I 

111TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 1061 

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 

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. 

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 


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1 section of Jefferson County, Washington, is the 

2 homeland of the Hoh Indian Tribe, a federally rec3 ognized Indian tribe. 

4 (2) Established by Executive Order in 1893, 

5 the Reservation is approximately one square mile, 

6 but its habitable acreage has been reduced over time 

7 due to storm surges, repeated flooding and erosion, 

8 and lack of river dredging. 

9 (3) Due to its location along the river and 

10 ocean and frequent torrential rains, 90 percent of 

11 the Reservation is located within a flood zone and, 

12 in fact, has flooded repeatedly over the last five 

13 years. In addition, 100 percent of the Reservation is 

14 within a tsunami zone, leaving most of the Reserva15 tion unfit for safe occupation. 

16 (4) The Tribe has repeatedly suffered from seri17 ous flood and wind damage to homes, tribal build18 ings, and utility infrastructure that have caused sig19 nificant damage and resulted in critical safety and 

20 environmental hazards. 

21 (5) Federal agencies such as the Bureau of In22 dian Affairs, the Department of Housing and Urban 

23 Development, and the Federal Emergency Manage24 ment Agency have limited authority to assist the 

25 Tribe with housing and other improvements and 


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1 services due to the dangerous and unsustainable lo2 cation of the Reservation. 

3 (6) The Tribe has purchased from private own4 ers near the Reservation approximately 260 acres of 

5 land in order to move key infrastructure out of the 

6 flood zone. 

7 (7) In addition, the State of Washington’s De8 partment of Natural Resources has transferred own9 ership of 160 acres of land to the Tribe. 

10 (8) An approximately 37 acre parcel of logged 

11 land, administered by the National Park Service, lies 

12 between the current Reservation land and those 

13 lands acquired by the Tribe, and the only road ac14 cessing the Reservation crosses this parcel. 

15 (9) Together, the lands described in paragraphs 

16 6, 7, and 8 would constitute a contiguous parcel for 

17 the Reservation and would create a safe area for 

18 members of the Tribe to live and rebuild their com19 munity. 

20 SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS. 

21 For the purposes of this Act— 

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

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

24 (2) the term ‘‘Reservation’’ means the reserva25 tion of the Hoh Indian Tribe; 


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1 (3) the term ‘‘Secretary’’ means the Secretary 

2 of the Interior; and 

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

4 Tribe, a federally recognized Indian tribe. 

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

6 PART OF THE TRIBE’S RESERVATION; PLACE7 MENT OF OTHER LAND INTO TRUST. 

8 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall transfer to 

9 the Tribe all right, title, and interest of the United States 

10 in and to the Federal land. Such land shall be held in 

11 trust by the United States for the benefit of the Tribe. 

12 Such land shall be excluded from the boundaries of Olym13 pic National Park. At the request of the Tribe, at the time 

14 of transfer of the Federal land, the Secretary shall also 

15 place into trust for the benefit of the Tribe the non-Fed16 eral land owned by the Tribe and described in subsection 

17 (c)(1). 

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

19 Tribe pursuant to subsection (a) shall be part of the Res20 ervation 

21 (c) DESCRIPTION OF LANDS.—The land to be trans22 ferred and held in trust under subsection (a) is the land 

23 generally depicted on the map titled ‘‘H.R. lll Hoh 

24 Indian Tribe Safe Homelands Act’’, and dated 

25 lllllllll and further described as— 


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

2 Tribe; and 

3 (2) the Federal land administered by the Na4 tional Park Service, located in Section 20, Township 

5 26N, Range 13W, W.M. South of the Hoh River. 

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

7 after the completion of the land transfer of Federal land 

8 under this section, the Secretary shall make the map avail9 able to the appropriate agency officials and congressional 

10 committees. The map shall be available for public inspec11 tion in the appropriate offices of the Secretary. 

12 (e) CONGRESSIONAL INTENT.—It is the intent of 

13 Congress that— 

14 (1) the condition of the Federal land at the 

15 time of the transfer under this section should be pre16 served and protected; 

17 (2) that the natural environment existing on 

18 the Federal land at the time of the transfer under 

19 this section should not be altered, except as de20 scribed in this Act; and 

21 (3) the Tribe and the National Park Service 

22 shall work cooperatively on issues of mutual concern 

23 related to this Act. 


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1 SEC. 5. PRESERVATION OF EXISTING CONDITION OF FED2 ERAL LAND; TERMS OF CONSERVATION AND 

3 USE IN CONNECTION WITH LAND TRANSFER. 

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

5 land transferred pursuant to section 4 is subject to the 

6 following conditions: 

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

8 other buildings or structures shall be placed on the 

9 Federal land being transferred and placed into trust. 

10 The existing road may be maintained or improved, 

11 but no major improvements or road construction 

12 shall occur on the lands. 

13 (2) In order to maintain its use as a natural 

14 wildlife corridor and to provide for protection of ex15 isting resources, no logging or hunting shall be al16 lowed on the land. 

17 (3) The Tribe may authorize tribal members to 

18 engage in ceremonial and other treaty uses of these 

19 lands and existing tribal treaty rights are not dimin20 ished by this Act. 

21 (4) The Tribe shall survey the boundaries of 

22 the Federal land and submit the survey to the Na23 tional Park Service for review and concurrence. 

24 (b) COOPERATIVE EFFORTS.—Congress urges the 

25 Secretary and the Tribe to enter into written agreements 

26 on the following: 


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1 (1) Upon completion of the Tribe’s proposed 

2 emergency fire response building, Congress urges the 

3 parties to work toward mutual aid agreements. 

4 (2) The National Park Service and the Tribe 

5 shall work collaboratively to provide opportunities 

6 for the public to learn more about the culture and 

7 traditions of the Tribe. 

8 (3) The land may be used for the development 

9 of a multi-purpose, non-motorized trail from High10 way 101 to the Pacific Ocean. The parties agree to 

11 work cooperatively in the development and place12 ment of such trail. 

13 SEC. 6. HOH INDIAN RESERVATION. 

14 All lands taken into trust by the United States under 

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

16 SEC. 7. GAMING PROHIBITION. 

17 No land taken into trust for the benefit of the Hoh 

18 Indian Tribe under this Act shall be considered Indian 

19 lands for the purpose of the Indian Gaming Regulatory 

20 Act (25 U.S.C. 2701 et seq.). 

Æ 


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