114TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 2130 

AN ACT 

To provide legal certainty to property owners along the Red 

River in Texas, 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, 
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1 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

2 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Red River Private 

3 Property Protection Act’’. 

4 SEC. 2. DISCLAIMER AND OUTDATED SURVEYS. 

5 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary disclaims any 

6 right, title, and interest to the land located south of the 

7 South Bank boundary line in the affected area. 

8 (b) CLARIFICATION OF PRIOR SURVEYS.—Surveys 

9 conducted by the Bureau of Land Management before the 

10 date of the enactment of this Act shall have no force or 

11 effect in determining the South Bank boundary line. 

12 SEC. 3. SURVEY OF SOUTH BANK BOUNDARY LINE. 

13 (a) SURVEY REQUIRED.—To identify the South Bank 

14 boundary line in the affected area, the Secretary shall 

15 commission a survey. The survey shall— 

16 (1) adhere to the gradient boundary survey 

17 method; 

18 (2) span the entire length of the affected area; 

19 (3) be conducted by Licensed State Land Sur20 veyors chosen by the Texas General Land Office, in 

21 consultation with the Oklahoma Commissioners of 

22 the Land Office and each affected federally recog23 nized Indian tribe; 

24 (4) be completed not later than 2 years after 

25 the date of the enactment of this Act; and 
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1 (5) not be submitted to the Bureau of Land 

2 Management for approval. 

3 (b) APPROVAL OF THE SURVEY.—After the survey is 

4 completed, the Secretary shall submit the survey to be ap5 proved by the Texas General Land Office, in consultation 

6 with the Oklahoma Commissioners of the Land Office and 

7 each affected federally recognized Indian tribe. 

8 (c) SURVEYS OF INDIVIDUAL PARCELS.— 

9 (1) IN GENERAL.—Parcels surveyed as required 

10 by this section shall be surveyed and approved on an 

11 individual basis by the Texas General Land Office, 

12 in consultation with the Oklahoma Commissioners of 

13 the Land Office and each affected federally recog14 nized Indian tribe. 

15 (2) SURVEYS OF INDIVIDUAL PARCELS NOT

16 SUBMITTED TO THE BUREAU OF LAND MANAGE17 MENT.—Surveys of individual parcels shall not be 

18 submitted to the Bureau of Land Management for 

19 approval. 

20 (d) NOTICE.— 

21 (1) NOTIFICATION TO THE SECRETARY.—Not 

22 later than 30 days after a survey for a parcel is ap23 proved by the Texas General Land Office under sub24 section (c), such office shall provide to the Secretary 

25 the following: 
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1 (A) Notice of the approval of such survey. 

2 (B) A copy of such survey and field notes 

3 relating to such parcel. 

4 (2) NOTIFICATION TO ADJACENT LAND5 OWNERS.—Not later than 30 days after the date on 

6 which the Secretary receives notification relating to 

7 a parcel under paragraph (1), the Secretary shall 

8 provide to landowners adjacent to such parcel the 

9 following: 

10 (A) Notice of the approval of such survey. 

11 (B) A copy of such survey and field notes 

12 relating to such parcel. 

13 (C) Notice that the landowner may file an 

14 appeal and seek further judicial review under 

15 section 4. 

16 (D) Notice that the landowner may apply 

17 for a patent under section 5. 

18 (E) Any additional information considered 

19 appropriate by the Secretary. 

20 SEC. 4. APPEAL. 

21 (a) APPEAL TO ADMINISTRATIVE LAW JUDGE.—Not 

22 later than 1 year after the date on which a landowner re23 ceives notification under section 3(d)(2), a landowner who 

24 claims to hold right, title, or interest in the affected area 
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1 may appeal the determination of the survey to an adminis2 trative law judge of the Department of the Interior. 

3 (b) FURTHER JUDICIAL REVIEW.— 

4 (1) IN GENERAL.—A landowner who filed an 

5 appeal under subsection (a) and is adversely affected 

6 by the final decision may, not later than 120 days 

7 after the date of the final decision, file a civil action 

8 in the United States district court for the district— 

9 (A) in which the person resides; or 

10 (B) in which the affected area is located. 

11 (2) STANDARD OF REVIEW.—The district court 

12 may review the case de novo and may enter a judg13 ment enforcing, modifying, and enforcing as so 

14 modified, or setting aside in whole or in part, the de15 cision of the administrative law judge. 

16 SEC. 5. RED RIVER SURFACE RIGHTS. 

17 (a) NOTIFICATION OF APPLICATION PERIOD FOR

18 PATENTS.— 

19 (1) IN GENERAL.—On the date that is 18 

20 months after the date on which the Secretary re21 ceives notification relating to a parcel under section 

22 3(d)(1), the Secretary shall determine whether such 

23 parcel is subject to appeal or further judicial review. 

24 (2) PARCEL NOT SUBJECT TO APPEAL OR JUDI25 CIAL REVIEW.—Not later than 30 days after the 
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1 date on which the Secretary determines a parcel is 

2 not subject to appeal or judicial review, the Sec3 retary shall— 

4 (A) notify federally recognized Indian 

5 tribes with jurisdiction over lands adjacent to 

6 such parcel that the Secretary shall accept ap7 plications for patents for that parcel under sub8 section (b) for a period of 210 days; and 

9 (B) begin accepting applications for pat10 ents for that parcel under subsection (b) for a 

11 period of 210 days. 

12 (3) PARCEL SUBJECT TO APPEAL OR JUDICIAL

13 REVIEW.—If the Secretary determines a parcel is 

14 subject to appeal or further judicial review, the Sec15 retary shall, not less than once every 6 months, 

16 check the status of the appeals or judicial reviews 

17 relating to such parcel, until the Secretary deter18 mines such parcel is not subject to appeal or further 

19 judicial review. 

20 (b) PATENTS FOR LANDS IN THE AFFECTED

21 AREA.—If the Secretary receives an application for a pat22 ent for a parcel of identified Federal lands during the pe23 riod for applications for such parcel under subsection 

24 (a)(2)(B) and determines that the parcel has been held 

25 in good faith and in peaceful adverse possession by an ap-
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1 plicant, or the ancestors or grantors of such applicant, for 

2 more than 20 years under claim (including through a 

3 State land grant), the Secretary may issue a patent for 

4 the surface rights to such parcel to the applicant, on the 

5 payment of fair market value per acre, if the patent in6 cludes the following conditions: 

7 (1) All minerals contained in the parcel are re8 served to the United States and subject to sale or 

9 disposal by the United States under applicable leas10 ing and mineral land laws. 

11 (2) Permittees, lessees, or grantees of the 

12 United States have the right to enter the parcel for 

13 the purpose of prospecting for and mining deposits. 

14 (c) PENDING REQUESTS FOR PATENTS.—The Sec15 retary shall not offer a parcel of identified Federal land 

16 for purchase under section 6 if a patent request for that 

17 parcel is pending under this section. 

18 SEC. 6. RIGHT OF REFUSAL AND COMPETITIVE SALE. 

19 (a) RIGHT OF REFUSAL.— 

20 (1) OFFERS TO PURCHASE.—After the expira21 tion of the period for applications under section 

22 5(a)(2)(B), the Secretary shall offer for purchase for 

23 a period of 60 days for each right of refusal— 
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1 (A) the surface rights to the remaining 

2 identified Federal lands located north of the 

3 vegetation line of the South Bank to— 

4 (i) the federally recognized Indian 

5 tribes holding reservation or allotment land 

6 on June 5, 1906, with the first right of re7 fusal; 

8 (ii) the adjacent owner of land located 

9 in Oklahoma to the north with the second 

10 right of refusal; 

11 (iii) if applicable, the adjacent owner 

12 of land located in Texas to the south with 

13 the third right of refusal; 

14 (iv) if applicable, the adjacent owner 

15 of land located to the east with the fourth 

16 right of refusal; and 

17 (v) if applicable, the adjacent owner of 

18 land located to the west with the fifth right 

19 of refusal; and 

20 (B) the surface rights to the remaining 

21 identified Federal lands located south of the 

22 vegetation line of the South Bank to— 

23 (i) the federally recognized Indian 

24 tribes holding reservation or allotment land 
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1 on June 5, 1906, with the first right of re2 fusal; 

3 (ii) the adjacent owner of land located 

4 in Texas to the south with the second right 

5 of refusal; 

6 (iii) if applicable, the adjacent owner 

7 of land located in Oklahoma to the north 

8 with the third right of refusal; 

9 (iv) if applicable, the adjacent owner 

10 of land located to the east with the fourth 

11 right of refusal; and 

12 (v) if applicable, the adjacent owner of 

13 land located to the west with the fifth right 

14 of refusal. 

15 (2) REMAINING IDENTIFIED FEDERAL LANDS

16 DEFINED.—In this subsection, the term ‘‘remaining 

17 identified Federal lands’’ means any parcel of identi18 fied Federal lands— 

19 (A) not subject to appeal or further judi20 cial review under section 4; 

21 (B) not determined by an administrative 

22 law judge of the Department of the Interior or 

23 a Federal court to be the property of an adja24 cent landowner; and 
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1 (C) not patented or subject to a pending 

2 request for a patent under section 5. 

3 (b) DISPOSAL BY COMPETITIVE SALE.—If a parcel 

4 offered under subsection (a) is not purchased, the Sec5 retary shall offer the parcel for disposal by competitive 

6 sale for not less than fair market value as determined by 

7 an appraisal conducted in accordance with nationally rec8 ognized appraisal standards, including the Uniform Ap9 praisal Standards for Federal Land Acquisitions and the 

10 Uniform Standards of Professional Appraisal Practice. 

11 (c) CONDITIONS OF SALE.—The sale of a parcel 

12 under this section shall be subject to— 

13 (1) the condition that all minerals contained in 

14 the parcel are reserved to the United States and 

15 subject to sale or disposal by the United States 

16 under applicable leasing and mineral land laws; 

17 (2) the condition that permittees, lessees, or 

18 grantees of the United States have the right to enter 

19 the parcel for the purpose of prospecting for and 

20 mining deposits; and 

21 (3) valid existing State, tribal, and local rights. 

22 (d) REPORT.—Not later than 5 years after the date 

23 on which the survey is approved, the Secretary shall sub24 mit to the Committee on Natural Resources of the House 

25 of Representatives and the Committee on Energy and 
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1 Natural Resources of the Senate a list of the parcels of 

2 identified Federal lands that have not been sold under 

3 subsection (b) and a description of the reasons such par4 cels were not sold. 

5 SEC. 7. RESOURCE MANAGEMENT PLAN. 

6 The Secretary may not treat a parcel of identified 

7 Federal lands as Federal land for the purposes of a re8 source management plan if the treatment of such parcel 

9 does not comply with the provisions of this Act. 

10 SEC. 8. CONSTRUCTION. 

11 (a) LANDS LOCATED NORTH OF THE SOUTH BANK

12 BOUNDARY LINE.—Nothing in this Act shall be construed 

13 to modify the interest of Texas or Oklahoma or sov14 ereignty rights of any federally recognized Indian tribe 

15 over lands located to the north of the South Bank bound16 ary line as established by the survey. 

17 (b) PATENTS UNDER THE COLOR OF TITLE ACT.— 

18 Nothing in this Act shall be construed to modify land pat19 ented under the Act of December 22, 1928 (Public Law 

20 70–645; 45 Stat. 1069; 43 U.S.C. 1068; commonly known 

21 as the Color of Title Act), before the date of the enactment 

22 of this Act. 

23 (c) RED RIVER BOUNDARY COMPACT.—Nothing in 

24 this Act shall be construed to modify the Red River 

25 Boundary Compact as enacted by the States of Texas and 
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1 Oklahoma and consented to by the United States Congress 

2 by Public Law 106–288 (114 Stat. 919). 

3 (d) TRIBAL ALLOTMENTS.—Nothing in this Act shall 

4 be construed to alter the present median line of the Red 

5 River as it relates to the surface or mineral interests of 

6 tribal allottees north of the present median line. 

7 (e) TRIBAL RESERVATIONS.—Nothing in this Act 

8 shall be construed to create or reinstate a tribal reserva9 tion or any portion of a tribal reservation. 

10 (f) TRIBAL MINERAL INTERESTS.—Nothing in this 

11 Act shall be construed to alter the valid rights of the 

12 Kiowa, Comanche, and Apache Nations to the mineral in13 terest trust fund created pursuant to the Act of June 12, 

14 1926. 

15 SEC. 9. DEFINITIONS. 

16 In this Act: 

17 (1) AFFECTED AREA.—The term ‘‘affected 

18 area’’ means lands along the approximately 116-mile 

19 stretch of the Red River from its confluence with the 

20 North Fork of the Red River on the west to the 

21 98th meridian on the east between the States of 

22 Texas and Oklahoma. 

23 (2) GRADIENT BOUNDARY SURVEY METHOD.— 

24 The term ‘‘gradient boundary survey method’’ 

25 means the measurement technique used to locate the 
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1 South Bank boundary line under the methodology 

2 established in Oklahoma v. Texas, 261 U.S. 340 

3 (1923) (recognizing that the boundary line between 

4 the States of Texas and Oklahoma along the Red 

5 River is subject to change due to erosion and accre6 tion). 

7 (3) IDENTIFIED FEDERAL LANDS.—The term 

8 ‘‘identified Federal lands’’ means the lands in the 

9 affected area from the South Bank boundary line 

10 north to the medial line of the Red River as identi11 fied pursuant to this Act. 

12 (4) SECRETARY.—The term ‘‘Secretary’’ means 

13 the Secretary of the Interior, acting through the Di14 rector of the Bureau of Land Management. 

15 (5) SOUTH BANK.—The term ‘‘South Bank’’ 

16 means the water-washed and relatively permanent 

17 elevation or acclivity, commonly called a cut bank, 

18 along the southerly or right side of the Red River 

19 which separates its bed from the adjacent upland, 

20 whether valley or hill, and usually serves to confine 

21 the waters within the bed and to preserve the course 

22 of the river (as specified in the fifth paragraph of 

23 Oklahoma v. Texas, 261 U.S. 340 (1923)). 

24 (6) SOUTH BANK BOUNDARY LINE.—The term 

25 ‘‘South Bank boundary line’’ means the boundary 
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1 between Texas and Oklahoma identified through the 

2 gradient boundary survey method (as specified in 

3 the sixth and seventh paragraphs of Oklahoma v. 

4 Texas, 261 U.S. 340 (1923)). 

5 (7) SURVEY.—The term ‘‘survey’’ means the 

6 survey required by section 3(a). 

7 (8) VEGETATION LINE.—The term ‘‘vegetation 

8 line’’ means the visually identifiable continuous line 

9 of vegetation that is adjacent to the portion of the 

10 riverbed kept practically bare of vegetation by the 

11 natural flow of the river and is continuous with the 

12 vegetation beyond the riverbed. 

Passed the House of Representatives December 9, 

2015. 

Attest: 

Clerk. 

114TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 2130 

AN ACT 

To provide legal certainty to property owners along 

the Red River in Texas, and for other purposes.