in section 102(4) of the Alaska National Interest Lands 
        Conservation Act (94 Stat. 2375).
            (3) Recommendations for any additional legislation that the 
        Secretary concludes is necessary.
    (b) Requirement.--The Secretary of Veterans Affairs shall release 
to the Secretary of the Interior information relevant to the report 
required under subsection (a).

SEC. 7. TRANSFER OF WRANGELL INSTITUTE.

    (a) Property Transfer.--Cook Inlet Region, Incorporated, is 
authorized to transfer to the United States and the General Services 
Administration shall accept an approximately 10-acre site of the 
Wrangell Institute in Wrangell, Alaska, and the structures contained 
thereon.
    (b) Restoration of Property Credits.--
            (1) In general.--In exchange for the land and structures 
        transferred under subsection (a), property bidding credits in 
        the total amount of $382,305, shall be restored to the Cook 
        Inlet Region, Incorporated, property account in the Treasury 
        established under section 12(b) of the Act of January 2, 1976 
        (Public Law 94-204; 43 U.S.C. 1611 note), referred to in such 
        section as the ``Cook Inlet Region, Incorporated, property 
        account''. Such property bidding credits shall be used in the 
        same fiscal year as they are received by Cook Inlet Region, 
        Incorporated.
            (2) Hold harmless.--The United States shall defend and hold 
        harmless Cook Inlet Region, Incorporated, and its subsidiaries 
        in any and all claims arising from Federal or Cook Inlet 
        Region, Incorporated, ownership of the land and structures 
        prior to their return to the United States.

SEC. 8. SHISHMAREF AIRPORT AMENDMENT.

    The Shishmaref Airport, conveyed to the State of Alaska on January 
5, 1967, in Patent No. 1240529, is subject to reversion to the United 
States, pursuant to the terms of that patent for nonuse as an airport. 
The Secretary is authorized to reacquire the interests originally 
conveyed pursuant to Patent No. 1240529, and, notwithstanding any other 
provision of law, shall immediately thereafter transfer all right, 
title, and interest of the United States in the subject lands to the 
Shishmaref Native Corporation. Nothing in this section shall relieve 
the State, the United States, or any other potentially responsible 
party of liability, if any, under existing law for the cleanup of 
hazardous or solid wastes on the property, nor shall the United States 
or Shishmaref Native Corporation become liable for the cleanup of the 
property solely by virtue of acquiring title from the State of Alaska 
or from the United States.
                                 <all>
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