I 

109TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION H. R. 4801 

To extend the deadlines for distributing certain funds secured by the Michigan 

Indian Land Claims Settlement Act and for other purposes. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

FEBRUARY 16, 2006 

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

Committee on Resources 

A BILL 

To extend the deadlines for distributing certain funds secured 

by the Michigan Indian Land Claims Settlement Act 

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 ‘‘Michigan Indian Land 

5 Claims Settlement Act Amendments’’. 

6 SEC. 2. FINDINGS AND PURPOSES. 

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

8 (1) The Michigan Indian Land Claims Settle9 ment Act (Public Law 105–143) (hereafter ‘‘the 

10 Act’’) provides for the distribution of certain judgVerDate Aug 31 2005 06:35 Feb 23, 2006 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H4801.IH H4801

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1 ment funds awarded by the Indian Claims Commis2 sion to certain Ottawa and Chippewa of Michigan in 

3 dockets numbered 18–E, 58, 18–R, and 364. 

4 (2) Under the terms and conditions of the Act, 

5 a sizable percentage of those funds have already 

6 been distributed to the Grand Traverse Band of Ot7 tawa and Chippewa Indian, the Bay Mills Indian 

8 Community, the Little River Band of Ottawa Indi9 ans, the Little Traverse Bay Bands of Odawa, and 

10 the Sault Ste. Marie Tribe of Chippewa. The re11 maining funds are currently being held in trust 

12 pending distribution to certain individual descend13 ants of treaty signers, and to certain unrecognized 

14 Michigan Ottawa and Chippewa Tribes that obtain 

15 Federal acknowledgment or a Federal reaffirmation 

16 of the government-to-government relationship with 

17 the United States prior to the distribution period es18 tablished in the Act. That distribution period is no 

19 earlier than December 15, 2005, and no later than 

20 December 15, 2006. 

21 (3) To qualify for these funds, an unrecognized 

22 Michigan Ottawa or Chippewa Tribe must— 

23 (A) be a signatory to either the 1836 trea24 ty (7 Stat. 391) or the 1855 treaty (11 Stat. 

25 621); 


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1 (B) have a membership which is predomi2 nantly Chippewa and Ottawa; 

3 (C) have submitted to the Bureau of In4 dian Affairs a letter of intent to seek Federal 

5 acknowledgment not later than July 15, 1998; 

6 (D) have submitted to the Bureau of In7 dian Affairs a documented petition for Federal 

8 acknowledgment not later than December 15, 

9 2000; and 

10 (E) have obtained Federal acknowledgment 

11 or reaffirmation by Congress or the Bureau of 

12 Indian Affairs prior to the distribution period 

13 established in the Act. 

14 (4) Two Michigan based unrecognized Ottawa 

15 and Chippewa Tribes, the Burt Lake Band of Ot16 tawa and Chippewa Indians and the Grand River 

17 Band of Ottawa and Chippewa Indians, have met 

18 the first 5 requirements, but the Bureau of Indian 

19 Affairs has not completed its review of the tribes’ 

20 documented petitions. 

21 (5) Because neither of those tribes has caused 

22 this delay, it would be unfair and unjust to deny ei23 ther tribe its tribal shares of the funds merely be24 cause the Bureau of Indian Affairs has been unable 

25 to complete work on the petitions. 


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1 (b) PURPOSE.—The purpose of this Act is to extend 

2 the distribution dates established in Public Law 105–143 

3 to protect the legal rights of those 2 tribes. 

4 SEC. 3. TECHNICAL AMENDMENT. 

5 Section 106(a)(2) of the Michigan Indian Land 

6 Claims Settlement Act is amended to read as follows: 

7 ‘‘(1) TIME LIMITATIONS.—The judgment dis8 tribution roll of descendants prepared pursuant to 

9 paragraph (1)(A) shall be approved not later than 

10 December 15, 2007.’’. 

Æ 


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