II

105TH CONGRESS

2D SESSION S. 1899

To provide for the settlement of the water rights claims of the Chippewa

Cree Tribe of the Rocky Boy’s Reservation, and for other purposes.

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

APRIL 1, 1998

Mr. BAUCUS (for himself and Mr. BURNS) introduced the following bill; which

was read twice and referred to the Committee on Indian Affairs

A BILL

To provide for the settlement of the water rights claims

of the Chippewa Cree Tribe of the Rocky Boy’s Reservation, 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 ‘‘Chippewa Cree Tribe

5 of the Rocky Boy’s Reservation Indian Reserved Water

6 Rights Settlement Act of 1998’’.

7 SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

8 Congress hereby finds that—

9 (1) in fulfillment of its trust responsibility to

10 Indian tribes and to promote tribal sovereignty and
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1 economic self-sufficiency, it is the policy of the

2 United States to settle the water rights claims of the

3 tribes without lengthy and costly litigation;

4 (2) the Rocky Boy’s Reservation was estab5 lished as a homeland for the Chippewa Cree Tribe;

6 (3) adequate water for the Chippewa Cree

7 Tribe of the Rocky Boy’s Reservation is important

8 to a permanent, sustainable and sovereign homeland

9 for the Tribe and its members;

10 (4) the Chippewa Cree Tribe’s sovereignty and

11 Reservation economy depend on the development of

12 the Reservation’s water resources;

13 (5) the planning, design, and construction of

14 the facilities needed to utilize water supplies effec15 tively are necessary to the development of a viable

16 Reservation economy and to implementation of the

17 Chippewa Cree-Montana Water Rights Compact;

18 (6) the Rocky Boy’s Reservation is located in a

19 water short area of the State of Montana and the

20 Compact contemplates the development of additional

21 water supplies, including importation of domestic

22 water, to meet the needs of the Chippewa Cree

23 Tribe;

24 (7) proceedings to determine the full extent of

25 the Chippewa Cree Tribe’s water rights are currently
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1 pending before the Montana Water Court as a part

2 of In the Matter of the Adjudication of All Rights

3 to the Use of Water, Both Surface and Under4 ground, within the State of Montana;

5 (8) recognizing that final resolution of the gen6 eral stream adjudication will take many years and

7 entail great expense to all parties, prolong uncer8 tainty as to the availability of water supplies, and

9 seriously impair the long-term economic planning

10 and development of all parties, the Chippewa Cree

11 Tribe and the State of Montana entered into a

12 Water Rights Compact on April 14, 1997; and

13 (9) the allocation of water resources from the

14 Tiber Reservoir to the Tribe under this Act is

15 uniquely suited to the geographic, social, and eco16 nomic characteristics of the area and situation in17 volved.

18 SEC. 3. PURPOSES OF ACT.

19 The purposes of this Act are—

20 (1) to achieve a fair, equitable, and final settle21 ment of all claims to water rights in the State of

22 Montana for—

23 (A) the Chippewa Cree Tribe; and

24 (B) the United States of America for the

25 benefit of the Chippewa Cree Tribe;
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1 (2) to approve, ratify, and confirm, as modified

2 herein, the Water Rights Compact entered into by

3 the Chippewa Cree Tribe of the Rocky Boy’s Res4 ervation and the State of Montana on April 14,

5 1997, and to provide funding and other authoriza6 tion necessary to its implementation;

7 (3) to authorize the Secretary of the Interior to

8 execute and implement the Water Rights Compact

9 and to take such other actions as are necessary to

10 implement the Compact consistent with this Act;

11 (4) to authorize federal feasibility studies de12 signed to identify and analyze potential mechanisms

13 to enhance, through conservation or otherwise, water

14 supplies in North Central Montana, including, but

15 not limited to, mechanisms to import domestic water

16 supplies for the future growth of the Rocky Boy’s

17 Indian Reservation;

18 (5) to authorize certain projects on the Rocky

19 Boy’s Indian Reservation, Montana, in order to im20 plement the Compact;

21 (6) to authorize certain modifications to the

22 purposes and operation of the Bureau of Reclama23 tion’s Tiber Dam and Lake Elwell on the Marias

24 River in Montana in order to implement the Com25 pact; and
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1 (7) to authorize appropriation of funds nec2 essary for the implementation of the Compact.

3 SEC. 4. DEFINITIONS.

4 As used in this Act—

5 (1) ‘‘Compact’’ means the water rights compact

6 between the Chippewa Cree Tribe of the Rocky

7 Boy’s Reservation and the State of Montana pub8 lished at 85–20–601 MCA (1997).

9 (2) ‘‘Final’’ with reference to approval of the

10 decree in section 5(b) means completion of any di11 rect appeal to the Montana Supreme Court of a final

12 decree by the Water Court pursuant to 85–2–235,

13 MCA (1997), or to the Federal Court of Appeals, in14 cluding the expiration of the time in which a petition

15 for certiorari may be filed in the United States Su16 preme Court, denial of such a petition, or the

17 issuance of the Supreme Court’s mandate, whichever

18 occurs last;

19 (3) ‘‘Missouri River System’’ means the

20 mainstem of the Missouri River and its tributaries,

21 including but not limited to the Marias River;

22 (4) ‘‘Secretary’’ means the Secretary of the

23 United States Department of the Interior, or his or

24 her duly authorized representative;
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1 (5) ‘‘Towe Ponds’’ means the reservoir or res2 ervoirs referred to as ‘‘Stoneman Reservoir’’ in the

3 Compact;

4 (6) ‘‘Tribal Compact Administration’’ means

5 the activities assumed by the Tribe for implementa6 tion of the Compact as set forth in article IV of the

7 Compact;

8 (7) ‘‘Tribal Water Right’’ means the right of

9 the Chippewa Cree Tribe of the Rocky Boy’s Res10 ervation to divert, use, or store water as described

11 by article III of the Compact;

12 (8) ‘‘Tribe’’ means the Chippewa Cree Tribe of

13 the Rocky Boy’s Reservation and all officers, agents,

14 and departments thereof;

15 (9) ‘‘Water development’’ includes all activities

16 that involve the use of water or modification of

17 water courses or water bodies in any way.

18 SEC. 5. RATIFICATION OF COMPACT AND ENTRY OF DE19 CREE.

20 (a) WATER RIGHTS COMPACT APPROVED.—Except

21 as modified by this Act, and to the extent the Compact

22 does not conflict with this Act, the Water Rights Compact

23 entered into by the Chippewa Cree Tribe of the Rocky

24 Boy’s Reservation and the State of Montana on April 14,

25 1997, is hereby approved, ratified and confirmed and the
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1 Secretary shall execute and implement the Compact to2 gether with any amendments agreed to by the parties or

3 necessary to bring the Compact into conformity with this

4 Act, and to take such other actions as are necessary to

5 implement the Compact.

6 (b) APPROVAL OF ‘‘PROPOSED DECREE’’.—No later

7 than 180 days after the date of the enactment of this Act,

8 the United States, the Tribe, or the State of Montana

9 shall petition the Montana Water Court, individually or

10 jointly, to enter and approve the ‘‘Proposed Decree’’

11 agreed to by the United States, the Tribe, and the State

12 of Montana attached as appendix 1 to the Compact, or

13 any amended version thereof agreed to by the United

14 States, the Tribe and the State of Montana. Resort may

15 be had to the Federal District Court in the circumstances

16 set forth in article VII.B.4 of the Compact. In the event

17 the approval by the appropriate court, including any direct

18 appeal, does not become final within three (3) years fol19 lowing the filing of the decree, or the decree is approved

20 but is subsequently set aside by the appropriate court, the

21 Compact shall be void. The Secretary may act for the

22 United States to extend this three (3) year deadline twice

23 in one (1) year increments on agreement with the State

24 and the Tribe.
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1 SEC. 6. USE AND TRANSFER OF THE TRIBAL WATER RIGHT.

2 (a) ADMINISTRATION AND ENFORCEMENT.—As pro3 vided in the Compact, until the adoption and approval of

4 a tribal water code, the Secretary shall administer and en5 force the Tribal Water Right.

6 (b) TRIBAL MEMBER ENTITLEMENT.—Any entitle7 ment to Federal Indian reserved water of any tribal mem8 ber shall be satisfied solely from the water secured to the

9 Tribe by the Compact and shall be governed by the terms

10 and conditions thereof. Such entitlement shall be adminis11 tered by the Tribe pursuant to a tribal water code devel12 oped and adopted pursuant to article IV.A.2. of the Com13 pact, or by the Secretary pending the adoption and ap14 proval of the tribal water code.

15 (c) TEMPORARY TRANSFER OF TRIBAL WATER

16 RIGHT.—Notwithstanding any other provision of statutory

17 or common law, the Tribe may, with the approval of the

18 Secretary and subject to the limitations and conditions set

19 forth in the Compact, including limitation on transfer of

20 any portion of the Tribal Water Right to within the Mis21 souri River Basin, enter into a service contract, lease, ex22 change, or other agreement providing for the temporary

23 delivery, use, or transfer of the water rights confirmed to

24 the Tribe in the Compact; provided, however, that no serv25 ice contract, lease, exchange, or other agreement entered
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1 into under this subsection may permanently alienate any

2 portion of the Tribal Water Right.

3 SEC. 7. FEASIBILITY STUDIES AUTHORIZATION.

4 (a) MUNICIPAL, RURAL AND INDUSTRIAL FEASIBIL5 ITY STUDY.—The Secretary of the Interior, through the

6 Bureau of Reclamation shall perform a municipal, rural,

7 and industrial (MR&I) feasibility study of water and relat8 ed resources in North Central Montana to evaluate alter9 natives for an MR&I supply for the Rocky Boy’s Reserva10 tion. The study shall include but not be limited to the fea11 sibility of releasing the Tribe’s Tiber allocation as provided

12 in section 8 of this Act into the Missouri River System

13 for later diversion to a treatment and delivery system for

14 the Rocky Boy’s Reservation. The MR&I Study shall in15 clude utilization of existing Federal and non-Federal stud16 ies and shall be planned and conducted in consultation

17 with other Federal agencies, the State of Montana, and

18 the Chippewa Cree Tribe.

19 (b) ACCEPTANCE OR PARTICIPATION IN IDENTIFIED

20 OFF-RESERVATION SYSTEM.—The United States, the

21 Chippewa Cree Tribe of the Rocky Boy’s Reservation, and

22 the State of Montana shall not be obligated to accept or

23 participate in any potential off-reservation water supply

24 system identified in the MR&I Feasibility Study author25 ized in subsection 7(a) of this Act.
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1 (c) REGIONAL FEASIBILITY STUDY.—The Secretary,

2 through the Bureau of Reclamation, shall conduct, pursu3 ant to Reclamation Law, a Regional Feasibility Study to

4 evaluate water and related resources in North Central

5 Montana in order to determine the limitations of such re6 sources and how they can best be managed and developed

7 to serve the needs of the citizens of Montana. The Re8 gional Study shall evaluate existing and potential water

9 supplies, uses, and management; identify major water re10 lated issues, including environmental, water supply and

11 economic issues; evaluate opportunities to resolve such

12 issues; and evaluate options for implementation of resolu13 tions to issues. Because of the regional and international

14 impact of the Regional Study, it may not be segmented.

15 The Regional Study shall utilize, to the maximum extent

16 possible, existing information and shall be planned and

17 conducted in consultation with all affected interests, in18 cluding interests in Canada.

19 SEC. 8. TIBER RESERVOIR ALLOCATION.

20 (a) ALLOCATION OF WATER TO THE TRIBE.—

21 (1) The Secretary shall permanently allocate to

22 the Tribe, without cost to the Tribe, 10,000 acre23 feet per year of stored water from the water right

24 of the Bureau of Reclamation in Lake Elwell, Lower

25 Marias Unit, Upper Missouri Division, Pick-Sloan
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1 Missouri Basin Program, Montana, measured at the

2 outlet works of the dam or at the diversion point

3 from the reservoir. The allocation shall be effective

4 when the requirements of section 5(b) of this Act

5 are met.

6 (2) The Secretary shall enter into an agreement

7 with the Tribe setting forth the terms of the alloca8 tion and providing for the Tribe’s use or temporary

9 transfer of water stored in Lake Elwell, subject to

10 the terms and conditions of the Compact and this

11 Act.

12 (3) The allocation provided in this section shall

13 be subject to the prior reserved water rights, if any,

14 of any Indian tribe, or persons claiming water

15 through any Indian Tribe.

16 (b) USE AND TEMPORARY TRANSFER OF ALLOCA17 TION.—

18 (1) Subject to the limitations and conditions set

19 forth in the Compact and this Act, the Tribe shall

20 have the right to devote the water allocated by this

21 section to any use, including, but not limited to, ag22 ricultural, municipal, commercial, industrial, mining,

23 or recreational uses, within or outside the Rocky

24 Boy’s Reservation.
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1 (2) Notwithstanding any other provision of stat2 utory or common law, the Tribe may, with the ap3 proval of the Secretary and subject to the limitations

4 and conditions set forth in the Compact, enter into

5 a service contract, lease, exchange, or other agree6 ment providing for the temporary delivery, use, or

7 transfer of the water allocated by this section; pro8 vided, however, that no service contract, lease, ex9 change, or other agreement may permanently alien10 ate any portion of the tribal allocation.

11 (c) REMAINING STORAGE.—The United States shall

12 retain the right to use for any authorize purpose, any and

13 all storage remaining in Lake Elwell after the allocation

14 made to the Tribe in subsection (a)(1) of this section.

15 (d) WATER TRANSPORT OBLIGATION; DEVELOP16 MENT AND DELIVERY COSTS.—The United States shall

17 have no responsibility or obligation to provide any facilities

18 for the transport of the water allocated by this section to

19 the Rocky Boy’s Reservation or to any other location. Ex20 cept for the contribution set forth in section 11(b)(3) of

21 this Act, the cost of developing and delivering the water

22 allocated by this section or any other supplemental water

23 to the Rocky Boy’s Reservation shall not be borne by the

24 United States.
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1 (e) ACT NOT PRECEDENTIAL.—The provisions of

2 this Act regarding the allocation of water resources from

3 the Tiber Reservoir to the Tribe shall not be precedent

4 for any other Indian water right claims.

5 SEC. 9. ON-RESERVATION WATER RESOURCES DEVELOP6 MENT.

7 (a) WATER DEVELOPMENT PROJECTS.—The Sec8 retary of the Interior, through the Bureau of Reclamation,

9 is authorized and directed to plan, design, and construct,

10 or to provide, pursuant to subsection (b) of this section,

11 for the planning, design, and construction of the following

12 water development projects on the Rocky Boy’s Reserva13 tion:

14 (1) Bonneau Dam and Reservoir Enlargement.

15 (2) East Fork of Beaver Creek Dam Repair

16 and Enlargement.

17 (3) Brown’s Dam Enlargement.

18 (4) Towe Ponds’ Enlargement.

19 (5) Such other water development projects as

20 the Tribe shall from time to time deem appropriate.

21 (b) IMPLEMENTATION AGREEMENT.—The Secretary,

22 at the request of the Tribe, shall enter into an agreement

23 with the Tribe to implement the provisions of this Act

24 through the Tribe’s Self-Government Compact and Annual

25 Funding Agreement by which the Tribe shall plan, design,
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1 and construct any or all of the projects authorized by this

2 Section.

3 (c) BUREAU OF RECLAMATION PROJECT ADMINIS4 TRATION.—The Secretary, through the Bureau of Rec5 lamation, has entered into an agreement with the Tribe,

6 pursuant to Public Law 93–638, as amended by the Self

7 Governance Act, defining and limiting the role of the Bu8 reau of Reclamation in its administration of the projects

9 authorized in subsection (a) of this section; establishing

10 the standards upon which the projects will be constructed;

11 and for other purposes necessary to implement this sec12 tion. This agreement shall be effective on the Tribe exer13 cising its right under subsection (b) of this section.

14 SEC. 10. CHIPPEWA CREE INDIAN RESERVED WATER

15 RIGHTS SETTLEMENT FUND.

16 (a) ESTABLISHMENT OF TRUST FUND.—There is

17 hereby established in the Treasury of the United States

18 a trust fund for the Chippewa Cree Tribe of the Rocky

19 Boy’s Reservation to be known as the ‘‘Chippewa Cree In20 dian Reserved Water Rights Settlement Trust Fund’’.

21 Pursuant to the provisions of the Trust Fund Manage22 ment Act of 1994, 25 U.S.C. §§ 4001, et seq., the Tribe,

23 with the approval of the Secretary, may transfer the Fund

24 to a mutually agreed upon private financial institution.

25 The Fund shall consist of the following accounts:
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1 (1) Tribal Compact Administration Account.

2 (2) Economic Development Account.

3 (3) Future Water Supply Facilities Account.

4 (b) FUND COMPOSITION.—The Fund shall consist of

5 such amounts as are appropriated to its accounts in ac6 cordance with the authorizations for appropriations in

7 subsections (b) (1), (2), and (3) of section 11 of this Act

8 together with all interest which accrues on the Fund: Pro9 vided, That if the Tribe exercises its right pursuant to

10 subsection (a) of this section to transfer the funds to a

11 private financial institution, except as provided in the

12 transfer agreement, the Secretary shall retain no oversight

13 over the investment of the funds. In addition, the transfer

14 agreement shall provide for the appropriate terms and

15 conditions, if any, on expenditures from the Fund in addi16 tion to the plans set forth in subsections (c)(2) and (c)(3)

17 of this section.

18 (c) USE OF FUND.—The Tribe may use the Fund

19 to fulfill the purposes of this Act, subject to the following

20 restrictions on expenditures:

21 (1) Except for $400,000 necessary for capital

22 expenditures in connection with tribal compact ad23 ministration, only interest accrued on the Tribal

24 Compact Administration Account shall be available
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1 to satisfy the Tribe’s obligations for tribal compact

2 administration under the provisions of the Compact.

3 (2) Both principal and accrued interest on the

4 Economic Development Account shall be available to

5 the Tribe for expenditure pursuant to an Economic

6 Development Plan approved by the Secretary.

7 (3) Both principal and accrued interest on the

8 Future Water Supply Facilities Account shall be

9 available to the Tribe for expenditure pursuant to a

10 Water Supply Plan approved by the Secretary.

11 (d) AGREEMENT REGARDING FUND EXPENDI12 TURES.—If the Tribe does not exercise its right under

13 subsection (a) of this section to transfer the funds to a

14 private financial institution, the Secretary shall enter into

15 an agreement with the Tribe providing for appropriate

16 terms and conditions, if any, on expenditures from the

17 Fund in addition to the plans set forth in subsections

18 (c)(2) and (c)(3) of this section.

19 (e) PER CAPITA DISTRIBUTIONS PROHIBITED.—No

20 part of the Fund shall be distributed on a per capita basis

21 to members of the Tribe.

22 (f) CONGRESSIONAL INTENT.—Nothing in this Act is

23 intended—

24 (1) to alter the trust responsibility of the

25 United States to the Tribe; or
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1 (2) to prohibit the Tribe from seeking addi2 tional authorization or appropriation of funds for

3 tribal programs or purposes.

4 SEC. 11. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.

5 (a) FEASIBILITY STUDIES.—There is authorized to

6 be appropriated to the Department of Interior, Bureau of

7 Reclamation, not to exceed $4,000,000 for the purpose of

8 conducting the Feasibility Studies authorized in section 7

9 (a) and (c) of this Act as follows:

10 (1) $1,000,000 in fiscal year 1999 to be divided

11 equally between the two studies.

12 (2) $3,000,000 in fiscal year 2000; $500,000

13 for the study authorized in section 7(a) and the bal14 ance for the study authorized in section 7(c).

15 (b) CHIPPEWA CREE FUND.—There is authorized to

16 be appropriated to the Department of the Interior, Bureau

17 of Indian Affairs, for the Chippewa Cree Fund, estab18 lished in section 10 of this Act, $21,000,000 as follows:

19 (1) TRIBAL COMPACT ADMINISTRATION AC20 COUNT.—For tribal compact administration assumed

21 by the Tribe under the Compact and this Act

22 $3,000,000 in fiscal year 1999.

23 (2) ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT ACCOUNT.—For

24 tribal economic development, $3,000,000, in fiscal

25 year 2000.
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1 (3) FUTURE WATER SUPPLY FACILITIES AC2 COUNT.—For the total Federal contribution to the

3 planning, design, construction, operation, mainte4 nance and rehabilitation of a future Reservation

5 water supply system, $15,000,000 as follows:

6 (A) $2,000,000 in fiscal year 1999.

7 (B) $5,000,000 in fiscal year 2000.

8 (C) $8,000,000 in fiscal year 2001.

9 (c) ON-RESERVATION WATER DEVELOPMENT.—

10 There is authorized to be appropriated to the Department

11 of the Interior, Bureau of Reclamation, $24,000,000 for

12 the construction of the on-Reservation water development

13 projects authorized by section 9 of this Act as follows:

14 (1) $13,000,000 in fiscal year 2000 for the

15 planning, design and construction of the Bonneau

16 Dam Enlargement. The Federal contribution is pro17 vided for the development of additional capacity in

18 Bonneau Reservoir for storage of water secured to

19 the Tribe under the Compact.

20 (2) $8,000,000 in fiscal year 2001 for: the

21 planning, design and construction of the East Fork

22 Dam and Reservoir enlargement ($4,000,000), of

23 the Brown’s Dam and Reservoir enlargement

24 ($2,000,000), and of the Towe Ponds enlargement

25 ($2,000,000).
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1 (3) $3,000,000 in fiscal year 2002 for the plan2 ning, design, and construction of such other water

3 resource developments as the Tribe, with the ap4 proval of the Secretary, from time to time may deem

5 appropriate or for the completion of the four

6 projects enumerated in subsections 11(c) (1) and (2)

7 of this Act.

8 (4) Any unexpended balance in the funds ap9 propriated under paragraphs (c)(1) and (c)(2) of

10 this section, after substantial completion of all of the

11 projects enumerated in sections 9(a) (1), (2), (3),

12 and (4) shall be available to the Tribe first for com13 pletion of the enumerated projects and then for

14 other water resource development projects under sec15 tion 9(a)(5).

16 (d) ADMINISTRATION COSTS.—There is authorized to

17 be appropriated to the Department of the Interior, Bureau

18 of Reclamation, in fiscal year 2000, $1,000,000 for its

19 costs of administration: Provided, That, if such costs ex20 ceed $1,000,000, the Bureau of Reclamation may use

21 funds authorized for appropriation under subsection (c)

22 of this section for such costs: Provided further, That the

23 Bureau of Reclamation shall exercise its best efforts to

24 minimize such costs to avoid exceeding $1,000,000.
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1 (e) AVAILABILITY OF FUNDS.—The monies author2 ized in section 11 (a) and (b)(1) shall be available for use

3 immediately upon appropriation. Those monies deposited

4 in the Chippewa Cree Fund accounts shall draw interest

5 consistent with section 10(a), but the monies appropriated

6 under section 11(b) (2) and (3), and 11(c) are not avail7 able for expenditure until completion of the requirements

8 of section 5(b) of this Act and execution of the waiver and

9 release required of section 13(c).

10 (f) WITHOUT FISCAL YEAR LIMITATION.—All money

11 appropriated pursuant to authorizations under this Act

12 shall be available without fiscal year limitation.

13 SEC. 12. STATE CONTRIBUTIONS TO SETTLEMENT.

14 Consistent with article VI.C.2. and C.3. of the Com15 pact, the State contribution to settlement shall be as fol16 lows:

17 (1) $150,000 for the following purposes: water

18 quality discharge monitoring wells and monitoring

19 program; diversion structure on Big Sandy Creek;

20 conveyance structure on Box Elder Creek; and pur21 chase of contract water from Lower Beaver Creek

22 Reservoir.

23 (2) Subject to the availability of funds, the

24 State shall provide services valued at $400,000 for
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1 administration required by the Compact and for

2 water quality sampling required by the Compact.

3 SEC. 13. MISCELLANEOUS PROVISIONS.

4 (a) NON-EXERCISE OF TRIBE’S RIGHTS.—The Tribe

5 shall not exercise the rights set forth in article VII(A)(3)

6 of the Compact.

7 (b) WAIVER OF SOVEREIGN IMMUNITY.—The United

8 States shall not be deemed to have waived its sovereign

9 immunity except to the extent provided in subsections (a),

10 (b), and (c) of section 208 of the Act of July 10, 1952

11 (43 U.S.C. 666).

12 (c) TRIBAL RELEASE OF CLAIMS AGAINST THE

13 UNITED STATES.—

14 (1) Upon passage of this Act, the Tribe shall

15 execute a waiver and release of the following claims

16 against the United States, the validity of which are

17 not recognized by the United States: Provided, That

18 the waiver and release of claims shall not be effec19 tive until completion of the appropriation of the

20 funds set forth in section 11 of this Act and comple21 tion of the requirements of section 5(b) of this Act.

22 (2) Any and all claims to water rights (includ23 ing water rights in surface water, groundwater, and

24 effluent), claims for injuries to water rights, claims

25 for loss or deprivation of use of water rights, and
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1 claims for failure to acquire or develop water rights

2 for lands of the Tribe from time immemorial to the

3 date of ratification of the Compact by Congress.

4 (3) Any and all claims arising out of the nego5 tiation of the Compact and the settlement author6 ized by this Act.

7 (4) In the event the waiver and release does not

8 become effective as set forth in subsection (c)(1), the

9 United States shall be entitled to set-off against any

10 claim for damages asserted by the Tribe against the

11 United States any funds transferred to the Tribe

12 pursuant to section 11 and any interest accrued

13 thereon up to the date of set-off, and the United

14 States shall retain any other claims or defenses not

15 waived in this Act or in the Compact as modified by

16 this Act.

17 (d) OTHER TRIBES NOT ADVERSELY AFFECTED.—

18 Nothing in this Act is intended to quantify or otherwise

19 adversely affect the land and water rights, or claims or

20 entitlements to land or water of an Indian Tribe other

21 than the Chippewa Cree Tribe.

22 (e) ENVIRONMENTAL COMPLIANCE.—In implement23 ing the Compact, the Secretary shall comply with all as24 pects of the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969

25 (42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.), and the Endangered Species Act
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1 (16 U.S.C. 1531 et seq.), and all other applicable environ2 mental acts and regulations.

3 (f) EXECUTION OF COMPACT.—Execution of the

4 Compact by the Secretary as provided for in this Act shall

5 not constitute a major Federal Action under the National

6 Environmental Policy Act (42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.). The

7 Secretary is directed to carry out all necessary environ8 mental compliance required by Federal law in implement9 ing this agreement.

10 (g) ACT NOT PRECEDENTIAL.—Nothing in this Act

11 shall be construed or interpreted as a precedent for the

12 litigation of reserved water rights or the interpretation or

13 administration of future water settlement acts.

Æ