I 

118TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 6420 

To amend the Omnibus Public Land Management Act of 2009 to establish 

within the Mount Hood National Forest in the State of Oregon Indian 

Treaty Resources Emphasis Zones, and for other purposes. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

NOVEMBER 15, 2023 

Mr. BLUMENAUER introduced the following bill; which was referred to the 

Committee on Natural Resources 

A BILL 

To amend the Omnibus Public Land Management Act of 

2009 to establish within the Mount Hood National Forest in the State of Oregon Indian Treaty Resources 

Emphasis Zones, 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 ‘‘Wy’East Tribal Re5 sources Restoration Act’’. 


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1 SEC. 2. INDIAN TREATY RESOURCES EMPHASIS ZONES, 

2 MOUNT HOOD NATIONAL FOREST. 

3 (a) IN GENERAL.—Subtitle C of title I of the Omni4 bus Public Land Management Act of 2009 (Public Law 

5 111–11; 123 Stat. 1007) is amended by adding at the end 

6 the following: 

7 ‘‘SEC. 1208. INDIAN TREATY RESOURCES EMPHASIS ZONES. 

8 ‘‘(a) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 

9 ‘‘(1) NATIONAL FOREST.—The term ‘National 

10 Forest’ means the Mount Hood National Forest in 

11 the State. 

12 ‘‘(2) RESERVATION.—The term ‘Reservation’ 

13 means the reservation of the Tribe. 

14 ‘‘(3) TRADITIONAL ECOLOGICAL KNOWL15 EDGE.—The term ‘traditional ecological knowledge’ 

16 means a body of observations, oral and written 

17 knowledge, practices, and beliefs that— 

18 ‘‘(A) promotes environmental sustainability 

19 and the responsible stewardship of natural re20 sources through relationships between humans 

21 and environmental systems; 

22 ‘‘(B) is applied to phenomena across bio23 logical, physical, cultural, and spiritual systems; 

24 ‘‘(C) has evolved over millennia, continues 

25 to evolve, and includes insights based on evi26 dence acquired through direct contact with the 


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1 environment and long-term experiences, as well 

2 as extensive observations, lessons, and skills 

3 passed from generation to generation; and 

4 ‘‘(D) is owned by Indigenous people, in5 cluding Tribal Nations, Native Americans, Alas6 ka Natives, Native Hawaiians, and other Indig7 enous people. 

8 ‘‘(4) TREATY.—The term ‘Treaty’ means the 

9 Treaty between the United States and the confed10 erated tribes and bands of Indians in Middle Or11 egon, concluded at Wasco June 25, 1855 (12 Stat. 

12 963). 

13 ‘‘(5) TRIBE.—The term ‘Tribe’ means the Con14 federated Tribes of the Warm Springs Reservation 

15 of Oregon. 

16 ‘‘(6) ZONE.—The term ‘Zone’ means an Indian 

17 Treaty Resources Emphasis Zone established under 

18 subsection (b)(1). 

19 ‘‘(b) ESTABLISHMENT.— 

20 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—There is established within 

21 the area of the National Forest described in para22 graph (3) 1 or more zones, each of which shall be 

23 known as an ‘Indian Treaty Resources Emphasis 

24 Zone’, consisting of any area within the National 

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1 retary enter into a memorandum of understanding 

2 under subsection (c)(1) to protect and enhance 

3 Treaty resources or to protect the Reservation from 

4 wildfire. 

5 ‘‘(2) PURPOSES.—The purposes of a Zone 

6 are— 

7 ‘‘(A) to meet the trust responsibility of the 

8 United States in protecting the exercise of off9 Reservation Treaty rights reserved by the Trea10 ty in the National Forest; 

11 ‘‘(B) to ensure that land and resource 

12 management priorities in the Zone maintain 

13 and enhance resources, activities, and access re14 served by the Treaty; 

15 ‘‘(C) to protect Treaty rights and re16 sources and the Reservation from wildfire, 

17 drought, and insect and disease outbreaks in 

18 the National Forest in line with the best avail19 able science, including traditional ecological 

20 knowledge; 

21 ‘‘(D) to recognize and integrate traditional 

22 ecological knowledge as an important part of 

23 the best available science that is used in forest 

24 and resource management areas within the 

25 Zone; 


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1 ‘‘(E) to improve the technical under2 standing of Forest Service employees in the Na3 tional Forest with respect to the trust respon4 sibilities of the Federal Government (including 

5 the application of those responsibilities to ongo6 ing forest management processes and prac7 tices); 

8 ‘‘(F) to enable a co-management strategy 

9 between the Forest Service and the Tribe; and 

10 ‘‘(G) to conserve other values within the 

11 Zone, including ecological, scenic, geological, cli12 mate, and indigenous cultural values. 

13 ‘‘(3) SCOPE.—This section shall apply to any 

14 area within the boundaries of the National Forest in 

15 which the Tribe retains Treaty rights. 

16 ‘‘(c) MANAGEMENT STRATEGY.— 

17 ‘‘(1) MEMORANDUM OF UNDERSTANDING.—Not 

18 later than 60 days after the date of enactment of 

19 this section, the Secretary shall seek to enter into a 

20 memorandum of understanding with the Tribe— 

21 ‘‘(A) in addition to the Tribal consultation 

22 process, to better fulfill the trust relationship 

23 between the United States and the Tribe by en24 suring that the Forest Service includes the 

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1 cision-making process in a Zone to mitigate 

2 against adverse effects on Treaty rights and 

3 management of the resources on which the 

4 Treaty rights depend; and 

5 ‘‘(B) to cooperatively develop a manage6 ment strategy for the 1 or more Zones, includ7 ing guiding documents for the management of 

8 the National Forest and ecosystems for Treaty 

9 rights and resources within the Zones. 

10 ‘‘(2) REQUIREMENTS.—A memorandum of un11 derstanding entered into under paragraph (1) 

12 shall— 

13 ‘‘(A) include an assessment of wildfire risk 

14 to— 

15 ‘‘(i) the Reservation from the Na16 tional Forest; and 

17 ‘‘(ii) Treaty and cultural resources 

18 within the National Forest; 

19 ‘‘(B) provide that forest restoration and 

20 management planning within a Zone includes, 

21 and is guided by, reserved Treaty rights, and 

22 the resources on which the Treaty rights de23 pend; 


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1 ‘‘(C) include requirements that no tem2 porary or permanent road shall be constructed 

3 within a Zone, except as necessary— 

4 ‘‘(i) to meet the requirements for the 

5 administration of a Zone; 

6 ‘‘(ii) to protect public health and safe7 ty; 

8 ‘‘(iii) to respond to an emergency; or 

9 ‘‘(iv) for the control of fire, insects, or 

10 diseases, subject to such terms and condi11 tions as the Secretary determines to be ap12 propriate; and 

13 ‘‘(D) to the maximum extent practicable, 

14 to meet the purposes of this section, provide for 

15 the retention of large trees, as appropriate for 

16 the historic forest structure or promotion of 

17 fire-resilient stands. 

18 ‘‘(3) ROAD MAINTENANCE.— 

19 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Subject to appropria20 tions, the Secretary shall maintain existing 

21 roads determined by the Secretary, in consulta22 tion with the Tribe, to be necessary for author23 ized existing uses and the administration of a 

24 Zone. 


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1 ‘‘(B) INCLUSION IN MEMORANDUM OF UN2 DERSTANDING.—The requirement under this 

3 paragraph shall— 

4 ‘‘(i) not expire; and 

5 ‘‘(ii) be included in any memorandum 

6 of understanding entered into under para7 graph (1). 

8 ‘‘(4) WITHDRAWAL.—Subject to valid existing 

9 rights, all public land within a Zone, and all land 

10 and interests in land acquired by the United States 

11 within a Zone, shall be withdrawn from— 

12 ‘‘(A) all forms of entry, appropriation, or 

13 disposal under the public land laws; 

14 ‘‘(B) location, entry, and patent under the 

15 mining laws; and 

16 ‘‘(C) operation of the mineral leasing, min17 eral materials, and geothermal leasing laws. 

18 ‘‘(5) DEADLINES.—To the maximum extent 

19 practicable, the Secretary shall— 

20 ‘‘(A) not later than the date that is 1 year 

21 after the date of enactment of this section, rat22 ify a memorandum of understanding under 

23 paragraph (1); and 

24 ‘‘(B) not later than the date that is 3 

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1 tion, complete a management strategy for the 1 

2 or more Zones. 

3 ‘‘(d) REQUIREMENTS FOR IMPLEMENTATION.—In 

4 carrying out this section, the Secretary shall, to the max5 imum extent practicable— 

6 ‘‘(1) use all existing authorities available to the 

7 Secretary, including, as applicable— 

8 ‘‘(A) the Tribal Forest Protection Act of 

9 2004 (Public Law 108–278; 118 Stat. 868); 

10 ‘‘(B) the good neighbor authority under 

11 section 8206 of the Agricultural Act of 2014 

12 (16 U.S.C. 2113a); 

13 ‘‘(C) title XXVI of the Energy Policy Act 

14 of 1992 (25 U.S.C. 3501 et seq.); 

15 ‘‘(D) the stewardship end result con16 tracting authority under section 604 of the 

17 Healthy Forests Restoration Act of 2003 (16 

18 U.S.C. 6591c); 

19 ‘‘(E) section 102 of the Indian Self-Deter20 mination and Education Assistance Act (25 

21 U.S.C. 5321); and 

22 ‘‘(F) the authority to enter into contracts 

23 with the Tribe to expedite projects, on request 

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1 culture Improvement Act of 2018 (25 U.S.C. 

2 3115b); 

3 ‘‘(2) develop a programmatic analysis for the 

4 management strategy for the 1 or more Zones under 

5 the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (42 

6 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.); 

7 ‘‘(3) pursue a programmatic biological assess8 ment to implement the actions analyzed under para9 graph (2) under section 7 of the Endangered Species 

10 Act of 1973 (16 U.S.C. 1536); and 

11 ‘‘(4) ensure compliance with all applicable laws 

12 and regulations. 

13 ‘‘(e) REVIEW OF MOU.—Not later than 5 years after 

14 the date on which a memorandum of understanding is en15 tered into under subsection (c)(1), and not less frequently 

16 than once every 5 years thereafter, the Secretary shall, 

17 in coordination with the Tribe, review the accomplish18 ments of the memorandum of understanding to determine 

19 if the memorandum of understanding shall be extended 

20 or modified. 

21 ‘‘(f) FUNDING AGREEMENT.—The Secretary shall de22 velop a funding agreement with the Tribe, including the 

23 use of appropriated funding, to ensure that the Tribe, in 

24 partnership with the Forest Service, has the capacity to 


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1 participate in designing, implementing, and monitoring 

2 projects within a Zone. 

3 ‘‘(g) MONITORING.— 

4 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall enter 

5 into an agreement with the Tribe under which the 

6 Tribe may, at the discretion of the Tribe— 

7 ‘‘(A) review and provide comments on any 

8 land management prescriptions developed by 

9 the Secretary for a Zone; 

10 ‘‘(B) monitor— 

11 ‘‘(i) the long-term effectiveness of res12 toration and management treatments of 

13 actions carried out in a Zone; and 

14 ‘‘(ii) any other action or lack of action 

15 that is detrimental to the purposes of a 

16 Zone; and 

17 ‘‘(C) share any other information with the 

18 Forest Service that the Tribe determines to be 

19 necessary to further the purposes of a Zone. 

20 ‘‘(h) MANAGEMENT OF CULTURAL FOODS OBLIGA21 TIONS.— 

22 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—If the management plan 

23 described in section 1207(c) has not been developed 

24 and implemented as of the date of enactment of this 

25 section, the Secretary shall— 


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1 ‘‘(A) complete a management plan in ac2 cordance with that section not later than 180 

3 days after the date of enactment of this section; 

4 or 

5 ‘‘(B) enter into a contract with the Tribe 

6 to draft a management plan described in that 

7 section pursuant to the authority of the Sec8 retary under the Indian Self-Determination and 

9 Education Assistance Act (25 U.S.C. 5301 et 

10 seq.). 

11 ‘‘(2) DEFINITION OF CULTURAL FOODS.—For 

12 purposes of the management plan described in para13 graph (1), the Secretary shall consult with the Tribe 

14 to define the term ‘cultural foods’. 

15 ‘‘(3) INCLUSION.—The management plan de16 scribed in paragraph (1) may be included in the 

17 management strategy for the 1 or more Zones devel18 oped under subsection (c). 

19 ‘‘(i) LAND AND RESOURCE MANAGEMENT PLAN.— 

20 Any revisions or amendments to the land and resource 

21 management plan applicable to the National Forest under 

22 the Forest and Rangeland Renewable Resources Planning 

23 Act of 1974 (16 U.S.C. 1600 et seq.) shall— 


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1 ‘‘(1) be made in consultation with the Tribe 

2 and other Indian Tribes with historical or legal in3 terests in the National Forest; 

4 ‘‘(2) be consistent with the management strat5 egy for the 1 or more Zones; and 

6 ‘‘(3) within the 1 or more Zones, protect Treaty 

7 rights and allow management of the resources on 

8 which the Treaty rights depend. 

9 ‘‘(j) EFFECT.—Nothing in this section— 

10 ‘‘(1) enlarges, establishes, or diminishes the 

11 current or future rights of any Indian Tribe, includ12 ing— 

13 ‘‘(A) the exercise of hunting, fishing, gath14 ering, and pasturing of livestock rights in usual 

15 and accustomed areas; or 

16 ‘‘(B) Indian hunting, fishing, or gathering 

17 activities conducted under an agreement with 

18 the State; 

19 ‘‘(2) provides any Indian Tribe with exclusive 

20 use of any area within the National Forest; or 

21 ‘‘(3) limits the Secretary from entering into a 

22 separate agreement with other Indian Tribes with 

23 treaty rights or a recognized legal interest in the 

24 National Forest. 

25 ‘‘(k) FUNDING.— 


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1 ‘‘(1) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.— 

2 There is authorized to be appropriated to carry out 

3 this section $3,500,000 for each of fiscal years 2024 

4 through 2028. 

5 ‘‘(2) AUTHORITY TO USE OTHER FUNDS.—Sub6 ject to the availability of funds, and based on prior7 ities for the National Forest, the Secretary may use 

8 existing funds of the Forest Service and Forest 

9 Service program revenue generated from forest res10 toration activities to carry out the management 

11 strategy for the 1 or more Zones, in line with the 

12 purposes laid out in subsection(b)(2).’’. 

13 (b) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of contents 

14 of the Omnibus Public Land Management Act of 2009 

15 (Public Law 111–11; 123 Stat. 991) is amended by insert16 ing after the item relating to section 1207 the following: 

‘‘Sec. 1208. Indian Treaty Resources Emphasis Zones.’’. 

Æ 


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