III 

117TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION S. RES. 482 

Recognizing the 50th anniversary of the Alaska Native Claims Settlement 

Act and the lasting impact of that Act on the State of Alaska and 

Alaska Native people. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

DECEMBER 16, 2021 

Mr. SULLIVAN (for himself and Ms. MURKOWSKI) submitted the following 

resolution; which was referred to the Committee on Indian Affairs 

RESOLUTION 

Recognizing the 50th anniversary of the Alaska Native 

Claims Settlement Act and the lasting impact of that 

Act on the State of Alaska and Alaska Native people. 

Whereas the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act (43 U.S.C. 

1601 et seq.) (referred to in this preamble as ‘‘ANCSA’’) 

was signed into law on December 18, 1971, to settle 

long-standing issues of Alaska Native aboriginal land 

claims in the State of Alaska (referred to in this preamble as the ‘‘State’’); 

Whereas the 1970s welcomed a new era of Federal Indian 

policy, one of economic and self-determination, with the 

passage of ANCSA; 


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Whereas title to 44,000,000 acres of land and $962,500,000 

were transferred to Alaska Native people as a result of 

the land claims settlement under ANCSA, including— 

(1) title to property in the clearly defined traditional 

homelands of Alaska Native people; and 

(2) money to help compensate for the land Alaska 

Native people would not receive; 

Whereas the purpose of the land claims settlement under 

ANCSA was to ensure the social and economic well-being 

of Alaska Native people without creating a lengthy wardship under the Federal Government; 

Whereas ANCSA mandated— 

(1) the creation of— 

(A) 12 land-owning and for-profit Regional 

Corporations covering all of the State; and 

(B) 1 non-land-owning Regional Corporation 

for non-residents of the State; and 

(2) the incorporation of over 200 Village Corporations and Urban Corporations within each region of the 

State, either as for-profit or nonprofit corporations, with 

the land, assets, and businesses of those corporations to 

be owned by Native shareholders; 

Whereas ANCSA redefined Alaska Native land ownership by 

conveying Native-owned fee simple title to the newly created Native Corporations and, through those Corporations, to Alaska Native shareholders of each Corporation, 

rather than using the land ownership model used in the 

48 contiguous States of designating reservations held in 

trust by the Federal Government; 

Whereas, recognizing the uneven distribution of natural resources in the State among the 12 regions in the State, 

subsections (i) and (j) of section 7 of ANCSA (43 U.S.C. 


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1606) include provisions that reflect the Alaska Native 

values of sharing and cooperation; 

Whereas, under section 7 of ANCSA (43 U.S.C. 1606)— 

(1) 70 percent of the annual revenues of each landowning Regional Corporation derived from the land of 

that Regional Corporation are required under subsection 

(i) of that section to be shared with all other Regional 

Corporations; and 

(2) Regional Corporations are then required, under 

subsection (j) of that section, to share 50 percent of the 

revenues described in paragraph (1) with— 

(A) the Village Corporations and Urban Corporations that are located in the same region as the 

applicable Regional Corporation; and 

(B) the at-large shareholders of the applicable 

Regional Corporation; 

Whereas each Regional Corporation, at times, has received 

more shared revenue under section 7(i) of ANCSA (43 

U.S.C. 1606(i)) than internally produced revenue, demonstrating the importance of incorporating the Alaska 

Native values of sharing and cooperation into ANCSA; 

Whereas, under ANCSA during the 50-year period preceding 

the date of adoption of this resolution, Alaska Native 

people have managed their land successfully, fostering 

sustainable businesses and creating employment opportunities for all Alaskans, Native and non-Native, and people 

across the United States and around the world; 

Whereas ANCSA has benefitted all Alaskans— 

(1) through diversifying the economy of the State; 

and 


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(2) by bringing revenue and expertise back to the 

State through Native Corporation business ventures in 

the national and international realms; 

Whereas ANCSA has been amended by almost every Congress since the enactment of that Act in 1971, with some 

of the most significant and lasting amendments being enacted in the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act 

Amendments of 1987 (Public Law 100–241; 101 Stat. 

1788) (commonly known as the ‘‘1991 amendments’’) 

(referred to in this preamble as the ‘‘1991 amendments’’); 

Whereas among the provisions in the 1991 amendments was 

an extension of the prohibition on the sale of Native Corporation stock in perpetuity unless a majority of all 

shareholders of the applicable Native Corporation voted 

to remove that restriction, which— 

(1) enabled shares to be held mostly by the Alaska 

Native people; and 

(2) allowed Alaska Native people to pass that stock 

from 1 generation to the next and, as a result, increase 

the number of Alaska Native shareholders in a Native 

Corporation; 

Whereas another provision in the 1991 amendments allowed 

shareholders of each Native Corporation to vote to include descendants of original shareholders born after the 

date of enactment of ANCSA to become shareholders regardless of date of birth; 

Whereas the pioneering work of Alaska Native leaders of the 

mid-20th century created a lasting legacy of professional, 

personal, and historic economic success; 


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Whereas Alaska Native people have prospered from their own 

initiative and innovative approaches to fostering economic 

development through self-determination; 

Whereas Alaska Native resiliency, leadership, and relentless 

work ethic have developed and supported some of the previously most underserved regions in the United States 

into some of the most thriving, improving life expectancy 

and health conditions in those very regions; 

Whereas subsequent to ANCSA ushering in the era of selfdetermination in Federal Indian policy, the Indian SelfDetermination and Education Assistance Act (25 U.S.C. 

5301 et seq.) (referred to in this preamble as the 

‘‘ISDEAA’’) was enacted in 1975; 

Whereas the ISDEAA defined Native Corporations as Indian 

Tribes for the purposes of that Act; 

Whereas, because of the ISDEAA, federally recognized Alaska Native Tribes and Native Corporations have worked 

together to serve as providers for health, housing, and 

other Tribal services; 

Whereas, beyond monetary benefits to shareholders, Native 

Corporations, through the structure and mandates of 

ANCSA, provide countless additional benefits, including— 

(1) scholarships; 

(2) burial and funeral assistance; 

(3) internships; 

(4) language revitalization programs; 

(5) careers; and 

(6) culture camps; 


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Whereas education has, and continues to be, a key focus for 

Regional Corporations, which is evidenced by the fact 

that all 12 land-owning Regional Corporations have— 

(1) education foundations to help support shareholders and descendants who want to advance their educational endeavors; and 

(2) as of the date of adoption of this resolution, 

awarded more than 54,000 individual scholarships; 

Whereas Alaska Native people hold numerous positions of 

leadership in the State and beyond, inspiring younger 

generations of Alaskans; 

Whereas further improvements to ANCSA must continue in 

order to fulfill all of the promises of ANCSA and all of 

the promises made by the Federal Government to Alaska 

Native people; 

Whereas the dedication and enthusiasm of the next generations of Alaska Native leaders honors the previous generations of Alaska Native leaders who worked diligently 

to achieve the most significant Native land settlement in 

the history of the United States; 

Whereas, with the adoption of Senate Resolution 351, 112th 

Congress, agreed to December 17, 2011, the Senate recognized the importance of ANCSA; and 

Whereas the people of the United States have reason to 

honor the tremendous educational, social, political, economic, and cultural achievements of Alaska Native people 

over the past 50 years: Now, therefore, be it 

1 Resolved, That the Senate— 

2 (1) recognizes December 18, 2021, as the 50th 

3 anniversary of the passage of the Alaska Native 


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1 Claims Settlement Act (43 U.S.C. 1601 et seq.) (re2 ferred to in this resolution as ‘‘ANCSA’’); 

3 (2) commemorates the extensive achievements 

4 made by Alaska Native people through the imple5 mentation of ANCSA, while simultaneously main6 taining their culture, traditions, and ways of life, 

7 during the 50-year period preceding the date of 

8 adoption of this resolution; and 

9 (3) celebrates the successes of Alaska Native 

10 people during that 50-year period, with optimism for 

11 the next 50 years and beyond. 

Æ 


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