II 

Calendar No. 342 

118TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION S. 1322 

[Report No. 118–159] 

To amend the Act of August 9, 1955, to modify the authorized purposes 

and term period of tribal leases, and for other purposes. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

APRIL 26, 2023 

Mr. SCHATZ (for himself and Ms. MURKOWSKI) introduced the following bill; 

which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Indian Affairs 

MARCH 12, 2024 

Reported by Mr. SCHATZ, with an amendment 

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

A BILL 

To amend the Act of August 9, 1955, to modify the authorized purposes and term period of tribal leases, 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, 


ssavage on LAPJG3WLY3PROD with BILLS
2 

•S 1322 RS

1 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

2 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Unlocking Native 

3 Lands and Opportunities for Commerce and Key Eco4 nomic Developments Act of 2023’’. 

5 SEC. 2. MODIFICATION OF TRIBAL LEASES AND RIGHTS-OF6 WAY ACROSS INDIAN LAND. 

7 (a) EXTENSION OF TRIBAL LEASE PERIOD.—The 

8 first section of the Act of August 9, 1955 (69 Stat. 539, 

9 chapter 615; 25 U.S.C. 415) (commonly known as the 

10 ‘‘Long-Term Leasing Act’’), is amended— 

11 (1) by striking ‘‘That (a)’’ and all that follows 

12 through the end of subsection (a) and inserting the 

13 following: 

14 ‘‘SECTION 1. LEASES OF RESTRICTED LAND. 

15 ‘‘(a) AUTHORIZED PURPOSES; TERM; APPROVAL BY

16 SECRETARY.— 

17 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Any restricted Indian 

18 lands, regardless of whether that land is tribally or 

19 individually owned, may be leased by the Indian 

20 owner of the land, with the approval of the Sec21 retary, for— 

22 ‘‘(A) a public, religious, educational, rec23 reational, residential, business, or grazing pur24 poses; or 

25 ‘‘(B) a farming purpose that requires the 

26 making of a substantial investment in the imVerDate Sep 11 2014 00:19 Mar 13, 2024 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6401 E:\BILLS\S1322.RS S1322

ssavage on LAPJG3WLY3PROD with BILLS
3 

•S 1322 RS

1 provement of the land for the production of 1 

2 or more specialized crops as determined by the 

3 Secretary. 

4 ‘‘(2) INCLUSIONS.—A lease under paragraph 

5 (1) may include the development or use of natural 

6 resources in connection with operations under that 

7 lease. 

8 ‘‘(3) TERM.— 

9 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in 

10 subparagraph (B), a lease under paragraph (1) 

11 shall be for a term of not more than 99 years, 

12 including any renewals. 

13 ‘‘(B) EXCEPTION FOR GRAZING PUR14 POSES.—A lease under paragraph (1) for graz15 ing purposes may be for a term of not more 

16 than 10 years, including any renewals. 

17 ‘‘(4) REQUIREMENT.—Each lease and renewal 

18 under this subsection shall be made in accordance 

19 with such terms and regulations as may be pre20 scribed by the Secretary. 

21 ‘‘(5) CONDITIONS FOR APPROVAL.—Before the 

22 approval of any lease or renewal of an existing lease 

23 pursuant to this subsection, the Secretary shall de24 termine that adequate consideration has been given 

25 to— 


ssavage on LAPJG3WLY3PROD with BILLS
4 

•S 1322 RS

1 ‘‘(A) relationship between the use of the 

2 leased lands and the use of neighboring land; 

3 ‘‘(B) the height, quality, and safety of any 

4 structures or other facilities to be constructed 

5 on the leased land; 

6 ‘‘(C) the availability of police and fire pro7 tection and other services on the leased land; 

8 ‘‘(D) the availability of judicial forums for 

9 all criminal and civil causes of action arising on 

10 the leased land; and 

11 ‘‘(E) the effects on the environment of the 

12 uses to which the leased lands will be subject.’’; 

13 (2) in subsection (b)— 

14 (A) by striking ‘‘(b) Any lease’’ and insert15 ing the following: 

16 ‘‘(b) EXCEPTION FOR SECRETARY APPROVAL.—Any 

17 lease’’; 

18 (B) by striking ‘‘of the Interior’’ each 

19 place it appears; and 

20 (C) by striking ‘‘clause (3)’’ and inserting 

21 ‘‘paragraph’’; 

22 (3) by redesignating subsections (a), (b), (c), 

23 and (d) as subsections (b), (c), (d), and (a), respec24 tively, and moving the subsections so as to appear 

25 in alphabetical order; and 


ssavage on LAPJG3WLY3PROD with BILLS
5 

•S 1322 RS

1 (4) by striking ‘‘subsection (a)’’ each place it 

2 appears and inserting ‘‘subsection (b)’’. 

3 (b) TECHNICAL CORRECTION.—Section 2 of the Act 

4 of August 9, 1955 (69 Stat. 539, chapter 615; 25 U.S.C. 

5 415a) (commonly known as the ‘‘Long-Term Leasing 

6 Act’’), is amended by inserting ‘‘of the Interior’’ after 

7 ‘‘Secretary’’ each place it appears. 

8 (c) MODIFICATION OF RIGHTS-OF-WAY ACROSS IN9 DIAN LAND.—The first section of the Act of February 5, 

10 1948 (62 Stat. 17, chapter 45; 25 U.S.C. 323), is amend11 ed— 

12 (1) by striking ‘‘That the Secretary of the Inte13 rior be, and he is empowered to’’ and inserting the 

14 following: 

15 ‘‘SECTION 1. RIGHTS-OF-WAY FOR ALL PURPOSES ACROSS 

16 INDIAN LAND. 

17 ‘‘(a) RIGHTS-OF-WAY.—Except as provided in sub18 section (b), the Secretary of the Interior may’’; and 

19 (2) by adding at the end the following: 

20 ‘‘(b) EXCEPTION.—A right-of-way granted by an In21 dian tribe for the purposes authorized under this section 

22 shall not require the approval of the Secretary of the Inte23 rior, subject to the condition that— 

24 ‘‘(1) the right-of-way approval process by the 

25 Indian tribe substantially complies with subsection 


ssavage on LAPJG3WLY3PROD with BILLS
6 

•S 1322 RS

1 (h) of the first section of the Act of August 9, 1955 

2 (69 Stat. 539, chapter 615; 25 U.S.C. 415(h)); or 

3 ‘‘(2) the Indian tribe has tribal regulations ap4 proved by the Secretary of the Interior under that 

5 subsection.’’. 

6 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

7 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Unlocking Native Lands 

8 and Opportunities for Commerce and Key Economic Devel9 opments Act of 2023’’. 

10 SEC. 2. MODIFICATION OF TRIBAL LEASES AND RIGHTS-OF11 WAY ACROSS INDIAN LAND. 

12 (a) EXTENSION OF TRIBAL LEASE PERIOD.—The first 

13 section of the Act of August 9, 1955 (69 Stat. 539, chapter 

14 615; 25 U.S.C. 415) (commonly known as the ‘‘Long-Term 

15 Leasing Act’’), is amended— 

16 (1) by striking ‘‘That (a)’’ and all that follows 

17 through the end of subsection (a) and inserting the 

18 following: 

19 ‘‘SECTION 1. LEASES OF RESTRICTED LAND. 

20 ‘‘(a) AUTHORIZED PURPOSES; TERM; APPROVAL BY

21 SECRETARY.— 

22 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Any restricted Indian lands, 

23 regardless of whether that land is tribally or individ24 ually owned, may be leased by the Indian owner of 

25 the land, with the approval of the Secretary, for— 


ssavage on LAPJG3WLY3PROD with BILLS
7 

•S 1322 RS

1 ‘‘(A) a public, religious, educational, rec2 reational, residential, business, or grazing pur3 poses; or 

4 ‘‘(B) a farming purpose that requires the 

5 making of a substantial investment in the im6 provement of the land for the production of 1 or 

7 more specialized crops as determined by the Sec8 retary. 

9 ‘‘(2) INCLUSIONS.—A lease under paragraph (1) 

10 may include the development or use of natural re11 sources in connection with operations under that 

12 lease. 

13 ‘‘(3) TERM.— 

14 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in 

15 subparagraph (B), a lease under paragraph (1) 

16 shall be for a term of not more than 99 years, 

17 including any renewals. 

18 ‘‘(B) EXCEPTION FOR GRAZING PUR19 POSES.—A lease under paragraph (1) for graz20 ing purposes may be for a term of not more than 

21 10 years, including any renewals. 

22 ‘‘(4) REQUIREMENT.—Each lease and renewal 

23 under this subsection shall be made in accordance 

24 with such terms and regulations as may be prescribed 

25 by the Secretary. 


ssavage on LAPJG3WLY3PROD with BILLS
8 

•S 1322 RS

1 ‘‘(5) CONDITIONS FOR APPROVAL.—Before the 

2 approval of any lease or renewal of an existing lease 

3 pursuant to this subsection, the Secretary shall deter4 mine that adequate consideration has been given to— 

5 ‘‘(A) relationship between the use of the 

6 leased lands and the use of neighboring land; 

7 ‘‘(B) the height, quality, and safety of any 

8 structures or other facilities to be constructed on 

9 the leased land; 

10 ‘‘(C) the availability of police and fire pro11 tection and other services on the leased land; 

12 ‘‘(D) the availability of judicial forums for 

13 all criminal and civil causes of action arising on 

14 the leased land; and 

15 ‘‘(E) the effects on the environment of the 

16 uses to which the leased lands will be subject.’’; 

17 (2) in subsection (b)— 

18 (A) by striking ‘‘(b) Any lease’’ and insert19 ing the following: 

20 ‘‘(b) EXCEPTION FOR SECRETARY APPROVAL.—Any 

21 lease’’; 

22 (B) by striking ‘‘of the Interior’’ each place 

23 it appears; and 

24 (C) by striking ‘‘clause (3)’’ and inserting 

25 ‘‘paragraph’’; 


ssavage on LAPJG3WLY3PROD with BILLS
9 

•S 1322 RS

1 (3) by redesignating subsections (a), (b), (c), and 

2 (d) as subsections (b), (c), (d), and (a), respectively, 

3 and moving the subsections so as to appear in alpha4 betical order; 

5 (4) by striking ‘‘subsection (a)’’ each place it ap6 pears and inserting ‘‘subsection (b)’’; and 

7 (5) in subsection (h)(1)— 

8 (A) in the matter preceding subparagraph 

9 (A), by striking ‘‘and the term of the lease does 

10 not exceed—’’ and inserting a period; and 

11 (B) by striking subparagraphs (A) and (B). 

12 (b) TECHNICAL CORRECTION.—Section 2 of the Act of 

13 August 9, 1955 (69 Stat. 539, chapter 615; 25 U.S.C. 415a) 

14 (commonly known as the ‘‘Long-Term Leasing Act’’), is 

15 amended by inserting ‘‘of the Interior’’ after ‘‘Secretary’’ 

16 each place it appears. 

17 (c) MODIFICATIONS OF RIGHTS-OF-WAY ACROSS IN18 DIAN LAND.—The Act of February 5, 1948 (62 Stat. 17, 

19 chapter 45), is amended— 

20 (1) in the first section (62 Stat. 17, chapter 45; 

21 25 U.S.C. 323), by striking ‘‘That the Secretary of the 

22 Interior be, and he is hereby, empowered to’’ and in23 serting the following: 


ssavage on LAPJG3WLY3PROD with BILLS
10 

•S 1322 RS

1 ‘‘SECTION 1. RIGHTS-OF-WAY FOR ALL PURPOSES ACROSS 

2 INDIAN LAND. 

3 ‘‘(a) RIGHTS-OF-WAY.—The Secretary of the Interior 

4 may’’; 

5 (2) in section 2 (62 Stat. 18, chapter 45; 25 

6 U.S.C. 324), by striking ‘‘organized under the Act of 

7 June 18, 1934 (48 Stat. 984), as amended; the Act of 

8 May 1, 1936 (49 Stat. 1250); or the Act of June 26, 

9 1936 (49 Stat. 1967),’’; and 

10 (3) by adding at the end the following: 

11 ‘‘SEC. 8. TRIBAL GRANTS OF RIGHTS-OF-WAY. 

12 ‘‘(a) RIGHTS-OF-WAY.— 

13 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Subject to paragraph (2), an 

14 Indian tribe may grant a right-of-way over and 

15 across the Tribal land of the Indian tribe for any 

16 purpose. 

17 ‘‘(2) AUTHORITY.—A right-of-way granted under 

18 paragraph (1) shall not require the approval of the 

19 Secretary of the Interior or a grant by the Secretary 

20 of the Interior under the section 1 if the right-of-way 

21 granted under paragraph (1) is executed in accord22 ance with a Tribal regulation approved by the Sec23 retary of the Interior under subsection (b). 

24 ‘‘(b) REVIEW OF TRIBAL REGULATIONS.— 

25 ‘‘(1) TRIBAL REGULATION SUBMISSION AND AP26 PROVAL.— 


ssavage on LAPJG3WLY3PROD with BILLS
11 

•S 1322 RS

1 ‘‘(A) SUBMISSION.—An Indian tribe seeking 

2 to grant a right-of-way under subsection (a) 

3 shall submit for approval a Tribal regulation 

4 governing the granting of rights-of-way over and 

5 across the Tribal land of the Indian tribe. 

6 ‘‘(B) APPROVAL.—Subject to paragraph (2), 

7 the Secretary of the Interior shall have the au8 thority to approve or disapprove any Tribal reg9 ulation submitted under subparagraph (A). 

10 ‘‘(2) CONSIDERATIONS FOR APPROVAL.— 

11 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary of the 

12 Interior shall approve a Tribal regulation sub13 mitted under paragraph (1)(A), if the Tribal 

14 regulation— 

15 ‘‘(i) is consistent with any regulations 

16 (or successor regulations) issued by the Sec17 retary of the Interior under section 4; 

18 ‘‘(ii) provides for an environmental re19 view process that includes— 

20 ‘‘(I) the identification and evalua21 tion of any significant impacts the 

22 proposed action may have on the envi23 ronment; and 

24 ‘‘(II) a process for ensuring— 


ssavage on LAPJG3WLY3PROD with BILLS
12 

•S 1322 RS

1 ‘‘(aa) that the public is in2 formed of, and has a reasonable 

3 opportunity to comment on, any 

4 significant environmental impacts 

5 of the proposed action identified 

6 by the Indian tribe under sub7 clause (I); and 

8 ‘‘(bb) the Indian tribe pro9 vides a response to each relevant 

10 and substantive public comment 

11 on the significant environmental 

12 impacts identified by the Indian 

13 tribe under subclause (I) before 

14 the Indian tribe approves the 

15 right-of-way. 

16 ‘‘(B) STATUTORY EXEMPTIONS.—The Sec17 retary of the Interior, in making an approval 

18 decision under this subsection, shall not be sub19 ject to— 

20 ‘‘(i) the National Environmental Pol21 icy Act of 1969 (42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.); 

22 ‘‘(ii) section 306108 of title 54, United 

23 States Code; or 

24 ‘‘(iii) the Endangered Species Act of 

25 1973 (16 U.S.C. 1531 et seq.). 


ssavage on LAPJG3WLY3PROD with BILLS
13 

•S 1322 RS

1 ‘‘(3) REVIEW PROCESS.— 

2 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 180 

3 days after the date on which the Indian tribe 

4 submits a Tribal regulation to the Secretary of 

5 the Interior under paragraph (1)(A), the Sec6 retary of the Interior shall— 

7 ‘‘(i) review the Tribal regulation; 

8 ‘‘(ii) approve or disapprove the Tribal 

9 regulation; and 

10 ‘‘(iii) notify the Indian tribe that sub11 mitted the Tribal regulation of the approval 

12 or disapproval. 

13 ‘‘(B) WRITTEN DOCUMENTATION.—If the 

14 Secretary of the Interior disapproves a Tribal 

15 regulation submitted under paragraph (1)(A), 

16 the Secretary of the Interior shall include with 

17 the disapproval notification under subparagraph 

18 (A)(iii) written documentation describing the 

19 basis for the disapproval. 

20 ‘‘(C) EXTENSION.—The Secretary of the In21 terior may, after consultation with the Indian 

22 tribe that submitted a Tribal regulation under 

23 paragraph (1)(A), extend the 180-day period de24 scribed in subparagraph (A). 


ssavage on LAPJG3WLY3PROD with BILLS
14 

•S 1322 RS

1 ‘‘(4) FEDERAL ENVIRONMENTAL REVIEW.—Not2 withstanding paragraphs (2) and (3), if an Indian 

3 tribe carries out a project or activity funded by a 

4 Federal agency, the Indian tribe may rely on the en5 vironmental review process of the applicable Federal 

6 agency rather than any Tribal environmental review 

7 process required under this subsection. 

8 ‘‘(c) DOCUMENTATION.—An Indian tribe granting a 

9 right-of-way under subsection (a) shall provide to the Sec10 retary of the Interior— 

11 ‘‘(1) a copy of the right-of-way, including any 

12 amendments or renewals; and 

13 ‘‘(2) if the right-of-way allows for compensation 

14 to be made directly to the Indian tribe, documenta15 tion of payments that are sufficient, as determined by 

16 the Secretary of the Interior, as to enable the Sec17 retary of the Interior to discharge the trust responsi18 bility of the United States under subsection (d). 

19 ‘‘(d) TRUST RESPONSIBILITY.— 

20 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The United States shall not 

21 be liable for losses sustained by any party to a right22 of-way granted under subsection (a). 

23 ‘‘(2) AUTHORITY OF THE SECRETARY.— 

24 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Pursuant to the author25 ity of the Secretary of the Interior to fulfill the 


ssavage on LAPJG3WLY3PROD with BILLS
15 

•S 1322 RS

1 trust obligation of the United States to the appli2 cable Indian tribe under Federal law (including 

3 regulations), the Secretary of the Interior may, 

4 on reasonable notice from the applicable Indian 

5 tribe and at the discretion of the Secretary of the 

6 Interior, enforce the provisions of, or cancel, any 

7 right-of-way granted by the Indian tribe under 

8 subsection (a). 

9 ‘‘(B) AUTHORITY.—The enforcement or can10 cellation of a right-of-way under subparagraph 

11 (A) shall be conducted using regulatory proce12 dures issued under section 6. 

13 ‘‘(e) COMPLIANCE.— 

14 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—An interested party, after ex15 haustion of any applicable Tribal remedies, may sub16 mit a petition to the Secretary of the Interior, at such 

17 time and in such form as determined by the Secretary 

18 of the Interior, to review the compliance of an appli19 cable Indian tribe with a Tribal regulation approved 

20 by the Secretary of the Interior under subsection (b). 

21 ‘‘(2) VIOLATIONS.—If the Secretary of the Inte22 rior determines that a Tribal regulation was violated 

23 after conducting a review under paragraph (1), the 

24 Secretary of the Interior may take any action the 

25 Secretary of the Interior determines to be necessary to 


ssavage on LAPJG3WLY3PROD with BILLS
16 

•S 1322 RS

1 remedy the violation, including rescinding the ap2 proval of the Tribal regulation and reassuming re3 sponsibility for approving rights-of-way through the 

4 trust land of the applicable Indian tribe. 

5 ‘‘(3) DOCUMENTATION.—If the Secretary of the 

6 Interior determines that a Tribal regulation was vio7 lated after conducting a review under paragraph (1), 

8 the Secretary of the Interior shall— 

9 ‘‘(A) provide written documentation, with 

10 respect to the Tribal regulation that has been 

11 violated, to the appropriate interested party and 

12 Indian tribe; 

13 ‘‘(B) provide the applicable Indian tribe 

14 with a written notice of the alleged violation; 

15 and 

16 ‘‘(C) prior to the exercise of any remedy, in17 cluding rescinding the approval for the applica18 ble Tribal regulation or reassuming responsi19 bility for approving rights-of-way through the 

20 trust land of the applicable Indian tribe, provide 

21 the applicable Indian tribe with— 

22 ‘‘(i) a hearing that is on the record; 

23 and 

24 ‘‘(ii) a reasonable opportunity to cure 

25 the alleged violation. 


ssavage on LAPJG3WLY3PROD with BILLS
17 

•S 1322 RS

1 ‘‘(f) SAVINGS CLAUSE.—Nothing in this section affects 

2 the application of any Tribal regulations issued under Fed3 eral environmental law. 

4 ‘‘(g) EFFECT OF TRIBAL REGULATIONS.—An ap5 proved Tribal regulation under subsection (b) shall not pre6 clude an Indian tribe from, in the discretion of the Indian 

7 tribe, consenting to the grant of a right-of-way by the Sec8 retary of the Interior under the section 1. 

9 ‘‘(h) TERMS OF RIGHT-OF-WAY.—The compensation 

10 for, and terms of, a right-of-way granted under subsection 

11 (a) will be determined by— 

12 ‘‘(1) negotiations by the Indian tribe; or 

13 ‘‘(2) the regulations of the Indian tribe. 

14 ‘‘(i) JURISDICTION.—The grant of a right-of-way 

15 under subsection (a) does not waive the sovereign immunity 

16 of the Indian tribe or diminish the jurisdiction of that In17 dian tribe over the Tribal land subject to the right-of-way, 

18 unless otherwise provided in— 

19 ‘‘(1) the grant of the right-of-way; or 

20 ‘‘(2) the regulations of the Indian tribe.’’. 


ssavage on LAPJG3WLY3PROD with BILLS
Calendar No. 342 

118TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION S. 1322 

[Report No. 118–159] 

A BILL 

To amend the Act of August 9, 1955, to modify the 

leases, and for other purposes. authorized purposes and term period of tribal 

MARCH 12, 2024 

Reported with an amendment 


ssavage on LAPJG3WLY3PROD with BILLS