I 

118TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 6489 

To amend the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act to provide that Village 

Corporations shall not be required to convey land in trust to the State 

of Alaska for the establishment of Municipal Corporations, and for other 

purposes. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

NOVEMBER 28, 2023 

Mrs. PELTOLA introduced the following bill; which was referred to the 

Committee on Natural Resources 

A BILL 

To amend the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act to provide that Village Corporations shall not be required to 

convey land in trust to the State of Alaska for the 

establishment of Municipal Corporations, 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 ‘‘Alaska Native Village 

5 Municipal Lands Restoration Act of 2023’’. 


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1 SEC. 2. REVERSION OF CERTAIN LAND CONVEYED IN 

2 TRUST TO THE STATE OF ALASKA. 

3 Section 14(c) of the Alaska Native Claims Settlement 

4 Act (43 U.S.C. 1613(c)) is amended— 

5 (1) by redesignating paragraphs (1) through 

6 (5) as subparagraphs (A) through (E), respectively, 

7 and indenting appropriately; 

8 (2) in the matter preceding subparagraph (A) 

9 (as so redesignated), by striking ‘‘(c) Each patent’’ 

10 and inserting the following: 

11 ‘‘(c) CONVEYANCE OF CERTAIN LAND BY VILLAGE

12 CORPORATION.— 

13 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Each patent’’; 

14 (3) in paragraph (1) (as so designated), in the 

15 undesignated matter following subparagraph (E) (as 

16 so redesignated), in the first sentence— 

17 (A) by striking ‘‘section 14(c) of this Act’’ 

18 and inserting ‘‘this subsection’’; and 

19 (B) by striking ‘‘There is authorized’’ and 

20 inserting the following: 

21 ‘‘(2) TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE.— 

22 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—There are author23 ized’’; 

24 (4) in paragraph (2)(A) (as so redesignated), in 

25 the second sentence, by striking ‘‘The Secretary’’ 

26 and inserting the following: 


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1 ‘‘(B) FORM OF FUNDING.—The Sec2 retary’’; and 

3 (5) in paragraph (1) (as so designated)— 

4 (A) in each of subparagraphs (A) and (B) 

5 (as so redesignated)— 

6 (i) by striking ‘‘the’’ the first place it 

7 appears and inserting ‘‘The’’; and 

8 (ii) by striking the semicolon at the 

9 end and inserting a period; 

10 (B) in subparagraph (D) (as so redesig11 nated), by striking ‘‘the’’ the first place it ap12 pears and inserting ‘‘The’’; 

13 (C) by striking ‘‘existed as of’’ in subpara14 graph (D) (as so redesignated) and all that fol15 lows through ‘‘for’’ in subparagraph (E) (as so 

16 redesignated) and inserting the following: ‘‘ex17 isted as of December 18, 1971. 

18 ‘‘(E) For’’; and 

19 (D) in subparagraph (C) (as so redesig20 nated)— 

21 (i) by striking the semicolon at the 

22 end and inserting a period; 

23 (ii) by striking ‘‘in trust: Provided, 

24 however, That the word’’ and all that folVerDate Sep 11 2014 18:34 Dec 04, 2023 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H6489.IH H6489

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1 lows through ‘‘sentence,’’ and inserting the 

2 following: ‘‘in trust. 

3 ‘‘(II) DEFINITION OF SALE.— 

4 For purposes of subclause (I), the 

5 term ‘sale’ ’’; 

6 (iii) by striking ‘‘one thousand two 

7 hundred and eighty acres: Provided further, 

8 That any net’’ and inserting the following: 

9 ‘‘1,280 acres. 

10 ‘‘(iii) NET REVENUES.— 

11 ‘‘(I) IN GENERAL.—Any net’’; 

12 (iv) by striking ‘‘community needs: 

13 Provided, That the’’ and inserting the fol14 lowing: ‘‘community needs. 

15 ‘‘(ii) MINIMUM ACREAGE.—The’’; 

16 (v) by striking ‘‘(C) the Village Cor17 poration’’ and inserting the following: 

18 ‘‘(C) CONVEYANCE TO MUNICIPAL COR19 PORATION OR THE STATE IN TRUST.— 

20 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—The Village Cor21 poration’’; and 

22 (vi) by adding at the end the fol23 lowing: 

24 ‘‘(iv) CASES IN WHICH CONVEYANCE

25 SHALL NOT BE REQUIRED.— 


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1 ‘‘(I) IN GENERAL.—Notwith2 standing any other provision of this 

3 subparagraph, if a Village Corpora4 tion, prior to the date of enactment of 

5 the Alaska Native Village Municipal 

6 Lands Restoration Act of 2023, con7 veyed to the State in trust all or a 

8 portion of the acreage of land re9 quired to be conveyed under this sub10 paragraph for the establishment of a 

11 Municipal Corporation in the future, 

12 and a Municipal Corporation has not 

13 been established as of that date of en14 actment, on formal resolution by the 

15 Village Corporation and the residents 

16 of the Native village requesting dis17 solution of the trust, the trust shall be 

18 dissolved and title to the land shall re19 vert to the Village Corporation, sub20 ject to subclause (III). 

21 ‘‘(II) ADDITIONAL LAND.—Not22 withstanding any other provision of 

23 this subparagraph, as of the date of 

24 enactment of the Alaska Native Vil25 lage Municipal Lands Restoration Act 


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1 of 2023, a Village Corporation shall 

2 not be required to convey any addi3 tional land in trust under this sub4 paragraph for the establishment of a 

5 Municipal Corporation in the future. 

6 ‘‘(III) REQUIREMENTS.—In ac7 cordance with subsection (g)— 

8 ‘‘(aa) the reversion of land 

9 to a Village Corporation pursuant 

10 to subclause (I) shall be subject 

11 to— 

12 ‘‘(AA) valid existing 

13 rights created by the appli14 cable trust; and 

15 ‘‘(BB) any existing 

16 easements, rights-of-way 

17 necessary for public roadway 

18 access, or rights-of-way for 

19 access of holders of valid ex20 isting rights; and 

21 ‘‘(bb) the Village Corpora22 tion shall assume the obligations 

23 of the applicable trust with re24 spect to any lease or other use 

25 agreement applicable to the land 


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1 on reversion of the land to the 

2 Village Corporation pursuant to 

3 subclause (I).’’. 

Æ 


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