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Union Calendar No. 172 

111TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 1061 

[Report No. 111–306] 

To transfer certain land to the United States to be held in trust for the 

Hoh Indian Tribe, to place land into trust for the Hoh Indian Tribe, 

and for other purposes. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

FEBRUARY 13, 2009 

Mr. DICKS introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee 

on Natural Resources 

OCTOBER 21, 2009 

Additional sponsor: Mr. COLE

OCTOBER 21, 2009 

Reported with an amendment, committed to the Committee of the Whole 

House on the State of the Union, and ordered to be printed 

[Strike out all after the enacting clause and insert the part printed in italic] 

[For text of introduced bill, see copy of bill as introduced on February 13, 2009] 


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A BILL 

To transfer certain land to the United States to be held 

in trust for the Hoh Indian Tribe, to place land into 

trust for the Hoh Indian Tribe, and for other purposes. 


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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 ‘‘Hoh Indian Tribe Safe 

5 Homelands Act’’. 

6 SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 

7 (a) FINDINGS.—Congress finds the following: 

8 (1) The Hoh Indian Reservation, located along 

9 the Hoh River and the Pacific Ocean in a remote sec10 tion of Jefferson County, Washington, is the homeland 

11 of the Hoh Indian Tribe, a federally recognized In12 dian tribe. 

13 (2) Established by Executive Order in 1893, the 

14 Reservation is approximately one square mile, but its 

15 habitable acreage has been reduced over time due to 

16 storm surges, repeated flooding and erosion, and lack 

17 of river dredging. 

18 (3) Due to its location along the river and ocean 

19 and frequent torrential rains, 90 percent of the Res20 ervation is located within a flood zone and, in fact, 

21 has flooded repeatedly over the last five years. In ad22 dition, 100 percent of the Reservation is within a tsu23 nami zone, leaving most of the Reservation unfit for 

24 safe occupation. 


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1 (4) The Tribe has repeatedly suffered from seri2 ous flood and wind damage to homes, tribal build3 ings, and utility infrastructure that have caused sig4 nificant damage and resulted in critical safety and 

5 environmental hazards. 

6 (5) Federal agencies such as the Bureau of In7 dian Affairs, the Department of Housing and Urban 

8 Development, and the Federal Emergency Manage9 ment Agency have limited authority to assist the 

10 Tribe with housing and other improvements and serv11 ices due to the dangerous and unsustainable location 

12 of the Reservation. 

13 (6) The Tribe has purchased from private owners 

14 near the Reservation approximately 260 acres of land 

15 in order to move key infrastructure out of the flood 

16 zone. 

17 (7) In addition, the State of Washington’s De18 partment of Natural Resources has transferred owner19 ship of 160 acres of land to the Tribe. 

20 (8) An approximately 37 acre parcel of logged 

21 land, administered by the National Park Service, lies 

22 between the current Reservation land and those lands 

23 acquired by the Tribe, and the only road accessing the 

24 Reservation crosses this parcel. 


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1 (9) Together, the lands described in paragraphs 

2 6, 7, and 8 would constitute a contiguous parcel for 

3 the Reservation and would create a safe area for 

4 members of the Tribe to live and rebuild their com5 munity. 

6 SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS. 

7 For the purposes of this Act— 

8 (1) the term ‘‘Federal land’’ mean the Federal 

9 lands described in section 4(c)(2); 

10 (2) the term ‘‘Reservation’’ means the reservation 

11 of the Hoh Indian Tribe; 

12 (3) the term ‘‘Secretary’’ means the Secretary of 

13 the Interior; and 

14 (4) the term ‘‘Tribe’’ means the Hoh Indian 

15 Tribe, a federally recognized Indian tribe. 

16 SEC. 4. TRANSFER OF LANDS TO BE HELD IN TRUST AS 

17 PART OF THE TRIBE’S RESERVATION; PLACE18 MENT OF OTHER LAND INTO TRUST. 

19 (a) IN GENERAL.—All right, title, and interest of the 

20 United States in and to the land described in subsection 

21 (c)(2), are declared to be held in trust by the United States 

22 for the benefit of the Tribe without any further action by 

23 the Secretary. Such land shall be excluded from the bound24 aries of the Olympic National Park. Upon conveyance to 

25 the Secretary by the Tribe, and subject to the completion 


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1 of an assessment of the nature and extent of any potential 

2 liability resulting from hazardous substances or other envi3 ronmental problems associated with such property and the 

4 remediation of any such potential liabilities, the Secretary 

5 shall take into trust for the benefit of the Tribe certain non6 Federal land owned by the Tribe described in subsection 

7 (c)(1), without any further action by the Secretary. 

8 (b) RESERVATION.—Land taken into trust for the 

9 Tribe pursuant to subsection (a) shall be part of the Res10 ervation 

11 (c) DESCRIPTION OF LANDS.—The land to be trans12 ferred and held in trust under subsection (a) is the land 

13 generally depicted on the map titled ‘‘Hoh Indian Tribe 

14 Safe Homelands Act Land Acquisition Map’’, dated July, 

15 21, 2008, and further described as— 

16 (1) the non-Federal land owned by the Hoh 

17 Tribe described in section 2(a)(6) and (7); and 

18 (2) the Federal land administered by the Na19 tional Park Service, located in Section 20, Township 

20 26N, Range 13W, W.M. South of the Hoh River. 

21 (d) AVAILABILITY OF MAP.—Not later than 120 days 

22 after the survey required by section 5(a)(6) has been re23 viewed and concurred in by the National Park Service, the 

24 Secretary shall make the map available to the appropriate 

25 congressional committees. The map also shall be available 


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1 for public inspection in the appropriate offices of the Sec2 retary. 

3 (e) CONGRESSIONAL INTENT.—It is the intent of Con4 gress that— 

5 (1) the condition of the Federal land at the time 

6 of the transfer under this section should be preserved 

7 and protected; 

8 (2) that the natural environment existing on the 

9 Federal land at the time of the transfer under this 

10 section should not be altered, except as described in 

11 this Act; and 

12 (3) the Tribe and the National Park Service 

13 shall work cooperatively on issues of mutual concern 

14 related to this Act. 

15 SEC. 5. PRESERVATION OF EXISTING CONDITION OF FED16 ERAL LAND; TERMS OF CONSERVATION AND 

17 USE IN CONNECTION WITH LAND TRANSFER. 

18 (a) RESTRICTIONS ON USE.—The use of the Federal 

19 land transferred pursuant to section 4 shall be subject to 

20 the following conditions: 

21 (1) No commercial, residential, industrial, or 

22 other buildings or structures shall be placed on the 

23 Federal land being transferred and placed into trust. 

24 (2) The condition of the Federal land at the time 

25 of the transfer under this section shall be preserved 


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1 and protected and no actions that would adversely af2 fect the natural environment on the Federal land 

3 shall be taken, except as described in this Act. 

4 (3) In order to maintain its use as a natural 

5 wildlife corridor and to provide for protection of ex6 isting resources, no logging or hunting shall be al7 lowed on the land. 

8 (4) Routine maintenance may be conducted on 

9 the two-lane county road that traverses the Federal 

10 land as of the date of the enactment of this Act. The 

11 road may not be widened or otherwise expanded. No 

12 other roads or access routes shall be allowed on the 

13 Federal land, except as provided by this paragraph 

14 and subsection (b)(2). In the event the use of the road 

15 or portions of the road is compromised by floods or 

16 other natural or unexpected occurrences, a similar, 

17 two-lane road or portion of the road may be recon18 structed to assure access to the area. 

19 (5) The Tribe may authorize tribal members to 

20 engage in ceremonial and other treaty uses of the Fed21 eral lands and existing tribal treaty rights shall not 

22 be diminished by this Act. 

23 (6) The Tribe shall survey the boundaries of the 

24 Federal land and submit the survey to the National 

25 Park Service for its review and concurrence. 


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1 (b) COOPERATIVE EFFORTS.—The Secretary and the 

2 Tribe— 

3 (1) shall enter into cooperative agreements— 

4 (A) for mutual emergency fire aid, upon 

5 completion of the Tribe’s proposed emergency fire 

6 response building; and 

7 (B) to provide opportunities for the public 

8 to learn more about the culture and traditions of 

9 the Tribe; 

10 (2) may develop and establish a multipurpose, 

11 nonmotorized trail from Highway 101 to the Pacific 

12 Ocean; and 

13 (3) shall work cooperatively on any other issues 

14 of mutual concern related to the transfer of land au15 thorized by this Act. 

16 SEC. 6. HOH INDIAN RESERVATION. 

17 All lands taken into trust by the United States under 

18 this Act shall be a part of the Hoh Indian Reservation. 

19 SEC. 7. GAMING PROHIBITION. 

20 No land taken into trust for the benefit of the Hoh In21 dian Tribe under this Act shall be considered Indian lands 

22 for the purpose of the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act (25 

23 U.S.C. 2701 et seq.). 


hsrobinson on DSK69SOYB1PROD with BILLS
Union Calendar No. 172 

111TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 1061 

[Report No. 111–306] 

A BILL 

To transfer certain land to the United States to be 

other purposes. land into trust for the Hoh Indian Tribe, and for held in trust for the Hoh Indian Tribe, to place 

OCTOBER 21, 2009 

Reported with an amendment, committed to the Comand ordered to be printed mittee of the Whole House on the State of the Union, 


hsrobinson on DSK69SOYB1PROD with BILLS